Deutsche Welle English Service News 15. 01. 2005, 17:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
US Said to Regret Kidnapping of German The United States has reportedly expressed regret to Germany over the kidnapping of a German citizen of Lebanese origin. The man claims he was mistakenly held prisoner for months as a terrorism suspect. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,1564,1459629,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Abbas calls for ceasefire The new Palestinian president has called for a ceasefire and talks with Israel. At his swearing-in ceremony, Mahmoud Abbas condemned the recent violence by both Israel and Palestinian militants. He said peace could only be achieved by working together. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon cut off all contact with the Palestinians on Friday following a bomb attack by militants which killed six Israelis in the Gaza Strip. He said he would not meet Abbas until the new president clamps down on Palestinian militant groups. On Saturday, six Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire in the Gaza Strip. In his speech Abbas also said he would ask outgoing Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei to stay on and form a new government. Tight security for Iraqi elections Iraq has said it plans to put in place strict security measures for the parliamentary elections on January 30. The government will declare the day an official holiday and all vehicles will be forbidden around polling stations and traffic reduced in cities. The Iraqi army and police will be responsible for the safety of the vote. International troops are to remain on standby. State Minister Wael Abdul Latif said there was the chance that some majority Sunni areas may not be able to vote because of threats by insurgents. US soldier guilty of abuse in Iraq A military jury has found US soldier Charles Graner guilty of beating and sexually abusing prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. Many of the offences were documented in photos showing Graner and other military policeman standing by naked detainees in sexually humiliating positions. The photos shocked the world when they were published last year. The court also heard graphic descriptions of the abuses from three Abu Ghraib detainees. Graner, who is the first soldier to be court martialled over the abuses, faces a prison term of up to 15 years and discharge from the army. US wants bigger tsunami warning system The US has said it intends to extend its Pacific Ocean tsunami warning system. It would stretch across the Atlantic coast, through the Carribbean and into the Gulf of Mexico. It would cost about 30 million euros and could be in place in about three years. Ex-Chinese leader Zhao in coma The former Chinese leader Zhao Ziyang is said to be in a deep coma in a Beijing hospital following a series of strokes. The 85-year-old Zhao was head of the Communist Party and Prime Minister for most of the 1980s. He was ousted from power and put under house arrest after opposing the military crackdown on the pro-democracy student protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989. China and Taiwan allow direct flights Taiwan and China have agreed on the first major direct flights between them in over 50 years. The planes would run from the end of this month until the middle of next, over the Lunar New Year holidays. Taiwan banned direct flights when it split from China in the late 1940's. Until now, air travellers from China to Taiwan or vice versa had to fly via Macao or Hong Kong. Gunbattle rages in Kashmir Fighting has broken out in Indian Kashmir after separatists stormed a government building in the main city of Srinagar. A police spokesman said a fierce gunbattle erupted between the rebels and paramilitary troops stationed there. There's been no immediate information on any casualties. N Korea may return to nuclear talks North Korea has told a visiting US congressional delegation that it is ready to return to six-party nuclear talks. The communist state said it would treat the United States as a "friend" if Washington does not slander the rule of leader Kim Jong Il. The US has reacted cautiously to North Korea's offer, saying it needed to see concrete action from Pyongyang. The US, China, Japan, Russia and South Korea have struggled to arrange a new round of talks aimed at persuading North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons programs. Three prior rounds of talks made no breakthroughs. The last round was held in June. Probe lands on Saturn's moon The world's first glimpse of the surface of Saturn's moon Titan has revealed a mix of icy land and liquid. The photos of Titan provided by the Huygens space probe showed what appeared to be boulders of ice, drainage channels, and coastlines. Officials at the European Space Agency said the three billion dollar project was a success. Titan is said to have similar conditions to Earth some four billion years ago and may provide clues on how life started here. It's believed to be the only moon in the solar system with an atmosphere and is larger than Mercury and Pluto. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DW-WORLD values your opinion: We look forward to hearing from you about stories we write and regularly post your letters in our reader response section. Check them out at: http://www.dw-world.de/english or write us an e-mail yourself:[EMAIL PROTECTED] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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/
