Sunday, July 22 in the news....
- Burj Dubai, a tower under construction in the United Arab Emirates' trade hub, became the tallest building in the world on Saturday, measuring 512.1 meters (1,680 ft), its developer said. Local Arabs were awaiting the most exciting part, knocking it down.
- The seventh and final Harry Potter book flew off the shelves on Saturday as fans the world over snapped up copies to discover the fate of the boy wizard. When local British fans of Harry were asked what they thought his fate would be, they said it probably wouldn't be known until he's finished his tour of duty in Afghanistan.
- President George W. Bush said on Saturday he was troubled by a U.S. intelligence report that al Qaeda has become entrenched in a safe haven in Pakistan's tribal region near Afghanistan. Apparently a whole district has flashing al Qaeda neon signs at night and bustling streets lined with roadside billboards of Bin Laden and Zawahiri by day.
- Violent thunderstorms have driven seven distressed kangaroos to death at a Mexican zoo. The deaths have zookeepers wondering if the marsupials should remain, with the habitat appearing to have contributed to the deaths. The kangaroos are a popular exhibit with local drug cartels.
- During a Friday book signing in Washington, D.C., one of former Vice President Gore's daughters said that her father was not going to make a 2008 White House run. Meanwhile, Al Gore's son said he'd run for President, but his claims were dismissed because he was high on drugs.
- Three people were killed and around 50 others wounded in Baghdad on Saturday when soccer-loving Iraqis fired weapons into the air to celebrate their team's quarter-final victory over Vietnam in the Asian Cup. President Bush promised more troops to quell the violence.
- German authorities believe Al Qaeda is targeting Germany for possible attacks and that German Islamists have been traveling to Pakistan for "terrorist training", a top security official told a newspaper. The signs are worrying as German Islamists are notably more efficient and effective than their other European Islamist brethren.
- India elected its first female president on Saturday, early results showed, in what supporters called a groundbreaking progressive move for the country. It is being ranked next to embracing a sixteen-armed elephant as a god.
