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Israeli geologists have set off three massive explosions under the Dead Sea,
in the first Middle Eastern test of a global system to monitor the ban on
testing nuclear weapons. Seismic analysis of the blasts will help UN monitors
distinguish earthquakes from tests in the region, which includes Iraq. The US
funded much of the development of the system. But after refusing to ratify the
test ban treaty last month, senators in the US are now trying to block US
funding for monitoring.