Deutsche Welle
English Service News 29.12.2001, 16:00 UTC
India Pakistan - Tensions Rise
Officials said on Saturday hundreds of villagers on the border of
nuclear neighbours India and Pakistan have fled their homes, as the
two nations declared themselves in favour of peace while preparing
for war.Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee said he would do
his utmost to avoid armed conflict but vowed to pursue India's
claim that Pakistan-based Kashmir militants were behind a
deadly attack on India's parliament on December 13.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar said there was a
high possibility that some small action could set in motion a
chain of events that would result in conflict.
Pakistan said it was willing to hold a summit with India
in Nepal next week but India demanded what it called resolute
Pakistan action against terrorism first.
Meanwhile India and Pakistan have reinforced their joint border with
troops and equipment, including tanks, fighter jets and
artillery in the biggest such build-up in almost 15 years.
Argentina - more Demonstrations
Argentine demonstrators clashed with police outside the presidential
palace and looted furniture in Congress on Saturday in anger at
the new government's handling of a deep recession barely a week
after protests forced out a previous president.
Thousands of people protested against interim President Adolfo
Rodriguez Saa's decision to keep unpopular banking curbs and
his appointment of some officials widely seen as corrupt.
Rodriguez Saa, who stopped payments on Argentina's foreign
debt after being appointed last Sunday, called an emergency Cabinet
meeting on Saturday morning. Unpopular restrictions have led some to
fear their life savings may be seized outright by the cash-strapped
government.
USA Rejects Call to Halt Bombing
The United States has rejected a call from the new Afghan interim
government to promptly end the U.S. bombing of Afghanistan.
President George W. Bush said all options should remain open as the
search continued for Osama bin Laden. The American TV channel ABC
has reported that regular U.S. ground troops will soon replace U.S.
special marines in the Kandahar area, possibly in mid-January. Eight
senior German Bundeswehr officers have delayed until Monday their
departure for Kabul. They'll do reconnaissance for the ISAF, the
U.N.-mandated multinational force being assembled for Afghanistan.
Slow Poll Count in Zambia
Initial results from Zambia's elections held on Thursday suggest a
narrow lead for the ruling MMD party's candidate Levy Mwanawasa but
opposition figures allege vote-rigging, saying they won't concede.
Amid slow counting, the government said a swearing-in of a new
president would be delayed until next Wednesday. Zambia's electoral
commission said Mwanawasa had 149,493 votes compared to 148,628 for
opposition candidate Anderson Mazoka. But, Mazoka claimed instead
that EU monitors' figures showed that he had won, adding he would
not accept "election fraud". No results have emerged from Zambia's
parallel election for parliament where analysts expect a coalition.
Mwanawasa is the heir of outgoing President Frederick Chiluba.
Apartheid Era Lawsuit Pending
Holocaust claims lawyer Ed Fagan says South African non-governmental
organisations he's advising plan to file apartheid reparation claims
early next year against European and U.S. financial institutions.
In an interview with DW-Radio, Fagan said institutions, such as
Swiss banks, had profiteered by financing South Africa's former
apartheid government in defiance of U.N. sanctions. The lawsuit
would seek to establish a fund worth "tens of billions of dollars"
to compensate individual victims, Fagan said. Last month, President
Thabo Mbeki said South Africa's current government would not take
legal action against foreign nations. He was responding to plans by
Jubilee South Africa, an alliance of non-governmental groups.
Australian Bushfires Continue
Australian firefighters, close to Sydney, had a
calmer-than-expected day on Saturday, but the Bureau of Meteorology
forecasts for Sunday are causing serious concern.
Firefighters were expecting gusty north-westerly winds Saturday, but
instead got a north-easterly which is blowing at up to 40 kilometres
an hour. The change came as a welcome relief to fire service
personnel in some areas, where fires have literally turned back on
themselves.
In other areas, firefighters have had to reposition themselves as
the direction of the blaze changed.A spokesperson for the Rural Fire
Service says the fires have so far burned out more than 250,000
hectares and that more than 100 fires were still raging and any wind
change could have a disastrous effect.
German Bankruptcies Rise
Bankruptcies in Germany rose by 18 percent this year, with a record
34,000 small-to-medium-sized firms registering insolvency, according
to the "Bild am Sonntag" newspaper.
Citing chambers of commerce, it also reports the loss 400,000 jobs -
half at major German companies, including their foreign branches,
and half within smaller firms. Opposition CDU industry spokesman
Peter Rauen forecast more layoffs that would take unemployment above
four million. France, too, has increased joblessness, with latest
data showing nine percent unemployment, equating to 2.2 million
people out of work. France's labour ministry blamed slowdowns,
especially among key trading partners, the USA, Germany and Japan.
German Chancellor Enthusiastic about Euro
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has expressed enthusiasm for the
euro on Saturday.
As Europe prepares to introduce euro coins and notes on
January 1, Schroeder said "The new money is evidence that the
hundreds-of-years-old dream of a united, unified Europe has become
more real." The chancellor also said that contrary to many fears, the
euro will save money by leading to more competition rather than
higher prices quietly factored into the new price tags.
He added "The German government has calculated that the euro
introduction will save citizens a total of 400 million marks ($180
million) in taxes and fees."
Swedish Yacht Wins Sydney-Hobart
One of yachting's prestige races, the Sydney-Hobart, has been won by
the Swedish vessel "Assa Abloy", which is also a competitor in the
Volvo round-the-world fleet, next headed for Auckland.
"Assa Abloy" crossed Hobart's finish just ahead of fellow Swedish
contender "Nicorette".
Oil Price Rise Doubted
A German oil industry analyst has cast doubt on predictions that
crude oil prices could rise in the short term because of OPEC's plan
to curb the cartel's daily output by 1.5 million barrels.
Heino Elfert told the "Berliner Zeitung" newspaper that OPEC's
intention had been already absorbed in pricing. On Friday, Brent
crude oil futures traded in London at 20 dollars 32 cents.
Auto Pollution Harms Babies
Air pollution during pregnancy can result in children born with
heart defects, according to a study of 9,000 babies by researchers
in California.
The results, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology,
conclude the risk is highest for babies if their mothers inhale car
exhaust gases during the critical second month of pregnancy, for
example, in areas prone to traffic jams. Cardiac defects were also
three times as high among pregnant women living close to motorways.
Bus Crash Rome - Three Dead
A bus carrying about 20 passengers careered off a motorway flyover
in Rome on Saturday and plunged 15 metres to the ground, killing two
people and injuring at least seven, police said.
The bus was travelling from Rome's Fiumicino airport to a
district in the southwest of the city when it lost control on a
sharp bend on the overpass, police said.
Initial reports said the crash may have been caused by a
burst tyre.The 35-year-old driver was one of those killed. Five
injured people were taken to hospital and two were treated at the
scene.
Serbian News Network - SNN
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