From the World-Wide Resourses of the Western Australia
Reserch Senter(*)
		OIL THE NEWS THAT FITS MY VIEWS   #48
                ===============================
In the Run-Up to World War III, Reliably Reporting the News Relevant
to Extreme Right-Wing Democratic Socialists Everywhere
(validated for RiteThink(tm) by the Office of Our Man in Can-berra).

Visit Our Home Page At: http://www.chickenhead.com/loserscopes/
See the Undeniable Evidence At: http://www.evil-doers.org/evidence
This Stuff Blogged At: http://kymhorsell.blogspot.com/
Also Kindly Archived At: http://www.kymhorsell.com/OIL/ [203/8 &ct disabled].
Iraqi Body Count: http://www.iraqbodycount.net/ [4,849+ as at 23 May 2003].

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Selecting latest news stories and other data for you...
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Fri, 23 May 2003.

US military budget approved
Money well spent
India and Pak refuse to talk
Al-Qaeda morphs into new threats, alters terror war
US calls looting from nuke site no risk
Unmanned drones may patrol US borders: Ridge
Iraq ready to resume oil sales once sanctions lifted: official
US-Brit rule of Iraq wins UN vote 
Mixed reaction among Iraqis to end of sanctions
Bush "grateful" Iraqi sanctions lifted 
Blair hails Iraqi sanction vote
Blair's legal adviser doubted Iraq plan's legality
US forces say number 8 on Iraq wanted list in custody
Several Iraqis killed in firefight, US troops say
Powell remains defiant over existence of WMDs in Iraq
9 Afghans have hijack convictions overturned 
Mins from 55 countries tackle Afghan drugs trade
Man arrested in beheading murder
Cannibalism alleged after 300 bodies found in DRC
Indon army kills 25 rebels
Indonesia considers night curfew in Aceh flash-points
Hamas refuses to end suicide bombings
Israel seizes arms boat off Lebanon
Canada battles MCD
Canada expands frantic search for mad cow cases
Virus may be unstoppable
Conference to determine extent of wheat virus
New travel warning issued for African countries
Govt to set up counter-terrorism division
Breach places Qantas security under the spotlight
Small quake hits Iran
SARS came from space?
Fastest Everest climb
2,700 farmers get drought assistance
Land-clearing plan win-win: PM
Medical indemnity crisis
Plastic bag plan scrapped
UK broadband breaks through 2 mn barrier 
Trade down for rest of y
Executive payouts hurting the bottom line: study
Markets
Continuous war news

Washington. US MILITARY BUDGET APPROVED!  The US Senate has approved a
Pentagon funding package of more than $A600 bn for the next FY to
finance military operations, update its arsenal and increase spending
on homeland security.  The vote on the 2004 Defence Authorisation Bill
was 91 to 1.  [We have your name, buddy!]  The lone "No" vote was cast
by Dem Sen Robert Byrd of W Va.  He issued a scathing attack from the
Senate floor, criticising the ever-expanding US military budget at a
time when the US is unchallenged as the only superpower on Earth.

Stockholm. MONEY WELL SPENT!  The Swedish aeronautics group Saab says
it's signed a $A88 mn contract with the AUS army to provide an
anti-aircraft defence system.  Saab Systems Pty, a subsidiary based in
Adel, has received an order for a portable RBS-70 S-to-A missile
system that targets low-flying aircraft.  Saab says the contract is
part of a larger deal that also includes the US defence firm Lockheed
Martin.  [And who can forget the F-117!].

New Delhi. INDIA AND PAK REFUSE TO TALK!  India's def min says India
won't hold peace talks with Pakistan in the near future.  The Press
Truss of India quotes George Fernandes as saying that when India
reaches the time for talks they will be held, but that time isn't
close.  He says the govt has focused on confidence-building measures
since the Indian and Pakistan PM's talked by phone earlier this m.
It was the first such contact in more than 2 y.

Al-Qaeda morphs into new threats, alters terror war
Op/Ed (USA TODAY).  3 wks ago, in an Iraq-war victory speech on board
the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln, Pres Bush Jr told sailors
returning from the conflict that "we have seen the turning of the
tide" in America's wider war on terror.  Yet this wk, a different
picture emerged.
On Tue, the US raised the terror threat to orange, the 2nd-highest
level, based on intel indicating attacks were being planned on US
targets. The warnings followed a spate of anti-Western suicide
bombings in Saudi Arabia and Morocco during the previous 8 days that
killed 75 people, including 8 Americans in Saudi Arabia.
As if that wasn't bad enough, on Wed, the Middle East's al-Jazeera
cable news channel broadcast an audiotape it said was from al-Qaeda
leader Osama bin Laden's top aide, Ayman al-Zawahiri, urging attacks
on W targets in Muslim lands.
The deadly signs of al-Qaeda's re-emergence telegraph a dangerous new
reality in the war on terrorism. In spite of impressive successes
against this enemy, the US has not so much "turned the tide" as it has
forced a fragmentation of al-Qaeda into a looser, but still-lethal, network.
While that indicates progress in the US ability to track and disperse
terrorists, it also poses new challenges made all the more tricky by a
foe that has demonstrated an insidious ability to adapt to changed
circumstances. Among them:
* New locales. Al-Qaeda has retreated to countries where it can blend
in, find recruits and enjoy the protection of pop'ns that support
its cause. Among them: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Pakistan, Iran, Egypt and
Afghanistan. Tracking down terrorists in these places requires the
govts to work more closely with the US -- or risk the consequences, as
Saudi Arabia has discovered. Last wk's bombings in the capital of
Riyadh followed Saudi reluctance to help crack down on rich donors
financing al-Qaeda or to root out terrorist cells spread throughout
the country. In one encouraging sign, Saudi officials said they
arrested 3 suspects who planned to fly planes into Saudi targets.
* New sources of support. The US has designated more than 250
terrorist groups that -- like al-Qaeda -- are continually morphing
into new units using charities and other organisations as fronts.  The
US can't combat them alone. Help from engaged allies is essential.
Since the Bush Admin launched the war on terror 20 m ago, the US has
won important battles. A State Dept report last m showed a drop in
global-terrorist incidents from 355 in 2001 to 199 in 2002. Though bin
Laden and several key lieutenants remain at large, al-Qaeda has been
ousted from its chief operations base in Afghanistan, dozens of its
leaders are in US or allied custody, and its global funding network
has been severely disrupted.  As the war enters a new phase against a
battered but still-determined enemy, the US will be challenged to
prove itself as adaptable as al-Qaeda.

US calls looting from nuke site no risk
Baghdad (The Washington Times).  US military inspection teams have
concluded that material looted from Iraq's main nuclear facility at
Tuwaitha poses little or no danger to the people who stole it and
cannot be converted into an effective "dirty bomb."  After cleaning up
2 small areas of spillage outside the facility, the Washington-based
Nuclear Disablement Team determined that the radiation level was no
more than double the dosage every human absorbs daily, officials said.
The group even camped and slept for 3 nights less than 100 feet from
one of 2 main storehouses for yellow-cake uranium, team members said.
US and Brit newspaper reports have suggested that residents of the
area were suffering from severe ill health after tipping out
yellow-cake powder from barrels and using them to store food.  Other
reports said the missing material could be used by terrorists to
produce a powerful radiological weapon.
But Col Tim Madere, the 5th Corps officer in charge of coalition
forces' chemical, biological, radiation and nuclear weapons search
teams, rejected both contentions yesterday.  Looters had broken open
the doors of the yellow-cake facility by the time Marines arrived, Col
Madere said in an interview.  Elevated radiation readings "kept
soldiers outside the facility, but they still continued to guard it
without going inside," he said, noting that the facility had no
perimeter wall and eased entry for looters when its Iraqi guards fled.
He said a huge troop deployment would have been needed to avoid
plunder in other parts of the Tuwaitha complex, which sprawls over
almost 6 square miles.
Col Madere said some isotopes of caesium or cobalt or similar
substances apparently used for industrial processes had gone missing
from one part of the complex, and that these were "much more suitable
than yellow cake" for use in any dirty bomb, in which a conventional
explosion is used to spread radioactive material.  He said, however,
that the radiation from the material stolen is likely to do less
damage to life than the conventional explosives used in the blast.
Yellow cake -- a raw form of thick radioactive powder that can be
processed into plutonium -- is too heavy to spread in the air and is,
therefore, a poor ingredient for a dirty bomb, he said.  In one of the
2 yellow-cake storage areas, only one of 280 barrels had been opened,
he said. He showed a reporter photographs of rows of apparently
undamaged 55-gallon drums. The opened drum revealed transparent
plastic sacks of the yellow material.
Workers had replaced the barrels periodically, and it was the empty
drums stacked outside the facility that were easier for looters to
carry away.  The storage of foodstuffs inside these barrels -- while
strongly inadvisable -- would be dangerous to health only if continued
for an extended period, a health official with one of the
investigating teams concluded.
US officials have been buying back the looted metal containers at $3 a
barrel. Tests on these recovered barrels showed "very low radiation --
so low people could drink out of them many times and not get sick,"
Col Madere said.  Statistical findings by the US teams showed one
radioactive "blip" from a small spillage nr the facility's door, which
registered less than twice the level of radiation humans get from
day-to-day living and "far less than you get from an X-ray," the
colonel said.
A much stronger blip was the result of a radioactive substance that
was out of its container, he said. It was then collected into a new container.
Col Madere said the US research teams had not been given comprehensive
lists prepared by the Internat'l Atomic Energy Agency of what the
Tuwaitha complex had housed. He would not speculate on whether that
was the fault of US authorities or the nuclear agency, which operates
under the aegis of the UN.  The agency has requested access to the
facility, which it regularly inspected after the 1991 war that led to
the expulsion of Iraq from Kuwait. 
Sec of Defence Donald H Rumsfeld says he will allow IAEA inspectors
access to the site.

Unmanned drones may patrol US borders: Ridge
Washington (AP).  Unmanned aerial drones similar to ones used in the
war on Iraq could be patrolling the US border by the end of the y to
help stem illegal immigration and increase security, Homeland Security
Sec Tom Ridge said Thu.
Predators and other remote-controlled aircraft can watch over a
potential target and fly for 100s of miles with cameras, sensors,
communications equipment or missiles.  Support has grown for the unmanned 
aircraft since their success during the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Spy cameras aboard a drone allowed US cmdrs to watch the capture
of Palestinian hijacking suspect Abul Abbas and oversee the rescue of
Army POW PFC Jessica Lynch. They also foiled an Iraqi ambush on US and
Brit troops. In Nov, an unmanned Predator drone killed suspected
al-Qaeda operatives in Yemen.
Several W congressmen have endorsed the use of the unmanned vehicles
over the US-Mexico border, including Rep John Shadegg, R-Ariz.
The Coast Guard is looking at new UAV technology that they can launch
from their ships, allowing them to extend their patrols for 100s of
miles, Ridge said. But "where you have wide open spaces, it's a lot
easier for us to take a look at some of the technology that is
presently employed by the Dept of Defence," Ridge said.

Iraq ready to resume oil sales once sanctions lifted: official
Baghdad (AFP).  Iraq has crude and fuel oil ready to export as soon as
13-yo UN sanctions are lifted by the Sec Council, an Iraqi oil
official said.  "We have between 8 and 9 mn barrels in storage in
Ceyhan," the Turkish terminal on the Mediterranean, the new director
of the State Oil Marketing Organisation (SOMO), Mohammed al-Juburi,
told AFP news agency.
These volumes are crude oil that were sent to the Turkish terminal
before and during the US-led war via a pipeline from Iraq's N fields.
Iraq has no other crude oil ready for export as its current production
is not enough to satisfy internal consumption, Mr Juburi said.
According to another Iraqi oil official, output is now running at a
little over 270,000 barrels per day, less than half the country's
demand.  But Mr Juburi said Iraq also had spare fuel oil in its
refineries that could be sold to neighbouring countries in exchange
for petrol and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
Iraq's refineries are producing more fuel oil than needed by the power
plants, but not enough petrol or LPG.
A draft resolution submitted by Brit and the US seeking the lifting of
UN controls on Iraq's oil exports was expected to be approved by the
Sec Council later on Thu after getting the green light from erstwhile
critics France, Germany and Russia.
Earlier this m the acting head of the oil ministry, Thamir Ghadhban,
said he expected Iraq to have spare oil for export by June.  He said
output was projected to reach one mn barrels per day, of which nearly
half could be exported if UN sanctions were lifted.

US-Brit rule of Iraq wins UN vote 
UN (AP). Putting aside bitter divisions over the Iraqi war, the UN Sec
Council gave the US and Brit a mandate Thu to govern Iraq and use its
oil riches to rebuild the country. The resolution opened the door to a
quick resumption of oil exports.
The 14-0 vote was a victory for the Bush Admin, which won the backing
of the chief opponents to the Iraq war -- France, Russia and Germany
-- even though those nations felt the UN wound up with too little say
in shaping Iraq's future.
Syria, the sole Arab country on the council, was absent during the
vote.  But Syria's deputy UN ambassador Fayssal Mekdad announced in
the council Thu afternoon that his govt would have voted in favour of
the resolution if the vote had been delayed for a few hr as he
requested. He said he wanted the record to reflect that the vote would
have been unanimous.
The resolution immediately ends economic sanctions imposed on Iraq
after its 1990 invasion of Kuwait, opening the country to internat'l
trade and investment.
"It's a wonderful day for the Iraqi people," Sec of State Colin Powell
said in Paris. "Now they can see the benefits of liberation as other
nations come to help with restoring stability, peacekeeping operations
and reconstruction."
With passage of the resolution, the following steps are expected: 
* Iraq can resume oil exports, halted since before the war. There are
8 mn barrels of Iraqi oil in storage tanks at the Turkish port of
Ceyhan that can be sold immediately, diplomats said.
* UN Sec Gen Kofi Annan will appoint a special representative to work
with US and Brit administrators on humanitarian aid, reconstruction
and the creation of a new Iraqi govt. Speculation for Annan's choice
centred on UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Sergio Vieira de
Mello of Brazil, who has Washington's support.
* A newly created Development Fund for Iraq will start receiving
proceeds from oil sales. The US and Brit will be in charge of using
the fund to rebuild the country. A new advisory body including the UN
and internat'l financial institutions will oversee the fund. It will
get a $1 bn deposit, transferred from the UN oil-for-food account.
* Govts must freeze Iraqi assets belonging to Saddam Hussein or his
govt and transfer them to the fund unless they are subject to legal claims.
* The oil-for-food program, which required Iraqi oil revenues to be
used primarily to buy humanitarian supplies, will be phased out over
the next 6 m. Annan will review $10 bn worth of contracts
existing under the program to decide whether they are still
needed. These contracts, many of them with Russian companies, range
from food and medicine to plumbing and sanitation equipment, oil spare
parts, and trucks.
* The resolution grants immunity from lawsuits involving future oil
and natural gas sales until Dec. 31, 2007, to allow Iraq temporary
relief from paying its estimated $400 bn debt and time to restructure
the debt.
Left unclear is the issue of UN weapons inspections. Under the 1990
resolution imposing sanctions, UN inspectors had to certify that Iraq
was free of weapons of mass destruction before sanctions could be lifted.
The Res ends sanctions without that certification. But it reaffirms
that "Iraq must meet its disarmament obligations" and says the council
will discuss the inspectors' mandate later. It gives no time frame.
Many council members had complained the resolution set no end to the
US and Brit occupation of Iraq. Though Washington rejected any time
limits, it made a key concession, agreeing to let the Security Council
review implementation of the resolution after a y and "consider
further steps."
Brit's UN Ambassador Jeremy Greenstock said Thu the occupation would
last "as short a time as possible."
After 2 wk of negotiations, the final resolution also didn't give
the UN the lead role in putting together a new Iraqi govt, as Russia,
France and Germany pushed for, or set a definite time limit for the
occupation of Iraq to end.  Still, France, Russia and Germany -- which
m ago blocked US efforts to win UN approval for an invasion of Iraq --
said that at least the UN now has its foot in the door.
French Ambassador Jean-Marc de la Sabliere said the final version "is
not perfect." But, he said Thu, "it now provides a credible framework
in which the internat'l community can lend support to the Iraqi people."
Russia's UN Ambassador Sergey Lavrov said his govt was "pleased at the
results" of the negotiations.  "This is a compromise, and in a
compromise, no one gets all that they want," Annan said after the
vote. "The resolution gives the internat'l community a legal basis for
its activity in Iraq. ...  We will go ahead and do our work."
In Washington, White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said Pres
Bush "is very grateful that the world has come together to lift the
sanctions on the long-suffering Iraqi people."
The fight over whether to launch a war on Iraq had torn apart the Sec
Council. Now, faced with the reality of Saddam's ouster and US-led
troops controlling Iraq, all sides had wanted to avoid a repeat of the
bitterness.
Only Syria's vote had remained a question mark. Ahead of the Thu
morning session, Syrian diplomats asked for a delay of a few hr so
the top leadership in Damascus could decide its stance.  But "there
was insistence to go on with the vote," said Syria's Mekdad.
In the 2 wk since the US introduced it, the text of the resolution
saw more than 90 changes.
The UN political role in Iraq was strengthened somewhat. Instead of a
UN "special coordinator" as initial drafts called for, Annan is
appointing a "special representative" -- a higher status.  The 
representative will have "independent responsibility" and work "intensively" 
with the US, Brit and the Iraqi people "to facilitate a process
leading to an internat'lly recognised, representative govt of Iraq."

Mixed reaction among Iraqis to end of sanctions
Baghdad (Reuters).  Basra residents fired off AK-47s Thu to celebrate
the end of crippling UN sanctions but other Iraqis were suspicious
that the move was part of a US plan to control Iraq's massive oil reserves.
The UN Sec Council voted 14-O to end 13 y of sanctions and grant the
US and Brit broad powers to run Iraq and sell its oil to fund
reconstruction until a new govt is established.
In Basra, Iraq's 2nd-largest city, the crackle of AK-47 fire echoed
over the rooftops and tracer bullets shot through the night sky for
more than an hr as residents celebrated.
But some Baghdad residents, who have been beset by health and security
problems in the chaotic wk since the fall of Saddam Hussein on Apr
9, suspected the motives behind the diplomacy.
"Before the US invasion, Washington did not want to lift the
sanctions, now they are pressing for lifting them. What is this game
all about?" street vendor Waleed Yaser asked.  
"Because America wants to control Iraq's wealth," replied his brother Ali.
The UN imposed sanctions on Iraq following its 1990 invasion of
Kuwait. But after Saddam's fall, the US argued they should be quickly lifted.
Washington and London garnered the broad Sec Council support they
sought but Syria, the 15th member of the Council, left its seat empty
and did not vote.
The UN embargo included a ban on Iraq's oil exports. But from Dec 1996
the UN allowed Baghdad to sell oil to buy urgently needed food and
medicine.  Iraq's oil exports have been terminated since the beginning
of the US-led war on Iraq on March 20.
Some were hopeful the end of sanctions and the flow of oil would help
ease the postwar crisis in Iraq.

Bush "grateful" Iraqi sanctions lifted 
Washington.  US Pres Bush Jr has hailed the UN Sec Council decision to
lift the 13-yo sanctions on Iraq, a rep said.  "The Pres is very
grateful that the world has come together to lift the sanctions on the
long-suffering Iraqi people," White House rep Ari Fleischer told
reporters.  "He is pleased that an agreement was reached. He thinks
this will help the Iraqis recover from the huge damage that Saddam
Hussein did to their country," he said.  "The Pres also wants to thank
Secretary [of State Colin] Powell for his hard work in bringing the
world behind the lifting of sanctions."  
The US-Brit proposed resolution 1483 was approved 14-0 in NY after
getting the green light from erstwhile critics France, Germany and
Russia.  The resolution immediately lifted the economic sanctions
imposed on Iraq and put its oil revenues into a new development fund,
to be held by the central bank and spent on reconstruction and humanitarian 
needs at the direction of the occupying powers, the US and Brit.

Blair hails Iraqi sanction vote
London.  Brit PM Tony Blair has hailed the new UN Sec Council
resolution on Iraq as a "very important day in the UN", which was now
reunited after their split over the war.  Speaking in Berlin alongside
his German counterpart Gerhard Schroeder, Mr Blair said it was good
news for the Iraqi people and the wider world.
He was one of 8 European leaders and more than 30 opp'n socialist
party chiefs invited to Berlin to help celebrate the 140th anniversary
of Germany's ruling Social Democrats (SPD).
Blair said the resolution provided "a vital role for the UN in the
reconstruction of Iraq. That is good for the Iraqi people and for the
internat'l community."
Mr Blair, who was US Pres Bush Jr's closest political and military
ally in the US-led war on Iraq, also said it was "extremely important
that we put the past behind us now" and move forward together.
Mr Schroeder, who fiercely opposed the war, did not comment, although
For Min Joschka Fischer welcomed the vote in a statement earlier as a
"good basis" for improving the lot of ordinary Iraqis and stabilising
the political situation.
The resolution, which was approved 14-1 [?] by the 15-member Council,
immediately lifted the economic sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990 and
put its oil revenues into a new development fund.

Blair's legal adviser doubted Iraq plan's legality
London.  PM Tony Blair denied claims, after a leaked memo from his top
legal adviser, that Brit and US forces may have acted unlawfully in
the reconstruction of post-war Iraq.  A-G Lord Peter Goldsmith had
indicated in the memo leaked to Brit's weekly New Statesman that a
further UN mandate was necessary to authorise any activities in
post-war Iraq beyond maintaining law and order.
"My view is that a further (UN) Sec Council resolution is needed to
authorise imposing reform and restructuring of Iraq and its govt,"
Lord Goldsmith reportedly wrote in his memo to Mr Blair dated March
26, just 6 days into the US-led war.
"It is completely wrong to say that at any point of time, the
A-G has said that the govt was acting unlawfully. We
would never act unlawfully in relation to this," Mr Blair said.  "In
any event, to be absolutely blunt, all these things have been
overtaken by the UN resolution," he said.
After the fall of Baghdad, the Pentagon set up the Office of
Reconstruction and Humanitarian Affairs (ORHA) to help pave the way
for an interim Iraqi Admin.  But ORHA, which has no official UN
backing, has been widely criticised for controlling the supply and
sale of Iraqi oil and awarding reconstruction contracts to US firms.
Lord Goldsmith's legal warning, printed in full in the magazine, said
that without a specific UN resolution, occupying powers are bound by
strict limitations.  These included a bar on "wide-ranging reforms of
govt'al and administrative structures", "any alterations in the status
of public officials or judges" except in exceptional cases, changes to
the penal laws, and "the imposition of major structural economic reforms".
"The govt has concluded that the removal of the current Iraqi regime
from power is necessary to secure disarmament, but the longer the
occupation of Iraq continues, and the more the tasks undertaken by an
interim administration depart from the main objective, the more
difficult it will be to justify the lawfulness of the occupation," the
memo said.
Following the claims in New Statesman magazine, opp'n Liberal Democrat
foreign affairs rep Menzies Campbell said: "If these reports are true,
the Brit govt has entered into a legal minefield."
"Action without the unequivocal endorsement of the UN may not only be
illegal, but is deeply politically damaging as well," Mr Campbell
said.  "In these unusual circumstances, it is high time that Lord
Goldsmith's advice, both before and since military action, was
published," he said.
Downing Street and the A-G's office refused to comment specifically on
the leak but said Goldsmith had made it clear on May 12 that Brit was
acting on a sound legal basis.

US forces say number 8 on Iraq wanted list in custody
Centcom.  The US military said on Thu that its forces had captured a
former regional cmdr in Saddam Hussein's Baath Party who is on
Washington's list of most-wanted Iraqis.  The US Central Command said
in a statement that Aziz Salih Numan was a Baath Party regional
cmd chairman responsible for west Baghdad. He was also a former
governor of the S cities of Karbala and Najaf.  The statement said he
was number 8 on the wanted list.  It said Numan was "now in custody of
coalition forces" and that he was captured on Wed nr Baghdad.  The US
issued a list of most-wanted Iraqis after ousting Saddam on Apr 9, 3
wk after US-led forces invaded Iraq. Numan's capture brings to 25
the number of the 55 wanted fugitives now in US custody.  His arrest
follows the surrender of one of Saddam's most trusted generals, the
former secretary of the feared Republican Guard, to US forces on Sat.

Several Iraqis killed in firefight, US troops say
Fallujah.  Several Iraqis were killed in a firefight with US troops
outside the flash-point town of Fallujah overnight, one of the US
soldiers whose patrol was attacked told AFP news agency.  "We did
return fire. A few of them were killed," David Simms said.  He said
the patrol had come under fire from at least 9 attackers with
rocket-propelled grenades in an industrial area on the outskirts of
the city.  He said the situation in the city had been "fairly stable"
and that US forces had generally good relations with residents of
Fallujah, where at least 16 anti-US protesters were shot dead by US
troops late last m.

Powell remains defiant over existence of WMDs in Iraq
Washington.  US Sec of State Colin Powell has welcomed the lifting of
sanctions in Iraq.  Mr Powell has told a French audience he still has
no doubt Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.  He has
arrived in France to help prepare for the coming G8 meeting early next
m.  The meeting is being viewed by both the French and the
Americans as a chance to heal the diplomatic wounds caused by the
French opp'n to the war in Iraq.  Speaking in Paris, Mr Powell said
there was no doubt that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction
and that the discovery of a number of mobile vans used as chemical
laboratories proved the point.  Mr Powell said that he was sure after
more expert teams were sent into Iraq, more info would be forthcoming.
He also said he had no idea whether Saddam Hussein was alive or dead.
"The one thing I do know he said is that he is not governing," he said.

9 Afghans have hijack convictions overturned 
London.  9 Afghan men who held a plane hostage on the tarmac at
Stansted airport today had their convictions for hijacking overturned
by the court of appeal.  The men had been jailed after taking over an
Ariana Airlines flight from Kabul to Stansted in Feb 2000 in a bid to
escape the repressive Taliban regime.  They held passengers and crew
hostage for 70 hr, and threatened to blow up the plane.
In Dec last y, the 9 were convicted of hijacking, false
imprisonment and arms charges.  Today, Lord Justice Longmore, Mr
Justice Hooper and Mrs Justice Cox ruled that the convictions were
"unsafe" because the law relating to whether the men had acted under
duress had been wrongly applied at their trial.  The men told the
court that they were members of the Young Intellectuals of
Afghanistan, a group opposed to the Taliban, and said this had put
their lives in danger.
The 2 men who led the hijack, brothers Ali and Mohammed Safi, were
jailed for 5 y in Jan 2002. They are expected to be freed within a few
days, once their asylum applications have been processed.  The other
men, who were jailed for between 27 and 30 m, had already served
their sentences.

Mins from 55 countries tackle Afghan drugs trade
Paris.  Mins from 55 states gathered in Paris to discuss ways of
tackling the trade in drugs from post-Taliban Afghanistan.  "The drug
trade is a gangrene which threatens every country affected by
trafficking, whether it is the producer, the countries along the
route, or the destination," said French Pres Jacques Chirac, opening
the meeting.  Among those attending the conference are foreign
ministers from the Group of Eight industrialised countries.  Mr Chirac
challenged ministers to use the conference to find "new and daring
ways" to build confidence and cooperation in the fight against drugs.
Afghan For Min Abdullah Abdullah was expected to use the conference to
announce his country's strategy for combating poppy cultivation.  The
"Minial Conference on Drug Routes" was to focus on the countries
through which Afghan opiates are exported, with a view to coordinating
expertise and resources in the internat'l campaign to stop
traffickers.

Auckland. MAN ARRESTED IN BEHEADING MURDER!  Solomon Is police
reportedly say they've arrested a man in connection with the beheading
of an Aussie missionary.  The Solomon Is B'casting Corp has reported
the arrest.  Seventh Day Adventist missionary Lance Gersbach, aged 60,
from WA was murdered at the church's 30 yo mission hospital at Atoifi
in the E Kwaio area of Malaita Is last Sun.

Cannibalism alleged after 300 bodies found in DRC
Bunia.  UN officials are investigating allegations of cannibalism,
after the discovery of more than 300 bodies in the NE Democratic
Republic of Congo.  UN workers say the bodies were found in the town
of Bunia, and most of the victims were civilians.  The discovery comes
after several wk of brutal fighting between rival ethnic groups.
Many of the corpses have been mutilated, but UN workers say it is
difficult to determine whether there is any evidence of cannibalism.
Most of Bunia's 350,000 residents have fled, amid fears of further
bloodshed.  Rebel leaders from the bitterly divided Lendu and Hema
ethnic groups are abiding by a ceasefire, but the atmosphere in the
town is extremely tense.  Human Rights groups, including Amnesty
Internat'l, are calling for the deployment of an internat'l force, to
prevent renewed violence.

Banda Aceh. INDON ARMY KILLS 25 REBELS!  Indonesia's military says
it's killed 25 rebels in an all-out offensive against Aceh separatists
and is sending 100s more troops to support the attack.  The govt has
also mounted a diplomatic drive, summoning 115 ambassadors and
leaders of internat'l organisations to a meeting in Jakarta to
explain its decision to go to war against the rebel province.  Indon
on Mon launched its biggest military operation in 25 y to try to wipe
out the GAM following a breakdown of last-ditch peace talks in Tokyo
over the weekend.

Indonesia considers night curfew in Aceh flash-points
Banda Aceh.  Indonesian troops fought rebels across 6 different parts
of jungle-clad Aceh province on Thu, as officers considered imposing
night curfews on flash-points in the region.  The military said it had
killed several more separatists on Thu, taking the total since Mon to
16.  It said a district rebel cmdr had also surrendered on Wed,
the 2nd snr separatist to do so in a wk.
"There have been 6 clashes today...some are still going on. At all
times we can intensify the operations because we have no mercy toward
these separatists," Aceh military chief Maj Gen Endang Suwarya
said in the provincial capital Banda Aceh.
A rep for the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), which began fighting for
independence in 1976, insisted no separatists had been killed and
accused the military of murdering nearly 50 civilians. The military
denied killing non-combatants.
The military, which launched its biggest offensive since the 1975
invasion of East Timor following the collapse of last-ditch peace
talks in Tokyo, said it was considering slapping curfews on Pidie and
Bireun districts, both separatist strongholds.
"Violence has risen in both those places. It would make it easier for
our operations...to impose a curfew," said Firdaus Komarno, military
rep in the oil and gas-rich province on the N tip of Sumatra island.
In Jakarta, For Min Hassan Wirajuda went on the defensive in the face
of internat'l concern, telling foreign envoys Indonesia's territorial
integrity was at stake.  "It is they who speak the language of force
and terror," he said, blaming the rebels for the unravelling of a 5-mo
peace pact. Mediators say Jakarta sank the weekend Tokyo talks.
More than 10,000 people have been killed in the 27-y war but
casualty claims are traditionally hotly disputed.  One hospital
official in Banda Aceh said the military had brought in 9 dead bodies
riddled with bullets since Mon. Some, he said, looked like civilians.
"Almost 50 civilians have been killed by the military," said a GAM
rep, speaking from an undisclosed location. He could offer no
eyewitness accounts of troops doing the killing.
The military said it had killed 16 rebels and captured 9 in the
campaign so far, with one soldier killed and 6 wounded.
Officials said schools were still being torched, with about 290
schools gutted since Mon, affecting more than 60,000 students.
The 2 sides have traded accusations over the arson, and the military
has threatened to shoot perpetrators on sight.  Indonesia, which has
repeatedly failed to defeat the rebels, has 45,000 troops and police
in Aceh. GAM has about 5,000 fighters.

Hamas refuses to end suicide bombings
Gaza.  Palestinian PM Abu Mazen has failed to convince the leading
Islamic militant group Hamas to call a halt to attacks on Israel,
during a meeting with its top leadership, participants said.
Abu Mazen, under pressure from Israel and the US to bring an end to
the 32-m-long Palestinian uprising, met with snr Hamas leader
Abdul Aziz Rantissi and 2 other top figures, Ismail Abou Shanab and
Ismail Haniya.  He was accompanied by his minister of state for
security, Mohammed Dahlan.  After the meeting, Mr Haniya said Hamas
would only end its suicide attacks in Israel if the Israeli army put
an end to its policy of targeted killings of key militants, stopped
its incursions into Palestinian territory and released Palestinian prisoners.
"When the Zionist enemy stops killing Palestinian civilians, ends its
assassinations and its incursions and frees the prisoners, then Hamas
could stop its military operations against [Israeli] civilians," he
said.  However, he said the battle against the Israeli military and
against Jewish settlers would continue.
Characterising the meeting with Abu Mazen as "important and positive,"
Mr Haniya said he had reiterated Hamas' views on the "right of the
Palestinian people to resist the occupation".
Hamas refuses to recognise the right of Israel to exist, advocating a
Palestinian state stretching from the Jordan River to the
Mediterranean Sea, but Mr Haniya did not rule out the possibility of a
"truce" with the Jewish state.
For his part, Palestinian info minister Nabil Amr, who also attended
the meeting, described it as a "serious point of departure for a nat'l
dialogue that will strengthen the ranks of Palestinians".
Meanwhile, a leader of Hamas' smaller rival, Islamic Jihad, Mohammed
al-Hindi, said he had been called on to meet with Abu Mazen, but that
no date had been set.
He said his movement which, along with Hamas has been responsible for
the vast majority of suicide attacks during the Palestinian uprising,
would be ready for a dialogue with the new premier in order to serve
the interests of Palestinians.
On the sidelines of the main talks, Mr Dahlan met with various
Palestinian security officials, including ones from nat'l security,
general intel, the coast guard and police, a Palestinian security
source said.

Israel seizes arms boat off Lebanon
Tel Aviv.  Israel has seized a boat with explosives gear and arrested
an alleged master bomb-maker for Lebanon's Hezbollah guerrillas,
foiling a smuggling run to Palestinians, Israeli security sources said.
Israeli For Min Silvan Shalom said Palestinian Pres Yasser Arafat was
involved in the smuggling attempt, an accusation that could deal
another blow to a new US-backed "road map", already battered by violence.
8 people were arrested on the fishing boat intercepted in internat'l
waters, as it headed to land on the Egyptian coast from where the
Hezbollah figure and his cargo planned to slip into the nearby Gaza
Strip, they said.
A Hezbollah official in Beirut denied Israel's account, saying: "We
know nothing of this ... and we assure you that no one from Hezbollah
has been arrested in recent days."
In a statement, the Israeli army said the vessel was halted in the
Mediterranean about 35 km S of the border with Lebanon and towed to
the port of Haifa.
Nabil Abu Rdainah, an Arafat aide, said such allegations were
"incitement and sabotage by Israel which aims to run away from the
implementation of the road map".
The discovery could increase US pressure on Hezbollah's backers Iran
and Syria to rein in the militants Washington says threaten an
internat'l peace plan.  The weapons cache is only a fraction of the
size of the 50 tonnes seized on a freighter in the Red Sea in Jan 2002
that Israel also said was bound for the Palestinians.
Israeli security sources, who asked not to be identified, said the
17-m boat was carrying 5 metal boxes each containing 5 fuses for 122mm
Katyusha rockets, as well as detonator kits and various electronic
remote-control units.  There were also 36 CD-ROMs with video
instructions for building bombs, preparing suicide bomber vests and
carrying out suicide attacks on buses, the sources said.
They named one of the 8 men as Hezbollah bomb maker Hamad Salem Musa
Abu Amra, who they said intended to teach Palestinian militants
advanced explosives techniques.  They said Abu Amra told interrogators
he was Egyptian but had lived in Lebanon for some time.
Another of those arrested was known as "the Fisherman", also an
Egyptian and specially trained by Hezbollah for maritime arms
smuggling, they said.  The other 6 people aboard were not identified.
The sources said "Fisherman" was involved in the attempted smuggling
of tonnes of weapons on the "Karine A" freighter Israel seized in 2002.
Israeli security sources said the boat had originally sailed from
Egypt and was met off Lebanon's coastal capital Beirut by a Hezbollah
speedboat carrying the bomb maker and his equipment.  They said
Hezbollah wanted to teach Palestinians explosives know-how that it had
honed against a 22-y Israeli occupation of south Lebanon that ended
in 2000.

Ottawa. CANADA BATTLES MCD!  Canada has put 7 herds into quarantine as
part of its probe into a case of Mad Cow Disease and will isolate 2
others tomorrow.  Claude Lavigne of the Canadian Food Inspection
agency says he still doesn't know where the diseased cow came from.
However, he's stressed that checks show there's no indication to
suggest the safety of Canadian beef has been compromised.  Of the 9
herds involved, 7 are in Alberta and 2 are in Saskatchewan.

Canada expands frantic search for mad cow cases
Toronto.  Canada's frantic search for more cases of mad cow disease
has spread out from its biggest cattle region, with inspectors sealing
off several farms as more countries slapped bans on Canadian beef.
The crisis, sparked by the revelation on Tue that one cow in the big
beef-producing province of Alberta had tested positive for the
brain-wasting disease, has led inspectors to quarantine 7 farms, 2 of
them in the neighbouring Saskatchewan, where the diseased cow may have
been born.
Officials said they would quarantine 2 more farms in Alberta on Thu
(local time).  At stake is the $C4 bn ($US2.9 billion) beef industry
in Alberta, where cattle ranching has been a way of life for more than
a century, as well as N America's faith in the safety of its food
supply.  Last y, Alberta shipped more than half a mn live cattle to
the US.
Using bills of lading and records of livestock brands, and tapping
into a new cattle database, investigators are trying to trace the
origin of the animal -- Canada's 1st mad cow case in a decade -- and
determine whether any others are infected.
Despite the effort and assurances by health officials and politicians
that Canadian beef is safe, Russia, Singapore and Indonesia joined a
raft of other countries, led by the US, in temporarily banning
Canadian shipments.  The scare has forced the beef industry in Alberta
and other parts of Canada to grind almost to a halt, with packing
plants winding down and normally bustling auction markets quiet.

Canberra. VIRUS MAY BE UNSTOPPABLE!  The spread of a potentially
devastating wheat virus has worsened, with a string of infestations
found in key grain growing states.  Officials warn the virus may
have spread too far for its eradication to be viable.  A meeting of
state and fed ag dept's in Canberra today has heard wheat streak
mosaic virus has been found at sites in SA, Vic, and NSW.  The
infestations have occurred mostly on farms or alongside rural roads.

Conference to determine extent of wheat virus
Canberra.  A nat'l telephone hook-up between the heads of agriculture
depts today aims to determine the spread of a damaging wheat virus in
AUS.  Signs of the wheat streak mosaic virus were confirmed at 2 CSIRO
laboratories in CBR in Apr, sparking a massive plant quarantine and
eradication program.  The damaging virus was later detected at
separate properties in S AUS, Qld and Vic.  Concerns about the impact
of the virus on AUS's wheat crops have prompted ongoing surveys at
farms and plant laboratories around the country.  The latest survey
results will be up for consideration at today's meeting which could
classify the extent of the wheat virus in AUS.

New travel warning issued for African countries
Canberra.  The Dept of Foreign Affairs and Trade has released new
travel advice for 2 countries on the African continent.  It says
Aussies in Cameroon and Burkina Faso, nr the Ivory Coast, should avoid
demos and large public gatherings, and keep abreast of developments
which could affect their safety.  The new info has not been prompted
by any particular incident and comes after a quarterly review by the
dept.  Foreign Affairs is also advising Aussies in Botswana, Lesotho
and Swaziland to be aware of frequent crime against foreigners.

Govt to set up counter-terrorism division
Canberra, The Fed Govt is moving to set up a counter-terrorism
division within the Dept of PM and Cabinet.  The new arm of the dept
will operate in a similar way to the Homeland Security Office
established recently in the US.  The division will aim for a whole of
govt approach to security and counter-terrorism and will be made up of
defence and security experts.  AUS Fed Police Commissioner Mick Keelty
has told Channel Nine it is a good move.
"There is precedent for having a single entity that looks after a
whole of govt approach and it makes sense that it sits within the
Prime Min's Dept," he said.
But the Fed Opp'n says it does not make sense.  Opp'n leader Simon
Crean has been calling for some time for a separate Homeland Security
Office.  "A dept to coordinate all the intel gathering, I mean we've
got bits and pieces all over the place," he said.
Labor says, as in the US, it should be established a completely new
dept, not an extension of an existing one.
But a defence expert from the ANU, Ross Babbage, has
welcomed the division.  "What this has the potential to do is to
provide the very best advice to the PM and his snr members in the
nat'l security committee of Cabinet," he said.  "That's where the key
decisions are made, and that's really where the best advice needs to go."

Breach places Qantas security under the spotlight
Sydney.  Qantas is expected to review security after an embarrassing
breach at SYD airport yesterday.  The airline's domestic terminal was
locked down, and several flights were postponed, after 3 passengers
entered a sterile area through a set of exit doors manned by a
security guard.  The breach was only identified after one of the men
informed Qantas staff as he was boarding his flight, that he had not
gone through the normal security checks.  Hundreds of other passengers
had to be re-screened before 3 scheduled flights were allowed to
leave.  The breach caused delays for several hr and exposed a flaw
in the airline's security procedures.

Tehran. SMALL QUAKE HITS IRAN!  A moderate earthquake has shaken the E
Iranian prov of Khorassan. The official Iranian Irna news agency
reports the mag 4.5 tremor jolted the city of Tabas, but there were
no details about any casualties or the extent of damage.  Another
quake with a mag of 4.0 shook the city early in May.  No damage was
reported then.

Paris. SARS CAME FROM SPACE?  Astrobiologists [the science of proving
you have subject matter to study] in Brit and India say it's possible
that SARS may have come from space.  In a letter published in the Brit
medical weekly The Lancet, 3 astrobiologists say their idea is based
out on experiments carried out in Jan 2001, in which a balloon
collected samples from the stratosphere.  They say large quantities of
viable micro-organisms were captured at an altitude of 41 km.  The
biologists say that means a tonne of bacterial material falls to Earth
from space daily.

Kathmandu. FASTEST EVEREST CLIMB!  Nepalese Sherpa Pemba Dorje has
smashed the record for the fastest climb from base camp to the summit
of Mt Everest.  He set a time of 12 hrs 45 mins.  Nepal's tourism
ministry says the previous record was almost 17 hrs.  That was set in
2000 by the legendary Babu Chhiri, who died after falling into a
crevasse on Everest in 2001.

Canberra. 2,700 FARMERS GET DROUGHT ASSISTANCE!  Farmers across a
large swathe of S NSW have been granted fed drought assistance.  Ag
Min Warren Truss says 2,700 dryland livestock and crop farmers in the
area around Wagga [Wagga] -- that also takes in part of nearby
Gundagai and Narrandera -- qualify for Exceptional Circumstances
assistance.  The declaration means they have access to fed welfare,
and can apply for interest rate subsidies of up to $100,000 pa for the
next 2 y.

Brisbane. LAND-CLEARING PLAN WIN-WIN: PM!  PM Howard says a $150 mn
proposal aimed at cutting land-clearing rates in Qld is a win-win
situation.  Framers have angrily rejected the joint fed-state package,
announced in Bris yesterday, that offers compensation in exchange for
ending high rates of land clearing.  They dismiss the plan as
"unworkable", and say production will stagnate at current levels if
the proposal is passed.  Mr Howard told Bris radio 4BC he'll listen to
what farmers have to say before finalising the package.

Canberra. MEDICAL INDEMNITY CRISIS!  The AMA says fears of doctors
resigning en masse should be alleviated by a new fed govt plan on
medical indemnity.  Doctors subject to medical indemnity claims will be
covered by the govt for the diff between any payout and the amount
the doctor's own insurance policy will fund.  PM Howard says the
package will ensure doctors have the confidence to practise after Jul
1, when new medical indemnity arrangements come into effect.

Melbourne. PLASTIC BAG PLAN SCRAPPED!  AUS's env mins have rejected a
plan to cut the use of plastic bags because it doesn't go far enough.
Fed Env Min David Kemp says the AUS Retailers Assoc code of practice
fails to meet targets for the end of 2004.  The goals incl 1/2-ing the
number of plastic bags used, recycling 50% of bags and participation
by most Aussie retailers.  The env mins will meet again in Jul to
discuss laws to cut the number of plastic bags used each y.

UK broadband breaks through 2 mn barrier 
London.  The number of households which are now connected to broadband
"always on" Internet services has leapt to 2 mn.  It means that
after countless govt initiatives, mns of pounds spent on marketing and
a series of price cuts, the long-promised broadband revolution appears
to be gathering pace.
The latest figures, from telecoms watchdog Oftel, show that the number
of households connected to the high speed lines, which allow faster
web surfing as well as high speed music and video downloads, this wk
crashed through the 2 mn barrier.
"It took 2 y to reach 1 mn connections, but only 7 m to reach 2
mn, as increased competition and lower prices have boosted
connection rates," said the Oftel director general, David Edmonds.
The market was kick-started last y by BT's belated decision to drop
the wholesale price of broadband lines to 14.75 Stg a m. This
meant that service providers could for the 1st time offer high speed
services for less than 30 Stg, with prices later falling to around 27
Stg a m.  BT also rolled out a high profile 30 mn Stg marketing
campaign to push its own broadband services from BT Openworld and BT Retail.
The 2 mn customers are roughly equally divided between those using BT
lines, either directly from BT itself or through a 3rd party such as
Freeserve or AOL, and those subscribing to broadband through cable
operators NTL and Telewest.
The govt has promised to make the UK "the most competitive and
extensive broadband market in the G7 by 2005" but is still a long way
from achieving its goal.
Speaking earlier this wk at the Westminster Media Forum, the
e-commerce minister, Stephen Timms, said figures showed that while the
UK had climbed to 3rd in the G7 for competitiveness, it was still
ranked fifth for "extensiveness".
There is also controversy about the way that the figures are compiled
and the definition of what constitutes a "broadband" service.  Rivals
of cable operator NTL continue to complain about the fact that its
128k service, twice the speed of a normal connection, is included in
the figures. They insist that the minimum speed requirement should be
256k, four times the speed of a normal connection.

Canberra. TRADE DOWN FOR REST OF Y!  Fed Trade Min Mark Vaile says AUS
will face poor trade figures for the remainder of the y.  Mr Vaile says
the drought, and poor economic conditions world-wide, will continue
to hurt the trade sector.  It follows new ABC data which shows exports
in the Mar Q were down 9.7%. The biggest falls were in cars, down 32%
to $947 mn, beef, down 27%, greasy wool, down 34%, and non-monetary
gold, down 22%.

Executive payouts hurting the bottom line: study
Sydney.  A new study has called into question the huge remuneration
packages for AUS's top executives.  A team of academics from the
universities of SYD, NSW and CBR looked at the performance of AUS's
largest companies over the past 10 y and found that in all cases the
higher the level of executive pay, the lower the company's bottom
line.  The authors of the report go so far as to suggest once
executive remuneration exceeds 24 times the average adult wage,
performance begins to deteriorate.
Study head Dr John Shields says performance goals set by many
corporations are too focused on short-term results, and paper profits.
The report's authors say to counter this, there should be greater
regulation, such as a cap on executive share options, and govt use of
purchasing policy to encourage firms with moderate executive packages.
John Robertson, secretary of the NSW Labor Council, which commissioned
the research, says it raises significant questions about whether
superannuation funds should be investing in companies that excessively
reward their CEOs.

Sydney. MARKETS!  The ASX rose 1% as News Corp and Qantas pumped key
indexes higher.  The All Ords added 31 to end at 2,967.  The Nikkei
added 33 pts (0.4%) to close at 8,052, and the Hang Seng ended 72 pts
(0.8%) higher at 9,131.

{{ Continuous war news
6 pm
Just when you thought it was safe, Taiwan has declared 55 new SARS
cases over the past 24 hrs, bringing to 300 the total new infections
for the wk.  While SARS in Taiwan is on the rise, China and HK are
seeing a decline.
}}

----------------------------------------
Sat, 24 May 2003.

Markets
143 killed by Indian heatwave
43 die in Chinese floods
51 injured by lightning
Shootout at Russian electoral office
Baby pulled alive from rubble
Bush and Koizumi talk tough on NK
Uday's lions to be released in S Africa
Blix suspects there are no weapons of mass destruction 
US blamed for Baghdad tension 
John Sawers, the main Brit representative in Baghdad, underlined the
Pentagon criticised over looming Guantanamo Bay trials
UN warns of crisis in Aceh
Aussie climber rescued by buddy
15 yo makes Everest summit
State govts should fund state schools: Nelson
Downer echoes Bremer
Downer opens Aussie mission
Rights group warns AUS on Afghan refugees
Sharon says peace-map will go to Cabinet
Mugabe warns opponents over consulting spirits
Bentley takes over from McNarn
Howard denies terror fears
Group warns of terror impact
WHO lifts China, HK from SARS list
Yanks hunt down Canadian cattle
PM touts indemnity changes
Bali families back Red Cross
Aboriginal health initiative
Abbott visits a workplace
Continuous war news

NY. MARKETS!  The Dow closed only 7 pts higher at 8,601, with gold
trading down around $369/oz.  The markets had already factored in its
non-reaction to the passage of a an economic stimulus Bill to cut
taxes by $350 bn over the next 10 y.  In London, the FTSE declined 11
pts to 3,979, and the German Dax dived 42 pts (1.5%) to 2,823.  In
Asia yesterday, the Nikkei put on 133 pts (1.6%) to end at 8,185.  HK
leapt 172 pts (1.8%) to 9,394.

Hyderabad. 143 KILLED BY INDIAN HEATWAVE!  A heat wave has killed at
least 143 people in S India where temps have been hovering around 47
deg C.  Weather officials said the high temps were expected to persist
for at least 2 more days in coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh.  Last May
a heat wave killed more than 1,000 people in Andrah Pradesh last May.

Beijing. 43 DIE IN CHINESE FLOODS!  Heavy rains and flooding in C
China's Hunan prov this m have left 34 people dead and 4 mn affected.
The state media says more than 16,000 homes have been damaged.  A
string of landslides and other mishaps have been caused by the start
of the annual summer flooding. Other parts of China have also been
affected by heavy rains.

Hanoi. 51 INJURED BY LIGHTNING!  A lightning strike on a house in
Vietnam has injured 51 people who were inside watching a popular TV
show.  The victims were mostly children aged 8 to 17.  Hoang Van
Thinh of the People's Committee of Binh Trung village, 170 km NE of
Hanoi, says the house used an electric generator run by steam. He says
the lightning struck the generator and run into the TV set [improving
the ratings!].

Moscow. SHOOTOUT AT RUSSIAN ELECTORAL OFFICE!  2 people have been
killed and 3 injured in Russia's far W in a shootout in an electoral
office.  Police say those killed were a policeman on guard duty in the
election office, in the village of Molodezhnyi, and a women who hasn't
been ID-ed.  The shooting occurred as staff at the office were
preparing for a local election.

Bordj el Kiffan. BABY PULLED ALIVE FROM RUBBLE!  With the quake death
toll passing 1,600 a 12 yo girl has been pulled alive from the rubble
of an appt building more than 34 hrs after it hit.  Rescue workers at
the site 15 km E of the capital, Algiers, say the girl was found alive
in the rubble barley breathing and is undergoing surgery to repair a
crushed arm.  About 1,600 people have been confirmed dead, and around
7,200 injured in the earthquake that's devastated parts of Algeria.

Crawford. BUSH AND KOIZUMI TALK TOUGH ON NK!  Pres Bush Jr and
Japanese PM Junichiro Koizumi have warned NK tougher measures would be
warranted if the N escalates nuclear tensions.  The leaders have made
the comments in a joint appearance after a summit at the Pres's E TX
ranch.  Bush says he and the Japanese leader will not tolerate nuclear
weapons in NK and will not give in to blackmail.  The 2 leaders have
also discussed the 2 countries' ailing economies, the rebuilding of
Iraq and post-war Afghanistan.

Uday's lions to be released in S Africa
2 lions, a lioness and her 6 cubs owned by Saddam Hussein's son Uday
will be given their freedom in reserves in S Africa, the SanWild
Wildlife Sanctuary said.
Louise Joubert, the founder of the sanctuary, based in NE Limpopo
province, told the SAPA news agency that SanWild had managed to secure
the release of the lions from Baghdad zoo.  The lioness and cubs will
be settled in the Ngome Community Reserve in E KwaZulu-Natal province
and the 2 male lions will go to the SanWild sanctuary, she said.
The other 2 lions will be placed with a brother and sister pair.  Ms
Joubert said she was not worried about the lions being returned to the
wild.  And they have to get fit -- sitting around a Baghdad zoo does
nothing for a lion's endurance.  She told SAPA the animals had been
traumatised by what happened in Baghdad.
US troops rescued the lions, along with 2 cheetahs and a blind bear,
in Apr, from a private zoo established by Uday in one of Baghdad's
presid'l palaces, and moved them to the Baghdad municipal zoo.  Like
his father, Uday disappeared during the US-led invasion although a
report in the WSJ on Fri said he was considering surrendering to US forces.
[The story was later denied by US officials].
The blind bear, destined for Greece, will have its sight restored by a
S African vet, Joubert said.  She said the lions were expected to
arrive in S Africa early to mid-Jul.

Blix suspects there are no weapons of mass destruction 
NY (The Guardian).  Chief UN weapons inspector, Hans Blix, said
yesterday that he suspected that Iraq had no WMD.  He added that "in
this respect" the war might not have been justified.
"I am obviously very interested in the question of whether or not
there were weapons of mass destruction -- and I am beginning to
suspect there possibly were none," he said in an interview with the
Berlin newspaper Der Tagesspiegel.
Dr Blix, who retires next m, has previously condemned as "shaky" the
evidence presented by Brit and American intel before the war, and said
that it was "conspicuous" that they had failed to make significant
discoveries after the war.
But in yesterday's interview, he went further. He said: "The main
justification for the war was WMD, and it may turn out that in this
respect the war was not justified."  He referred to Saddam Hussein's
chief scientific adviser, Lt Gen Amer al-Saadi, who surrendered last m
and said in an interview: "Nothing else will come out after the end of
the war."
"The fact that al-Saadi surrendered and said there were no weapons of
mass destruction has led to me to ask myself whether there actually
were any," Dr Blix said.  "I don't see why he would still be afraid of
the regime. Other leading figures have said the same."
Iraq's evasive behaviour could have been due to Saddam's desire to
dictate the conditions under which people could enter the country.
"For that reason he said 'no' in many situations and gave the
impression he was hiding something."
The Whitehouse, which accused Dr Blix of hindering its drive for
internat'l support for the war, has sent its own inspectors to Iraq.
The security situation made it impractical for UN inspectors to return
and work alongside the US, Dr Blix said. Collaboration might also be
tricky for political reasons. "I also have the impression that the
negative attitude to UN inspectors...is turning into a generally
defensive attitude towards the UN."
Lt Gen David McKiernan, cmdr of land forces in Iraq, insisted
that the hunt for chemical, biological and nuclear weapon would
continue.  "We continue to get reports of locations and we go and
exploit them," he said. "I am personally a believer that we have not
fully developed the intel on locations."
Most of the intel was now coming from the Iraqi people themselves.
The US military task force hunting for weapons of mass destruction in
Iraq is due to leave next m. Its officers are reported to be
frustrated by their failure to find Saddam Hussein's banned weapons.
Mr Blix ended the interview with a touch of humour.  Asked about his
retirement plans, he talked of spending time on a small Swedish island
where "I look forward to going hunting for wild mushrooms."

US blamed for Baghdad tension 
London (The Guardian).  Brit believes that heavy-handed tactics by the
US military are to blame for their failure to secure Baghdad,
which threatens to delay the reconstruction of Iraq as foreign
companies steer clear of the capital.
Tony Blair has been told in stark terms the US military has
exacerbated tensions because they have refused to mingle among the local 
pop'n in the same way as Brit forces in Iraq's 2nd city of Basra.
The finger of blame is being pointed at troops from the 3rd Inf
Div, the main US forces in Baghdad, who are said to be desperate
to return home after bearing the brunt of the military campaign.
One source said: "In the capital the US forces have not adopted the
mingling profile with the populace that has been a success in other
cities. That is not the instinct of a heavily armoured division that
has gone through a tough war."
The failure to secure Baghdad, which contrasts with successes by US
and Brit forces in other parts of Iraq, will have grave consequences
for reconstruction. It is understood that US corporations, such as
Bechtel and the USAid govt dept, are reluctant to start repairing
Iraq's infrastructure until Baghdad is safer.
Brit is pinning its hopes on the US 4th Armoured Div, which is
due to replace the 3rd ID. "The US knows what they have
to do but it is a question of effecting it," the source said.
There are signs that America is changing its tactics before the
arrival of the new troops. In the past wk US forces have stepped up
patrols to crack down on crime and there is said to be evidence that
random crime is reducing.
The change in American tactics is understood to be behind a decision
by Brit cmdrs not to send troops to Baghdad. After days of
agonising -- and growing resistance from soldiers and their families
-- Brit has decided that the US can cope without UK reinforcements,
though a final decision has yet to be made.
Snr def sources said that Brit cmdrs have been caught between a
desire to maintain good relations with the Americans and concern about
being sucked into a situation it would be hard to get out of. "It is
not in our interests to be drawn in," one source said.
Brit cmdrs have been discussing the issue with their American
counterparts for days, prompting speculation earlier this wk that
elements of Brit's 16 Air Assault Brigade, including paratroopers,
would be deployed to Baghdad from bases in S Iraq. "The Americans were
war weary and scratching their heads" about how to deal with the
situation in the Iraqi capital, sources said.
John Sawers, the main Brit rep in Baghdad, underlined the
challenges when he warned that the capital was a long way behind the
rest of the country. Restoring power, water and other services was
proving difficult.
"Baghdad has not moved forward to anything like the same extent as the
rest of the country," he said during a visit to London.  Mr Sawers
added that he was encouraged by the appointment of Paul Bremer as Pres
George Bush's envoy to Iraq to replace Jay Garner, who was widely seen
as a disaster. Describing Mr Bremer as a "good thing", he said that he
was beginning to "get a grip".
The difficulty in restoring normality to Baghdad mirrors the political
challenges in forming an interim Iraqi authority as the 1st step
towards establishing a sovereign govt. Mr Sawers said that a nat'l
Iraqi conference, which will choose a broad based interim authority,
would not be held until Jul at the earliest.
Amid the difficulties, Mr Sawers said that people should not lose
sight of the "overwhelming sense of relief" in Iraq that Saddam
Hussein has gone.  But he added that he had no idea about the leader's
fate.  "People would like to see his head on a stick to make sure he
has gone. He is going to be like Elvis for a long time with rumours
about his continued existence."

Pentagon criticised over looming Guantanamo Bay trials
Washington (Reuters).  The Pentagon has named a chief prosecutor and
defence counsel and begun seeking civilian defence lawyers for trials
of suspected terrorists in a key step towards bringing Guantanamo Bay
prisoners before military commissions.
Col Frederic Borch, named acting chief prosecutor, rejected criticism
by some legal experts that the Pentagon's rules for the trials
strongly favoured the prosecution and greatly restricted the defence.
Col Borch indicated the defendants would be among the roughly 680
prisoners from dozens of nations being held as "unlawful combatants"
without charges or legal representation at the US naval base at
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Any trials are expected to be held there.
Col Borch declined to say how many would be prosecuted, noting that
Pres George Bush must 1st declare which prisoners are eligible to be
brought before such tribunals, consisting of 3 to 7 military
officers. Col Borch said he had studied the cases against at least
10 possible defendants and anticipated making recommendations on who
should be prosecuted.
In Nov 2001 Mr Bush authorised military commission trials, which would
be the 1st of their kind since those after World War II.  The trials
were ordered after the Sep 11, 2001 attacks on the US and the war launched 
in Afghanistan to crush al-Qaeda, which was blamed for those attacks.
Def Dept officials issued instructions for the trials earlier this
m. Some legal experts argue they were crafted to make winning
convictions and getting the death penalty as easy as possible.  They
point to a series of restrictions placed on defence lawyers --
including monitoring of all conversations with defendants -- and a
lack of guidelines on charges that could bring the death penalty.
"To some extent, these things are not set up to give a fair trial, but
set up to compel guilty pleas out of people," said Michael Ratner,
pres of the NY-based Centre for Constitutional Rights.
The Pentagon said it would accept applications from civilian lawyers
interested in working alongside military defence lawyers assigned by
the Def Dept.
The US and Saudi Arabia had reached an agreement to repatriate Saudi
nat'ls held at Guantanamo Bay, the US Secretary of State, Colin
Powell, said on Thu.  He also said the US was close to reaching a
similar deal with another country, but did not give details.

Geneva. UN WARNS OF CRISIS IN ACEH!  The UN has warned of an impending
humanitarian crisis in the Indon prov of Aceh where troops this wk
launched a massive offence against separatist rebels.  The UN
Children's Fund says that up to 300,000 people could be displaced by
the fighting within the next 3 m.  And it says to date more than 280
schools have been destroyed, depriving 60,000 children of an
education, and basic health services have collapsed.  Indon this wk
began an offensive to end a 27 y campaign by Achenese rebels for indep
from Jakarta.

Sydney. AUSSIE CLIMBER RESCUED BY BUDDY!  An Aussie climber on Mt
Everest has helped rescue a fallen colleague who broke a leg nr the
summit.  Peter Madew battled frostbite and snow blindness as he
dragged Brit climber Conan Harrod down the mtn to safety.  An Internet
diary on the website of Brit firm Adventure Peaks says the route to
the top of the mtn was heavily congested when the accident occurred.
It says an American climber slipped and fell, causing a sherpa who was
roped to him to fall on Mr Harrod.

Kathmandu. 15 YO MAKES EVEREST SUMMIT!  A Nepalese girl may have
become the youngest person to reach the summit of Mt Everest.  The
Nepal Mountaineering Assoc says Ming Kipa Sherpa, who's "about 15
years old", reached the summit on Thu along with her 30 yo sister and
24 yo brother.  Yes, folks. While Aussie break their legs and get
frostbite, Nepalese go on picnics to the summit!  They were part of a
Rumanian expedition.

Sydney. STATE GOVTS SHOULD FUND STATE SCHOOLS: NELSON!  Fed Ed Min
Brendan Nelson says it's time for state govts to fund state schools
and live up to their responsibilities.  De Nelson says the states
aren't matching the Commonwealth govt's increases in education
funding.  He says if state govts had increased their funding to
schools by the same proportion as the Commonwealth there would have
been $478 mn more in education spending this y.

Baghdad. DOWNER ECHOES BREMER!  Echoing the words of Governor Bremer,
AUS For Min Alex Downer says he wants to see more done to bring
ordinary Iraqis into the political process.  Mr Downer is visiting
Baghdad to re-open the AUS diplomatic mission.  [Not an embassy until
there's a US-approved Iraqi govt].  But he says order must first be
restore to the lawless capital, and he's called for more vigorous
efforts to stamp out violent crime.  Mr Downer says there is more to
do on the political process, acknowledging criticism from Iraqi
politicians of the Coal'n plan to keep all executive power to itself
until an approved govt is elected.

Canberra. DOWNER OPENS AUSSIE MISSION!  For Min Alex Downer has
re-opened the Aussie diplomatic mission in Baghdad. AUS is just one of
a few countries in the Coalition with a presence in the oil-rich
country, where there is no recognised govt. The AUS Representative
Mission is being patrolled by armed Aussies with itchy trigger
fingers, because crime remains a major problem now that Saddam has
lost the monopoly. Mr Downer called on the US Admin to restore law and
order to Baghdad and stamp out violent crime.

NY. RIGHTS GROUP WARNS AUS ON AFGHAN REFUGEES!  Human Rights Watch has
warned that AUS would put Afghan refugees and asylum seekers at risk
if it returns them to Afghanistan right now.  AUS authorities say the
country is safe for many Afghans to return and refugees are having
their temp visas "reviewed".  But the rights group says the Imm Dept
has supplied Afghans with a country information report about Afghanistan, 
giving misleading info about the human rights situation there.

Jerusalem. SHARON SAYS PEACE-MAP WILL GO TO CABINET!  PM Ariel Sharon
says Israel is ready to accept an internat'l road map for peace with
the Palestinians, breaking a deadlock in efforts to end the Middle E
bloodshed.  Sharon's office says the initiative will be presented for
approval by Israel's Cabinet on Sun.  Approval could pave the way for
US Pres Bush Jr to hold a summit with Sharon and Abu Mazen. Israel had
made the announcement after Washington said it would address Israeli
reservations about parts of the plan.

Harare. MUGABE WARNS OPPONENTS OVER CONSULTING SPIRITS!  Pres Mugabe
has reportedly accused prominent members of his ruling party of
secretly consulting with ancestral spirits.  He says the consultations
are in a bid to succeed him as Leader.  The state-controlled Herald
newspaper has quoted the Pres as saying some leaders are consulting
traditional healers and ancestral spirits in search of charms.  But he
says it's not about ancestral spirits, it's about unity and people's
wishes.  Mugabe, in power since indep in 1980, has called for openness
in what he terms the "succession issue".

Canberra. BENTLEY TAKES OVER FROM MCNARN!  Air Commodore Graham
Bentley has taken over as the cmdr of AUS troops in the Middle E.
He replaces Brig Maurie McNarn who was in charge of 2,000 Aussies
t'out GWII.  About 1,000 ADF personnel remain deployed in the Middle
E, carrying out tasks such as air traffic control at Baghdad
Internat'l Airport and maritime patrol work in the Gulf.

Canberra. HOWARD DENIES TERROR FEARS!  PM Howard has denied moves to
set up a counter-terrorism office within the PM's Dept are based on
growing terrorism fears.  The new Def and Security Division will
coordinate nat'l security and counter-terrorism activities.  It's been
described as Australia's answer to the US Office of Homeland Security.
But the PM says it's just a reorganisation of the Dept of the PM and Cabinet.

Brisbane. GROUP WARNS OF TERROR IMPACT!  The AUS Tourist Commission
has warned that global uncertainty is set to impact heavily on the
"incentive and meetings" sector in the next few m.  MD Ken Boundy says
the war in Iraq and the outbreak of SARS has caused a number of
bookings to AUS to be postponed or cancelled in the past wk.  He says
forward bookings from the Asia region are also "very slow" and tourism
operators are now indicating the recovery will take longer than
initially expected.

HK. WHO LIFTS CHINA, HK FROM SARS LIST!  The WHO has lifted its travel
advisory for HK and the Chinese prov of Guandong, saying the SARS
outbreaks there are under control.  Meanwhile, 5 people are though to
be ill with the virus in Toronto, just 1 wk after the Canadian city
was dropped from a list of SARS hot-spots.  The new apparent outbreak
has prompted the US CDCP to tell Americans to "take precautions"
against the SARS virus if they travel to Toronto.

Casper. YANKS HUNT DOWN CANADIAN CATTLE!  Officials in the NE US are
working frantically to track down all cattle that have entered the
country from Canada, eh.  Earlier this wk the US banned Canadian beef
imports pending further investigation into a case of MCD.  Inspectors
fanned out across Canada's cattle ind'y to search for more clues of
MCD after a single cow sparked world-wide bans on Canadian beef.  4
more farms have been sealed off, bringing the total to 13 since the
scare broke out on Tue.

Canberra. PM TOUTS INDEMNITY CHANGES!  PM Howard says the fed govt's
new indemnity insurance arrangements will prevent a mass checkout by
the nation's doctors.  Specialists had threatened mass resignations
before Jul 1, if indemnity insurance provisions weren't improved to
cover them against enormous litigation suits brought by patients.
Under existing arrangements, doctors in risk specialities like
obstetrics were facing liability for damage payouts in excess of
their insurance cap.  The govt has now now undertaken to pay any
damages bill above the capped limit of $20 mn.
[In related reports, a leading solicitor's firm in MEL has broken its
links with the ALP after the state Labor govt intro'd changes in
liability laws. The firm says the govt has knuckled under to the
insurance industry, saying the industry has won a magnificent
publicity campaign. The firm rejects that insurance payouts have
massively increased, as portrayed by the industry. An industry rep on
Ch 7 admitted the changes to the law amounted to an industry subsidy,
and it was all about insurance company profits. Now the area was
profitable, he indicated, more insurance companies would get
involved. After realising his gaffe the interview was cut short].

Sydney.  BALI FAMILIES BACK RED CROSS!  Families of Bali bomb victims
have rallied to the defence of the Red Cross, saying it's been a great
help in their time of need.  The Red Cross has commissioned an indep
inquiry into its fundraising activities by PricewaterhouseCoopers
after it was accused of misleading donors and victims when raising
money for the Bali Appeal. [Some of the complaints came from the
families, friends and the victims of the attack].  The NSW govt is
also investigating the matter.  Families of Bali victims say they're
grateful for money and other assistance received from the charity.

Sydney. ABORIGINAL HEALTH INITIATIVE!  The NSW govt has launched a
plan to reduce illness and mortality in Aboriginal men.  It aims to
increase Aboriginal men's awareness of the importance of good health,
rather than targeting specific health issues.  The plan also aims to
provide Aboriginal men with more accessible and appropriate health
services.  2 Aboriginal men's Health Officers will be engaged to help
implement the plan, said to be the first of its kind in AUS.

Sydney. ABBOTT VISITS A WORKPLACE!  Fed Workplace Rels Min Tony Abbott
has promised to intervene on behalf of striking workers [!] after
visiting a picket line at a 10-wk-old strike at a SYD factory.  Mr
Abbott met with strikers and union officials outside pail and can
maker Morris McMahon's factory in inner-S Arncliffe after being
challenged by the AMWU to see the suffering at first hand.  After
talking to them for 45 mins Mr Abbott told workers he'd talk to the
company and try to convince management to allow its employees to
negotiate a collective agreement [!].

{{ Continuous war news
Midnight.
The Algerian PM has declared 3 days of mourning following more than
1,000 deaths from a massive earthquake.

US films are set to move to AUS from Morocco after the terrorist
attack there.  Alexander the Great has announced it will move to
outback AUS.  Also being considered are Gladiator 2 and Starwars.  The
films need a desert background, reasonable hotel rates, and no bombs
going off.

1.20 am
NBC. A day after the UN lifted sanctions and OK-ed the US control
of Iraq for an indefinite period, Governor Bremer has officially
dissolved the Iraq defence dept, the Republican Guard, the nat'l
assembly, and military and security courts.  The move sacks around
200,000 people.  US officials said low-rank officers will now be
called on to rebuild a professional army under the control of the
civilian admin.

Troops in Iraq have seized $US1/2 mn in gold nr the Syrian border.
More than 1,000 gold bars were found on a truck at a border
checkpoint.

The Wall St Journal says Saddam's elder son, Uday, is considering
surrender to US forces.  He's put out feelers wanting to know what
charges he will face before deciding.

1.30 am
BBC World News.  Poland has agreed to operate the S C sector in Iraq.
Initially it was planned for Poland to be part of a force that would
control the region.  But Germany has refused to join the group and
send troops.  But Poland will be assisted by NATO that says it will
set up a cmd centre in Iraq.  The UN Res also gives the plan
legitimacy.  Ukraine has agreed to send 2,000 troops and a Ukraine
officer will be 2IC to Poland in the sector.  Poland will contribute
500 troops.  The Netherlands, Denmark and Norway may contribute troops
under polish cmd.

Pres Sharon has announced he will [tentatively] accept the road map
and will submit it to Cabinet for approval.  His announcement came
after the US said it would take his concerns on board and possibly
make changes.  Colin Powell said this didn't mean changing the text of
the road map itself, on which the Palestinians have already agreed.

Concern is growing for civilians in Ache.  On the 5th day of Indon
military ops there, food and fuel distribution has been disrupted.
Human rights groups have expressed concern about govt curbs on info.

In Brit the public has been told not to be worried about new moves to
stop suicide bombing of Parliament or other landmarks.  Concrete
blocks have been put up around Parliament overnight, and around other
public buildings.

Brit Hawks have been seen over Aceh.  They were originally sold by
Brit on the understanding they would not be used for internal
repression.  Industry reps say it was only a "gentlemen's agreement",
and the UK could not enforce it.  Human rights groups say that isn't
good enough and want the introduction of vigorous checks on arms
sales.  The govt says it has toughened up the Arms Control Act, adding
it will now be the roughest in the world.  The Lib Democrats want an
outright ban on arms sales to Indon.

1.50 am
A baby has been pulled alive from rubble in Algeria, but the death
toll continues to rise.

11 am
The Algerian quake toll has risen to 1,600 killed and 7,200
injured. Officials say the numbers are going to rise; possibly double.

6 pm
Another scandal has embroiled the AUS GG. Following the shock
withdrawal of a civil rape case against him for "family reasons", it's
been alleged the GG had tried to dismiss a sexual relationship between
a sports coach and a 14 yo girl because the girl had initiated it.
The excuse was made in a letter the GG wrote last wk.  The GG has
denied he was trying to blame the child.  It echoes an TV interview
last y, when Hollingworth was asked about the case of another 14 yo
child, where he explicitly said sexual relations between and adult and
a willing 14 yo child was not rape or sex abuse.  Royalists say it's
unfair that people keep digging up the incidents where Hollingworth
has dismissed or excused child sexual abuse in the past.

The story told by of a school headmaster in Iraq could end the career
of a Brit army officer.  The man says 6 nights ago he heard soldiers
climb over his garden wall.  He said he lied to them about being a
member of Baath.  He was hit on the head and dragged off into his
house where shots were fired into the floor.  He said he also lied
about having firearms.  The soldiers found 2 rifles in his garden.  He
was kicked repeatedly and then taken to a police stn.  He says he was
told to put his hands on the wall and then an order was given to shoot
him.  He heard the rifle cock.  But then an army doctor came in, and
he says he knew he would be OK.  The cmdr of the operation -- Col
Collins -- is now back in Brit.  The headmaster is being replaced at
the school.  They don't want links with Saddam.  But they do believe
his story.  However 1/2 the villagers say he should have been
punished because he lied to the soldiers.
}}

----------------------------------------
Sun, 25 May 2003.

Red Cross finds 80 bodied in Aceh
50 miners die in China
19 soldiers killed in Chechnya
7 hr siege ends at Bombay airport
1 demonstrator dead, 22 injured: Venezuela
Girl pulled from rubble
Iraqi workers get 1st wages since war
Iraq ramps up oil production
Oil prices low on US inventory
Wolfowitz rejects postwar Iraq criticism      
US National database debate
Road Map to go to Cabinet
NK wants talks
Iran calls for reforms
SARS spike in Canada
More farms under MCD quarantine
Gulf War Syndrome doesn't exit: UK report
China edges closer to space power
UK fails in song contest
Brit warship docks in SYD
Aussie GG resigns
Fake bomb explodes in Adel
NSW cracks down on handguns
Ed Min defends private funding
Salvos appeal
AMP cleared by ASIC
HIH under investigation by ASIC
Continuous war news

Banda Ache. RED CROSS FINDS 80 BODIED IN ACEH!  The Indon Red Cross
says it's found about 80 bodies in W Aceh province, where a military
offensive against rebels began earlier this wk.  Red Cross chief
Marie Muhammad says he doesn't have details of how many victims were
killed.  The military says soldiers and police killed 4 rebels
o'night -- taking the total number of rebels killed sine the
offensive began to 62.

Beijing. 50 MINERS DIE IN CHINA!  Nearly 50 miners have died in 2
separate accidents in China.  The Xinhua news agency says
investigators have blamed official negligence for a gas explosion in
SW Yunnan prov, which killed 24 miners on Wed.  It says ventilation
shafts weren't installed in proper places.  Meanwhile, officials in N
Shanxi prov says 23 corpses have been recovered and 2 miners remain
missing from another gas explosion in a mine last Tue.  Chinese mines,
many operated illegally, have an appalling safety record.

Vladikavkaz. 19 SOLDIERS KILLED IN CHECHNYA!  Rebel attacks have killed
19 Russian soldiers in Chechnya as violence continues to escalate in
the breakaway prov.  The Moscow-backed Chechen govt says 14 of the
deaths came in rebel ambushes on 2 military convoys, while 5 soldiers
were killed in assaults on Russian outposts.  Persistent daily
fighting and suicide attacks are undermining the Kremlin's insistence
that peace is taking hold in the separatist region.

Bombay. 7 HR SIEGE ENDS AT BOMBAY AIRPORT!  A paramilitary soldier
guarding Bombay airport has surrendered after killed his CO and taking
6 fellow soldiers hostage.  It's not clear why the 22 yo soldier shot
and killed his superior officer.  The soldier held 5 women and 1 man
inside a room at the airport for 7 hrs as commandos and riot police
surrounded the area.

Caracas. 1 DEMONSTRATOR DEAD, 22 INJURED: VENEZUELA!  1 demonstrator
has died and 22 have been wounded just 24 hrs after Pres Hugo Chavez
announced a deal with opponents to end Venezuela's political and
economic chaos.  Chavez's 19-pt agreement with opp'n leaders is an
attempt to pacify pro- and anti-govt demonstrations and delay a vote
to recall Chavez until Aug.  Witnesses say snipers fired on an
anti-Chavez parade from a huge low-rent housing complex nr a plateau
that dominates Caracas' W side.

Warsaw. GIRL PULLED FROM RUBBLE!  A 10 yo girl has been found alive in
the rubble of a building destroyed by Wed's big quake in Algeria.  The
Polish news agency PAP says the girl was pulled out by Polish and
Austrian rescue workers in Boumerdes, a coastal town devastated by the
earthquake.  The rescue came as Algerian radio reported a mother and
baby had been rescued, also in Boumerdes.  The latest toll from the
disaster lists 1,875 dead and 8,801 injured in the mag 6.3 [?] event.

Iraqi workers get 1st wages since war
Baghdad.  The US civil Admin paid out the 1st govt wages to Iraqis
since the US-led war, giving wages to 1000s of Baghdad electricity
workers.  It hopes the payments -- set eventually to reach about 1.4
mn civil servants and ranging from $80 to $400 per m -- will send a
signal that normal life is returning to the country after weeks of
chaos and deteriorating security conditions.  "Its a start, a good
start and the rest will get paid through the rest of the week," said
Jay Garner, the outgoing director of the Office of Reconstruction and
Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA).  The almost 40,000 electricity
employees are a top priority as they struggle to restore power to the
capital.

Iraq ramps up oil production
Baghdad.  Iraq's acting Oil Min says the country should be exporting
up to 1.5 mn bpd within the next 2 to 3 wk.  The huge increase in
output comes after the UN lifted sanctions which stemmed the oil flow
for the past 13 years.  Iraq has the world's 2nd largest reserves of
oil.  The money raised from increased sales will be administered by
the coalition for the reconstruction effort in Iraq.
In his 1st news conference since the sanctions were lifted, Thamir
al-Ghadhban, predicted production will easily meet demand.  Some Iraqi
political leaders have been critical of the fact there will be no
Iraqis deciding how the money will be spent.
At the same time, US forces have announced a guns amnesty.  As of June
1, Iraqis will have 2 weeks to hand in automatic and heavy weapons as
part a campaign to regain control, especially in Baghdad.  After June
14, anyone found with an unauthorised guns will be arrested and
charged.  At present, weapons of all description are sold openly in
street markets for as little as $50.

Oil prices low on US inventory
Singapore (AFP).  Oil prices were slightly firmer in Asian trading on
Fri after dropping overnight following the lifting of UN Sec Council
sanctions on Iraq, allowing Baghdad's crude oil exports to resume.
NY's benchmark light sweet crude contract for Jul delivery was trading
at US$28.89/bbl at 05.25 after closing overnight at $28.85.  "I think
oil prices are supported by the low stocks in the US and the strength
in the natural gas market. Plus, the driving season in the US has
already begun," a local trader said.  He said oil prices had stopped
reacting to the UNSC resolution, which came as no surprise.  The Sec
Council ended 13 y of UN sanctions on Iraq with immediate effect Thu
and gave the US-led forces there broad control of its economy and
political future.

Wolfowitz rejects postwar Iraq criticism      
Washington (AP) Deputy Def Sec Paul Wolfowitz lauded his govt's
achievements in postwar Iraq, justified its shortcomings and promised
to better inform senators who peppered him with sharp, critical
questions.  Still, Democrats could not pry out of Wolfowitz what they
wanted during a 3 1/2-hour appearance Thu before the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee: an admission that the US role in Iraq will last
longer and be costlier than Americans had been led to believe.
"When is the president going to tell the American people that we're
likely to be in the country of Iraq for 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10 years, with
1000s of forces and billions of dollars?" said Sen. Joseph Biden of
Delaware, the panel's top Democrat. "They have not been told. They
were not told before we went in. And you knew we were going to have to
stay there and he knew."
Wolfowitz said the size of a future force and its costs are impossible
to predict because the situation in Iraq is constantly changing.
Sen Paul Sarbanes, D-Md, noted that Wolfowitz had said in Feb that Gen
Eric Shinseki, the Army chief of staff, was "wildly off the mark" when
he predicted that several 100 1000 troops might be needed in Iraq
after the war. Sarbanes asked if that comment was fair, considering
that more than 150,000 US soldiers could soon be in Iraq.
Wolfowitz said he interpreted Shinseki's estimate to mean 300,000 or
more "and I don't think we're close to that." He said he made his
comment because of concern that "our enemies in the Arab world" were
suggesting the US planned a massive occupation, similar to that in
Japan after World War II. "Otherwise, I would have preferred not to
comment on the whole subject."  He also said he expected NATO nations
to contribute troops following the UN vote Thu giving the US and Brit
a mandate to govern Iraq.
Assertions that the Admin was failing in Iraq "reflect both an
incomplete understanding of the situation as it existed in Iraq before
the war and an unreasonable expectation of where we should be now," he
said.  Critics of the Admin don't "appreciate that a regime which had
tens of 1000s of thugs and war criminals on its payroll does not
disappear overnight."
He highlighted potential problems that were averted and progress that
has been made. Few oil wells were destroyed, and there is no food,
health or refugee crisis, he said. Electric service is better than in
the past 12 y, primary schools have reopened and the water system is
at 60% of prewar levels, he said.
Wolfowitz warned senators against judging US plans "against a standard
of unachievable perfection." And, in his written testimony, he
suggested more uncertainty lies ahead.  "If the situation in Iraq is
somewhat messy now, it's likely to seem even messier as Iraqis sort
out their political process," he said.
Wolfowitz also defended the decision to attack earlier with a smaller
force instead of waiting for a larger force to build up, which would
have provided more troops for postwar security.  "The amount of death
and destruction that was caused by going early is so much less than
what we would be doing now had we gone in with a larger force and had
we given him (Saddam Hussein) time to think through his defences," he
said. "We moved so quickly, he was never able to react and because of
that we saved a lot of lives on both sides."

US National database debate
Washington.  More details about one of the world's most ambitious --
and controversial -- database projects will be released this wk when
the DARPA issues a report to Congress on its Total Info Awareness
program. The initiative has been a point of contention for privacy
groups and others worried that DARPA or other govt agencies will
collect personal info on US citizens in a nat'l security effort to
thwart terrorists through sophisticated data-analysis and
collaboration techniques. If DARPA can overcome the privacy concerns,
some experts say, its bleeding-edge prototype system just might
work. "We're at the cusp of actually being able to do it," says
data-warehousing consultant Bill Inmon, citing advances in storage,
database, and microprocessor technologies, accompanied by continuing
declines in hardware costs, that make such a large-scale undertaking
conceivable.
Total Info Awareness represents a data-management challenge as bold as
it is controversial. The goal, as DARPA's Info Awareness Office
(headed by John Poindexter, former nat'l security adviser in the
Reagan administration) envisions it, is to sift through vast
quantities of data contained in govt and business databases, detect
suspicious patterns of activity, ID the shady characters behind those
actions, then find them before they can do any harm. The 5-year
research and development project would test the limits of database
integration and scalability and require breakthroughs in language
translation, pattern matching, and agency-to-agency collaboration.
How would it work? According to public comments made by DARPA
officials and info on the agency's Web site, the goal is to create an
architecture capable of building a huge database that gets populated,
with the help of automated processes, from existing databases. A
database crawler would be used to recognise the data structures of
source databases, facilitating the flow of data.  Data-mining
algorithms would be run against the data collected and models
generated in an attempt to predict terrorist behaviour.  Collaboration
tools would link experts together for quick action when a terrorist's
"signature" is suspected.
Total Info Awareness was launched in FY 2003 with $US10 mn in initial
funding, but related projects predate the terrorist attacks of Sep 11,
2001. DARPA will spend an estimated $US240 mn on the combined projects
from 2001 through 2003. Prototypes of the system would be turned over
to other Dept of Defence agencies for adoption.
Before any of that happens, though, DARPA will have to convince
Congress it can pull off the project without trampling civil
liberties. Congress passed a law earlier this y that gave DARPA 3 m to
submit a report detailing how funds would be spent on the project,
provide an R&D schedule, and explain how DARPA intends to deal with
privacy implications. Mihir Kshirsagar, an analyst with the Electronic
Privacy Info Center, which opposes the Total Info Awareness project,
says part of the concern is that any security layers used by DARPA to
protect data "can always be stripped away."
DARPA has tried in recent m to diffuse concerns. The project "is not
an attempt to build a 'supercomputer' to snoop into the private lives
or track the everyday activities of American citizens," the agency
writes in a Q&A posted on its Web site. It adds, "All TIA research
complies with all privacy laws, without exception."
DARPA researchers reached a milestone last m when they completed the
1st set of test data to be used in Total Info Awareness. Speaking at a
conference on data privacy, Lt Col Doug Dyer, a DARPA program manager,
described the test data as "synthetic," or artificial in nature. DARPA
also has indicated it could use public-domain data from the media in
its experimental system and says that real-world intel data from other
govt agencies, such as the FBI, might eventually be used, too.
The prototype won't scan "irrelevant" personal info about Americans,
such as medical records, Dyer says, but it might consider records of
over-the-counter drug purchases, which could indicate planning of a
bio-terrorist attack. Tests so far have resulted in "a large number of
false positives," he says.
False positives, and how intel agencies might respond to them, are
among the things that worry some people about the project, setting the
backdrop for this week's report to Congress.
Manila. PHIL PRES RETURNS HOME TO CHECK OFFENSIVE!  Phil Pres Gloria
Arroyo has returned home after a high-profile visit to the US as a
strong supporter of Washington during GWII.  She cut her visit short
to check on an on-going military operation she ordered last wk,
targeting terrorists in the S Philippines the Pres blames for a spate
of bombings and attacks that have killed 210 people.  The govt
assaults this y have been mainly aimed at strong-holds of the MILF, a
separatist group that's blamed for the attacks.

Jerusalem. ROAD MAP TO GO TO CABINET.  Israeli PM Ariel Sharon is
preparing to present a road map for Middle E peace to his Cabinet for
approval today.  The move is being hailed as a breakthrough in an
impasse to peace between Israel and the Palestinians.  However
far-right politicians have vowed to blow the plan which promises
Palestinians their own state by 2005 in return for an end to
terrorist attacks on Israel.  Sharon's endorsement of the plan came
yesterday only after a public pledged from the US that Israel's many
concerns with the road map will be addressed.

Seoul. NK WANTS TALKS!  NK says it'll agree to multilateral talks with
the US and other countries about its suspected nuclear weapons
program, but inly after holding face-to-face talks with Washington.
A NK For Min'y statement says it's flexible about the format of
talks.  But the N's insistence on initial negotiations with the US
suggests fundamental disagreements remain between the 2 sides.
Earlier, NK warned the US of tough military action if Washington uses
force against the Stalinist state.

Tehran. IRAN CALLS FOR REFORMS!  Nearly 1/2 of Iran's parliament has
signed an open letter to the country's supreme leader calling for help
in breaking a deadlock that's holding up key reforms.  The BBC says
the letter warns Ayatollah Khamenei that time is "running out".  Since
moderate Pres Mohammad Khatami came to office in 1997 his efforts to
re-vamp the 24 yo Islamic Republic have been blocked by conservative
clerics.  Most recently, new legislation allowing greater social
freedoms, justice and democracy is at risk.

Toronto. SARS SPIKE IN CANADA!  Canadian authorities say they're
investigating 33 people with SARS symptoms and ordered 500 more into
quarantine due to a suspected new SARS cluster in Toronto.  Canada is
the only country outside Asia to report any deaths from the
respiratory disease.  All of the 24 recorded fatalities have been
centred in the Toronto region.

Winnipeg. MORE FARMS UNDER MCD QUARANTINE!  3 more farms have been
quarantined in Canada as investigators search for the source of the
Mad Cow Disease which has infected a single cow.  The move comes amid
internat'l concerns about the safety of the country's beef.  16 farms
have now been quarantined since officials confirmed a cow from
Alberta had BSE.

London. GULF WAR SYNDROME DOESN'T EXIT: UK REPORT!  A newly-uncovered
"scientific study" reveals Gulf War Syndrome doesn't exit.  A report
in the Sun Telegraph says the study by Brit's Medical Research Council
shows there's "little evidence" to support veterans' claims that
multiple vaccinations from 1991 have caused illness.  There's also
nothing to justify claims of Gulf War Syndrome.  The review of
scientific evidence also rejects a link between illnesses and the use
of DU or nerve agents.

Beijing. CHINA EDGES CLOSER TO SPACE POWER!  China's hopes of
becoming a space superpower have edged closer with the launch of a new
satellite system to implement its own GPS system.  Chinese state media
reports the Beidou satellite lifted off from Xichang in SW Sichuan
prov 24 mins after midnight.  W observers said the satellite may have
military applications.  [Well, duh!]  With 3 satellites now in orbit,
Xinhua says China has a complete system for all-weather navigation and
positioning information.

London. UK FAILS IN SONG CONTEST!  Brit's isolation from Europe has
been underlined -- its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest has failed
to attract even a single vote.  Even the usually supportive Irish
failed to give the Liverpool entry a tick, giving Brit its worst
result in the 47-y history of the talent quest.  The contest was won
by a 39 yo Turkish singer with a song that bears a striking similarity
to an Aussie hit that was Turkish-inspired.  [Holly *will* be
pleased!]  The choice between the winner and highly-favoured Russian
group Tatu came down to the wire, with the decider cast by Lithuania.

Sydney. BRIT WARSHIP DOCKS IN SYD!  Bringing back fond but tearful
memories of the Invasion, Brit warship HMAS Marlborough -- fresh from
Iraq -- has docked in SYD's Watsons Bay for a 10-day break from
whatever sailors get up to while at sea.  The ship, carrying 185
soldiers, worked with AUS's HMAS Anzac to enforce the US's
now-repealed trade and oil embargo in Iraq before the regime change.
It also provided firepower during GWII. The Marlborough received an
official welcome from the crew of the HMAS Watson today when the 2
ships exchanged a playful 19-gun salute.  There were no reported
casualties.

Canberra. AUSSIE GG RESIGNS!  After wks of controversy, GG Peter
Hollingworth has told the PM he intends to resign.  In a statement, Dr
Hollingworth says it's with deep regret he's told the PM he will be
stepping down.  He says he's asked Mr Howard to put the necessary
arrangements in place to advice His Boss, Old Liz, of his decision.
He says despite continued unwarranted allegations over his long-time
involvement in down-playing paedophilia within the Anglican church,
it's now clear the controversy has undermined his capacity to uphold
the dignity of the office.

Adelaide. FAKE BOMB EXPLODES IN ADEL!  A bomb containing fake
chemical agents has exploded over an Adel racecourse in the largest
mock bio-terrorist attack held in AUS.  Emergency personnel from
around AUD were involved in the exercise to test the preparedness of
SA's hospital system for a mass casualty incident.  The mock terror
attack simulated a bomb containing chemical, biological or
radiological agents exploded over the Vic Park racecourse.

Sydney. NSW CRACKS DOWN ON HANDGUNS!  NSW is to head up a nat'l crime
squad to crack down on handguns.  The elite squad, funded by the AUS
Crime Commission, will be based in SYD.  It will be led by a
yet-to-be-named snr NSW police officer and consist of 67 detectives,
police officers, forensic analysts and lawyers selected from across
the country.  A rep for NSW Police Commissioner Ken Moroney says NSW
has been picked to lead the squad because it's been the most vocal on
handguns and firearms in the last y.

Sydney. ED MIN DEFENDS PRIVATE FUNDING!  Fed Ed Min Brendan Nelson has
defended increases in private school funding against charges that
it's "obscene".  The fed govt has decided to subsidise elite schools
by an additional $11.4 mn this FY.  NSW Ed Min Andrew Refshauge
described the funding as "obscene".  But Dr Nelson says it simply
reflects the fact that a greater number of less affluent parents are
sending their children to non-govt schools.

Sydney. SALVOS APPEAL!  The annual Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal is
on today.  Army rep Pat Daley says the last 12 m have been the most
difficult on record, with the drought, bushfires, and world
uncertainty driving up demand for help.  The national target is $7 mn
to fund vital services such as providing meals, food vouchers and beds
for homeless people.  People who aren't home when the Salvos call can
donate money by phone or the Internet.

Sydney. AMP CLEARED BY ASIC!  Australia's corporate watchdog has
cleared financial services giant AMP over insider trading. The ASIC
investigated trading just prior to AMP's announcement that it would
split its AUS arm from the struggling UK operation. ASIC chair David
Knott told ABC TV the high trading levels were a result of
end-of-month trading. He says there's no evidence of insider trading.

Sydney. HIH UNDER INVESTIGATION BY ASIC!  Australia's corporate
watchdog has mounted its biggest taskforce to date to investigate
collapsed insurance giant HIH.  The ASIC says about 40 people will
look into the 53 referrals from the Royal Commission into the collapse.
ASIC chair David Knott says ASIC may well reach the same conclusion as
the RC, but it wants to have its own look into the matter.

{{ Continuous war news
Midnight.
Paul rocked Red Square. Die-hard Communists tried to get the show
banned until Putin said "let it be".

The Algerian Pres Bouteflika has been abused by quake victims for
allowing sub-standard buildings in the area hit by the disaster.  The
buildings are still falling in after shocks.  The Pres retreated to
his car after trying to tour an affected area. The car was farewelled
by a hail or rocks from on-lookers.

5 pm
Canberra. GG Hollingworth has resigned amid a new storm about alleged
protection of paedophiles.  In a press conf, PM Howard says he has
accepted the resignation. Hollingworth will do another Nixon later in
the wk to bitch and talk sour grapes. His tenure has been the most
controversial GG-ship in AUS history. Hollingworth was the first
churchman to become GG. Appointed by PM Howard in the hope of being a
conservative version of Sir Wm Deane, the appointment was criticised
for failing to separate church and state.  Critics say the PM should
have done more checking, because even at the time Hollingworth was
under pressure from officials in his former diocese of Brisbane for
allegedly mis-handling paedophilia cases.

Sydney. A new study finds Aussies are the 3rd-biggest users of opiates
in the world. It finds prescriptions for the drugs have increased
10-fold since the 1980s.  Morphine and pethidine are widely used to
treat cancer and chronic pain, as well as after surgery or major
trauma.  Researcher David Gorman from SYD's Calvary Hosp says Aussies
now rank 3rd behind Denmark and Canada for opiate prescription rates
per capita.

6.30 pm
Tel Aviv. 2 key groups in the RW Israeli coal'n govt have indicate
they will scuttle the Road Map. Reps say the map doesn't truly reflect
Pres Bush's own ideas on Middle E peace, but has been served up to
appease self-serving European interests in the region [?].  For their
part, the Palestinians have agreed the plan is both comprehensive and
balanced. But reps warn if it's now altered to appease last-minute
changes demanded by Israel, the Road Map is dead.

Jakarta. Indon authorities have launched an inquiry into allegations the
military has shot and beaten un-armed civilians in Aceh.  Witnesses
say soldiers have dragged away people they had on lists of names, and
the victims found later with a bullet in the back of the head. In the
worst incident, 18 people, incl children, were shot en masse.  The
Indon military denies targeting civilians.  The allegations of summary
executions is causing concern in Jakarta among human rights groups as
well as the govt.

Baghdad. Iraq's Oil Minister says oil production will double by the
end of the m. He's predicted production will be restored to pre-GWI
levels by the end of the y.

Baghdad. Some Iraqis have been paid for the first times in m, starting
with the power workers. The US Admin has started paying state workers
in dinars.  The power workers were among the first, to avoid
snowballing problems with the supply.

Baghdad. While the US military says the security situation in Iraq is
"improving", (US) ABC says the best indication of how Iraqis feel is
to note that streets are deserted before sunset.  From tomorrow,
high-calibre guns will be banned, and carrying firearms will be
banned. But in a country where firearms are freely owned, displayed
and traded, the top US cmdr says the edict will have its limits. He
says the aim of the US rules is not to disarm the population. That
would be neither practical nor necessary, he said at a press conf.

Artic circle. A 47 yo Brit has become the first person to reach the N
pole unaided, but he's having one Hell of a time trying to make it
back to civilisation. Presently, he's stranded on sea ice with
provisions of nuts and berries running low. His wife says the plane
that was sent to rescue him broke down. And his phone battery has
given out. The support crew says it'll try to arrange a food drop in
the next few days. Old Liz says he's shown sterling Brit stuff upper
lip so far.

7 pm
ABC TV. Baghdad. They were illegal under Saddam, and could attract a
death penalty. Now, any Iraqi with the odd $400 to spare can install a
satellite TV dish. The world is a small village, says one engineer
who's rushed off his feet installing the systems. Next, to get some
electricity to run the TV's!
}}

----------------------------------------
Mon, 26 May 2003.

Markets
5 dead after US siege
Four dead in engine room fire
Demonstrators converge on Paris
Sharon and Mazen to meet
Downer quizzes Iran on nukes
Canada battles new SARS outbreak
PM meets with GG
Salvos still hopeful, but takings are down
Prozac may fight cancer
Qantas plans to speed restructure
ABC cuts back broadcasts
Qld business fights levy
US baby rescued from washing machine
Continuous war news

NY. MARKETS!  The Dow closed up 7 pts to 8,601.  In London, the FTSE
ended the session down 11 pts at 3,980.  The German Dax lost 43 pts
(1.5%) to close at 2,822.  Gold is trading around $US369.oz.

Mayport. 5 DEAD AFTER US SIEGE!  5 people have been found dead in a
Florida home after police captured a man who'd held them at bay for
12 hrs.  Police say at least 1 of the victims may have been dead for
11 days.  The 27 yo man surrendered after police officers persuaded
him to release his 4 yo son.  The man has been charged with 5 counts
of murder and is being held in a hospital after telling police he'd
taken an OD of prescription drugs.

Miami. FOUR DEAD IN ENGINE ROOM FIRE!  An explosion and fire in the
engine room of a docked luxury liner has killed 4 crew members and
injured 20 others before the flames were extinguished.  Authorities
say none of the ship's 3,400 passengers were injured.  The injured
crew, 14 of them in critical condition, have been taken to an area
hospital.  Coast Guard PO Anastasia Burns says Norwegian Cruise Line's
"Norway" [the old "France" and still the longest ship in the world]
came into the Pt of Miami around 5 am.  She says the blast was
possible the result of leaking steam.  [Or not-leaking steam].

Paris. DEMONSTRATORS CONVERGE ON PARIS!  100s of 1000s of people from
all over France have protested in Paris at propose govt pension
changes.  Trade unions provided buses and special trains to bring
demonstrators to the capital and the large CGT union says about
600,000 people took part.  The protesters oppose the C-R govt's plans
to make people pay into state pension plans for longer.  The govt is
standing firm in the face of overwhelming public opp'n.

Jerusalem. SHARON AND MAZEN TO MEET!  Israeli PM Sharon and Palestinian
counterpart Abu Mazen will meet tomorrow for the 2nd summit in 10 days
to discuss the road map to peace. Palestinian Cabinet Min Yasser Abed
Rabbo says the pair will meet in Jerusalem tomorrow evening.  The
meeting follows Israel's conditional acceptance today of the US-backed
plan.

Tehran. DOWNER QUIZZES IRAN ON NUKES!  For Min Alex Downer says he has
raised a string of concerns with Iran, incl fugitive al-Qaeda members,
nuclear proliferation [!], and interference in Iraq [!!].  However he
says he's received few concrete assurances to allay his fears.
Speaking to reporters at the end of a 1-day visit to the Islamic
Republic, Mr Downer says he's warned [!] Iran not to interfere in the
US plans for Iraq, to arrest all al-Qaeda members wanted by the W, and
to allow unlimited inspections of all its suspected nuclear
facilities.

Toronto. CANADA BATTLES NEW SARS OUTBREAK!  A mis-diagnosed case of
SARS is blamed for a new outbreak of SARS in Toronto. A victim of the
disease may have infected up to 1,000 others after being mistakenly
cleared of the virus.  Canada's largest city is now gearing up to
battle the spike in cases as authorities investigate 33 possible new
cases.  Meanwhile, the worst affected areas in China and HK have
reported only 17 new infections.  But Taiwan remains the major cause
of concern, announcing 22 new cases and 12 deaths, bringing the total
fatalities there to 72.  Taipei has claimed the recent rise in cases
is the result of better diagnosis, and has refused an offer of
protective equipment from mainland China.  A report released by
medical officials says the lack of political transparency has
hampered the fight against the disease.

Canberra. PM MEETS WITH GG!  PM Howard has left Govt House after
meeting with GG Hollingworth for less than 1 hr. The PM arrived at
Yarralumla shortly before 9 am to meet with the outgoing GG for the
first time since Dr Hollingworth told him in a phone call yesterday
he'd decided to resign.  The pair were expected to dicuss the
transition to a new GG. Dr H is the first GG in 100 y and only the
2nd in AUS history to resign his post.

Sydney. SALVOS STILL HOPEFUL, BUT TAKINGS ARE DOWN!  The Salvation
Army says it's still hoping to top $7 mn in its annual Red Shield
Appeal this y, but taking from the weekend were 6-7% down on the same
time last y.  People in SYD know the rain-soaked weekend was a bad
day to be out collecting.  Major Mark Campbell says the appeal runs
until Jun 30, so people can still donate.  He says despite the rain
dampening spirits, the $7 mn collected nationally will go a long way
to help those in need.

Birmingham. PROZAC MAY FIGHT CANCER!  Scientists believe the
anti-depressant drug Prozac could be used to treat some forms of
cancer.  Their discovery was made when investigating the effect the
body's naturally-produced chemicals have on Burkitt's lymphoma.  An
international team of scientists led by researchers at Birmingham U,
found that drugs such as Prozac could be used to treat the cancer.
The breakthrough is particularly important for AIDS sufferers as they
are least able to cope with the strong side-effects of chemotherapy.

Sydney. QANTAS PLANS TO SPEED RESTRUCTURE!  Qantas is reportedly
planning to accelerate a massive restructure program to head off the
effects of a severe downturn in international air travel and cutbacks
in its rivals.  The AUS Fin Rev says the company project, dubbed
"Sustainable Future", was to have generated $1 bn of cost savings over
the next 3 y through initiatives incl more productive work practices
and a fleet overhaul.  But the newspaper says that after 2 profit
downgrades in the past 3 m, airline officials are considering
strategies to hasten the cost-cutting.

Canberra. ABC CUTS BACK BROADCASTS!  The ABC says it will end its
digital multi-channelling programs, Fly TV and ABC Kids, citing a lack
of funds.  ABC MD Russell Balding told a Senate estimates committee
that the ABC regrets having to make the decision, but it doesn't have
much option.  He says up to 38 staff will be affected by the decision
and consultation with the union will begin today.  The ABC's call for
more money for multichanneling in its tri-annual funding submission
was rejected by the fed govt.

Brisbane. QLD BUSINESS FIGHTS LEVY!  About 600,000 Qld businesses have
formed an alliance to fight the state govt's proposed ambulance levy.
The alliance, coordinated by Commerce Qld, claims the govt is
double-dipping if it proceeds with the levy.  Under the plan, Qld-ers
will pay an extra $88 pa on their electricity bills to fund ambulance
services in the state.  Despite some recent adjustments, many
customers, particularly small businesses, will still have to pay the
levy more than once.

Pomona. US BABY RESCUED FROM WASHING MACHINE!  Police say a 2 yo girl
has been rescued from a locked, operating washer at a coin
laundry. Surveillance tape allegedly shows the mother deliberately put
the child in the machine and switched it on.  She has been arrested.
A police rep says an officer smashed the window of the machine with
his baton to rescue the child, who was submerged in water. She was
unconscious when pulled from the washer yesterday, but still
breathing. The child was taken to a hospital where she is listed in
serious condition, with cuts and bruises.

{{ Continuous war news
6 am
The Israeli Cabinet has accepted the US-backed Road Map to Middle E
peace, 11 votes to 7.  But it's the Israeli version.  Reporters point
out even as the govt "accepts" the plan, illegal settlements are being
expanded on stolen Arab land.

Midday.
Algeria.  The death toll from last wk's quake has risen to 2,100.  But
100s are still missing.  9,000 were injured in the disaster.

Taiwan.  The SARS outbreak continues to flare, with the govt
announcing 12 new deaths and 22 more cases in the past 24 hrs.  The
latest figures bring the total death toll to 72.  100s are still
hospitalised with the virus.  Despite the new numbers, authorities are
trying to play the outbreak down.  A new report says the lack of
transparency has delayed recovery from the outbreak.

In HK, no SARS cases were reported Sat.  After the WHO dropped HK from
its list of travel warnings, there were public celebrations.  Local
pop-stars entertained crowds into the night.

4 crew have been killed on the luxury cruise liner Norway -- formerly
the France.  The crew were killed in a boiler-room explosion.  Company
officials say the 2,000 passengers on the ship were not affected.  The
cruise has been cancelled.

ABC is cutting programming because of lack of funds.  The Board says
the govt has effectively cut back funding.  Com Min Richard "Telstra"
Alston asked whether the ABC board had looked at other options.

At 12.30 the All Ords is down 8 pts.  Gold is trading at $US368/oz --
up $US14 since last wk.  Oil is up 30 US c to $US29.16/bbl.  The AUD
is also higher -- 65.91 US c.
}}

========================================

(*) Who is responcible for W.A.R.S?  A small group of dedicated
sandgrubbers, bannana-lickers and 5th columnists on the run from
support payments and sundry legalese in their home countries. Mention
us at any Uncle Harry's Suburban Bunker and get a 10% discount on cop-killers!

All speling macroizated for correctitood by Mcrosotf Speelchek.

*** Who turned out the lights? ***