Deutsche Welle English Service News 19. 10. 2005, 17:00 UTC ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Today's highlight on DW-WORLD: Kurzer und heftiger Prozessauftakt für Saddam Hussein Nach drei Stunden war der erste Tag vor Gericht beendet. Der ehemalige irakische Präsident muss sich vor einem Sondertribunal in Bagdad verantworten. Der Prozess begann mit Vorwürfen. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http:http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1745876,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DW-WORLD.DE's Redesigned Web site: More information at a glance! Deutsche Welle's online news service has a new outfit that's more compact, fresher and faster. It's the site's first re-design since 2001. To check it out, please visit http://dw-world.de ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Saddam pleads not guilty The trial of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on charges of crimes against humanity has been adjourned until the end of November. On the first day of his trial in a Baghdad court, Saddam refused to formally identify himself and he questioned the judge's qualifications. He also claimed that he was still the president. The 68-year-old Saddam and seven of his closest associates pleaded not guilty on charges of ordering the killings of more than 140 Shi'ite Muslim men from the Iraqi village of Dujail. The men were allegedly murdered after a failed attempt to assassinate Saddam in 1982. If convicted, each of the defendants could face the death penalty. This is the first of what's expected to be a series of trials over alleged atrocities committed during Saddam's 24 years in power. New bird flu cases in Russia, Romania New cases of a deadly form of avian influenza have been found in both Russia and Romania. Russia's agriculture ministry has confirmed that the virus discovered in birds in a village the province of Tula is the H5N1 strain which can be deadly to human beings. Officials said all of the birds in the village were being destroyed. In Romania, a second outbreak of the deadly strain of bird flu has been discovered. The country's agriculture minister, though, said that the problem appeared to be confined to the eastern Danube Delta region, where the first outbreak was detected. Three German states order birds inside Saarland and Baden-Wuerttemberg have become the next states to order farmers to keep their poultry stock inside, in a bid to minimise the risk of a bird flu outbreak. The government in Saarland, which borders France, said the order would go into effect as of Saturday. Bavaria was the first state to issue the decree earlier this week. The 13 other German states are urging farmers to keep their poultry stock indoors in areas known to be at risk from migrating wild birds. Pakistan, India pledge co-operation Pakistan and India have agreed to help earthquake victims in Kashmir by allowing free movement across the frontier that divides the disputed territory. Pakistan's president, Pervez Musharraf, said the move was aimed at helping the hundreds of thousands of survivors from the Oct. 8 earthquake who are still in desperate need of aid. In addition, India has lifted restrictions on telephone lines to Kashmir. For the first time in 15 years, Indian Kashmiris were able to make direct phone calls to the Pakistani side to find out about their relatives in the wake of the earthquake. Meanwhile, new figures released by regional officials in Pakistan put the death toll from the quake at almost 48,000. Wilma strongest hurricane on record The US National Hurricane Centre says Hurricane Wilma is currently the strongest storm ever recorded. Winds at the centre of Wilma were measured at 280 kph. The Category 5 storm is pushing northwards between western Cuba and Mexico's Yucatan peninsula and is expected to hit Florida's Gulf Coast by the weekend. It is the 12th hurricane of the Atlantic's hurricane season and comes as the US is still reeling from the devastation of hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Dennis on the Gulf Coast. Marcinkiewicz nominated as Polish PM The Polish president has asked Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz of the conservative Law and Justice party to form a government. President Aleksander Kwasniewski formally nominated the new prime minister following the first meeting of the country's new parliament in Warsaw. The prime minister-designate has two weeks to submit his cabinet appointments to Kwasniewski, and must face a confidence vote in the parliament's lower house within the next month. The Law and Justice party and the centre-right Civic Platform party, won the most votes in last month's parliamentary election. They are currently in talks aimed at forming a coalition government. Rumsfeld visits Chinese missile site US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has become the first foreigner to visit the headquarters of China's Strategic Rocket Forces in Beijing. Rumsfeld is in the Chinese capital for talks with defence and government officials ahead of a planned visit next month by US President George W. Bush. Rumsfeld held a meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao during which both sides agreed to improve their military ties. Rumsfeld, however, warned China that it was sending "mixed signals" with its military buildup. He also accused China of understating its defence spending, which China says is $30 billion annually but the US claims is closer to $90 billion. Berlusconi announces April vote Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has set April 9 as the date for that country's next general election. That's the date also favoured by Romano Prodi who last Sunday won a centre-left opposition primary ballot to challenge Berlusconi in the next election. Berlusconi, who's led a right-wing coalition government for the past four years, also said that municipal elections would be held by May. And he defended a proposed reform which would return Italy to a system of proportional representation. Leftist politicians have accused Berlusconi's government of trying to boost its chances in the upcoming vote. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The Bundesliga is in full swing again! Get it all on DW-WORLD.DE: We offer you results, tables and live tickers of the matches. Check out picture galleries of the best players and interactive features such as quizes and betting games where Chinese Bayern Munich fans get a chance to compete against Texan Schalke supporters. 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