BRIEFS

WORLD

BEIJING – A news report claiming
Chinese agencies were spying on British
companies via the Internet was
irresponsible and incorrect, China’s
Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

The Times of London reported
Saturday that Jonathan Evans, who
heads Britain’s spy agency MI5, sent
letters to 300 executives and security
chiefs at banks, accountancies and legal
firms warning them that “Chinese
state organizations” were hacking into
their systems through the Internet and
stealing confidential information.

On Tuesday, Chinese Foreign
Ministry spokesman Qin Gang denied
the report, saying China opposed
computer hacking and that it was
cooperating with British authorities.

He also accused the British media of
spreading inaccurate information.

The Times said the letter told its recipients
how to identify Chinese “Trojans”
– e-mails carrying software designed to
hack into a computer network and feed
back confidential data.

The accusation comes ahead of
a planned trip to China in January
by British Prime Minister Gordon
Brown, his first to the country since
taking office in June.

Computer experts have blamed
hackers linked to the Chinese
military for cyber attacks on the U.S.
Pentagon, the British Parliament and
the German chancellery.

China denies it is engaged in any
cyber crime and said its networks
also have been targeted.

NATION

WASHINGTON – President Bush
said Tuesday that Iran is dangerous
and must be squeezed by international
pressure despite an intelligence
finding that Tehran halted its nuclear
weapons program four years ago.

Bush said the new conclusion
– contradicting earlier U.S. assessments
– would not prompt him to
take off the table the possibility of
pre-emptive military action against
Iran. Nor will the United States
change its policy of trying to isolate
Iran diplomatically and punish it
with sanctions, he said.

“Look, Iran was dangerous, Iran is
dangerous and Iran will be dangerous
if they have the knowledge necessary
to make a nuclear weapon,” the
president told a White House news
conference a day after the release of
a new national intelligence estimate
representing the consensus of all U.S.
spy agencies.

On Capitol Hill, congressional
Democrats said they hoped the
report would have a cooling effect
on the administration’s rhetoric,
which they said was hyped and
counterproductive. At a campaign
debate in Iowa, seven Democratic
presidential candidates stood in
agreement that the United States
should shift its focus with Iran to
diplomatic engagement.

LOCAL

RICHMOND – Relatives and
friends of several victims of the
Virginia Tech shootings on Tuesday
urged lawmakers to strengthen
background checks on those who
wish to purchase guns, but met
resistance from one lawmaker who
said doing so would threaten civil
liberties.

The debate took place during the
sixth annual AP Day at the Capital,
a gathering of journalists who
cover government and the General
Assembly. The April shootings at
Virginia Tech were a key area of
discussion at the event, which also
included a panel on mental health
care reform.

Before he killed 32 people, Seung-
Hui Cho was able to pass a weapons
background check and buy two guns
despite having been deemed mentally
defective by a Virginia court. In
response, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine
signed an executive order requiring
that anyone ordered by a court to
get mental health treatment be added
to a state police database of people
barred from buying guns.

But even if that order had been in
place before the shootings, it would
not have prevented Cho from acquiring
guns by several other means
that require no background check
in Virginia, such as at gun shows
– vast firearms bazaars where scores
of people sell or swap firearms.

Closing the so-called gun show
loophole was a key issue for many of
the victims’ loved ones who attended
Tuesday’s event.

“What is the fear of someone
having to go through the background
check?” Joseph Samaha, whose
daughter Reema was killed in the
shootings, asked panelist Del. Robert
Hurt, R-Chatham, who opposes
closing the loophole.