Diego Garcia

A federal court jury has convicted two employees of a Los Angeles defense contractor of criminal conspiracy, bribery and receipt of stolen government documents in connection with a scheme that occurred at a U.S. Naval base on Diego Garcia island in the Indian Ocean.

A World Bank arbitration panel ordered Ecuador to pay Occidental Petroleum Corp. $1.77 billion to settle a contract dispute. The International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes, known as ICSID, said Ecuador breached Los Angeles-based Occidental's contract by failing "to accord fair and equitable treatment. " Ecuador Atty. Gen. Diego Garcia said Friday that the South American country "categorically rejects" the decision and may seek its annulment. Ecuador stripped Occidental of its oil concession in 2006 over an alleged contract breach, prompting the company's complaint to the panel.

An Air Force B-1B bomber headed for a mission over Afghanistan crashed into the Indian Ocean on Wednesday after experiencing "multiple malfunctions" shortly after taking off from the island of Diego Garcia. All four crew members ejected from the $200-million bomber before it crashed into the ocean about 30 miles north of the island, Pentagon officials said. The crew members, who suffered minor injuries, were rescued by a U.S. Navy destroyer that was in the area.

KNOB NOSTER, Mo. -- The Pentagon is moving the jet that fired the opening salvos of the last two U.S. wars to within easy striking distance of Iraq, erecting tent-like portable hangars for the batwinged B-2 bomber on the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia. Four of the new $2.5-million maintenance hangars, each serving two planes, will be built on the British-held isle and one at Fairford, England.

KNOB NOSTER, Mo. -- The Pentagon is moving the jet that fired the opening salvos of the last two U.S. wars to within easy striking distance of Iraq, erecting tent-like portable hangars for the batwinged B-2 bomber on the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia. Four of the new $2.5-million maintenance hangars, each serving two planes, will be built on the British-held isle and one at Fairford, England.

Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi said Friday the growing rivalry among superpowers to increase their military presence in the Indian Ocean threatens the countries in the region. Gandhi, who is visiting the tiny Indian Ocean atoll republic of the Maldives 500 miles southwest of India, said the rivalry has continued despite Indian efforts to keep the ocean a neutral zone, the Press Trust of India reported.

A World Bank arbitration panel ordered Ecuador to pay Occidental Petroleum Corp. $1.77 billion to settle a contract dispute. The International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes, known as ICSID, said Ecuador breached Los Angeles-based Occidental's contract by failing "to accord fair and equitable treatment. " Ecuador Atty. Gen. Diego Garcia said Friday that the South American country "categorically rejects" the decision and may seek its annulment. Ecuador stripped Occidental of its oil concession in 2006 over an alleged contract breach, prompting the company's complaint to the panel.

With reference to Chaitanya Dave's letter (Dec. 17), the base at Gwadar is intended mainly to protect the free flow of oil from the Persian Gulf and, incidentally, to prevent the Soviet troops in Afghanistan from running over the easy terrain of the Sind area of West Pakistan to establish a foothold on the shores of the Arabian Sea. The free flow of oil will benefit not only the rich industrial countries but also all the poor Third-World countries....

Clint Eastwood knows how to set a scene on screen or at Mission Ranch, his strikingly handsome hotel and restaurant in Carmel. The hotel, a historic property, has a multimillion dollar view of the sea and beautiful grounds to match. Magenta bougainvillea spills from balconies, flowering pots decorate porches, huge cypress trees shade buildings and lawns. You'd expect a room to cost $500 a night or more. So how about $120 a night? Hard to believe, especially in a pricey tourist area like Carmel.

Peruvian President-elect Alejandro Toledo named an international corporate lawyer, Roberto Danino, to be his prime minister in a move that analysts said could mean a shift to the right. Toledo, who takes office Saturday, has already named respected banker and fund manager Pedro Pablo Kuczynski to be his economy minister. Among other top appointments were Diego Garcia Sayan, the justice minister in Peru's outgoing interim government, as foreign minister, and Fernando Olivera as justice minister.

An Air Force B-1B bomber headed for a mission over Afghanistan crashed into the Indian Ocean on Wednesday after experiencing "multiple malfunctions" shortly after taking off from the island of Diego Garcia. All four crew members ejected from the $200-million bomber before it crashed into the ocean about 30 miles north of the island, Pentagon officials said. The crew members, who suffered minor injuries, were rescued by a U.S. Navy destroyer that was in the area.

A federal court jury has convicted two employees of a Los Angeles defense contractor of criminal conspiracy, bribery and receipt of stolen government documents in connection with a scheme that occurred at a U.S. Naval base on Diego Garcia island in the Indian Ocean.

Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi said Friday the growing rivalry among superpowers to increase their military presence in the Indian Ocean threatens the countries in the region. Gandhi, who is visiting the tiny Indian Ocean atoll republic of the Maldives 500 miles southwest of India, said the rivalry has continued despite Indian efforts to keep the ocean a neutral zone, the Press Trust of India reported.

With reference to Chaitanya Dave's letter (Dec. 17), the base at Gwadar is intended mainly to protect the free flow of oil from the Persian Gulf and, incidentally, to prevent the Soviet troops in Afghanistan from running over the easy terrain of the Sind area of West Pakistan to establish a foothold on the shores of the Arabian Sea. The free flow of oil will benefit not only the rich industrial countries but also all the poor Third-World countries....

People expelled by Britain from the Chagos islands during the Cold War to make way for a U.S. base set sail to visit their homeland. Britain last year agreed to allow 100 former inhabitants to make the 12-day visit to the Indian Ocean archipelago. Thousands of people, wearing T-shirts saying "Back to Paradise," thronged Mauritius' Port Louis harbor to see them off. Britain moved 2,000 Chagos residents to Mauritius and Seychelles in the 1960s and 1970s to pave the way for the U.S.

A Van Nuys man died early Thursday when he drove his car through a lowered railroad crossing gate and smashed into a passing freight train, police said. Diego Garcia Ochoa, 28, was declared dead at the railroad tracks near Woodley Avenue and Raymer Street, said LAPD Officer Dave Lowenthal. The Southern Pacific train, which had two engines pulling 50 flatbed cars, was almost past the crossing when Ochoa slammed his car into it at 1 a.m.