MUMBAI, India (CNN) -- On Sunday night, Azharuddin Ismail and Rubina Ali were in Hollywood, California, getting celebrity treatment as eight Oscars were awarded to the movie they starred in, "Slumdog Millionaire."

Rubina Ali, who starred in "Slumdog Millionaire," is greeted by crowds in Mumbai, India, on Thursday.

Thursday night, the two children were sleeping at home in Mumbai, India. Azharuddin sleeps under a plastic sheet in a shantytown beside a railway track, where the smell of urine and cow dung lingers in the air. Rubina sleeps with her parents and siblings in a tiny shack beside an open drain.

The slum they live in put on a Bollywood-style welcome for the two young stars. There were music, dancing, sweets, garlands, security -- tears and tantrums -- and paparazzi.

Mumbai's Garib Nagar area, which translates literally into "poor district," put on a robust show for two of its own.  Watch the children get happy, chaotic reception Â»

Rubina and Azharuddin have lived in a Mumbai slum all their lives. They were handpicked by the producers of "Slumdog Millionaire" for parts in the movie, which tells the rags-to-riches tale of a young boy who grew up in a Mumbai slum.

Following the film's spectacular success around the world, the producers decided to include the two young actors in the movie's Oscar experience.

The children made their first journey on a plane when they were flown to Los Angeles, California, to attend the awards ceremony. "The plane was so big," said Rubina. "I'd only seen [planes] in the sky earlier and it used to look so small."

"America was just fantastic," Rubina gushed, visibly excited after she made a dramatic entry into the slum on her father's shoulders on Thursday afternoon. "I was so excited to be on stage at the Oscars. Everyone was crying."

Red-carpet formalities done, the children were given a whirlwind tour of Los Angeles. The highlight -- a trip to Disneyland. "I loved all the rides, especially the fast ones," said Rubina.

The trip to the United States did have some drawbacks though. "The food is different over there," said Rubina. " I didn't like it. I missed Indian food."

They'll have plenty of that now that they're back home. The first thing Azharuddin did when he returned to Garib Nagar was to dig into a plate of biryani, a traditional Indian meal of meat and rice, at a restaurant. His mother, who accompanied him to Los Angeles, spoke to reporters at home -- a makeshift shelter under a tree, with a torn plastic sheet for a roof.  See where the children live Â»

She said she hoped the "Slumdog Millionaire" experience would change things. "It would be nice to get a proper home." She says she has heard rumors the government may provide her family with one, but no one has confirmed any plans for a new home. "I've been praying for a new home for so long. It's all up to Allah now."

Returning to their slum, Azharuddin and Rubina were excited -- and exhausted -- by media attention that was sometimes a little overwhelming. Azharuddin burst into tears while eating lunch, leaving his biryani unfinished, his every move caught on camera.

Hoping to secure a future for Azharuddin and Rubina, the film's producers have enrolled them in a school and set up a trust fund to ensure their welfare.

"We thought long and hard about how best can we benefit them and we decided to put in place an education plan for them," said Danny Boyle, the movie's director. iReport.com: One iReporter's personal 'slumdog' experience

"We put them in school, a very good school, which they're paid for to stay in until they're 18. If they stay in school until they're 18, a substantial sum of money is released to them then

Where did the child actors who attended the cermony return home to?

What is the name of the film that won eight Academy Awards?

Who else was in the movie alongside Rubina Ali?

How many Academy Awards did "Slumdog Millionaire" win?

Answer: Mumbai, India.

Answer: "America was just fantastic,"

Answer: Mumbai, India.

Answer: "Slumdog Millionaire."

Answer: "The food

Answer: Danny Boyle,

Answer: "Slumdog Millionaire."

Answer: Azharuddin Ismail and Rubina Ali

Answer: Azharuddin Ismail

Answer: eight Oscars

Summary:
"Slumdog Millionaire" won eight Academy Awards in Hollywood on Sunday .
Child actors who attended Oscars ceremony return home to India .
Rubina Ali and Azharuddin Ismail greeted by crowds, celebration, paparazzi .
Rubina says she loved Disneyland rides, but didn't like American food .


MUMBAI, India (CNN) -- Shweta Gupta knows exactly what kind of groom she wants: he should be educated, well settled and live in a good location --- one that must be in India. Indian brides and grooms from the Adivasi tribe take part in a mass marriage ceremony. Love may be recession proof in India, but arranged marriages are not. One of the casualties of the global economic slowdown is the Non Resident Indian (NRI) groom. They were once considered premium marriage material. After all, these were the men who had typically studied hard, gotten top jobs in the West, earned big bucks and could whisk their wives away to better opportunities in the West. Not anymore. "Yeah, I hate to say it but the NRI man seems to be out of favor with the Indian woman," said Gaurav Rakshit of Shaadi.com, a matrimonial search engine used by 14 million people globally. He has seen demand for NRI grooms drop by around 20 to 30 percent since the recession hit. Why? Shweta Gupta, a 23-year-old student, has an answer. "Many Indians working abroad have come back due to recession hitting foreign countries and I don't think recession has affected India that much," said said. She believes there is greater job security in India, so would prefer her husband to be based here. Her mother, who is involved in finding a suitable man for her daughter, agreed. "Suppose there is no job security, then again he would have to come to India, then again he would have to find a job for himself, so I would prefer both of them to be here. Plus, I want my daughter to be close to me," said Shraddha Gupta. Arranged marriages are still the norm in India and parents play an active role in choosing a life partner for their children. Traditionally, parents will let friends know that they are on the lookout for a partner for their child. Sometimes, they go to a marriage broker -- a middleman who keeps a stash of resumes and photos of eligible men and women whose families have registered with them. As Indians get more tech savvy, more people are taking their search for partners online. Matrimonial Web sites are popular since they offer a much bigger pool of potential life partners. Shweta Gupta is currently pursuing an MBA in Mumbai and is confident of getting good job offers in India --- another reason she would not want to risk that by going abroad. "As the woman finds her voice in Indian society, a part of the trend is defined by her unwillingness to compromise on where she grew up, the kind of person she wants to be with, the value system she wants to associate with," Rakshit said. Women in India are comfortable with the opportunities they have at home and don't feel they need to go abroad to have a better life. As a result, NRI men are out. So, who is in? Well, government employees, who are typically thought to hold more stable jobs. Shaadi.com said demand was up around 45 percent since last year for men with these jobs. Also in favor now: working wives --- a departure from the tradition of Indian men choosing only homemakers. Anish Sapra, 27, has been looking for a bride for around ten months --- and he wants a working woman. "It will be a help -- more than a help -- to have a working partner," he said. "Not just for financial reasons," he added noting that he believes he would have more in common with such a wife. A wife with a job could help pay off some of the wedding bills, too. Indian marriages are typically large and flamboyant affairs, though the slowdown means they are somewhat subdued these days. That is one tradition Shweta Gupta won't give up. She is holding out for a grand wedding with lots of singing and dancing -- she just has to find Mr. Right. "My marriage should be fun, it should be remembered by all people,

Arranged marriages are still the norm in which country?

What kind of marriages are still norm in India?

What are women in India more comfortabe with?

Who was considered good marriage material to Indian families?

Who are more comfortable today with opportunites at home?

who was typically good marriage material?

Who are sought as good marriage material/

Answer: India

Answer: Arranged

Answer: Arranged marriages

Answer: the opportunities they have at home and don't feel they need to go abroad to have a better life.

Answer: (NRI) groom.

Answer: Women in India

Answer: Arranged marriages

Answer: recession

Answer: Arranged marriages

Answer: Arranged marriages

Answer: One of the casualties of the global economic slowdown is the Non Resident Indian (NRI) groom. They were once considered premium

Answer: government employees,

Summary:
Arranged marriages are still the norm in India .
Typically families sought Indians working overseas as good marriage material .
With recession hitting the West hard, Indians are looking inward for suitors .
Women in India are more comfortable today with the opportunities they have at home .


MUMBAI, India (CNN) -- The lawyer for the main suspect in last year's deadly terrorist attack in Mumbai was removed Wednesday, delaying the high-profile trial that was set to begin.

Soldiers patrol in Mumbai on the eve of the trial of a key suspect in last year's attacks in the Indian city.

The trial start for Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, 21, is expected to be moved to Thursday as officials scramble to settle the lawyer issue. Kasab is thought to be the only one of 10 gunmen to survive the three-day siege, which killed more than 160 people in November.

As the trial was to begin, the judge removed attorney Anjali Waghmare because she also was representing a witness in the case. Waghmare argued that she had no idea that the person was a witness in the terror case, and she was representing this person in a different case. But the judge declared that it was a conflict of interest.

An Indian court appointed Waghmare two weeks ago to represent Kasab, and it was unclear who would replace her.

Kasab demanded that his attorney be replaced with a Pakistani lawyer. But the judge denied that request and said that a Pakistani lawyer may be able to be brought in as a consultant from outside the courtroom.

Kasab, a Pakistani national, faces more than a dozen charges, including murder, conspiracy to wage a war against the nation and terrorism.

During the proceedings Wednesday Kasab seemed relaxed and smiled many time at the large crowd of journalists in the courtroom. Kasab also requested newspapers to be brought in so that he could see what the media was writing about him.

Prosecutors last month accused him of trying to delay the trial by insisting that the 11,000-page document detailing the charges against him -- which was written in English and the local Marathi language -- be translated into Urdu, the official language of Pakistan. The court rejected his request.

Wednesday's trial was to take place in a makeshift court set up in a jail where Kasab -- who has been communicating with the judge via videolink -- is being held.

Indian authorities have long blamed the Mumbai attacks on Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, a Pakistan-based militant outfit, but the group has denied responsibility. The violence initially heightened tensions between the two nuclear states.

India has urged Pakistan to destroy what it calls terrorist infrastructure in that country. The two nations are longtime rivals that have fought three wars since their independence from the British, and conducted countering nuclear weapons tests in 1998.

CNN's Sara Sidner contributed to this report.

what age is Mohammed Ajmal Kasab
What is the age of the accused?
when will the trial start
In what month did the attacks occur?
How many victims?
Will Kasab be charged ?
What day does the trial start?
Who does the lawyer represent?
Who is being accused?
What month was the siege in?
When was the trial due to start?
When did the siege take place ?

Answer: 21,

Answer: 21,

Answer: Thursday

Answer: November.

Answer: 160

Answer: faces more than a dozen charges, including murder, conspiracy to wage a war against the nation and terrorism.

Answer: Thursday

Answer: Mohammed Ajmal Kasab,

Answer: Mohammed Ajmal Kasab,

Answer: November.

Answer: Wednesday,

Answer: November.

Summary:
Main suspect's lawyer removed as she represents a witness in the case .
Trial was to start Wednesday, unclear when court proceedings will resume .
Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, 21, is accused of being the only gunmen to survive siege .
The November siege targeted victims at Mumbai hotels, hospitals, railway stations .


MUMBAI, India (Reuters) -- A newborn Indian baby found abandoned with 26 stab wounds has survived, doctors said on Wednesday, despite a cracked skull and exposed intestines. The baby boy, who doctors said was aged between one and two days, was discovered soaked in blood at a garbage dump in India's financial capital of Mumbai on Tuesday, they said. His intestines were hanging out from a deep wound on his back and he had dirt and garbage stuck on him. "When he was brought in he looked pale from blood loss," said Ramesh Hatti, a doctor at a city hospital. "He is still in a lot of pain but is now stable." Police have not been able to trace the baby's parents or establish a reason for the attack. Babies are sometimes abandoned by unwed Indian mothers, who fear severe social repercussions for having a child out of wedlock. E-mail to a friend

How many stab wounds did the baby suffer?

Answer: A newborn Indian baby

Answer: cracked skull

Answer: 26

Answer: newborn Indian baby found abandoned with 26 stab wounds has survived,

Answer: between one and two

Summary:
A newborn Indian baby found abandoned with 26 stab wounds has survived .
The baby boy also suffered a cracked skull and exposed intestines .
Doctors said he was aged between one and two days .
Babies are sometimes abandoned by unwed Indian mothers .


MUNICH, Germany (CNN) -- Alleged Nazi camp guard John Demjanjuk had no choice but to bring Jews to their deaths in extermination camps, Demjanjuk's defense argued Monday as his long-awaited trial got under way.

Demjanjuk, 89, faces charges of being an accessory to about 27,900 murders during World War II.

But his defense attorney, Ulrich Busch, said Monday the court was imposing a "moral and judicial double standard."

The retired auto worker from Cleveland, Ohio -- a native Ukrainian -- was a prisoner of war during the conflict, and would have been killed had he not done what the Nazis ordered, the defense team argued.

The defense line that Demjanjuk was forced to help the Nazis represents a change for the defendant, who has denied in the past that he was a camp guard.

The guards forced to help the Nazis were "victims, not culprits -- survivors, not murderers," defense lawyer Busch said.

Higher-ranking German SS officers in a similar situation have been found not guilty of war crimes, the defense argued.

The Munich state prosecutor brought the charges against Demjanjuk for his alleged role at the Sobibor death camp in Poland, where the Nazis and their accessories killed at least 167,000 people, according to the U.S Holocaust Memorial Museum.

About 30 relatives of victims have joined the prosecution case. In Germany it is possible for the families to join the prosecution case as co-plaintiffs, representing named individuals who died in the death camps.

If Demjanjuk is found guilty, it will not be only for 27,900 anonymous murders, but for the murders of victims specifically named by the co-plantiffs.

There are very few remaining survivors of Sobibor.

Demjanjuk's defenders say he was a Soviet prisoner of war at the Trawniki camp, where Nazis trained prisoners to assist with the extermination of about 2 million Jews in occupied Poland. Those prisoners of war had no choice but to assist, the defense said.

Demjanjuk was brought into the court in a wheelchair, accompanied by medical personnel and a German-Ukrainian translator. He did not speak in the opening phase of the trial, and had his eyes shut most of the time.

The trial is expected to last until May of next year.

He was deported in May from the United States to Germany.

The German court originally accused him of complicity in about 29,000 murders. The prosecutor's office said it revised the number because some of those who had allegedly died in the camp when Demjanjuk was there were already dead during the transport to Sobibor.

Demjanjuk lost a U.S. Supreme Court case against his deportation. His lawyers had asked the high court to consider their claims that he was too ill and frail to be sent overseas. They also raised human rights and other legal issues.

The Munich State Court ruled earlier this year he was fit to stand trial.

But doctors have restricted the time he can be tried each day to two sessions of 90 minutes each, said Anton Winkler, Munich state prosecutor.

The accusations against Demjanjuk date to the late 1970s, when the U.S. Justice Department accused him of being a Nazi guard known as "Ivan the Terrible." His U.S. citizenship was revoked in 1981, and he was extradited to Israel in 1986.

Demjanjuk was convicted in an Israeli court in 1988 and sentenced to death, but that conviction was overturned in 1993 amid evidence that someone else was "Ivan the Terrible."

A federal court restored Demjanjuk's citizenship, ruling the government withheld evidence supporting his case.

But his citizenship was revoked again in 2002 after a federal judge ruled his 1952 entry into the United States was illegal because he hid his past as a Nazi guard.

CNN's Diana Magnay contributed to this report.

what does he say he was during the conflict?

He says he was a prisoner of war, not  what?

what does he say he was not during the conflict?

Answer: Alleged Nazi camp guard

Answer: he was too ill and frail to be sent overseas.

Answer: prisoner of war

Answer: camp guard.

Answer: John Demjanjuk

Answer: a camp guard.

Summary:
Demjanjuk, a retired autoworker from Ohio, denies any role in the Holocaust .
He says he was a prisoner of war during conflict, not a camp guard .
Demjanjuk, 89, moved to Germany after losing legal fight against deportation .


MUNICH, Germany (CNN) -- Juliane Koepcke is not someone you'd expect to attract attention. Plainly dressed and wearing prescription glasses, Koepcke sits behind her desk at the Zoological Center in Munich, Germany, where she's a librarian. Juliane Koepcke fell more than 3kms after the plane in which she was traveling broke up in midair. Yet this unassuming middle aged woman has one of the most exciting and unbelievable stories of tragedy and survival to tell. It was Christmas Eve, 1971, when Koepcke, then aged 17, and her mother boarded a Lockheed Electra turboprop for a flight from Lima, Peru, to Pucallpa in the Amazonian rainforest. Her parents, both famous zoologists, ran a research station in the jungle studying wildlife. The airline, LANSA, had already lost two aircraft in previous crashes. "We knew the airline had a bad reputation," Koepcke told CNN, "but we desperately wanted to be with my father for Christmas, so we figured it would be alright." The flight was supposed to last for less than an hour and for the first 25 minutes everything was fine, Koepcke recalled. "Then we flew into heavy clouds and the plane started shaking. My mother was very nervous. Then to the right we saw a bright flash and the plane went into a nose dive. My mother said, 'This is it!'" An accident investigation later found that one of the fuel tanks of the Lockheed Electra had been hit by a bolt of lightning which had torn the right wing off. "We were headed straight down. Christmas presents were flying around the cabin and I could hear people screaming."  Watch Koepcke tell her dramatic survivor's story » As the plane broke into pieces in midair, Koepcke was thrust out into the open air: "Suddenly there was this amazing silence. The plane was gone. I must have been unconscious and then came to in midair. I was flying, spinning through the air and I could see the forest spinning beneath me." Then Koepcke lost consciousness again. She fell more than three kilometers (two miles) into the jungle canopy but miraculously survived with only minor injuries. Ninety-one other people aboard Flight 508 died. Koepcke says she is not a spiritual person and has tried to find logical explanations for why she survived. "Maybe it was the fact that I was still attached to a whole row of seats," she says. "It was rotating much like the helicopter and that might have slowed the fall. Also, the place I landed had very thick foliage and that might have lessened the impact." In any case she survived with only minor injuries. Her collarbone was broken, her right eye swollen shut, she was suffering concussion and had large gashes on her arms and legs. "I didn't wake up until nine o'clock the next morning. I know this because my watch was still working. So I must have been unconscious the whole afternoon and the night. When I came to I was alone, just me ... and my row of seats." Her ordeal was far from over. Rescue planes and search crews were unable to locate the crash site and Koepcke was stranded in the jungle alone. But she had spent years on the research station with her parents and her father had taught her how to survive in the rainforest -- she knew how to cope in that environment. ""He said if you find a creek, follow it because that will lead to a stream and a stream will lead to a bigger river and that's where you'll find help." The day after the crash she found a creek and started to wade down stream, but it was tough going. The only food she had was some candy she had found at the crash site and her wounds were quickly infested with parasites. "I had a cut on my arm and after a few days I could feel there was something in it. I took a look and a fly had laid her eggs in the hole. It was full of maggots

What was the survivor's name?
how many dead there were
Who was the only survivor?
How far did Koepcke fall?

Answer: Juliane Koepcke

Answer: Ninety-one

Answer: Juliane Koepcke

Answer: 3kms

Summary:
German girl, 17, was only survivor of 1971 plane crash in Peruvian rainforest .
Juliane Koepcke fell more than 3km into jungle attached to a row of seats .
Koepcke suffered minor injuries, survived for 10 days alone in rainforest .
Koepcke haunted by ordeal; especially when confronted with other air disasters .


MUTARE, Zimbabwe (CNN) -- A Zimbabwean court ordered a senior opposition politician back to jail Wednesday to await his trial, set to begin next week. Roy Bennett talks to the press in March 2009, a few moments after being released on bail. "I commit the accused to prison," Magistrate Lucy Mungwari said as she announced the ruling in Roy Bennett's case to a packed courtroom in Mutare, about 185 miles southeast of the capital, Harare. Bennett, a Movement for Democratic Change politician and an ardent critic of President Robert Mugabe's policies, was arrested on February 13 -- just before he was to be sworn in as deputy agriculture minister in the new power-sharing government. He faces charges of possessing weapons for sabotage, banditry and terrorism. Initially he had been charged with treason. Immediately after the ruling, prison guards whisked away a visibly shocked Bennett, clad in khaki trousers, brown shoes and a checked shirt. "We are really worried by this development," said Bennett's lawyer, Trust Maanda. "We are trying all possibilities to have him released. We will be at the high court this evening to seek his liberty." State prosecutor Chris Mutangadura said the development was a "natural effect of the law." "It is procedural," Mutangadura said. "He had to be indicted to the high court, and that means he loses his liberty until the trial resumes." "If there is any defect in the process, the accused should raise it with the high court," said the magistrate, Mungwari. A spokesman for Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said the premier has tried to meet with Mugabe since hearing that Bennett was sent back to jail. Tsvangirai has not been granted access by Mugabe's employees, said spokesman James Maridadi. "The prime minister has suspended the council of ministers' meeting he chairs on Thursdays," Maridadi said. "... He is meeting his party leadership first thing on Thursday." The arrest of Bennett, a white coffee grower whose property was expropriated under the country's controversial land reform laws, came as other ministers where being sworn into the coalition government formed by Mugabe and Tsvangirai. The action almost derailed the power-sharing deal, which had been brokered by the regional Southern African Development Community after a hotly disputed election won by Mugabe last year. Bennett spent about a month in jail before the country's Supreme Court ordered him released on bail in March. Movement for Democratic Change spokesman Nelson Chamisa called Wednesday's ruling "a ridiculous and extraordinary development." He said it was a "serious abuse of the law, which will affect the coalition government," and added, "We are not going to sit and watch this abuse go on."

He was arrested before he was going to be sworn in as what?

PM was trying to meet with who about the latest development?

Who is a Movement for Democratic Change politican?

In what country was he to serve as agriculture minister?

What position was Bennett to be sworn into?

Answer: possessing weapons for sabotage, banditry and terrorism.

Answer: deputy agriculture minister

Answer: Mugabe

Answer: Bennett, a

Answer: Roy

Answer: a senior opposition

Answer: Zimbabwean

Answer: possessing weapons for sabotage, banditry and terrorism.

Answer: deputy agriculture minister

Summary:
Bennett is a Movement for Democratic Change politician .
He is arrested before he was to be sworn in as deputy agriculture minister .
He faces charges of possessing weapons for sabotage, banditry and terrorism .
PM is trying to meet with President Mugabe about the latest development .


MYRTLE BEACH, South Carolina (CNN)  -- After earning a reputation as a killer in Haiti, Tropical Storm Hanna amounted to little more than a windy rainstorm along the Atlantic Coast on Saturday. Water almost covers the dock at the Marine Corps Air Station marina near the New River in North Carolina. No states have "expressed any damage that they couldn't handle," said Glenn Cannon, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's assistant administrator for disaster operations. He said there were some concerns about flooding near rivers and in low-lying areas. "We're monitoring Hanna, but it seems to be a heavy rain event," he said. According to the Associated Press, Hanna did cause one death in a traffic accident on Interstate 95 in Maryland. Many people in Huntington, Virginia, about 8 miles northwest of Virginia Beach, voluntarily evacuated Saturday afternoon because of concerns about flooding, Fairfax County public information officer Merni Fitzgerald said. The area, which has flooded in the past, was receiving heavy rain, she said. She could not provide an exact number of people who had evacuated. The storm drenched the Carolinas and Virginia with heavy rain pushed by 55-mph winds as it zipped northward near 30 mph (48 kph), the National Hurricane Center reported at 11 p.m. ET Saturday. At that hour, the center of the storm was 90 miles (145 kilometers) west-southwest of Long Island, New York, and about 135 miles (220 kilometers) southwest of Providence, Rhode Island. Hanna would travel the coast all the way up to Canada's Maritime Provinces by Sunday night, forecasters said. Hanna came ashore at 3:20 a.m. ET near the North Carolina-South Carolina state line. It caused a surge of 1 to 2 feet of water along the shore and was expected to deliver 4 to 6 inches of rain, with some areas getting more. Flooding, wind damage and power outages were minor across the Carolinas, according to emergency officials.  View a map of Hanna's projected path » "It's actually going fairly well, with some reports of minor flooding," said South Carolina Emergency Management spokesman Derrec Becker. About 10,000 South Carolina homes were without power Saturday morning, mostly in the Myrtle Beach area, Becker said. He also said 444 South Carolina residents were staying in 15 shelters. In North Carolina, nearly 12,000 homes had no electricity, mostly in the counties near where Hanna came in, said State Emergency Management spokesman Mark Van Sciver.  See what impact Hanna had on Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina » No deaths were reported, flooding was limited, and no highways were closed, Van Sciver said. Nearly 1,500 residents sought refuge Saturday in 49 emergency shelters in North Carolina, Van Sciver said. The storm snarled some travel plans. It triggered delays for arrivals to Philadelphia International Airport in Pennsylvania and departures from Newark International Airport in New Jersey and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, the Federal Aviation Administration said. Delays at JFK airport averaged about four hours, the FAA said. Hanna's eye made landfall near Little River Inlet at the South Carolina-North Carolina line, according to CNN meteorologists.  Watch wind whip a South Carolina beach » Pounding waves flattened some sand dunes on the beaches at Oak Island, North Carolina, just east of the storm's landfall. The island's Ocean Crest pier, rebuilt after Hurricane Floyd destroyed it nine years ago, held up under Hanna, but the American flag flying above it was in tatters and barely attached to its pole by sunrise. By Saturday afternoon, the hurricane center had discontinued a tropical storm warning southward from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. A tropical storm warning covered much of the East Coast from Cape Hatteras to Merrimack River, Massachusetts, about 31 miles north of Boston. The warning included all of Chesapeake Bay, Washington, New York Harbor and Long Island Sound, as well as popular vacation islands Martha's Vineyard, Block Island and Nantucket. The warning means tropical storm conditions are expected within the warning area within the next 24

Where were the residents evacuated voluntarily?

Residents of which city evacuated due to flooding?

How much rain is expected to fall along the Atlantic Coast?

How many states did FEMA say requested help?

How much rain is expected on the Atlantic Coast?

What caused the residents to be evacuated?

Answer: Huntington, Virginia,

Answer: Huntington,

Answer: "We're monitoring Hanna, but it seems to be a heavy rain event,"

Answer: 4

Answer: No

Answer: 4 to 6 inches

Answer: Tropical Storm

Summary:
Residents in Huntington, Virginia, voluntarily evacuating because of flooding .
FEMA says no states have requested help with damage from storm .
Little damage reported from storm in U.S. after at least 137 deaths in Haiti .
4 to 6 inches of rain expected all along Atlantic Coast .


MYRTLE BEACH, South Carolina (CNN) -- The top three Democratic presidential candidates face off in a Monday night debate in South Carolina, with the hearts and minds of African-American voters on the line. Sen. Barack Obama addresses Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. once preached. Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois and former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina share the stage at Myrtle Beach's Palace Theatre as the nation honors the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. with a federal holiday. The debate, put together by CNN and the Congressional Black Caucus Institute, comes five days before the Democratic primary in South Carolina, where almost half of the Democratic primary voters are African-Americans. These voters will be crucial to the outcome of Saturday's primary in South Carolina. They now appear to be leaning heavily toward Obama, who if elected, would become the country's first black president. Having a debate on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in South Carolina "is very fitting," said David Bohrman, CNN senior vice president and Washington bureau chief, who is executive producer of the debate. "Perhaps a debate on Martin Luther King Day in South Carolina should be made a must-stop on the road to the White House every four years." A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll released Friday suggested that nearly 60 percent of black registered Democrats were backing Obama as the presidential nominee, with 31 percent supporting Clinton. That's a major shift from October, when African-Americans backed Clinton over Obama, 57 percent to 33 percent. What appears to have changed is Obama's electability. "There's been a huge shift among African-American Democrats from Clinton to Obama. African-American Democrats used to be reluctant to support Obama because they didn't think a black man could be elected. Then Obama won Iowa and nearly won New Hampshire. Now they believe," Bill Schneider, CNN's senior political analyst, said. "Obama's lead over Clinton among black men is more than 50 points, and among black women, once a Clinton stronghold, Obama has an 11-point advantage," said Keating Holland, CNN's polling director. Entrance polls from Saturday's Nevada Democratic caucuses match what appears in the CNN poll. Eighty-three percent of black voters questioned before they entered the caucuses said they were backing Obama, with 14 percent supporting Clinton, who if elected, would become the country's first woman to win the presidency. These kinds of numbers could spell trouble in South Carolina for Clinton, who's coming off victories in the New Hampshire primary and the Nevada caucuses. But Clinton holds a special relationship with many in the black community, thanks to her efforts in support of civil rights and to the popularity of former President Clinton with African-Americans. Both Democratic front-runners were reaching out to African-American voters Sunday. Obama, who often refers to King in his speeches, spoke at Atlanta, Georgia's Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the late civil rights leader once preached.  Watch Clinton, Obama reach out to black voters » Obama recalled the legacy of discrimination against African-Americans but challenged the audience at the historic black church to take a look at a few lingering prejudices among some within the community. "And yet, if we are honest with ourselves, we must admit that none of our hands are entirely clean. If we're honest with ourselves, we'll acknowledge that our own community has not always been true to King's vision of a beloved community," Obama said, citing homophobia, anti-Semitism and anti-immigrant sentiment. Obama told the congregation Sunday morning that if King could forgive his jailers, "surely we can look past what divides us in our time." Obama's visit to the city coincided with his endorsement Sunday by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which cited his "appeal across many of the lines that have divided America," adding that "both Clinton and Obama would make very good presidents, [but] Obama is the person; this is his

Who picks up pastor's endorsement at Harlem church?

What city is the former church of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. located in?

Answer: Obama

Answer: South Carolina,

Answer: Monday night debate

Answer: Ebenezer Baptist

Answer: South Carolina,

Answer: Atlanta, Georgia's

Answer: David Bohrman,

Answer: Atlanta, Georgia's Ebenezer Baptist Church,

Summary:
Congressional Black Caucus Institute, CNN host Democratic debate tonight .
Front-runners vying for African-American voters ahead of South Carolina primary .
Sen. Barack Obama visits former church of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Atlanta .
Sen. Hillary Clinton picks up pastor's endorsement at Harlem church .


MacDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Florida (CNN) -- No piece of equipment is more crucial to a soldier in the field than his rifle. And America's most elite troops are about to get a new series of rifles designed for their unique and dangerous missions.

CNN was given an exclusive look at two new rifles for an elite group of U.S. troops.

"The difference is, I'm gonna have a weapon that's gonna fit the situation," an Army Ranger staff sergeant said.

Special Operations Command (SOCOM) is about to start training its SEALs, Green Berets and other Special Operations troops in the use of Mark 16 and Mark 17 rifles.

Within a year, the new rifles should be in action against terrorists and insurgents in Iraq, Afghanistan and hot spots the public may never hear about.

The usually secretive SOCOM gave CNN an exclusive chance to see and even fire the new weapon recently at its headquarters near Tampa, Florida.  Watch a preview of the new weapons »

The contractors working with SOCOM to develop the weapon say it is more versatile and more accurate, jams less and lasts longer than the current rifle used by many Special Operations troops, the M-4.

The Mark 16 (Mk16) fires a 5.56 mm round, the same size used for decades in M-16s and M-4s. The Mk17 fires a larger 7.62 mm round that is used in some U.S. military machine guns, but it's not the same round as in the AK-47, the world's most widely used assault rifle.

Both of the new rifles are designed to kill regardless of the situation.

"Whether that's a soft target, a guy without body armor, or whether that's an enemy force within a vehicle that you need to shoot through a window or the side of the vehicle and you want to ensure that round is not deflected," said Tucker Campion, a retired Navy SEAL who now is a civilian contractor working on the new rifles. "We want a round that, when it hits the enemy soldier, provides the maximum amount of damage."

Even though they fire different-size bullets, each rifle is largely interchangeable with the other. By changing only a few parts, including the bolt and the barrel, a soldier can switch from a gun that fires the lighter 5.56 mm round to one that shoots the heavier 7.62 mm round in a matter of minutes.

That's just one example of the rifle's versatility. Each gun comes with three interchangeable barrels, and each gives the troops a specific advantage.

"If you were going to clear an urban environment, buildings, rooms, you'd probably throw the short barrel on there," the staff sergeant said.

CNN is honoring the Ranger's request not to identify him, because in battle, anonymity is crucial for Special Operations troops.

"If you're in Afghanistan and you're walking in the mountains and the hills and all that, and your distance is going to be a lot greater to the enemy, and you're probably going to want to throw the longer barrel on there so you get that extra reach," the Ranger said.

Even though the rifles fire the same bullets as existing weapons, they are designed to be much more accurate.

"If you look at a current inventory assault rifle, you get 350 to 400 meters," Campion said of their range of accuracy. "Put a long barrel in (the new rifle), and now you're at 6 to 7 (hundred meters). So we're extending the standoff between us and the enemy." A longer standoff means an American can shoot an enemy soldier from farther away; thus, the American is safer.

One of the main goals was to design a gun that lasts longer. Campion says the M-4 is designed to fire 6,000 rounds over five years. But the Mk16 and Mk17 were designed for Special Operations, who are likely to fire 6,000 rounds in less than one year. The new rifles are designed to handle the greater rate of use and last twice as long.

The design changes

What are the new rifles designed to handle?

Who gave CNN an exclusive look at the situation?

What kind of rifles were designed for dangerous missions?

Answer: start training its SEALs, Green Berets and other Special Operations troops in the use of Mark 16 and Mark 17 rifles.

Answer: a new series of rifles designed for their unique and dangerous missions.

Answer: the greater rate of use

Answer: unique and dangerous missions.

Answer: Mark 16 and Mark 17

Answer: SOCOM

Answer: Mark 16

Summary:
Military will train an elite group of troops with versatile new rifles .
Mark 16, Mark 17 rifles designed for their unique and dangerous missions .
Usually secretive Special Operation Command gave CNN an exclusive look .
The new rifles are designed to handle the greater rate of use and last twice as long .


Macon, Georgia (CNN) -- Bettye Webb-Hayes won't ever forget the day her son posed a question that stopped her in her tracks. "Mom," the fourth-grader asked, "am I white?" It was a question she had never asked her own parents. It was something you didn't talk about in the days of the segregated South -- especially when your mom was white and your father was a mix of African-American and Native American. She went to the black schools of Macon, Georgia. Now, her son was asking probing questions. "Why would you ask me that?" she said. "Because everybody at school calls me a honky," said the young Cordell, a light-skinned African-American. Twenty-seven years have passed since that conversation. Bettye and her son recently traveled back to Macon to face something that's been omnipresent their whole lives: the coming together of white and black. They returned for a one-of-a-kind 50th high school gathering. The classes of 1959, once segregated by race as well as gender, sat down together for the first time in history. Ruby Dean Dupree Mayes arrived two hours early for the festivities. She didn't sleep the night before. "It's like waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. I'm so excited," said Mayes, who drove more than 330 miles from Tennessee to attend. Mayes went to Ballard-Hudson High, the city's black high school, whose most famous students include singers Otis Redding and Little Richard. She came this day "to celebrate and commemorate." "I could not pass this event up," she said. "I never dreamed of this moment -- just the realization of knowing that we had come together, at last." As the 1959 graduates arrived, they welcomed one another. Many first greeted people of their own race. Some hadn't seen particular classmates in the 50 years since they earned their diplomas. Gradually, they began mixing and mingling. There was a commonality -- a need to come together for their children, their grandchildren and the generations to follow. Discuss the past, while moving forward in the present. Separated now by 'personal choice' It sometimes takes a son to see things in a new light. The idea for the meeting began four years ago, when a son told his father: "Dad, think about how many friends you missed getting to know." Those were the words of Wyatt Johnson, a public school teacher in Santa Cruz, California. He and his father, Tom Johnson, were enjoying a father-son trip to Macon in 2005 to rediscover their roots. Tom Johnson is the former head of CNN and was once the publisher of the Los Angeles Times. He's traveled the world and left his own mark along the way. Yet despite all his accomplishments, there was something he'd never done: reach out to the African-Americans of Macon from 1959, the ones he never knew because of segregation. An idea was born. He wrote to graduates of the black school, Ballard-Hudson; the white girls' school, Miller; and the white boys' school, Lanier. "We all have deep personal memories of our high school experiences that will remain with us forever," he wrote. "We had lived in a separate black and white world in Macon. ... It is a different world today. We no longer are separated, except by personal choice." One white graduate responded with hate mail, a reminder that racism still exists. But on a day in early October, more than 200 people gathered at a Goodwill banquet hall. There was no shouting, none of the in-your-face name-calling seen in recent health care town hall meetings across the country. Here, there were tears, hugs and handshakes. Often, talk of grandkids took center stage at the 16 roundtables. They talked about race and the segregated past that prevented such

Where did students from former segregated schools unite?

Who said "I never dreamed of this moment"?

Answer: Macon

Answer: "It's like waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. I'm so excited,"

Answer: the 1959 graduates

Answer: Ruby Dean Dupree Mayes

Summary:
Students from former segregated schools of 1959 unite in Macon, Georgia .
"I never dreamed of this moment," says Ruby Dean Dupree Mayes .
Michael Cass: "I'm glad we've left the past behind"
The group hopes to set example for elders of other Southern cities .


Madison, Wisconsin (CNN) -- Republicans retained four of the six state Senate seats that were in jeopardy in Tuesday's recall elections in Wisconsin, news media in the state reported.

Democrats won two seats but needed three to take control.

The Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, which certifies election results, said official results will begin to come in Thursday and will be certified that day at the earliest. The unofficial results released Wednesday were collected by The Associated Press and distributed to newspapers, television and radio stations.

The recall election stems from the bitter battle last winter that saw pro-union protesters camping out in the state Capitol and Democratic senators fleeing the state in an unsuccessful attempt to halt legislation by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker that some felt was anti-union.

Democrats were angling to win GOP-held seats to capture control of the upper chamber. Before the election, Republicans held a 19-14 majority in the state Senate. With a victory, Democrats had hoped to build momentum for a planned effort to recall Walker.

Walker, who was elected in November with strong support from tea party activists, can't be recalled until after he serves a year in office.

Republicans have countered with their own recall attempts against three Democrats.  One of them survived a challenge in July, while two others will be on the ballot next week.

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus applauded the results of the Tuesday vote.

"Today, Wisconsin voters rejected the reckless spending of Wisconsin Democrats and the downgrade-inducing policies of their Washington counterparts. They have given their seal of approval to Republicans' successful efforts to balance the budget and ensure a healthy economy,"  he said.

Priebus also said the vote was an affirmation of Walker's policies.

Walker set off a firestorm in January when he moved to curtail the collective bargaining rights of most state employees. With majorities in both houses of the Legislature, Walker and his GOP allies voted to limit raises for public employees except police and firefighters to the rate of inflation, bar unions from deducting dues from workers' paychecks and force them to hold a new certification vote every year.

Republicans insisted that the legislation was necessary to control skyrocketing public employee benefit costs and close a budget shortfall, while Democrats called it an attempt to gut public-sector labor unions, one of their core constituencies. The state Supreme Court upheld the legislation in June.

While Democrats would not have been able to roll back the union restrictions with control of only one chamber of the Legislature, they would have been able to block any of Walker's other initiatives.

Tea Party Express chief strategist Sal Russo said he was pleased about the vote.

"The importance of those achievements cannot be overstated," Russo said. "Wisconsin has set an example that the nation as a whole should follow."

CNN's Ted Rowlands, Gabriella Schwarz, Paul Steinhauser and Ashley Killough contributed to this report.

What did Tea Party Express member's say?

How many  Republican senators  faced recall votes on Tuesday?

Answer: importance of those achievements

Answer: the vote

Answer: Walker's

Answer: pleased about the vote.

Answer: stems from the bitter battle last winter that saw pro-union protesters camping out in the state Capitol and Democratic senators fleeing the state in an unsuccessful attempt to halt legislation by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker that some felt was anti-union.

Answer: six

Answer: six

Summary:
NEW: Tea Party Express member: The importance of the vote can't be overstated .
RNC chair: Vote is an affirmation of Walker's policies .
Six Republican senators faced recall votes Tuesday .
The recalls stem from the winter battles over union rights .


Madrid (CNN) -- Spain's royal family publicly revealed its finances for the first time Wednesday, as the nation faces an economic crisis and corruption allegations bring increased scrutiny to the monarchy.

King Juan Carlos receives 292,752 euros ($382,743) annually, the royal palace said in a statement. Prince Felipe, next in line to the throne, receives about half that amount

Queen Sofia, Princess Letizia, Infanta Elena and Infanta Cristina received a combined total of 375,000 euros for royal duties ($490,274) in 2011, the palace's statement said.

The announcement comes as a corruption investigation reportedly involving the king's son-in-law has fueled public criticism of the royal family.

Authorities are investigating whether a foundation headed by Inaki Undangarin improperly used public funds, according to media reports. No charges have been filed against Undangarin, a former Olympic handball player who married Infanta Cristina in 1997.

Urdangarin's attorney, in an interview with Europa Press earlier this month, said his client was innocent.

The palace pledged its commitment to austerity and transparency in its statement Wednesday.

Spain faces an economic crisis that has brought thousands of protesters to the streets and sparked sharp government austerity measures.

About 5 million people in the country are jobless. Spain has an overall unemployment rate of 21.5%, but it youth unemployment rate is a staggering 45%.

Conservative prime minister sworn in

Economic protests surged across Spain over the past year, fueled by young people known as "indignants," who criticized government officials and financial institutions.

When he took office last week, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said pulling the nation out of its deep economic crisis would be his top priority.

CNN's Catherine E. Shoichet, Ana Maria Luengo-Romero and Al Goodman contributed to this report.

what King Juan Carlos receives annually?

What research has been released by the Spanish media

what  is fueling criticism of the royal family?

Answer: 292,752 euros ($382,743) annually,

Answer: economic

Answer: Prince Felipe,

Answer: Authorities are investigating whether a foundation headed by Inaki Undangarin improperly used public funds,

Answer: 292,752 euros

Answer: Authorities are investigating whether a foundation headed

Answer: 292,752

Answer: a corruption investigation

Answer: Prince Felipe,

Summary:
A corruption investigation widely reported in Spanish media is fueling criticism of the royal family .
Spain faces an economic crisis that has sparked sharp government austerity measures .
King Juan Carlos receives 292,752 euros annually .
Prince Felipe, next in line to the throne, receives about half that amount .


Madrid, Spain (CNN) -- A Spanish court Wednesday convicted five men accused of Islamic terrorist activities that included aiding fugitives from the Madrid train bombings of 2004 and planning other attacks.

The five men include three Moroccans, an Algerian and a Turk. Their sentences, on charges of collaborating or belonging to an Islamic terrorist group, range from five to nine years in prison, according to a copy of the court order viewed by CNN.

The court acquitted four other defendants, all Moroccans, on similar charges.

"During the years 2004 and 2005, the group provided cover and economic support and facilitated the flight from Spain for individuals who had roles" in the train bombings, the court said.

The group was based in a Barcelona suburb, Santa Coloma de Gramenet, before police made arrests in June 2005, officials said.

Some in the group also were involved in trafficking in weapons or explosives, or preaching violence for indoctrination of new militants, ruled a three-judge panel at Spain's high-security National Court.

The Madrid train bombings -- coordinated attacks on four morning-rush commuter trains -- killed 191 people and wounded more than 1,800.

Spanish courts previously had convicted 14 Islamic militants for their roles in the train bombings. Among them were four Spaniards convicted of trafficking in the explosives used in the attacks.

How many people were killed in the Madrid train bombings?

How many years in prison are the 5 men sentenced to?

What number of people died in the bombing?

Answer: A Spanish court

Answer: 191

Answer: five to nine

Answer: 191

Answer: Islamic terrorist activities

Answer: 2004

Answer: Spanish

Answer: Madrid

Answer: five

Summary:
Spanish court convicts five men of Islamic terrorist activities that included aiding fugitives from Madrid train bombings .
Five men, including three Moroccans, an Algerian and a Turk, sentenced to between five and nine years in prison .
Madrid train bombings of 2004 killed 191 people and wounded more than 1,800 .


Madrid, Spain (CNN) -- A Spanish court convicted 11 Islamic militants Monday of membership in a terrorist group, but acquitted them of a "specific" conspiracy to carry out an attack on Barcelona's metro subway system, as prosecutors alleged. The court instead said there was a more general decision by the group, linked to al Qaeda, to use explosives against Barcelona's metro, but that a specific date and place had not been determined, nor had a sufficient amount of explosives been assembled, according to a copy of the sentence viewed by CNN. The judges ruled the alleged Barcelona plot had "not advanced sufficiently" to constitute a crime of conspiracy under Spanish law. The alleged plot in January 2008 had raised alarm bells in Europe because Spanish authorities said there were to be a series of attacks, starting with suicide bombings on the Barcelona metro, and then other attacks in Spain, Germany, France, Portugal and Great Britain, if successive demands from a Pakistani Taliban leader and al Qaeda were not met. The trial against 10 Pakistani men and an Indian national was held last month. All proclaimed their innocence and many refused to answer prosecutors questions. The three-judge panel at the National Court ruled on Monday that all 11 belonged to a terrorist group. Two of the 11 also were convicted of possession of explosives, but nine others were acquitted on that charge. The 11 face prison terms of eight to 14 years. But Jose Maria Fuster-Fabra, a private prosecutor representing victims in the case, told CNN the sentence sets a precedent in Spain because the 11 defendants were convicted for terrorist group membership almost solely on the basis of a key police informant, known as F1 to protect his identity. F1 testified he was selected by the group's leader to be a suicide bomber, and that he quickly made a secretive call from a bathroom at a Barcelona mosque to warn a friend in France about an impending terrorist attack. Hours later, police swooped to make arrests in January 2008 in Barcelona. The protected witness denied on the stand that he worked for French or any other secret service. Defense lawyer Jacobo Teijelo, on the team representing all 11 defendants, said the sentence lacked judicial merit and he vowed to appeal to Spain's Supreme Court. About 30 members of Barcelona's large Pakistani community watched the trial almost daily in a bulletproof basement courtroom at the high-security National Court in central Madrid. A community leader told CNN the defendants were innocent and that the Pakistani community in Barcelona was hardworking and law-abiding. More than 300 suspected Islamic extremists have been arrested in Spain since the Madrid commuter train bombings that killed 191 people and wounded more than 1,800 on March 11, 2004, Spain's interior minister has said.

Judges ruled alleged Barcelona plot what?

What have 11 Islamic militants been convicted of?

What raised alarm bells in January 2008?

Courts convicts 11 Islamic millitants because of?

What raised alarm bells with Spanish authorities?

Answer: the alleged Barcelona plot had "not advanced sufficiently" to constitute a crime of conspiracy under Spanish law.

Answer: 11

Answer: "not advanced sufficiently" to constitute a crime of conspiracy

Answer: in January 2008

Answer: group,

Answer: The alleged plot

Answer: group,

Answer: The alleged plot in January 2008

Summary:
Court convicts 11 Islamic militants of belonging to terrorist group, but acquits them of conspiring to attack Barcelona's metro .
Judges ruled alleged Barcelona plot not advanced to constitute crime of conspiracy .
Alleged plot in January 2008 raised alarm bells with Spanish authorities fearing series of attacks across Europe .


Madrid, Spain (CNN) -- A Spanish fishing boat repelled an attack by suspected pirates Sunday morning in the Indian Ocean off the African coast, Spain's ministry of defense said.

The Spanish Ortube Berria fishing vessel was in waters southwest of the Seychelles when pirates aboard two skiffs opened fire on the ship with light arms and a grenade shot from a launcher, according to a defense ministry news release. The Seychelles are a group of islands located north of Madagascar and southeast of Somalia, whose coastal waters have become known for piracy.

The attack happened at about 5:40 a.m., the ministry said.

A private security company aboard the fishing vessel returned fire and thwarted the attack, the statement said.

No one was injured, and the ship did not suffer any material damage.

Following the attack, the Ortube Berria was sailing southward away from the area, the defense ministry said.

Pirates have captured more than 50 ships this year off Somalia and are currently holding 11, according to information from Spanish Defense Minister Carme Chacon.

Earlier this month, the crew of another Spanish fishing boat, the Alakrana, was released by Somali pirates after 47 days in captivity.

The Alakrana was hijacked off the coast of Somalia.

On Sunday, the commander of a European Union anti-piracy operation, deployed a Portuguese frigate based in the area toward the site of the attack, Spanish authorities said.

CNN's Per Nyberg contributed to this report.

Who returned fire?
How many ships have pirates capture?
Where were the fishing boats from?
In what ocean did the attack occur?
Where was the attack?
How many ships have been captured?
From what nation was the fishing boat?

Answer: A Spanish fishing boat

Answer: 50

Answer: Spain

Answer: Indian

Answer: Indian Ocean off the African coast,

Answer: 50

Answer: Spain

Summary:
Spanish fishing boat repels attack by suspected pirates in Indian Ocean off African coast .
Private security company aboard fishing vessel returned fire and thwarted attack .
Pirates have captured more than 50 ships this year off Somalia and are currently holding 11 .


Malibu, California (CNN) -- Many people are struggling just to provide the basics these days. The big question is, how do you find joy and fulfillment during lean holiday times like these? For the answer, I look back upon the philosophy by which my mother, Mieke Frankenberg, led her life, through both its brightest and darkest hours. Her philosophy originated during World War II through her experiences as a prisoner of war in a Japanese concentration camp in Indonesia. She had lived in that country with an abusive husband, whom she left before the war broke out and the Japanese captured her. Through the bleakest times, she reached out to her fellow prisoners to provide them with comfort and care. The lack of medical supplies meant care wasn't much more than holding someone's hand or sharing some of her starvation rations. While not a nurse, she gave of herself and drew a sustaining love in return. Returning to England after the war, my mother remarried and started a family, which grew to include me and my two sisters. With the camp behind her, my mother's philosophy remained to always keep an open heart. She volunteered with the Red Cross and regularly provided emotional support for friends. She found that when love flows with no boundaries from an open heart, love also finds its way back in. She gave and gave, and received love in return. This "open heart" philosophy has sustained me, as well, through the most difficult of times, including a painful divorce about 20 years ago that left me near penniless. At that point in my life, I attended a fundraiser for ChildHelp USA. I donated some of the last money I had, and in return, I secured a session where an artist drew a picture of my two children at the time. At that sitting, the artist saw potential in some finger paintings I'd made for my children and offered to give me free painting lessons. As I started painting, I discovered my emotional outlet. I began creating images of hearts that were always open, never closed. These hearts may have appeared unfinished in a way. But they brought me back to the lessons of my mother, a reminder to live as she lived -- openhearted. Soon, I changed from a frantic, terrified and angry person into someone who was able to let go of the past. I began to let other people into my life and to give back emotionally. Around that same time, I landed the TV role of "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" and was back on my feet. I now embody my mother's belief that only when you can love yourself and keep your heart open can you best give and receive love. My family continues my mother's tradition at Christmas, when we open our home to relatives, neighbors, my six children and even their friends -- extending our family to include those unable to head home for the holidays. Some years, there are as many as 50 people at the dinner table. Living with an open heart can be a path to rewarding holidays for many people this year, even if budgets tighten and troubles mount. The holiday table may be less bountiful. There may be fewer presents under the tree. But an open heart can bring a wealth of love, hope and inspiration. You might think these are shaping up to be your gloomiest holidays ever. But remember, as my mother taught me, someone is always worse off than you. Find a way to give, even if you're in need yourself. Find the place where you can provide comfort, care or love. Volunteer at a food bank or a shelter. Reach out to elderly neighbors to find out how you might make their lives a little easier. By opening your heart to others, good things will come to you, too. With that approach, I hope you'll find that 2009 could become the most fulfilling of holiday seasons. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Jane Seymour.

Who said "People should find a way to give, even if they are in need themselves"?

What Jane Seymour says about her mother?

What allows love to flow freely between people?

Answer: Jane Seymour.

Answer: always keep an open heart.

Answer: someone is always worse off than you.

Answer: Mieke Frankenberg,

Answer: an open heart.

Summary:
Jane Seymour says her mother's spirit of openheartedness is instructive in lean holiday times .
Her mother formed her philosophy while helping other POW's in WWII, she says .
She says that open hearts allow love to flow freely between people .
Seymour: People should find a way to give, even if they are in need themselves .


Managua, Nicaragua (CNN) -- Nicaragua's election officials have officially declared President Daniel Ortega's victory, but opponents are protesting the results.

A report from the Organization of American States indicated "irregularities in the elections," but supported official results saying that Ortega won re-election after garnering more than 62% of votes.

"A process is legitimate if the people feel that there wishes were respected, and that is what we are experiencing here," said Roberto Rivas, president of Nicaragua's election authority.

But protests and clashes throughout the country after the November 6 elections have left at least four people dead and dozens injured, police said.

According to a report presented by the Organization of American States' election observers, irregularities during elections included problems providing identification card to vote, problems in the accreditation of observers and imbalances in political parties present at polling stations.

For opponents of Ortega, the report shows evidence of fraud.

"Obviously here transparency is missing. They didn't take a series of legal steps that they should have," said Eduardo Montealegre, a representative from the opposition Independent Liberal Party.

The Organization of American States says its vote count echoes the official election results.

But one local pro-democracy group says the problems the organization identified would equally impact their own tallies.

"It's not that the results changed on the way (to be counted), it's that the absolute power of the councils overseeing the polls did not allow any challenges," said Roberto Bendana, president of We Make Democracy.

Last week U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland weighed in over reports of procedural irregularities and voter intimidation.

"Frankly, if the Nicaraguan government had nothing to hide, it should have allowed a broad complement of international monitors," she told reporters in Washington.

Disputes over the results have caused confrontations between protesters and authorities, said Marcos Carmona, executive secretary of Nicaragua's Permanent Human Rights Commission.

"We have reports from different citizens about aggression on the part of the National Police," he said, including the deaths of a father and two sons.

Last week a National Police spokesman said the three had died during clashes with supporters of Ortega's Sandinista party, adding that protesters had provoked clashes with police.

"As the National Police, we reiterate our call to the activists and directors of the different political parties, to not use violence and to express their positions through civic means, respecting, above all, the lives of others," police spokesman Fernando Borge said.

Ortega was first elected as Nicaragua's president in 1984, and ran unsuccessfully in 1990, 1996 and 2001 before being elected again in 2006.

He is known as an ally of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and was a public supporter of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi during the Libyan uprising.

But recently he has reached for the middle, making overtures to the business class and promising to lure foreign investors into the country.

His third term is scheduled to begin January 10. But opposition representatives say they plan to dispute election results before international organizations.

Journalist Samantha Lugo and CNN's Fernando del Rincon contributed to this report.

Protests and clashes have left at least how many dead

By the officials, by what percentage Ortega won reelection?

What percentage of votes did Ortega win with?

What Police said about damage and injuries at protests?

Answer: four

Answer: 62%

Answer: 62%

Answer: more than 62% of votes.

Answer: least four people dead

Summary:
Official results say Ortega won reelection with more than 62% of votes .
Police say protests and clashes throughout the country have left at least four dead .
The Organization of American States reports irregularities, but ratifies the results .
A human rights representative says police are behind violence, but police blame protesters .


Manchester, New Hampshire (CNN) -- Hours before the first primary vote of 2012, Republican front-runner Mitt Romney tried to recover from a potential stumble Monday as his presidential rivals intensified their attacks against him.

Voters in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary begin choosing their GOP candidates as early as 12 a.m. Tuesday in two small towns -- Dixville Notch and Hart's Location -- while polling stations in the rest of the state open at 6 a.m. and close as late as 8 p.m. ET.

The final day of campaigning saw Romney under fire for a comment about health insurance that quickly became fodder for criticism.

Asked about the issue in Nashua, New Hampshire, Romney said he wanted a person to be able to own his or her own policy "and perhaps keep it the rest of their life."

"That means the insurance company will have the incentive to keep you healthy. It also means if you don't like what they do, you can fire them," he said.

"I like being able to fire people who provide services to me," Romney added. "If someone doesn't give me the good service I need, I want to say I am going to get somebody else to provide that service to me."

Rival candidate Jon Huntsman immediately seized on the comment as an indication of Romney's political nature.

"It has become abundantly clear over the last couple of days what differentiates Gov. Romney and me," Huntsman said in Concord. "I will always put my country first. It seems that Gov. Romney believes in putting politics first. Gov. Romney enjoys firing people. I enjoy creating jobs."

The Democratic National Committee released a derisive Web video and called Romney "out of touch," while the campaign of Texas Gov. Rick Perry looped Romney's words to make a cell phone ring tone that quickly went viral.

Romney spent much of the rest of the day clarifying what he meant. At one point, Romney said he expected the comment to be taken out of context to try to hurt him, and his campaign issued a statement emphasizing he was talking about firing an insurance company, not people.

"Our opponents are taking Gov. Romney's comments completely out of context," said a statement by Gail Gitcho, the campaign's communications director. "Gov. Romney was talking about firing insurance companies if you don't like their service. That is something that most Americans agree with."

The latest twist in the GOP presidential race came on the eve of the first primary election a week after Romney won the Iowa caucuses by just eight votes over former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum.

With Romney in front in polls in New Hampshire and South Carolina, the site of the first Southern state primary on January 21, rivals stepped up their attacks by questioning the former Massachusetts governor's business background and electability.

In Manchester, former House speaker Newt Gingrich tore into Romney's record in the private sector at the helm of Bain Capital.

Though Romney has said his work at the Boston-based private equity firm ultimately led to the creation of 100,000 jobs, Gingrich said Romney's pursuit of wealth exacted a huge cost.

"What you have to raise questions about is, somebody goes out, invests a certain amount of money, say $30 million, takes out an amount, say $180 million -- six to one return -- and then the company goes bankrupt," Gingrich said. "Now, you have to ask a question: Is capitalism really about the ability of a handful of rich people to manipulate the lives of thousands of other people and walk off with the money? Or is that, in fact, a little bit of a flawed system? And so I do draw a distinction between looting a company, leaving behind broken families and broken neighbors, and leaving behind a factory that should be there."

Romney fired back that Gingrich and others were joining President Barack Obama in attacking the free enterprise system.

"As we'll find out, free enterprise will be on trial," Romney said. "

who expects comment to be taken out of context?

Answer: Romney

Answer: GOP candidates

Answer: Mitt Romney

Answer: Republican front-runner

Summary:
NEW: Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman moves up in latest poll .
Mitt Romney says he expects his comment on firing people to be taken out of context .
"Romney enjoys firing people, I enjoy creating jobs," rival Huntsman says .
Newt Gingrich says he has to go negative against Romney .


Manchester, New Hampshire (CNN) -- Republican presidential candidates faced off twice in 11 hours on Saturday and Sunday in debates ahead of Tuesday's New Hampshire primary. While both debates were staged in the Granite State, it was clear that the rivals intended for their messages to go beyond New Hampshire.

Here are five things we learned from the weekend.

Romney's debating skills on display

Neither debate did much to change the state of play in New Hampshire. Front-runner Mitt Romney's rivals went after him in both debates.

Even when other candidates slighted Romney -- Rick Perry referred to an "insider from Wall Street," and Gingrich went after Romney's private-sector record by repeatedly citing an article by The New York Times -- the jabs were either veiled or dispassionate.

And using The New York Times to back up an argument probably won't excite the conservative base.

Romney's opponents did step up their attacks between Saturday and Sunday, but then they seemed to back off. CNN.com Opinion contributor Todd Graham, an award-winning college debating coach, speculated that Romney's rivals dropped the direct attacks because they were "worried about overcorrecting, appearing rude, and alienating voters (Gingrich came close when he told Romney to 'drop the pious baloney') -- or in the heat of the moment, they forgot their coaching once the second debate was under way."

Graham concluded that between Romney's polished debating skills and sometimes poor debating by his rivals, he has only solidified his position.

Looking ahead to the general election?

Over the past few years, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights movement has made strides, and many question whether someone who is not a supporter of the movement could win a general election in 2012.

Such rights played a role in both debates. Rick Santorum, who has run on a predominantly social values platform, offered perhaps his strongest statement of homosexual support to date, saying he would not repudiate a son who told him he was gay.

He was careful, however, not to say that he would fight for gay individuals, instead saying he would be an advocate for "every person in America" and would make sure people are treated with "respect and dignity."

On the same topic, Romney said he has hired gay staffers in the past and would never discriminate against gays or attempt to take away their rights.

Are these two men looking ahead to a general election, where strong social conservative values may not play as well?

Social issues played a big role in Iowa and will do so again in South Carolina. Santorum's answer may have been a good middle-of-the-road response and a reminder of a phrase often used by Christian conservatives: Love the sinner, hate the sin.

That may be a message to which conservative voters in South Carolina can relate.

Message received?

Americans have made clear their disdain for Congress, partisan politics and theatrics bringing government to a standstill.

Both Gingrich and Romney touted their records of working with Democrats to hammer out legislative deals.

Gingrich, who is best known for battling President Bill Clinton in the 1990s, highlighted that he struck deals with the Democratic president even though he wanted to make him "a one-term president."

And Romney noted that when he was running Massachusetts, the state legislature was 85% Democratic but that he found "common ground," adding that he's proved he can "work with Republicans and Democrats who are willing to work together."

Santorum touted his ability to gain support among voters of both parties in his former Pennsylvania district, and Huntsman said that serving one's country should always trump party loyalty.

But before candidates can work on uniting the party, they will have to triumph over their rivals as the bruising GOP primary plays out this winter.

Huntsman's last stand?

Since former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman is placing all his chips on a strong finish in New Hampshire's Tuesday primary, the debates were his last, best chance to make his case.

Saturday's lukewarm

who stepped up their attacks over the weekend

what  will play a large role in South Carolina

Where will social issues play a large role?

Answer: Romney's opponents

Answer: Gingrich and Romney

Answer: Social issues

Answer: Iowa

Summary:
Romney's opponents step up their attacks over the weekend .
Social issues will play a large role in South Carolina .
Gingrich, Romney tout their bipartisan efforts .
Paul repeats harsh criticism to opponents' faces .


Manila, Philippines (CNN) -- A Filipino-American woman abducted in July in the Philippines was found Sunday on an island stronghold of the Islamic militant group Abu Sayyaf, police said.

Gerfa Yeatts Lunsmann, 43, was found at Suba Kampong township on the Philippine island of Basilan after her captors released her, said Bienvenido Latag of the Philippine National Police.

The U.S. Embassy in Manila on Monday confirmed Lunsmann's release in Basilan after she was held hostage by a still unidentified group of bandits.

Latag did not say why Lunsmann was released, but the mayor of the town where Lunsmann was taken after she was released said she was freed following negotiations between her husband and her abductors.

Mayor Cesar Lobregat, head of a Crisis Management Committee in Zamboanga City, declined to confirm whether officials paid a ransom.

Fourteen gunmen snatched Lunsmann in July while she was vacationing with her family on the island of Tictabon, authorities said. The gunmen also took hostage Lunsmann's 14-year-old son, Kevin, and her 19-year-old Filipino nephew, Romnick Jakaria, they said.

Authorities said the abductors forced Lunsmann and her family to board awaiting boats, which then sped off in the direction of Basilan.

It was not immediately known whether the captors are still holding Lunsmann's son and nephew.

Lunsmann was adopted by Americans when she was 9 and grew up in Virginia. She eventually married a German citizen. Both she and the son, Kevin, are U.S. passport holders.

Police at the time of the abduction said they suspected the son attracted attention because of his distinctive mixed-race looks in an area with few foreign tourists.

Basilan serves as a base for Abu Sayyaf, which wants to establish a separate state for the Philippines' minority Muslim population. The U.S. State Department considers the group a terrorist organization and says it is linked to al Qaeda. The Philippines government has been fighting to contain the militants.

Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for several terrorist attacks in the Philippines, including the bombing of a ferry in 2004 that left about 130 people dead, as well as past kidnappings.

They paid ransom for the liberation of women?

Answer: The gunmen also took hostage Lunsmann's 14-year-old son, Kevin, and her 19-year-old Filipino nephew, Romnick Jakaria,

Answer: July

Answer: Philippines

Answer: July

Answer: Suba Kampong township

Answer: declined to confirm whether officials

Summary:
Gerfa Yeatts Lunsmann was released on Basilan island .
Authorities are declining to confirm whether a ransom was paid for the woman's release .
Lunsmann was abducted in July along with her son and her nephew .
Lunsmann and her son, Kevin, are U.S. passport holders .


Manila, Philippines (CNN) -- A second typhoon in a week pounded the Philippines over the weekend, weakening Sunday only after prompting evacuations, causing severe flooding and contributing to one death.

Typhoon Nalgae, known locally as Quiel, had lost some strength by Sunday morning. But it still had maximum sustained winds of 130 kph (80 mph), with gusts recorded 30 kph stronger, according to a 4 a.m. Sunday advisory from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Administration. At that point, its center was 200 kilometers (124 miles) west of Baguio City.

The storm follows Typhoon Nesat, which left at least 52 people dead and caused damage in 34 provinces since it hit Tuesday, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council.

The two typhoons will or have already affected about 3 million Filipinos, the nonprofit World Vision group estimated in a news release Saturday.

The second typhoon -- Nalgae -- made landfall in Dinapigue, in Isabela province, on Saturday morning, the disaster council said. It is expected to have moved past the east Asian island nation by Sunday, forecasters said, after having brought rain of 15-25 millimeters per hour (0.6-1 inch) in many locales.

Over the course of the weekend, the storm had made several roads impassable in the cities of Calasiao and Dagupan on Luzon island, according to the state-run Philippines News Agency. Affected residents are being evacuated from those communities and others, including Santa Barbara.

The disaster council, in a Sunday morning update, said that a 35-year-old man was killed and a 22-year-old woman injured in landslides triggered by the storm the previous day. At least 850 families, or roughly 3,500 people, in the provinces of La Union and Pangasinan have been directly affected by flooding, according to the council.

Also Saturday, the San Roque Power Corporation opened two gates at one of its dams along the Agno River in north Luzon, due to high waters there related to the storm, the news agency said.

Presidential spokesman Abigail Valte earlier Saturday urged residents of low-lying and mountainous areas that could be hit hard by the storm to evacuate, the state news agency said, citing an interview conducted on a government radio station.

World Vision, the Christian humanitarian organization, said Saturday that it had to postpone some of its relief efforts due to Nalgae, with two of three emergency teams set to deploy once the storm passes. Another team is in Bulcan province, most of which is "still submerged" because of Nesat.

The group is focusing its post-Nesat efforts on two communities in Manila and three in the northern Isabela and Zambales provinces. Vouchers are being distributed so people can buy needed items, some emergency supplies are being given out directly to citizens and 3,000 Manila children will receive school supplies.

Sherbien Dacalanio, a CNN iReporter in the Philippines, described one area of Manila as being devastated by Nesat.

"The damage is shocking. It's like a damage brought by earthquake and tsunami," Dacalanio said.

CNN's Ivan Cabrera and journalist Arlene Samson-Espiritu contributed to this report.

At what speed are the winds of Nalgae blowing?

What was the name of the typhoon which killed at least 52?

What was the windspeed once the typhoon weakened?

How many people were killed by Typhoon Nesat?

What is the number of people killed by the landslide?

Answer: 130 kph (80 mph),

Answer: at least 52

Answer: Nesat,

Answer: 130 kph (80 mph),

Answer: Nalgae,

Answer: at least 52

Answer: one

Answer: 15-25 millimeters per hour

Answer: about 3 million

Summary:
Heavy rains in latest typhoon cause a landslide that sweeps a van off a road, killing 1 .
Gates are opened at four dams that have reached maximum containment, officials say .
At least 52 people were killed by Typhoon Nesat, which hit earlier this week .


Manila, Philippines (CNN) -- The Philippines government has increased security in the southern region of Maguindanao after gunmen kidnapped and killed at least 22 people, according to military officials and the country's national news agency.

Some of the bodies were beheaded, according to Filipino media. The details suggest the daytime abductions were politically motivated, and the military said the gunmen were loyal to the province's incumbent governor.

Those killed include a gubernatorial candidate's wife and one of his sisters, according to two of his family members who spoke on local television. The death toll also included at least 12 journalists, according to Reporters Without Borders, a media freedom organization.

Ismael "Toto" Mangudadatu wanted to run for governor of Maguindanao province in May but had received threats he would be kidnapped if he filed the candidate nomination papers himself. He sent his wife and sisters to file the papers, thinking "that women would have some protection," journalist Maria Ressa told CNN.

"It was supposed to be a media event," Ressa said, "[to] let the public know that this politician would run for governor."

Army officials said 100 gunmen surrounded the group of about 40 people -- many local journalists and women among them -- and ordered them out of their vehicles. They took the hostages to a mountainous region, officials said.

Some of the women were raped and tortured, according to media reports.

The military confirmed finding 22 bodies, some of them reportedly beheaded.

"Never in the history of journalism have the news media suffered such a heavy loss of life in one day," Reporters Without Borders said of the 12 journalists reported dead.

The military has said the gunmen are loyal to Maguindanao Gov. Andal Ampatuan, who has held control of the area for the past decade and is a longtime ally of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Neither Ampatuan nor his advisers have commented on the allegation.

Maguindanao is a province in Mindanao, a Muslim autonomous region out of the control of the central government. The Philippines government said it increased security in the region after the attacks.

Jesus Dureza, an adviser to Macapagal-Arroyo, called the slayings "a gruesome massacre of civilians unequaled in recent history."

Dureza, Macapagal-Arroyo's adviser on Mindanao affairs, has asked the government to place Maguindanao province under a state of emergency.

Elections in the Philippines have long been marred by violence, but Monday's abductions and killings shocked the nation. Macapagal-Arroyo condemned the killings and ordered more Filipino troops to the region to bolster security, according to the Philippines News Agency.

She also ordered the Armed Forces of the Philippines "to conduct immediate and relentless pursuit of the perpetrators [and] to secure the affected areas," the agency reported.

Military checkpoints are being set up as part of the security effort, state media reported.

Aid agencies operating in the region have long complained about a climate of fear in the region, where the government has little control and private armies operate freely.

Reporters Without Borders said it has been outspoken in criticizing "the culture of impunity and violence in the Philippines, especially Mindanao."

"This time, the frenzied violence of thugs working for corrupt politicians has resulted in an incomprehensible bloodbath," the organization said. "We call for a strong reaction from the local and national authorities."

Journalist Maria Ressa contributed to this report.

What occurred in Philipines?
How many journalists are dead?
how many died?
Whose wife was killed?
Where did the kidnappings occur?

Answer: gunmen kidnapped and killed at least 22 people,

Answer: at least 12

Answer: at least 22 people,

Answer: gubernatorial candidate's

Answer: of Maguindanao

Summary:
NEW: Death toll rises; dead include at least 12 journalists .
Governor candidate's wife, sister among those killed, family members say .
Watchdog organization blames "frenzied violence of thugs" for deaths .
Kidnappings occurred in Philippines' Maguindanao province .


Manila, Philippines (CNN) -- The son of a Philippines provincial governor is voluntarily turning himself in for questioning in the massacre of at least 57 unarmed civilians, a CNN affiliate reported Thursday. Andal Ampatuan Jr. -- who is the mayor of Datu Unsay and the son of Maguindanao Governor Andal Ampatuan -- has agreed to face questioning, reported Patricia Evangelista of ABS-CBN. Ampatuan was not identified by authorities as a suspect in the killings in the southern Philippines, though victims' survivors and local media reports had done so. Philippines President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo "is enraged by these barbaric acts," spokesman Cerge Remonde said. "She has literally thrown the full force of the law and has mobilized the security and police forces of the state to go after the perpetrators." Philippines authorities had disbanded a paramilitary force in the southern Philippines suspected of playing a role in the massacre, the country's state-run media reported Wednesday. Remonde said the deaths were the result of a political clan war, not Muslim secessionism in that troubled region of the country. "So far as this case is concerned, this is a limited clan political rivalry, which has been going on for some time now," Remonde said. The death toll grew Wednesday after 11 more bodies were recovered from a rural area of Mindanao and buried. Arroyo has declared Wednesday a national day of mourning. Arroyo's government is under intense pressure to find those responsible for planning and carrying out the abduction and killing of the group of about 60 politicians, lawyers and journalists -- and reportedly some bystanders. Suspicion has fallen on the Ampatuan family, key allies of the Arroyo administration in the Maguindanao region of the southern Mindanao province. Ampatuan family members have not commented on the slaying allegations. Remonde appeared to blame the Ampatuan clan, adding: "There is, however, a move now by the administration party to expel the suspected clan." Those killed include the wife and two sisters of a local politician who plans to run for the spot vacated next year by Maguindanao's governor, Andal Ampatuan. While the investigation is ongoing, a spokesman for the country's national police has said that Andal Ampatuan Jr. has been linked to the crime, according to local media reports. "According to the initial reports, those who were abducted and murdered at Saniag were initially stopped by a group led by the mayor of Datu Unsay," National Police spokesman Chief Superintendent Leonardo Espina said, according to ABS-CBN News. The massacre is the worst politically motivated violence in recent Philippines history. On Monday morning, in daylight, a group of about 100 gunmen stopped a convoy carrying supporters and family members of local politician Ismael "Toto" Mangudadatu, witnesses and officials say. Mangudadatu had sent his wife and sisters to file paperwork allowing him to run for governor of Maguindanao in May after he had been threatened and told not to file the papers himself. He said the threats came from allies of Governor Ampatuan. The number of people kidnapped and killed was still unclear, as recovery continued at the mass grave site in Maguindanao. A car traveling behind the convoy was mistaken for being a part of the politician's contingent, a local official told the Philippines GMA News Network. The car was instead heading to a hospital, according to Tom Robles, head of the Tacurong City Employees Union, who spoke to GMA News. The driver and four passengers -- including a government employee who had suffered a mild stroke and his wife -- were rounded up and killed along with the members of the convoy ahead of them, Robles said. A police official confirmed that the car and the bodies of three of the passengers were among those recovered at the grave site, GMA reported. The state-run Philippines News Agency said the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD (Christian, Muslim, Democrats) was to meet Wednesday to discuss whether to remove the Ampatuan clan members in Mindanao from the party as a result of the killings. "In our opinion, they were not able to fulfill their obligations to the party," said

Who did authorities not identify as a suspect?

Answer: by authorities as a

Answer: southern Philippines

Answer: has agreed to face questioning,

Answer: Andal Ampatuan Jr.

Summary:
NEW: Authorities did not identify Ampatuan as a suspect .
Datu Unsay mayor led group that initially stopped civilians, police cite reports as saying .
Ampatuans hold leadership positions in Mindanao .
Authorities disband paramilitary force in the southern Philippines .


Manila, Philippines (CNN) -- Tropical Storm Washi moved away from the southern Philippines early Monday, but not before leaving behind a wake of destruction and at least 652 people dead, according to the Philippine Red Cross.

There were no public storm warnings for the East Asian island nation Monday morning, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.

Yet authorities and residents still had the considerable task of cleaning up from the devastation and mourning those killed by what the state-run Philippines News Agency noted was the 19th tropical system to hit the nation this season.

A report released Monday morning by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council noted that the storm had affected more than 135,000 people, nearly 47,000 of whom were in evacuation centers.

President Beningo Aquino plans to visit the region Tuesday.

The Red Cross noted that hundreds are missing after entire villages were swept away, suggesting the death toll could rise further. The stench of death permeated the air as aid workers scrambled to help survivors.

The disaster has left heartbreaking scenes of families with children looking for ways to get by during the festive Christmas season.

"Do we still have Christmas, mother?" one crying little girl asked her mother, according to the Red Cross. "Will I get my toys and my new pair of shoes you promised?"

"Of course you will," the mother replied. "Christmas will always be around."

Military and disaster officials said the vast majority of the dead were found in the port cities of Iligan and Cagayan de Oro, many of them swept away as they were sleeping. Water-logged bodies from washed-away villages floated at the shoreline, on the northwestern coast of Mindanao island.

Five people were killed in a landslide, but virtually all the others died in flash flooding after Tropical Storm Washi, which is called Sendong locally.

Survivors in the hardest-hit areas are contending with no electricity or clean drinking water. One woman in Cagayan de Oro collected murky brown floodwater in a bucket, just meters away from where a destroyed vehicle was submerged.

Flash flooding overnight Friday -- following 10 hours of rain -- fueled the devastation. As much as 20 centimeters (8 inches) of rain fell within 24 hours in some areas.

December generally brings about 60 millimeters of rain (a little over 2 inches) to the region, CNN Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri reported.

Overflowing rivers and tributaries compounded the disaster for low-lying areas, and officials said floodwater reached roof-level in the middle of the night.

The destruction left cars, furniture and parts of houses in mangled heaps, partly immersed in squalid floodwater.

The storm moved into Cagayan de Oro -- a densely populated, urbanized city -- during the overnight hours when people were asleep. A half dozen vehicles there looked like littered toy trucks, with some on their sides or roofs.

Many people trudged through knee-high water and packed into evacuation centers.

An estimated 100,000 people are displaced, according to the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

The national disaster council noted that about 377 passengers -- on four ships -- were stranded as of Sunday night, due to the storm. In addition, nine sections of roads and bridges were seriously damaged.

While the tropical storm had passed off-shore, some unrelated thunderstorms threatened to dump even more water on the region, Javaheri said. The weather was warm, with temperatures of up to about 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit),

Philippine Red Cross Chairman Richard Gordon will travel to the stricken region Monday to assess the damage, the organization said.

"Certainly this is a very severe humanitarian crisis going on," Gordon said Sunday.

Authorities have started distributing food rations for some 10,000 families affected by the storm, while also handing out thousands of blankets and mosquito nets, the Red Cross said.

The aid agency is appealing for drinking water, food and dry clothes, and officials have asked for volunteers to pack food to send to those who have been displaced.

Some Philippine residents called the disaster unprecedented.

which tropical storm passed the Philippines?

which person plans to visit the region on Tuesday?

Answer: more than 135,000

Answer: Tuesday.

Answer: Washi

Answer: off-shore,

Answer: "Do we still have Christmas, mother?"

Answer: President Beningo Aquino

Summary:
NEW: The tropical storm passes the Philippines .
NEW: The system has affected more than 135,000 people, a national agency says .
President Aquino plans to visit the region Tuesday .
"Do we still have Christmas, mother?" a crying young girl asks .