Deutsche Welle
English Service News, 26.12. 2001, 16:00 UTC
India-Pakistan Standoff Intensifies
India's standoff with rival Pakistan over Kashmiri militants has
intensified, with Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee saying an
unwanted war was being "thrust" on his country.
Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf said his country's armed
forces were "fully prepared". On Tuesday, Pakistan arrested Maulana
Azhar Masood, the leader of one of two Pakistan-based guerrilla
groups blamed by India for attacking New Delhi's parliament two
weeks ago. Pakistan has not explained why it made the arrest. Forces
built up along Kashmir's Line of Control have again traded gunfire.
Officials in India's western desert state of Rajasthan, with also
shares a border with Pakistan, said homes had blacked out lighting.
Troops' leave had been cancelled and an Army Day parade called off.
Bushfires Shroud Sydney
Sydney remains shrouded in smoke for a second day as bushfires
fanned by winds rage across hilly outskirts, including the Blue
Mountains, and dozens more sites in the state of New South Wales.
At least 140 homes have been gutted, most to the south and west of
Sydney. Five thousand firefighters have been reinforced by crews
from other regions. Some 2,500 residents have been evacuted. Burning
trees that fell have cut power to 12,000 homes. Roads and rail links
are blocked. Blazes in western New South Wales have killed thousands
of sheep and cattle. Officials said "fire storms" had spread at
ferocious speed and say the emergency could last for 10 days.
Mudslides Kill 45 in Rio
Heavy rains that battered Rio de Janeiro in recent days have killed
more than 45 people in mudslides and driven 2,000 from their homes
in one of the state's worst disasters, according to Brazilian civil
defense officials. The number of victims is expected to climb as
rescue workers struggle to find as many as 50 people still missing
in the mountainous region of Petropolis, a popular weekend retreat
near Rio de Janeiro.
Refugees storm Eurotunnel
Traffic through the Eurotunnel was suspended for hours last night as
French police rounded up 500 migrants who stormed barb-wire fences
and tried to walk through to England.
An initial group of 150 stormed past security guards. Three hours
later a larger second group tried to enter the tunnel. Police fired
teargas. Fifty people were detained; the rest were sent back to a
Red Cross camp at Sangatte, near Calais. Motorists left waiting to
be taken on board trains were put up in hotels. Refugees often risk
their lives trying to reach Britain through the Eurotunnel. Its
operator wants the camp relocated away from the French terminal.
Sri Lanka Asks Norway to Mediate
Sri Lanka's new government has asked Norway to help initiate peace
talks with Tamil Tiger rebels, who like government forces, began a
bilateral ceasefire on the island nation on Christmas Eve.
Norway has previously acted as an intermediary. Prime Minister Ranil
Wickremesinghe told a news conference that many steps were needed
first, including the lifting of an economic embargo on
rebel-held areas from January 15th, before any sort of talks would
begin. Wickremesinghe's party won an election earlier this month.
Jericho Blockade Eased
After weeks of blockade, Israel's army has eased access to the
Palestinian West Bank city of Jericho.
Some road blocks, erected at the start of December after suicide
attacks by Palestinian militants on Israelis, have been removed.
But, other Palestinian autonomy areas remain sealed off. On Tuesday
night, Israeli troops raided the West Bank village of Azzoun and
detained 17 alleged activists. Ten days ago Palestinian President
Yasser Arafat, who's been confined to Ramallah, called for an end to
assaults on Israelis and ordered the arrests of militants.
Somali Leader Denies Terrorist Link
The president of an autonomous region in Somalia cited by the United
States as a possible haven for Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda militants
has insisted that the area has been free of extremists for almost a
decade. Jama Ali Jama, elected in November as president of Puntland,
made the statement in an interview with Reuters. Somalia, without a
central government since 1991 and controlled by a transitional
government and rival warlords, has been named as one of the
countries the United States could next target in a widened campaign
against terrorists beyond Afghanistan.
Duma Endorses Treaty with China
Russia's lower chambre of parliament, the Duma, has endorsed a
friendship and co-operation treaty reached with China a few months
ago, almost unanimously.
Only one deputy voted against; another abstained. The treaty had
been signed in July in Moscow by President Vladimir Putin and
visiting Chinese President Jiang Zemin.
Small Plane Crashes off Bremerhaven
Along Germany's North Sea coast, six occupants of a small aircraft
are feared dead after it crashed into the river Weser after taking
off from Bremenhaven Airport.
Three others were rescued from icy waters by a ferry boat, according
to police, but one, with head injuries, died on the way to hospital.
The two survivors suffered hypothermia. Divers are looking for the
sunken wreck in deep tidal waters. The two-engine plane, a "Britten-
Norman Islander" had been heading to the island of Wangerooge.
Serbian News Network - SNN
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