AFP_ENG_20061214.0035

SEOUL, Dec 14 , 2006, 2006

ATTENTION - ADDS reported torture deaths ///

North Koreans who risk imprisonment and torture to flee the impoverished Stalinist state also face repatriation if caught by China and a hostile reception if they reach South Korea, rights activists said Thursday.

Marcus Noland and Andrei Lankov, two of the co-authors of a new report, urged Beijing and Seoul to alleviate the plight of the refugees, estimated to number between tens to hundreds of thousands.

"Everybody wants North Koreans to die quietly without making too much noise," said Lankov, a professor at Seoul's Kookmin University.

With six-party talks on scrapping North Korea's nuclear programme set to resume Monday, Noland said it was understandable the nuclear issue received attention.

But human rights issues would also have to be dealt with eventually if the North were to integrate with the world, and silence did not encourage better behavour by Pyongyang.

"People have treated North Korea with kid gloves and the result has been a missile test and a nuclear test," Noland, a senior fellow of the Institute for International Economics in Washington, told a press conference.

The report by the US Committee for Human Rights in North Korea is based on interviews with more than 1,300 refugees hiding in China.

Noland said Pyongyang's "systematic denial of human, civil and political rights combined with economic incompetence" and food shortages were the cause of the refugee crisis.

But China's response was "harassment, arrest and forced return -- as many as 200 a week in some periods," he said.

The report urges China to honour its international obligations to refugees and to stop maintaining -- despite "incontrovertible evidence" to the contrary -- that the North Koreans are economic migrants.

"Its obstinacy has blocked what would otherwise be a massive international response in the form of assistance and protection."

The report urges Beijing to allow the establishment of temporary refugee resettlement camps, together with third-country commitments to accept the North Koreans for permanent resettlement.

It says almost 10 percent of interviewees had previously been in prison or labour camps and a majority of the ex-prisoners had witnessed hunger-related deaths or deaths due to torture.

A few also reported cases of infanticide involving mixed-race babies of women who became pregnant while in China.

The report terms South Korea's "increasingly unwelcoming" attitude to the refugees as "shamefully" ambivalent despite the tiny numbers who finally reach the South -- around 10,000 in the past half-century.

Noland said Seoul should insist that its embassies and consulates do their utmost to help refugees, who often take tortuous journeys via Mongolia, Thailand, Vietnam and other countries.

It should also consider reinstating substantial financial payments to refugees to prevent them falling prey to criminal trafficking gangs, he said.

Seoul feared jeopardising its "sunshine" engagement policy with the North and also saw refugees as an economic burden, Lankov said. Those who were accepted faced discrimination and problems finding jobs.

But Lankov argued that they should be seen as the "advance guard" of the inevitable eventual reunification of the peninsula after the North's system collapsed.

"The experience of living with them will be very helpful when living with not 10,000 but 24 million."

Dec 14 , 2006

Thursday

Monday

the past half-century


AFP_ENG_19970409.0624

LONDON, April 9 , 1997 (AFP)

British mercenary returns home from Papua New Guinea

British mercenary boss Tim Spicer, freed in Papua New Guinea on the eve of his trial for illegal firearms possession Tuesday, arrived back in Britain late Wednesday.

"It feels great to be home," said Spicer at London's Heathrow airport, adding he would be holding a press conference Thursday.

Spicer, carrying only hand luggage and a book, was met by a driver in a limousine and was understood to be on his way to a reunion with his wife Catherine and children, Sam, Jessica and Francesca at their home in south London.

The inquiry into the PNG government's hiring of Spicer's Sandline International mercenary group heard allegations Thursday that Spicer was detained by PNG soldiers because he was planning to commit atrocities on the war-torn island of Bougainville.

Brigadier General Jerry Singirok, sacked commander of the PNG Defence Force who made the accusations, sparked a military rebellion last month by demanding the sacking of prime minister Sir Julius Chan for hiring Sandline for 50 million kina (36 million dollars).

The tensions spilled over into several days of unrest on the streets of Port Moresby.

Chan has since stepped aside while a commission of inquiry under Justice Warwick Andrew investigates.

April 9 , 1997

Tuesday

late Wednesday

Thursday

Thursday

last month

several days


AFP_ENG_20061202.0254

VATICAN CITY, Dec 2 , 2006, 2006

Pope distressed over 'unlawful' Chinese ordination

Pope Benedict XVI learned with "deep distress" of the "unlawful" ordination of a Chinese bishop without papal approval, the Vatican said in a statement on Saturday.

China's state-run Catholic Church on Thursday ordained Wang Renlei, 36, as Bishop of Xuzhou in the eastern province of Jiangsu. He became the fourth bishop ordained in China this year without the blessing of the Vatican.

The ordination "is the last of these unlawful ordinations of bishops which have been tormenting the Catholic Church in China for dozens of years", the Vatican's statement said.

"(They) create divisions within the diocesan community and trouble the religious sentiments of many priests and worshippers."

These "extremely serious" acts are the consequence "of a vision of the Church which does not correspond to the Catholic doctrine and which is opposed to the fundamental principles of its hierarchical structure", the statement continued.

The ordination was announced at the start of the week by China's Catholic Church.

The Vatican warned of severe sanctions in canonical law for such ordinations but did not say whether Xuzhou's case fell into this category.

It praised the majority of Chinese priests and believers for maintaining strong faith links with Rome.

China's millions of Catholics are divided between a "patriotic" church, with around four million faithful, and a clandestine church following the Vatican, with around 10 million believers.

The ordination of three Chinese bishops without Vatican approval in the spring led the pope to denounce a "serious violation of religious freedom". This was despite discussions between Beijing and the Vatican aimed at normalising bilateral relations, which were broken off in the early 1950s.

Dec 2 , 2006

Saturday

Thursday

this year

the week

the spring

the early 1950s


AFP_ENG_20061231.0058

SYDNEY, Dec 31 , 2006, 2006

Cricket: McGrath has plenty still to offer, says Clark

Stuart Clark has urged his retiring mentor Glenn McGrath to help the Australian team with his vast playing experience when he quits the game.

McGrath and Shane Warne will play their final Test matches in Tuesday's fifth Ashes Test against England at the Sydney Cricket Ground, although McGrath, 36, plans to continue until the one-day World Cup in the Caribbean before calling it quits.

Clark has been a revelation in his first eight Test matches taking 42 wickets, half of them in the Ashes series.

The seam bowler believes McGrath would be too useful a resource to be lost to Australian cricket once he retires.

Clark said he learned the art of fast bowling from studying McGrath at close hand.

The two have been team-mates at club, state and national level and have similar bowling actions. They also share the ability to find good bounce and movement off the seam, and maintain accuracy.

"He's retiring from Australian cricket but I don't think he'll be lost to Australian cricket," Clark told reporters here Sunday.

"There's a lot of knowledge in that 13-year career so we'll be doing everything we can, whether it's for Australia or for NSW, to be keeping him around the team."

Clark said McGrath and Warne were irreplaceable, but he was focused on forming a strong, lasting new ball partnership with Brett Lee.

Lee and Clark bowled impressively in the fourth Test, where their combined 11 wickets helped Australia beat England by an innings and 99 runs.

"Partnerships in bowling work like batting, if you get a good one it can lead the whole team into a good position in any Test match," Clark said.

Dec 31 , 2006

Tuesday

Sunday


XIN_ENG_20061129.0316

WASHINGTON, Nov. 29 , 2006 (Xinhua)

1st LD: U.S. economy grows at 2.2 percent in third quarter

The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 2.2 percent in the July-to-September period, better than the initially estimated 1.6 percent pace, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.

The rate of expansion in gross domestic product was stronger than the 1.8 percent pace that economists had forecast, but less than half the blistering 5.6 percent rate recorded in the first quarter.

The 2.2 percent growth was slowest since a 1.8 percent growth rate in final quarter of 2005, when the economy was suffering fallout from the devastating Gulf Coast hurricanes.

GDP measures the value of all goods and services produced within the United States and is considered the best barometer of the country's economic fitness.

Nov. 29 , 2006

Wednesday

the first quarter

final quarter of 2005


WSJ891027-0085
 = 891027
 891027-0085.
 International:
@  Navigation Mixte Chairman Says Board
@  Rejected Paribas Bid to Raise Its Stake
@  ----
@  By E.S. Browning
@  Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal
 10/27/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 F.CNM F.CFP G.ALL F.SGF F.CLC
 TENDER OFFERS, MERGERS, ACQUISITIONS (TNM)
FOOD PRODUCTS (FOD)
TRANSPORTATION, TRUCK AND SHIP LINES, RAILROADS (TRA)
INSURANCE (INS)
 PARIS

   Cie. de Navigation Mixte Chairman Marc Fournier said his board unanimously rejected as too low the $1.77 billion bid by Cie.
Financiere de Paribas to bring its stake in Navigation Mixte to 66.7%.

   At a news conference, Mr. Fournier accused Paribas of planning to pay for the takeover by selling parts of the company, whose interests include insurance, banking, tuna canning, sugar and orange juice.

   The chairman said his board members, including representatives of West German insurance giant Allianz AG and French banks Credit Lyonnais and Societe Generale, hold nearly 50% of Navigation Mixte's capital.

   Mr. Fournier said that as Navigation Mixte chairman, he is prohibited by takeover regulations from organizing his own defense or doing anything besides managing current company business.
But sources said he will be urging his allies to boost their stakes in Navigation Mixte, which is being traded in London and is to resume trading in Paris Tuesday.
At the same time, he is expected to seek legal and regulatory means of blocking or delaying Paribas's bid.
For the moment, the sources said, he has decided against seeking a white knight or organizing a counterbid for Paribas.

   Mr. Fournier said Navigation Mixte's 1989 unconsolidated, or parent-company, profit is likely to be 4.7 billion francs ($754.4 million), up from 633.8 million francs last year.
That is due mostly to payments from Allianz for most of the 50% stake it has agreed to acquire in Navigation Mixte's insurance business.
Mr. Fournier said the exceptional gain would mean nearly twice as high a dividend this year as last.
If holders avoid tendering to Paribas, he added, they can expect strong dividends again next year.

   Analysts noted that over the past 20 years, Mr. Fournier has built his company through astute stock-market activity and has warded off at least three takeover attempts.
This time, however, some analysts think he could face a real battle.

   "Without some unexpected "coup de theatre", I do n't see what will block the Paribas bid," said Philippe de Cholet, analyst at the brokerage Cholet-Dupont amp Cie.
Mr. de Cholet said Mr. Fournier's biggest hope was to somehow persuade regulatory authorities to block the bid.
Paribas still needs the go-ahead from the Commission des Operations de Bourse, a government regulatory agency, but analysts said that is considered likely.

   Mr. Fournier also noted that Navigation Mixte joined Paribas's core of shareholders when Paribas was denationalized in 1987, and said it now holds just under 5% of Paribas's shares.
Once he realized that Paribas's intentions weren't friendly, he said, but before the bid was launched, he sought approval to boost his Paribas stake above 10%.
The petition is still pending, but Mr. Fournier downplayed the likelihood of his organizing a takeover bid of his own for the much-larger Paribas.

   One big question now is the likely role of Mr. Fournier's allies.
Mr. Fournier said the large institutions that hold nearly 50% of Navigation Mixte's capital all strongly support him, but some analysts said they aren't so sure.
Allianz, for example, has said in official comments so far that it will remain neutral.
Paribas is Allianz's lead French bank.

   Paribas said Monday that it intends to bid to boost its stake in Navigation Mixte to 66.7%, from the 18.7% it already owns.
The purchase of the additional 48% stake is expected to cost more than 11 billion francs ($1.77 billion).

   Paribas says it will offer 1,850 francs ($296.95) each for Navigation Mixte shares that enjoy full dividend rights, and 1,800 francs each for a block of shares issued July 1, which will receive only partial dividends this year.
Alternatively, it is to offer three Paribas shares for one Navigation Mixte share.
The Paribas offer values Navigation Mixte at about 23 billion francs, depending on how many of Navigation Mixte's warrants are converted into shares during the takeover battle.

Tuesday

last year

this year

last

next year

the past 20 years

now

Monday

July 1

this year


XIN_ENG_20061121.0102

LUSAKA, Nov. 21 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Zambia remains ban on importation of turkeys

Turkeys lovers in Zambia will miss out on their favorite meat this festive season because Zambia's ban stays, The Post reported on Tuesday.

The Department of Veterinary and Livestock Development decided in March this year to ban the importation and movement of live birds and poultry products following reports of avian influenza in Nigeria and the possibility of the disease spreading to other African countries.

Poultry Association of Zambia executive director Mathew Ngosa said the ban on the importation of poultry products still stands.

Ngosa was quoted as saying that Zambia is not able to contain the potential outbreak of bird flue and so it needs to be protective.

"We are not likely to have new stocks for the festive season until management resolves some important issues with the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives," a supermarket attendant said.

The Shoprite attendant said usually it imports several tons of turkey and other birds from South Africa and Brazil for special occasions such as Christmas and the festive season.

Nov. 21 , 2006

this festive season

Tuesday

March this year

the festive season

Christmas

the festive season


APW19980213.1320
 NEWS STORY
 02/13/1998 14:35:00

w2122 Cx1f wstm-
r f Cx13  Cx11  BC-Australia-India-Qanta     02-13 0223

 BC-Australia-India-Qantas,0225

Qantas to run daily flights between Australia and India

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) _ Qantas  will  almost double its flights
between Australia and India by August in the search for new markets
untouched by the crippling Asian financial crisis.
This move comes barely a month after Qantas suspended a number
of services between Australia, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia in
the wake of the Asian economic crisis.
The airline  has  also cut all flights to South Korea.
Qantas plans daily flights between Sydney and Bombay, up from
the current four flights a week,  to boost business and tourism ties
with India, the airline announced Friday.
In a joint statement with Tourism Minister Andrew Thomson, it
said two new flights would leave Bombay on Monday and Tuesday
nights from March 30, with the third departing each Thursday from
August 6.
This  will add nearly 700 seats a week on the route.
Thomson, in India  to talk to tourism leaders, said the flights
would provide extra support to the growing tourism market.
Qantas' India manager Khursheed Lam said the airline  was working closely with the Australian Tourist Commission  to develop greater
awareness of Australia in the Indian market.
Qantas  will  also appoint a Bombay-based public relations
consultant.

(PROFILE
(WS SL:BC-Australia-India-Qantas; CT:f;
(REG:MEST;)
(REG:INDI;)
(REG:ENGL;)
(REG:EURO;)
(REG:BRIT;)
(REG:SCAN;)
(LANG:ENGLISH;))
)

AP-NY-02-13-98 1435EST

02/13/1998 14:35:00

August

a month

current

Friday

Monday

Tuesday
nights

March 30

each Thursday

August 6


WSJ891030-0167
 = 891030
 891030-0167.
 Conseco to Redeem Preferred
 10/30/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 CNC
 BUYBACKS, REDEMPTIONS, SWAP OFFERS (BBK)
 CARMEL, Ind.

   Conseco Inc. said it is calling for the redemption on Dec. 7 of all the 800,000 remaining shares outstanding of its $1.875 Series A convertible preferred stock at $26.805 a share.

   The insurance concern said all conversion rights on the stock will terminate on Nov. 30.
Until then, Conseco said the stock remains convertible into common stock at the rate of 1.439 shares of common stock for each share of preferred stock, which is equivalent to a conversion price of $17.50 a common share.
In New York Stock Exchange trading Friday, Conseco closed at $19.50, down 25 cents.

Dec. 7

Nov. 30

then

Friday


XIN_ENG_20061126.0046

KABUL, Nov. 26 , 2006 (Xinhua)

1st Ld Writethru: Suicide bombing kills 9 Afghans in restaurant

A suicide bombing killed nine Afghans and injured over 20 others Sunday in the center of Urgon district of Paktika province in eastern Afghanistan, an official of Interior Ministry told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

"The incident occurred in a restaurant, which local officials frequently visited," the official said.

Meanwhile, the provincial governor Akram Khapalwak told Xinhua that the blast, which happened at around 10:00 a.m., killed seven people and wounded 20 others.

Barmal district chief Mohammad Mubin, who was there by chance, and a police chief were among the injured, he added.

However, locals said 10 persons were killed and about 30 others injured in the explosion.

All bazaars and shops in the center of Urgon have been shut down in the wake of the blast and local police have launched an investigation into the incident.

It is not very clear what motivation is behind the blast, but a man named Mullah Abdul Samad, who claimed himself as a local Taliban commander, said a Taliban fighter carried out the attack.

He claimed a number of Afghan soldiers were killed and injured in the explosion.

Paktika has been a hotbed of Taliban and other militants, who attack government and foreign targets frequently.

A suicide bombing killed Paktika governor Abdul Hakim Taniwal on Sept. 10, and the Taliban claimed responsibility.

Due to rising Taliban-linked violence this year, Afghanistan has plunged into the worst spate of bloodshed since the Taliban regime was toppled down nearly five years ago.

Over 3,800 people, mostly Taliban militants, have been killed in this volatile country this year. Among the fatalities are over 150 foreign soldiers.

Nov. 26 , 2006

Sunday

10:00 a.m.

Sept. 10

this year

five years ago

this year


XIN_ENG_20061127.0003

KATHMANDU, Nov. 27 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Paddy production to decrease in Nepal

The paddy production in Nepal is expected to decrease by around nine percent this year due to drought during the period of plantation, local Nepal Samacharpatra daily reported here on Monday.

The paddy production will decrease by 8.9 percent as per the field survey carried out by officials at the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperative (MoAC) and World Food Organization ( WFO), the vernacular newspaper reported quoting MoAC sources.

"The production will decrease by more than 500,000 metric tons in the fiscal year 2006/07 against total production of 4.2 million tons in the year 2005/06," MoAC sources said.

The MoAC and WFO team had visited various places of the country and met government officials, political parties, farmers and officials working on natural calamities to acquire the information regarding paddy production.

Ganesh Kumar K.C., secretary at the MoAC, said that the ministry would talk with the donor agencies to save the country from possible food crisis due to lack of adequate food security.

Nov. 27 , 2006

this year

daily

Monday

the fiscal year 2006/07

the year


WSJ_20130322_804

March 22, 2013

Health Insurers Warn on Premiums

Health insurers are privately warning brokers that premiums for many individuals and small businesses could increase sharply next year because of the health-care overhaul law, with the nation's biggest firm projecting that rates could more than double for some consumers buying their own plans.

The projections, made in sessions with brokers and agents, provide some of the most concrete evidence yet of how much insurance companies might increase prices when major provisions of the law kick in next year - a subject of rigorous debate.

The projected increases are at odds with what the Obama Administration says consumers should be expecting overall in terms of cost. The Department of Health and Human Services says that the law will "make health-care coverage more affordable and accessible," pointing to a 2009 analysis by the Congressional Budget Office that says average individual premiums, on an apples-to-apples basis, would be lower.

The gulf between the pricing talk from some insurers and the government projections suggests how complicated the law's effects will be. Carriers will be filing proposed prices with regulators over the next few months.

Part of the murkiness stems from the role of government subsidies. Federal subsidies under the health law will help lower-income consumers defray costs, but they are generally not included in insurers' premium projections. Many consumers will be getting more generous plans because of new requirements in the law. The effects of the law will vary widely, and insurers and other analysts agree that some consumers and small businesses will likely see premiums go down.

Starting next year, the law will block insurers from refusing to sell coverage or setting premiums based on people's health histories, and will reduce their ability to set rates based on age. That can raise coverage prices for younger, healthier consumers, while reining them in for older, sicker ones. The rules can also affect small businesses, which sometimes pay premiums tied to employees' health status and claims history.

March 22, 2013

next year

next year

the next few months

next year


APW19980301.0720
 NEWS STORY
 03/01/1998 14:11:00

w1219 Cx1f wstm-
u i Cx13  Cx11  BC-Israel-Lebanon     03-01 0570

 BC-Israel-Lebanon

Political momentum gathers for Israeli pullout from Lebanon

UR Eds: INCORPORATES Israel-Syria; ADDS background and additional
comment Sunday QL

JERUSALEM (AP) _ Top Israeli officials sent strong new signals
Sunday that Israel wants to withdraw from southern Lebanon, where a
costly war of attrition has been steadily claiming soldiers' lives.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his Cabinet on Sunday
that Israel was willing to withdraw from southern Lebanon provided
Israel's northern frontier could be secured.
``If the Lebanese government will cooperate with us in making
appropriate security arrangements in south Lebanon, we will be
happy to get out of Lebanon in the framework of implementation of
U.N. Resolution 425,'' Netanyahu told his ministers.
That 1978 resolution calls for Israel's unconditional withdrawal
from the self-declared security zone it occupies in south Lebanon,
and for the deployment of the Lebanese army and U.N. forces to ensure security along the Lebanese-Israeli border.
On Friday, Netanyahu said he had ``no qualms'' about
implementing the U.N. resolution, as long as Israel had ``the
necessary security safeguards.''
Cabinet minister Michael Eitan said Sunday that Netanyahu's
remarks marked a substantive change in Israel's position.
``We will defend our north from the international border,'' said
Eitan, the science minister. ``No one wants to stay in Lebanon;
thus we think it better to withdraw.''
Uri Lubrani, Israel's top official for Lebanon affairs, also suggested Israel was willing to modify its political goals in
Lebanon.
``This is a new thing...it means that we are willing to talk
today _ full stop _ about security,'' Lubrani told Israel's Channel
One. ``We have gotten off the issue of peace, off the issue of
normalization.''
As the death toll in Lebanon has mounted, the Israeli government
has been faced with a growing grassroots movement calling for
Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon.
Since 1985 _ when the Israelis created a security buffer zone
southern Lebanon _ nearly 200 Israeli soldiers have been killed
fighting Hezbollah and other guerrillas. Last week, Hezbollah
fighters killed three Israeli soldiers and seriously wounded six
others.
The Israelis suffered a record 39 deaths in southern Lebanon
last year. In addition, 73 soldiers were killed en route to Lebanon
when two military helicopters crashed last February.
The Maariv newspaper said Sunday that Netanyahu's comments last
week were in response to signals from Syria that it wants to renew
the long-stalled peace talks between the two countries.
The newspaper, quoting ``secret reports,'' said Syria had indicated its interest in resuming talks in remarks made last week
by the Syrian ambassador to Washington, Walid Mualem, in a lecture
to a closed forum in Baltimore.
Two top aides to Netanyahu, political adviser Uzi Arad and
Cabinet Secretary Danny Naveh, left for Europe on Sunday,
apparently to investigate the Syrian issue, the newspaper said.
Israel-Syrian talks have been cut off for nearly two years.
Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai was the first senior Israeli
official to refer to U.N. resolution 425 in a speech six weeks ago,
saying at the time he was willing to withdraw troops in exchange
for guarantees that Israel would not be attacked.

UR (pvs-dh-lk)
(PROFILE
(WS SL:BC-Israel-Lebanon; CT:i;
(REG:MEST;)
(REG:ENGL;)
(REG:EURO;)
(REG:BRIT;)
(REG:SCAN;)
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AP-NY-03-01-98 1411EST

03/01/1998 14:11:00

Sunday

Sunday

Friday

Sunday

today

Last week

last year

last February

Sunday

last
week

last week

Sunday

nearly two years

six weeks ago

time


XIN_ENG_20051115.0151

BEIJING, Nov. 15 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Chinese state councilor meets ROK guest

Chinese State Councilor Chen Zhili met with Oh Myung, deputy prime minister and minister of science and technology of the Republic of Korea (ROK), at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse on Tuesday.

Chen had an exchange of views with the guest on issues of common concern at a friendly atmosphere.

Chen said, China and ROK have a traditional friendship as neighboring countries. The bilateral cooperation in politics, economy, science and technology, education and culture has scored remarkable achievements.

The bilateral cooperation in science and technology is reciprocal and enjoys a bright prospect, Chen said, adding that the two sides should join hands to push the cooperation to a higher stage of development.

Nov. 15 , 2005

Tuesday


AFP_ENG_20061212.0549

BLANTYRE, Dec 12 , 2006, 2006

ATTENTION - UPDATES with quotes, details  ///

Southern African nations Tuesday mulled ways to rope high-risk groups into the fight against HIV/AIDS in the world's worst-affected region as they started a three-day meeting in Malawi.

The meeting will hammer out a "comprehensive strategy on how to accelerate prevention and we are addressing key drivers of the epidemic in terms of prevention," Stephen Sianga, an official from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), told AFP.

"Yes, the problem of sexual workers and gays is there ... why stigmatise this group as our strategy is multi-pronged and we want to cover all risk groups?" said Sianga, who is in charge of social and human development at the SADC secretariat.

Southern Africa is the epicentre of the pandemic accounting for a third of the global HIV infections.

It is also grappling with the heaviest death toll from AIDS. A total of 1.2 million out of the worldwide toll of 2.8 million people died from AIDS-related illnesses last year in southern Africa.

Roy Hauya, director of policy and programmes at Malawi's National AIDS Commission, told AFP the meeting would also try to come up with a strategy on male circumcision.

"We want to determine what role circumcision can play to accelerate prevention... as a region we are not experienced in programming male circumcision," as a tool to control the spread of HIV, he said.

"There is evidence that in regions where the majority of men are circumcised, HIV infection is lower than in regions where circumcision is not practiced."

Five southern African countries hard-hit by the AIDS pandemic -- Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, Tanzania and Zambia -- are in talks with the UN AIDS agency on making circumcision more accessible to men.

The new strategy follows the results of a three-year study in a South African township -- Orange Farm near Johannesburg -- that showed that circumcision reduced the risk of contracting HIV by 60 percent.

Less than 20 percent of men are said to be circumcised in southern Africa where HIV prevalence is the highest.

Malawi's Health Minister Marjorie Ngaunje set the tone for the meeting by saying: "To make advances in prevention, we must begin to tackle honestly the difficult questions that the epidemic raises ... addressing positively the needs of sex workers and of men who have sex with men."

She said the fight against HIV/AIDS "will take a better turn if we stop doing business as usual ... we must address the real drivers of the epidemic and target groups that are most vulnerable."

Omotayo Olaniyan, African Union regional delegate to the SADC, told the meeting that poor provision of services for sex workers and drug users had allowed HIV to take root in society's most vulnerable populations.

Olaniyan said young people and women were also vulnerable to infection due to poverty and their lack of control over their sex lives in male-dominated societies.

"These are the heart of the acceleration of the spread of HIV," Olaniyan said.

He said southern Africa was the "epicentre" of the pandemic, since one third -- or 32 percent -- of all people with HIV worldwide lived in the region and 34 percent of all deaths arising from AIDS in 2006 occurred in southern Africa.

"You will agree with me that these are not acceptable developments...it is a well known fact that we are not yet winning the war against HIV and AIDS."

SADC groups Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Dec 12 , 2006

Tuesday

last year

male circumcision


XIN_ENG_20061128.0483

RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov. 28 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Sao Paulo presents lowest unemployment rate in October

Brazil's largest metropolitan region Sao Paulo registered its lowest unemployment rate in October since 1996, a monthly Employment and Unemployment Survey (PED) reported on Tuesday.

The survey was carried out by Sao Paulo state's research institute Seade and the Inter-Union Department of Statistics and Social-Economic Studies.

The current unemployment rate was 14.6 percent, against 16.9 percent in October, 2005. Unemployment has been in a falling trend since June this year. In September, the PED released an jobless rate of 15.3 percent.

Around 94,000 job positions were created in October, 2006. A total of 67,000 citizens found work, which brought the number of unemployed in Sao Paulo down to 1.47 million workers, while 27,000 people entered the region's labor market.

The survey showed that the positive results were closely related to the performance in the service sector, which provided 50 percent of occupations in the metro region, and created 68,000 positions in October, up 1.5 percent from September.

The PED said local industry created 10,000 jobs, while the retail market contributed 23,000, caused by the rise in sales as the year-end holiday approaches.

Nov. 28 , 2006

October

Tuesday

October, 2005

June this year

September

October, 2006

October

September


AFP_ENG_19970411.0067

PORT VILA, April 11 , 1997 (AFP)

Holiday in Vanuatu to mark ordination of first indigenous bishop by Patrick Decloitre

Vanuatu's President Jean-Marie Leye has declared Saturday a public holiday to celebrate the ordination of the first indigenous Roman Catholic bishop here, the State House said Friday.

Michel Visi, 42, the first Melanesian bishop in this southwestern Pacific island state's history, was appointed last December by Pope John Paul II.

Visi, from Ambae island, 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of here, takes over from American Francis Lambert who at 75 must retire.

The new Vanuatu bishop, who studied in seminaries in neighbouring New Caledonia and at Fiji's Pacific Regional Seminary, where he was rector, obtained a canon law degree in Canada.

He will now be in charge of a diocese, with 14 priests, covering the 80 scattered islands in this Y-shaped archipelago. He is the first indigenous bishop since Vanuatu's catholic mission arrived here more than 110 years ago.

"I prepared myself, especially I made a 30-day retreat in Australia with the Jesuits. I think the mission of a bishop requires a lot of tranquility in heart and mind," Visi told AFP on the eve of the historic event.

More than 1,000 people are converging on the capital from outlying islands and more than 200 visitors, including the Wellington-based nuncio Archbishop Thomas White, are journeying from overseas.

The two-day celebrations, which are to start Saturday with the official ordination, are set in Port Vila's largest open ground, the Independence Park.

Vanuatu's linguistic and religious legacy is strongly related to the presence of missionaries who early last century were among the first permanent white settlers in these islands.

The nation, with its 170,000 inhabitants on some 80 inhabited islands, defines itself in its constitution as a Christian country.

Churches are grouped into a council with the largest members being Roman Catholic, with around 22,000 believers, Presbyterian and Anglican churches.

However, as always here, Saturday's celebrations will be a harmonious mix of liturgy and traditional tribal dances, once labelled "evil" and banned by the missionaries.

April 11 , 1997

Friday

last December

now

more than 110 years ago

Saturday

last century

Saturday


AFP_ENG_20061216.0139

JAIPUR, India, Dec 16 , 2006, 2006

Indian cricket board expels former chief Dalmiya

Former world cricket chief Jagmohan Dalmiya was on Saturday expelled from the Indian cricket board on charges of misappropriation of funds.

The former Indian cricket chief is accused of mishandling funds of around 890,000 dollars relating to the 1996 World Cup which India hosted jointly with Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Dalmiya, credited with turning the gentlemen's game into a lucrative global sport, has been given the right to appeal after three years for inclusion in the board, media committee member Rajiv Shukla said.

Shukla said the resolution was moved by board president Sharad Pawar, who suggested to expelling him and barring him from holding any positions in any cricket body.

Dalmiya is currently the president of Cricket Association of Bengal and National Cricket Club of Kolkata. Only these two bodies opposed the move while the remaining associations supported it.

Dalmiya, who was organising secretary of that event, later served as the president of the International Cricket Council for three years from 1997 to 2000.

Since 1983, he had been the most powerful figure in the Indian board until his faction was thrown out by Pawar, a political heavyweight and federal agriculture minister, in a bitter election last year.

Dalmiya denied the charges, saying he had submitted a report which the disciplinary committee did not even read.

"They did not even read it. They are all biased. There is no misappropriation. It is only their misinterpretation," the Press Trust of India news agency quoted him as saying.

But board vice-president Shashank Manohar said that Dalmiya had been given a fair chance.

"He was heard by a full house. But whatever he said carried no weight. We gave him a fair chance," Manohar said after a special general meeting here.

Dalmiya was credited with bringing the World Cup to the Indian sub-continent which has held the event twice in 1987 and 1996.

Dec 16 , 2006

Saturday

three years

three years

last year


XIN_ENG_20051128.0372

TUNIS, Nov. 28 , 2005 (Xinhua)

efforts

Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali on Monday urged Israel to respond to the international peace efforts to make the Middle East a peaceful, secure and stable region.

Israel's withdrawal from Gaza is a right step forward, Ben Ali said in a letter to the United Nations on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

He hoped that Israel's pullout from Gaza would be the beginning of its withdrawal from all the occupied Palestinian territories so that Middle East peoples can live in peace with one another.

The president called on all relevant parties, especially the mediating Quartet to implement the roadmap peace plan in earnest and push forward the Middle East peace process in accordance with relevant UN resolutions.

Ben Ali also reiterated support for the Palestinian people's efforts to restore their national dignity and establish an independent state of their own.

A UN resolution adopted in 1977 designated Nov. 29 as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

Nov. 28 , 2005

Monday

Nov. 29


XIN_ENG_20051115.0030

WELLINGTON, Nov. 15 , 2005 (Xinhua)

New Zealand to join international anti-doping treaty

New Zealand is set to adopt the International Convention Against Doping in Sport as part of its commitment to eliminating the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport, a minister announced on Tuesday.

The convention was tabled in Parliament Wednesday and it is hoped that New Zealand will become a party to the international agreement before the end of the year.

"New Zealand is recognized internationally as a world leader in the fight against the use of performance enhancing drugs in sport and being party to this convention reflects our strong and unwavering commitment in this area," said Sport and Recreation Minister Trevor Mallard.

He said the use of doping in sport is a major challenge to the international sporting community, and threatens everything we respect and value in sport - honesty, ethics, fairness, health, respect, and courage.

Parties to the convention commit to implementing measures consistent with the World Anti-Doping Code, which harmonises anti-doping policy and practice and provides standards in areas such as testing programs, sanctions, appeals and laboratory practices.

They must also adopt measures, where appropriate, to restrict the availability of prohibited substances by tackling their production, movement, importation, distribution, sale and trafficking.

It is hoped that the convention will be in force by the time of the February 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. This will require that at least 30 countries join before the end of December 2005.

Nov. 15 , 2005

Tuesday

Wednesday

the end of the year

February 2006 Winter

the end of December 2005


XIN_ENG_20061114.0336

PARIS, Nov. 14 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Suez-GDF merger gets EU conditional approval

French energy groups Gad de France and Suez won European Union conditional approval on Tuesday for their merger, which would create Europe's second-largest utility and maintain national control of the French power market.

The deal would result in a group with a combined market capitalization of nearly 80 billion euros (102.6 billion dollars), putting the new entity behind EDF of France but ahead of E.ON, the German energy giant.

Suez and GDF got the go-ahead after they agreed to give up control of Belgian natural gas companies and a heating network in France, the European Commission said in Strasbourg, France.

"Our intervention in this case is part of our action to ensure that there is effective competition in the newly-liberalized energy markets to the benefit of consumers and business," EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said.

France brokered the merger in February to prevent a bid for Suez by Enel of Italy, prompting criticism that it was breaking EU free-market rules by shutting the energy market to outsiders.

Inside France, the government has struggled to push the merger because it requires reducing the state's stake in GDF, - a move opposed by unions and socialist politicians who promised to make the deal an issue in next year's presidential election.

A law allowing the French government to cut its stake in the company from 70 percent to one-third, ahead of the merger, was formally passed by parliament last week.

Nov. 14 , 2006

Tuesday

February

next year

last week


WSJ891030-0048
 = 891030
 891030-0048.
 Sun Microsystems Debentures
 10/30/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 SUNW
 BOND MARKET NEWS (BON)
 MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.

   Sun Microsystems Inc., a computer maker, announced the effectiveness of its registration statement for $125 million of 6 3/8% convertible subordinated debentures due Oct. 15, 1999.

   The company said the debentures are being issued at an issue price of $849 for each $1,000 principal amount and are convertible at any time prior to maturity at a conversion price of $25 a share.

   The debentures are available through Goldman, Sachs amp Co.

Oct. 15, 1999


AFP_ENG_20051213.0484

JERUSALEM, Dec 13 , 2005

Israel puts off Gaza-West Bank bus link over rocket fire

Israel has put off opening a bus link between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank because of the Palestinian Authority's failure to stop militants from firing rockets on the country, its army chief of staff said Tuesday.

"Israel has no intention of allowing the passage of convoys between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank while the Palestinian Authority does not act to stop the firing of the Qassam (homemade) rockets," General Dan Halutz was quoted by parliamentary sources as saying.

Under an agreement in principle reached between the two sides last month brokered by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the service was to have begun on Thursday.

The announcement comes as no suprise.

Last week, Israel froze negotiations on the details, with a spokesman for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon saying: "There will be no discussions about these convoys as long as the Palestinian Authority fails to respect its commitments to fight against terrorism."

The security cabinet took the decision on December 6, a day after a suicide bomber from the radical Palestinian movement Islamic Jihad killed five Israelis at the entrance to a shopping mall.

Under the deal, Israel should also allow convoys of trucks to travel between Gaza and the West Bank from January 15.

At the time, a senior security official quoted by the Haaretz daily attributed the decision to halt the negotiations to Israeli concerns about the monitoring of travellers crossing the Rafah border between Gaza and Egypt since it reopened late last month, alleging that "hostile elements" had entered the territory.

The Palestinians have been pushing for residents of Gaza and the West Bank to be allowed to travel back and forth, while Israel was insisting on limiting movement to Gazans.

At the same time, Israel wants to ban travel by men between the ages of 16 and 35.

The Israeli media have said a working document proposed by the United States talks of five, five-bus convoys making the trip each day, transporting 1,800 Palestinians. In contrast, Israel wants only one such convoy, limiting the number to 250.

Dec 13 , 2005

Tuesday

last month

Thursday

Last week

December 6

January 15

last month

each day


XIN_ENG_20061101.0001

JAKARTA, Nov. 1 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Indonesia hires Russian planes to douse forest fires

Two amphibious Russian aircraft have arrived in Indonesia's South Sumatra province to help fight haze-causing fires in the west of the country, a report said Wednesday.

The two BE-200 aircraft, which will be used to douse the land- clearing fires lit on Kalimantan and Sumatra islands, will strengthen the nation's fire-fighting air fleet, which consists of five BO-105 helicopters owned by the Indonesian Air Force, Navy and police, reported major national newspaper The Jakarta Post.

The Indonesian House of Representatives has approved 100 billion rupiah (10.52 million U.S. dollars) to fight the fires, which have caused choking haze to blanket the west of the country, along with Singapore, Malaysia and parts of southern Thailand.

The lease for the aircraft was signed on Oct. 23 by officials from the Russian Emergencies Ministry and the Indonesian National Disasters Coordination Agency (Bakornas).

Kirill Barsky, Russia's deputy chief of mission here, said the country was happy to help Indonesia fight the haze.

Barsky expressed confidence the two aircraft supported by 29 crew would be capable of extinguishing forest fires over large areas.

"We're optimistic about getting the best results because of the experienced crew members," he said.

The planes' crew had fought similar fires in Africa several years ago and had just finished dealing with blazes in Portugal, he said.

Nov. 1 , 2006

Wednesday

Oct. 23

several years ago


APW19980227.0468
 NEWS STORY
 02/27/1998 07:56:00

w2373 Cx1f wstm-
r i Cx13  Cx11  BC-Russia-Kalashnikov'sM 1stLd   02-27 0148

 BC-Russia-Kalashnikov's Museum, 1st Ld

Moscow mayor donates funds to build Kalashnikov museum

UR Eds: SUBS 3rd graf to conform to AP style. QL

MOSCOW (AP) _ The mayor of Moscow  has allocated funds  to help
build a museum in honor of Mikhail Kalashnikov, the Russian who
gave his name to the world's most widely wielded weapon, according
to a news agency report Friday.
Kalashnikov designed the AK-47 automatic rifle, famed for its
reliability and effectiveness. Together with its derivatives, the
Kalashnikov rifle  has  been used by the police and armies of 55
countries and an assortment of guerrillas, terrorists and just
plain thugs around the globe.
Seventy-five million copies of the rifle  have  been built since
it entered production in February 1947, making it history's most
widely distributed weapon.
UR The ITAR-Tass, 4th graf pvs
(pvs/ji)

(PROFILE
(WS SL:BC-Russia-Kalashnikov's Museum, 1st Ld; CT:i;
(REG:EURO;)
(REG:BRIT;)
(REG:SCAN;)
(REG:MEST;)
(REG:AFRI;)
(REG:INDI;)
(REG:ENGL;)
(REG:ASIA;)
(LANG:ENGLISH;))
)

AP-NY-02-27-98 0756EST

02/27/1998 07:56:00

Friday

February 1947


AFP_ENG_20051207.0459

GAZA CITY, Dec 7 , 2005

ATTENTION - UPDATES injured, ADDS reax ///

One militant was killed and nine other Palestinians wounded Wednesday in an Israeli air strike on a vehicle in the Rafah region of the southern Gaza Strip, military sources and witnesses said.

Military sources said that the target of the attack, Mahmud al-Arqan, had been working with members of the radical Islamic Jihad movement which was behind a suicide bombing on a shopping mall on Monday.

The strike comes after Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz gave the green light to the resumption of targeted killing operations in the wake of the bombing at the mall in Netanya which killed five Israelis and following a series of rocket attacks on Israeli soil fired from Gaza.

Palestinian sources confirmed the dead man's identity, saying Arqan was a member of the Popular Resistance Committees, an umbrella organisation which has previously carried out rocket attacks against Israel.

The Israeli military sources said that Arqan had been responsible for a range of attacks, including sniper attacks and the firing of anti-tank missiles.

Two of the injured were travelling in the vehicle with Arqan while the other seven were passers-by.

A spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, Abu Abir, said that the movement would avenge Arqan's death.

After the raid, dozens of the group's followers gathered outside Rafah hospital where the victims were being treated, firing their rifles into the air and chanting for his death to be avenged.

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat "strongly condemned" the attack, describing it to AFP as a "crime which is part of a framework of an Israeli escalation."

The latest death brought the overall toll since the start of the Palestinian uprising in September 2000 to 4,899. More than three-quarters of the victims have been Palestinian.

Before the air strike, both the Israeli military and Palestinian security forces had carried out a series of arrests in the West Bank of Islamic Jihad activists in the wake of the Netanya blast.

Palestinian security sources said they had arrested three Jihad members in the Tulkarem area of the northern West Bank while Israel said its forces had arrested another Jihad activist in the Balata refugee camp near Nablus.

The father and three brothers of the 21-year-old bomber were detained on Tuesday by the Israeli army at the family home in a village in the northern West Bank which is seen as a stronghold of Jihad.

In a statement issued late Tuesday, Jihad criticised Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas for describing the attack as an act of terrorism and called on him to stop arresting its members and sympathisers.

Dec 7 , 2005

Wednesday

Monday

September 2000

Tuesday

late Tuesday


WSJ891027-0114
 = 891027
 891027-0114.
 Chip by Intel
@  Contains Flaw
@  In Calculating
@  ---
@  `Bugs' Could Stall Makers
@  Of Certain Computers;
@  Most Users Unaffected
@  ----
@  By Stephen Kreider Yoder
@  Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal
 10/27/89
 WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
 INTC IBM CPQ
 SEMICONDUCTORS, INTEGRATED CHIPS (SEM)
COMPUTERS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (CPR)

   Intel Corp.'s most powerful computer chip has flaws that could delay several computer makers' marketing efforts, but the "bugs" are n't expected to hurt Intel and most computer makers.

   Computer experts familiar with the flaws, found in Intel's 80486 chip, say the defects do n't affect the average user and are likely to be cleared up before most computers using the chip as their "brains" appear on the market sometime next year.

   Intel said that last week a customer discovered two flaws in its 80486 microprocessor chip's "floating-point unit", a set of circuits that do certain calculations.
On Friday, Intel began notifying customers about the bugs which cause the chip to give wrong answers for some mathematical calculations.

   But while International Business Machines Corp. and Compaq Computer Corp. say the bugs will delay products, most big computer makers said the flaws do n't affect them.
"Bugs like this are just a normal part of product development," said Richard Archuleta, director of Hewlett-Packard Co.'s advanced systems development.
Hewlett announced last week that it planned to ship a computer based on the 486 chip early next year.
"These bugs do n't affect our schedule at all," he said.

   Likewise, AST Research Inc. and Sun Microsystems Inc. said the bugs wo n't delay their development of 486-based machines.
"We have n't modified our schedules in any way," said a Sun spokesman.
To switch to another vendor's chips, "would not definitely be an option," he said.

   Nonetheless, concern about the chip may have been responsible for a decline of 87.5 cents in Intel's stock to $32 a share yesterday in over-the-counter trading, on volume of 3,609,800 shares, and partly responsible for a drop in Compaq's stock in New York Stock Exchange composite trading on Wednesday.
Yesterday, Compaq plunged further, closing at $100 a share, off $8.625 a share, on volume of 2,633,700 shares.

   Most of Compaq's decline is being attributed to a third-quarter earnings report that came in at the low end of analysts' expectations.

   Intel said it had corrected the problems and would start producing bugless chips next week.
"We should not be seeing any more," said Bill Rash, Intel's director for the 486 chip.

   What's more, the bugs only emerge on esoteric applications such as computer-aided design and scientific calculations, he said, and then very seldom.
"These errata do not affect business programs," he said.
The bugs will cause problems in "specific and rare circumstances that will not occur in typical applications" such as word-processing and spreadsheets, said Michael Slater, editor of the Microprocessor Report, an industry newsletter.

   Sun, Hewlett-Packard and others say Intel isn't wholly to blame for the snafu.
The real culprits, they said, are computer makers such as IBM that have jumped the gun to unveil 486-based products.
"The reason this is getting so much visibility is that some started shipping and announced early availability," said Hewlett-Packard's Mr. Archuleta.
"You can do that but you're taking a risk.
Those companies are paying the price for taking the risk."

   In late September, IBM began shipping a plug-in card that converts its PS/2 model 70-A21 from a 80386 machine to an 80486 machine.
An IBM spokeswoman said the company told customers Monday about the bugs and temporarily stopped shipping the product.

   IBM has no plans to recall its add-on cards, the spokeswoman said, and could probably circumvent the bugs without long product delays.
"We do n't look at this as a major problem for us," she said.

   Compaq, which said it discovered the bugs, still plans to announce new 486 products on Nov. 6.
Because of the glitch, however, the company said it does n't know when its machine will be commercially available.
That's a break from Compaq tradition, because the company does n't announce products until they're actually at the dealers.

   The problem is being ballyhooed, experts say, because the 486 is Intel's future flagship.
Intel's microprocessors are the chips of choice in many of today's personal computers and the 80486 microprocessor is the spearhead of the company's bid to guard that spot in the next generation of machines.

   "Although these sorts of bugs are not  at all uncommon, the 486 is an extremely high-profile product," said Mr. Slater, the newsletter editor.

   Intel's 80486 chip is the Corvette of Intel's microprocessors, a super-fast, super-expensive chip that only the most power-hungry computer users are likely to buy for at least several years.

   Unveiled last April, the chip crams 1.2 million transistors on a sliver of silicon, more than four times as many as on Intel's earlier model, 80386.
Intel clocks the chip's speed at 15 million instructions per second, or MIPs.
That's four times as fast as the 386.

   Machines using the 486 are expected to challenge higher-priced work stations and minicomputers in applications such as so-called servers, which connect groups of computers together, and in computer-aided design.

   But while the chip's speed in processing power is dazzling, it's real strength lies in its software inheritance.
The 486 is the descendant of a long series of Intel chips that began dominating the market ever since IBM picked the 16-bit 8088 chip for its first personal computer. (A 16-bit microprocessor processes 16 pieces of data at a time and is slower than newer, 32-bit chips.) Since then, Intel has cornered a large part of the market with successive generations of 16-bit and 32-bit chips, all of which can run software written for previous models.

   That's what will keep computer makers coming in spite of the irritation of bugs.
Big personal computer makers and many makers of engineering workstations are developing 486-based machines, which are expected to reach the market early next year.

   Of the big computer makers, only Apple Computer Co. bases its machines on Motorola chips instead.
"The 486 is going to have a big impact on the industry," said Hewlett-Packard's Mr. Archuleta.
"It's going to be the leading edge technology in personal computers for the next few years.
This bug is not going to have any affect on that at all."

   ---

   Andy Zipser in Dallas contributed to this article.

sometime next year

last week

Friday

last week

early next year

yesterday

Wednesday

Yesterday

next week

late September

Monday

Nov. 6

last April

early next year

the next few years


AFP_ENG_20051214.0166

PARIS, Dec 14 , 2005

General blames Gbagbo allies for air strike on French troops

The former commander of French forces in Ivory Coast has implicated senior allies of President Laurent Gbagbo in a deadly air strike on French forces in the country last year, an official said on Wednesday.

General Henri Poncet, who is separately being probed over the killing of an Ivorian man in French military custody, told an investigating magistrate last week that two Gbagbo allies may have ordered the bombing, the official said.

They are Kadet Bertin, Gbagbo's special advisor on defence and security, and Colonel Edouard Seka Yapo, former chief of the Ivory Coast air force, according to the official, who is close to the investigation.

The attack on a French military base in the central rebel-held town of Bouake, on November 6, 2004, left nine French soldiers dead.

In retaliation, France destroyed the totality of the west African country's small air force, provoking a wave of serious anti-French riots led by Gbagbo partisans in the main city Abidjan.

French prosecutors separately announced on Wednesday the opening of an investigation into complaints filed by 20 French nationals repatriated during the violence.

Ivory Coast, once one of Africa's most prosperous states, has been divided into a rebel-held north and government controlled south since a failed coup in September 2002.

France has deployed a 4,000-strong peacekeeping force to the country, which was under Poncet's command until June this year.

Dec 14 , 2005

last year

Wednesday

last week

November 6, 2004

Wednesday

September 2002

June this year


XIN_ENG_20061121.0136

LANZHOU, Nov. 21 , 2006 (Xinhua)

First international forum on Chinese "father of philosophy" opens

The first international forum on Lao Tzu, known as China's "father of philosophy", opened Tuesday in Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu province.

Under the theme "Nature, Science and Harmony", the forum would focus on the essence and relevancy to modern life of Lao Tzu's culture based on his work Tao Te Ching, said Gao Zhanxiang, a member of the National Committee of the CPPCC and chairman of Chinese Culture Promotion Association.

The forum was attended by 120 experts and scholars from more than 40 countries and regions who made a declaration on the status, influence and future development of Lao Tzu's culture, Gao said.

Lao Tzu, the first philosopher in Chinese history and father of Taoism, was born 2,500 years ago in the Zhou Dynasty (11th Century B.C -- 221 B.C.), said Zhang Bingyu, an official in charge of foreign affairs.

"The reason for holding the forum in Gansu was that Lao Tzu was said to have flown up to heaven from Linzhao town of Gansu, making it a kind of pilgrimage center for Taoism," Zhang said.

Tao Te Ching, the universal Taoist text book written in only 5,000 ancient Chinese characters, contained the quintessential spirit of Chinese thought and philosophy, Zhang said.

It had been translated into dozens of languages and studied by thousands of scholars all over the world, Zhang said.

The Lao Tzu' only work had more than 250 different editions and hundreds of millions of copies in circulation, second only to the Bible, according to UNESCO.

Nov. 21 , 2006

Tuesday

2,500 years ago


AFP_ENG_19970413.0420

SAN FRANCISCO, April 13 , 1997 (AFP)

Singapore group to acquire US shipper in 825-million-dollar deal

Singapore-based Neptune Orient Lines said Sunday it would acquire US shipping group APL Limited in a deal valued at 825 million dollars, creating the largest trans-Pacific shipping line.

Neptune Orient said it would acquire all 24.6 million outstanding shares of APL stock at 33.50 dollars per share, in an all-cash deal.

The deal, subject to US regulatory approval, would create a global shipping giant with some four billion dollars in revenues, and a fleet of 113 vessels, according to a statement from the two companies.

The new firm will be in the top six global firms in container shipping, and the biggest in the Pacific, according to company officials.

Under the deal, APL, the number two US firm, will retain its name and brand in the marketplace and will continue operations headed by its existing management in Oakland, California.

"This merger in no way lessens APL's commitment to the US flag and American seafaring labor," said APL president Timothy Rhein.

APL officials said a separate US-owned company would manage the fleet, to ensure the vessels qould qualify for US subsidies under the Maritime Security Program and to be eligible for US military shipments.

Lua Cheng Eng, deputy chairman and chief executive of Neptune, said the merger would allow cost savings of 130 million dollars for the two firms.

Neptune said the purchase will be funded by lines of credit from commercial banks and internal resources. Neptune is being advised by Goldman Sachs while APL is being advised by J.P. Morgan. The deal is expected to be finalized later this year.

APL is a leader in trans-Pacific and intra-Asia shipping, while Neptune specializes in lines from Europe to the Far East trade using the Suez canal, as well as from the Far East to United States.

Neptune is Singapore's largest shipper and a global transportation firm; APL is the second-largest US shipper.

April 13 , 1997

Sunday

later this year


XIN_ENG_20051110.0109

JAKARTA, Nov. 10 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Jakarta stocks end lower

Share prices on the Jakarta Stock Exchange ended lower Thursday with the composite index down 9.12 points to close at 1,043.69 points.

Turnovers totaled 801.37 million shares worth 1.01 trillion rupiah (101.11 million US dollars).

Decliners beat advancers 70 to 31 while 64 other issues left unchanged.

Nov. 10 , 2005

Thursday


XIN_ENG_20061107.0432

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 , 2006 (Xinhua)

elections

The Democrats have captured 15 seats from the Republicans in Tuesday's midterm legislative elections, the CNN reported.

Nov. 7 , 2006

Tuesday


AFP_ENG_20061222.0389

UNITED NATIONS , Dec 22 , 2006, 2006

Security Council extends mandate of UN mission in Sierra Leone

The Security Council on Friday agreed a one-year extension of the mandate of the UN mission in Sierra Leone to help the Freetown government consolidate peace and prepare general elections due next July.

The 15-member council also unanimously passed a resolution endorsing departing UN chief Kofi Annan's call for boosting by 15 officers the 298-strong UN mission for the January 1-October 31 2007 period to help Sierra Leone's security sector carry out its election-related responsibilities.

The resolution extends the mandate of the mission known as the UN Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSIL) until December 31, 2007.

It calls on all parties in Sierra Leone "to demonstrate their full commitment to the democratic process and to ensure that the 2007 presidential and parliamentary elections are peaceful, transparent and free and fair."

With some 17,500 troops at the peak of the brutal civil war which officially ended in 2002, the UN deployed in Sierra Leone what was then the largest UN peacekeeping operation in the world.

The UN troops were withdrawn last December and replaced by UNIOSIL.

In his latest report on Sierra Leone, Annan, who is stepping down on December 31 after 10 years at the helm of the world body, said the security situation there "remained stable, but still fragile".

He cited the "high level of youth unemployment, the poor social and economic conditions of the people and the general public perception of the government's mismanagement of public resources" as the most serious threats to the country's "tenuous stability".

Annan, who visited Sierra Leone last July, described next year's elections as "a major milestone, which should help define an exit strategy for UNIOSIL."

To avoid resumption of hostilities, the UN is providing help from its Peacebuilding Commission, a panel tasked with helping fragile countries make the difficult transition from war to peace.

Sierra Leone endured a decade-long civil war which was brought to an end in 2002 with the help of Britain and UN peacekeepers.

More than 17,000 foreign troops disarmed tens of thousands of rebels and militia fighters in the biggest UN peacekeeping success in Africa for many years after debacles in the 1990s in Angola, Rwanda and Somalia.

Dec 22 , 2006

Friday

next July

January

December 31, 2007

last December

December 31

10 years

last July

next year

the 1990s


AFP_ENG_20061219.0252

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 19 , 2006, 2006

=(PICTURE)=

Malaysia on Tuesday launched its first self-cleaning public toilets in a vibrant Kuala Lumpur shopping district in a move to dispel complaints its facilities are grim and dirty.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak said the new and improved toilets with their multiple facilities would be a welcome sight for visitors as the country prepares for a major tourism campaign in 2007.

Najib, who visited the outdoor loo with officials in tow, said clean toilets were a measure of a country's level of civilisation.

"People say toilets represent the level of development of a country," Najib said in his speech at the launch.

"The adequate number of toilets, quality and maintenance of public washrooms are a benchmark of the infrastructural development of a country," he said.

The new toilets are air-conditioned and have an automatic seat cleaner that will wash, scrub and dry the pan after every use.

It also has a baby change station and seats for children to wait as parents answer the call of nature.

The toilets, which cost one ringgit (0.28 dollars) to use, also flush automatically and have facilities for the disabled.

The government is aiming to install some 23 of the toilets around Kuala Lumpur, especially in major shopping districts and tourist sites, by the end of 2007.

"I think this is a very good effort, especially to help the disabled people," said holidaymaker Spencer Kaurin, a retired school teacher from Oslo.

"I usually go to the toilet at the hotel before I leave for town because the toilets, even in shopping complexes, are very dirty," said Kaurin, who has visited Malaysia some 15 times.

"People don't seem to know how to use the toilet ... It seems to be a problem of mentality of people just not caring enough," he said.

Malaysians and tourists alike complain many users do not flush and that they step on toilet seats, leaving dirty shoe prints behind.

Toilets also lack basic hygiene items such as toilet paper and soap.

Malaysia in August hosted a national toilet expo hoping to revolutionise the way its citizens use lavatories.

Dec 19 , 2006

Tuesday

the end of 2007

August


AFP_ENG_20061221.0527

CAMP PENDLETON BASE, California, Dec 21 , 2006, 2006

ATTENTION - ADDS details, quotes, background ///

Four US Marines are to face murder charges in connection with the killing of 24 Iraqi civilians in the town of Haditha last year, the military said Thursday.

The four soldiers are among eight Marines who are to be prosecuted for their role in the killings on November last year, the most serious war crimes case involving US soldiers since the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

The charges were announced at a press conference at the Marines' Camp Pendleton base outside San Diego, in southern California,

Prosecutors allege Marines went on a killing spree on November 19, 2005, shooting unarmed men, women and children after a comrade, Miguel Terrazaz, was killed by a roadside bomb while on patrol in Haditha.

Defence lawyers have said the Marines followed established war-time rules of engagement and the deaths occurred after the soldiers became embroiled in a furious firefight with insurgents.

Among those accused of murder are Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich, who led the troops from Kilo Company 3rd Battalion 1st Marine Regiment on the patrol.

Wuterich is charged with 13 counts of murder -- 12 individual counts and a separate charge relating to the death of six people.

Others accused of murder are Sergeant Sanick Dela Cruz, who faces five counts of murder, Lance Corporal Justin Sharratt, who faces three murder charges and Lance Corporal Stephen Tatum, who is charged with two murders and four counts of unlawful killing.

Four other Marines are accused of failing to properly report or investigate the killings.

Lawyers for Wuterich have said their client was following established procedure. "What Sergeant Wuterich is guilty of is serving this nation honorably and reasonably acting as he felt he was trained to do," said attorney Mark Zaid.

Initial reports of the incident from the Marines said 15 people had died in a roadside bombing. But an investigation published by Time magazine in March contradicted the official version of events.

Colonel Stewart Navarre told a press conference Thursday that the Marines' initial release was false.

"We now know with certainty the press release was incorrect, and that none of the civilians were killed by the IED explosion," Navarre said.

Witnesses and relatives accused Marines of killing Iraqis indiscriminately, accusations which led to two separate military investigations.

The first investigation focused on the events in Haditha itself while a second looked at whether military commanders attempted a cover-up.

The probe into events on the ground has found that 10 of the victims were women and children who died after being shot at close range.

The investigations also discovered that five unarmed men travelling in a taxi were shot dead as they approached the scene.

The Haditha investigation is unrelated to a separate case involving seven Marines and a Navy medic accused of kidnapping and executing an Iraqi civilian in Hamdania, west of Baghdad on April 26.

Four soldiers in the case have pleaded guilty to lesser charges while the remaining defendants are expected to face trial next year.

The Haditha and Hamdania investigations are part of a string of incidents involving the deaths of Iraqi civilians that have tarnished the reputation of US forces since the beginning of the war.

Dec 21 , 2006

last year

Thursday

November last year

November 19, 2005

March

Thursday

now

April 26

next year


XIN_ENG_20061115.0330

BEIRUT, Nov. 15 , 2006 (Xinhua)

unconstitutional"

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said Wednesday that any cabinet meeting was " unconstitutional" after the resignation of all Shiite ministers last week.

"Any (cabinet) session held now is unconstitutional because it would be in breach of Lebanon's national pact," Berri said in an interview with Dubai-based satellite channel Al-Arabiya.

The pro-Syrian speaker was referring to Monday's extraordinary cabinet session which approved a UN draft for the establishment of an international tribunal to try Lebanese former Premier Rafik Hariri's assassination.

Berri noted that the Lebanese constitution guarantees a representation for the country's different religious communities in the government.

On Nov. 11, five Shiite ministers, including two representing Hezbollah, resigned from the 24-member cabinet headed by Prime Minister Foaud Siniora.

Two days later, Lebanese Environment Minister Yaacoub Sarraf, a Christian but an ally of Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, also quit from the cabinet.

Their resignations came after the country's top leaders failed to reach agreement on the formation of a national unity government.

Nov. 15 , 2006

Wednesday

last week

Monday

Nov. 11

Two days


AFP_ENG_19970403.0077

NEW DELHI, April 3 , 1997 (AFP)

Congress refuses compromise with Indian coalition

India's Congress (I) party said Thursday it would not back down after withdrawing support from the beleaguered ruling coalition but would do its best to avoid fresh elections.

"There is no question of any compromise," Congress spokesman Vithal Gadgil told AFP. "We have withdrawn our support to the government, and there is no question of withdrawing the withdrawal.

"Our stand is there should be a Congress-led coalition."

The 10-month government of Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda was reduced to a minority after the Congress withdrew its parliamentary backing on March 30 and then staked its own claim to form a government.

It wants the United Front, which faces a vote of confidence in parliament on April 11, to step aside and back a Congress government.

Gadgil, however, said the faction-ridden Congress was opposed to fresh elections.

"We don't want elections," he said. "We will try our best to see that elections don't take place. That is why we have told the United Front if you want to prove your credentials, back a Congress-led coalition."

Gadgil's comments followed reports that Congress president Sitaram Kesri was under pressure to compromise after failing to split the ruling coalition and woo some of its partners to its side.

April 3 , 1997

Thursday

March 30

April 11


XIN_ENG_20051113.0122

ISLAMABAD, Nov. 13 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Pakistan passenger bus plunges into river, killing several people

A passenger coaster plunged into a river in the earthquake-hit Pakistan-controlled Kashmir on Sunday, killing several people, according to a TV report.

Geo TV reported that around 50 people were traveling in the coaster when the accident happened at Chalbani town, some 8 kilometers from Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.

The TV earlier reported that 10 people died in the hospital.

The coaster fell down in the Neelam river when it was taking a turn on a bridge.

The coaster has the seating capacity of 25 people, but some 45 to 50 people were on board when the accident occurred.

Ambulances of the aid groups, busy in the quake-relief activities in the region, rushed to the site of the accident and started shifting the injured to local hospitals.

Reports said that majority of the passengers were local survivors in the Oct. 8 devastating earthquake and were going to Muzaffarabad to meet relatives, who are living in tents established for survivors.

Nov. 13 , 2005

Sunday

Oct. 8


AFP_ENG_19970423.0174

RAMALLAH, West Bank, April 23 , 1997 (AFP)

Arafat determined to crush first Palestinian public sector strike by Hisham Abdallah

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat appeared determined Wednesday to crush the first labor dispute against his self-rule government, using arrests and threats of dismissal to force thousands of striking West Bank teachers back to work.

After ordering the roundup of 23 strike leaders Monday, Arafat's Palestinian Authority reportedly arrested several more teachers overnight and deployed police around schools Wednesday to ensure they remained open.

Teachers in Nablus, where the strike for higher pay and better working conditions had closed virtually all public schools since April 5, told AFP that they had returned to work Wednesday under threat of dismissal.

"We were threatened by education ministry officials and security officers that if we didn't hold classs today we would be fired," said one returning teacher on condition he not be identified.

But in Ramallah, teachers refused to go back to work and despite the presence of large numbers of police and preventive security agents at school exits, pupils refused to remain in their classrooms, witnesses said.

Palestinian sources said around 10 more teachers were detained in Ramallah overnight, although this could not be immediately confirmed. Police also confiscated the film of a cameraman trying to video one schoolyard.

Schools also remained closed in Bethlehem, officials said, but teachers returned to work at some schools in Hebron and Jericho, and classes were reported nearly normal in the other self-rule towns of Tulkarem and Qalqilya.

More than 10,000 teachers launched their strike at the start of the month to press demands for a 200 percent pay hike and for the reinstatement of 19 teachers dismissed over a warning strike held the previous month.

Arafat met with strike leaders on Saturday and rejected their pay demands, saying that repeated Israeli security closures of the Palestinian territories over the past year had caused great economic hardship and made such salary increases impossible.

When the teachers voted to continue the strike despite Arafat's appeal, police stepped in and arrested key leaders of the walk-out, which had closed 80 percent of West Bank schools and kept more than 200,000 pupils out of class.

The official teachers' union, affiliated with Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organization, has condemned the strike and said the coordinating committee leading the action was an illegal offshoot.

The strike has also drawn criticism from a broad range of Palestinian officials, including some independent members of the legislative council who say economic problems and the current stalemate in the peace process with Israel make this the wrong time for divisive protest actions.

"The difficult situation for our people now cannot tolerate that the education of hundreds of thousands of students be disrupted," said Salah Tamari, a legislative council member, on Voice of Palestine radio.

But civil rights groups expressed alarm at the latest illustration of Arafat's heavy-handed response to dissent against his three-year-old self-rule administration.

"The teachers' arrests make us more worried about the status of democracy and freedom of expression in Palestinian society," said Riziq Shuqair of the Ramallah-based human rights movement Al-Haq.

The group sent Arafat a letter Wednesday calling for the release of the jailed strikers.

"This is not only a message for teachers but is a message from the Palestinian Authority to everyone: 'If you protest, we will crush you,'" said one Nablus worker who asked not to be identified.

Teachers earn an average of 300 dollars a month, while the monthly cost of living for a Palestinian family is estimated at 750 dollars.

They complain that teachers' wages are lower than those in other government ministries, which they say Arafat has bloated with high- paid cronies.

The PA faces a budget deficit totalling more than 100 million dollars, largely due to the impact of the security closures imposed following anti-Israeli attacks.

The closures prevent tens of thousands of Palestinian laborers from reaching their jobs in Israel, costing the occupied territories several million dollars a day in lost revenues.

April 23 , 1997

Wednesday

Monday

Wednesday

April 5

Wednesday

today

the month

the previous month

Saturday

the past year

now

Wednesday


XIN_ENG_20061114.0240

WASHINGTON, Nov. 14 , 2006 (Xinhua)

U.S. wholesale prices drop by 1.6 percent in October

Wholesale prices in the United States fell by 1.6 percent in October, tying with the record decline set in the same month of 2001, the Labor Department reported on Tuesday.

The big drop in wholesale prices, a gauge of inflation at the factory gate, followed a 1.3 percent fall in September and was sharper than the 0.5 percent decline expected by analysts.

Just as in September, the big drop in October was led by falling energy prices.

The core inflation at the wholesale level, which excludes volatile energy and food, dropped by 0.9 percent in October, marking the biggest monthly fall in 13 years.

The 0.9 percent drop in core inflation followed an increase of 0.6 percent in September, and reflected big declines in prices for new cars and sport utility vehicles.

While excluding new car prices, core inflation would have risen by 0.1 percent in October.

The retreat in core inflation was a welcome development because it means inflation pressures are easing. Policymakers at the Federal Reserve are hoping that the slowing economy can help keep inflation in control, according to analysts.

The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 1.6 percent in the third quarter, compared to a rate of 2.6 percent in the second quarter and a brisk 5.6 percent rate in the first three months of this year.

Nov. 14 , 2006

October

the same month of 2001

Tuesday

September

September

October

October

13 years

September

October

the third quarter

the second quarter

the first three months

this year


XIN_ENG_20051111.0250

BERLIN, Nov. 11 , 2005 (Xinhua)

gov't: President Hu

Chinese President Hu Jintao said here on Friday that China is willing to work together with the new German government to push forward the bilateral relations.

During his meeting with designated chancellor Angela Merkel, Hu congratulated her on becoming the first woman chancellor in the German history, and spoke highly of her long-term contributions to the development of Sino-German relations.

Developing Sino-German relations conforms to the fundamental interests of the two peoples, he said, adding that China will keep high-level exchanges and contacts with Germany and make joint efforts with the new German government to expand bilateral cooperation in all fields.

Merkel said that the new German government will stick to the policy toward China, which has been upheld since former chancellor Helmut Kohl took power.

The new government will strengthen political dialogues with China and explore new areas for bilateral cooperation, she added.

Hu arrived here Thursday after a state visit to Britain. Germany is the second leg of his four-nation European-Asian tour, which will also take him to Spain and South Korea. He is also scheduled to attend the 13th APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in Busan, South Korea, on Nov. 18-19.

Nov. 11 , 2005

Friday

Thursday

Nov. 18-19


XIN_ENG_20061127.0370

WASHINGTON, Nov. 27 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Urgent: Lincoln Memorial in Washington closed after suspicious items found

The well-known Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. has been closed to tourists after suspicious items were found, CNN reported on Monday.

A U.S. government official said an envelope with the word " anthrax" on it was found at the memorial.

Nov. 27 , 2006

Monday


AFP_ENG_20061201.0423

PESHAWAR,  Pakistan, Dec 1 , 2006, 2006

ATTENTION - ADDS quotes ///

A suspected militant died Friday when explosives he was carrying on a motorcycle blew up in a high-security zone of Pakistan's northwestern city of Peshawar, police said.

The blast happened in a garrison area of the border town, within a kilometre (just over half a mile) of the US consulate and military intelligence buildings, police chief Habibur Rehman told AFP.

"A lone motorcyclist aged about 32 years old was driving in the area then there was a loud explosion and he died. The ID card found from his says he was a resident of Peshawar," Rehman said.

The police chief said it was "difficult to say at this moment whether it was a suicide bombing", although provincial police chief Riffat Pasha indicated it was not.

"It appears that he was taking explosives somewhere else. It was a sensitive area -- he was within a one kilometre radius of the US Consulate and military intelligence," Rehman added.

Pasha said the police had established the identity of the bomber, but would not give details saying that he did not want to compromise investigations.

The bomb was fitted to the motorcycle with the intention of leaving it somewhere to explode, he said. It was also a low-intensity device so the damage was limited.

Another local police official said the explosion took place close to a high-security residential area for the officials of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Pakistan's feared spy agency.

Dec 1 , 2006

Friday


XIN_ENG_20061113.0090

HONG KONG, Nov. 13 , 2006 (Xinhua)

UK medical device developer bases Asia-Pacific office in HK

SunTech Medical Inc, one of the world leaders in blood pressure monitoring products and technology, announced here Monday the opening of its Hong Kong office.

As SunTech's first Asian venture, the Hong Kong operation will be responsible for providing a full range of sales and marketing support to its distributors throughout the Asia-Pacific region, according to Anthony Nixon, the Regional Director of SunTech Medical in Hong Kong.

"Sales operations associated with our medical devices have previously been based only in the UK and the United States. As our business grows in this region, it has become strategically important to establish a base here in order to be immediately available and responsive to the needs of our customers, both in Hong Kong and the rest of this region," Anthony Nixon said.

Commenting on the choice of Hong Kong as its regional hub, Nixon said, "We firmly believe that Hong Kong is the epicenter for Asian market development. Chinese mainland's rise as a major consumer and manufacturer further prompted SunTech Medical to operate directly in this booming market. The business-friendly environment and the great ease of setting up and operating a business in Hong Kong are among the city's many advantages."

Founded in 1984, SunTech Medical is a wholly owned subsidiary of SunTech Medical Group Limited which is a privately-owned British company. It develops and markets clinical grade blood pressure measurement devices and operates from bases in the Research Triangle Park, North Carolina and Oxford, UK.

Nov. 13 , 2006

Monday


AFP_ENG_20061221.0361

BERLIN, Dec 21 , 2006, 2006

issue of parliamentary mandate ///

Germany is "prepared in principle" to send Tornado reconnaissance planes to Afghanistan in response to a request from NATO but a decision has not been made, a deputy foreign minister said on Thursday.

"We are prepared in principle to provide intelligence capacity of this kind," Gernot Erler told Deutschlandfunk radio.

Erler said that sending the planes would require a change to the parliamentary mandate covering German forces already deployed in Afghanistan, but his ministry later clarified that this was "not necessarily" the case and the request was still being studied.

Press reports say Germany has been asked to send five or six Tornadoes, which could be used in missions across Afghanistan, including in the south where fighting is fiercest.

Germany currently has 2,700 troops serving in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan but has resisted pressure to redeploy any of them from the relatively stable calm north to trouble spots in the south and east.

Other NATO member states have urged Germany to send troops to the south to help overstretched forces face up to the increasingly militant Taliban.

Dec 21 , 2006

Thursday

currently


AFP_ENG_19970424.0614

TOKYO, April 25 , 1997 (AFP)

Mitsubushi to form auto metal sheet processing unit in Thailand

Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp. plans to set up a joint venture in Thailand in May to process and market auto metal sheets in the country, a company spokesman said Friday.

MC Metal Service Asia Co Ltd., capitalised at 830 million yen (6.5 million dollars), will be owned 51 percent by Mitsubishi and the remaining 49 percent by Thai MC Co. Ltd. an affiliate of the major trading company, the spokesman said.

Total investment in the venture is estimated at 1.4 billion yen, including the construction of a plant near Bangkok, with production starting in December, the spokesman said.

The new plant will have annual capacity of 80,000 tonnes, equivalent to 400,000 passenger car units.

The venture plans to sell the product to Thai production units of Japanese carmakers such as Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.

It also plans to supply other carmakers which have plans to start operations in Thailand, including Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp., the spokesman added.

April 25 , 1997

May

Friday

December


XIN_ENG_20051126.0065

BEIJING, Nov. 26 , 2005 (Xinhua)

China informs UNEP, UNDP of Songhua River Pollution

China on Saturday informed the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) of the major pollution in northeast China's Songhua River.

Both the headquarters and their respective representative offices in China of the two UN agencies have been informed of the accident as well as measures the Chinese government has taken to tackle the pollution problem, said China's State Environmental Protection Administration in a statement.

The Chinese government has also informed Russia of the pollution, which could affect its neighbor when the pollution slick flows into the Heilongjiang River bordering China and Russia. The government also pledges its utmost to reduce pollution beyond China's borders

The pollution slick, stretching more than 80 km, is flowing pass Harbin, the capital city of Heilongjiang Province, and is expected to reach Heilongjiang River in a matter of 12 days.

Nov. 26 , 2005

Saturday


AFP_ENG_19970430.0087

TEHRAN, April 30 , 1997 (AFP)

Iran halts dialogue on human rights, terrorism, arms with EU

Iran has decided to halt talks with the EU on human rights, terrorism and arms control in retaliation for Europe's suspension of a "critical dialogue," the foreign ministry announced Wednesday.

April 30 , 1997

Wednesday


XIN_ENG_20051108.0093

RAMALLAH, Nov. 8 , 2005 (Xinhua)

One Israeli, three Palestinians wounded in Nablus clashes

An Israeli officer and three Palestinian militants were wounded in clashes in the West Bank early Tuesday, Palestinian and Israeli security sources reported.

Palestinian sources said Israeli troops stormed the refugee camp of Balata in the West Bank city of Nablus, where Palestinian militants threw a bomb at one of the Israeli jeeps, wounding the officer.

Israeli soldiers fired back at the militants haphazardly, wounding three, among them a 15-year-old teenager, witnesses said.

Palestinian medics at the Rafidia hospital said the teenager was inside his home in the refugee camp when he was wounded, adding that he was taken to hospital for a serious wound in the chest.

Israel army radio reported that the wounded Israeli officer sustained light injury and was transferred to hospital for treatment.

Israeli troops also arrested some 20 Palestinians in an overnight operation throughout the West Bank cities, mainly in Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin and Hebron, claiming that they were wanted militants affiliated to several Palestinian factions.

In Jenin, Israeli soldiers raided the village of Kherbet Marka and arrested Ahmed Mousa, 20, brother of Zayed Mousa, a wanted militant of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).

Israeli troops are continuing their military operation against Palestinian militants in the West Bank after an Islamic Jihad ( Holy War) suicide bomber from Jenin killed five Israelis last month.

Palestinian sources said hundreds of Palestinians were arrested during the operation and the majority of the arrested are members of Hamas and Jihad.

Nov. 8 , 2005

early Tuesday

last month


XIN_ENG_20061129.0110

BERLIN, Nov. 29 , 2006 (Xinhua)

Major German stocks open higher

German stocks opened higher Wednesday on the Frankfurt market.

The 30-share DAX Index climbed 0.44 percent to 6,309 points.

The TecDAX index of technologies and science firms gained 0.92 percent to 686 points.

Nov. 29 , 2006

Wednesday


XIN_ENG_20051101.0011

BAGHDAD, Oct. 31 , 2005 (Xinhua)

Roundup: US military experiences worst month in Iraq since January

The deaths of six more US soldiers in Iraq Monday raised the US military death toll for October to 93, making it the worst month for US troops since January, the US military said.

The US death toll for the Iraq war just broke the 2,000 mark last week.

Pentagon spokesman Lawrence DiRita attributed the increased deaths to "an adversary that continues to develop some sophistication on very deadly and increasingly precise standoff weapons."

Among the six soldiers who died Monday, four were killed by a makeshift bomb in the Yusufiyah district, southwest of Baghdad, and two other soldiers were killed in an explosion while on patrol near the Anaconda base, on the outskirts of Balad, north of the capital, the military said.

The week's casualties included the highest ranking army officer killed in action since the start of the war, Colonel William Wood, who died Sunday when an improvised bomb hit his vehicle near al-Amiriyah, west of Baghdad.

That made October, which saw Iraqis voting for a constitution and putting Saddam Hussein on trial, the worst month for US forces since January, when 107 US soldiers were killed, more than 30 of them in a helicopter crash.

Only during two other months since the war began has the US military seen a higher toll: 137 in November 2004 and 135 in April 2004, according to Pentagon figures. The tolls included combat and non-combat deaths.

The Iraqi insurgents have been using bigger, deadlier bombs and with new techniques, such as "shaped" explosive charges capable of blowing through armored US vehicles since the beginning of this year.

In the southern Iraqi city of Basra, a car bomb hit a police patrol Monday evening, killing at least 20 people, including five policemen, and wounding 40 or so others.

The bomb was so powerful that it damaged six cars and destroyed 10 shops nearby when Basra's bustling Algiers Street area was packed with festive crowds enjoying the cool evening during the holy fasting month of Ramadan.

Under the control of the British troops, the second largest Iraqi city was comparatively quiet after the war started in March 2003.

Public safety has deteriorated in recent months in Basra largely because of feuding among rival Shiite militias.

Earlier, US military commanders have warned that Sunni insurgents will step up their attacks in the run-up to the Dec. 15 election, when Iraqis will choose their first full-term parliament since the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime.

To guard against such attacks, the military has raised the number of American troops in Iraq to 157,000 -- among the highest levels of the Iraq war.

DiRita said US forces are looking for new ways to deal with the modified bombs.

"We're getting more intelligence that's allowing us to stop more of these things, find more of them. So we're learning from them and the enemy is learning from us, and it's going to be that way for as long as there is an insurgency," DiRita said.

Realigned Iraqi parties and coalitions have fully geared up for the Dec. 15 parliamentary elections, which many analysts believe will lead to considerable changes in the country's political landscape.

Registration ended on Friday with 21 coalitions and 230 political parties and entities set to run.

Five groups are widely expected to dominate the race -- the Shiite list, the Kurdish bloc, two Sunni Arab parties and a secular coalition led by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi.

The order in which parties appear on the lengthy ballot paper will be drawn by lot on Tuesday. Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari said up to 1 million Iraqis living abroad may not be able to vote due to the cost and a tight schedule.

The new four-year-term parliament will have 275 seats, of which 230 are distributed among 18 provinces by proportional representation, according to the Iraqi Electoral Commission.

The remaining 45 seats will be allocated for parties which fail to win seats in any one province but garner enough votes nationwide for at least one seat.

Oct. 31 , 2005

Monday

October

January

last week

Monday

The week

Sunday

worst month

January

two other months

November 2004

April 2004

the beginning of this year

Monday evening

the holy fasting month of Ramadan

March 2003

recent months

Dec. 15

Dec. 15

Friday

Tuesday