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LONDON (AFP) - Security at Britain's third largest airport in the northern city of Manchester has been highlighted as woefully inadequate by a BBC documentary to be screened on Tuesday. An undercover reporter posing as a security officer at Manchester Airport witnessed colleagues knowingly using faulty metal detectors and fiddling bag search figures, the documentary claimed. The programme follows undercover journalist Michelle Cox, who worked at the airport for 10 weeks. The BBC said Cox was encouraged to flout strict Department for Transport rules on the number of passengers' bags to be searched. On one occasion, out of around 1,000...

UK police today launched a crackdown on the sale of illegal weapons over the Internet. Raids began in London, with searches of 18 addresses. More than 20 illegal weapons have been seized in Operation Bembridge already, including 17 guns, a tear gas canister and four air rifles. In addition, officers collected nine guns designed to fire blanks, but capable of being converted to fire live ammunition. So far, 11 men have been arrested. More raids are planned throughout the UK as the police target over 200 people suspected of buying the prohibited weapons from sources on the Net. Alan Green,...

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Historian William Manchester, who brought a novelist's flair to his stirring biographies of such 20th century giants as Winston Churchill, Douglas MacArthur and John F. Kennedy, died of cancer Tuesday at 82. Manchester wrote 18 books, including two novels, but was best known in recent years for his magisterial, multivolume biography of Churchill, "The Last Lion." Two strokes prevented Manchester from completing the much-anticipated third volume, covering most of the World War II years. Just last month, Paul Reid, a feature writer at The Palm Beach Post, was chosen to help finish the book. "He wrote...

<p>I did not body-slam a protestor at a Dean rally in Manchester as Vincent Morris wrote ("Al Franken Knocks Down Dean Heckler," Jan. 27). Mr. Morris made no attempt to reach me before publishing his story.</p> <p>His description, "Franken emerged from the crowd and charged one male protester, grabbing him with a bear hug from behind and slamming him onto the floor," is a complete fairy tale.</p>

American sports entrepreneur Malcolm Glazer has increased his shareholding in Manchester United to nearly 10%, the UK Premier League club said. Mr Glazer owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Florida-based winners of the Super Bowl American football championship. Man Utd said Mr Glazer has raised his shareholding to 9.66%. It is the second time in a fortnight Mr Glazer has bought more Man Utd shares - earlier this month he raised his stake from 5.9% to 8.94%. Takeover talk Rumours of a takeover have swirled round Man Utd in recent weeks, as several sporting entrepreneurs have increased their shareholdings. Takeover...

June 11 at 6 pm Wayne LaPierre will do a book signing at Borders Bookstore Manchester CT.

MANCHESTER NEW HAMPSHIRE FREEPERS SUPPORT THE TROOPS! Here's the highlights of today's counter protest at Veteran's Park, in Manchester, New Hampshire. This is the first freeper rally I organized, but it sure won't be the last! Fun !! :) A fine time was had by all freepers at today's anti-America, anti-Bush peace-nik rally. On next to no notice we had well over a dozen folks show up. We were shown in a positive light on the 6 pm news on channel 9, WMUR television, and I suspect we will be in the Sunday Manchester Union Leader newspaper as well. Many...

Demonstrations Support Troops, Peace March 9, 2003 By TINA A. BROWN, Courant Staff Writer Concerned that the discord between America's leaders and allies might dishearten U.S. soldiers getting ready for war with Iraq, families and friends of American troops rallied in Manchester Saturday. "We support our troops no matter what," said Sara Reid, of Vernon, whose son, Joe, left for the Middle East in January. "I pray for peace everyday," she said as she gripped an American flag. Reid was among about 300 men, women and children gathered in the parking lot at the VFW Anderson Shea Post No. 2046...

The RALLY TO SUPPORT THE TROOPS in Manchester, Ct, went of without a hitch! We had about 300 people show up, and pictures will be posted soon. Several stations were present: FOX 61 WTIC; NBC 30 WVIT (More about their lies later); ABC 8 WTNH, and CBS 3 WFSB.

Come one, Come all, to Manchester, Ct, to a rally to Support the Troops! Rally is to be held at the Manchester VFW on East Center Street, Manchester, Ct, from Noon to 2PM.

THE FREEP IS ON! The Manchester VFW Anderson Shea post 2046 is going to host a SUPPORT THE TROOPS RALLY on March 8, 2003. All Freepers in good standing are invited!

The capital remains on a heightened level of security alert with armed troops continuing to patrol in and around Heathrow airport, amid fears of a possible terrorist attack. Experts said it points to a possible missile attack on a plane, similar to the one carried out by al-Qaeda in Kenya last year. Scotland Yard has refused to comment. Security has also been beefed up at key, unspecified potential targets linked to London's transport system and economy. The Government and Scotland Yard said the "precautionary" move is linked to fears that al-Qaeda could use the end of the Muslim festival...

The men are being taken to London for questioning Three people have been arrested under terrorism laws during early morning raids in Manchester. Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said the arrests were made in separate raids at 0500 GMT. The three men, aged 30, 32, and 35, are being held under the Terrorism Act 2000. A police spokesman said the arrests were not connected with the death of Detective Constable Stephen Oake. UK-wide investigation The men will be taken to London to be questioned by the Anti-Terrorist Branch of the Metropolitan Police. Special branch officers working with GMP's Tactical Aid...

A Libyan arrested at the house where a Special Branch detective was stabbed to death has appeared in court charged with terrorism offences. Khalid Alwerfeli was remanded in custody for a week when he appeared at Bow Street Magistrates' Court. The 29-year-old was held in a flat in Crumpsall Lane, Manchester, where Detective Constable Stephen Oake was stabbed to death last Tuesday. Another man, Kamel Bourgass, 27, appeared in court last Friday charged with murdering Dc Oake and attempting to murder four other police officers.

Police have confirmed that a suspected terrorist who stabbed a detective during an anti-terrorist raid was not handcuffed at any stage. Special Branch detective constable Stephen Oake, 40, died as three suspects of north African origin, aged 23, 27 and 29, were being detained at a flat in Crumpsall, north Manchester in a raid linked to last week's discovery of the deadly poison ricin. Questions are being asked about why the suspect was not handcuffed, and how he was able to launch an attack with a kitchen knife more than an hour after the initial raid - killing the father-of-three,...

(Manchester-AP Nov. 5, 2002 11:30 AM) _ Too bad some voting machines don't have spellcheckers. In Manchchester today, some machines had the name of the incumbent state treasurer Denise Nappier, a woman, turned into a man's name, Dennis Nappier. Election officials were told about the misspelled name and got stickers with the right name to put on the machines.