Monday, August 17, 2009 NAZRAN: A suicide bomber exploded a truck at a police station in Russia's restive North Caucasus Monday, killing at least 12 people and wounding nearly 60 others, officials said. The attacker rammed the gates of the local police headquarters in the city of Nazran in Ingushetia and detonated his explosives as police officers lined up for a morning check, said Kaloi Akhilgov, a spokesman for the regional president.At least 12 people were killed and 58 were wounded, said SvetlanaGorbakova of the regional branch of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Prosecutor General's office. She said there were at least nine children among the wounded. The attacker and the truck, which carried at least 44 pounds (20kilograms) of explosives, were pulverized by the blast, Gorbakova said. The police building was on fire and nearby apartment buildings were badly damaged.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
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