DEUTSCHE WELLE/DW-WORLD.DE Newsletter English Service News 29.01.07, 17:00 Uhr UTC
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Need a good laugh? Then check out DW-WORLD.DE'S From the Fringe Special, which regularly brings you quirky stories from and about Germany. To find out more, go to http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evucjbIfcha79I0&req=l%3DevucjaIfcha79I0 '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Today's highlight on DW-WORLD: EU Pledges Aid to Afghanistan to Fight Corruption, Drug Trade The European Union on Monday announced an aid package to Afghanistan worth 600 million euros ($775 million) over the next four years. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evucjbIfcha79I1&req=l%3DevucjaIfcha79I1 '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Suicide bomber kills three in Israel At least three people have been killed after a suicide bomber attacked a bakery in the Israeli resort town of Eilat. It was the first suicide bombing in Israel in nine months and the first ever to hit Israel's southern-most city. A spokesman for the governing Palestinian militant group Hamas described the bombing as a "natural response" to Israeli policy. Three Palestinian militant groups, Islamic Jihad, the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, and a previously unknown group calling itself the Army of Believers, have claimed joint responsibility for the attack. Factional fighting rages in Gaza At least five more Palestinians have been killed in clashes between supporters of the governing militant group Hamas and the Fatah Party of President Mahmoud Abbas. The violence has scuppered talks on forming a national unity government and left the Gaza Strip teetering on the brink of an all-out civil war. Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has offered to hold talks in the Muslim holy city of Mecca to stop the fighting. The proposal has been welcomed by the leaders of both Hamas and Fatah, but no date for the meeting has been set. Hundreds of militants slain in Iraq battle Iraqi officials say at least 300 militants have been killed in battles between US-backed Iraqi troops and insurgents in the holy city of Najaf. A US helicopter crashed during the fight, killing two American soldiers. The day-long fighting erupted on Sunday as Shiite pilgrims flocked to the nearby shrine city of Karbala to mark Ashura, the holiest Shiite mourning ritual. The ceremony has become a target of Sunni insurgents in past years and security forces have stepped up measures to thwart any possible assault on the pilgrims. In separate incidents Monday, at least nine people were killed in separate bomb and shooting attacks in Baghdad, including four who died when their minibus was blown up by a makeshift bomb. UN chief urges support for Darfur Ghana has been selected to take over the presidency of the African Union. Leaders from the AU's 53 member states meeting in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, chose Ghana despite a promise made last year that Sudan would be appointed. Many of the delegates argued that Sudan was not suitable due to the ongoing violence in that country's western Darfur region. Earlier at the summit, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on AU leaders to help end the violence in Darfur by backing the deployment of a joint UN and African peacekeeping force. An estimated 200 thousand people have been killed and more than two million others displaced since the conflict there broke out four years ago. Congo rebel leader to face trial at ICC The International Criminal Court has confirmed that Democratic Republic of Congo rebel leader Thomas Lubanga Dyilo is to face trial on war-crimes charges. Judges at the ICC ruled that there was enough evidence to prosecute Lubanga for allegedly forcing children to join his militia during the country's civil war in 2002-03. The ruling in The Hague opens the way for the court's first trial since it was set up in 2002. The ICC is the first permanent international judicial body for trying war crimes. EU announces more aid to Afghanistan The European Union has announced an aid package to Afghanistan worth 600 million euros over the next four years. EU commissioner for external relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner said the funding would go towards bolstering the judiciary in Afghanistan to help fight corruption, as well as towards developing alternative crops to combat the narcotics trade in the country. The funding boost was announced at a meeting in Berlin of the so-called EU troika which groups German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Portuguese Foreign Minister Luis Amado. The meeting is also being attended by Afghan Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta. Kyrgystan approves new prime minister The parliament of the Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan has approved a new prime minister. The move puts an end to an almost two-week deadlock over candidates for the post. Azim Isabekov was named prime minister in a 57-4 parliamentary vote. The 46-year-old, who had previously been agriculture minister, is a lifelong politician and former head of the administration of Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev. The president had initially nominated the former prime minister, Felix Kulov, as his preferred candidate. But deputies twice rejected Kulov's candidacy. BA cabin crews call off strike British Airways says it has reached an agreement with a union representing cabin crews to prevent a strike that had been planned for Tuesday. The airline's chief executive, Willie Walsh said that while BA was pleased to have avoided a two-day work stoppage, the agreement came too late to prevent some disruption to its flights. No details of the agreement have been released. There was no immediate comment from the Transport & General Workers Union. Germany to phase out coal subsidies A draft agreement has been reached to end the public subsidies that have kept Germany's coal industry afloat for the past few decades. The agreement came during a meeting of government representatives with the coal-mining company, Ruhrkohle, and trade unions in Berlin. The plan calls for the subsidies to end in 2018, but it is to be reviewed in five years' time. The deal is aimed as softening the blow of layoffs in an industry that employs more than 30 thousand people. The subsidies currently amount to about 2.5 billion euros annually. Al Gore gives Prince Charles environmental award Former US Vice President Al Gore has presented Britain's Prince Charles with an award for his work on behalf of the environment. Gore, who served under President Clinton in the 1990s, presented Charles with the Global Environmental Citizen Award, given by the Center for Health and the Global Environment at Harvard Medical School as the Prince of Wales and his wife, Camilla, wrapped up a weekend trip to the United States. The royal couple's visit to the US focused on youth development, urban renewal and environmental stewardship. '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Need a good laugh? Then check out DW-WORLD.DE'S From the Fringe Special, which regularly brings you quirky stories from and about Germany. To find out more, go to http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evucjbIfcha79I2&req=l%3DevucjaIfcha79I2 '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' For more information please turn to our internet website at http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evucjbIfcha79I3&req=l%3DevucjaIfcha79I3 Here you'll find out what's happening in Germany, Europe and the rest of the world. News and background reports from the fields of current affairs, culture, business and science. And of course the DW website also has information about DW-RADIO and DW-TV programmes: topics, broadcast times and frequencies. You can even listen to all programmes as audio-on-demand. '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' You can cancel our newsletter at: http://newsletter.dw-world.de/public/unsubscribe.jsp?gid=90003210&uid=927954405&mid=900010487&sig=ABNMEINIGKFNMFKN&locale=en Copyright Deutsche Welle 2007 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
