Missing Ohio College Student, Brogan Dulle, Found Dead

An Ohio college student, who vanished after leaving his apartment, has been found dead in a vacant building, authorities said.

According to Cincinnati Police Chief Jeffrey Blackwell, the landlord of a Cincinnati building that is undergoing renovations contacted police late Monday to report a possible breaking-and-entering. Upon arrival at the scene, officers discovered the body of sophomore Brogan Dulle in the basement of the building.

Blackwell told reporters late Monday that authorities do not suspect foul play.

"It appears right now to be self-inflicted," the police chief said, without elaborating.

Dulle, a 21-year-old student at the University of Cincinnati, left his McMillan Street apartment around 2 a.m., on May 18. Dulle's roommate reportedly told police Dulle left to retrieve a cell phone he lost earlier that evening while visiting either The St. Clair, a nearby bar, or Mac's Pizza near UC's campus.

Dulle never returned to his apartment and was reported missing on May 19, after he failed to show up for his job as a swim coach at Mercy HealthPlex.

Despite multiple searches of the area, authorities and community volunteers were unable to locate the missing college student. According to local media outlets, the location where police recovered Dulle's body Monday night is next door to his apartment.

The Hamilton County Coroner's Office has not officially ruled on a manner of death.

A message posted to the "Help Find Brogan Dulle" Facebook page Tuesday reads: "The Dulle family has been informed that Brogan has been found deceased. Brogan’s family is heartbroken by the loss of their beloved son and brother. The family is overwhelmingly grateful for the love, prayers, support [and] time given by the Cincinnati community. I ask for us all to respect the need for the family to grieve and support one another in privacy at this time."

University of Cincinnati President Santa Ono also issued a statement Tuesday morning.

"Brogan was part of our university family, and our hearts are heavy with the news of this devastating loss," Ono said. "On behalf of the University of Cincinnati, I want to express our deepest condolences to his parents, siblings, family and friends."

Ono said grief counselors are available for students at the University’s Office of Counseling & Psychological Services. The agency can be contacted at (513) 556-0648 or 513-556-0034.

Rebuilding a girl's dream home after tragedy

Suzannah Kolbeck, left, and her daughter, Sicily, worked together to build a tiny house. It started as a project for school, but the focus -- and lessons -- changed after the accidental death of Dane Kolbeck, Suzannah's husband and Sicily's  

       father.

As the school year came to a close, 12-year-old Sicily Kolbeck found herself still without a project. It was a key requirement at the small, independent school she attended just outside Atlanta. If she found the right one -- something big and passion-driven -- it could set the course for her entire next academic year.

She thought maybe she could start a natural makeup line or dive into some type of research.

Or she could just keep wasting time online.

As she clicked around, she stumbled into the idea of tiny houses -- dwellings that pack the conveniences of modern homes into a couple hundred square feet. She found a rabid community around them, blogs and documentaries filled with DIY builders and eco-lovers and folks who lived happily with less.

This could be it, Sicily thought. She'd hardly swung a hammer before, but maybe she could build a tiny house.

She remembered "renovating" the loft in their old barn to make it homier, and how she once turned a massive TV box into a personal playhouse, complete with a doorbell and place settings at the table. Tiny houses became a bit of an obsession, and just in time for school.

"This was the only idea I had," confessed Sicily, who recently turned 14.

U.S. plans to keep just under 10,000 troops in Afghanistan

President Barack Obama is expected to announce on Tuesday that the United States plans to keep just under 10,000 troops in Afghanistan after this year, if the Afghan government signs a security agreement.

A senior administration official said that number would be cut by roughly half by the end of 2015, and the military would then transition to a smaller force built around embassy security operations at the end of the following year.

There currently are 32,000 American forces in Afghanistan, where the United States has fought its longest war.

Both presidential candidates in Afghanistan have indicated a willingness to sign the security agreement, if elected. However, the official said the United States would maintain no military presence after this year if for some reason that doesn't happen.

Obama will give a foreign policy speech on Wednesday at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York.

Up until now, his administration has been reluctant to assign a number to American troop strength in Afghanistan once the combat mission ends at year's end. The U.S. mission after that will focus on training and counter-terror operations.

Why did Pope Francis pray at the wall?

"Something there is that doesn't love a wall," wrote Robert Frost. This something is someone now: Pope Francis.

In a strong, apparently unscripted move on his recent visit to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, on Sunday the pontiff suddenly waved to the driver of his Popemobile, asking to get out. Surrounded by guards and by children waving Palestinian flags, he got out, walked over to the wall that separates Israel from its Palestinian neighbors, and he did something remarkably simple but with astonishing power: He prayedHe prayed.

Jay Parini

This symbolic gesture occurred at a well-known portion of the wall, a segment covered with graffiti. Somebody had spray-painted a message in black: "Pope we need some 1 to speak about justice Bethlehem look like Warsaw ghetto." In bold red letters the Pope could read: "Free Palestine." While Israeli guards looked anxiously down from a nearby tower, wondering what on Earth was going on, Francis touched the wall with his right hand, bent his head, and prayed for several minutes. Afterward, he kissed the wall, then walked slowly back to his vehicle.

I've myself experienced several times the haunting power of Bethlehem for Christians. My father was a Baptist minister, and once -- in 1989 -- I took him to the Church of the Nativity, the spot where (by tradition) Jesus was thought to have been born.

This is a place of pilgrimage for those devoted to the Christian path, and it's also an important city on the West Bank for Palestinians (among them a mix of Muslims and Christians, with Muslims the vast majority).

Photos: Pope visits Holy Land

This holy city, described in the Hebrew scriptures as the City of David, was under Ottoman and Egyptian rule for centuries. The British controlled much of Palestine from 1920-1948 during the period known as the Mandate. The United Nations partitioned Palestine after the war, but Jordan took possession of Bethlehem after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It became a refuge for Palestinians at this time, largely under the control of Jordan until the Six Day War in 1967.

The Israelis kept control until 1995, when an agreement was reached with the Palestinian National Authority, although it has been a place of unease, especially during the 2000-2005 era known as the Second Intifada, when for a period (in 2002) the Church of the Nativity itself became a battle zone for 39 days.

Some 150 people then (mostly Palestinian civilians, with numerous Catholic and Orthodox monks and nuns) took refuge in the Church of the Nativity from an Israeli siege known as Operation Defensive Shield. A tense stalemate occurred, with the Franciscan Order asking the Israeli government to let everyone inside the church go free on the 10th day. There was no response, although an Armenian monk was shot and wounded that day.

Holy Land papal politics

Pope visits Bethlehem, calls for peace

Mideast leaders to meet Pope at Vatican

Ultimately, Israeli snipers shot dead eight people in or around the church; they wounded at least 22, all of them designated as terrorists by the Israeli army. 

As the pope's unexpected pause by the wall near Bethlehem makes terribly clear, this ugly partition that weaves through the West Bank has become a potent symbol of the Israeli occupation, and it's an affront to all reasonable Christians, Muslims, and Jews. Good fences do not, in this case, make good neighbors. It's time to pull down this barrier to freedom.

Experts' anger over 'invisible' rabies death toll

Taiwanese authorities initiated a vaccination campaign for cats and dogs last summer

A shortage of funds for vaccinating dogs is costing the lives of tens of thousands of children every year.

The head of the world animal health organisation (OIE) told BBC News that the invisible killer could be eliminated for one tenth of the cost of treating patients.

The most recent figures suggest around 55,000 people die every year from rabies.

Around 40% of those who are bitten are under 15 years of age.

One of the world's oldest diseases, rabies is the distressing result of exposure to a virus usually transmitted through the saliva of an infected dog or bat.

The virus affects the central nervous system and causes the brain to swell. If it is not treated before it reaches the nerves, it is incurable.

In 1885, Louis Pasteur and Emile Roux famously developed a vaccine which has saved millions of people from the dreaded illness.

This vaccine has been used to help eliminate the disease in many parts of the world, removing it from dogs and other species that can transmit the infection, including foxes.

But the costs of preventing it remain relatively high and this means that in poor parts of Asia, the disease persists.

The victims are often children, who perhaps approach infected dogs without fear or awareness.

As very young victims often aren't able to tell their parents what happened to them, health agencies fear that the actual total of those who die from the disease is much higher than the official figures.

Speaking at the annual congress of the OIE in Paris, Dr Vallat lamented the fact that international investment in eliminating the disease in dogs wasn't forthcoming.

"Even when we demonstrate that the cost of vaccinating dogs is 10% of the cost of treating people bitten by dogs in the world, we are not able to convince all donors of that message," he told BBC News.

He contrasted the lack of investment in tackling rabies with the headlines that have greeted the recent discovery of Mers, the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

"Rabies is mainly in a small number of countries, it is not visible. We have up to 70,000 children dying every year in terrible pain, and the media don't take that, they take Mers with 200 very old people dying," he said.

Another cause for concern is that some of the vaccines being used to prevent rabies in dogs and other animals are substandard and can actually make the situation worse.

The rabies virus enters the central nervous system if left untreated

"You can have very cheap vaccines for rabies, these are live vaccines, if these are not controlled you can infect the animals with the virus," said Dr Vallat.

"Our standard is to use inactive vaccine, the animal makes antibodies on the basis of a non-living virus."

In many parts of the world, including Eastern Europe, the authorities respond to outbreaks of rabies by culling dogs in an area.

Animal welfare campaigners point to examples such as Romania, where the authorities have carried out large scale culls, funded by the EU.

They are concerned that this practice is counter-productive.

"The reaction in Romania when clusters of cases occur is to go out and cull dogs in a kind of knee-jerk way," said Dr Mark Jones from Humane Society International.

"The problem with that is that they are usually carried out in a very inhumane way and you are also disturbing the dog population leading to more interaction between dogs and that can result in you having a higher proportion of animals with rabies within an area than you did before."

Tony Blair: I am not to blame for Iraq Inquiry delays

Discussions are taking place over the publication of confidential correspondence between Mr Blair and Mr Bush

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Tony Blair has said he wants the Iraq Inquiry report to be published as soon as possible and "resents" claims he is to blame for its slow progress.

There are concerns the report will not be released before the 2015 election.

Some MPs have blamed hold-ups on a reluctance to release correspondence between Mr Blair and President Bush.

But the ex-Labour prime minister said he was not blocking any documents and publication would allow him "restate" the case for the 2003 invasion.

The inquiry, which is examining the UK's participation in the military action against Saddam Hussein and its aftermath, began in 2009 and its last public hearings took place in 2011.

Although the inquiry team, led by Sir John Chilcot, has never set a target date or deadline for publication, it is generally accepted that the timetable for publication has slipped on several occasions.

'Confidentiality'

David Cameron has said he hopes the report will be released before the end of the year.

Mr Blair, who appeared in person twice before the inquiry to justify his decision to take the UK to war, said he had an interest in the report being published as quickly as possible.

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"It is certainly not me who is holding it up," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. "The sooner it is published the better, from my perspective, as it allows me to make the arguments."

In its last update, in November, the inquiry said making progress was dependent on the "satisfactory completion" of discussions about the disclosure of private material, including 25 notes from Mr Blair to President Bush and more than 130 records of conversations between either Mr Blair or Gordon Brown and the former US president.

Asked about this, Mr Blair said the inquiry has had the documents in its possession "for a long period of time".

"Obviously there are whole load of issues to do with confidentiality that have to be resolved - as far as I am concerned the government is resolving them."

The former Labour leader was asked whether he believed the US government was responsible for the apparent hold-up.

"I do not know what the reason for the delay is because I am not in charge of the inquiry and I am not in charge of the government. All I can tell you is it is not from me and I resent the suggestions that it is.

"I have as much interest as anyone seeing the inquiry publish its findings and to be able to go out and, frankly, restate my case and defend my position."

The final decision about the publication of UK documents will be taken by Cabinet Secretary Sir Jeremy Heyward. MPs have said they may call him to a Commons committee hearing to explain the state of affairs.

Cameron urges EU leaders to listen to voters' concerns

David Cameron has told other EU leaders that it cannot be "business as usual" after anti-EU parties made sweeping electoral gains across Europe.

He spoke to French President Francois Hollande and Polish leader Donald Tusk ahead of an informal dinner later.

No 10 said the prime minister emphasised the need for them to "heed" voters' message and embrace reform.

Nick Clegg has said he is not opposed to the principle of a referendum and was "not afraid" of the idea.

Party leaders are setting out their response to the UK Independence Party's victory in the European elections.

'Standing up to UKIP'

Labour leader Ed Miliband has set out his approach to rebuilding trust in politics in a speech in Essex.

He has been urged by former prime minister Tony Blair to "stand up" to UKIP on the issues on Europe and immigration and resist calls for a referendum.

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Mr Miliband said UKIP had won votes by touting simple solutions to serious problems that had built up over generations.

"But there isn't a simple answer," he said.

There would need to be "big changes" in the British economy, he continued, to ensure that there were good jobs and affordable housing for young people.

A Labour government would seek to rebuild "solidarity and a sense of community", he said.

Mr Clegg, meanwhile, remains under pressure after his party lost all but one of its 12 MEPs.

More than 300 Lib Dem activists have signed an online petition advising Mr Clegg to resign although senior party figures, including Business Secretary Vince Cable, has said there is "no leadership issue".

Speaking during a visit to a youth centre in Westminster, the Lib Dem leader said he would not stand down and the party would not quit the coalition at a time the Lib Dems were being "vindicated" on the economy and other issues.

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Nick Clegg: "It's right we stuck to our values"

He acknowledged his party had suffered a big setback in the European polls but said it had "stuck to its values" and were the only party putting the case for an internationalist UK in the EU.

Mr Clegg said he had long supported the principle of a referendum although his party opposes Conservatives' calls for one in 2017 and said it should only be triggered if further powers went from the UK to the EU.

"I personally would relish the opportunity to have this debate out in the country in a referendum," he said.

"The Lib Dems are not afraid, in any way, of a referendum. We have been advocating that for a long time."

He suggested the Conservatives' proposal was "an exercise in internal party management".

"We are in favour of reform. We are in favour of a referendum. But we are also in favour of saying unambiguously that we should be an internationalist country."

Seize initiative

Mr Cameron will travel to Brussels for an informal dinner with other EU leaders where the election results will be discussed.

Following the elections, Mr Cameron has pushed the case for changes in the relationship between Brussels and EU member states in a series of phone calls to other heads of government.

UKIP will have 24 seats in the European Parliament

BBC political correspondent Iain Watson said Mr Cameron would attempt to seize the initiative following the Conservatives' first-ever third place in the European elections.

'Business as usual'

Supporters of Eurosceptic campaign group Business for Britain havewritten to the Daily Telegraph calling for Mr Cameron to spell out more clearly which powers should be taken back to Britain from Brussels.

The prime minister telephoned fellow EU leaders, including Germany's Angela Merkel, ahead of Tuesday evening's meeting in Brussels to emphasise that the results of the European elections, and the low turnout, have underlined the need for reform.

But speaking in Brussels, UKIP leader Nigel Farage said it felt like "business as usual".

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"We've just had a quite dramatic European election, with new sceptical parties, some new extreme nationalist parties, a massive spectrum, from the left to the centre to the right," he said.

"You know, there is a big dissident voice now in this parliament, and yet, I've just sat in a meeting where you wouldn't have thought anything had happened at all."