Deutsche Welle English Service News 20. 03. 2005, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD: "New Europe" Giving US the Cold Shoulder After committing troops to the US-led invasion and occupation of Iraq, the so-called "New European" states are gradually turning their backs on the United States as rewards fail to materialize. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1523378,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- In light of the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in 2005, DW-WORLD has put together a special site marking the occasion. Our coverage looks at the effect of World War II on countries around the world and includes interviews with scholars as well as picture galleries. To view the site, please go to http://www.dw-world.de/english ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Rice increases pressure on North Korea US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has warned North Korea that its boycott of nuclear talks can not go on for ever. At a press conference in the South Korean capital Seoul, Rice said the issue needed to be resolved. She also ruled out bilateral discussions between Pyongyang and Washington, saying contact between the two countries was only possible at six-party talks. Rice has now arrived in China for the final leg of her six-nation Asia tour which began last week. Before her departure from Seoul, Rice warned that the European Union should not lift its ban on selling arms to China. Quake shakes Japanese island A powerful earthquake has rocked the southern Japanese island of Kyushu, killing one person and injuring more than 400 others. Measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale, the quake damaged houses and caused power failures. The tremor was felt as far away as eastern Japan and was followed by a series of minor aftershocks. More than 700 people have sought refuge in the city of Fukuoko. Officials are to evaculate about 500 of 750 residents of the tiny Genkai Island which was heavily damaged by the quake. A tsunami warning issued for the area has now been lifted. Iraqi anti-corruption head killed A suicide attack in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul has killed the head of the local anti-corruption authority. Officials said Walid Kashmoula was killed by a suicide bomb attack in the police building where he worked. It is not yet known whether others were wounded. The violence comes as tens of thousands of anti-war demonstrators have protested the US presence in Iraq by taking to the streets. They were marking the second anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. Major rallies have been reported in numerous cities, including London, Istanbul, Athens, and Rome. US President George W. Bush used his weekly radio address to defend his decision to invade Iraq, saying it had made the United States safer and inspired change across the Middle East. Aghanistan announced poll date Afghanistan has finally announced a date for its parliamentary elections. A joint Afghan-United Nations election commission said parliamentary and municipal polls will take place on September 18. The elections have been delayed several times. They were originally supposed to take place in October last year. Israel to hand over second town Israel plans to transfer control of the west bank town of Tulkarm to the Palestinian Authority on Monday. Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz said Israeli and Palestinian officers would meet later in the day to finalise details of the transfer. It is the second of five towns which are planned for a hand over. The announcement comes as violence erupted in the West Bank. Palestinian gunmen opened fire on Israeli soldiers in a refugee camp near Ramallah, wounding four. Also, Israeli soldiers wounded a Palestinian man at a roadblock near Bethlehem. It was the first attack on Israeli troops since Palestinian militant groups agreed to an informal truce in Egypt last week. Pope delegates Palm Sunday mass Pope John Paul II has appeared briefly at his Vatican apartment window to bless the tens of thousands of pilgrims attending Palm Sunday prayers in Rome. The crowd applauded as the Pope blessed them with a palm branch. It is the first time in his 26-year pontificate that the Pope has not presided over the Palm Sunday mass, which commemorates Christ's entry into Jerusalem before his eventual Crucifixion and Resurrection. John Paul is still recovering from a tracheotomy operation on his throat. It is not clear when the 84-year old Pope will be able to resume his regular activities. Thai bomb explosions injure 15 At least 15 people have been injured in two bomb explosions in Thailand's southern provinces. Police say seven policemen and four teenagers were injured in Yala province when a bomb exploded near a railway line. In a separate incident, four people were wounded in a blast near a police checkpoint in the neighbouring Narathiwat province. No deaths were reported. The attacks were the latest incidents of separatist violence in the three mainly Muslim provinces in Thailand's south, where nearly 600 people have been killed since unrest started in January last year. Bomb blast at Pakistani festival A bomb blast at a Muslim shrine in south-western Pakistan has killed at least 32 people and injured many others. The explosion occurred as thousands of pilgrims gathered at a religious ceremony in a remote town about 300 kilometres from Quetta, the capital of the south-western province of Baluchistan. A second, unexploded bomb was found near the shrine shortly after the blast. There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the bombing. Baluchistan has a history of violence between Sunni and Shiite militants and has also recently seen increased attacks by tribesmen fighting for more autonomy. Japan mourn Sarin attack victims Japan has marked the 10th anniversary of a gas attack on the Tokyo subway that killed 12 people and injured about 5,500 others. Government officials and survivors gathered at services at subway stations to pray for the dead. Members of Aum Supreme Truth cult released sarin nerve gas on five trains during the morning rush hour on March 20, 1995. Many of the injured still suffer from after-effects such as breathing problems and headaches. Thirteen Aum members, including the former leader Shoko Asahara, have been sentenced to death for the attack and other crimes. None have yet been executed. Car bomb at Qatar theatre kills Briton Investigators in the Gulf state of Qatar are investigating car bomb which killed a British man and wounded at least 12 others. The bomber, an Egyptian national, drove his vehicle in a theatre near a British school in the capital Doha. About 100 People were inside the theatre. It is the first violence of its kind in the small Arab state. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, which took place two years to the day the US invaded Iraq. The attack also comes two days after suspected leader of al Qaeda's wing in Saudi Arabia urged Muslims in Qatar and other Gulf states to wage holy war against "crusaders" in the region. Russian President Putin visits Ukraine Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Victor Yushchenko, have played down their differences during a meeting in Kiev. President Yushchenko said his government's pro-European policy was not aimed against anyone. He also stressed that Ukraine remained what he termed Russia's "eternal partner." President Putin said problems between the two countries simply did not exist. It was Putin's first trip to Ukraine since the re-run of last year's disputed presidential election that brought Yushchenko to power. The visit is seen as a gesture of reconciliation between Putin, who supported Yushchenko's opponent in the election. Death toll at China mine blast doubles The death toll from a gas explosion at two adjacent coal mines in northern China has doubled to 42. State media reported on Sunday that intensive rescue efforts continued to reach the 27 miners still trapped, and possibly still alive a day after the powerful blast ripped through the Xishui colliery at Shuozhou city in Shanxi province. China has the world's most dangerous mines. Official figures show more than 6,000 miners died in accidents last year but independent estimates say the real figure could be as high as 20,000. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- When the ball gets rolling on the first day of the second half of the Bundesliga season, it�s time to place your bets at DW-WORLD again. Bet, score and win is the name of the game. Compete with soccer fans around the world by predicting who will be up or down, how many goals and how tops the table. Return for each match day and participate in the game individually or as a team with friends and colleagues. Prove your skill at picking the winners, and if you bet correctly, you�ll be awarded with great prizes each time the Bundesliga plays. 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