Deutsche Welle English Service News 28.01.2004, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Hutton Report Clears Blair, Criticizes BBC The government of British Prime Minister Tony Blair was exonerated from any wrongdoing in the death of weapons expert David Kelly on Wednesday. But the so-called Hutton inquiry had plenty of harsh criticism for the BBC. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/english/0,3367,1433_A_1099230_1_A,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- British judge clears Blair government over Kelly inquiry The chairman of the British Broadcasting Corporation, Gavyn Davies, has tendered his resignation. This comes just hours after the release of the Hutton Report. Lord Hutton found that reports carried on the BBC that the government "sexed up" a dossier on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction were unfounded. He also found that the BBC's editorial processes in vetting reports about those claims by defence correspondent, Andrew Gilligan, were deficient. Lord Hutton cleared Prime Minister Tony Blair's government of dishonourable behaviour in the death of an expert on Iraqi weapons. The retired judge was given the task of investigating the death of Dr Kelly, who committed suicide last year after being named as source of reports that accused the government of exaggerating the threat posed by Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction. Prime Minister Blair used that threat to make the case for going to war. Bird flu countries to co-operate more Ten countries that have been hit by avian influenza or bird flu have agreed to work together to combat the outbreak of the disease. At an emergency conference in Bangkok, the 10 nations agreed to share scientific information more quickly, and work to develop a cheap diagnostic test for the virus. Bird flu has killed 11 people in Thailand and Vietnam this year, and the disease has also spread to China and Pakistan. Islamabad has ordered the mass slaughter of birds in a number of regions of the country. At least 7 Palestinians killed in Gaza City raid Israeli soldiers have shot dead at least eight Palestinians during a raid in the Gaza Strip. Palestinian medics said at least five of those killed in Gaza City's Zaitoun quarter were gunmen and the rest were civilians. The Islamic Jihad militant group said at least five of its fighters were killed. An Israeli army spokesman said soldiers launched the raid in search of militants who frequently launch mortars at the nearby Jewish settlement of Netzarim. 3 killed as car bomb explodes in front of hotel in central Baghdad A suspected suicide bomber blew up a vehicle in front of a hotel in central Baghdad early Wednesday morning, completely destroying the facade of the three-story building. At least three people were killed including a South African. Iraqi police said the blast was caused by a suicide bomber travelling at high speed in a medical vehicle loaded with explosives. The hotel was used by foreign businessmen and firms as well as the interim Iraqi labour minister. British soldier killed in Kabul suicide blast A British soldier has died and three others have been wounded in Kabul after a suspected suicide bomber drove a taxi up to their vehicle and detonated an explosive device. An Afghan civilian was also killed and another wounded in the explosion. It was the second attack on members of the ISAF peacekeeping force in Afghanistan in as many days. On Tuesday, a Canadian soldier was killed and three others wounded after a bomber threw himself in front of their vehicle. An Afghan civilian was also killed in that attack, and eight others were wounded. The ousted Taliban militia has claimed responsibility for both blasts. Rwanda genocide defence lawyers begin 3-day strike Lawyers defending suspects accused of playing key roles in Rwanda's 1994 genocide have begun a three-day strike to protest against court rules they say are hindering their work. In a joint statement, the defence lawyers issued a number of demands, including the right to subpoena defence witnesses and the right to know the identity of prosecution witnesses who are sometimes protected by the court. They also complained about lack of access to defendants. Dozens of suspects are in custody at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda which is based in the Tanzanian city of Arusha. It was set up to try the perpetrators of the 100-day slaughter of some 800,000 people in Rwanda in 1994. Berlin expects significant growth in 2004 Economics Minister Wolfgang Clement says Germany's economy is on the verge of a significant recovery. He made the statement at a press conference in Berlin to unveil the government's annual economic report. The report predicts the German economy will grow by between 1.5 and 2 percent in 2004. Clement also said he believed the number of unemployed people in Germany could drop below the 4-million mark over the course of the year. The report, however, predicts an average of just of 4.25 million unemployed in 2004. EC files lawsuit against EU finance ministers The European Commission has filed a lawsuit at the European Union's highest court against a decision by EU finance ministers last November to suspend budgetary rules. A spokeswoman for the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg said it had received the request by fax. The EU's executive arm wants the court to clarify the legal basis for the finance ministers' decision to set aside disciplinary action against France and Germany for breaking eurozone rules. For the past two years, Berlin and Paris have broken a rule set out in the Stability and Growth Pact which limits public deficits to three percent of gross domestic product. Annan says Cyprus needs deal by end of March United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has said that the Greek and Turkish governments of the divided Mediterranean island of Cyprus need to reach a peace agreement by March. Speaking to reporters at European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Annan said if that deadline wasn't met, only the Greek Cypriot side of the island could join the European Union on May 1st. Annan's blueprint for reuniting Cyprus has been accepted by both sides as the starting point for negotiations. Cyprus has been divided since Turkey invaded its northern half in 1974. Kerry wins again Senator John Kerry has won the New Hampshire Democratic primary in the United States Tuesday. The win currently makes him the leader of the presidential pack looking for an opportunity to run against President Bush in the November elections. But a tougher test for Kerry could come next Tuesday, in primaries in the South and West, where the election chances of a Massachusetts Democrat seems more in question. Meanwhile, several US polls have shown that, on average, just over 50% of Americans think Bush is doing a good job. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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. Serbian News Network - SNN [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.antic.org/
