Deutsche Welle English Service News December 25th 2005, 16:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Somber Christmas for Relatives of Tsunami Victims Grieving relatives gathered in southern Thailand on Sunday, ahead of memorial services on the first anniversary of the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed more than 220,000 locals and tourists. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1835991,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks to popular demand, we're giving you a few more days to play DW-WORLD's Christmas Click & Win. Get a chance to win fabulous prizes from Playmobil. To participate, please visit our home page at http://www.dw-world.de/english ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Pope delivers Urbi et Orbi message Pope Benedict XVI has read his first traditional Christmas address as leader of the world's catholic church. In his address Sunday, telecast live from the central balcony of St Peter's Basilica to tens of millions of people in nearly 40 countries, he urged humanity to unite against terrorism, poverty and environmental pollution. Tens of thousands of pilgrims were at St Peter's square to hear the Pope's "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) message and blessing. The Pope also urged his listeners not to let technological achievements blind them to true human values. Libyan court orders retrial of HIV case Libya's Supreme Court has ordered a retrial and overturned the death sentences against five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor accused of infecting hundreds of Libyan children with the HIV virus. On Saturday, Bulgaria's president said he had hoped for a breakthrough in the case after a deal was reached between Libyan and European negotiators. The nurses have repeatedly said they were innocent and said that their confessions had been extracted under torture. AIDS experts said that the HIV outbreak, during which over 400 children were infected, started before the nurses arrived and was probably caused by poor hygiene. 3 quakes hit Indonesian Island of Nias Panic spread through the Indonesian island of Nias Sunday morning, after three earthquakes hit the area within hours of each other. No casualties were reported during the quakes, which measured between 4.6 and 5.4 on the Richter scale. In March, over 900 people were killed when a seaquake devastated the island. Meanwhile, memorial services were held in Thailand and neighbouring countries almost one year after the Indian Ocean tsunami devastated the region. Over 230,000 people lost their lives or disappeared in countries along the rim of the Indian Ocean after a massive earthquake near Indonesia triggered the tidal wave last December 26. 5.2 quake hits Pakistan, no damage Two months after a massive earthquake killed 73,000 people in Pakistan, another quake has hit the country. The epicenter of the quake which measured 5.2 on the Richter scale was 120 kilometers north of the capital Islamabad. Authorities say there were no casualties or damage. Violence continues in Iraq Seven people have been wounded in two separate attacks on Iraqi army and police patrols in central Baghdad. A US tank was also hit by a roadside bomb in the capital. The US military confirmed the incident, but said it had no information about casualties. In attacks elsewhere in the country, one civilian was killed and seven wounded when a car bomb targetting a police patrol exploded in the northern city of Kirkuk. In a separate incident, police there said a gunman was killed in a foiled attack on the motorcade of a high-ranking police officer. Kidnappers want woman prisoner released The kidnappers of a Jordanian man who was taken captive near Baghdad on Tuesday have issued an ultimatum and demanded the release within three days of a woman who was arrested after last month's triple deadly bomb blasts in Amman. The demand was made by the hostage on behalf of his captors in a video broadcast on Al-Arabiya satellite channel Saturday. Meanwhile, the Muslim Association of Britain has renewed its calls for the release of four Western hostages. The Swords of Righteousness Brigade, which said it kidnapped the four, had threatened to kill them by December 10 unless Iraqi prisoners were released. There has been no news of the hostages since the deadline expired. Israeli PM Sharon returns to work Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon returned to a full schedule of work on Sunday after recovering from a mild stroke he suffered a week ago. Doctors prescribed blood-thinning medication and said that the stroke had not caused any permanent damage. Sharon's doctors are expected to hold a press conference on Monday to reveal all the details of his health. Iran rejects Russia's nuclear offer Iran has rejected a nuclear proposal that could allow it to establish a civilian nuclear programme provided that it transfer low-grade uranium enrichment to Russia. There are international concerns that Iran plans to make nuclear bombs with enriched uranium but the country insists it only wants to operate nuclear power reactors. Iran said it will reject any plan that does not allow it to enrich uranium on its own soil. Express train derails in northern Japan An express train has derailed in northern Japan, killing two people and injuring more than 30 others. Strong winter winds were reportedly suspected as a cause. Police said four people were still trapped in the wreckage and their condition was unknown. A woman was killed when five of the six-car express train derailed, with three toppling over, in Yamagata prefecture, according the Transport Ministry. Azerbaijan officials probe air crash In Azerbaijan aviation officials investigating the cause of a plane crash have found the aircraft's black boxes. All 18 passengers and five crew were killed on Friday when the Ukrainian-built twin-engine turboprop plane plunged onto the Caspian Sea shore about 30 kilometers north of the Azerbaijani capital, Baku. The crash occured shortly after takeoff. The plane was en route to Aktau, a city on Kazakhstan's Caspian Sea coast. New administration in Somali capital Somali warlords and civilians have installed a council to govern the capital, Mogadishu, further fragmenting the country and formalizing a break with a transitional government. Sixty-four members of the new Regional Council of Banadir were sworn in to act as legislators. Muse Sudi Yalahow, chairman of the committee that chose the new administration, said it was a government of reconciliation. There was no immediate comment from President Abdullahi Yusuf of the transitional government based in Jowhar. US spying operation "much bigger" The US government's domestic spying operation is much broader than the government previously disclosed, according to a report published by the New York Times. The Times reports that the government's top-secret National Security Agency is monitoring huge numbers of telephone calls and emails sent via the Internet. The eavesdropping is taking place without search warrants or court orders. The New York Times first uncovered the spy activities on December 16th. US President George W. Bush said just a few individuals were being monitored. Express train derails in northern Japan An express train has derailed in northern Japan, killing two people and injuring more than 30 others. Strong winter winds were reportedly suspected as a cause. Police said four people were still trapped in the wreckage and their condition was unknown. A woman was killed when five of the six-car express train derailed, with three toppling over, in Yamagata prefecture, according the Transport Ministry. Sudan urges joint border patrols with Chad Sudan has urged its Western neighbour Chad to set up joint border patrols in a bid to defuse rapidly escalating tensions between the two countries. Sudan's foreign minister said he was surprised by comments made on Friday by Chad that it was in a "state of belligerence" with Sudan. Chad accuses Sudan of supporting rebels from Chad who want to destabilise its government. The rebels have said they want to remove Chad's President Idriss Deby from power and announced further attacks on Chad. The African Union is sending a delegation to speak with both countries in a bid to defuse the situation. UN, Congo troops capture town In the Democratic Republic of Congo, 1900 UN and Congolese troops have captured the key town of Nioka from rebel militia in the eastern Ituri province. 30 gunmen were killed in the operation. Nioka had been the stronghold of militia leader Peter Karim who managed to avoid capture. Karim's militia is accused of numerous atrocities against civilians. The operation came as referendum results show an overwhelming "yes" to a new constitution that is meant to pave the way for general elections next year. With two-thirds of the ballots counted, support for the charter stands at over 83 percent. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The year is almost over and it's time to take a look back at some of the most memorable stories that took place in Germany this year. Join us for a review in pictures at 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/
