Staff Editor

AMMAN,  (Reuters) – Rebels shot down a Syrian helicopter gunship that was firing on the Damascus neighbourhood of Jobar during heavy fighting today between rebels and the military, witnesses said.

JOHANNESBURG,  (Reuters) – Violence has spread to the eastern operations of world No.

(Trinidad Express) Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar acted swiftly last night when she fired Collin Partap as Minister in the Ministry of National Security, rendering him a backbencher, the first and so far only one on the Government’s bench in the Parliament.

NASSAU,  (Reuters) – More than 150 illegal Haitian migrants are in custody in the Bahamas, after their sail boat ran aground on Andros islands during stormy seas, officials said yesterday.

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad,  CMC – Hosts Trinidad and Tobago won a tense final to claim the men’s team title while Barbados dominated to lift the women’s crown, on the final day of the 20th annual Caribbean Squash Championships here yesterday.

(Jamaica Gleaner) A Westmoreland woman is in custody after she bludgeoned her common-law husband at their home in Bluefields in the parish.

BIRMINGHAM, England, , CMC – Jamaicans Nickel Ashmeade, Rosemarie Whyte and Kaliese Spencer took victories but compatriot Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce played second fiddle again to American Carmelita Jeter at the Birmingham Grand Prix here today.

Gold declarations are currently 33 percent higher than last year, Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment Robert Persaud disclosed during an appreciation ceremony last week for key players in the mining sector.

ALEPPO, Syria,  (Reuters) – Syrian opposition activists accused President Bashar al-Assad’s army today of massacring hundreds of people in a town close to the capital that government forces recaptured from rebels.

(ICC) Unmukt Chand became only the third batsman in history to score a century in an ICC U19 Cricket World Cup final as India defeated Australia by six wickets at Tony Ireland Stadium here in Townsville today.

(Trinidad Guardian)A stainless steel two-unit toilet purchased for TT$1 million by the former administration of the Tunapuna Piarco Regional Corporation (TPRC) is now up for sale.

(Trinidad Guardian) Mega farms in central Trinidad are under siege by thieves.

HAVANA,  (Reuters) – Tropical Storm Isaac, back over warm ocean waters, lashed Cuba with winds and rain as it swept toward the Florida Keys, where it was expected to strike at or near hurricane strength today.

The police say they are investigating a fatal accident that occurred at about 2215h last night on the Bath Village Public Road, Mahaicony, ECD, and which resulted in the death of pedestrian Benjamin, 44 years, of Supply, Mahaica, ECD.

(Jamaica Observer) Nigerian actress Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, has thrown out a challenge to Hollywood filmmakers to visit Africa and discover great stories.

(Barbados Nation) With a backlog of over 3 000 court cases, Chief Justice Marston Gibson believes that alternative dispute resolution (ADR) may be the only solution to this long-standing judicial ailment.

(Trinidad Express) National Security Minister Jack Warner is holding discussions with the Chookolingo Group with a view to acquiring its shares in the TnT Mirror and potentially, its shareholding in the Newsday newspapers as well.

(Trinidad Express) Officers of the Port of Spain Division are bracing themselves for bloodshed in the Laventille area after an 11-year-old boy was shot and killed a stone’s throw away from his home early yesterday morning.

(Trinidad Express) Four dollars. That was the quantity of money Nathaniel “Tanny” Baggy’s killer refused to pay for a doubles he had eaten.

PORT-AU-PRINCE,  (Reuters) – Tropical Storm Isaac dumped torrential rains on Haiti and flattened tent camps housing survivors of a devastating earthquake, then began an assault on eastern Cuba today.