Deutsche Welle English Service News 15. 01. 2006, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DW-WORLD offers you a special service for the Bundesliga. Get all the action on your mobile device and you'll never miss out on important news. For more information, please visit http://www.dw-world.de/dw/0,1595,8733,00.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD: Stable Relationship with Russia a Priority for Merkel On the heels of her first trip to Washington as chancellor, Angela Merkel embarks on a similar official visit to Russia Monday, where she will meet with President Vladimir Putin. What are the expectations of the visit? To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1857027,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Iran warns against possible sanctions Iran's economy minister has warned that oil prices could rise to unexpected levels if the Islamic republic was subjected to sanctions over its disputed nuclear programme. Officials from the European Union, United States, China and Russia are due to meet in London on Monday for talks on the crisis surrounding Iran's nuclear ambitions. The meeting was called following repeated statements by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinjead that his country will push ahead with its nuclear programme, despite warnings that it could be referred to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions. Western nations fear Iran secretly aims to build atomic weapons, a charge Tehran denies. Iran plans Holocaust conference The Iranian government has announced it plans to hold a conference to examine scientific evidence concerning Nazi Germany's massacre of the Jews. Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi did not disclose where or when the Holocaust conference would be held, nor would he say who would attend. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said late last year that the Holocaust was a "myth" and called for Israel to be wiped from the face of the earth. The remarks prompted condemnation from leaders around the world. Sharon to undergo surgical procedure Doctors plan to perform a tracheostomy on Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. The surgery will involve making an incision in the windpipe that forms a temporary or permanent opening. This will replace a tube now lodged in the throat of the 77-year-old leader, who suffered a massive stroke on January 4. Meanwhile Ehud Olmert is expected to be confirmed by the country's Attourney General as acting prime minister until a March 28 general election. Police detain Hamas candidates Israeli police have closed Hamas's main campaign offices in occupied east Jerusalem. A police spokesman said a total of 10 Hamas activists were detained in raids on Sunday, including at least three candidates accused of campaigning illegally ahead of the January 25 parliamentary election. The detentions came barely an hour after the Israeli cabinet expressly banned the militant group from campaigning. At the morning cabinet meeting, Israel formally gave its approval for Arab residents of annexed east Jerusalem to vote in this month's election but made clear it would not tolerate any campaigning by Hamas, which is committed to the destruction of the Jewish state. Turkish girl dies from suspected bird flu A Turkish girl has died from suspected bird flu in eastern Turkey. Authorities are still waiting for results of tests on the 12-year-old, who had been in serious condition for several days. The virus has already claimed the lives of three other children in the same area. The deadly H5N1 strain of avian flu has been found in wild birds and poultry across large parts of Turkey. Meanwhile a five-year-old boy being treated at a hospital in the eastern Turkish city of Van has tested positive for bird flu, bringing to 19 the number of victims in Turkey. Finns vote for president Finland's first woman president Tarja Halonen is seeking re-election for a second six-year term in office. The 62-year-old has been campaigning on a promise to preserve the welfare state. Challenging Halonen in the presidential election are ex-Finance Minister Sauli Niinisto and centrist prime minister Matti Vahanen. Halonen is backed by the Social Democrats, which is in the ruling coalition, as well as an opposition leftist alliance and Finland's biggest union federation. Nearly 4.3 million people are entitled to vote, and results are expected later on Sunday. Pakistan protests alleged US attack Thousands of people across Pakistan have been holding demonstrations against the United States in the wake of a US airstrike that killed 18 people in the village of Damadola on Friday. Pakistan's foreign ministry has lodged a formal complaint to the US embassy over the strike near the Afghan border, which apparently missed its intended target, Osama bin Laden's deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri. Protesters around the country have also been denouncing Pakistani President Pervez Musharaff for cooperating with the US government. The White House declined to comment on initial reports of the airstrike. US military releases Iraqi reporters The US military has released two Iraqi journalists after holding them for several months without charge. The correspondent and the cameraman were working for Reuters and Al Arabiya television in Ramadi, one of the centres of Sunni Arab insurgency, when they were detained separately in August and September. They were freed from Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison on Sunday with some 500 other detainees. Reuters says at least three other Iraqi journalists for international media remain in custody. Canadian troops attacked in Afghanistan A suicide car bomber has attacked a convoy of Canadian troops in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, killing two civilians and wounding 10, as well as three soldiers. A spokesman for the ousted Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. Canada has about 650 troops in Afghanistan, nearly all in Kandahar. Kuwaiti emir dies at age 79 The emir of Kuwait, Sheik Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah has died at the age of 79. He had been ailing since suffering a brain hemorrhage five years ago. In an official statement, the Kuwaiti Cabinet named the crown prince, Sheik Saad Al Abdullah Al Sabah, as his successor. Sheik Saad is the late emir's distant cousin who is in his mid-70s and has serious health problems of his own. He is likely to be a figurehead while Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah runs the country, a role he has played over the past four years. Rebels attack Nigerian oil plant Separatist gunmen attacked Nigerian troops and overran an oil plant operated by the Anglo-Dutch energy giant Shell on Sunday. Nigerian military officials say soldiers protecting the a flow station south of the port city Warri came under fire at dawn. The government refused to give details of casualties, but Shell said that five of its staff had been injured. The attack comes five days after a group of gunmen kidnapped four oil workers and blew up the pipeline connecting flow stations to an export terminal. Chileans vote in presidential run-off Voters in Chile are casting ballots in a runoff that could produce the country's first female president, former defense minister Michelle Bachelet. The most recent projections have socialist Bachelet, a pediatrician and single mother, ahead by a comfortable margin. Bachelet has called for taking advantage of the country's revenues from copper exports to improve education and conditions for the less fortunate. Her right-wing rival, wealthy businessman Sebastian Pinera, has pledged to create a million new jobs and to put thousands more police on the streets to tackle rising crime. US space probe returns to Earth The US space probe "Stardust" has returned to Earth carrying samples of dust from stars and comets, which scientists believe could offer vital clues about the origins of our solar system. After a seven-year journey, the capsule landed in a Utah desert after flying nearly 5 billion kilometres in space. Patras - Europe's Cultural Capital 2006 Greece's third-largest city, Patras, has begun a year of exhibits and events as Europe's Cultural Capital. To kick off, the port city is hosting an exhibition of Leonardo da Vinci drawings. The Greek port city is a major embarkation point for Italy. Patras plans 150 cultural events during 2006. Last year's cultural capital was Ireland. The Council of Europe first awarded the title in 1986. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Receive DW-WORLD headlines and news reports straight on your desktop as RSS feeds: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1137115,00.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. 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/
