News for Wednesday, April 18, 2007
• Roh Says S. Koreans Shocked, Saddened by US University Shooting South Korean President Roh Moon-hyun has held a special meeting of his aides to discuss a massacre in the U.S., in which a South Korean university student killed 32 students and teachers before killing himself.
• New Technologies, Trends Discussed at Annual NAB Meeting Leaders in the U.S. broadcast industry are discussing new technologies and trends at the annual meeting of the National Association of Broadcasters in Las Vegas,Nevada. As Craig McCulloch reports, HD Radio, once known as Hybrid Digital radio, is one developing technology that is gaining attention.
• 5 Terrorists Killed in US, Iraqi Raid Near Fallujah The U.S. military in Iraq says coalition forces have killed five terrorists and detained 30 suspects during an operation in the restive Al Anbar province, west of Baghdad.
• Australia, US Agree to Swap Refugees Australia and the United States have signed an unusual deal to swap illegal asylum seekers. The plan is for refugees held by the U.S. in Guantanamo Bay to be resettled in Australia, while Australia will send boat people from its detention centers on South Pacific islands to the United States. The aim is to deter people smuggling into the two countries. From Sydney, Phil Mercer reports.
• China's 'Mother River' Irreversibly Damaged A report on China's Yangtze River, the longest in China, says human activity has caused irreversible damage and severe pollution to the river and its tributaries, threatening water supplies to millions. The report says the water quality is getting worse and more needs to done to protect China's "mother river." Daniel Schearf reports from Beijing.
• Philippine Government Puts Price on Head of Muslim Rebel Commander The Philippine government has offered a bounty for the capture of a Muslim guerrilla commander on the southern island of Jolo, where recent fighting has killed at least 21 people. Douglas Bakshian reports from Manila.
• Bomb Blasts in Iraqi Capital Kill 34 Iraqi security officials say a series of bomb blasts killed 34 people in Baghdad Wednesday.
• UN Reports 'Remarkable' Surge in Asian Economies The United Nations says Asia's economies are surging ahead, but warns that attempts to manage currency exchange rates could unsettle things. And, as VOA's Kate Pound Dawson in our Asia News Center in Hong Kong reports, the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for the Asia Pacific says discrimination against women costs the region billions of dollars in economic growth.
• Bangladesh Party Leader Sheikh Hasina Barred From Entering Country Bangladesh's military-backed emergency government has effectively barred the head of the Awami League party, Sheikh Hasina, from returning to the country. Tuesday, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia reportedly agreed to demands from the administration to go into exile. Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi that the two women have dominated the country's politics for nearly two decades.
• Body of US Peace Corps Volunteer Found in Northern Philippines A Philippine army general says search teams have found the body of a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer who went missing 10 days ago.
• 19 Killed in Shootouts Involving Rival Gangs & Police in Brazil Brazilian police say at least 19 people have been killed in shootouts involving rival gangs and police in Rio de Janeiro.
• Instructors Say They Were Alarmed by Virginia Tech Gunman's Writings The young Virginia Tech student who committed the worst shooting massacre in U.S. history is described as a silent, troubled person whose writings concerned instructors so much they contacted school officials.
• Tensions High Between Turkey, Iraqi Kurds Last week Turkey's top general called for military action against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq. But Iraqi Kurdish officials say a political solution, not a military one, is what is needed to settle this decades-old issue. From the capital of northern Iraq's Kurdistan Region, VOA's Margaret Besheer has more.
• Bible Publisher's Staff Slain in Turkey Turkish officials say three people were killed Wednesday at a publishing house that printed Bibles.
• Colombian President Accused of Backing Death Squads A Colombian opposition leader has accused President Alvaro Uribe of supporting anti-crime groups in the 1990s that evolved into powerful death squads.
• Archaeologists in Mexico Find Evidence of Child Sacrifice by Toltecs Archaeologists in Mexico say they have discovered the remains of more than 20 children apparently sacrificed by priests in the 10th to 12th centuries.
• At Least 10 Dead in Renewed Mogadishu Violence Witnesses in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, say renewed fighting between Ethiopian troops and Somali insurgents has left at least 10 people dead and at least 20 injured.
• Opposition Candidates Call for Postponement of Presidential Vote in Nigeria Saturday's presidential ballot in Nigeria appears headed for a crisis, as a coalition of opposition candidates calls for its postponement. Gilbert da Costa reports for the VOA from Abuja that the opposition's call is generating debate in Nigeria.
• Oscar Winner Forest Whitaker Gets Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame The Last King of Scotland" hspace=2 src="/english/images/The_Last_King_of_Scotland_Forest_Whitaker_210.jpg" width=165 vspace=2 border=0> Forest Whitaker, who this year received Oscar, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors' Guild trophies for his portrayal of African dictator Idi Amin in The Last King Of Scotland, is now the 2,335th addition to the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.
• University Gunman Was Accused of Stalking Two Female Students Police say the young Virginia Tech student who committed the worst shooting massacre in U.S. history before killing himself was investigated for allegedly stalking two female students in 2005.
• US Supreme Court Upholds Ban on Disputed Abortion Procedure (File photo - 22 Jan 2007) " hspace=2 src="/english/images/AP_US_Anti-abortion_demonstrators_eng_195_22jan07.jpg" width=210 vspace=2 border=0> The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a ban on a controversial abortion procedure.
• Olmert: Israel Cannot Meet All Palestinian Demands for Soldier's Release Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says his country is not prepared to meet every demand of Palestinian militants to secure the release of a captured Israeli soldier.
• UN Chief in Italy for Talks with Italian Leaders U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon met Wednesday with Italian political leaders for talks on crises around the world. For VOA, Sabina Castelfranco reports from Rome.
• Report: Sudan Flying Arms Into Darfur in Violation of UN Resolutions The New York Times says there is evidence Sudan is flying arms and military equipment into Darfur in violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.
• 'American Idol' Judge Paula Abdul Refused Star Treatment on US Airline Flight Paula Abdul found the skies not so friendly on a recent U.S. airline flight.
• Paris Hilton Violates Probation, Must Attend May 4 Hearing Paris Hilton must attend a May 4 hearing for allegedly violating her probation.
• Rice Meets With Palestinian Cabinet Minister The State Department has confirmed that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met Tuesday with Palestinian Finance Minister Salam Fayyad. It was the first meeting at that level under a new U.S. policy allowing contacts with non-Hamas members of the Palestinian unity government. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department.
• Ukraine Demonstrators Delay Court Hearing Thousands of demonstrators in Ukraine temporarily delayed the start of a second day of hearings on whether President Viktor Yushchenko acted legally in disbanding parliament and ordering early elections.
• Zimbabwe President Blasts Critics at Independence Anniversary Celebration Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has marked his nation's independence day by issuing new threats against the opposition and blaming the nation's economic crisis on greed by businessmen and alleged saboteurs.
• Nations Commit Themselves to Helping Iraqi Refugees The U.N. refugee agency says nations have pledged to support and to protect nearly four million refugees and displaced people in Iraq and surrounding countries. They also promised to help the host countries cope with their overwhelming refugee burden. More than 450 representatives from 60 countries attended the two-day international refugee conference. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from UNHCR headquarters in Geneva.
• Former DRC Vice President Calls for Political End to Crisis Former vice president of the Democratic Republic of Congo Azarias Ruberwa is calling on the government to halt plans to lift the immunity of opposition leader Jean-Pierre Bemba in order to charge him with high treason. Kari Barber reports from VOA's West and Central Africa bureau in Dakar.
• IAEA: Iran Enriching Uranium The United Nations nuclear agency says Iran has started enriching uranium at an underground facility.
• Nigerian Military: 25 Islamic Militants Killed in Clash Nigerian officials say security forces have killed at least 25 Islamic militants during a battle Wednesday in the northern city of Kano.
• Libyan Leader Declines to Meet With Negroponte The U.S. State Department says Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi declined a U.S. request to meet with the highest ranking U.S. official to visit Libya in decades.
• Many Killed as Fighting Erupts Again in Mogadishu Heavy fighting between Ethiopian troops and insurgents erupted again late Tuesday in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, killing and wounding nearly two dozen people. As VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu reports from our East Africa Bureau in Nairobi, there are indications that the latest attacks against the Ethiopians may have been carried out largely by members of a radical Somali youth group, trained in guerrilla warfare.
• Bomb Blasts in Iraqi Capital Kill 190 Bomb blasts have killed 190 people in Iraq's capital in the worst day of violence since U.S. and Iraqi forces launched a security crackdown in Baghdad two months ago.