In Brief

BAGHDAD: Gunmen have killed a member of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani's political party in a drive-by shooting in the northern city of Kirkuk, Iraqi police officials said yesterday. Subhi Hassan, who handled political relations for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, and a bodyguard were killed Monday after unidentified gunmen chased down their car after it passed through a checkpoint, said Police Brigadier Ahmed Hawandi. The shooting is the latest in a spate of killings that appear to be politically motivated and come in advance of nationwide provincial elections set for Jan. 31.

Not-guilty pleas from 5 Blackwater guards

WASHINGTON: Five former Blackwater Worldwide security guards pleaded not guilty yesterday afternoon in federal court to charges they unleashed an unprovoked salvo of bullets and grenades in a busy Baghdad square in 2007, killing at least 14 Iraqi civilians and injuring 20 others. A federal judge set a trial date for January of next year in the shooting. The guards did not speak during the brief arraignment on 14 counts of voluntary manslaughter, 20 counts of attempting to commit manslaughter and one count of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. They could face a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years in prison on the firearms charge.

Venezuela's oil earnings fall, squeezing Chavez

CARACAS, Venezuela : Venezuela's slumping oil earnings are starting to squeeze President Hugo Chavez's spending spree and diminish the aid he uses to counter U.S. influence. Accounting for nearly 94 percent of exports and half the national budget, oil pays for everything from subsidized food to free universities. It has also bankrolled an international aid bonanza in which Chavez showers allies with cheap fuel and cash. In 2007 alone, Venezuela pledged more than $8.8 billion in aid, financing and energy funding abroad. But oil prices have fallen 67 percent since their July peak, and oil prices are below the $60 a barrel Venezuela budgeted for this year.