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Deutsche Welle English Service News 05.03.2003, 16:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD: French, Russians Stress Readiness to Veto War Resolution Three leading opponents of U.S. efforts to launch a war on Iraq huddled in Paris on Wednesday. The outcome of their effort: a veto of a U.S. resolution authorizing an attack remains possible. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/english/0,3367,1430_A_799587_1_A,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sucide bomber kills at least 15 A suicide bomb attack on a bus in the Israeli city of Haifa has killed at least 15 people and left 40 others hurt, some of them seriously. Police said the sucide bomber got on a bus with a large device strapped to his body. Mark Sofer, a senior Foreign Ministry official, said Israel was in a state of shock. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Palestinian Hamas and Islamic Jihad groups said it was in revenge for Israel's recent raids on refugee camps in the Gaza Strip which had left seveal people dead. Earlier in the day, Israeli soldiers shot dead an elderly Palestinian woman. Germany says no majority for new resolution Germany has said it believes there is no majority in the UN Security Council for a new resolution on Iraq. Germany, along with France and Russia is opposed to a new resolution which would authorise the use of force. A government spokesman said there were clear signs that the US and Britain would not garner enough support for their draft resolution. He said Iraq's decision to destroy its banned al Samoud 2 missiles and the planned disclosure on anthrax and VX nerve gas stockpiles were indications that peaceful disarmament was possible. Earlier during prime minister's question time, British leader Tony Blair said he was confident of backing by the UN Security Council. He said there was still time for Saddam Hussein to avoid conflict. Foreign ministers call for more inspections Meanwhile, Germany France and Russia have once again called for UN weapons inspections to be stepped up and given more time. The countries' foreign ministers meeting in Paris said at a press conference that China, which has a veto in the Security Council, also supported the peaceful disarmament of Iraq. France and Russia have said they may use their veto to block a new Iraq resolution. Chief weapons inspector Hans Blix is due to submit a further disarmament report to the Security Council on Friday. Bush meets top military planners US President George W. Bush has met with his top military aides to discuss a possible war on Iraq. Participants of the meeting included Tommy Franks, the commander of the US forces in the Gulf, General Richard Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. There were no immediate details on the outcome of the talks. The United States and Britain have around 250,000 troops in the Gulf region along with dozens of warships and around 600 aircraft in preparation for a possible war. Iraq slams Kuwait over crisis Kuwait and Iraq have clashed at an Islamic summit in Doha. In a slanging match caught on TV Iraq denounced Kuwait as an American vassel and a traitor to the Muslim faith. A closing statement by the 56-member Organisation of the Islamic Conference did not mention the Iraq crisis. However, a written communique stated that Islamic countries would not participate in any military action that targeted the security of Iraq or any other Muslim nation. Leading politician shot dead A high-ranking Nigerian opposition politician has been shot dead. Observers say it is the most serious political killing ahead of the African country's elections next month. President Olusegun Obasanjo said the act was deplorable. Harry Marshall was one of the leaders of the main opposition All Nigeria Peoples Party. Police said he was shot by unidentified gunmen who entered his home. The killing has increased fears of further violence ahead of Nigeria's first free elections since military rule ended in 1999. Trial of Carlos the Jackal aide starts in Berlin In Berlin the trial has begun of a German man considered to be the right-hand man of convicted terrorist Carlos the Jackal. Johannes Weinrich is charged with murder and attempted murder for allegedly organising attacks which killed six people and injured dozens in France, Germany and Greece in the 1970s and 1980s. The trial of Weinrich who is 55, is taking place at a high security criminal court and is predicted to last for more than a year. Deficit higher than expected Contrary to previous estimates, Germany's public health deficit in 2002 was higher than expected. Speaking in Berlin, Health Minister Ulla Schmidt said the deficit stood at €2.96 billion. In December, Schmidt had predicted that the figure would drop from €3.2 billion to €2.5 billion. The government has set up a commission to propose far-reaching changes to the health system which is coming under increasing pressure as the German population ages. Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is expected to present a number of economic and social reform proposals to parliament next Friday. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For more information please turn to our internet website at http://dw-world.de/english 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. --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^^=============================================================== This email was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bdn7KI.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] TOPICA - Start your own email discussion group. FREE! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/create/index2.html ==^^===============================================================
