News for Thursday, March 8, 2007
• Laos Confirms First Human Bird Flu Death Laos has confirmed its first human death from bird flu.
• US Military Commander in Iraq says Security is Top Priority The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, General David Petraeus, says his top priority is to provide security for Iraqis and that the buildup of American forces will continue.
• IAEA Approves Cuts in Nuclear Aid to Iran U.N. nuclear agency has approved sharp cuts in technical aid projects to Iran over concerns that Tehran might be to trying to build nuclear weapons under cover of a civilian nuclear program.
• China Unveils Hotly Debated Law Protecting Private Property China's parliament has introduced a law protecting private property, marking what analysts say is a significant step in the country's move from old-style communism toward a capitalist society. VOA's Luis Ramirez reports from Beijing.
• Police, Soldiers Arrested for Abductions and Killings in Sri Lanka In Sri Lanka, the government says it has arrested security personnel in connection with a series of killings and abductions in which most of the victims are from the minority Tamil community. As Anjana Pasricha reports from VOA's New Delhi bureau, the government has come under mounting pressure to halt rights abuses by both the military and Tamil Tiger rebels since their truce broke down.
• Japan, North Korea Talks End Early Talks between Japan and North Korea on diplomatic normalization have broken down in Hanoi. The North Koreans objected to Japanese demands for a full accounting of Japanese citizens kidnapped by Pyongyang in the 1970s and '80s. From Hanoi, Matt Steinglass has more.
• 11 Dead as Somali Insurgents Attack Newly-Arrived AU Peacekeepers Witnesses in Somalia's capital say at least 11 people have been killed in an attack on newly-arrived African Union (AU) peacekeepers.
• Red Cross Fears Complacency in Asia's Fight Against AIDS The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies fears that complacency is allowing HIV-AIDS to continue to spread in Asia. IFRC officials say fresh education campaigns are needed for the younger generation. Ron Corben reports from Bangkok, where the Red Cross has just wrapped up a meeting on AIDS.
• China Rejects US Human Rights Criticism China has rejected U.S. criticism of its human rights record, accusing Washington of hypocrisy for not addressing its own abuses. In a tit-for-tat response to the U.S. State Department's annual human rights report, China issued its own report accusing Washington of systematic abuses both abroad - in Iraq and Afghanistan - and at home. Daniel Schearf reports from Beijing.
• Israeli Prime Minister Olmert Plunges in Polls Israel's embattled Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is plunging in the polls. As Robert Berger reports from VOA's Jerusalem bureau, his sagging popularity has prompted a well-known leader of the right-wing opposition in parliament to prepare for a political comeback.
• N. Ireland Begins Vote Count for New Power-Sharing Assembly Northern Ireland has taken a step toward restoring a power-sharing assembly between Protestants and Catholics, as election officials have begun counting votes from a crucial election.
• Iran Frees Most Detained Women's Rights Activists Lawyers for Iranian women's rights activists say authorities have released most of the women detained after staging a demonstration outside a Tehran courthouse earlier this week.
• Italian Parliament Votes to Keep Troops in Afghanistan Italy's center-left government on Thursday won the first of two parliamentary votes that will allow it to keep troops in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, a large photo of an Italian reporter kidnapped in Afghanistan was hung from Rome's city hall as hundreds gathered to call for his release. Sabina Castelfranco reports for VOA from Rome.
• Bush Departs for Brazil on Six-Day Tour of Latin America President Bush has left for Brazil on a six-day Latin America tour aimed at promoting democracy and free trade.
• British Government Concerned About Group Missing in Ethiopia Britain has expressed "deep concern" over the fate of five people linked to its embassy in Ethiopia who were apparently kidnapped last week.
• EU Leaders Open Brussels Summit European Union leaders have opened a two-day summit focusing on landmark strategies for fighting global warming and protecting European energy supplies.
• Philippine Official Warns of Assassination Threats Before Poll The Philippine president's national security adviser says communist insurgents are training snipers to assassinate President Gloria Arroyo and other officials, including himself, before a May congressional election.
• Deadly Fire in New York City Kills 9 People, Most From Mali A deadly fire in New York City has killed eight children and one adult in an extended family of immigrants from the West African country of Mali.
• NATO Soldier Killed in Offensive in Southern Afghanistan NATO says one of its soldiers was killed Thursday as troops pressed ahead with their largest offensive to date against Taleban fighters.
• North Korea Tells EU it is Determined to Implement Nuclear Deal North Korea has assured a visiting European Union delegation that it will implement a landmark nuclear deal and completely dismantle its weapons program.
• Bird Flu Found Again in Poultry in Afghanistan U.N. officials have confirmed a new outbreak of the virulent H5N1 strain of bird flu in Afghanistan.
• Ecuadorean Police Surround Congress to Enforce Court Ruling Hundreds of police have surrounded Ecuador's Congress to enforce a court decision to dismiss 57 lawmakers.
• Council on Foreign Relations Report Recommends US Troop Withdrawal From Iraq in 12-18 Months A new report by a senior analyst at the Council on Foreign Relations recommends the United States withdraw most of its armed forces from Iraq within the next 12 to 18 months. The recommendation comes as more than 21,000 additional U.S. troops are arriving in Iraq in an effort to quell sectarian violence in Baghdad and fight insurgents in al-Anbar province. VOA correspondent Meredith Buel has details from Washington.
• Canadian Detainee Allowed to Make First Call from Guantanamo A Canadian detainee at the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has been allowed to call his family for the first time in nearly five years.
• Researchers Find Cancer Tumor Suppressor Also Causes Tanning Researchers have discovered that a gene that is associated with cancer causes the skin to tan and protects it from the sun's harmful rays. Scientists say the finding provides insight into the workings of the tumor suppressor gene known as p53. VOA's Jessica Berman reports.
• Iran: UN Technical Aid Cuts Will Not Affect Uranium Enrichment Work Iran's envoy to the United Nations nuclear agency says sharp cuts in technical aid projects to Tehran will not affect the country's uranium enrichment work.
• Economists: India's Economic Growth Potential Limited Economists say India's economic growth potential is limited by resources and poorly developed infrastructure. VOA's Barry Wood followed a debate about India's economy at Washington's Brookings Institution and filed this report.
• Bush Trip Prompts Few Cheers Among Uruguayans Thousands of mainly leftist Uruguayans are preparing to demonstrate against President Bush's visit to the South American country, the second stop in a five-nation tour of Latin America. Bilateral trade and the fight against poverty are expected to take center stage in Mr. Bush's talks Saturday with his Uruguayan counterpart, Tabare Vasquez, in the picturesque city of Colonia. But, as VOA's Michael Bowman reports from the Uruguayan capital, the Bush visit has prompted a fierce debate in Uruguay over the U.S. role on the world stage.
• Foreign Oil Companies Agree to Discuss Handover to Venezuela Venezuela says two major foreign oil companies have agreed to discuss handing over their multibillion-dollar operations to the government in time for a May first deadline.
• Congressional Democrats Challenge Bush on Iraq Troop Withdrawals President Bush faces new challenges from the Democratic-controlled Congress over new troop deployments in Iraq and funding for military operations. Democrats in the House of Representatives are proposing legislation calling for U.S. troops to begin withdrawing from Iraq as early as this year, and by 2008 at the latest, as the White House issued a veto threat, while Senate Democrats tried but failed to win Republican support for a plan to debate a withdrawal resolution. VOA's Dan Robinson has a report.
• US Prepares for Possible Flow of Caribean Immigrants U.S. officials have wrapped up an exercise to prepare for the possible mass flow of migrants arriving by boat from Cuba or another Caribbean nation. From Miami, VOA's Brian Wagner reports that the drill was intended to test existing U.S. resources to combat illegal migration, as well as drug and people smuggling.