News stories from Sunday October 12, 1980

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

Iraqi forces met stiff resistance from Iranian troops in their drive southward toward the oil refinery complex at Abadan but managed to erect more pontoon bridges across the Karun River, according to Iraqi commanders. Heavy fighting was reported in Khorramshahr between the Iraqis and Iranian defenders of the half-captured port. In Teheran, President Abolhassan Bani-Sadr announced that his troops were preparing a counterattack. He also said he would agree to a United Nations-proposed cease-fire in the Shatt al Arab area. [New York Times] Students share the views of most voters when it comes to the upcoming presidential election, with one execption. Although a survey of two dozen campuses across the nation revealed that students were, by and large, unhappy with the choice of candidates, John Anderson appeared to be the most favored presidential contender. Most enthusiasm seems reserved for state and local races. [New York Times] Several crises have hit Boston schools, unlike any since the violent reaction six years ago to court-ordered desegregation. They include criminal charges against a top school official, a boycott of classes by white students, a walkout by bus drivers, budget problems that threaten payless periods for teachers and discontinuation of sports programs, and an administrative reorganization plan that may have led to the resignations of two black administrators. [New York Times] The police questioned a man in Buffalo, where six black males, ranging in age from 14 to 71, have been slain in less than three weeks. District Attorney Edward Cosgrove of Erie County said the man was interrogated after he was arrested for drunken driving and later exhibited "bizarre" behavior. Mr. Cosgrove said later that he was not a suspect in the slayings. [New York Times] The readiness of Navy submarines has reached a crisis stage, according to the Under Secretary of the Navy, Robert Murray. The main problem is a shortage of experienced and properly trained personnel. According to some officers, submarines are going to sea with an average level of experience that is 30 percent less than that required. [New York Times] A curfew was enforced in Turkey as the ruling military junta conducted a national census. Meanwhile, Necmettin Erbaken, who heads a major fundamentalist Islamic party, was set free by the military authorities.A blast near the United Nations injured four persons as it blew up an unoccupied car in front of the Turkish Center and shattered glass throughout the area around First Avenue and 46th Street. After an explosion in a vacant building in Los Angeles, a man telephoned the Associated Press there to claim responiblity for the explosions in both cities on behalf of the "Justice Commandos of the Armenian Genocide." [New York Times] The search continued for more victims of an earthquake that struck Algeria last Friday, destroying many of the principal buildings in the town of Al Asnam. The town was not leveled but casualties remain difficult to determine. The figure of 20,000 dead given initially by an Algerian relief organization has not been confirmed by the government. [New York Times] Mozambique is trying to rebuild. When 250,000 Portuguese fled from their former colony five years ago, they left behind 12 million mostly illiterate Mozambicans. Since independence, there has been a paucity of economic aid from the West. Now the ruling party seems to be toning down its professed Marxist ideology and is inviting the Portuguese back to help rejuvenate its economy. [New York Times]