Deutsche Welle English Service News April 16th 2005, 16:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
EU Alarmed at Threat of French 'Non' The European Union struggled Saturday to hide a growing sense of alarm that French voters could reject the EU constitution in a ballot next month, in what would be a devastating blow for the expanding bloc. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1554056,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Tell us what you think! DW-WORLD wants to hear your opinion of our Web site. Please take a few minutes to fill in our online survey and let us know what subjects you want to see more of and where you think we can still improve: http://websurveyor.net/wsb.dll/26036/DW-WORLD-ENG.htm?renderlang=eng ---------------------------------------------------------------------- President Musharraf is visiting India Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has begun his key visit to neighbouring India. Musharraf's tour, the first in four years, includes meeting Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and watching a India-Pakistan cricket game. The two leaders will discuss the sensitive issue of divided Kashmir and ways to further strengthen their relations. Violence in Kashmir continued on Saturday as Indian troops killed two senior Muslim guerrilla members of the Hizbul Mujahideen. On Friday, soldiers shot dead four top militants of the Al-Badr group in a separate battle west of Srinagar. The Hizbul Mujahideen and Al-Badr are among several groups fighting against India's rule in part of Kashmir. Pakistan police detain Asif Ali Zardari Pakistani police have detained former prime minister Benazir Bhutto's husband at the airport in Lahore as he prepared to launch a political movement for democracy. They kept Asif Ali Zardari in custody for several hours to prevent the rally. He's now under virtual house arrest where he said he will launch an appeal against the government's actions. The police chief in Lahore has however, denied that Zardari was arrested. The husband of former premier Bhutto, who's currently living in self imposed exile, was released last year on bail after spending eight years in prison on corruption and murder charges. China anti-Japan protests spread In China, tens of thousands of people have staged anti-Japanese rallies across the country to protest against Japan's wartime past. Security at Japanese establishments has been heavily increased as some 10,000 people demonstrated at the Japanese consulate in Shanghai, throwing rocks and bottles. Another 10,000 people took to the streets in Hangzhou on Saturday calling for a boycott of Japanese goods. Many Chinese are angry about re-vamped Japanese textbooks which they say whitewashes Japan's war atrocities in China during WWII. They also oppose Tokyo's bid for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. Japan has demanded that China stop the protests. Iraq officials face hostage stand-off At least a dozen people have been killed in attacks throughout Iraq, including a US soldier and a Turkish trucker, while two Filipinos were wounded near Baghdad. Also, in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, an Iraqi civilian was wounded when a suicide car bomb exploded near a US military convoy - the sixth car bombing in that town in two weeks. Near the capital, Iraqi authorities are trying to secure the release of up to 60 Shi'ite hostages. Sunni insurgents have vowed to kill the captives, who were seized on Friday, unless all Shi'ites leave the town of Madain. Rising tensions between Shi'ites and Sunnis in the region around Baghdad has prompted concern that an armed conflict could break out. Nepalese rebels kill 10 villagers in raid Heavily armed Maoist rebels on Saturday dragged villagers out of their homes in western Nepal and killed at least 10 in a midnight raid. Details of the attack on Shobhani village, 250 km west of Kathmandu, are sketchy, but an army officer said four homes were also torched. In the past, villagers in the area have staged protests against the Maoists' nine-year campaign to topple the monarchy. G7 nations divided on reducing poverty At a G7 meeting in Washington, finance ministers and central bankers from the world's seven richest nations are divided on the issue of development aid. On the second day of talks ministers failed to find consensus on how to fight poverty, alleviate debt burdens and spur growth in the developing world. Debt relief has assumed a higher profile recently as the world struggles to meet the United Nation's Millennium Development Goals. They call for the proportion of the world's population living on less than a dollar a day to be halved by 2015. EU concerned about French referendum At the end of a two-day meeting in Luxembourg, some European Union foreign ministers have voiced concerns over France's upcoming referendum on the EU's first constitution. Recent opinion polls indicated that over 50 percent of French voters plan to reject the document. A 'no' vote would plunge the 25-nation bloc into uncertainty as the EU charter must be ratified by all member countries. Also to come out of the meeting; Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency, said the EU will host an international conference on Iraq in Brussels at the start of June if Baghdad agrees. Crisis deepens for Berlusconi In Italy, the Union of Christian Democrats has pulled out of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right coalition government. Four ministers left the cabinet, including Deputy Prime Minister Marco Follini. The party said, however, it would continue to support the government, but the move is seen as a bid to force Berlusconi to resign and form a new government with different policies. This follows the government's devastating defeats in regional elections last week. Berlusconi was elected in 2001 at the head of a four-party coalition, promising to bring in reform to turn around Italy's struggling economy. US, UK reject Annan's accusations The US and Britain have rejected claims by UN chief Kofi Annan that they turned a blind eye to oil smuggling by Saddam Hussein's regime. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said the charges were "inaccurate", while Washington was also dismissive. The US spokesman at the UN, Richard Grenell, said Washington did not know of any oil smuggling at the time. Annan who has been under pressure himself because of his son's implied involvement in the "Oil for Food" controversy made the claims on Thursday saying that Britain and the US knew about shipments of Iraqi oil to Jordan and Turkey in spite of UN sanctions. Ecuador high court fired Ecuadorean President Lucio Gutierrez has fired the country's entire Supreme Court in an attempt to end a political crisis. He has also declared a state of emergency in the capital, Quito. Thousands of angry demonstrators there have defied the emergency law and are calling on Gutierrez to resign. It is the second time Ecuador's Supreme Court has been fired in four months. In December, a short-lived pro-government congressional majority dismissed an earlier court on Gutierrez's orders, who argued it was biased against him. The opposition has accused him of behaving like a dictator. Blair offers aid to sacked Rover staff British Prime Minister Tony Blair has announced a 220-million-euro support package for workers and suppliers affected by the collapse of car manufacturer MG Rover. Blair made the announcement in Birmingham, not far from Rover's Longbridge plant. Administrators who've been placed in charge of the company said earlier that up to 5,000 of the company's 6,000 workers would lose their jobs. This comes just 20 days before a general election in which Prime Minister Blair and his Labour government are seeking a third term in office. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- We'd like to introduce you to our latest newsletter: "Germany Light" give you a weekly look at Germany's cultural, peculiar and sometimes odd happenings. To sign up for regular dose of fun and entertainment, please go to our Newsletter section at http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1170241,00.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. News and background reports from the fields of current affairs, culture, business and science. 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