Deutsche Welle English Service News 27.04.2004, 16:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Libyan Leader Pitches Tent in Brussels Meeting with EU leaders Tuesday, Moammar Gadhafi makes his first visit to Europe in 15 years. The trip is a major step towards normalizing relations with Libya following its decision to shun weapons of mass destruction. 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_1183215_1_A,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Final Round: Go East! The EU Quiz: Europe is expanding East. Embark on a journey through the 10 candidate countries set to enter the EU by playing the fourth and final round of DW-WORLD's Go East quiz. Lots of great prizes are waiting to be discovered. http://dw-world.de/go-east ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Libya's Gaddafi in Brussels for landmark visit Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is in Brussels on his first trip to Europe in 15 years. At a press conference, Gaddafi said his country wanted to play a leading role in promoting world peace and serve as a bridge between Europe and Africa. He also appealed to the West to accept his offer of peace, adding that he hoped Libya would not be forced to revert to its old days of bombing in acts of resistance. Also at the press conference, European Commission chief Romano Prodi said the EU wanted Libya to join its so-called Barcelona Process of closer trade and cultural links with Mediterranean-rim states as soon as possible. Gaddafi's return to the international community resulted after Libya abandoned its nuclear weapons program and settled two airliner bombing cases. US inflicts heavy losses on Iraqi Shi'ite militia A US military spokesman in Baghdad says US forces have killed at least 64 Iraqi fighters near the holy city of Najaf. This comes just hours after Washington issued an ultimatum to a radical Shi'ite Muslim cleric to clear his militia out of mosques in the city. The clashes were the deadliest since Moqtada al-Sadr and his Mehdi Army militia launched a revolt against the US-led occupation three weeks ago. Spanish troops had earlier pulled out of Najaf as part their plan to withdraw from Iraq by the end of next month. US troops have been forced to take their place in Najaf. Meanwhile, one US soldier has been killed and another wounded in Baghdad. A US military spokesman did not provide any details of the incident. More than 600 quarantined in SARS scare More than 600 people have now been placed in quarantine in the Chinese capital, Beijing, in an effort to contain an outbreak of SARS ahead of the busy May Day weekend. Two cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome have been confirmed and six suspected cases have been identified in the latest outbreak of the lung ailment. All of them were connected to a laboratory where scientists have been conducting research on SARS. Last year, SARS killed nearly 800 people worldwide. Afghanistan carries out first execution since fall of Taliban In Afghanistan, the death penalty has been reinstated for the first time since the fall of the Taliban regime. Officials said a former military commander who was convicted of more than 20 murders was put to death with a bullet to the head. Afghanistan's hardline Taliban regime used to carry out executions in public, but the practice stopped after they were ousted from power by the U.S.-led coalition in 2001. Germany renews support for Turkey's EU candidature Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has renewed Germany's support for Turkey to join the European Union. Speaking at the opening of a German-Turkish chamber of commerce in Cologne, Schroeder said that Turkey's "non-aggressive" Muslim society would be a security advantage for Europe if it joined. In a bid to begin membership talks, Ankara has passed numerous democracy reforms to meet the EU's political criteria. EU leaders will assess Turkey's reform progress in December. China gives up on nuclear deal with Germany China has said that it has given up efforts to buy equipment from nuclear fuel-rod factory in Germany. A government spokesman in Beijing said on Tuesday that negotiations towards buying the plant in Hanau, near Frankfurt, had broken down. But he declined to say why. Members of the Green Party, the junior partners in Germany's governing coalition had threatened to plunge the government into crisis, had it allowed a deal to go through. During a visit to China late last year, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder had said German authorities were considering approving the proposed sale, and that he had no personal objections. Former diplomats attack Blair's foreign policy More than 50 former British diplomats have taken the rare step of openly criticising Prime Minister Tony Blair. In an open letter, they criticise Prime Minister Blair for joining the United States in supporting Israel's plan to pull out of the Gaza Strip while retaining some settlements in the West Bank. The diplomats say the plan is one-sided, illegal, and will cost more Israeli and Palestinian blood. They also accused the US-led coalition of failing to plan for the post-war phase in Iraq, and said its current policies were doomed to failure. In addition, they called on Britain to exert more influence on the United States. A spokesman for Blair has rejected the criticism. International relief efforts continue for North Korea International relief efforts continue for the thousands of people who were injured or left homeless by last week's massive train explosion in North Korea. Aid agencies say the top priorities right now are getting more food, blankets and medicine to the victims. The latest international estimates say 161 people were killed in the explosion, and some 1,300 injured. UN officials say local hospitals are overwhelmed, and don't have the basic medical equipment and supplies to treat the victims. The Red Cross is trying to raise more than one million dollars to buy food and clothing for the victims. Several countries have already sent supplies, or are preparing to do so. South Korea has also proposed to send aid, but North Korea has imposed a number of conditions for accepting it. An official delegation from Seoul has gone to Pyongyang to work out the details. Leading German institutes cut growth forecasts Six of Germany's leading economic think-tanks have cut their growth forecasts, predicting just 1.5 percent growth this year and next year. That's down from the prediction of 1.7 percent for this year, made in their report in the autumn. However, on a positive note, they said that Germany's economy was finally beginning to emerge from several years of stagnation. Mbeki vows to fight poverty as S.Africa celebrates South Africa is celebrating 10 years of democracy and the end of apartheid. Amid celebrations, President Thabo Mbeki was sworn in for a second term, vowing to fight rampant poverty throughout the country. Thousands of people gathered for a celebratory concert to mark the presidential inauguration, which took place 10 years to the day after Nelson Mandela led the African National Congress to victory, ending decades of white apartheid rule. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DW-WORLD.DE on Your Desktop. Keep up with events with our RSS-Feeds: http://www.dw-world.de/english/0,3367,5069_A_1137115,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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. 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