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Top News Advisory as of 12 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2011(Canadian Press DataFile Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2011 12 p.m. TOP NEWS ADVISORY Here are the latest Top News stories from The Canadian Press. All times are Eastern unless otherwise stated. Coverage plans are included when available. Entries are subject to change as news develops. Contact the National Desk at 416-507-2150. ___ TOP NEWS AT THIS HOUR Hosni Mubarak pleads not guilty at the start of his historic trial Egypt-Mubarak-Trial CAIRO _ An ailing, 83-year-old Hosni Mubarak, lying ashen-faced on a hospital bed inside a metal cage with his two sons standing protectively beside him in white prison uniforms, pleaded not guilty to charges of corruption and complicity in the killing of protesters at the start of his historic trial today. The spectacle, aired live on state television, was a stunning moment for Egyptians, many of whom savoured the humiliation of the man who ruled with unquestionable power for 29 years. AUDIO. PHOTOS. See also: _ Egypt-Mubarak-Timeline ___ McAfee says hackers targeted Canada, other countries for years Computers-Intrusions TORONTO _ Computer security company McAfee has issued a report detailing a five-year hacking scheme that targeted countries, companies and numerous organizations. McAfee says there were more than 70 intrusions from the same source over the past five years, including four in Canada. ___ Disabled Winnipeg man dies in hospital following violent attack CRIME-Disabled-Assault WINNIPEG _ A disabled Winnipeg man has died in hospital after being attacked and robbed in his downtown apartment. Harvey Sanderson, 27, who was confined to a wheelchair and had brittle bone disease, died after spending four days in hospital in critical condition, police said today. ___ Officials hope to reopen Montreal tunnel by Monday Montreal-Tunnel MONTREAL _ Transport officials in Quebec are hoping a Montreal tunnel that has been closed since a massive chunk of concrete smashed onto a highway will reopen by Monday. That's when Quebec's traditional construction holidays end and traffic in Montreal will become far busier than it has been in the last two weeks. ___ Italian borrowing rates touch new record amid fears of debt crisis Europe-Financial-Crisis MILAN, Italy _ Italy's borrowing rates touched a new euro-era high today as a global market selloff reignited fears that the debt crisis will engulf the eurozone's third-largest economy. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will address parliament on the state of the economy in the evening, but opposition parties called for him to step down, saying his lack of economic credibility in the markets was part of the problem. PHOTOS. ___ Maple Group extends $3.8B takeover offer for TMX until Sept. 20 Maple-TMX-Group TORONTO _ The consortium of financial institutions and pension funds making a bid to acquire the TMX Group, operator of Canada's major stock exchanges, has extended its $3.8-billion offer until Sept. 30. Maple Group Acquisition Corp. said today that during the extension period it intends to continue to work on obtaining required regulatory approvals. ___ RIM finally unveils long-delayed touch-screen BlackBerrys US-RIM-New-BlackBerrys NEW YORK _ Research In Motion Ltd. today unveiled five new BlackBerry phones with touch screens, as it hopes to revive the line's dwindling appeal in the face of competition from the iPhone and Android smartphones. The new phones had been expected earlier this year, but were delayed. ___ Australian bomb squad frees teen trapped near suspicious device Australia-Suspicious Device SYDNEY _ An Australian bomb squad safely freed a teenager trapped near a suspicious device for 10 horrifying hours today, setting off mysteries as to who put the device in the woman's Sydney home and why. Police still don't know whether the device is an explosive but are looking for a person who they believe placed it in the woman's home, New South Wales state Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Murdoch said. AUDIO. PHOTOS. ___ Pat Buchanan: Didn't intend to slur Obama with 'your boy' quip US-TV-Buchanan-Obama NEW YORK _ Pat Buchanan says he didn't mean to slur President Barack Obama by referring to him as "your boy" during a discussion with Al Sharpton. The former Republican presidential candidate and current MSNBC analyst appeared on "Morning Joe" today to explain remarks he made on that network's Sharpton show 12 hours earlier. ___ Haiti, Dominican Republic brace for tropical storm Emily Tropical-Weather PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti _ Tropical storm Emily brushed past Puerto Rico and headed today toward the Dominican Republic and Haiti, where more than 630,000 people are still without shelter after last year's earthquake. A "steady shield of rain" should reach the island of Hispaniola shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti around noon today and the rainfall should worsen by late afternoon, said John Dlugoenski, senior meteorologist with Accuweather.com. AUDIO. PHOTOS. ___ BUZZ Herzog, Broomfield, Spurlock among doc-makers coming to TIFF FILM-TIFF-Docs TORONTO _ Werner Herzog's examination of a triple homicide in Texas, Morgan Spurlock's look at Comic-Con and Nick Broomfield's quest to learn more about politician Sarah Palin are among the documentaries coming to the Toronto International Film Festival, which runs Sept. 8 to 18. ___ Oscars for Oprah Winfrey, James Earl Jones and Dick Smith US-Oscars-Governors-Awards LOS ANGELES _ Oprah Winfrey, James Earl Jones and makeup artist Dick Smith have been picked to receive honorary Oscars. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences says the three will be honoured with Oscar statuettes at the Governors Awards in November. The academy's Board of Governors voted Tuesday to recognize the entertainment industry veterans. ___ Canadian 'damsel in distress' pleads guilty to larceny charges US-Cda-Damsel-In-Distress NEW BEDFORD, Mass. _ A Canadian woman authorities dubbed the "damsel in distress" because of the sob stories she told strangers to scam them out of small amounts of cash has pleaded guilty to larceny charges. Wendy Price-Baldassari was sentenced Tuesday to three months of probation and ordered to pay $500 in restitution after pleading guilty to 20 counts of larceny less than $250. (c) 2011 The Canadian Press |