UN to decide on seabed claims

ILULISSAT - Five Arctic coastal nations agreed yesterday to let the United Nations rule on conflicting territorial claims on the region's seabed, which may hold up to one-fourth of the world's undiscovered hydrocarbon reserves. "We affirmed our commitment to the orderly settlement of any possible overlapping claims," Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte said. Ministers from Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia, and the United States met in Greenland for a two-day summit to discuss sovereignty over the Arctic Ocean seabed. (Reuters)

FREETOWN - A UN-backed war crimes court yesterday more than doubled the prison terms for two former militia leaders convicted of overseeing hundreds of killings and mutilations during Sierra Leone's 11-year war. An earlier ruling sentencing Moinina Fofana to six years and Allieu Kondewa to eight years was far too light, the judges ruled. Fofana's term was increased to 15 years, Kondewa's to 20. The two men were leaders of the pro-government Civil Defense Forces, or CDF, which used a network of tribal-based hunters known as the Kamajors to fight various rebel groups during Sierra Leone's 1991-2002 war. (AP)

STOCKHOLM - Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of Iraq is expected to push for debt relief and demand that some countries cancel debt and war compensation dating to Saddam Hussein's regime when he addresses a UN conference today. Maliki and several of his Cabinet ministers arrived in Stockholm amid tight security on the eve of the 500-delegate meeting that will review the political and security progress in Iraq. Finance Minister Bayan Jabr said the demand was particularly aimed at Arab countries. Iraq has at least $67 billion in foreign debt - most of it owed to fellow Arab countries Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. (AP)