Dallas

Conjoined twins’ progress after surgery pleases doctors

Formerly conjoined Egyptian twins Ahmed and Mohamed Ibrahim are moving their limbs, opening their eyes and responding to voices, and are continuing to show improvement following last week’s surgery to separate them, doctors said.

Surgeons inspected the skin grafts on Mohamed’s temples Saturday and found that no further graftings were needed, said Dr. James A. Thomas, chief of critical care services at Children’s Medical Center Dallas.

“Mohamed is currently sleepy after his anesthesia, but before had been quite responsive to voices and last evening was able to grasp a toy ball with his left hand,” he said.

Ahmed had a brief seizure Friday night that was resolved with treatment. His sedation medications were decreased to see if he becomes more alert, Thomas said.

The twins, 2, joined at the top of their heads when they were born in Egypt on June 2, 2001, were separated Oct. 12 during a 34-hour operation.

Gaza Strip

4 killed in Mideast violence

Israeli troops clashed with Hamas militants Saturday in Gaza, killing two of them and a bystander in a shootout in a refugee camp where Israel has been conducting raids for more than a week.

Another Palestinian was killed in the West Bank town of Tulkarem when Israeli soldiers fired on crowds of Palestinian youths who had thrown stones and a firebomb.

Meanwhile, a team of FBI explosives and forensics specialists continued its investigation Saturday into the bombing attack on a convoy of U.S. officials in Gaza that killed three Americans on Wednesday, U.S. Embassy spokesman Paul Patin said.

The Palestinians have detained seven members of a rogue militant group, the Popular Resistance Committees, and have briefed the U.S. team on the questioning of the detainees, but a senior U.S official said cooperation from Palestinian security officials was mixed.

Rhode Island

Carbon monoxide leak evacuates hockey rink

A carbon monoxide leak prompted evacuation of a hockey rink during a college game Saturday, and 31 people were hospitalized, officials said.

Their injuries were not believed to be life-threatening, said Officer Tod Gautreau of the Burrillville Police Department. The leak at the rink at Burrillville High School was believed to have been caused by a heater. The injured included several hockey players from Bryant College.