Around the World

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

IRAQ

Government Cautiously Approves Kurds' Arming

The Iraqi government has no objection to semiautonomous Kurdish authorities purchasing weapons and ammunition to arm their security forces, but it wants to be informed, a government spokesman said Monday.

The Washington Post reported Sunday that the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) had quietly shipped in three C-130 cargo planes loaded with guns and bullets from Bulgaria, stirring concerns among U.S. officials over possible armed confrontation between the Kurds and the Iraqi government.

Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said officials would not oppose the Kurds arming their police if it was aimed at strengthening national or regional security.

"I don't deny there is some tension between the KRG and the federal government due to many issues," Dabbagh said. "It won't reach to a level of conflict."

SOMALIA

Piracy Blockade Urged

Shipping officials from around the world called Monday for a military blockade along Somalia's coast to intercept pirate vessels heading out to sea.

Meanwhile, Yemen's government said Somali pirates had seized another ship, this time in the Arabian Sea.

And Somali pirates holding a Saudi supertanker that they hijacked southeast of Kenya on Nov. 15 have reduced their ransom demand from $25 million to $15 million, an Islamist leader and a regional maritime group said.

U.N. Denounces Abuses in Congo

Government and rebel armed groups in Congo have committed serious human rights abuses, including mass killings, rape and torture, according to a new U.N. report.

Meanwhile, witnesses said government soldiers went on an overnight looting and shooting rampage Monday in a sprawling refugee camp in Kibati, north of the eastern provincial capital of Goma.

15 Fighters Killed, Pakistan Says

Government forces battling al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters killed 15 insurgents in the tribal areas along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan, the army said.

In a separate operation, a military official said troops had made progress in securing Peshawar, a strategic city just outside the tribal belt.

Deal Struck on Israeli Outpost

Israel's government and West Bank settlers reached a compromise that will avoid the immediate evacuation of an unauthorized West Bank outpost. The outpost of Migron, north of Jerusalem, will be moved near another West Bank settlement. That process is expected to take years, however, and, in the meantime, the approximately 45 families at Migron will stay where they are.

Tunisia Convicts Al-Qaeda Figure

A Tunisian court convicted an alleged former logistics head of al-Qaeda's European operations of belonging to a terrorist group abroad and sentenced him to 11 years in prison. Sami Ben Khemais, 40, was extradited from Italy in June.

Foreign Media Fight Gaza Ban

International journalists based in Israel appealed to the country's Supreme Court to overturn a government decision barring foreign correspondents from entering the Gaza Strip.

Show of Chinese Force in Tibet

Chinese paramilitary police deployed in the Tibetan town of Xiahe in a show of force apparently intended to deter unrest while a local court sentenced a group of Tibetans for taking part in anti-government protests in Xiahe in March.

Floods Kill at Least 50 in Brazil

Rescue workers rushed to help stranded residents in the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina after landslides and floods caused by heavy rain killed at least 50 people and forced more than 23,000 from their homes.

Russian Charged in Sub Deaths

Authorities charged a sailor with fatal negligence in the deaths of 20 people aboard a nuclear submarine Nov. 9. Dmitry Grobov is accused of setting off a fire-extinguishing system aboard the submarine during a test run in the Sea of Japan.

From News Services