Deutsche Welle English Service News February 22nd 2005, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
NATO Leaders Agree on Iraq Assistance In what was widely regarded as a largely symbolic pledge, US President George W. Bush won support from his NATO allies to assist in the training of Iraqi security forces on Tuesday. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1497451,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- In light of the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in 2005, DW-WORLD has put together a special site marking the occasion. Our coverage looks at the effect of World War II on countries around the world and includes interviews with scholars as well as picture galleries. To view the site, please go to http://www.dw-world.de/english ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Earthquake in Iran kills hundreds At least 270 people have been killed in a powerful earthquake in Iran. Emergency workers however anticipate over 500 dead. The quake struck early on Tuesday morning in the province of Kerman, measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale. Thousands of people in villages in the mountainous area have been affected. The region is in the same province as the city of Bam where an earthquake killed more than 30,000 people in 2003. NATO and US seek unity US President George W. Bush is in the Belgian capital Brussels for a NATO summit aimed at bringing unity back to the alliance. Speaking to the press at NATO's headquarters, Bush thanked the alliance for its participation in Iraq and its commitment to help train Iraqi security forces. NATO chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, speaking alongside Bush, said that all NATO members had expressed their support for maintaining a strong alliance. NATO experienced one of its worst crisis ever when members were sharply divided over the US-led invasion of Iraq. North Korea ready to return to talks In a new turnaround, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has said he is ready to resume six-party talks on the country's nuclear weapons program if certain conditions are met. Pyongyang's state news agency quoted Kim as telling a visiting Chinese diplomat that talks could resume "at any time" if the United States showed "trustworthy sincerity." North Korea admitted publicly for the first time earlier this month that it possessed nuclear weapons but had said it would not return to talks with the United States, South Korea, China, Japan and Russia. Tougher laws against Neo-Nazis Germany's ruling coalition government has agreed to strengthing laws in the fight against right-wing extremism. Politicians from both the Social Democrats and the Greens want anyone who denies, glorifies or endorses Nazi atrocities to face up to three years in prison. The opposition Conservative Democrats say they welcome the suggestion, but want more debate on the issue. A planned demonstration in May by the right-wing NPD party at the Brandenburg Gate has sparked debate on amending German laws regarding the right to assemble. A Neo-Nazi march earlier this month marred a commemoration ceremony in Dresden, marking a World War II Allied bombing raid. Schleswig Holstein coalition talks begin Two days after elections in the German state of Schleswig Holstein, the Social Democrats have entered into coalition talks with the Danish minority party. SPD state premier Heide Simonis is negotiating a deal with the Southern Schleswig Voter Association after the SPD/Green coalition failed to secure a majority. But the Christian Democrats candidate Peter Harry Carstensen says his party, which won more votes, should control the state parliament by forming a grand coalition with the SPD. Iraqi Shi'ite list chooses PM The Shi'ite Alliance has named Iraqi Vice President Ibrahim Jaafari as the candidate for the post of prime minister. The Shi'ite religious list also known as the United Iraqi Alliance won a majority of seats in last month's elections. Party officials announced the candidacy after the main challenger, US-backed Ahmed Chalabi, dropped his nomination bid. Ibrahim Jaafari is head of the Shiite religious Dawa party. Two arrested over Manila bomb attack Two suspected terrorists have been arrested in the Philippines. Police allege the two members of the Al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group planted a bomb inside a bus on Valentine's Day in the Philippine capital Manila. The explosion killed six people and wounded about 100 others. Abu Sayyaf claimed responsibility for two other Valentine's Day bomb attacks in the southern cities of General Santos and Davao which killed six more people and injured dozens. New avalanches hit Indian Kashmir A fresh avalanche has struck Indian Kashmir as the death toll from massive snowslides reached more than 150. Police said the avalanche hit an area 80 kilometers south of the summer capital Srinagar, killing three people and leaving six missing. The region has been blanketed by up to five meters of snow since Thursday. Strong winds and poor visibility in the mountainous Himalayan region are hampering rescue efforts. Hundreds of people are still missing in the worst snow falls in a decade. Palestinian cabinet deadlock resolved Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie has agreed to revamp his proposed cabinet with more reform-minded ministers. He plans to present the new government to parliament on Wednesday. The compromise follows a one-day delay in parliamentary approval of the new cabinet because of disagreements around several long-serving ministers with ties to the late Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat. 15 killed in Papua plane crash Fifteen people have been killed and three critically injured in a plane crash in Indonesia's remote Papua province. An airport official said the plane, operated by police, slammed into the ocean as it approached an airport at the northern coastal town of Sarmi. The crew contacted the airstrip to report engine failure moments before the plane crashed. Ugandan ceasefire talks to continue Ceasefire talks between the Ugandan government and rebels will continue next week although an amnesty has expired. The ceasefire granted by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni to the Lord's Resistance Army expired on Monday and military operations are expected to resume. But the government stressed that peace efforts aimed at ending 18 years of war will continue. Novartis buys generic pharma firms The Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis has bought out two major competitors on the global generic medicine market for 5.6 billion euros. The German firm Hexal and the US company Eon Labs, both makers of less expensive non-brand-name medicines, are being absorbed by the Novartis subsidiary Sandoz. The concern says it expects sizeable growth in the generic pharmaceutical market as governments try to rein in medical costs. Generic drugs are most often used in the world's poorest countries for treating HIV/AIDS. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Enjoy our ""World News"" newsletter? Why not also subscribe to ""Daily Bulletin"", DW-WORLD's latest daily digest of the day's top German and European stories, delivered to you around 18:30 UTC. 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