Nation/world digest 08/31/06

Iran still enriching uranium up to deadline

VIENNA, Austria -- A defiant Iran kept on enriching uranium in advance of the U.N. Security Council's deadline today for Tehran to freeze such activity or face the threat of sanctions, U.N. and European officials said. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad urged European members of the council against resorting to sanctions, saying punishment would not dissuade his country from pursuing its disputed nuclear program. Iran could theoretically still announce a full stop to enrichment before the deadline set by the Security Council. But that appeared unlikely, considering Tehran's past refusal to consider such a move.

N. Dakota has first death penalty case in 100 years

FARGO, N.D. -- A federal jury declared a convicted sex offender guilty Wednesday in the kidnapping and killing of college student Dru Sjodin, whose body was found abandoned in a Minnesota ravine. The verdict against Alfonso Rodriguez Jr. clears the way for the first death penalty deliberations in North Dakota in more than a century. Sjodin, 22, a University of North Dakota student, was abducted Nov. 22, 2003. Her body was found the following April. Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty; North Dakota does not have the death penalty, but it is allowed in federal cases.

Carolinas alert Guard as Ernesto moves north

RALEIGH, N.C. -- North and South Carolina put hundreds of National Guardsmen on standby Wednesday for fear the rainy remnants of Tropical Storm Ernesto could cause severe flooding. Forecasters said Ernesto could drench the eastern half of North Carolina with as much as seven inches of rain today and Friday. A separate storm system arriving ahead of Ernesto also threatened to soak the region. Ernesto weakened to a tropical depression while crawling north through Florida.

Hurricane threatens Mexico's Pacific coast

PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico -- Hurricane John lashed tourist resorts with heavy winds and rain Wednesday as the storm marched up Mexico's Pacific coast, and forecasters predicted its center would brush close to land before heading out to sea. The Category 4 hurricane could dump up to a foot of rain along parts of Mexico's southern coast, meteorologists warned. The hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 135 mph and stronger gusts capable of ripping roofs off buildings and causing storm surges of up to 18 feet above normal. John was not expected to affect the United States -- cooler Pacific waters tend to diminish the storms before they reach California.

-- From wire reports