Deutsche Welle
English Service News
02. 02. 2006, 17:00 UTC
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
IAEA Chief: Iran Atomic Crisis at "Critical Stage"
The UN atomic watchdog IAEA meets Thursday in an emergency session
expected to send Iran to the UN Security Council over nuclear activities.
The IAEA's chief said the situation was critical, but not yet a crisis.
To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the
internet address below:
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1889432,00.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Click Back is waiting for you! DW-WORLD invites you to participate in
the February version of our monthly quiz and win a 256 MB memory stick:
http://www.dw-world.de/english
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Iran will pursue nuclear programme
Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says he is adamant that
regardless of what the IAEA decides on Friday, Iran will pursue its
disputed nuclear program. Ahmadinejad officially informed the head
of the IAEA, Mohammad ElBaradei on Thursday that Iran has the right
to enrich uranium and rejects a plan by Moscow to carry out
enrichment in Russia. The UN nuclear watchdog looks almost certain
to refer Iran to the UN Security Council when its board members
reconvene an emergency meeting on Friday. Washington accuses Iran of
seeking to produce nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear programme
is for peaceful purposes only.
Cartoon threat: Norway closes mission
The Norwegian government has closed its Al Ram mission in the West
Bank, following threats against Norwegian, Danish and French
citizens over the newspaper publication of cartoons of the Prophet
Mohammed. Norwegian Foreign Ministry spokesman Rune Bjaastad said
the government is taking the threats seriously. Meanwhile, the dozen
or so Palestinian gunmen who surrounded European Union offices in
Gaza, have left. After firing in the air and climbing the walls of
the compound, they said they expect an apology within 48 hours. The
12 cartoons were originally published in Denmark four months ago and
have since been published in newspapers in many European countries.
Nine killed in Baghdad car bombings
Two separate car bomb attacks in Baghdad have left at least nine
people dead and another 52 injured. Baghdad police also made a
gruesome discovery when they found 14 bodies that showed signs of
torture, some of the corpses being beheaded or stabbed to death.
Also on Thursday, a US helicopter that was shot at from the ground
fired rockets into a crowded Shiite neighborhood east of Baghdad,
killing a woman. In a seperate attack south of Baghdad, three US
soldiers were killed in a roadside explosion. Meanwhile, the trial
of Saddam Hussein has been postponed until February 13. The former
Iraqi dictator has failed to show up in court the past two days.
Mothers plea to free 2 german hostages
The mothers of two German hostages held in Iraq have made an
emotional appeal on state television asking their captors to release
them. Thomas Nitzschke and Rene Braeunlich, who work for a German
engineering company, where kidnapped on January 24 by armed men in
military uniform. On a video aired by an Arab TV station on
Wednesday, the kidnappers threatened to kill their captives within
72 hours unless Germany ends all co-operation with the Iraqi
government. They also demand that Germany close its Baghdad embassy
and that all German companies leave Iraq.
Palestine turns to Arab states for cash
The Palestinian Authority has turned to Saudi Arabia and other Arab
states to help pay its employees, one day after Israel halted tax
payments. Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei strongly criticised
the Israeli decision to freeze the payment of some 40 million euros.
The Israeli move came one week after the Islamic militant group
Hamas' surprise victory in Palestinian elections. To pay the 130,000
public sector workers, the Palestinians are looking to Saudi Arabia
and Qatar for around 25 million euros this Thursday but negotiations
are ongoing.
Israel considers action against settlers
Israel is planning to pull down two more settlement outposts in the
West Bank ahead of March 28 parliamentary elections. The
announcement by Israeli government officials comes one day after
settlers fought a bloody battle with police, who demolished a
cluster of homes at the Amona outpost. The fight left more than 200
people injured and was among the most violent confrontations between
settlers and security forces.
Merkel outlines use of military force
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has not ruled out military force as
an option to combat terrorism. At a reception for diplomats in
Berlin, she said the struggle against terrorism demands the use of
all political, economic and, as a last resort, also military means.
She stressed any force should be under the auspices of the United
Nations.
Greek PM's mobile phone tapped
Greek prosecutors are trying to track down those behind the
long-term wire tapping of the mobile phones of the country's prime
minister and cabinet members. A government spokesman said that the
phones of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis and some 100 other
government officials were tapped from just before the 2004 Athens
Olympics until March 2005. Those responsible, if caught, could face
face charges of espionage.
German firm acquires Shell's solar arm
Germany's biggest producer of solar energy cells, Solarworld, is set
to take over the solar activities of oil company Shell. The
agreement makes Solarworld the largest solar technology company in
the United States, and third largest worldwide. On news of the
takeover, shares of the solar energy company jumped 40 euros and
have increased more than 400% the past year.
Belgrade admits army hid fugitive Mladic
Belgrade has admitted that Serb officers helped war crimes fugitive
Ratko Mladic hide on army premises. The Serbia-Montenegro Defence
Council said Mladic stayed there until mid-2002, then he was allowed
to get away. A group of former Bosnian Serb army and former Yugoslav
Army officers then took over the task of hiding Mladic, who is
wanted on two counts of genocide in the 1992-95 Bosnia war. Mladic,
a former Bosnian Serb Army commander, is accused of orchestrating
the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of 8,000 Muslims, Europe's worst
atrocity since World War Two. Capturing Mladic or persuading him to
surrender is key to the country's hopes of joining the EU and NATO
eventually and attracting greater foreign investment.
German workers vote for strike action
Public workers in the southern German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg
have voted to begin an open-ended strike on Monday. Members of the
ver.di labour union are fighting plans by municipal authorities to
increase the working week from 38.5 hours to 40 hours. Union members
in the western state of Lower Saxony also began voting on Thursday
on whether to stage full-blown strike action, a day after staging
short stoppages.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Win a trip to Germany! "A Time to Make Friends" is the motto of this
summer's World Cup in Germany. Tell us what you associate with the
host country and you could end up winning a trip for two to Germany.
To find out more, go to:
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1863969,00.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.
