23 January 2004 Friday 30 Ziqa'ad 1424 Iraq WMDs have gone to Syria: US official BAGHDAD, Jan 22: US Senate Intelligence Committee chairman Pat Roberts said on Wednesday there was some concern Iraqi weapons of mass destruction had gone to Syria, and Washington vowed to carry on searching for such arms in Iraq. ... Business booming in S. Iraq: UK official BASRA: The top British official in southern Iraq says business is booming in what Iraqis hope will once again be known as the Venice of the East - at least measured by the traffic jams that paralyze the streets of this port city. ... War on terror is 'finished' WASHINGTON: So that's it: Washington is no longer at war. But didn't President Bush just tell us the exact opposite in his State of the Union address? He did. He said most emphatically that the war goes on - and showed that it's over. ... Hazara leader to challenge Karzai KABUL, Jan 22: A leader of Afghanistan's minority Hazara community announced Thursday plans to run against President Hamid Karzai in the country's first democratic elections later this year. ... US sees threat in new Al Qaeda generation LONDON, Jan 22: A US anti-terrorism envoy said on Thursday that while two-thirds of known Al Qaeda leaders had been captured or killed, a new generation of militants was the next area of concern. ... Sharon says he'll stay till 2007 TEL AVIV, Jan 22: A defiant Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told cheering right-wing supporters on Thursday he had no intention of resigning as prosecutors considered indicting him over allegations a businessman friend bribed him. ... Bush's speech leaves Arab commentators speechless CAIRO, Jan 22: Newspapers in Egypt and Syria on Thursday took pains to highlight US President George Bush's omission of any reference to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in his State of the Union address. ... Nato chief seeks security dialogue with ME states DAVOS, Jan 22: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato) plans to build up a security partnership with Israel and Arab states around the Mediterranean in a drive to bolster the 'war on terrorism' ... OIC allowed to take part in fence case AMSTERDAM, Jan 22: The World Court said on Thursday it had authorized the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to take part in proceedings against the building by Israel of a controversial barrier in the West Bank. ... Sharon's subjugation plan goes unchecked BEIRUT: Recently at a conference in Herzliya, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon declared that if the Palestinians did not soon take significant steps to cub 'violence' ... Israeli art paints picture of Palestinian suffering AL QUDS: A Jewish settler fires at the feet of Palestinian farmers. Soldiers at a roadblock, wary of suicide bombers, order Palestinians to bare their bellies. Palestinian children face checkpoint scrutiny on the way to school. ... 54 Iranian MPs vow to boycott elections TEHRAN, Jan 22: Iran's political crisis deepened on Thursday as 54 MPs threatened to boycott next month's parliamentary elections if voters were not given a free choice of candidates and other reformists were beaten up by hardline thugs. ... Iran to face 'serious consequences': IAEA - UK, France allege non-cooperation DAVOS, Jan 22: The UN's nuclear watchdog warned Iran on Thursday it faced "serious consequences" unless it cooperated with a probe of its atomic programme ... Tehran blamed for 9/11 attacks HAMBURG, Jan 22: A surprise witness who caused the postponement of a verdict due on Thursday in a trial over the Sept 11, 2001, attacks in the United States has told German authorities that Iranian intelligence was involved in the plot. ... Six killed in Egypt amid bad weather CAIRO, Jan 22: Six people were killed and another 42 hurt on Thursday in traffic accidents around Egypt, as it was swept by heavy rains and sandstorms that also forced traffic to be diverted from Cairo airport, reports said. ... Veil ban causes problems with Arabs: French FM - German president opposes move PARIS, Jan 22: French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin said on Thursday a planned ban on religious symbols in state schools had caused Paris problems with Arab countries and the United States ... BD bans poultry imports DHAKA, Jan 22: The government of Bangladesh has imposed a ban on import of one-day-old poultry-parent stocks from a number of south and southeast Asian countries until March 15, against the backdrop of a bird-flu outbreak in those countries. ... Five million on US list of terrorists SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 22: Security agents in the United States have a master list of five million people worldwide thought to be potential terrorists or criminals, media reports here said. ... US lawyer blasts tribunals WASHINGTON, Jan 22: A US military lawyer representing an Australian national held at the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, said the military tribunals created to try Sept 11 suspects were unfair and unable to serve justice. ... Nasa loses contact with Mars rover PASADENA, Jan 22: Nasa scientists said on Thursday they had lost contact with the robot rover Spirit on Mars and were unsure what had caused the problem. Spirit project manager Pete Theisinger said at a news briefing ... Kerry surges ahead in race MANCHESTER, Jan 22: Senator John Kerry surged to a big lead on Thursday in the Democratic presidential nomination race in New Hampshire as US President George Bush pushed his "war on terrorism" to boost his re-election agenda. ... Bird flu could mutate into worse form: WHO GENEVA, Jan 22: The World Health Organization expressed concern on Thursday that a strain of bird flu, which has so far killed five humans, has for the first time broken out simultaneously in several Asian countries and could mutate into a far more lethal form. ... UN obesity plan clears first hurdle GENEVA, Jan 22: Key members of the World Health Organization (WHO) agreed on Thursday to back a worldwide drive against obesity, but health activists warned that the plan could still be diluted. ... LTTE terms alliance political ruse KILINOCHCHI, Jan 22: Tamil Tigers on Thursday said in their first address to the press after the linking of the party of President Kumaratunga and Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna on Jan 20 ...

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