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DEUTSCHE WELLE/DW-WORLD.DE Newsletter
English Service News
27.12.07, 17:00 Uhr UTC
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Today's highlight on DW-WORLD:
Pakistani Opposition Leader Bhutto Killed in Suicide Attack
Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was killed in a suicide
bomb attack after a rally in the city of Rawalpindi.
To read this article on the DW-WORLD website, just click on the
internet address below:
http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evx8llI4501ileI0&req=l%3Devx8lkI4501ileI0
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Former Prime Minister Bhutto assassinated
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has been assassinated
following an election campaign rally in Rawalpindi. A spokesman for
her Pakistan People's Party said a gunman shot Bhutto twice as she
was leaving the rally. The gunman then detonated his explosives in a
crowd of her supporters, killing at least 15 others and wounding
many more. The 54-year-old Bhutto had survived a bomb attack on a
procession through the city of Karachi two months ago. This came
just hours after she had returned to the country following eight
years in exile. Bhutto was twice elected prime minister, but both
times she was dismissed by the president over allegations of
corruption. She was the daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who was
Pakistan's first popularly elected prime minister. He was executed
in 1979 after being deposed in a military coup.
Violence breaks out after Bhutto killing
Pakistan has put its security forces on red alert after the killing
of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto sparked violent protests by
her supporters in many parts of the country. Several buildings were
reported to have been set ablaze in Karachi, the capital of her
native Sindh province. Shooting and stone-throwing was reported in a
number of cities. President Pervez Musharraf has called on his
fellow countrymen to remain calm. Musharraf was speaking following
an emergency meeting called to discuss how to react to the killing.
Bush condemns Bhutto assassination
US President George W. Bush has joined many international leaders in
condemning the assassination of Pakistani opposition leader Benazir
Bhutto. Speaking to reporters at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, Bush
described the killing as a cowardly act. The United Nations Security
Council is set to meet to discuss Bhutto's murder. A UN spokesman
said the closed-door discussions could be followed by a joint
statement from the 15 diplomats. Among the other leaders to condemn
the attack was European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso. He
issued a statement condemning the assassination while at the same
time expressing hope that Pakistan would remain on track for a
return to democratic civilian rule.
Abbas to press Olmert on settlements
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas have held talks in Jerusalem, but have failed to
resolve tensions over Israeli plans to build new homes in east
Jerusalem. It was the first time the leaders had met since last
month's peace conference in the United States. Abbas demanded at the
talks that Israel halt all settlement activities as laid down in the
so-called "road map" peace plan. But an Israeli official said that
the prime minister stood by plans to build the homes. The plans are
clouding peace talks that were revived at the conference after a
seven-year pause. The Palestinians have refused to address
important issues such as borders, the future of Jerusalem and
Palestinian refugees until Israel freezes settlements.
Israeli strike kills three Palestinians
Medical officials say at least three Palestinian militants have been
killed and five others wounded in an Israeli military operation near
the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis. Local residents said the
intended target was a group of militants belonging to Hamas and the
Islamic Jihad who were fired upon from the air and targeted by an
Israeli tank shell. An Israeli army spokesman said forces fired at a
group of gunmen who had shot a rocket-propelled grenade at a
military vehicle.
Kenyans vote in presidential, parliamentary elections
Voters in Kenya are going to the polls in presidential and
parliamentary elections. The presidential contest pits the incumbent,
Mwai Kibaki, against his former ally, Raila Odinga, and observers
say the race is too close to call. Both candidates have promised to
liberalize the economy and implement free secondary education.
Turnout is said to be high and long queues have been reported at
many polling stations. There are also concerns about how fair the
elections will be, particularly after Odinga found that his name was
not on the registered voters list when he went to cast his ballot.
More than 15,000 European Union and other observers are in the East
African nation to monitor the elections.
EU and UN diplomats leave Afghanistan
Two senior European diplomats declared personae non gratae in
Afghanistan have left the country. The Afghan government has accused
the British United Nations employee and the Irish European Union
official of threatening national security by meeting Taliban rebels
in the south of the country without its consent. The UN has said
that the affair was the result of a misunderstanding. A UN spokesman
in Kabul said that while the diplomats did visit the southern town
of Musa Qala, there were no negotiations with Taliban insurgents.
Bosnia presidency nominates Spiric as PM-designate
Bosnia's presidency has nominated acting premier Nikola Spiric as
prime minister-designate, paving the way for his approval by
parliament on Friday. Spiric resigned as prime minister on November
1 in protest at moves by Bosnia's international peace envoy,
Miroslav Lajcak, to reform government voting rules. The move
triggered what analysts called Bosnia's worst political crisis since
the end of the 1992-95 war. The crisis was resolved in late November
after rival ethnic politicians agreed to the reforms.
EU concerned as Turkey against targets PKK sites
Turkish warp***s have again bombed Kurdish guerrilla targets in
northern Iraq. Turkish military officials say the cross-border raid
is the fourth in five days. Ankara says it has the right under
international law to hit rebels of the Kurdistan Workers Party or
PKK who take shelter in northern Iraq and, from there, mount deadly
attacks on troops in Turkey. The United States has said it can
understand Turkey's concerns but is worried about possible
escalation. German EU parliamentarian Herbert Reul has called for an
immediate end to the air raids. The Turkish military says in its
largest air strike on December 16, it killed at least 150 rebels and
destroyed more than 200 PKK targets.
US forces kill 11 Shiite militants in Iraq
US forces say they have killed 11 Shiite militants in an early
morning raid on Thursday in the town of Kut, south of Baghdad. The
US operation was reportedly targeting a Mahdi Army splinter group
accused of committing acts of terrorism in Iraq. Iraqi officials
claim the dead included two civilians.
France asks Chad to transfer convicted aid workers
French authorities have asked for the transfer of six convicted aid
workers from Chad to France. This comes a day after a court in Chad
sentenced the French nationals to eight years of forced labour,
after finding them guilty of trying to kidnap 103 children from the
African country. The members of French aid organisation Zoe's Ark
were arrested in October while trying to put the children on a
flight bound for Europe.
Serbia threatens to abandon bid to join EU over Kosovo
Serbia has threatened to reconsider its bid to join the European
Union if the bloc recognises the province of Kosovo as an
independent state. Serbia's national assembly overwhelmingly voted
in favour of a resolution saying Belgrade would not sign any treaty
that did not acknowledge its territorial integrity and sovereignty
over Kosovo. Kosovo's ethnic-Albanian leaders have said they would
declare independence early next year. Some European Union countries
and the United States have said they would support the move.
Over 50 people still missing in Java floods
Over 120 people are presumed dead and 50 are still missing after
heavy downpours caused flooding and a series of landslides in
Central and East Java provinces on Wednesday. Blocked roads are
hampering ongoing rescue efforts as local authorities struggle to
get heavy equipment into the affected area. Meanwhile thousands of
people have been moved to shelters after their homes were buried or
washed away by torrential rains. Local officials say this is the
worst flooding that Indonesia has seen in over 25 years.
Commandos help free Sri Lankan minister
Sri Lankan commandos have rescued a government minister who was
being held by the staff of a state-run television station in Colombo.
The journalists refused to let Labour Minister Mervin Silva leave
the building after one of his aides allegedly assaulted a news
director. Silva is said to have gone to the television station to
complain because it had failed to broadcast a speech that he made on
Wednesday.
Japan and China may jointly explore East China Sea gas deposits
Japan's Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda has arrived in China for a four-
day trip. Economic ties have been steadily growing between the two
Asian giants and Fukuda is expected sign a number of agreements with
Chinese leaders. The two sides are also expected to discuss a
territorial dispute over lucrative gas fields in the East China Sea.
Both China and Japan claim sovereignty, but officials from both
sides discussed joint explorations in secret talks last week.
Germany's biggest child porn investigation under threat
There are fears that an investigation into Germany's biggest-ever
child pornography investigation could be in jeopardy after details
of the probe were made public. Prosecutors in Saxony-Anhalt
announced earlier this week that 300 people in the eastern state
were suspects in the investigation. Officials in the southern state
of Bavaria say they fear that other suspects could now destroy
possible evidence. Since the start of this year, police have been
investigating 12,000 people suspected of having downloaded child
pornography from the Internet. Several people in high public office
have already been named as suspects.
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