Nation briefs 12/14/05

President of American Red Cross resigns

NEW YORK -- American Red Cross president Marsha J. Evans, who oversaw the charity's vast and sometimes criticized response to Hurricane Katrina, is resigning effective at the end of this month because of friction with her board of governors, the organization said Tuesday. Red Cross spokesman Charles Connor said the board was not unhappy with Evans' handling of the hurricane response, "but had concerns about her management approach, and coordination and communication with the board." Jack McGuire, the executive vice president of the charity's Biomedical Services, was named to serve as interim president and CEO while a search for a permanent successor to Evans is conducted.

Pope decries stalled disarmament efforts

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Benedict XVI on Tuesday decried "bogged down" nuclear disarmament efforts and religious fanaticism as thwarting peace, while his top justice official denounced torture as an unacceptable, unnecessary way to fight terrorism. In the Vatican's annual review of conflicts in the world, Benedict warned that religious fundamentalism could "inspire and encourage terrorist thinking and activity." The pontiff denounced increases in military spending and took to task "governments which count on nuclear arms as a means of ensuring the security of their countries."

Former President Ford in hospital with cold

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- Former President Ford, suffering from "a horrible cold," was in the hospital Tuesday for what his chief of staff called routine medical tests. Ford, 92, was admitted to Eisenhower Medical Center late Monday and was expected to be released today, spokeswoman Penny Circle said from Ford's Rancho Mirage office about 110 miles east of Los Angeles.

Nominess for Golden Globe announced

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- The culling process is on for the Academy Awards, with Tuesday's 63rd annual Golden Globe helping to narrow the field. Leading contenders for Hollywood's second-biggest movie ceremony included the cowboy romance "Brokeback Mountain," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Syriana," "Munich," "Walk the Line," "Capote" and "Good Night, and Good Luck." Anthony Hopkins will receive the group's Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement.

Nigerian president grounds two airlines

ABUJA, Nigeria -- President Olusegun Obasanjo grounded two private Nigerian airlines Tuesday after plane crashes killed 224 people in seven weeks. He also announced a review of all aircraft flying in Nigeria, saying experts would be brought in from the International Civil Aviation Organization. One of grounded carriers, Sosoliso Airlines, operated the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 that crashed Saturday in the southern city of Port Harcourt, killing 107 people. The second carrier grounded, Chanchangi Airlines, operated a plane that skidded off the runway in Lagos earlier this year and another craft that had to return to Abuja this month after developing problems following takeoff.

-- From wire reports

Obasanjo announced the groundings after meeting in Abuja with airline carriers and government regulators to discuss public concerns over Nigeria's aviation industry.