Deutsche Welle English Service News 07. 04. 2005, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
The Specter of Hooliganism Returns German soccer hooligans have made a violent return to the international stage with just over a year to go before Germany hosts the 2006 World Cup. Officials have faith in security measures but experts predict trouble. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1539291,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Security tight ahead of Pope's funeral Tens of thousands of Roman Catholic pilgrims are still patiently queuing to view the body of Pope John Paul II lying in state at the Vatican. More than two million pilgrims have traveled to Rome since the public was allowed to pay their last respects to the late Pope. The Italian authorities have been stepping up security ahead of Friday's funeral, which is to be attended by an estimated 200 heads of state and government and other dignitaries. More than 10,000 police and security forces have been deployed in the Italian capital. NATO has said it will send an AWACS spy plane to Rome to protect Italian air space during the Pope's funeral. A NATO spokesman said if they spotted anything suspicious, any necessary action would be taken by the Italian authorities. Pope considered resigning in 2000 Pope John Paul's last will and testament indicated that in the year 2000 he was tormented over whether he should resign after leading the Roman Catholic Church into the new millennium. In the will, written over more than two decades, the Pope also indicates that very early in his pontificate he considered the possibility of a funeral in Poland. The Vatican said the Pope John Paul finally decided to leave the decision up to the College of Cardinals. Talabani sworn in as Iraqi president Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani has been sworn in as Iraq's new president. Iraq's parliament chose him to become the new head of state on Thursday. Talabani, the first Kurdish head of state in an Arab country, appointed leading Shi'ite Ibrahim Jaafari as prime minister, ending weeks of political turmoil. The new president has also proposed an amnesty for insurgents to "give them a chance" to integrate into the new post-Saddam Hussein Iraq. The 275-member National Assembly has also elected two vice presidents. Former President Ghazi Yawer is a Sunni Muslim, and outgoing Finance Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi is Shi'ite. The transitional government's main task will be to oversee the drafting of a permanent Iraqi constitution and to prepare for elections set for December. Annan say rights body harming UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan says the United Nations' human rights body is undermining the credibility of the entire UN organisation. In a speech to be delivered to the commission in Geneva later in the day, Annan says that many of its members are too concerned about protecting their national interests. Annan has called for the commission, which is made up of representatives from 53 countries nominated by regional groupings, to be replaced by a smaller Human Rights Council, whose members would be elected by the UN General Assembly. Kashmir "peace" bus service resumes A busload of Indian Kashmiris has crossed into Pakistan Kashmir on the first cross-border bus service since Kashmir was divided by war almost 60 years ago. The 19 Indians walked across the border to transfer into Pakistani buses to go on to an immigration checkpoint and then continue their journey, hours after Pakistani Kashmiris crossed into India, heading for the Kashmiri summer capital of Srinagar. The new bus services between Srinagar and Muzaffarabad, capital of Pakistani Kashmir, mark a major step forward in the peace process between India and Pakistan. The two nuclear powers came close to war in 2002. US encouraged by Adams' statement Washington has welcomed a call by the leader of Northern Ireland's main Catholic party urging the Irish Republican Army to renounce violence. US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told reporters that Washington was encouraged by the statement, but that it expected the IRA to follow this up with concrete action. In an open letter read out on television, Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams called on the IRA to renounce all violence and embrace the political process. Sinn Fein has been under increased pressure in recent weeks over the IRA's alleged involvement in criminal activity. 16 die in US helicopter in Afghanistan A United States military helicopter has crashed in Afghanistan, killing at least 16 people. According to the US military, the Chinook helicopter came down in Ghazni province, 120 kilometres southwest of Kabul. The crash has been attributed to bad weather. US forces have suffered a number of fatal air accidents in Afghanistan since invading the country in late 2001. Italy ratifies new EU constitution Italy has become the first founding member state of the European Union to ratify the EU's new constitution. Three months after the lower house of parliament approved the constitution, a large majority in Italy's senate have voted to ratified it. The EU constitution must be ratified by all 25 member states before it can come into force. WWII bomb explodes on Dutch boat Three Dutch fishermen have been killed after a suspected World War II bomb they picked up in their nets exploded on board their vessel. The accident happened on the fishing boat with a crew of six, about 100 kilometres off of the Dutch coastline. UK police probe royal security scare British police have ordered an inquiry into how a journalist managed to bring a fake "bomb" into the grounds of Windsor Castle, near where Prince Charles is to marry Camila Parker-Bowles on the weekend. An undercover reporter for the Sun newspaper said he tricked police into letting him take a van carrying a brown box marked "bomb" close to Queen Elizabeth's flat at Windsor Castle, just west of London. Wednesday's incident was just the latest in a series of royal security breaches in recent years. Bush pays visit to Italian president US President George W. Bush, in Rome for the funeral of Pope John Paul II, has paid a courtesy call on Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi. Bush's wife Laura, his father George Bush Sr. and his predecessor Bill Clinton also visited the Italian president at the official palace, the Quirinale. Heavy security was deployed for the visit, with the square in front of the palace cordoned off for about an hour before the arrival of the Bush motorcade. Chelsea beats Bayern 4-2 In sports: There were two first-leg matches in the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday evening. The English Premiership leaders Chelsea beat visiting Bayern Munich 4-2. In Milan, AC beat local rivals Inter 2-0. The second legs of both of those quarterfinals are scheduled for next week. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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. 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