World news extra in brief, September 26, 2012

Criminals lead '60pc' of Mexican prisons

MEXICO CITY - Six out of 10 Mexican prisons are "self-governed" by prison gangs or drug cartels, according to a report issued by the country's human rights commission. Commission representative Andres Aguirre said Mexico's prisons were plagued by overcrowding, a shortage of guards and corrupt employees who sometimes help with breakouts. Aguirre said 60 per cent of the country's 430 prisons or jails were controlled by criminal elements. He said the escape of 521 inmates over 14 incidents since 2010 - often with the help of corrupt prison officials - constituted a grave problem for the country. Reuters

Libya absorbs militias into security forces

TRIPOLI - Libyan authorities moved to absorb militias into the security forces, appointing military commanders to head Islamist armed groups in an effort to cement central government control. The new leadership for the Benghazi Islamist militias, Rafallah al-Sahati and the February 17 brigades, announced by the military, came at the tail-end of a 48-hour deadline for militias to disarm. The push followed mass weekend protests against the groups in Benghazi - demonstrations sparked by outrage over the killing of US ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans in the city during September 11 protests. Bloomberg

Scientology insider will publish memoir

NEW YORK - A niece of Scientology leader David Miscavige is planning a tell-all memoir about the church. Jenna Miscavige Hill has been a frequent critic of the movement since publicly breaking with it in 2005. She announced the book, Beyond Belief: My Secret Life inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape, will come out in January. It says the 28-year-old Hill will reveal "strange and disturbing" details about growing up in the church and will provide a first-hand account of Scientology's "upper ranks". AP