Deutsche Welle
English Service News
July 7th, 2001, 16:00 UTC
An Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire appears to exist only on paper as
violence flared in the occupied West Bank and Gaza on Saturday in
the absence of agreement on how to tackle the situation. Medical
officials in the West Bank said a Palestinian boy and woman were
slightly wounded on Saturday by Israeli fire. On Friday at least 12
Palestinians were hurt in clashes in Gaza and the West Bank. A
meeting on Friday between Israeli and Palestinian security officials
in Tel Aviv ended without agreement on the start of a seven-day test
truce intended to lead to a cooling-off period, confidence-building
measures and a resumption of negotiations. An Israeli defence
spokesman said the United States had "completely accepted" the
Israeli position that the countdown had yet to begin because of
continuing violence.
Hundreds of British troops built a massive metal and wire blockade
on Saturday to stop a banned Protestant parade reaching a Roman
Catholic enclave near the flashpoint hamlet of Drumcree. After
arriving in a huge convoy of military trucks, tractors and troop
carriers in the early morning hours, soldiers threw up a defensive
ring around the entrances to the Garvaghy Road, a Catholic zone on
the edge of the town of Portadown, to enforce a ban by the
independent Parades Commission on 2,000 "Orangemen" marching through
it on Sunday. Hundreds more are believed to be on stand-by for duty
on "Drumcree Sunday" -- the most contentious day of the staunchly
Protestant Orange Order's annual summer "marching season" in the
province.
James Pardew, the U.S. special envoy to Macedonia and his European
Union counterpart, Francois Leotard, presented a "comprehensive
framework" to the country's multi-ethnic parties on Saturday to try
to re-start a political dialogue. The presentation came after a NATO
brokered ceasefire took effect at midnight Thursday. The leaders of
Macedonia's divided communities will now study the envoys' revised
plan, which both sides are likely to debate intensely before
resuming talks, which is expected on Monday. Meanwhile tensions
remain high and witnesses said they heard artillery fire near the
village of Radusa Friday night. A Macedonian army spokesman said the
ceasefire had been respected overnight aside from some minor
episodes.
Suspected Maoist rebels shot and killed 39 policemen and a civilian
in three separate attacks on security posts across Nepal on the eve
of the new king's birthday. The latest violence in the troubled
Himalayan kingdom comes just one month after the massacre of almost
the entire royal family by the crown prince, who then shot himself.
District official Harihar Sharma said 21 police officers were killed
at Bichour, 150 km (95 miles) west of Kathmandu. Nine more policemen
were killed in Nuwakot district, 100 km (60 miles) northeast of the
national capital, and a further eight police officers and a civilian
cook were gunned down at Wami Taxar in western Nepal. Officials said
all three attacks were carried out late on Friday night or early
Saturday by suspected members of the communist Party of Nepal which
is pledged to overthrow the Himalayan kingdom's constitutional
monarchy.
Severe thunderstorms with gale force winds gusting at times upto 100
miles per hour swept across France, Belgium and Germany Saturday
morning. In Strasbourg, France, 11 people were killed and at least
85 others injured when the storm brought a tree crashing down onto
spectators at an open-air concert. Local magistrates have opened an
inquiry into the tragedy. In Brussels, two people were killed when
a tree toppled onto their automobile. In the southwest German state
of Baden Wuerttemberg, one person died and at least 15 people
suffered storm related injuries. The storm with large hail ripped
the roofs off homes, and toppled trees across roads. Less severe
damage was reported in the neighbouring states of Hesse, Saarland,
and Rhineland Pfalz.
Finance ministers from the Group of Seven richest nations worked on
Saturday to send a message of cautious optimism about the outlook
for the ailing world economy, however, they could not agree on when
that rebound would occur. While most felt the global economic
slowdown had hit bottom, concern about the impact of high oil prices
added to uncertainty about the timing of recovery. No formal
statement was expected from the Rome meeting - designed to set the
stage for a world leaders' summit in Genoa later this month - but
ministers aimed to give out a coordinated line on global growth
despite friction between the United States and Europe over who
should do most to prop up the economy.
At the annual San Fermin festival which is known world wide for its
"running with the bulls" in Pamplona, Spain 9 people were injured on
Saturday, 6 of the them seriously. Overnight rain had made route
extremely slippery and participants simply ignored the organizers
appeal to refrain for taking part. The nine day San Fermin festival
opens each day with the "encierro" as runners dash the 825 meter
(half mile) route from a corral to an outdoor stadium ahead or
alongside six prime fighting bulls. Matadors kill the animals later
in the day as part of the daily bullfights.
In Sports, Germany has won for the third consecutive time the
Women's European Football championship. The Germans defeated Sweden
1-nil with a golden goal in overtime.
The toughest cycling race in the world, the tour de France, got
underway on Saturday. Two time defending champion Lance Armstrong
is the odds on favorite to win again.
At Wimbledon, rain has created chaos with the schedule. Aussie
Patrick Rafter defeated American Andre Agassi to advance to the mens
final. His opponent will either be Brit Tim Henman or Croat Goran
Ivanisevic. Their match has been interrupted by inclement weather.
The women's final features defending champion Venus Williams and
Justine Henin of Belgium.
Serbian News Network - SNN
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