Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has denied U.S. and U.K. allegations of links to Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda network, according to the BBC. The statement comes on the eve of U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell's report to the U.N. regarding Hussein's attempts to develop weapons of mass destruction and flout U.N. investigations. "If we had a relationship with al-Qaeda, and we believed in that relationship, we wouldn't be ashamed to admit it," said Hussein. U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said that Hussein generally lied in the interview and there in no reason to believe what he says. "This is a case of the local liar coming up again and people repeating what he said and forgetting to say that he almost never, rarely, tells the truth," Rumsfeld said. Hussein said he did not want a confrontation, and accused America of looking for a pretext to launch an attack. He insisted that Iraq had no interest in armed confrontation with the U.S. or the U.K. Hussein said the U.S. was seeking to control Iraq's oil fields, was being influenced by Israel and has been using false allegations about weapons of mass destruction to cover up its ulterior motives, according to the BBC.

Two semi-finalists selected for World Trade Center designs

Two architectural firms, Studio Daniel Libeskind, headed by the Berlin-based architect Daniel Libeskind, and Think, headed by architects Frederic Schwartz, Rafael Viñoly, Ken Smith and Shigeru Ban, were selected yesterday as semi-finalists for designs on the site of the World Trade Center. The finalist will be chosen by month's end, according to The New York Times. The winning team will be responsible for designing a system of buildings, transportation terminals and a memorial to the victims of Sept. 11. Both firms' plans feature structures that would reach over 300 feet higher than the World Trade Center's 110-story twin towers, and surpass the tallest buildings in the world, the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, according to CNN.com. They would create signature structures where the twin towers had dominated the landscape of Lower Manhattan. Larry Silverstein, who held the lease at the Trade Center when it was attacked, criticized both proposals, telling officials that "super-tall office buildings" are no longer practical and that no building on the site should be more than 60 to 70 stories, according to The Times.

Anti-war forums raise participation and awareness

To raise local awareness about the prospect and perils of war with Iraq, The Granby-South Hadley Peace Committee held the first of two scheduled peace forums Saturday. Nearly 50 people attended the presentation designed to increase public participation in the anti-war movement. It included a slide show about life in Iraq, talks with a local veteran and discussion about the potential impacts of a war on "western Massachusetts and beyond," according to The Daily Hampshire Gazette. The American Friends Service Committee presented the slide show, which explained some of the devastating effects that sanctions and fighting have had since the Gulf War. According to the presentation, Iraqis face a severe shortage of basic medical supplies in hospitals and deplorable sanitary conditions. There is even concern over starvation, according to The Gazette. The presenters also discussed the frustration with an administration many believe is single-mindedly committed to going to war, how they could continue to reach more people with the anti-war message, and how to find a viable alternative to war when dealing with Saddam Hussein.