Top Five EasternMed Ports Of Call On A Rome Cruise To The Eastern Mediterranean

Cruises from Rome to the Eastern Mediterranean ports of call in Greece, Croatia, Greek Islands, Turkey and even Egypt and Israel are popular because of the fabulous ports of call along the cruises from Rome sailings. These ports are full of old Roman history as many of the ports were part of the Roman Empire, which lasted from 300BC to 700AD. Today these ports offer glorious historic sights, culture and food. And many of the Mediterranean port cities are on the sharp edge of contemporary and modern design, all of which offers the Italy cruise traveler from Rome no shortage of history-themed and up to date -themed destinations to go to on a cruise around Italy from Rome.

Western civilization flourished on the shores of the Mediterranean so these ports of call on an Italy cruise itinerary are ports which have been welcoming visitors by sea for thousands of years. It is heaps of fun to arrive in the various city?s ports as it allows a view of the town just like when the earliest mariners sailed the Mediterranean trading spices, wine, herbs, jewlery, olive oil, and more

Below are the Top 5 Eastern Mediterranean ports on a Eastern Mediterranean cruise from Rome.

Italy Cruise Top Port of Call - Athens, Greece

This ancient cty can be feverish and full of traffic congestio and provides too much action for some travelers. Escape it all with a delightful stroll up to the Acropolis, which offers a fabulous view over the city and the Mediterranean. Archaeological remains there include the Parthenon, the Erechtheum and the Church of Athena Nike. Athens is one of the world?s oldest cities, as its known history spans around three thousand four hundred years. Athens is many times referred to as the birthplace of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy, largely due to the impact of its cultural and political accomplishments during the 5th and 4th centuries BC on the rest of the then known European continent. Today the area is a cosmopolitan metropolis, modern Athens is central to economic, financial, industrial, political and cultural life in Greece. Given its history, culture, and good food Athens is a highly sought after port for travelers on a cruise from Rome.

Italy Cruise Top Port of Call - Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul is a metropolis, as well as the cultural, economic, and monetary hub of Turkey. It's the biggest urban center in Turkey and fifth biggest city in the world with a population of 12.8 million, also making it the largest urban center in Europe and the second biggest metro population in Europe. It is situated on the Bosphorus Strait and encompasses the natural harbour called the Golden Horn, in the northwest of the country. It extends both on both the European (Thrace) and on the Asian (Anatolia) sides of the Bosphorus, and is thereby the unique metropolis in the world that is situated on 2 continents. During its long history, Istanbul had formerly been the capital city of the Roman Empire (330?c.395), Byzantine Empire (c.395?1204 & 1261?1453), the Latin Empire (1204?1261), and the Ottoman Empire (1453?1922). Thereafter, the new Republic of Turkey, moved its capital to Ankara in the Turkish War of Independence. Rome cruises to Istanbul are among the most asked for Rome cruises, and thus this cruise from Rome schedule sells out early.

Italy Cruise Top Port of Call - Alexandria, Egypt

In ancient times, Alexandria was one of the most celebrated towns in the world. It was located around a little pharaonic town c. 331 BC by Alexander the Great. It stayed Egypt?s capital for nearly one thousand years, until the Muslim conquest of Egypt in AD 641, when a new capital was founded at Fustat (Fustat was later absorbed into Cairo). Alexandria was famous for its Lighthouse of Alexandria (Pharos), one of the 7 Wonders of the Traditional World; its library (the largest library in the traditional world); and the Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa, one of the 7 Wonders of the Middle Ages. Continuing maritime archeology in the harbour of Alexandria, which began in 1994, is revealing details of Alexandria both before the arriving of Alexander, when a city named Rhacotis existed there, and during the Ptolemaic dynasty. Today Holy Land Rome cruises include Alexandria as a port of call.

Italy Cruise Top Cruise Port - Greek Isles

The Greek Islands are a collection of over 6,000 islands and islets that belong to Greece. Only 227 of the islands are inhabited, and only 78 of those have more than a hundred inhabitants. The largest Greek island by area is Crete, found at the southern edge of the Aegean Sea. The second largest island is Euboea, which is separated from the mainland by the 60m-wide Euripus Strait, and is governed as a part of the central Greece periphery. After the third and 4th biggest Greek Islands, Lesbos and Rhodes, the remainder of the islands are two thirds of the area of Rhodes, or smaller. A favored port of call on a cruise from Rome is Santorini and Mykonos, especially in the summertime months. When the nights are long and the beaches welcome Greek Isles cruise from Rome travelers.

Italy Cruise Top Port of Call - Izmir

Izmir is the 3rd biggest city in Turkey, with a population of 3.5 million. The area is one of the oldest cities of the Mediterranean area, dating to 7000 B.C. ?zmir has almost 3,500 years of recorded urban history and perhaps evenolder as an advanced human civilization. The Greek village in Old Smyrna is proved by the presence of ceramics dating to one thousand BC onwards and the most classical ruins preserved to our day date back to 725-700 BC. Lying on an advantageous location at the head of a gulf running down in a deep indentation midway on the western Anatolian coast, the city has been one of the principal mercantile cities of the Mediterranean Sea for most of its history. This port of landing is included on many Eastern Mediterranean cruises from Rome .

Justin Del Sesto is an expert Italy travel guide and the founder, CEO and owner of ItalianTourism.us and ItalyCruise.us, an Italy travel agent focused on Italy vacations and Italy cruises . On his website you will find numerous options for the best priced Rome to Venice cruise and Italy tour. Mr. Del Sesto is also the initiator of WebVisionItaly.com, the only Internet video network about Italy vacations.

If you?re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Source: http://www.lagunatravels.com/blog/?p=8141

snow white and the huntsman snow white and the huntsman philip rivers 11 11 11 meaning miracle berry billy crystal veterans day thank you

World juniors: Canada patiently takes apart Czechs

Destination:

Region:

Area:

Date:

Time:

Source: http://feeds.canada.com/~r/canwest/F260/~3/OyM3ED2s3ws/story.html

grand theft auto 5 grand theft auto 5 kris jenner kris jenner livestand power ball kelly slater

DOD: Reported sexual assaults up at 3 academies (AP)

ANNAPOLIS, Md. ? The number of reported sexual assaults at the nation's three major military academies rose overall in the latest academic year from one year earlier, according to a report released Tuesday by the Pentagon.

The Defense Department's "Annual Report on Sexual Harassment and Violence at the Military Service Academies" for academic year 2010-2011 found there were 65 reports of sexual assault involving cadets and midshipmen at the U.S. Naval Academy, the U.S. Military Academy and the U.S. Air Force Academy. That was up from 41 reports of sexual assaults in the prior academic year.

"This is a leadership issue, first and foremost, so I also expect us to lead with integrity and with energy to eliminate sexual assault and harassment from our culture," Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said in a statement. "I'm confident the steps we are taking are the right ones, but we must continue to improve."

The Pentagon said it could not conclusively identify the reasons for the increases. However, the department has worked to encourage more victims to report sexual assault and the Pentagon says that could explain the higher number of reports.

The annual report was mandated in the 2007 John Warner National Defense Authorization Act. It directed the Pentagon to evaluate the effectiveness of the sexual harassment and sexual violence related policies on an annual basis.

Aiming to eliminate sexual assault and harassment from military culture, the Pentagon also announced two new policies to support abuse victims as it released the findings Tuesday.

Service members who have been the victim of sexual assault and have filed an unrestricted report now have the option to request an expedited transfer from their unit or installation, the Defense Department said. Under the new policy, the service member must receive a response to the transfer from the unit commander within 72 hours. A service member also will be able to request a review of any denied request and receive that response within 72 hours, the Pentagon added.

Another new policy will standardize retention periods for sexual assault records across the military services. Specified documents will be retained for 50 years in unrestricted cases and for five years in restricted cases to give victims longer access to documents related to sexual assault, the Defense Department said.

While the report found that the U.S. Military Academy at West Point is in partial compliance with the department's policies regarding sexual harassment and assault, it concluded the academy was not in compliance with department policy for providing prevention and response training to all cadets.

The Service Women's Action Network, a national human rights organization founded by women veterans, was critical of the increase in sexual abuse reports. Greg Jacob, policy director for the organization, also underscored the noncompliance with Pentagon policy in the report.

"Ending the widespread issue of sexual harassment and sexual assault in the military starts by ending it at the service academies," Jacob said in a statement.

West Point did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Other academy officials said they believe the increase in reporting indicates a positive step in making cadets and midshipmen feel more comfortable about reporting incidents ? a crucial part of addressing the problem.

"We believe that there's much more trust in our system than maybe we've seen in years past," said Col. Reni Renner, vice commandant culture and climate at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Deborah Goode, a spokeswoman at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., said the school includes training for midshipmen throughout all four years to prevent harassment and encourage reporting.

"We believe there is a better understanding by midshipmen of what constitutes sexual harassment and sexual assault, as well as an increased willingness to report incidents, which may account for increased reports of sexual assault cases," Goode said.

The Air Force Academy had 33 reports in the latest academic year, an increase from 20 in the previous year. However, Renner noted that five of this year's reporters were for incidents that occurred prior to military service. The Naval Academy had 22 reported incidents, compared to 11. West Point reported the same number in both years, 10 in each year.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/usmilitary/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111228/ap_on_re_us/us_military_academies_sexual_assault

lady gaga marry the night video pac 12 championship game pac 12 championship game bobby valentine bobby valentine al franken al franken

Can foreign tourists help US economy? (AP)

LAS VEGAS ? Agustina Ocampo is the kind of foreign traveler businesses salivate over.

The 22-year-old Argentine recently dropped more than $5,000 on food, hotels and clothes in Las Vegas during a trip that also took her to Seattle's Space Needle, Disneyland and the San Diego Zoo. But she doubts she will return soon.

"It is a little bit of a headache," said Ocampo, a student who waited months to find out whether her tourist visa application would be approved.

More than a decade after the federal government strengthened travel requirements after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, foreign visitors say getting a temporary visa remains a daunting and sometimes insurmountable hurdle.

The tourism industry hopes to change that with a campaign to persuade Congress to overhaul the State Department's tourist visa application process.

"After 9/11, we were all shaken and there was a real concern for security, and I still think that concern exists," said Jim Evans, a former hotel chain CEO heading a national effort to promote foreign travel to the U.S.

At the same time, he said, the U.S. needs "to be more cognizant of the importance of every single traveler."

Tourism leaders said the decline in foreign visitors over the past decade is costing American businesses and workers $859 billion in untapped revenue and at least half a million potential jobs at a time when the slowly recovering economy needs both.

While the State Department has beefed up tourist services in recent years, reducing wait times significantly for would-be visitors will likely be a challenge as officials try to balance terrorist threats and illegal immigration with tight budgets that limit hiring.

"Security is job one for us," said Edward Ramotowski, managing director of the department's visa services. "The reason we have a visa system is to enforce the immigration laws of the United States."

Anti-immigration proponents argue travel to the U.S. is already too accessible and that allowing more visitors would put the nation at greater risk.

"Everybody would like to find a way to admit as many people as possible to visit here providing that they visit and then go home," said Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, an anti-immigration group based in Washington, D.C.

"A lot of consular officers underestimate how much people want to come and live here," she said.

Nearly 7.6 million nonimmigrant visas were issued in 2001, compared with fewer than 6.5 million in 2010. The number of visa applicants also dropped sharply after 2001. Those combined forces pushed the U.S. share of global travelers down to 12 percent last year, from 17 percent before 2001.

The proposed immigration overhaul has largely been driven by the U.S. Travel Association, the tourism industry's lobbying giant, and has been endorsed by business titans such as the National Retail Federation, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Republicans and Democrats in Congress are backing the proposed changes through six bills in the House and Senate.

Geoff Freeman, the travel association's chief operating officer, said the State Department should be required to keep visa interview wait times at a maximum of 10 days.

"Every day a person is waiting for that interview is a day a person cannot be here supporting the American economy," he said.

For most foreigners, taking a last-minute business or leisure trip to New York, Los Angeles, Miami or other U.S. travel hubs would be nearly impossible. The average wait time for a visa interview in Rio de Janeiro, for example, was 87 days, according to the State Department.

The Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan agency that audits federal programs, concluded that wait times are likely much longer than reported because some department employees artificially reduce the wait times by not scheduling interviews during high-demand periods.

The vast majority of visitors enter through the country's visa waiver program, which allows travelers from 36 nations with good relationships with the U.S. to temporarily visit without a visa. Travel proponents want to add nations whose residents are unlikely to illegally move to the U.S., including Argentina, Brazil, Poland and Taiwan.

Tourists from the rest of the world, including India, China, Mexico and other nations with affluent travelers looking to use their passports, must obtain a nonimmigrant visa. The process can be expensive and time-consuming.

People living far from a visa processing center must arrange travel to the interview location, not knowing whether they will be approved. Roughly 78 percent of all tourist visas were approved so far in 2011.

Tourism proponents want the department to embrace videoconferencing as a way to interview more people quickly. The department has no plans to implement videoconferencing interviews because of safety and technological concerns, Ramotowski said.

In-person interviews weren't the norm before 9/11, when consular officials had the authority to approve travelers based on an application alone. Since then, however, screenings have become more strenuous, with fingerprint checks and facial recognition screening of photographs.

The State Department has made moves to boost its tourist services in recent years, transferring employees from underworked offices to bustling embassies and consular posts. Many visa processing centers are also operating under extended hours.

Other proposed changes include granting more multi-entry visas and charging premium fees to tourists who want a visa right away, similar to the premium passport fee charged to Americans with last-minute passport requests. The tourism industry also wants more visa processing officers and to allow travelers to submit applications in their native language.

"We can't afford to treat them in a way that gives them an impression that maybe they aren't welcome," said Rolf Lundberg, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's top lobbyist.

To help make the U.S. appear more welcoming, Congress approved last year a $200 million annual marketing campaign.

In Las Vegas, where travelers to the Strip have traditionally kept Nevada's economy afloat, tourism and government leaders are desperate to keep businesses open and create jobs in a state with the nation's highest unemployment rate.

"The industries affected by tourism are all behind it," said Republican Rep. Joe Heck of southern Nevada, who has sponsored a bill in the House that would require shorter visa interview delays, among other measures. "We need the jobs."

Ocampo, who spent her vacation shopping at upscale boutiques and visiting family in California, said she would be more eager to come back if she knew her business was wanted.

"Everyone wants to visit the Statue of Liberty and Disneyland," she said.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111228/ap_on_re_us/us_tourist_visas

marie osmond st louis cardinals josh hamilton beavis and butthead cardinals jennifer nicole lee jennifer nicole lee

Chicago Baseball Report :: Chicago Cubs: Team Adds Former Tampa Bay Rays Pitcher Andy Sonnanstine

The Chicago Cubs signed relief pitcher Andy Sonnanstine, formerly of the Tampa Rays, to a non-guaranteed split contract yesterday. It was also clarified that last week?s signing of former Colorado Rockies pitcher, Manny Corpas, was for a one-year non-guaranteed split contract. This means both pitchers aren?t guaranteed a major league salary if they are optioned to the minor leagues in 2012.

The Cubs are taking fliers on both pitchers, hoping to reinforce their bullpen after dealing away Sean Marshall to the Cincinnati Reds for starting pitcher Travis Wood, and prospects. Sonnanstine was rarely used last year and carries with him a career ERA that is north of 5. Corpas hasn?t pitched since 2010 after having Tommy John surgery on his throwing arm.

It?s business as usual for team president Theo Epstein and the Cubs during their current overhaul of the team. With one unsexy move after the other, Epstein and GM Jed Howry continue to plug in veterans from baseball?s over-the-hill heap, while trying to reload the organization?s farm system.

Andy Sonnanstine?s career numbers (including minor league appearances):

Year	Tm	W	L	ERA	G	GS	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	WHIP	SO/9	SO/BB
2004	TBD-min	5	1	0.78	17	7	57.2	36	5	10	66	0.798	10.3	6.60
2005	TBD-min	14	5	2.99	28	28	180.2	174	60	18	178	1.063	8.9	9.89
2006	TBD-min	15	8	2.67	28	28	185.2	151	55	34	153	0.996	7.4	4.50
2007	TBD-min	6	4	2.66	11	11	71.0	60	21	13	66	1.028	8.4	5.08
2007	TBD	6	10	5.85	22	22	130.2	151	85	26	97	1.355	6.7	3.73
2008	TBR	13	9	4.38	32	32	193.1	212	94	37	124	1.288	5.8	3.35
2009	TBD-min	5	3	4.40	9	9	57.1	68	28	9	36	1.343	5.7	4.00
2009	TBR	6	9	6.77	22	18	99.2	131	75	34	60	1.656	5.4	1.76
2010	TBD-min	0	0	6.75	1	1	1.1	2	1	1	4	2.250	27.0	4.00
2010	TBR	3	1	4.44	41	4	81.0	83	40	27	50	1.358	5.6	1.85
2011	TBD-min	3	6	4.82	10	9	56.0	64	30	15	35	1.411	5.6	2.33
2011	TBR	0	2	5.55	15	4	35.2	40	22	12	12	1.458	3.0	1.00
5 Seasons		28	31	5.26	132	80	540.1	617	316	136	343	1.394	5.7	2.52

The big glaring void at the moment is the Cubs? lack of a major league first baseman. Odds are that they won?t sign Carlos Pena, who despite 28 home runs and an OBP of .357 in 2011 with the Cubs, won?t be returning because he can still demand a salary in the neighborhood of $10 million.

Early trade rumors had Brewers free agent first baseman Prince Fielder possibly coming to Chicago after an offer was reportedly made by the Cubs, but the continued trend of recent moves by the Cubs front office is making that dream not a reality. Fielder has been reportedly looking for a deal similar to Albert Pujols, who signed with the Los Angeles Angels for 10 years, $250 million.

Another possibility is the San Diego Padres? young first baseman, Anthony Rizzo. With the Padres? recent trade involving Mat Latos going to the Cincinnati Reds, the Padres received prospect Yonder Alonso, a top prospect at first base for the Reds. This could make Rizzo expendable, and seeing as Cubs GM Jed Hoyer brought Rizzo to the Padres during his time there, he might be interested in bringing Rizzo to Chicago.

Whatever happens with the Cubs? first baseman search, it will be fascinating to see what transpires in 2012 for the team. With a patchwork lineup blending with current Cubs veterans and their bloated, no-trade-clause-laden contracts in 2012, will fans come out to Wrigley Field? Will the team enjoy more success than during their miserable 2011 campaign.

The plan has been put into motion by Epstein, and with every signing of a replacement-level veteran, it probably doesn?t get any easier for a portion of Cubs fans. Even though rebuilding is obviously required after the Jim Hendry era, fans have to know that rebuilding can sometimes be ugly, and results won?t be immediate.

-James Kries

Like this:

Be the first to like this post.

Source: http://rd.sportsblogs.org/viewEntry.php?id=3417507&src=rss

j.r. martinez snl lance ball lance ball kansas city chiefs tom brady packers

Amid bloodshed, Hamas prepares to leave Syria (AP)

RAMALLAH, West Bank ? Alarmed by bloody unrest in Syria, the Hamas militant group has pulled out many of its lower-level cadres from its Damascus headquarters and made contingency plans to move its leadership to locations across the Middle East, senior Hamas members have told The Associated Press.

The Hamas members say the group remains appreciative of Syrian leader Bashar Assad and there is no immediate intention to abandon their base in Damascus. But they confirmed that dozens of low and midlevel members have already left Syria as the security situation grows increasingly precarious.

"Most of Hamas has left Damascus. We have a plan B for leaving if things deteriorate," said a senior Hamas official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing the inner workings of the secretive group.

Hamas, an Iranian-backed Palestinian group, has been based in Syria for more than a decade. Assad has allowed Hamas, branded a terrorist group by Israel and the West, to use his territory for military training, and provided a valuable headquarters in the heart of the Arab world.

But the uprising in Syria has put Hamas in a difficult place. The U.N. estimates that more than 5,000 people have been killed in violence since March, and Hamas is wary of being associated with the government crackdown.

If Hamas does pull out completely, the move could force it to change the way it operates since the leaders would become dispersed across the region and their new hosts may not give them as much freedom. Hamas' supreme leader, Khaled Mashaal, for instance, is set to go to Qatar, a Gulf state with close ties to the U.S. Other leaders would go to Egypt, another American ally, while others would end up in Lebanon, Turkey or the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.

Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas leader in the group's Gaza stronghold, says Hamas "hopes that Syria will get out of its difficult internal crisis through a political solution ending further bloodshed in the country." He said there has been "no decision" to leave Damascus.

The plan is the latest sign of change in the Islamic group amid the convulsions of the Arab Spring across the Middle East the past year. The uprisings have been a mixed blessing for Hamas. On one hand, allies like Syria are in trouble. On the other hand, Islamic groups have made strong gains through peaceful elections. While Hamas leaders say they haven't abandoned their dream of destroying Israel, they also seem to be realizing that they can advance their agenda through nonviolent means.

In recent days, Mashaal said Hamas would turn focus on nonviolent protests against Israel, though he refused to renounce violence.

He also signaled that Hamas might be willing to accept a Palestinian state alongside Israel in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the areas captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war. Hamas has in the past endorsed the 1967 lines as the first stage toward eliminating Israel.

Hamas also last week began the process of joining the Palestine Liberation Organization as it reconciles with the rival Fatah movement. The Fatah-dominated PLO has long sought a political settlement with Israel. Joining the PLO could give Hamas a voice, and possibly veto, in future peace efforts.

Israeli officials dismiss any suggestion that Hamas, which has killed hundreds of Israeli civilians in suicide bombings, rocket attacks and other violence, has changed. They cite the hardline speeches delivered at Hamas' 24th anniversary celebrations earlier this month, when speakers proudly called for "armed resistance" and the destruction of Israel.

"Unfortunately there is no evidence that Hamas has in any way moderated its extremist agenda," said government spokesman Mark Regev.

Barhoum said the group has not abandoned its ideology. Instead, he said it has merely changed its tactics as it adjusts to the times.

"There is a new environment around us," he said. "That doesn't mean Hamas is giving up its rights and its clear program as a resistance faction."

Hamas began its transformation into a political movement in 2006, when it defeated Fatah in Palestinian legislative elections in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

A brief power-sharing arrangement disintegrated into violence the following year, leaving Hamas in control of Gaza and the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority in charge of the West Bank. The sides are now holding reconciliation talks and hope to hold new elections next year.

In Gaza, Hamas on Tuesday marked the third anniversary of an Israeli military offensive in the seaside strip. The offensive, launched in response to months of intense rocket barrages, killed some 1,400 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians, and caused widespread damage. Thirteen Israelis also died in the fighting.

At memorial ceremonies, speaker after speaker voiced their support for continued armed confrontation with Israel. After suffering heavy losses in the fighting, Hamas has largely maintained a cease-fire with Israel the past three years. Still, it is believed to have restocked its arsenal with more powerful weapons.

But Raed Nearat, a political science professor in the West Bank who is close to Hamas, said that behind the rhetoric, Hamas is in the midst of a significant change.

He said the revolutions across the Middle East, as well as elections that have voted heavily in favor of Islamic movements in Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco, have emboldened Hamas.

"The Arab Spring has made Hamas much more confident, pragmatic and open," he said. "It's much more confident now that it can lead."

This week, the prime minister of the Gaza government, Ismail Haniyeh, left the territory for the first time since the 2007 takeover on an official tour of the Muslim world. His first stop was Egypt, with planned visits to Sudan, Qatar, Bahrain, Tunisia and Turkey.

Hamas officials say the goal of the trip is to improve ties with Muslim countries swept up in the uprisings shaking the Arab world. In Egypt, Haniyeh met with the leader of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, the biggest winner in the first parliamentary elections since the Feb. 11 fall of Hosni Mubarak.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111228/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_palestinians_changing_hamas

garmin nuvi 1450 amzn tommy john surgery colorado weather alcohol poisoning alcohol poisoning mark ingram

Nine shot at Tennessee teenagers' party (Reuters)

(Reuters) ? Nine people were shot, though no deaths were reported, after gunfire broke out at a teenagers' party at a nightclub in Chattanooga and another location nearby, Tennessee, a police official said on Sunday.

Police were called to the "teen party" in downtown Chattanooga at around midnight on Saturday following reports of multiple gun shots, the Chattanooga Police Department said in a statement.

Several revelers were struck and wounded by gunfire, including a 17-year-old boy who was hit in the pelvis and underwent surgery at a local hospital, department spokesman Sgt. Jerri Weary said.

An off-duty Chattanooga police officer working at the nightclub where the party was being held, fired at a suspect who pointed a gun at him during the shootings, Weary said. The officer was not hit during the incident.

At the same time, police also responded to a second shooting nearby, although it was not immediately clear if the incidents were related.

"Due to the number of victims and potential number of suspects, details from both incidents are still inconclusive," Weary said.

"We have not had anybody come forward (saying) that they were shot, but people fled the scene ... We are still trying to piece this together," she added.

Weary said no arrests had been made, and that it was unclear if there were one or more suspects involved.

No deaths were reported. All of the victims were taken to local hospitals. Only some were admitted, Weary said.

(Reporting by Eric Johnson; Editing by Tim Gaynor)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111225/us_nm/us_tennessee_shooting

sign language alphabet texas tech texas tech portlandia utah jazz miami heat