DEUTSCHE WELLE/DW-WORLD.DE Newsletter
English Service News
04. 10. 2006, 16:00 UTC
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Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Neo-Nazis Nowhere in Sight as Hotel Purchase Deadline Nears
The mysterious neo-Nazi foundation behind the proposed purchase of
a hotel in the German town of Delmenhorst no longer exists, according
to British sources. The group is unlikely to make an offer by
Thursday's deadline.
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Rice holds talks with Palestinian president
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said the United States is
"very concerned" about the plight of the Palestinians. Speaking
after talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West
Bank, Rice said the US would redouble its efforts to improve
conditions for the Palestinian people. Rice is also due to hold
talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as part of a trip
aimed at reviving the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
Earlier, President Abbas said that talks between his Fatah Party and
the ruling Hamas on forming a more moderate coalition government had
broken down. Palestinians hope that a unity government composed of
Fatah and Hamas could lead to an end of a Western embargo imposed
because of Hamas' refusal to renounce violence towards Israel.
Iraqi minister escapes bombing
In Baghdad there's been a car bomb attack on the convoy of Iraq's
industry minister. Fawzi al-Hariri, a Kurd, was not in the convoy
but two of his bodyguards were among at least 14 people who were
killed. Another 75 were wounded. A ministry spokeswoman said
al-Hariri's aides had been on a trip to refuel their vehicles. In
further violence, a truck bomb has detonated in Ramadi, outside an
Iraqi army headquarters. Police said there were "many wounded". The
US military says two of its soldiers were killed on Tuesday,
bringing to 17 the number of US soldiers killed since Saturday.
World condemns N. Korean threat
The international community has sharply condemned North Korea's
threat to carry out a nuclear test. The US said such a move would be
a "provocative act" and would have consequences for the communist
regime. The EU, Russia, Japan and China have urged Pyongyang to
exercise restraint and not to undermine regional and international
security. South Korea said it would not tolerate any North Korean
nuclear test and urged its neighbour to return to disarmament talks.
Pyongyang gave no precise date for the possible test, but said it
wanted to hold one owing to increasing US hostility.
Duma warns George of "tougher" steps
Russia's parliament has warned of "tougher measures" against Georgia
in a declaration passed 418 to one by the Duma. On Monday Russia cut
postal and transport links with Georgia in reaction to Tbilisi's
expulsion of four Russians accused of spying. Georgian President
Mikhail Saakashvili has urged Russia not to "bully" its neighbours
and has called for dialogue. Russian media say Moscow police have
also begun checks of Georgians living in the Russian capital,
including Georgian businesses and restaurants. Some 800,000
Georgians are thought to be living across Russia. Their remittances
to family back home are a significant part of Georgia's earnings.
Ahmadinejad rejects nuclear suspension
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has again rejected calls to
suspend his country's nuclear programme. At a televised rally,
Ahmadinejad said Iran would not bow to any pressure. His comments
came as European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said time
was running out for Iran to avoid sanctions over its nuclear
programme. Solana told the European Parliament's foreign affairs
committee that four months of talks had not made any progress. He
said it was now for Iran to decide if the dialogue should continue
on the basis of UN demands that it suspend uranium enrichment. If
not, he said, the matter would have to be moved to the United
Nations Security Council. Iran insists that its nuclear programme is
for peaceful purposes only, but the West suspects it is aimed at
producing an atomic bomb.
Kurnaz says Germans abused him
Murat Kurnaz, a German-born Turk released without charge by the US
from Guantanamo, has alleged that two German soldiers abused him at
a US prison at Kandahar in Afghanistan shortly after his arrest in
2001. The German defence ministry has begun a probe, saying it has
no proof of such an incident. Kurnaz, in his first interview since
returning home to Bremen, told "Stern" magazine that two soldiers
with German flags on their camouflage uniforms banged his head on
the ground. He added that US troops had used electric shocks and
hung him from his hands for hours. From his arrival in 2002 at
Guantanamo, the base on Cuba where the US holds terror suspects,
Kurnaz says he experienced a detention centre "without laws". He
said prisoners were beaten by guards and banished to isolation.
Kurnaz was arrested in Pakistan in December 2001.
German naval units arrive in Cyprus
The first German navy units have arrived in Cyprus on their way to
the Lebanese coast where they will form part of the UN's
international peacekeeping force. Eight vessels with about 1,000
military personnel docked in the port city of Limassol. Germany is
sending around 2,400 troops in total whose mandate it is to
intercept possible arms shipments to Hezbollah as part of the UN
truce between the militia and Israel.
Truce in northern Uganda shaky
The peace process in northern Uganda has run into trouble with a
warning from Uganda's army that it will pursue Lord's Resistance
Army rebels who have failed to assemble at two locations. A rebel
spokesman Vincent Otti said the LRA remained committed to peace
talks but would hit back if attacked. He blamed poor communications,
saying rebels in remote areas had not heard about a September 19
deadline to assemble. A truce signed in neighbouring Sudan in August
had raised hopes for an end to Uganda's 20-year-long civil war. It
claimed tens of thousands of lives and uprooted two million people.
Niger Delta militants free hostages
Militants in Nigeria's Niger Delta region have released the
remaining 16 employees of the Royal Dutch Shell oil company. In all
25 Nigerian staff were kidnapped on Monday, nine of whom were later
released. Meanwhile five foreign oil workers have been abducted in
the southern delta region. Authorities said they were taken from a
compound in Eket, close to the operational base of ExxonMobil.
Additional delay for A380 superjumbo
The parent company of European aircraft-maker Airbus has confirmed
there will be a further delay in deliveries of its flagship A380
super-jumbo. EADS said the hold-up was again linked to electrical
wiring problems. The delay could cost Airbus 3.5 billion dollars
over the next three years. The first deliveries are now not expected
until October of next year. The German airline Lufthansa, which has
ordered 15 of the super-jumbos, does not expect delivery of its
first A380 until the summer of 2009, 18 months later than expected.
EU imposes fines on cheap shoes
The European Union has agreed to impose fines on cheap shoes from
China and Vietnam as part of an attempt to stop a flood of cheap
imports from those countries. The extra duties will apply for two
years instead of the five as called for by the European Commission.
In Germany around 60 percent of shoes sold are from China and
Vietnam. Businesses here say the cheap imports are distorting
competition.
US scientist Roger Kornberg wins Nobel
American Roger Kornberg has been awarded the Nobel Chemistry Prize
for his work on protein synthesis. Kornberg is a professor at
Standford University School of Medicine. His father, Arthur
Kornberg, won the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1959. All the Nobel
science prizes this year have now been won by Americans.
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