Deutsche Welle English Service News 11. 01. 2005, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Jews in Germany Feel Winds of Change As the World Jewish Congress wraps up its annual meeting in Brussels this week, lively debate continues among Germany's Jewish leaders on anti-Semitism, immigration and the future of German Jewry. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1455185,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DW-WORLD's "Click Back" monthly review quiz for January is waiting for you and will test your knowledge of stories we've written. If you answer all questions correctly, you can also win a great prize. To play, please go to: http://www.dw-world.de/english ---------------------------------------------------------------------- UN calls for aid pledges to be delivered At a donor conference in Geneva, the United Nations has warned that governments must follow through with their pledges for the Asian tsunami relief effort. UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland told reporters he believed the second wave of destruction and disease had been averted. But he emphasised that "every cent" of the almost one billion dollars pledged was needed to feed the estimated 2 million people made homeless by the giant waves. Egeland also said that many communities were now looking to reconstruct their lives. Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer has left Sri Lanka ending his visit to several of the affected countries. Fischer met his Sri Lankan counterpart Lakshman Kadirgamar in the capital Colombo and pledged to help the island nation with immediate reconstruction. FAO warns of starvation The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation has warned that around two million people affected by the south Asian Tsunami face severe food shortages. In its report the FAO said people in 12 Asian countries were at risk after losing their livelihoods. Meanwhile Indonesia has warned relief agencies working in the devastated province of Aceh that it can no longer guarantee workers' safety outside major towns. Aid workers must now register to travel outside Banda Aceh and Meulaboh. Indonesia has been battling separatist rebels in Aceh for 15 years and had imposed martial law before the tsunami. Foreigners were banned from the province at the northern tip of Sumatra island until the tsunami disaster struck over two weeks ago. British Guantanamo inmates to be freed Britain's Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has said that the United State's plans to release the remaining four Britons held at Guantanamo Bay in the next few weeks. Straw told the House of Commons that the four could face charges under British anti-terrorism laws once they return. Five other Britons held at the US naval base in Cuba were released early last year. Meanwhile the Australian government has announced that that one of its nationals being held would also be freed without charge. A Pentagon official said on Monday that of the 550 suspects held at Guantanamo Bay only 25 percent had any intelligence value. Violence continues to escalate in Iraq The Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi has said "some pockets" of Iraq will probably be too unsafe to take part in the January 30 elections. Allawi has promised to increase the size of the army in the face of increasing violence. At least 13 Iraqis have died in two separate bomb attacks. A suicide car bomb at a police headquarters in Tikrit killed at least six people, while a roadside bomb south of Baghdad hit a minibus, killing at least seven. Shiites are expected to vote in large numbers in the upcoming elections. But Sunni Arabs, who make up about 20 percent of Iraq's estimated 26 million people, say it is far too dangerous to hold the poll, and leading Sunni clerics have called for a boycott. Bush names judge as security chief US President George W. Bush has named Michael Chertoff as the new secretary of Homeland Security. Chertoff, an appeals court judge, replaces Tom Ridge. Chertoff played a key role in formulating anti-terror policies at the Justice Department following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Sharon phones Abbas on election Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has phoned Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to congratulate him on his presidential election victory. It's said to be the highest-level contact between the two sides in several years. A Sharon aide said the prime minister had offered Abbas his cooperation. Following his election victory on Sunday Abbas urged a resumption of peace talks based on the internationally-backed "roadmap" peace plan. Palestinian militants, who boycotted the election, resumed hostilities on Tuesday firing rockets and mortars at Jewish settlements but there were no reports of casualties. EU, US seek talks on plane subsidies In an effort to end their trade dispute, the United States and the European Union have agreed to start talks on ending subsidies for their respective plane manufacturers Boeing and Airbus. European Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said the two sides were willing to resolve the dispute rather than pursuing it with the World Trade Organisation. Last year the US government filed a complaint with the WTO against the EU for pumping state subsidies into Airbus. The EU then lodged its own complaint over US support for Boeing. Abu Graib soldiers "did not abuse" The court-martial of a US soldier accused of leading the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison has continued. The court heard testimony from witnesses who said they saw Charles Graner abuse detainees at the prison. Graner has pleaded not guilty to charges that include mistreating detainees, dereliction of duty and assault. He claims he was following orders. Graner is one of the American soldiers shown in the Abu Ghraib photographs which caused world-wide outrage when they became public in May last year. He faces up to 17 and a half years in prison if convicted. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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. To find out more and sign up, please go to http://www.dw-world.de/english/newsletter ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For more information please turn to our internet website at http://dw-world.de/english Here you'll find out what's happening in Germany, Europe and the rest of the world. News and background reports from the fields of current affairs, culture, business and science. And of course the DW website also has information about DW-RADIO and DW-TV programmes: topics, broadcast times and frequencies. You can even listen to all programmes as audio-on-demand. Serbian News Network - SNN news@antic.org http://www.antic.org/
