Bolivia pledges aid to thousands left homeless by 'mega-mudslide'

Bolivia's president pledged that his government will build new houses for thousands of people who are homeless after a "mega-mudslide" triggered by heavy rainfall in the nation's capital, state media reported.

Nearly a day of uninterrupted downpours caused the Sunday mudslide, the state-run ABI news agency reported.

"Natural phenomena unfortunately are causing a lot of damage. Something is changing on the planet," Bolivian President Evo Morales said, according to a statement posted on the La Paz government website Monday.

The homes of at least 4,000 people were destroyed, ABI said.

Victims left homeless by the disaster struggled to salvage their belongings Monday, ABI said. A massive crack in the ground split a cemetery in two, leaving bones exposed beside crucifixes and cracked headstones.

The news agency said construction along steep hillsides has become common as La Paz expands beyond the valley where it was founded in 1548.

Man pleads guilty to duping moms into abusing kids

In real life, Steven Demink didn't have children, a college degree or a lasting career. Online, prosecutors say, he presented himself as Dalton St. Clair, an attractive single father and psychologist - a fantasy image authorities say the Michigan man used to persuade mothers across the country to commit unspeakable acts on their children.

Demink, 41, of Redford Township, preyed on single mothers for more than a year, prosecutors say, convincing them to sexually assault their children as a form of therapy. After pleading guilty Monday to six charges related to the sexual exploitation of children, Demink faces 15 years to life in prison when he is sentenced in June.

Demink's alter-ego was a single father of a 14-year-old girl, prosecutors said, and he posted pictures of male models as his headshots. In some cases, court documents say, Demink promised the women a date if they followed through with his directions.

Since authorities arrested him in October, seven children were rescued and at least three mothers have been arrested. Prosecutors say all of the children are now safe.

Authorities say Demink chatted with mothers from New Hampshire, Florida, Idaho and elsewhere, persuading them to engage in sexual acts with their children and send images via e-mail or through a live web stream. The children ranged in age from 3 to 15.

Demink told U.S. District Judge Gerald Rosen that before his arrest, he worked as a car salesman for about six months and before that for about five years at a local bank. He said he completed a U.S. Customs and Border Protection training program in 2002 and worked for the Immigration and Naturalization Service for about a year. He attended college for about two years but did not earn a degree, he said.

As part of his plea agreement with prosecutors, seven charges against Demink were dropped.

Oil up above $112 as Middle East supply concerns dominate

Brent crude rose above $112 a barrel on Tuesday as continued unrest in the Middle East and North Africa threatened to further reduce crude supplies even as Saudi Arabia ramped up output to cover disruption to Libyan exports.

Gains were capped as February manufacturing growth in No. 2 oil importer China slowed to a six-month low. In top consumer the U.S., crude oil inventories likely increased for the seventh consecutive week last week on higher imports.

Brent futures for April rose 41 cents to $112.21 a barrel by 0736 GMT. The contract gained over 10 percent in February, its biggest monthly percentage rise since May 2009. U.S. crude rose 33 cents to $97.30 a barrel.

Both benchmarks surged to their highest in 2- years last week as the revolt in Libya cut supply and spurred fears that tensions could spread to other oil producers in the region.

Demonstrators blocked roads into Oman's main oil product port on Monday, although exports were unaffected.

"There's a very large fear premium in oil prices due to the geopolitical situation," said Ben Le Brun, markets analyst at CMC Markets.

"The potential is there and the risk is very high if it (the unrest) spreads to countries such as Saudi Arabia," he said, adding that in that scenario prices could "rocket up."

Crude oil shipments from Libya are at a virtual standstill as reduced output and bad weather hamper exports from the world's 12th-largest producer, shipping sources said.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch said Libya's oil infrastructure on the eastern side of the country could be prone to attacks, "creating the risk of a prolonged output loss.

The bank added that the oil market's ability to deal with further unrest in the Middle East was limited. Still, a Saudi source said on Monday that the kingdom has another 3.5 million barrels per day (bpd) of spare capacity, even after it raised output to around 9 million bpd to plug the gap left by Libya.

OIL SPIKES TO HIT GROWTH

The IMF has warned that global economic growth could suffer if the price of oil stays at its current high level for an extended period.

"A steep rise in oil prices that is caused by a supply loss is likely to be more damaging than one that is driven by robust demand," JPMorgan analysts led by Lawrence Eagles said in a February 28 note.

In China, manufacturing growth slowed in February to a six-month low, according to an official survey, as the government's sustained campaign to tame inflation weighed on industrial activity.

A slowdown was expected, but China still has strong demand for crude and products to feed its expansion, said Yuichiro Sakaki, a Tokyo-based trader at Mizuho Securities.

China is targeting 7 percent per year annual economic growth from 2011-2015, down from the average growth of 11.2 percent in the last five year period.

In the U.S., crude stocks are expected to rise 1.2 million barrels last week while inventories for oil products are likely to fall, a preliminary Reuters poll showed.

Buxom actress Jane Russell dead at 89

"Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" movie star Jane Russell, who became a controversial Hollywood sex symbol, died on Monday at the age of 89, her family said.

Russell, best known as the buxom star of 1940s and 1950s movie, died of respiratory failure at her home in Santa Maria, central California, her family said.

"Jane Russell passed away peacefully today at home surrounded by her children at her bedside," Russell's son Buck Waterfield said in a statement.

Russell, who later in life was the "full-figured girl" in television bra ads, was at her best in comedies that, subtly or not, spoofed her sexpot image and focused on her figure.

Multimillionaire producer-industrialist Howard Hughes discovered Russell and put her in her first movie, "The Outlaw," which stuck her with the sexpot image based on her bosom, the bra for which reportedly was size 38-D.

In the photos, the sultry Russell languished on a bed of straw, looking petulant as her tight-fitting peasant blouse slipped off one shoulder. Censors held up "The Outlaw" for almost three years before a limited release in 1943.

Unmoved by sultan's offer, Oman protesters to continue demonstrations

A fourth day of demonstrations are expected in Oman on Tuesday, this time in the capital Muscat.

On Monday, anti-government protesters in the key port city of Sohar refused to end protests despite orders from the sultan to hire 50,000 people and pay a stipend to people who are out of work, sources in the Gulf state told CNN.

Demonstrators in Sohar have blocked routes to the port and the industrial zone, prompting port staff to leave work, two sources in the town said.

Protesters demands include greater freedom of expression, higher salaries, a clampdown on government corruption, a new constitution, and the prosecution of security officials whose actions led to the death of demonstrators.

Oman is not a major oil producer, but a significant share of the world's oil shipping passes through the Strait of Hormuz, along the Omani coast.

Witnesses did not report any clashes between security and the protesters, saying the two sides were keeping apart.

There were reports of attacks on property over the weekend, but on Monday the protesters organized committees to protect buildings and handle traffic, CNN's sources said.

Fifteen young protesters submitted their demands in writing to officials Monday, with promises that the demands would passed to the sultan.

Sultan Qaboos bin Said ordered the hiring of 50,000 citizens in the aftermath of weekend protests that left at least one person dead and 11 others injured, state-run media reported Sunday.

The ruler also issued royal orders saying job-seekers who register with the Ministry of Manpower will be paid 150 rials (about U.S. $390) per month until they find jobs, according to the Oman News Agency.

After reports of multiple deaths on Sunday, Ahmed Al Saidi, the minister of health, said there had only been one death.