In Short

A round-up of today's other stories in brief.

American Airlines cancels 1,000 flights

US - American Airlines, the world's largest carrier, cancelled at least 1,000 flights yesterday to reinspect jets grounded two weeks ago for checks on wiring. An estimated 110,000 travellers were left stranded.

The airline parked its 300 Boeing MD-80 jets for another review of their compliance with a federal safety order. American said it would have "significant" costs from the groundings.

The cancellations followed 460 from Tuesday and affected more than 45 per cent of American's flights, excluding its regional partners. - (Bloomberg)

Gunmen kill two Israelis civilians

NAHAL OZ - Palestinian gunmen yesterday attacked an Israeli-controlled border crossing where fuel is piped into the Gaza Strip, killing two Israeli civilians, the Israeli army said.

Repelling the attack on the Nahal Oz terminal, Israeli troops backed by tanks killed two Palestinian militants and two civilians just within the Gaza frontier, Palestinian medics said. Another gunman died in an air strike near Gaza City. - (Reuters)

Al-Qaeda planner believed dead

WASHINGTON - Al-Qaeda planner Abu Obaidah al-Masri, a main suspect in the 2005 London tube and bus bombings and a foiled 2006 plot to blow up passenger aircraft, is believed dead from natural causes, US and British officials said yesterday.

"There is compelling reason to believe that Abu Obaidah is dead," a US counterterrorism official said on condition of anonymity. McClatchy newspapers reported that Masri died of hepatitis in Pakistan. - (Reuters)

© 2008 The Irish Times

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times