Deutsche Welle
English Service News
13. 04. 2005, 2005, 16:00 UTC
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Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Germany's Ratzinger is Papal Forerunner
German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger has emerged as a frontrunner in the
race to find John Paul II's successor as thousands of pilgrims paid
their respects at the tomb of the late pope, open to the public for
the first time.
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US hostage appeals for life on video
An American national held hostage in Iraq has appeared on a video
urging the US government to withdraw its troops. The footage was
broadcast by Al-Jazeera TV. The video is said to show the
contractor, who was kidnapped on Monday, surrounded by gunmen
appealing for his life. Elsewhere in Iraq nine Iraqi soldiers
guarding oil fields north of Kirkuk were killed in a bomb explosion
near a pipeline. Four others were wounded. In Baghdad a series of
car bomb explosions wounded seven Iraqi civilians. Meanwhile, a day
after his surprise visit to Iraq, US Defence Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld has held talks in Afghanistan with President Hamid Karzai.
Their talks focused on security and NATO-related issues.
Global rush to destroy killer virus
Thousands of laboratories across the world have been asked to
destroy potentially deadly samples of the virus that caused an Asian
influenza pandemic in the 1950s that killed up to four million
people. The College of American Pathologists inadvertently sent out
samples of the H2N2 virus to 3,700 labs, most of them in the United
States. The World Health Organisation's top scientist, Dr Klaus
Stohr, told a press conference in Geneva, that the onus was on the
institution that made the error to ensure that the virus didn't get
into the wrong hands. Laboratories in Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore
and South Korea are said to have already destroyed all of their H2N2
samples.
Lebanon's PM-designate steps down
Lebanon's pro-Syrian prime minister-designate, Omar Karami, has
stepped down after failing to form a new government. Karami said
negotiations over the past five weeks had now reached an impasse.
However he stressed there was still time to find a solution in time
for elections scheduled for May. The country has been in turmoil
ever since the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri
in February. His killing, believed to have been sponsored by Syria,
triggered mass protests and forced Syria to agree to pull its troops
out of Lebanon by the end of this month.
Labour unveils election manifesto
Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair has unveiled his Labour Party's
election manifesto in London. The manifesto, called "Britain:
Forward, not back," highlights issues such as economic stability,
health, education and tackling crime. The programme also includes a
pledge not to increase the top rate of income tax. On immigration,
which is the central platform of the opposition Conservatives, Blair
said the next Labour government would put strict controls in place.
Blair, who is expected to win a third term in power in the election
on May 5, also set out plans to step down after serving that term in
office. He's likely to be succeeded by Chancellor of the Exchequer
Gordon Brown.
Germany to send UNMOs to Sudan
Germany is to send as many as 75 soldiers to Sudan as part of a
United Nations mission to secure a January peace accord with
southern rebels. Most of the German troops would be part of a team
of 750 UN military observers. The United Nations approved the
deployment of about 10,000 peacekeepers to Sudan late last month.
The cabinet decision to contribute Bundeswehr troops to the mission
has to be approved by the lower house of the German parliament.
Romania, Bulgaria get EU green light
The European Union parliament in Strasbourg has approved the
applications of Bulgaria and Romania to join the European Union.
MEP's voted overwhelmingly to back both countries' accession bids.
This paves the way for Bulgaria and Romania to sign the accession
treaty at a ceremony in Luxembourg on April 25. That treaty will
then have to be ratified by the parliaments of all 25 current member
states. The two countries are now slated to join the EU in 2007, but
only if they implement agreed political and economic controls. If
they fail to make enough progress, they could see their accession to
the EU delayed. The European Commission is to publish a report on
their progress in November.
IMF says global growth to slow
The International Monetary Fund says that global economic growth
will slow to around 4.3 percent this year from 5.1 percent in 2004.
The IMF made its prediction in its latest twice-annual economic
outlook. However the organistion is upbeat about the economy picking
up again next year. The report highlights the fact that global
growth is fairly uneven with most of it coming from the United
States and China and Europe and Japan lagging behind. The IMF also
warned that high oil prices were here to stay in the medium to
long-term and could be a risk to continued growth.
Pope's tomb open to the public
The tomb of Pope John Paul II has opened to the public in the crypt
beneath St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, five days after the
pontiff was buried. Hundreds of faithful started filing past the
tomb early on Wednesday. The crypt area had been closed to the
public since before the funeral last Friday. It contains the remains
of 60 other popes, including St. Peter, who according to the Bible,
was called by Jesus to be the first leader of the Church. Cardinals
of the Roman Catholic Church are scheduled to begin a meeting next
week to choose a new pope.
Iranian kidnapper to appear in court
An Iranian man who took four schoolgirls hostage in a town in
western Germany on Tuesday is due to appear in court today. There,
prosecutors are expected to demand that he be transferred to a
psychiatric clinic. Investigators say the 50-year-old man took the
girls hostage in an attempt to pressure the government into allowing
his family to join him in Germany. The hostages were freed unharmed
after special forces stormed the house in Ennepetal where the man,
armed with two knives, had been holding the girls aged between 11
and 16.
UEFA to rule on Milan on Friday
Finally sport and UEFA, Europe's football governing body, will
decide on Friday what disciplinary action to take over yesterday's
abandoned Champions League game between the rival Milan sides, Inter
and AC. The game was stopped after 73 minutes with AC leading 1-0
after flares were thrown onto the pitch by Inter fans. One of the
flares hit and injured AC Milan's goalkeeper. AC were leading 2-0
from the first leg. In Tuesday's other quarter-final game Bayern
Munich went out despite a quarter-final 3-2 victory over Chelsea
Chelsea advanced to the semi-finals 6-5 on aggregate goals.
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