2 April, 2005 Saturday 22 Safar 1426 Sunnis urged to join Iraqi forces: Religious leaders’ appeal BAGHDAD, April 1: Alarmed at a lack of Sunnis in new Iraqi security forces, religious figures made a radical policy change on Friday by calling on followers to join the police... Nine US troops killed in plane crash TIRANA, April 1: All nine US military personnel died when their plane crashed in an isolated snow-covered area of Albania, a defence ministry spokesman said on Friday. “None of the US... Former PM, 200 others freed in Nepal KATHMANDU, April 1: Former Nepal prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala and around 200 other activists detained since King Gyanendra seized power two months ago have been released, police said on Friday.... How the next pope will be elected VATICAN CITY, April 1: The death of the pope immediately sets into motion a historic chain of events to elect a successor and prevent any risk of division in the Roman... Schiavo’s parents, husband fight on PINELLAS PARK, April 1: Terri Schiavo’s husband and her parents made plans on Friday for separate memorial services, as the family’s bitter division over her fate endured beyond the brain-damaged Florida... Top of Samarra spiral minaret blown up SAMARRA, April 1: Gunmen blew up the top of a towering centuries-old spiral minaret in the Iraqi city of Samarra, damaging one of the country’s prized architectural treasures. Police said the... Africa to have first pope in 1,500 years? LAGOS, April 1: As African Catholics prayed for the health of Pope John Paul on Friday, speculation mounted that the ailing pontiff could be succeeded by Africa’s first pope in more... Reporters slam lack of Pope Coverage ROME, April 1: Journalists at two Italian TV channels complained management made them stop a report on the Pope’s failing health on Thursday night while Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was speaking... Opposition party formed in Afghanistan KABUL, April 1: Afghan President Hamid Karzai welcomed on Friday the formation of Afghanistan’s first opposition party by his main opponent in last year’s presidential vote as an important democratic step... BD terms US report on HR baseless DHAKA, April 1: Bangladesh’s Law Minister Barrister Moudud Ahmed on Thursday dismissed a US State Department report on Dhaka’s human rights record and democracy as neither balanced nor objective. In its... UN votes for Darfur trials at ICC UNITED NATIONS, April 1: The UN Security Council voted on Thursday to approve war crimes trials over Sudan’s Darfur conflict at the International Criminal Court, ending weeks of deadlock over US... Man who tried to kill pope prays for him ISTANBUL, April 1: Mehmet Ali Agca, the Turkish extremist who tried to assassinate Pope John Paul in 1981, is praying for his ailing “brother” from his Istanbul prison cell, his lawyer... Tortured maid loses fingers RIYADH, April 1: An Indonesian maid who was imprisoned and tortured by her employers in Saudi Arabia had her fingers amputated at a Riyadh hospital on Thursday. Doctors at the Riyadh... The gates of hell are open in Iraq THE US-British occupation of Iraq is poisoning all political processes in my country and across the Middle East. The elections held under the control of the occupying forces in January were... UN goes after nuclear terrorists UNITED NATIONS: After seven long years of negotiations, the United Nations has finalized an international convention against nuclear terrorism. “It’s a major achievement,” Rohan Perera, chairman of the UN Adhoc Committee... Japan takes a hard look at immigration TOKYO: With one of the lowest birth rates in the world, Japan has been forced to look at the once unthinkable and accept wide-scale immigration, a prospect which could keep its... The mythology of people power LONDON: Before his denunciation the other day of the “prevailing influence” of the US in the “anti-constitutional coup” which overthrew him last week, President Askar Akayev of Kyrgyzstan had used an... Fairytale anniversary for Andersen COPENHAGEN: Fairytale writer Hans Christian Andersen, whose tales, including “The Ugly Duckling” and “The Little Mermaid”, have fascinated generations of children, will be feted in royal style in his native Denmark... Egypt awaits democracy CAIRO: Ever since President Hosni Mubarak asked parliament for a constitutional amendment allowing multi-candidate presidential elections, speculation has grown around prospective contenders. While a handful of independent personalities have hinted at... Why neo-cons are out for Kofi Annan’s blood LONDON: The debate on Darfur in the UN Security Council last night is a salutary reminder that the only hope for peoples abandoned by their own governments is an effective international...

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