Deutsche Welle English Service News 09. 05. 2005, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Putin: No More Wars A parade commemorating the end of World War II closed on Monday with world leaders paying tribute at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The event was clouded by a debate over Moscow's postwar behavior. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1577419,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DW-WORLD's "Click Back" monthly review quiz for May is waiting for you and will test your knowledge of stories we've written. If you answer all questions correctly, you can also win a great prize. To play, please go to: http://www.dw-world.de/english ---------------------------------------------------------------------- World leaders attend Moscow parade In Moscow, a spectacular parade has been held to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II. About 7,000 Russian soldiers and more than 2,000 veterans took part in the parade, which concluded with a flyby by Russian fighter jets. More than 50 world leaders attended the ceremony, including German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. It was the first time that a German chancellor has attended ceremonies in Moscow to mark the end of World War II. Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered the keynote speech, in which he vowed to ensure that there will never be a repeat of either the Cold War or a world war. He also said reconciliation between Russia and Germany was one of the most important post-war achievements in Europe. Schroeder, Putin meet war veterans German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow following the ceremonies to mark the 60th anniversary of World War II. Chancellor Schroeder told reporters that the two countries now formed a strategic partnership. Putin said he and Schroeder agreed that their two countries must work to deepen co-operation even more. Earlier the two leaders met with war veterans from both countries. And Chancellor Schroeder laid wreathes at Moscow's tomb of the unknown soldier and at the Lyublino military cemetery. That's where almost 500 former German prisoners of war are buried. Language row in Brussels heating up Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt has had to cancel a trip to Moscow for ceremonies marking the end of WWII to try to resolve a political language dispute that could bring down his government. French and Flemish speakers have been at odds for months on how to redraw the borders of a constituency near the capital that would change the voting power of French and Flemish parties. The district is the only one that overlaps the predominantly French speaking Brussels and Flemish areas of the country. The Prime Minster has until Wednesday to find a solution when a parliamentary committee is scheduled to vote on the issue. Four killed in Baghdad bomb attack Four people have been killed and eight injured after a suicide bomber rammed his car into two police vehicles at a roadside checkpoint in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. Elsewhere in the capital, the bodies of eight people have been found. Iraqi army officials said the dead appeared to have been shot in the back of the head. As violence throughout the country continues US forces say they have killed at least 75 suspected militants since Sunday, in an ongoing operation near Iraq's border with Syria. Muslim leader to seek hostage's release A senior Australian Muslim leader has left Sydney bound for Iraq to try to secure the release of an Australian man who's been held hostage for more than a week. The family of Douglas Wood has also pledged to make a donation to the people of Iraq as a deadline looms to meet his captors' demands. The militants have threatened to kill him if Australian and other coalition forces fail to withdraw from Iraq. The 63-year-old Wood was recently seen pleading for his life in a video broadcast on the Arabic television station, Al Jazeera. The Australian government says it will not bow to the kidnappers' demands. Several hurt in east Jerusalem clash Several people have been injured in clashes between police and hundreds of Palestinian demonstrators in east Jerusalem. The violence broke out after a group of Palestinians gathered at the Haram al-Sharif shrine, which is known to Jews as the Temple Mount. They were trying to prevent an illegal demonstration by a group of right-wing extremist Jews. The site is holy to both Muslims and Jews. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon appears set to delay the withdrawal of Israeli troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip by three weeks. According to Israel's Channel One television, Sharon plans to put off the pull-out until mid-August. This would avoid a clash with a traditional Jewish period of mourning. Hu, Roh tell Pyongyang to rejoin talks Chinese President Hu Jintao and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun have called on North Korea to return to six party talks over its nuclear ambitions. In a joint statement issued from Moscow, they also pledged to work harder to ensure that the issue is resolved peacefully. Meanwhile, Pyongyang has apparently dropped its demand that Washington agree to bilateral talks. The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohammed ElBaradei, has warned that North Korea may already have as many as six nuclear weapons and may be getting ready to test one of them. Two US Marines killed in Afghanistan Afghan President Hamid Karzai has called on Taliban leaders and rebels to stop fighting under an amnesty which would also apply to the group's leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar. But the offer has failed to stem violence as two US marines have been killed in clashes with militants in eastern Afghanistan. The latest casualties brought to 25 the number of US soldiers killed in Afghanistan this year. Several Taliban members have surrendered in recent months but officials say the numbers haven't been significant enough to weaken the insurgency. Two Rwandans face trial in Brussels Two Rwandan businessmen have gone on trial at a Brussels criminal court for their alleged roles in their country's 1994 genocide. This is the second time that Belgium has evoked a new law that allows for alleged war criminals to be tried there even if they are foreigners who committed a crime in a different country. However the accused must be Belgium residents. The two men are accused of rewarding extremist Hutu militias who killed Tutsis and moderate Hutus by giving them free beer from their shops. Meanwhile, US lawyer, Stephen Rapp has been appointed to oversee all prosecutions at the United Nations Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, which is based in Arusha, Tanzania. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Place your bets on the World Cup qualifiers at DW-WORLD in our multilingual betting game, where you can win attractive prizes. Whether you want to compare your soccer knowledge with fans worldwide as an individual or in a team, this is the right address. Plus, DW-WORLD provides the results and tables for all continental groups: http://www.dw-world.de/qualifiers ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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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