World Population to Surpass 7 Billion in 2011

Getty(BOSTON, Mass) – There is a report out from the Harvard School of Public Health indicating that the world population is expected to surpass 7 billion by the end of 2011. The 6 billion mark was reached in 1999 and it’s expected that an additional 2.3 billion people will be added to the population by 2050 -- an increase by nearly as many people as the number that lived on the planet in the 1950s.

The reports predict that over the next forty years, nearly all of the 2.3 billion projected increase will be in the less developed regions, with nearly half in Africa. By contrast, the populations of more developed countries will remain flat, but will age, leaving fewer working-age adults to support the retirees living on social pensions.

This is especially notable when taking in to account how slowly the worlds population has grown for most of human history. It took until 1800 for the world’s population to hit one billion.

These sizable increases represent an unprecedented global demographic upheaval, according to David Bloom, Clarence James Gamble Professor of Economics and Demography at the Harvard School of Public Health. In a review article published July 29th, 2011 in Science, Bloom writes that considerable uncertainty about these projections remains. Depending on whether the number of births per woman continues to decline, the ranges for 2050 vary from 8.1 to 10.6 billion, and the 2100 projections vary from 6.2 to 15.8 billion.

He writes, population trends indicate a shift in the "demographic center of gravity" from more to less developed regions. Already strained, many developing countries will likely face tremendous difficulties in supplying food, water, housing, and energy to their growing populations, with repercussions for health, security, and economic growth.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Gaza Kids Shatter Kite-Flying World Record

Pixland/Thinkstock(GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip) -- More than 15,000 kites flew above a northern Gaza beach on Thursday, breaking the world record for the most kites flown simultaneously.

The world record was the seventh that children from Gaza have broken in two years, part of an ongoing effort by the United Nations to provide summer entertainment for hundreds of thousands of children in Gaza and to draw attention to the effects of Israel's blockade.

Fifteen thousand young Palestinians spilled out of buses dressed in matching t-shirts and sneakers as electronic music blared in the background. The children went to their assigned sections along a 1.2-mile stretch of sand to collect their kites under the blazing late-afternoon sun.

Shortly after 6 p.m. local time, a speaker onstage announced the start and the sky was suddenly filled with kites -- plastic Spider-man kites and paper kites with the colors of the Palestinian flag. The goal was to beat the record set in China in April of 10,465 kites, a record that had bested the Gaza record set last summer.

As the sun set, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) -- the agency that manages the U.N.'s work with Palestinians -- announced that the record had been broken, with an unofficial tally of more than 13,000 kites and the official count to follow Friday.

"For them to be number one in the world is an extraordinary thing," UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness told ABC News. "They're seen as victims, they're seen as locked up, they're seen as people who are living in this strange enemy enclave. Here they are suddenly being happy -- smiling faces like kids anywhere in the world enjoying summer games."

Indeed, Gaza is more often synonymous with violence than children at play. The Israeli military said Thursday that 24 rockets were fired from Hamas-controlled Gaza into Israel in July. Overnight, UNRWA said 10 militants attacked the beach site, burning a U.N. flag, billboard and stage.

UNRWA has ruffled the feathers of Islamists in the region, including Hamas, many of whom don't believe boys and girls should be playing together.

It is the extremists that UNRWA is trying to keep the children away from. Israel has had a land and sea blockade of Gaza since Hamas took over in 2007, deemed illegal by the United Nations.

This is the third year running that UNRWA has been holding its "Summer Games." This summer saw a quarter of a million Gaza children sign up.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Sarah Payne, Another Potential Phone Hack Victim

Stockbyte/ThinkStock(LONDON) -- The Guardian is reporting the cell phone of the mother of an another murdered UK schoolgirl was hacked by the News of The World.  The phone was given to her as a gift by the newspaper.  

Eight year-old Sarah Payne was abducted and killed in July 2000.

Following her murder The News of the World successfully for passage of  “Sarah’s Law,” modeled after “Meaghan’s Law.” Payne at the time was told the phone given to her would allow her to keep in touch with supporters of Sarah’s Law.

Mrs. Payne was contacted by Scotland Yard about the hacking.

In the final edition of the News of the World Payne praised the paper for being a "force for good" and a driving force for the law, adding: "It's like a friend died. I'm so shocked."

Ms Brooks said the latest allegations were "abhorrent" and "particularly upsetting" because Ms. Payne was a "dear friend".

She said in a statement: "For the benefit of the campaign for Sarah's Law, the News of the World had provided Sara with a mobile telephone for the last 11 years. It was not a personal gift. The idea that anyone on the newspaper knew that Sara or the campaign team were targeted by Mr. Mulcaire is unthinkable. The idea of her being targeted is beyond my comprehension. It is imperative for Sarah and the other victims of crime that these allegations are investigated and those culpable brought to justice.”

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Indonesia: Body Found of American Surfer and Teacher

32-year-old Daniel Bobis, went missing in Indonesia after surfing a 10 foot wave. (Courtesy Sean Pearsall)(JAKARTA, Indonesia) -- The body of missing American surfer Daniel Bobis has been found in Indonesia.

Local fisherman found the body of the New York teacher who disappeared on Sunday after surfing a 10-foot wave. On the Daniel Bobis Info Facebook page, Jamie Imerese wrote that Bobis' family was informed that a body had been found up the coast by a fisherman.

"They immediately traveled together in hopes that it was a coincidence. ... It was not. They positively identified Danny," Imerese wrote.

Family, friends and students have flooded the Facebook page with condolences messages for the family.

Helicopters, divers and boats had been searching Indonesian waters for Bobis, who disappeared while on a surfing vacation with his wife.

Bobis' surfboard washed ashore after he surfed a 10-foot wave. It is believed another surfer's board hit him when he came out of the wave's barrel.

His wife, Rachel Bobis, believed he would wash up farther down the beach and come back to their camp. When he didn't, she began to worry.

Rachel Bobis and a few others searched for the next 11 hours until rescue teams could reach the remote beach off the coast of West Lampung, Sumatra.

Daniel Bobis, 32, a math teacher at Long Beach High School in New York, had been passionate about surfing ever since he was a child.

On Facebook, Bobis' cousin Fernando Bobis thanked supporters for the comments and wrote about his cousin, "He was always a...glowing spirit while here with us on Earth. I imagine they must all be having to wear some serious shades up in Heaven where his spirit now glows even brighter. Thank you all for your heartfelt support, prayers & love, on behalf of the family."

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

U.S. Accuses Iran of 'Secret' Deal with al Qaeda

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Gary A. Witte, 300th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment(WASHINGTON) -- The United States today accused the Iranian government of entering into a “secret” deal with al Qaeda to funnel money and fighters to Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The Treasury Department slapped sanctions on six individuals operating in a network that they said “serves as the core pipeline through which al Qaeda moves money, facilitators and operatives from across the Middle East to South Asia, including to Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, a key al Qaeda leader based in Pakistan, also designated today.”

In a statement announcing the sanctions, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen said, "Iran is the leading state sponsor of terrorism in the world today. By exposing Iran’s secret deal with al Qaeda allowing it to funnel funds and operatives through its territory, we are illuminating yet another aspect of Iran’s unmatched support for terrorism."

“Today’s action also seeks to disrupt this key network and deny al Qaeda’s senior leadership much-needed support,” Cohen added.

Among the individuals sanctioned today is Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil, described by the Treasury Department as “an Iran-based senior al Qaeda facilitator currently living and operating in Iran under an agreement between al Qaeda and the Iranian government.”

The Treasury Department says Khalil has been allowed to stay in Iran since 2005 and funnels money and recruits from around the Middle East into Iran and then to al Qaeda leaders in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iraq. The US says Khalil has collected funds from donors in the Persian Gulf, and that each recruit is required to deliver $10,000 to al Qaeda in Pakistan.

“As al Qaeda’s representative in Iran, Khalil works with the Iranian government to arrange releases of al Qaeda personnel from Iranian prisons. When al Qaeda operatives are released, the Iranian government transfers them to Khalil, who then facilitates their travel to Pakistan,” the Treasury Department said.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Investigation of Britain's Phone Hacking Scandal Begins

Warren Little/Getty Images(LONDON) -- The inquiry into Britain's phone hacking scandal, which will determine whether the country needs to ramp up its media regulation, officially kicked off on Thursday.

British Prime Minister David Cameron called for the investigation earlier this month in response to allegations that the country's highest circulated newspaper, News of the World, hacked into the cellphones of a missing schoolgirl and grieving families of terror victims, among others, in an effort to produce and break stories.

The panel, led by senior judge Brian Leveson, will start by examining whether the current self-regulation in the British press industry needs any modifications.

"My goal must be to consider what lessons if any may be learned from past events, and what recommendations if any should be made for the future," Leveson said.

Later on, the panel will also look at relations among the press, police, and politicians. Scotland Yard suffered a black eye in the scandal as well, as police officers have been accused of taking bribes in exchange for leaking details to former News of the World reporters. 

It will have the power to compel witnesses to appear.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

US Seeking to End Loan Guarantee Program for Israel?

Adam Gault/Thinkstock(JERUSALEM) -- As gridlock continues in Washington over the debt crisis, an Israeli newspaper has uncovered a U.S. report that is raising new financial concerns all the way in Jerusalem.

Israel has long relied on U.S. loan guarantees worth billions of dollars to raise money cheaply overseas and grow its economy.  But a new internal State Department report is recommending that the $9 billion loan guarantee program be terminated at the end of 2011.

The recommendation came in a report from the State Department's Office of Inspector General which Israel's Haaretz newspaper has obtained.  The comptroller's report argues that Israel no longer needs the United States' help since it has become a stable, self-sufficient economy and a new member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

This is the first time that Israel's economic prowess -- and not its politics -- could change the status of these loan guarantees.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Defending Breivik: European Politicians in Hot Water for Norway Comments

HOLM MORTEN/AFP/Getty Images(LONDON) -- At least three European politicians, including one former minister to Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, have come under fire for defending the extremist, anti-immigration views of Anders Breivik that inspired him to allegedly murder more than 70 people in Norway Friday.

Francesco Speroni, who was the Minister of Institutional Reform under Berlusconi in the mid-1990s and current leading member of Italy's Northern League, said Tuesday on an Italian radio show, "If [Breivik's] ideas are that we are going towards Eurabia [Islamized Europe] and those sorts of things, that western Christian civilization needs to be defended, yes, I'm in agreement."

Speroni said he condemned the attack itself but was coming to the defense of Mario Borghezio, a fellow member of the Northern League and member of the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, who previously said some of Breivik's ideas were "great."

"Some of the ideas [Breivik] expressed are good, barring the violence. Some of them are great," Borghezio said also in a radio interview, according to the BBC and The Guardian. "Christians ought not to be animals to be sacrificed. We have to defend them."

Hours before Breivik allegedly began his attack Friday, he posted a 1,500-page manifesto and YouTube video online in which he not only described his meticulous and painstaking preparations for the attack, but an academic-styled presentation against what he called cultural Marxism and mutliculturalism.

"You cannot defeat Islamisation or halt/reverse the Islamic colonization of Western Europe without first removing the political doctrines manifested through multiculturalism/cultural Marxism," the manifesto reads. "Time is of the essence. We have only a few decades to consolidate a sufficient level of resistance before our major cities are completely demographically overwhelmed by Muslims."

Breivik apparently finished his manifesto just hours before allegedly launching a bombing attack in Oslo that killed eight before an assault on a liberal party's youth camp that claimed another 68 lives.

Hours after Borghezio's comments, a leading member of the Northern League, Roberto Calderoli, reportedly released a statement apologizing for Borghezio's "rants" and several other Italian politicians called for Borghezio's resignation.

A member of France's right-wing National Front party has already been suspended for writing a blog post defending Breivik and calling him an "icon," Britain's The Telegraph reported.

"The reason for the Norway terror attacks: fighting the Muslim invasion, that's what people don't want you to know," read a post signed by Jacques Coutela. Coutela called Breivik "the main defender of the West."

Coutela's post was reportedly removed from the Web after a complaint by the French Movement Against Racism and for Friendship Between Peoples. After the post was removed, Coutela told Agence France-Presse he was just passing along someone else's words and said he denounced terrorism.

In the wake of the attack several fringe right-wing group's have distanced themselves from Breivik's horrific attack. In his manifesto, Breivik said he communicated closely with Britain's English Defence League, a group that characterizes itself as defenders against "a truly Global jihad." But the EDL said in a pair of statements after the attack it is a "peaceful and patriotic" organization and their group has never had any official contact with Breivik.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Report: 40 Americans Training in Somalia Are 'Direct Threat' to US

George Doyle/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) -- A new congressional report Wednesday expressed increasing alarm on the danger posed by Americans of Somali background who have joined Islamic militants, calling them a "direct threat to the U.S. homeland."

The report said there are 40 Americans believed to be training and fighting with al-Shabaab, the al-Qaeda linked terrorist group trying to take control of Somalia.

ABC News has learned that before he died Osama bin Laden was secretly urging al-Shabaab to target the United States because he was aware of the Americans of Somali descent who had joined al-Shabaab.

The report by the House Homeland Security Committee has found that at least 40 Somali Americans have trained and fought in Somalia over the last four years, including three U.S. suicide bombers who have carried out attacks against African security forces.

The report notes that 15 Americans and three Canadians have been killed fighting with al-Shabaab in Somalia. The report also reveals, "At least 21 or more American Shabaab members overseas remain unaccounted for and pose a direct threat to the U.S. homeland."

Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., said in an interview with ABC News, "These are Americans. These are people who have passports, they know the United States, they understand the United States, they know our weak points, they know where they can probe and thrust."

King held a hearing Wednesday focused on the terror group, warning that "with al-Shabaab's large cadre of American jihadis and unquestionable ties to al Qaeda, particularly its alliance with AQAP [Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula], we must face the reality that al-Shabaab is a growing threat to our homeland."

The Somali terror recruits have come from across the country including, California, Minnesota, Illinois, Missouri, New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Alabama and Texas.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Mexico 'Invades' Texas: 33 Soldiers Cross Border in Humvees

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images(DONNA, Texas) -- More than 30 soldiers in the Mexican Army crossed the border into Texas in Humvees on Tuesday before being processed and allowed to return to Mexico.

According to Customs and Border Patrol spokesman Rick Pauza, the accidental invasion occurred when 33 soldiers in four Humvees started crossing a bridge across the Rio Grande at Donna, Texas, and then realized they couldn't turn their vehicles around without entering the U.S.

A local newspaper, the Monitor of McAllen, Texas, reported that the Mexicans were chasing a resident of South Texas when they drove onto the bridge.

Without addressing the reason for the crossing, Pauza confirmed to ABC News that the incident had occurred and called it "inadvertent."

"There are times when an incident such as this occurs," said Pauza. "CBP has established protocols in place to handle such incident and all personnel have been processed as per those protocols. They returned to Mexico without incident."

In a statement, Mexico's National Ministry of Defense also confirmed that the incident had occurred, calling it "involuntary," and said it had happened "due to the vehicle turnaround being on the American side." The statement did not say why the Humvees drove onto the bridge.

Donna, Texas, is in the Rio Grande Valley, just east of McAllen. The Donna-Rio Bravo Bridge officially opened in December 2010, but will not be open to commercial traffic till 2013.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio