DEUTSCHE WELLE/DW-WORLD.DE Newsletter English Service News 24.12.06, 17:00 Uhr UTC
'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Need a good laugh? Then check out DW-WORLD.DE'S From the Fringe Special, which regularly brings you quirky stories from and about Germany. To find out more, go to http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evu53wIfcha79I0&req=l%3Devu53vIfcha79I0 '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Today's highlight on DW-WORLD: Iran Defies Sanctions, Vows to Expand Enrichment Iran vowed Sunday to start work immediately on drastically expanding its capacity to enrich uranium, defying the first UN sanctions against the Islamic republic's nuclear program. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evu53wIfcha79I1&req=l%3Devu53vIfcha79I1 '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Israel to free frozen Palestinian funds The Israeli cabinet has decided to hand over 100 million dollars, worth about 76 million euros, of withheld Palestinian taxes to the administration of President Mahmoud Abbas. This follows a surprise summit in Jerusalem between Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Saturday. Israel sought assurances that the money will bypass the Palestinian government led by Hamas which won elections early this year but has faced Western sanctions for its militancy. Olmert said further talks with Abbas were planned. EU external affairs commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said the summit raised hopes for a revival of Middle East peace efforts. Iran to speed up nuclear work Iran's government has reacted to a United Nation's sanctions resolution by saying that it will speed up the installation of 3,000 centrifuges for uranium enrichment. The hardline Iranian newspaper Kayhan quoted Iran's nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani as saying that activities at Iran's Natanz enrichment plant would go ahead at "full speed". President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said those who backed the UN resolution which was supported unanimously by the Security Council, would soon regret their "superficial act". The UN resolution orders all countries to stop supplying Iran with nuclear-related materials and technologies. It also freezes the Iranian assets of 10 key companies and 12 individuals. Ethiopian aircraft attack Islamists in Somalia Ethiopian military aircraft defending Somalia's weak interim government have attacked various areas held by the Somalia Islamic Courts Council. It was the first use of airstrikes and Ethiopia's first public admission of its military involvement in Somalia. Previously, Ethiopia claimed that it had only sent military advisors to Somalia. Observers fear that the Ethiopian air attacks might spark an escalation of fighting in the area which could ultimately lead to a war spreading across the Horn of Africa. Military experts estimate Ethiopia may have as many as 15,000-20,000 troops in Somalia, while its major rival, Eritrea, has about 2,000 supporting the Somalian Islamists. Colombian rebels kill 14 soldiers Colombian military sources say that FARC rebels have killed at least 14 soldiers in central Colombia. The ambush took place near the town of La Julia, 160 kilometres south of the capital, in what has long been the cradle of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. The rebel group has been battling the Colombian state for more than 40 years. US, Russian envoys at Turkmen funeral Senior Russian and US officials have attended the funeral in Turkmenistan for Saparmurat Niyazov, the late president of the gas-rich central Asian nation. The authoritarian ruler died of a heart attack last Thursday. Visiting dignatories from 40 nations included Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov and US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher. Niyazov's body has been buried in a large mausoleum at Kipchak, his hometown near the capital Ashgabat. Niyazov left no named successor and analysts say Russia and the West are watching closely to see who will control Turkmenistan's vast reserves of natural gas. Man connected with poisoned spy arrested Italian police have arrested a man who met with Alexander Litvinenko, the former spy, on the day the Russian fell ill from poisoning. Mario Scaramella was arrested in Naples after returning from London. Rome prosecutors have been investigating the Italian for possible arms trafficking. Scaramella met with Litvinenko at a London restaurant on Nov. 1, the day the former KGB agent fell ill. He died about three weeks later. On his deathbed, Litvinenko, a harsh Kremlin critic, blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin for involvement in his poisoning, an allegation that the Kremlin has strongly denied. Four killed at funeral in Pakistan Gunmen have attacked a Sunni Muslim funeral in Pakistan killing four people in what appeared to be a sectarian revenge attack. The attack in the north-western town of Dera Ismail Khan came a day after a Shi'ite Muslim professor was shot dead. His killing sparked violence protests by minority Shi'ites who attacked shops and blocked roads with burning tyres. Thousands of people have been killed in tit-for-tat killings by sectarian militants in Pakistan over the past two decades. UN council condemns attacks on media The UN Security Council has condemned attacks on journalists in war zones. This year 55 journalists have lost their lives whilst working, 32 of them in Iraq. It urged governments "and all other parties to armed conflicts" to do their utmost to prevent crimes against journalists, investigate any crimes that occur and bring the perpetrators to justice. The second-most dangerous country is Afghanistan, followed by the Philippines, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists. Christmas focus on poor As Germany celebrates Christmas Eve, church leaders have criticised its commercialisation. In Dresden Protestant bishop Jochen Bohl said Christmas was a festival of faith, not of money making. Hamburg's Protestant bishop Maria Jepsen has called for a stronger outcry against the growing gap in Germany between poor and rich. Leading Catholic bishop Cardinal Karl Lehmann said 40,000 children in Berlin are undernourished. In Rome Pope Benedict in his pre-Christmas message stressed the "value of every human life" from conception until death. His remarks coincide with debate in Italy over euthananasia after the death of Piergiorgio Welby, a muscular dystrophy victim and right-to-die campaigner. Britain's Queen Elizabeth has praised British troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Asia floods claim 70 lives Nearly 70 people have been killed and 200,000 forced to flee their homes in floods that have swept through parts of Indonesia and Malaysia in the past week. In Indonesia, the death toll has risen to at least 60 but hundreds more remained missing after torrential rains fell on the island of Sumatra. More than 110,000 people have been displaced in Aceh province, devastated by the 2004 tsunami. Officials in Malaysia said seven people had been killed and nearly 90,000 others were forced to evacuate their homes in the worst floods to hit the country in decades. '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Need a good laugh? Then check out DW-WORLD.DE'S From the Fringe Special, which regularly brings you quirky stories from and about Germany. To find out more, go to http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evu53wIfcha79I2&req=l%3Devu53vIfcha79I2 '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' For more information please turn to our internet website at http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evu53wIfcha79I3&req=l%3Devu53vIfcha79I3 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. 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