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24th January, 2002, 16:00 UTC ----------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD: German Flotilla Deployed Against Terror Into the Arabian Sea off the coast of East Africa, German ships have joined the US-led "war on terror". To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://dw-world.de/english/0,3367,1432_A_416920_1_A,00.html ----------------------------------------------------------- Israel Denies Involvement in Beirut Assassination Israel on Thursday denied an allegation made by a Lebanese Cabinet minister that it was involved in the killing of former Lebanese Christian militia leader Elie Hobeika. Hobeika was killed outside his home in Beirut when a car bomb exploded. Three other people were killed, and another three wounded in the blast. Hobeika was the leader of a pro-Israeli Christian militia involved in the killing of hundreds of Palestinians in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps during Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon. The Lebanese minister of displaced people, Marvan Hamadeh, told reporters he believed Israel may have killed Hobeika because he was ready to testify against Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. A Belgian court is deliberating whether Sharon can be put on trial in Belgium on charges related to the massacres, which took place while Sharon was defence minister. Aides at Sharon's office have called Hamadeh's accusations of Israeli involvement in Hobeika's assassination "a complete lie." Israel's Burg Vows to Address Palestinian Assembly Israeli parliamentary speaker Avraham Burg has accepted an invitation to address the Palestinian parliament, his spokesman said on Thursday, despite opposition to the visit by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Palestinian parliamentary speaker Ahmed Korei, who is also known as Abu Ala, invited Burg to address the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) when they met in Paris on Wednesday, a spokesman for Burg said. A date had not been set for the visit. Isreali premier Sharon, who wants to politically isolate the Palestinian Authority, said Burg was bound by a decision of the ruling coalition not to make such visits. Pope Holds Peace Meeting in Italian city Assisi Pope John Paul and some 200 leaders of the world's major religions have arrived at the Italian city of Assisi, the birthplace of the Roman catholic Saint Francis, to pray for an end to war and terrorism. In Assisi, leaders of a dozen religions, including Christians, Muslims and Jews, are expected to pledge that each faith should bring peace, forgiveness, life and love to earth. It is the third such day of peace organised by the Pope during his 23-year pontificate, and he wants to reiterate the message that conflict, murder and violence should never be carried out in the name of God. President Bush Proposes Massive Increase in Military Spending U.S. President George W. Bush has announced a proposed $48 billion increase in military spending next year to buy high-tech equipment for a wider war against terrorism. If approved by Congress it would be the largest increase in two decades. Saying the spending on precision weapons, missile defenses, a military pay increase, unmanned vehicles and high-tech gear for troops could stretch the budget, Bush said the U.S. government would not stint on protecting its people after Sept. 11. The president has already begun to come under criticism from congressional Democrats over the fact that his tax and spending plans, combined with the U.S. recession, will return the government to deficit for the first time since 1997. China Pledges Aid to Afghanistan China's official news agency Xinhua says Chinese President Jiang Zemin on Thursday promised $150 million towards the reconstruction of war-ravaged Afghanistan. Jiang made the pledge to interim Afghan leader Hamid Karzai in Beijing. Karzai earlier said international aid to his country would primarily be used for security, education, health, and road building. He added that the government also needed to become functional again. US Troops Still Meet Resistance In Afghanistan US officials say a US soldier was wounded and as many as 15 al Qaeda guerrillas killed on Thursday in a clash in southern Afghanistan. The officials, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters news agency the action occurred in the region around Kandahar. The soldier was part of a a "search-and-destroy" mission by U.S. special forces troops against supporters of fugitive al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. German Parliament to Debate Funding for Airbus Order Germany's parliament will debate funding to buy 73 Airbus A400M military transport planes late on Thursday. Germany is one of eight countries involved in an 18-billion euro ($7.6 billion)deal to buy 196 planes. The project is central to Europe's planned rapid reaction military force. If Berlin does not ratify the deal, the other seven buyers, including Britain and France, will be released from their obligations. So far the German parliament has approved financing for only 40 aircraft, worth just over five billion euros. Austrian Coalition Not to Call Early Elections Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel said on Thursday his two-year-old centre-right coalition had resolved its differences over European Union enlargement and that there would not be an early election. The cause of the dispute was a petition organized by Joerg Haider's Freedom Party demanding that Austria veto Czech accession to the European Union unless the controversial Czech Temelin nuclear plant is shut down. Schuessel has ruled out an Austrian veto, but says his government will continue talks with the Czech government on the Temelin plant. Ethiopian Drought Affects Over 5 Million People Ethiopia's Disaster and Preparedness Commission said on Wednesday that an estimated 5.2 million people will need food aid in 2002 owing to the drought affecting large parts of the country. The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said the report showed Ethiopia's humanitarian situation had improved, but that emergency aid was still urgently needed. Last year, six million people, or one in 10 of the population, needed food aid. Nepal Continues State of Emergency Nepal on Thursday said its state of emergency, imposed in November, would not be ended early, as violence in the Himalayan kingdom continues to flare up. Officials say five policemen and nine Maoist rebels were killed in the latest clashes. Nepal's King Gyanendra called a state of emergency after rebels renewed their violent efforts to set up a communist republic when peace talks failed. Nearly 500 people have died since the breaking of the truce nearly two months ago. Leading French Thinker Pierre Bourdieu Dies One of France's leading intellectuals, sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, has died in Paris, aged 71. The daily Le Monde said Bourdieu had died of cancer at the Saint-Antoine hospital in Paris on Wednesday. In a message of condolence, French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin called Bourdieu "a great figure in the intellectual life of our country". Bourdieu is widely regarded as having profoundly reshaped sociological study since the 1960s. He was known for his trenchant criticism of capitalist society. --------------------------------------------------------------- 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. 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