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Matthew DeBord: Masters Golf: Has Tiger Woods Picked His Successor? Top
When Tiger Woods was making his way up the amateur ranks back in the early 1990s, you heard about him constantly. You also heard about the great players, the Palmers and Nicklauses, who were at least aware of his prodigious talent. Now that Tiger is the top guy, you hear less about younger players on the way up. The book on Tiger back in the day was that he was a lock to become a pretty splendid professional. Ever since then, one young turk hotshot after another has appeared on the scene, only to whither. Of course, Tiger will be around for a lot longer, but at 33, he's nearing the downward slope of his career. And it seems as he's taken more than a passing interest in a member of the younger generation. That would be Anthony Kim, 23, the brash American player who basically assumed Tiger's mantle during last year's thrilling Ryder Cup victory--Tiger was recuperating from knee surgery--and on Friday set a new record for birdies during a single round at the Masters. He went to eleven. That's right, eleven birdies. Over 18 holes. On the toughest greens in the world. After having shot a 75 in his first-ever competitive round at Augusta. Needless to say, going 75-65...it was talk of the clubhouse. Phil Mickelson got hot on the back nine. And Tiger, although he seemed to miss every birdie putt he looked at on Saturday, remained in the mix for the weekend. But "AK," as he's known (he wears his initials on gigantic belt buckles), put himself in a position to be the youngest player since Tiger to really do something exciting at Augusta. He's currently at -4. Let's just pretend he keeps his hot putter and doesn't have any disasters today or Sunday. He could easily get it to double-digits and be slipping on the green jacket come sundown in Georgia tomorrow. We'll see. Tiger will probably be remiss that he didn't win last year, so that he could do the honors of helping Kim don the most coveted garment in all sport. Woods seems to greatly respect Kim's tremendous natural ability and ferociously competitive nature. No one is more competitive than Tiger, but he's also something of a golf technocrat. Kim, on the other hand, plays by the seat of his pants. Tiger is superego. Kim is Id. Mark O'Meara, the senior player who's been Tiger's mentor since he appeared on the PGA Tour, has said that AK's game is actually better that Tiger's was, at the same age. The Golf Channel recently ran a Nike clinic at which Tiger and AK appeared (both are Nike sponsored), and it was Tiger who assumed the articulate, avuncular role while Kim served as the show pony, hitting all the shots. Tiger was still favoring his knee at the time, but it was interesting to hear him compliment Kim on the purity of his club-ball contact and compare notes on how to create brilliant shots. Woods, being preposterously talented, knows equivalent talent when he sees it. Anyone can see that Kim is pretty good. But Tiger sees something more. There have been plenty of young players who've crossed his radar in the past decade, but Kim is the one who's made him take notice. And if AK continues his stunning play at Augusta, and Woods begins to rise to the occasion, Tiger may be staring down his own vision of the future tomorrow, with the green jacket at stake.
 
China Foreign Exchange Reserves At $1.954 Trillion Top
BEIJING — China's central bank said Saturday that its foreign exchange reserves rose 16 percent year-on-year to $1.9537 trillion by the end of March. China's reserves, already the world's largest, increased by $7.7 billion in the first quarter _ $146.2 billion less than the same period last year, the People's Bank of China said in a notice on its Web site. That rise was substantially less than the fourth quarter increase of almost $45 billion, according to China's official Xinhua News Agency, showing the impact of slowing exports due to the financial crisis. In March, the reserves increased by $41.7 billion, it said, $6.7 billion more than the same period last year. Analysts believe China holds up to 70 percent of its foreign reserves in U.S. dollar-denominated assets, including Treasury securities. China's reserves have ballooned as the central bank buys up dollars generated from its huge trade and influx of foreign investment. While China's economy has slowed due to a plunge in trade and a slump in the domestic real estate industry, recent data show the drop eased in March. Beijing has taken steps to hold down the price of exports by cutting taxes on exporters and stopping the rise of China's tightly controlled currency, the yuan, against the U.S. dollar. Economists say both steps could strain relations with trading partners if China is seen to be competing unfairly. Western leaders including British Prime Minister Gordon Brown are pressing for China to contribute to a global bailout fund from its reserves. Exports fell 17 percent in March from a year earlier, the fifth straight monthly decline but less severe than February's 25.7 plunge, the sharpest in a decade, the customs agency reported Friday. It said trade "showed clear signs of improvement." Imports fell by 25.7 percent, widening the Chinese trade surplus to $18.6 billion from February's $4.8 billion gap.
 
Pennsylvania Priest Runs Over Churchgoers After Good Friday Service, Killing 1 Top
FOREST HILLS, Pa. — Authorities and witnesses say a priest drove into a group of churchgoers after a Good Friday service near Pittsburgh, killing an 89-year-old woman and wounding four other people. Madeline Romell's leg had to be amputated shortly after the Friday afternoon crash in the parking lot of St. Maurice Catholic Church in Forest Hills. She was pronounced dead about five hours later. Four others were hurt, but Forest Hills Mayor Ray Heller Jr. says their injuries weren't life-threatening. He says the injuries included a broken leg and a broken arm. Parishioner Angela Thomas tended to the wounded, including a man pinned under the car. She says the priest told her the accelerator just went. Witnesses say the priest served at St. Maurice's.
 
Oprah Defends Record Of South African School Top
JOHANNESBURG — Oprah Winfrey acknowledged in a newspaper interview published Saturday that she has made several mistakes at her elite South African school, but said she remains proud of its success. The recent expulsion of four girls and suspension of three others was the second scandal to hit the Leadership Academy for Girls, which opened in 2007 to groom bright children from deprived backgrounds for a brilliant career. A dorm matron is currently on trial accused of abuse and sexual assault. "I have made several mistakes and one of them was being overprotective of the girls, which has led to an impression that the school is isolating them from society," Winfrey was quoted as saying in the Weekend Argus. She said she had also underestimated the extent of homesickness among girls at the boarding school. Last month, four students were expelled and three others suspended. South African media at the time said they were accused of trying to force students into relationships and to engage in sexual contact. Winfrey herself hasn't given details of the misconduct. But she said in the newspaper interview that it was "insulting" that the family of one of the expelled girls had complained to the press even though she had been warned before about her behavior. "Those girls in their own testimony during the (disciplinary) hearing said they knew they were breaking the rules and that they deliberately broke the rules," the talk show queen was quoted as saying. The institution just outside Johannesburg opened with a blaze of publicity in January 2007 with about 150 girls in 7th and 8th grades. The Academy is expected to grow by one grade each year until it reaches full capacity in 2011, with approximately 450 girls in grades 7 through 12. Winfrey poured $40 million into the 28-building campus, which is spread across 22 lush acres. It has computer and science labs, a library, theater and wellness center, all protected by strict privacy. Each girl lives in a two-bedroom suite _ a far cry from their humble surroundings at home. It's the fulfillment of a promise Winfrey made to former South African President Nelson Mandela and aims to give poor girls a quality education and prepare them for leadership positions in a country where state schools are struggling to overcome the legacy of white-minority rule. "The majority of girls are thriving, really fulfilling the dream and vision I had," Winfrey told the newspaper. "They really have exceeded any expectations I had for them." "In spite of everything that's happened, what keeps me inspired and hopeful is the heart of every girl, because they are wonderful, they are magnificent." More on Oprah
 
Obama Still Has Hundreds Of Important Jobs To Fill Top
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama doesn't have time for a victory lap now that his Cabinet is finally largely in place. One level down, he faces gaping holes in the ranks he needs to fill if there is to be any hope of turning his ambitious agenda into action on health care, the environment and much more. After a spurt of recent activity that followed a problem-plagued start, Obama is outpacing George W. Bush and Bill Clinton on appointments. But Obama, like his two immediate predecessors, is bogged down in a system that has grown increasingly cumbersome over the years. And he's added tougher-than-ever background checks and ethics rules. "Obama will be faster than Clinton and Bush when all is said and done, but it's still a slow process," said New York University professor Paul Light, an expert on the federal government. "A turtle is a turtle is a turtle. The Obama administration is a pretty fast turtle, but it's no hare." What's at stake is much more than bragging rights for how quickly Obama can fill in an organizational chart with names for undersecretary of this and deputy assistant secretary of that. These are the people Obama needs to carry out all sorts of promised initiatives and policy shifts, and to assure that the nation stays safe along the way. At a recent congressional hearing, for example, Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., lamented that Dennis Blair, the national intelligence director, doesn't have time to manage the extra responsibilities he's been given on economics and climate change. "The ideal person for that is the principal deputy director of national intelligence," suggested Edward Maguire, the agency's outgoing inspector general. But that's one of hundreds of seats still empty. There are similar stories all across government. NASA is awaiting a new administrator as the space agency approaches a big deadline about when to retire the space shuttle fleet. At the Health and Human Services Department, where Kathleen Sebelius will be the last member of Obama's Cabinet to win confirmation by the Senate, 19 of the top 20 slots are being filled by acting career employees and the 20th is empty. This at a time when Obama is calling for sweeping changes in the way people get health care coverage. Four planned HHS nominations have been announced. At the Interior Department, Obama has yet to name a replacement to lead the Minerals Management Service, central in plans to expand renewable energy production off the nation's coasts. Obama also has not picked someone to head the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., a quasi-government outfit that insures the pensions of 44 million workers and retirees _ critical when bankruptcies are mounting. The corporation is being run by an acting director from the civil service. George Mason University professor James Pfiffner, an expert on presidential appointments, said that while capable civil servants can keep the government functioning, no one expects them to "go off in a new direction" to carry out a new president's policies. Light describes it as a "neckless government," representing the gap between the new Cabinet secretaries and the career employees. "You really need the president's people in there to put the push on for action," he said. All told, Obama has about 500 appointments to make that are subject to Senate confirmation, and about 3,000 positions to fill overall, Light estimates. By the White House's own count, Obama is outpacing his three predecessors at getting top-level appointees confirmed. But the numbers still are paltry, given all the vacancies to be filled. As of March 31, by an internal White House tally, Obama had 38 top-level officials confirmed, compared with 27 for George W. Bush, 37 for Clinton, and 27 for George H.W. Bush. Considerably more names have been announced and are winding their way through the confirmation process. "It's very clear that the Obama personnel operation has picked up speed," Light said. "They're now loading the pipeline quite efficiently." That shifts the logjam down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Senate, which must confirm top-level appointees. Jim Manley, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said most of the dozens of names awaiting confirmation didn't arrive until mid-March, and that action now "hinges on Republicans agreeing to move these nominees." And Congress' two-week spring break will put action on hold temporarily until at least late April. Terry Sullivan, executive director of the White House Transition Project, said Obama appears to be on track to get 100 appointments confirmed in his first 100 days, a modern benchmark recommended by some. But he said that still means "the government is mostly empty desks for the first year," which makes it hard to push an ambitious agenda. Obama himself has bemoaned the "onerous" appointments process, taking note in particular of early trouble filling critical spots at the Treasury Department, where several potential nominees backed out after their names were announced. "A lot of people who we think are about to serve in the administration and Treasury suddenly say, 'Well, you know what? I don't want to go through some of the scrutiny, embarrassment, in addition to taking huge cuts in pay,'" Obama told CBS' "60 Minutes" late last month. Obama added to the hurdles by imposing tougher ethics rules and by increasing scrutiny of nominees' taxes after revelations that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner had failed to pay $34,000 in payroll taxes and that former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle, Obama's first pick for health secretary, owed $140,000 in back income taxes and interest. Darrell West, director of governance studies at the Brookings Institution, a think tank, said Obama was setting "Mother Teresa standards in a city with very few saints." West called the number of appointees in place "dangerously low given the enormity of the challenges we face. Obama is holding his people to such a high standard it is wounding his administration." ___ Associated Press writers Pam Hess, Dina Cappiello, Seth Borenstein and Deb Riechmann contributed to this report. ___ On the Net: White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov/ White House Transition Project: http://whitehousetransitionproject.org/ More on Barack Obama
 
Scott Mendelson: Observe and Report -- Yes, It's Date Rape, but It's Not Supposed to Be Funny (but the Movie Still Is) Top
Wow, from all the hub-hub about Observe and Report ($4.2 million opening day.. or about what people expected Paul Blart: Mall Cop to open with), you'd never guess that everyone is actually seeing The Hannah Montana Movie ($16 million opening day, about $40 million for the weekend). MAJOR SPOILERS - While anyone can like or dislike a film, I think certain critics and pundits who don't like the film are missing the fact that Ronnie is not supposed to be likable. He is a frighteningly obsessive, blindingly judgmental psychotic, and a racist to boot. And many of the other characters are unlikable too. Frankly, I loved that Farris played the female lead without any redeeming qualities, as it was a nice spoof on the idealized dream girl, or the comfortably 'bitchy' drama queen who just wants to be loved. Those complaining that it was sexist for Melanie to be so horrible are missing the point - she is horrible and so is Ronnie. The film has a very similar vibe to The Cable Guy . And once again a major star is being criticized for playing a character that is well outside the audience's comfort zone. What many people are missing is that, first of all, the very 'redemptive elements' that Ronnie achieves may just be in his imagination. It's open to debate, but there is evidence that the action climax and the mid-film drug dealer beat down were delusional fantasies. Second of all, most importantly, not everything that occurs onscreen is supposed to be funny. Just because it is a comedy doesn't mean that every moment is intended to be humorous. Also worth noting to those criticize Ronnie's alleged redemption is that Ronnie's behavior does not change in the course of the movie. It is only random circumstance that allows his behavior to be viewed in a new, heroic light at the end of the film (again, assuming that the climactic chase actually occurred in the film and not in Ronnie's head), which turns the film around and makes a judgment on the audience instead of just Ronnie. As for the 'date rape' scene, it's pretty cut and dry date rape, especially from a legal point of view. The humor, if you choose to find it funny, comes from A) wow... he really is a loser and B) wow... he honestly thinks that he had a wonderfully romantic evening. It's perfectly logical in terms of how Ronnie sees the world (he of course thinks of it as a magical night). Audiences who watch the film and think 'that's awesome, he got her drunk/drugged up and had sex on her barely conscious, vomiting body' have their own issues. I'm pretty sure most intelligent folks will think 'he got her drunk and had sex on her barely conscious, vomiting body... that's sad and pathetic'. And even if they don't, that's not the responsibility of the filmmakers. Whether or not Observe and Report is a good film is open to debate. But criticizing a black comedy/social satire for having unlikable characters, awkward situations, and uncomfortable material is awfully foolish.
 
Washington Churches Eye The Obamas Top
The invitations have come in neatly typed letters, whispered entreaties and please-join-us blogs. They have come from predominantly white churches and predominantly black churches, venerable churches with distinguished lineages and smaller, plucky churches with little more than spirit and gumption. The prize? The most sought after churchgoers in Washington: President Obama and his family. More on Barack Obama
 
Protesters Force Thailand To Cancel Asia Summit Top
PATTAYA, Thailand — Anti-government protesters stormed a convention center where leaders of Asian nations planned to meet Saturday, smashing doors and searching room by room for the prime minister. Thailand canceled the summit and airlifted the leaders out by helicopter. The red-shirted protesters, who are calling for the resignation of Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, declared victory and walked away from the complex after about an hour. "We have won. We have stopped them from holding a summit," Jakrapob Penkair, one of the protest leaders, said in the capital, Bangkok. "But we have not achieved our goal yet. We will continue to protest in Bangkok until Abhisit resigns." Abhisit, who has repeatedly refused to step down, went on national television and declared a state of emergency in the area surrounding the summit, but revoked it about six hours later after the leaders left safely. He called the protesters "enemies of Thailand." The chaos is a huge embarrassment for Abhisit, who has been trying to project an image of calm and normality since taking power in a parliamentary vote four months ago after a court dissolved the previous government for election fraud. His ascent to power _ the fifth Thai government in a little over two years _ came after protests by a rival group of protesters shut down the capital's airports and endangered the country's tourism industry. The latest demonstrations raise tension in Thailand, where anti-government crowds as big as 100,000 marched in Bangkok this past week, and increased the threat of violence and a possible confrontation between the military and the protesters. "The situation has gotten completely out of hand. Violence and bloodshed is very much possible," said Charnvit Kasetsiri, a historian and former rector of Bangkok's Thammasat University. "The country is very split and it might have reached the point of no return." More than 1,000 demonstrators smashed through the convention center's glass doors and ran through the building, overturning tables, blowing horns, waving Thai flags and screaming, "Abhisit get out!" They are supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was deposed in a 2006 military coup for alleged corruption and abuse of power. They say Abhisit was not elected by the people and should step down so new elections can be held. Despite days of mass protests _ including an attack on the prime minister's car _ the Thai government had promised visiting heads of state that they would be safe from the unrest. The leaders were evacuated by helicopter from Pattaya to a nearby military airport, said government spokesman Supachai Jaisamuth. "The meeting cannot go on. We have to consider the security of the leaders," Supachai said. "The situation is too violent and it is a security concern for the leaders." The protesters met little resistance from a thin line of unarmed soldiers in riot gear who were standing in front of the summit venue. When the protesters rushed toward the building and started pounding on the glass facade, the soldiers attempted to push them back but were overwhelmed by their numbers. Officials had said that 8,000 police were being deployed for security, but few were seen around the summit venue in Pattaya, about 140 kilometers (90 miles) southeast of Bangkok. "The government was clear from the beginning that the measures used against demonstrators wouldn't include any arms," said government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn. "We have to review the process again to see if these measures are appropriate for the next meeting." Nine leaders from Southeast Asian nations were in a nearby hotel on the convention grounds at the time the protesters broke in, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Tharit Charungvat. Abhisit said the leaders were "very understanding" about the abrupt cancellation. It scuttled a chance for the leaders of 16 nations, including China, Japan and South Korea, to confer on ways to combat the global slump that has battered Asia's export-oriented economies. North Korea's recent rocket launch also was to be discussed at the gathering, which on Sunday was to include Australia, New Zealand and India for the full-fledged East Asia Summit. Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said he hoped the summit could be rescheduled within the next few months. The summit started Friday with a dinner among leaders from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, but fell apart Saturday as protesters blocked access to some of the delegates' hotels. Organizers had to delay _ and then cancel _ morning meetings between the leaders of ASEAN and China, South Korea and Japan. Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao managed to meet and discussed North Korea's recent rocket launch, Aso spokesman Osamu Sakashita said. The three agreed that a "strong message be issued unanimously at an early date," he said. The U.N. Security Council is trying to break a deadlock over how to respond to North Korea's April 5 launch. ___ Associated Press writers Ambika Ahuja, Jocelyn Gecker and Malcolm Foster contributed to this report. More on Thailand
 
US Warships Block Help For Pirates Holding US Captain Hostage Top
NAIROBI, Kenya — The head of a Kenyan seafarers' program said Saturday that Somali pirates had hijacked an American-owned tugboat with 16 crew in the Gulf of Aden. Nairobi-based Italian Ambassador Pierandrea Magistrati said he only could confirm that "there is a boat that has been hijacked, I believe by Somali pirates." The hijacking took place as the American captain of the U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama was still being held hostage on a lifeboat being watched by two U.S. warships. The head of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Program, Andrew Mwangura, said maritime industry sources had informed his organization that the Italian-flagged U.S. tugboat was towing two barges when it was attacked. He said it was unclear if the attack took place off the coast of Somalia or further north near Yemen. He said did not know what was on the barges. Mwangura said the attack was launched around 11 a.m. (0800 GMT) Saturday. More U.S. warships were trying to stop Somali pirates from sending reinforcements to the lifeboat where the American captain was being held for a fourth day hundreds of miles from land, a diplomat said Saturday. The Nairobi-based diplomat, who receives regular briefings on the situation, said the four pirates holding Capt. Richard Phillips in a lifeboat under the close watch of U.S. warships some 380 miles off shore had tried to summon other pirates from the Somali mainland. The diplomat, who spoke on condition on anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters, said that pirates had been trying to reach the lifeboat. A Somali who described himself as having close ties to pirate networks also said the pirates were trying to reach the lifeboat. The Somali told The Associated Press that pirates had set out in four commandeered ships with hostages from a variety of nations including the Philippines, Russia and Germany. The diplomat told the AP that large pirate "motherships" and skiffs were heading in the direction of the lifeboat. A second Somali man who said he had spoken by satellite phone to a pirate piloting a seized German freighter told the AP by phone Saturday that the pirate captain had reported being blocked by U.S. forces and was returning Saturday to the pirate stronghold of Harardhere. Speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, he said the pirate told him the ship was in sight of a U.S. Navy destroyer Saturday morning local time, received a U.S. warning not to come any closer and, fearing attack, left the scene without ever seeing the lifeboat. A Pentagon official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations said in Washington Saturday morning that there had been no developments overnight. He declined to comment on the report that the U.S. Navy had turned back the pirates. The diplomat said from Nairobi that at least two American ships and U.S. Navy surveillance aircraft had been attempting to deter pirate ships and skiffs from contact with the lifeboat but he did not know if the pirates and Navy ships had come into contact. The Somali man said the pirate also told him that two other commandeered ships from Taiwan and Greece that were trying to reach the lifeboat feared a showdown with the U.S. Navy and returned to Eyl, a port that serves as a pirate hub, on Friday night. It was not immediately possible to contact people in Eyl Saturday. The Somali man said the fourth ship that had tried to reach the lifeboat was a Norwegian tanker that was released Friday after a $2 million ransom was paid. The owner of the Norwegian tanker Bow Asir confirmed Friday that it had been released two weeks after it was seized by armed pirates off the Somali coast, and all 27 of its crew members were unhurt. Phillips, 53, of Underhill, Vermont, was seized Wednesday when he thwarted the takeover of the 17,000-ton U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama, which was carrying food aid for hungry people in Somalia, Rwanda and Uganda. He told his crew of 20 to lock themselves in a cabin, crew members told stateside relatives. Phillips surrendered himself to safeguard his men. The crew later overpowered some of the pirates but the Somalis fled with the captain to an enclosed lifeboat, the relatives said. The Alabama was heading toward the Kenyan port of Mombasa _ its original destination _ with 20 American crew members aboard. It was expected to arrive Saturday night, said Joseph Murphy, whose son is second-in-command of the vessel. On Friday, Phillips jumped out of the lifeboat and tried to swim for his freedom but was recaptured when a pirate fired an automatic weapon at or near him, according to U.S. Defense Department officials speaking on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk about the sensitive, unfolding operations. Negotiations had been taking place between the pirates and the captain of the Bainbridge, who was getting direction from FBI hostage negotiators, the officials said. Sailors on the USS Bainbridge, which has rescue helicopters and lifeboats, were able to see Phillips but at several hundred yards away were too far to help him. The U.S. destroyer is keeping its distance, in part to stay out of the pirates' range of fire. The lifeboat has some gas and the ability to move, according to U.S. defense officials who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss sensitive details. U.S. sailors saw Phillips moving around and talking after his return to the lifeboat, and the Defense Department officials said they think he is unharmed. The Bainbridge was joined Friday by the USS Halyburton, which has helicopters, and the huge, amphibious USS Boxer was expected soon after, the defense officials said. The Boxer, the flagship of a multination anti-piracy task force, resembles a small aircraft carrier. It has a crew of more than 1,000, a mobile hospital, missile launchers and about two dozen helicopters and attack planes. The vice president of the Philippines, the nation with the largest number of sailors held captive by Somali pirates, appealed for the safety of hostages to be ensured in the standoff. "We hope that before launching any tactical action against the pirates, the welfare of every hostage is guaranteed and ensured," said Vice President Noli de Castro. "Moreover, any military action is best done in consultation with the United Nations to gain the support and cooperation of other countries." France's navy on Friday freed a sailboat seized off Somalia last week by other pirates, but one of the hostages was killed. France's defense minister promised an autopsy and investigation into the death of the hostage killed during the commando operation, which freed four other captives and was prompted by threats the passengers would be executed. The pirates had seized the sailboat carrying Florent Lemacon, his wife, 3-year-old son and two friends off the Somali coast a week ago. Two pirates were killed, and Lemacon died in an exchange of fire as he tried to duck down the hatch. Three pirates were taken prisoner in the operation, and are to be brought to France for criminal proceedings. Piracy along the anarchic and impoverished Somali coast, the longest in Africa, has risen in recent years. Somali pirates have been seizing ships with many hostages and anchoring it near shore, where they have quickly escaped to land and begun negotiations for multimillion-dollar ransoms. They hold about a dozen ships with more than 200 crew members, according to the International Maritime Bureau, a piracy watchdog group based in Malaysia. The bureau lists 66 attacks since January, not including the Alabama. ___ Associated Press writers who contributed to this report include Mohamed Olad Hassan and Mohamed Sheikh Nor in Mogadishu, Somalia; Pauline Jelinek, Anne Gearan, Robert Burns and Matt Apuzzo in Washington; Oliver Teves in Manila, Philippines; and Pierre-Yves Roger in Paris. More on Kenya
 

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