News for Monday, January 22, 2007
• NBA: Mavericks Hold Off Heat 99-93 No summary available.
• NFL: Colts, Bears to Meet in Super Bowl No summary available.
• Tennis: Haas, Gonzalez Post Upset Wins at Australian Open Tennis stars Tommy Haas and Fernando Gonzalez have posted upset victories to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in Melbourne.
• North Korea Nuclear Negotiations Could Re-Start Soon The U.S. chief negotiator on ending North Korea's nuclear weapons programs says talks could re-start soon, after host China agreed to arrange them as quickly as possible. Daniel Schearf reports from Beijing.
• Beijing Predicts Worsening Traffic Before 2008 Olympics China says Beijing's already snarled traffic situation is likely to get worse in the run up to the 2008 Olympics.
• Bombs in Central Baghdad Market Kill 50 Iraqi police say two bomb blasts in a central Baghdad market have killed at least 55 people and wounded at least 75 others.
• Putin says Kosovo Proposal Must Satisfy Both Sides Russian President Vladimir Putin says his government will only support proposals on the future of Serbia's Kosovo province if they are acceptable to both Serbia and ethnic Albanians living in the province.
• US Firefighters to Help Ease Australian Bushfire Crisis The United States has responded to Australia's request for international help to cope with its bushfire emergency. About 100 American firefighters have arrived in Melbourne. About one million hectares of forest and farmland have been destroyed in conditions described by state leaders in Victoria as some of the worst ever. Phil Mercer in Sydney reports.
• Palestinian Factions Continue Talks After No Agreement on Coalition Leaders of the two main Palestinian factions say a new round of talks will begin on Tuesday aimed at creating a unity Palestinian government. VOA's Jim Teeple reports, Palestinian leaders failed to resolve the issue during talks on Sunday in the Syrian capital, Damascus.
• Japan's Central Bank Keeps Main Interest Rate Unchanged The Bank of Japan has decided to keep interest rates unchanged because of economic uncertainties, while Thailand's central bank has cut rates in a bid to boost economic growth. Claudia Blume in Hong Kong has more on these and other stories in our weekly look at business news from around Asia.
• Russian General Calls Planned US Anti-Missile Radar a 'Threat' A Russian general says placing elements of a U.S. anti-missile system in Poland and the Czech Republic would be a "clear threat" to Moscow.
• Afghanistan Dismisses Taleban Vow to Set Up Schools Afghanistan's education minister says the government will never allow the Taleban to set up schools in the south of the country.
• Suicide Attack Kills 4 Pakistani Soldiers A suicide bomb attack has killed at least four Pakistani soldiers in the country's volatile tribal region near the Afghan border. The attack underscores growing concerns that a government-brokered peace agreement with local militants has collapsed. VOA correspondent Benjamin Sand reports from the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.
• Vietnam Introduces New Rules to Curb Stock Speculation Vietnam's State Securities Commission is taking measures to make the stock market more transparent and to guard against irresponsible speculation. The market has risen rapidly in recent weeks, and authorities are concerned that a bubble may be forming. In Hanoi, Matt Steinglass has more.
• China's State Catholic Church Welcomes Vatican Overtures China's state-administered Catholic Church has welcomed this weekend's overtures by the Vatican as a step forward in improving relations. However, the church, known as the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, has said it will continue to appoint its own bishops in defiance of the Holy See. Daniel Schearf reports from Beijing.
• Lindsay Lohan Checks Into Rehab; FOX TV's American Idol Draws Record Number of Viewers The January 16 premiere of this year's American Idol drew 37.3 million viewers. The show presented contestant auditions in Minneapolis. The following night, 36.9 million viewers tuned in to watch auditions in Seattle. The audition shows gave FOX-TV its highest ratings ever for entertainment programming. Next week, the network will air American Idol auditions from Memphis and New York.
• Probe: British Police Covered Up Role of Protestant Outlaws in 10 Belfast Killings A top police official in Northern Ireland says British police in the 1990s colluded with Protestant outlaws behind at least 10 Belfast killings, 10 attempted killings and a host of shootings and bombings.
• Abortion Opponents March in Washington, DC Tens of thousands of anti-abortion activists are set to take part in Monday's annual "March on Washington" to mark the 34th anniversary of a Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion.
• Former Liberian Interim Leader Faces Corruption Probe Former Chairman of Liberia's interim government, Gyude Bryant, faced an investigation committee Monday on accusations that his administration stole state funds. The investigation is part of a probe into the disappearance of millions of dollars from the transitional government between 2003 to 2005. Analysts say that if the process is efficient and fair, it could strengthen the current government's efforts to combat corruption. Kari Barber reports from our West Africa bureau in Dakar.
• New WHO Director Optimistic About Taming Global Health Threats The Director of the World Health Organization, Margaret Chan has told the group's 34-member Executive Board that it must tackle a wide-range of global health issues including measles, malaria, polio and the avian influenza pandemic. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from WHO headquarters in Geneva that decisions made at this meeting will be submitted to the World Health Assembly for its approval in May.
• Iran Bars 38 UN Atomic Inspectors from Visiting Facilities Iranian officials say the government has barred 38 United Nations atomic inspectors from coming to check on Iran's nuclear facilities.
• Heroic French Priest Abbe Pierre Dies France has lost one of its heroes: a 94-year-old priest and champion of the homeless called Abbe Pierre. He died from a lung infection at a Paris hospital early Monday, plunging the nation into mourning. Lisa Bryant has more from the French capital on his extraordinary life.
• Guinea Strike Escalates Protesters in Guinea say at least 10 people have been killed in and around the capital Conakry, on the 13th day of an increasingly chaotic national strike. Meanwhile, the headquarters of the main unions have been raided. Naomi Schwarz has more from Dakar.
• Business Leaders Call on Bush to Take Action on Climate Change Chief executives of 10 major U.S. companies are urging President Bush Monday, to support a more aggressive stance to fight climate change.
• British Crews Begin Pumping Oil from Freighter Aground in English Channel British salvage experts have begun removing hundreds of tons of fuel oil and other hazardous materials from a cargo ship aground off the southern coast of England.
• Belgrade Analysts Say Vote Result Brings Serbia Closer to Europe Even though the nationalist Radical Party got the most votes in Sunday's parliamentary election, analysts in Belgrade believe the vote will actually lead to closer Serbian links with western Europe. VOA's Barry Wood reports from Belgrade.
• WHO Chief Says Elimination of Bird Flu is Years Away The head of the World Health Organization has said it will be years until bird flu is eliminated in poultry, and that until then the world must remain vigilant against a human pandemic of the disease.
• Bush Addresses Annual Right to Life March in Washington President Bush has addressed tens of thousands of anti-abortion activists who have gathered in the nation's capital. VOA's Michael Bowman reports from the White House, Monday's annual "Right to Life" demonstration marked the 34th anniversary of a contentious Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion across the country.
• Israel Appoints New Army Chief Israel's government has selected a retired army veteran as chief of the Israeli Defense Forces, the country's top military post. VOA's Jim Teeple reports from Jerusalem, it is less than a week since the previous IDF chief resigned following criticism of his leadership during Israel's war in Lebanon last summer.
• Al-Arabiya Offices in Gaza Damaged by Blast Palestinian witnesses say a large explosion damaged the Gaza offices of an Arabic satellite television network. No one was injured in the blast.
• EU Calls for Tightening of Sanctions on Iran The European Union called on all countries Monday to enforce United Nations sanctions against Iran and announced a series of measures it would take against Tehran's efforts to develop a nuclear program. Lisa Bryant has more for VOA from Paris.
• Journalists Recruited for Guinea Worm Eradication In Ghana, officials of the guinea worm eradication program are recruiting journalists in a campaign against the disease that is endemic in some African countries. Efam Dovi reports from Ghana's capital, Accra, the Carter Center has been sponsoring a workshop for journalists as part of an effort to help educate the public about the disease.
• UN Rushing Help to Flood-Ravaged Bolivia The United Nations is rushing food and other aid to 40,000 victims of severe floods and landslides in Bolivia.
• New US Passport Rules Take Effect Tuesday Starting Tuesday, air travelers with passports from the United States, Canada, Mexico or Bermuda will be required to show those documents in order to enter the United States when arriving from any part of the Western Hemisphere.
• Chicago, Los Angeles Submit Olympic Plans Los Angeles and Chicago have submitted detailed plans to the U.S. Olympic Committee that show why they think they should be selected to bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics.