Deutsche Welle English Service News 25. 03. 2005, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Religious Education Under Threat in Berlin When, in 1996, Berlin's senator for education, proposed introducing mandatory ethic classes in the city's high schools, he set a slow ball rolling. Almost a decade later, a final decision is about to be taken. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1526501,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Are you interested in German soccer? Then DW-WORLD has just the thing for you: On Saturday, we offer you a live ticker of a Bundesliga match. The game starts at 15:30 CET, so be sure not to miss it. Follow all the action by clicking on the LIVE SOCCER banner at DW-WORLD's new Bundesliga Web site: http://www.dw-world.de/soccer ---------------------------------------------------------------------- New Krygyz leader pledges fresh polls Kyrgyzstan's new acting head of state, Kurmanbek Bakiev, says fresh presidential elections will be held by June. Bakiev told a crowd in the capital, Bishkek, that members of parliament had picked him as the country's interim president and prime minister. He added, that his top priority was to restore order. At least three people were killed and dozens of others injured in unrest and looting late on Thursday. This comes a day after President Askar Akayev apparently fled the country, after weeks of demonstrations came to a head, with protesters taking control of government buildings in the capital. They claimed Akayev had rigged recent parliamentary elections and were demanding his resignation. EU criticises Israeli plans The European Union's foreign policy chief has criticised Israeli plans to expand settlements in the West Bank. Javier Solana also urged Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to freeze construction. A statement released by Solana's office referred to the Israeli decision to grant a building permit for expansion plans at Maale Adumin. That's a key settlement just east of Jerusalem. He said that the decision breached the internationally backed "road map" peace plan. He said it violated a commitment by both parties involved to refrain from any unilateral action that could affect a final solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Iraqi army general assassinated In Iraq, at least 16 people have been killed and many other wounded in several separate attacks. An Iraqi army general was killed and his two sons wounded in a drive-by shooting in the south-east of the capital, Baghdad. Earlier, a suicide car bomber killed 11 Iraqi special police commandos and wounded many other people. The US military said the bomber blew himself up at a checkpoint in Ramadi. That's about 100 kilometres west of Baghdad. In a separate attack in the south of the capital, a bomber blew up his car beside an Iraqi army convoy, killing four soldiers and wounding several others. UN calls for probe into Hariri killing A United Nations fact finding team has called for an international probe into the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri last month. Deputy Irish Police Commissioner Peter Fitzgerald, who led the team, said Lebanon's investigation into the incident was seriously flawed and may have even been manipulated. His report didn't directly blame Syria for the assassination of Hariri, who was an opponent of the Syrian presence in Lebanon. But it said Damascus was to blame for the political tension that preceded it. UN approves peacekeepers to Sudan The United Nation's Security Council has voted unanimously to send 10,000 peacekeepers to southern Sudan. Their task will be to monitor a peace agreement recently signed by the Sudanese government and rebel forces in the south of the country that ended more than 20 years of civil war. But the Security Council has failed to agree on sending troops to Darfur in western Sudan. Tens of thousands of civilians have been killed and an estimated two million others have been displaced in the two-year-old conflict there. Pakistan could send IAEA nuclear parts Pakistan is considering sending nuclear parts to the United Nations nuclear watchdog to help it find out if Iran is developing nuclear weapons. In an interview on Pakistani television, President Pervez Musharraf said he was considering sending discarded centrifuge parts to Vienna, and negotiations were underway. Pakistan recently admitted that its disgraced scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan gave centrifuges to Tehran. The International Atomic Energy Agency wants to test whether enriched uranium found in Iran had originated there, or if it had come from Pakistan. Tampa judge rejects Schiavo case A judge in the US district court in Tampa has rejected another appeal by the parents of a brain-damaged woman seeking to have her feeding tube reinserted. This comes a day after another judge rejected a bid by Florida Governor Jeb Bush to have Terri Schiavo placed in state custody. The latest appeals used testimony from a neurologist that the 41-year-old Schiavo could be in a state of minimal consciousness, and not in a permanent vegetative state. Her husband and legal guardian had her feeding tube removed last week. He says she wouldn't have wanted to be kept alive by artificial means. Schiavo's parents have been fighting to have the feeding tube reinserted but appear to have all but exhausted their legal options. Christians mark Good Friday Christians around the world are celebrating Good Friday. Easter weekend marks the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. For Roman Catholics though, the celebrations are being overshadowed by concerns about the health of Pope John Paul II. The 84-year-old Pope remains frail following a throat operation to ease breathing problems last month. He's been kept from most of his ceremonial duties ever since. Spanish police arrest ETA suspects Spanish police have arrested three suspected members of the Basque separatist group ETA. The Interior Ministry said that police seized weapons during the raids in the Basque city of San Sebastian. They gave no other details. The arrests come as Spain's Supreme Court considers whether to bar a group of Basque candidates from standing in next month's regional elections. The government has argued that the new grouping, Aukera Guztiak, was an attempt by ETA and the outlawed party Batasuna to take part in elections. A ruling is expected on Saturday. Canada denies asylum to US deserter Canada has denied refugee status to a US soldier who fled the United States to avoid being sent to Iraq. The Immigration and Refugee Board in Toronto also denied asylum to his wife and son. Members of the board said they weren't convinced that the lives of Jeremy Hinzman and his family would be at risk, nor that they would face cruel or unusual punishment in the United States. If he returns to the US, the 26-year-old paratrooper faces up to five years in jail for desertion. Hinzman deserted the 82nd Airborne Division two years ago, saying he feared he would be forced to commit atrocities if sent to Iraq. Observers say the ruling will likely set a precedent for as many as 100 US military deserters seeking refuge in Canada. UN troops in Afghanistan another year The United Nations has agreed to extend its peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan for another year. The Security Council stressed UN troops would help secure stability ahead of September 18 parliamentary elections. The UN is also appealing for greater financial support for Afghanistan's first parliamentary elections since the fall of the Taliban. Of the 115 million euros pledged to help rebuild the country, only 30 million has been paid. Monaco's prince in critical condition Prince Rainier of Monaco is in critical condition and his prognosis is unclear. A palace spokesman said that the Prince's health had not improved during treatment in the intensive care unit of a Monaco hospital, and that he was still breathing through a respirator. The 81-year-old prince was admitted to hospital more than two weeks ago with a chest infection. Prince Rainier assumed the throne in 1949. Fischer arrives in Iceland Former world chess champion Bobby Fischer has arrived in Iceland's capital, Reykjavik, after spending eight months in detention in Japan. Fischer was granted Icelandic citizenship, enabling him to avoid deportation to his native United States. He is wanted in the US for breaking international sanctions by playing a match in Yugoslavia in 1992. The 62-year-old chess legend was detained in July attempting to leave Japan using an expired US passport. World Expo opens in Japan Expo 2005 has opened to the public in the central Japanese city of Nagoya, the first in the 21st century. The theme of this Expo is "Nature's Wisdom" with displays meant to show the link between technology and the environment. For the first time in Expo history two countries, France and Germany, are sharing one pavillion. Expo 2005 is expected to draw some 15 million people over the next six months. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Join our latest forum: The EU intends to lift its 15-year arms embargo against China, much to the regret of the US which says resuming defense trade would upset the balance of power in the region. What do you think? Participate by going to http://www.dw-world.de/english ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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/
