Deutsche Welle English Service News January 1st 2006, 16:00 UTC ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
New EU President Austria Wants "Momentum" for Europe Austria Sunday began on a musical note its six-month presidency of the European Union, to which it wants to provide a "vitamin boost" by trying to reopen the debate on the constitution and growth. To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the internet address below: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1841522,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Germans are funnier than most people think. Here's 12 months of quirkiness to prove it: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1838347,00.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Three Italians released in Yemen Yemeni tribesmen have released three Italian women who were among a group of five Italian tourists kidnapped on Sunday. Negotiations for the peaceful release of the remaining two have begun according to Yemeni security officials. The tribesmen are pressing for the release of fellow tribe members held by the authorities. The abduction occurred in the eastern province of Maarib, about 170 kilometres east of the capital Sanaa. On Saturday, a German family of five, including former junior minister Juergen Chrobog, had been released after being held hostage for three days. Chrobog, his wife and three sons returned to Germany in good health on Sunday. Russia cut offs gas to Ukraine Russian gas giant Gazprom says it has cut all exports of natural gas to Ukraine over a price row. This comes after Ukraine rejected the latest terms offered by Gazprom for gas deliveries. A Gazprom spokesman said Russian gas shipped for Ukrainian consumption had been cut by 120 million cubic metres a day. Russian President Vladimir Putin had imposed on Ukraine a midnight deadline to agree to a deal that would have delayed a quadruple rise in gas prices until April. The EU, which draws a quarter of its gas from Russia, has expressed concern about this dispute but the Kremlin has said supplies to western Europe will not be disrupted. Italian hostage freed in Gaza Palestinian security forces have freed an Italian hostage who was kidnapped by masked gunmen in the Gaza Strip. The Italian peace activist was being taken to a compound in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. The gunmen seized the hostage during a visit by a delegation of 18 Italians ahead of elections on January 25. The kidnapping came just three days after three British hostages were set free in Gaza. An offshoot of al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, part of Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas's ruling Fatah movement, said it carried out the kidnapping. Cypriot-Lebanese hostage in Iraq freed A Cypriot-Lebanese man who was kidnapped in Iraq five months ago has been released by his captors. The Cypriot foreign ministry confirmed that the man had been freed on Saturday. A previously unknown Islamist militant group, the Propagation of Virtue and Prohibition of Vice, had said it abducted Garo Jekerjian for supplying alcohol to Iraqi and US forces in the country and threatened to kill him unless his company quit Iraq. Security forces kill protester in Iraq At least one person is dead in the northern Iraqi city of Rahinawa near Kirkuk after security forces fired on angry protesters. Both US and Iraqi troops were in the area but it was unclear who had fired on the crowd. The demonstrators were protesting the lack of basic services and fuel shortages. In reaction to the violence, the city imposed a curfew in Rahinawa as of 6 PM local time. In the capital Baghdad, 13 car bombs went off on Sunday but there were no reports of any injuries. Party expels Syrian ex-VP Khaddam Syria's ruling Baath Party has expelled former Vice President Abdel Halim Khaddam two days after he criticised the president from exile in France. A statement said he betrayed both the party and Syria. On Friday in Paris, Khaddam attacked Syrian President Bashar al Assad, saying the leader had threatened Lebanese ex-Prime Minister Rafik al Hariri who was assassinated last February. Assad has denied the claim. Austria wants to give Europe 'momentum' Austria has assumed the presidency of the EU and is presented with a series of important matters in its six-month leadership. Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel said on his Web site that Austria wants to bring "new momentum" in the debate on the EU constitution. Also on the agenda is the ratification of the hard-fought 2007-2013 budget and reviving the European economy. German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited Vienna on Sunday and together with her Austrian counterpart, criticised the superfluous regulations imposed by Brussels on the 25 member states. Palestinian factions say truce is over The armed wing of the radical Islamist group Hamas has announced that it has ended a truce agreed with Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas. Three other factions, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees had earlier also said they had ended the truce and claimed to have carried out a series of recent rocket attacks on southern Israel. Although the truce agreement was only meant to last until the end of 2005, Abbas had hoped that it would be renewed. Meanwhile two Palestinians have been killed by Israeli artillery fire in northern Gaza. Palestinian security sources said a number of shells had exploded near the town of Beit Lahiya. Bush-fires raging in SE Australia In south-east Australia a heat-wave has resulted in a series of bushfires destroying at least ten homes. Temperatures soared up to 45 degrees Celsius making New Year's Day the hottest day on record. In the state of Victoria a major fire destroyed five homes and is burning out of control, sweeping towards several towns across a 30 kilometre front. To the north of Sydney, the capital of New South Wales, fire officials said some 3,000 fire-fighters were on high alert, with weather conditions expected to worsen later in the day due to winds picking up and fanning 35 bushfires already burning across the state. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The year is almost over and it's time to take a look back at some of the most memorable stories that took place in Germany this year. Join us for a review in pictures at http://www.dw-world.de/english 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. 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