"Velupillai Prabhakaran, elusive leader of the fierce Tamil Tigers rebels who have waged 18 years of war on this tropical island-nation, has changed his image in preparation for possible peace talks - and his first news conference in 15 years," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"An Israeli army official said yesterday that the fighting would end soon in Jenin, where soldiers have met fierce resistance from Palestinians in recent days, but gunbattles raged as Israel’s offensive to root out Palestinian militants advanced despite US pressure for a quick end," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"Lebanese security services have arrested four Palestinians for firing on an Israeli position in the border village of Ghajar, security sources said," reported the AFP news service.
"All across the West Bank, scenes played out in this past week are like snapshots from other conflicts, older days: lines of Israeli battle tanks silhouetted against stony hills, Palestinian gunmen taking aim from windows and rooftops, the high keening wails of the newly bereaved. Israel’s conquest of all but two of the West Bank’s principal cities and towns in an offensive that began before dawn on March 29 is reminiscent of its lighting capture of this territory from Jordan during the Six-Day War of 1967, when it also seized the Golan Heights from Syria and the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip from Egypt," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"US President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair vowed on Saturday to tackle Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein over the threat he poses with weapons of mass destruction, saying inaction was not an option," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Pakistan opposition groups were yesterday mustering support for a mass boycott of General Pervez Musharraf’s coming referendum on extending his presidency, as the military leader launched his own campaign," reported the AFP news service.
"Chinese President Jiang Zemin begins a five-nation tour today in Germany, with the aim of tackling a perceived US go-it-alone attitude in the war on terror. China, which has long wanted Europe to play a stronger role in international affairs to counter US dominance, has perceived growing trans-Atlantic differences recently and may be keen to use these to its own advantage, analysts said. The trip will also take the Chinese head of state to Libya, Nigeria, Tunisia and Iran, ending on April 21," reported the AFP news service.
"Arab denouncement of US support for Israel’s sweeping military incursion into Palestinian land was widely observed yesterday, through the popular medium of SMS mobile phone text messages, calling for a boycott of US products," reported dpa news agency.
"At least four people were killed and 18 injured yesterday in an apparent assassination bid on Afghan Defence Minister Mohammad Qasim Fahim amid fears of a bomb plot against the interim Cabinet. The attack in the eastern city of Jalalabad came after some 260 people were arrested last week over an alleged plot to sabotage the interim government," reported the AFP news service.
"Counting the dead in Israel’s offensive against Palestinian towns in the West Bank has turned into a mission impossible due to the several no-go zones for journalists and medics alike," reported the AFP news service.
"Iraqi President Saddam Hussein issued a strong message of defiance against the United States on Sunday, saying his country would confront a US military action with all possible means, state-run Iraqi television said.
"Morocco’s King Mohammed gave Colin Powell’s Middle East peace mission a chilly reception yesterday by asking the US secretary of state why he had not begun his tour in Jerusalem. At the end of his meeting with the king, Powell made one of the toughest US calls on Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to withdraw his forces from Palestinian cities," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Israeli helicopter gunships pounded a Palestinian refugee camp and fire broke out near Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity during a fire fight yesterday, as Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Israel’s 11-day-old offensive in the West Bank would continue despite US demands for an immediate withdrawal. Israeli leaders have not said how long the operation would last, but many believe it’s quickly running out of time," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"Iraqi President Saddam Hussein announced Iraq would cut off oil exports for 30 days from yesterday or until Israel withdraws from Palestinian territories, a move expected to send oil prices up but not hurt world supplies. But moderate Arab leaders have moved cautiously while calling on the US to make Israel retreat. Saddam’s unilateral cut-off could put more pressure on other Arab leaders," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"At least 12 people were killed and 100 more injured when a car bomb exploded early on Sunday in the Colombian city of Villavicencio, shortly after unknown gunmen killed a Catholic priest in a neighbouring province as he handed out communion," reported the AFP news service.
"Indonesian Justice and Human Rights Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said at the weekend that a new penal code based on syariah law may be imposed to replace the Dutch-made code, news reports said yesterday," reported the dpa news agency.
"Israeli forces won cautious US praise yesterday by pulling out of the northern West Bank towns of Qalqilya and Tulkarem, but at the same time moved into a village in the south, killing two Palestinians in the ongoing hunt for suspected militants.
"A Palestinian ambush killed 13 Israeli soldiers fighting in a West Bank refugee camp yesterday, dealing the army a blow that could complicate US Secretary of State Colin Powell’s Middle East peace mission. Soon after the deaths were disclosed, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who has been under US pressure to call off a 12-day-old offensive against Palestinian cities in the West Bank, said the operation would continue," reported the AFP news service.
"Israeli forces won cautious US praise yesterday by pulling out of the northern West Bank towns of Qalqilya and Tulkarem, but at the same time moved into a village in the south, killing two Palestinians in the ongoing hunt for suspected militants," reported the AFP news service.
"Hoping to better track foreign visitors and keep out would-be terrorists, immigration officials are tightening student visa rules and proposing shorter US trips for tourists and business travellers. Effective immediately, any foreigner wishing to study in the United States must have an approved student visa before taking courses, the Immigration and Naturalisation Service said on Monday," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"An estimated 1,400 college students are killed every year in alcohol-related accidents, according to a study released yesterday that researchers call the most comprehensive look ever at the consequences of student drinking," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"Thai Interior Minister Purachai Piumsombun has caused another outcry among human rights activists with his threat to ban people under 18 from using cellular telephones.
"The minister, whose campaign against vice has barred teenagers from pubs and nightspots, had warned several times in the past that excessive use of cellphones could be harmful to the young," reported the Nation news agency.
"US Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Tuesday that he intended to meet Palestinian President Yasser Arafat later this week. Powell would arrive today in Jerusalem as he said he is looking forward to conversations with the prime minister (Ariel Sharon), and intends to meet with Chairman Arafat," reported the AFP news service.
"Several leading press freedom groups have called on the Israeli government to halt its policy of intimidating journalists and allow access to Palestinian West Bank areas currently under military attack," reported the AFP news service.
"Demonstrations against the illegal occupation of Palestine by Israel, which are being held in the Middle East and Europe, is now being held in various parts of the United States. Protests are being held by both pro-Israel and pro-Palestinians and so far here there has been no major violence though there have been some cases of death threats and assaults. But things seem to be heating up," reported the New York Times news agency.
"Four people were indicted on Tuesday by a federal court here for aiding an Islamist group led by Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman, currently behind bars for his role in a 1993 attack on this city. Rahman’s organisation, the Islamic Group, operates globally with an active membership in the United States, Ashcroft said. It is believed linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, which Washington blames for the Sept 11 attacks that toppled the World Trade Centre, Rahman’s target in 1993," reported the AFP news service.
"A Palestinian suicide bomber killed eight passengers on an Israeli bus and Israel pledged to press on with its West Bank offensive, dealing a double blow yesterday to a US peace mission. The United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations piled pressure on Israel to withdraw from Palestinian cities. But Prime Minister Ariel Sharon responded with a rebuke of his critics, including US President George W. Bush," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Financial and political support for the Palestinians have soared to unprecedented levels in the Gulf monarchies as tens of millions of dollars donated for urgent relief match strong words and rare street demonstrations. Saudi Arabia, after watching its peace initiative go up in the flames of an Israeli assault on Palestinian strongholds and a wave of suicide bombings, has led the campaign to push the United States to rein in the Jewish state," reported the AFP news service.
"The leader of Tamil Tigers, who has led an 18-year separatist war in Sri Lanka, told his first news conference in 15 years that he believes a Norwegian-mediated peace process will succeed," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"A 59-year-old man in the terminal phase of an incurable disease has asked members of the Raelian movement to clone him, the human cloning company Clonaid has revealed. The man, whose identity has not been disclosed, will bequeath half of his wealth to the surrogate mother who will give birth to his clone, and the other half to the new born child. The Raelians, who claim 55,000 followers worldwide, believe that life on Earth was established by extra-terrestrials who arrived in flying saucers 25,000 years ago, and that humans themselves were created by cloning," reported the AFP news service.
"Los Angeles’ reformist police chief Bernard Parks was on Tuesday effectively sacked from his post in a move that is likely to reignite racial tensions 10 years after race riots rocked this diverse city," reported the AFP news service.
"In a speech at the White House yesterday, President George W. Bush asked the Senate to pass legislation that would ban all human cloning experiments," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The Israeli army said yesterday it had arrested more than 4,000 Palestinians in its vast West Bank sweep that showed few signs of easing only hours before the arrival of US Secretary Colin Powell on a delicate peace mission," reported the AFP news service.
"US Secretary of State Colin Powell was heading to Israel yesterday to try to stop the Middle East bloodshed but Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he is no mood for pressure from Washington," reported the AFP news service.
"European lawmakers have called for trade sanctions against Israel, raising the diplomatic pressure ahead of an EU ministerial meeting on the Middle East crisis next week. Israel deplored the resolution, saying the EU’s failure to take an even-handed approach dented its credibility as a player in the peace process," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The US military has devised the world’s first “indestructible sandwich” - a pocket-sized snack designed to survive airdrops and extreme temperatures and still be edible several years later," reported the AFP news service.
Russia’s security police on Wednesday accused the United States of drugging a scientist in a cloak-and-dagger conspiracy to steal military secrets. Russia and the United States have greatly improved ties since the Sept 11 attacks, when Putin was among the first to offer his support. The Kremlin has since backed the US-led war on terrorism. But the FSB charges add to a growing list of woes likely to crop up at the May 23-25 summit in Moscow and St Petersburg, already set to include bickering over US poultry imports, a US-funded radio broadcast to Russia’s separatist Chechnya region and nuclear disarmament," reported the Reuters news agency.
"International donors wrapped up a two-day conference here yesterday, saying they were impressed with the interim government’s progress since the Taliban were swept from power last year. Karzai urged donors to speed up the disbursement process if they are serious about fighting terrorism and helping the nation achieve stability," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"A surge of violence has set nerves on edge in Afghanistan and raised questions about interim leader Hamid Karzai’s grip on power. But the end result has been a sudden new mood of uncertainty about whether the fragile coalition cobbled together by Western powers last December can hold together. On the eve of the donors’ meeting where Karzai spoke, the European Union’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Dr Klaus-Peter Klaiber, signalled that if the Bonn accords were not followed and moves were made against Karzai, the aid tap could be turned off," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Afghan interim authorities have begun destroying poppy fields despite violent protests from farmers who are about to harvest the heroin-producing crop, a United Nations official said on Wednesday. Afghanistan was the world’s biggest producer of opium, the raw ingredient of heroin, until the Taliban regime stopped poppy cultivation last year. But with the collapse of the hardline Taliban in November, many farmers quickly reverted to growing what is easily the most lucrative crop in Afghanistan," reported the AFP news service.
"US defence attorneys warned on Wednesday that the indictment of a colleague for helping a militant Muslim leader communicate with his followers will have a chilling effect on the justice system, scaring some lawyers from representing unpopular clients. David Cole, a law professor at Georgetown University in Washington said that it’s an ominous sign of how far this Justice Department will go to treat speech and communications as a crime even when there is no connection to criminal activity," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The Israeli army said yesterday it had arrested more than 4,000 Palestinians in its vast West Bank sweep that showed few signs of easing only hours before the arrival of US Secretary Colin Powell on a delicate peace mission," reported the AFP news service.
"US Secretary of State Colin Powell was heading to Israel yesterday to try to stop the Middle East bloodshed but Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he is no mood for pressure from Washington," reported the AFP news service.
"European lawmakers have called for trade sanctions against Israel, raising the diplomatic pressure ahead of an EU ministerial meeting on the Middle East crisis next week. Israel deplored the resolution, saying the EU’s failure to take an even-handed approach dented its credibility as a player in the peace process," reported the Reuters news agency.
"The US military has devised the world’s first “indestructible sandwich” - a pocket-sized snack designed to survive airdrops and extreme temperatures and still be edible several years later," reported the AFP news service.
Russia’s security police on Wednesday accused the United States of drugging a scientist in a cloak-and-dagger conspiracy to steal military secrets. Russia and the United States have greatly improved ties since the Sept 11 attacks, when Putin was among the first to offer his support. The Kremlin has since backed the US-led war on terrorism. But the FSB charges add to a growing list of woes likely to crop up at the May 23-25 summit in Moscow and St Petersburg, already set to include bickering over US poultry imports, a US-funded radio broadcast to Russia’s separatist Chechnya region and nuclear disarmament," reported the Reuters news agency.
"International donors wrapped up a two-day conference here yesterday, saying they were impressed with the interim government’s progress since the Taliban were swept from power last year. Karzai urged donors to speed up the disbursement process if they are serious about fighting terrorism and helping the nation achieve stability," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"A surge of violence has set nerves on edge in Afghanistan and raised questions about interim leader Hamid Karzai’s grip on power. But the end result has been a sudden new mood of uncertainty about whether the fragile coalition cobbled together by Western powers last December can hold together. On the eve of the donors’ meeting where Karzai spoke, the European Union’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Dr Klaus-Peter Klaiber, signalled that if the Bonn accords were not followed and moves were made against Karzai, the aid tap could be turned off," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Afghan interim authorities have begun destroying poppy fields despite violent protests from farmers who are about to harvest the heroin-producing crop, a United Nations official said on Wednesday. Afghanistan was the world’s biggest producer of opium, the raw ingredient of heroin, until the Taliban regime stopped poppy cultivation last year. But with the collapse of the hardline Taliban in November, many farmers quickly reverted to growing what is easily the most lucrative crop in Afghanistan," reported the AFP news service.
"US defence attorneys warned on Wednesday that the indictment of a colleague for helping a militant Muslim leader communicate with his followers will have a chilling effect on the justice system, scaring some lawyers from representing unpopular clients. David Cole, a law professor at Georgetown University in Washington said that it’s an ominous sign of how far this Justice Department will go to treat speech and communications as a crime even when there is no connection to criminal activity," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Israel’s tanks swept into two West Bank towns yesterday in defiance of US pressure to end its offensive, shortly after US Secretary of State Colin Powell called off talks with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. There was no immediate comment from Arafat, but Palestinian cabinet minister Azzam al-Ahmad, when asked why the meeting had been cancelled, said it was to give Sharon more time to finish his attacks. He said that it is obvious that the Americans are seeing with one eye, not two eyes," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Most Americans believe the United States should halt or reduce economic and military aid to Israel if Prime Minister Ariel Sharon does not immediately withdraw troops from Palestinian areas, according to a Time Magazine/CNN poll released on Friday. As for Sharon, one quarter of the respondents consider him an enemy of the United States, 20% say he is a terrorist and 65% do not trust him," reported the Reuters news agency.
As Israeli forces moved into more West Bank villages yesterday, Palestinians in some of the hardest-hit areas were realising the extent of the damage: A Nablus man spoke of rescue workers pulling eight Palestinian bodies - including those of a man, his pregnant wife and his three sons - from a home demolished by Israeli bulldozers in the city centre," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"Israel’s Supreme Court has ordered the army not to bury the bodies of Palestinians in the Jenin refugee camp amid charges of a massacre there, public radio reported yesterday. The Palestinians say the bodies, including many women and children, are being hastily buried before the outside world is let in to see what has gone on in Jenin," reported the AFP news service.
"Powerless to force Israel to halt its West Bank offensive, the oil-rich Gulf Arabs are deploying their massive wealth in a show of the depth of support for the Palestinians, raising hundreds of millions of dollars. Organisers predicted the total amount would exceed 500 million riyals," reported the AFP news service.
"The head of international police body Interpol said on Friday a global terror database containing thousands of suspects' names and details of stolen passports was expected to be up and running within days. Since the Sept 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, Interpol, based in Lyon, France, has stepped up its efforts to share intelligence between its 179 members on terror financing and tracking down terror groups," reported the Reuters news agency.
"Elite US special forces posed for photos with Taliban fighter John Walker Lindh, handcuffed and with an obscenity written across his blindfold, Pentagon officials said on Friday. The Pentagon has repeatedly limited the news media in the kind of photos it can take of prisoners from the war in Afghanistan on the argument that photos subjecting the prisoners to humiliation violate Geneva Convention provisions on treatment of prisoners. An embarrassment to the military as unprofessional behaviour, the photos also could be a violation of international norms on prisoner treatment and a boost to his attorney’s claims that Lindh was mistreated while in US custody. It is at least the third troublesome incident for the Department of Defence involving photos of Lindh, a 21-year-old Californian who said he trained with al-Qaeda terrorists and is charged with conspiring to kill Americans," reported the Associated Press news agency.
"A 12-year-old boy was recovering in a New York hospital after swallowing 87 condoms filled with heroin in an attempt to smuggle them into the United States. Prince Nnaedozie Umegbolu - one of America’s youngest drug mules - turned himself in to police at La Guardia airport, saying he felt sick," reported the dpa news agency.
