The State Duma adopted amendments to the law "On Copyright and Related Rights" in the second reading, RIA Novosti reports. The bill amends the basic 1993 law "On Copyright and Related Rights" due to the need to bring this normative act in line with the Russian Constitution, as well as other Russian and international legal acts.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to share his experience on how to secure such high support from voters, RIA Novosti reports. At a press conference, Berlusconi said: "Putin must explain to me what I must do to ensure the support of 71% of voters." He asked journalists to leave him and the President of Russia time for this.

Shootings took place in Fallujah, AP reports. As a result, 9 Iraqis were killed and 3 US Marines were injured. The fight lasted over 2 hours. The skirmish began after the shelling of American positions with grenade launchers and automatic weapons. The Americans called in a combat helicopter to help. This attack on the positions of the US Armed Forces violated the truce concluded two days ago.

A Turkish mercenary was killed in the course of a special operation in the Vedensky district of Chechnya, Colonel Ilya Shabalkin, representative of the ROSH in charge of managing the counter-terrorist operation in the North Caucasus, told RIA Novosti.

Eduard Assadov. Photo from the site www.wwii-soldat.narod.ru On the morning of April 21, 2004, at the 82nd year of his life, the poet-lyricist, front-line soldier, Hero of the Soviet Union Eduard Arkadievich Asadov died suddenly, reports REGNUM. A civilian memorial service and farewell to the poet will be held on April 23 in the house of officers in the city of Odintsovo, Moscow Region at 10 hours 30 minutes. Eduard Asadov will be buried in the Kuntsevsky cemetery.

A conscript soldier in Ussuriysk raped and strangled a child, the Novy Region agency reports. The 10-year-old schoolgirl went missing on February 1st. Her body was found last Tuesday on Shakhterskaya Street near the city Sloboda, on the territory of private property.

A container with a source of ionizing radiation was found in the Beloyarsky district of the Sverdlovsk region, Interfax reports. He was found on Tuesday at the 32nd kilometer of the Yekaterinburg-Tyumen highway. This is a container measuring 20 by 20 cm. Gamma radiation on the surface of the container was 2800 microR. At a distance of one meter - 150 microR. The container was seized by specialists of the Radon enterprise for subsequent disposal. The fact is under investigation.

George Soros completed a deal to sell the Mustcom consortium, which owns a blocking stake in Svyazinvest, a few days ago, RBC reports. Leonard Blavatnik, one of the shareholders of the oil holding TNK-BP and co-owner of the American company Access Industries, became the buyer of the shares. The deal amounted to about $600 million. Cypriot consortium Mustcom Ltd. in 1997, for $1.875 billion, he acquired 25 percent and one share in OAO Svyazinvest.

The Dominican Republic is withdrawing its troops from Iraq, AP reports. This will happen in a few weeks, General José Miguel Soto Jimenez said on Tuesday. "The military will return home from Iraq in the next two weeks," the general said. Two days ago, the president of this country announced that 302 Dominican troops would remain until August, as planned. The general noted that the president changed his mind after the decision to withdraw troops from Iraq was made by Honduras.

In Samara on Wednesday night, a policeman died, who suffered from the actions of fans at the match of the seventh round of the Russian Football Championship, ITAR-TASS reports. April 18, during the match "Wings of the Soviets" - "Torpedo", which took place at the Samara stadium "Metallurg", one of the fans after a goal scored, fired from a rocket launcher.

Bee. Photo from the site www.nubo.ru In May, on the territory of the State Art Historical and Architectural and Natural-Landscape Museum-Reserve, Kolomenskoye is planned to create an exposition section of honey plants and a mobile apiary. According to RIA Novosti in the Prefecture of the Southern Administrative District of the capital, the corresponding order was signed by Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov.

Vodka Cannabis. From the site minivodkaguy.com The administrative case of a violation of the law on advertising was initiated against the owners of the SUKOS A gas station in Voronezh for illegal drug advertising, Gazeta.ru reports.

"Puffy devil" on Mars. The fantasy of the artist. University of Michigan Sand -shaped storms and tornadoes on Mars apparently are the cause of electric fields that have a very high voltage, and powerful magnetic fields associated with them. The dangers associated with the end of such natural phenomena in the epicenter should be most carefully studied on the eve of future manned expeditions on the Red Planet.

Law enforcement officers are searching for an armed deserter who left a military unit in Blagoveshchensk, the Russian Interior Ministry told RIA Novosti on Wednesday. “A conscript from military unit 87859 of the RF Ministry of Defense arbitrarily resigned from his post for the protection of the fleet,” said a source in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to him, the serviceman was armed with a Kalashnikov assault rifle with 60 rounds of 5.45 mm caliber.

Basra. Photo by ar On Wednesday, in the Iraqi city of Basra, explosions thundered in three police sites at the same time. According to preliminary data, 61 people died. 200 people were injured, reports Reuters. Al-Jazira reports 68 dead. One of the sites in the Saudiya area by the explosion was dispersed by 4 cars, reports AR. Including two school buses. At least, there were passengers in one of the buses, the correspondent handed over from the scene.