Top News Stories of Two-Thousand-Four 01-01I'm Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.This week we tell about some of the biggest news stories of two thousand four. We start in Asia, with what is being described as one of the worst natural disasters ever.Last Sunday, huge waves moved across the Indian Ocean and flooded coastal areas across southern and southeast Asia to East Africa. The waves were caused by one of the most powerful earthquakes ever recorded, measuring nine on the Richter Scale.The countries hardest hit were Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand. More than one hundred thousand people are reported dead. Millions of people have been left homeless.Two thousand four was also filled with news about the war in Iraq and daily reports of violence in the country. Militants increased their attacks against American soldiers, Iraqi police officers and civilians working with the United States. American-led forces battled militants in the cities of Fallujah and Najaf. In May, news organizations around the world reported about the mistreatment of Iraqis by American soldiers at Abu Ghraib prison.More than one thousand American soldiers have been killed in Iraq since the war began almost two years ago. And the number of Iraqis killed is reportedly many times higher.Terrorism was a top story in other parts of the world. In March, suspected Islamic militants exploded bombs on crowded passenger trains in Madrid, Spain. About two hundred people were killed. Days later, Spanish voters defeated the country's conservative government, which had supported the American-led war in Iraq.In September, armed Chechen militants seized more than one thousand children, parents and teachers in a school in Beslan, Russia. The seizure ended in gunfire and explosions after days of negotiations. More than three hundred people were killed, most of them children.The African nation of Sudan was in the news because of a major humanitarian crisis in the Darfur area. Reports said government-supported Arab militants killed more than seventy thousand people in a two-yearcampaign of violence against black tribal farmers. More than one million people have been displaced from their homes.Two thousand four was also a year of historic political elections. In Afghanistan, voters elected Hamid Karzai in the country's first presidential election. Voters in the United States re-elected George W. Bush after a hard fought presidential campaign against the Democratic Party candidate, John Kerry.And a political crisis eased in Ukraine after the Supreme Court cancelled the election victory of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych. The court decided there had been widespread cheating and ordered a new presidential election. Opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko won that election on Sunday and has promised democratic changes in Ukraine.In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by Cynthia Kirk. This is Steve Ember.Aid for Tsunami Victims 01--02I'm Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.Kofi Annan says helping survivors of the earthquake and killer waves in the Indian Ocean last week is a race against time. The United Nations secretary-general says countries that have offered aid must hurry and provide it. The offers add up to around four thousand million dollars. United Nations officials say one-fourth of that is needed during the next six months. The concern about offers of international aid is based on history. For example, the earthquake in Bam, Iran, in December of two thousand three killed more than twenty-six thousand people. Countries and groups offered hundreds of millions of dollars worth of assistance. The United Nations says it has confirmed only about seventeen million dollars in aid received so far. Governments and organizations that offered help dispute that, however.On Thursday Mister Annan met with world leaders in Jakarta, Indonesia to discuss aid for victims of the tsunami. The leaders discussed and welcomed the idea of suspending some debt owed by affected nations. But the leaders did not say they would do so. Some said that making direct payments to survivors would be more helpful.The top U.N. aid official, Jan Egeland, has said the number of dead will be "much bigger" than one hundred fifty thousand. The World Health Organization says about a half-million people are injured. Millions more are homeless. TheW.H.O. has called for clean water along with food and medicines needed to help prevent the spread of disease.Australia has offered eight hundred ten million dollars in aid. The European Union says it will provide four hundred sixty-six million dollars in aid. Germany, Japan and the United States follow in their amounts offered. American military forces are also providing services.Representatives of twenty-six countries and international organizations attended the meeting in Jakarta. Officials say they will cooperate to develop a tsunami warning system for the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.A small group of countries including the United States began to direct aid efforts after the events of December twenty-sixth. Now American officials say the group is being suspended so the United Nations can start to take control. The earthquake measured nine on the Richter scale. The quake and resulting waves proved most deadly on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. More than one hundred thousand people are reported dead there.On Friday, American Secretary of State Colin Powell expressed shock at the destruction caused by the earthquake and waves. The same day, Kofi Annan flew by helicopter over western Sumatra and visited Meulaboh. About four thousand bodies were discovered in that town Friday. Mister Annan said he had never seen such destruction as he saw on Sumatra. In his words, "Where are the people?"In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.Middle East Peace Prospects 01--03I'm Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.A Palestinian attack on Israelis at a border crossing has added to the pressures Mahmoud Abbas will face in his new job. The attack came two days before the swearing-in ceremony for the next president of the Palestinian Authority.A truck bomb exploded Thursday at the Karni crossing between Israel and Gaza. Then gunmen killed six Israeli civilians and seriously wounded five others. Three groups took responsibility: Hamas, the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and the Popular Resistance Committees.Later, Israeli helicopters raided a target in Gaza linked to militants. Goods enter Gaza through the Karni crossing. After the militant attack, Israel closed all border crossings with Gaza.On Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon ordered that all communication with the Palestinian Authority be cut. He said communications would stop until the new Palestinian President controls militants and halts attacks. The announcement came hours before Mahmoud Abbas was to be sworn-in.Yasser Arafat was Palestinian Authority president until his death in November. Israel and the United States had refused to negotiate with him as attacks against Israel continued.The peace plan known as the road map calls for Israel and the Palestinians to take steps toward an independent Palestine. The plan is meant to end more than four years of most recent violence.World leaders say the election Sunday of Mister Abbas offers new possibilities for peace. He received sixty-two percent of the vote. He defeated independent candidate Mustafa Barghouti and five others.The Israeli Prime Minister congratulated Mister Abbas. Both sides expressed support for a meeting, but did not set a date. President Bush said he would welcome the new Palestinian leader to Washington if he wants to come. Israeli lawmakers this week narrowly approved a new government. Most cabinet members support the plan by Israel to withdraw from Gaza and part of the West Bank this year.Mister Abbas has said attacks against Israel make life harder for Palestinians. He also says he would not use force against militants, but would try to negotiate a truce.A Hamas official told the Associated Press that Egypt has renewed a proposal for a one-year suspension of attacks. Hamas boycotted the presidential election, but may join legislative elections in July.After the Karni attack, Reuters news agency reported that several thousand marchers celebrated in the Jabalya refugee camp in Gaza.But the head of a Palestinian research group says the majority of people, especially in Gaza, support Mister Abbas. Mahdi Abdel Hadi says the people are tired of violence. In his words, "They are looking for this small window of fresh air and warm sun to come through the Palestinian election."In the News in VOA Special English was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.Iraqi Elections 01--04This is Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.On Sunday, for the first time in almost fifty years, Iraq will hold parliamentary elections with more than one party competing. Some Iraqis have already been voting in other countries.Around fourteen million names are on voter lists in Iraq. Voters face threats of violence from groups like the one that calls itself al-Qaida in Iraq. On Friday, Iraqi officials announced the arrests of three top aides to its Jordanian-born leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.Iraqi soldiers and police will guard voting centers. United States officials say American troops will be prepared to assist.The election is to choose two hundred seventy-five members for what is called a Transitional National Assembly.One of the duties of this temporary assembly will be to name a three-member presidency council. Another duty is to write a constitution. If Iraqis approve the constitution in October, then they will elect a new government at the end of the year.On Sunday, Iraqis will vote from a single national ballot. They will choose lists of candidates representing parties or coalitions. Seats will be divided in the National Assembly based on the share of votes that a list receives. A goal is to have women in at least one-fourth of the seats.Many political groups are competing. Commentators say the United Iraqi Alliance appears to have the strongest support. A Shiite Muslim leader, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, heads the candidate list.The alliance wants Iraq to be an Islamic state with a federal government. The alliance has the support of the highest religious leader in Iraq, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. Its candidate list is mainly Shiite. Iraq is about sixty percent Shiite. But the list also contains other religious and ethnic groups including Iraqi Kurds and ethnic Turkmens.Another group of candidates that may do well in the voting is called the Iraqi List. Its candidates are Shiite and Sunni. Iyad Allawi, now the temporary prime minister of Iraq, heads this list.About twenty percent of Iraqis are Sunni. Some Sunnis have called for a boycott of the voting. Their Iraqi Islamic Party withdrew its candidate list from the election. Members said the security situation was too threatening.President Bush has urged Iraqis to vote. So has the president of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai. On Friday he urged Iraqis to follow the example of the Afghan people. Mister Karzai called the election a necessary risk to bring order to Iraq.And, in Washington, Condoleezza Rice was sworn in Friday as secretary of state. She was national security adviser to the president. Miz Rice replaces Colin Powell who resigned.At her confirmation hearings, some Democratic senators condemned her handling of the war in Iraq. They said she used bad judgment and misled the public about the reasons for going to war. On Wednesday the Senate voted eighty-five to thirteen to confirm Miz Rice as secretary of state.In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.Bush Discusses Middle East Policy in 01--05State of the Union SpeechThis is Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders before those leaders hold talks next week. Her trip is part of the Middle East peace efforts that President Bush discussed this week in his State of the Union speech.Miz Rice is to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in Jerusalem on Sunday. She visits Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank on Monday.Then, on Tuesday, Mister Abbas and Mister Sharon are to meet in Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt. It will be the first time Israeli and Palestinian leaders have met in more than four years. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is holding the talks. King Abdullah of Jordan also is expected to take part.President Bush announced that he will ask Congress for three hundred fifty million dollars for the Palestinians. He said the money would go for political, security and other reforms. In his words: "The goal of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace is within reach – and America will help them achieve that goal."In his speech Wednesday night in Congress, Mister Bush also called for greater freedoms in other parts of the Middle East. He said reform is already taking hold from Morocco to Jordan to Bahrain.He called on Saudi Arabia to give its people more power to decide their future. And he spoke of Egypt, another American ally, which he called "a great and proud nation." He said, "Egypt, which showed the way toward peace in the Middle East, can now show the way toward democracy in the Middle East."In much stronger language, Mister Bush said that Syria still permits its territory and parts of Lebanon to be used by terrorists. And he said Iran remains the world's main state supporter of terrorism. He said Iran is seeking nuclear weapons while denying its people freedom. The president had a message for Iranians. "As you stand for your own liberty," he said, "American stands with you."In London Friday, reporters asked Secretary Rice if the United States might ever attack Iran. In her words: "The question is simply not on the agenda at this point." She said diplomatic steps remain. Miz Rice is on her first trip as top American diplomat. London was the first stop among European capitals.In his State of the Union speech, the president praised the Iraqi people for voting in elections. He said terrorists are trying to destroy the hope that Iraqis expressed. Millions of people voted Sunday for a new Transitional National Assembly.Leaders of the opposition Democrats in Congress criticized Mister Bush for not saying when American troops will leave Iraq.The president introduced an Iraqi human rights activist whose father was killed by the Saddam Hussein government. Safia Taleb al-Souhail shared an emotional hug with another guest, Janet Norwood, the mother of a United States Marine killed in battle in Iraq.In the News in VOA Special English was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.Israeli-Palestinian Truce; 01--06Historic Elections in Saudi ArabiaI'm Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon met in Egypt this week and declared a cease-fire. The meeting Tuesday was the first in more than four years between leaders of the two sides. The current violence between Palestinians and Israelis began in September of two thousand.Both men spoke of increased chances for peace. But violence resurfaced on Thursday. Members of Hamas fired shells and rockets at Jewish settlements in Gaza, although no one was hurt.Mister Abbas had deployed a large security force in the area to prevent attacks on Israelis. After the shelling, he dismissed three top security officials. Israel praised the action. But cabinet members said Israel would have to act if the Palestinians cannot control the situation.Hamas said it was not trying to break the cease-fire. It said the attack was in answer to the killing of a Palestinian in Gaza on Wednesday.Israel has been urging Mister Abbas to disarm militant groups. On Friday he went to Gaza to demand that they observe the truce announced in Sharm el-Sheikh. Earlier he sent a representative to meet with Hezbollah officials in Lebanon, where that group is based. Palestinian and Israeli officials have both accused Hezbollah of plotting to wreck the cease-fire.In return for Palestinian promises to control violence, Israel said it would free hundreds of Palestinian prisoners within weeks. Israeli also promised to withdraw troops from five West Bank towns.President Bush recently said he would ask Congress for three hundred fifty million dollars for the Palestinians. The money would be used to help them develop an independent state.Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met separately with Mister Sharon and Mister Abbas this week. Secretary Rice said the United States would give the Palestinians forty million dollars immediately.In other news this week in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia held its first openelections. Candidates competed for half the seats on local councils in the Riyadh area. The national government will choose the other half.Close to two thousand men competed for one hundred twenty-seven seats. Women could not be candidates. They also could not vote. The government said it did not have enough time to set up separate voting stations for them.Still, many voters said the local elections marked the beginning of democratic reforms. The ruling family is under pressure to give Saudis more political power.About one hundred fifty thousand men in and around the capital signed up to vote. Up to six hundred thousand could have registered.Unofficial results were announced Friday. News agencies said Islamist candidates supported by clergy appeared to have won in Riyadh.Elections are set for March and April in other parts of the kingdom.In the News in VOA Special English was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.Syria, Lebanon and the Killing of Rafik Hariri 01--07I'm Doug Johnson with In the News in VOA Special English.President Bush says the United States supports the international investigation that will take place to identify the killers of Rafik Hariri. The former prime minister of Lebanon died Monday in a powerful bomb explosion along a street in Beirut. At least fourteen other people were also killed.Recently Mister Hariri had opposed the large part that Syria takes in Lebanese politics. He called for the withdrawal of Syrian troops. Syria has at least fourteen thousand troops in Lebanon. Syria borders Lebanon on the north and east.Mister Hariri, a Sunni, was a very wealthy builder. He resigned as prime minister last October. He did so after Syria extended the term of the Lebanese president. But Mister Hariri had been expected to run in elections planned this May.His family and the Lebanese political opposition link Syria to the car bombing. Syria denies any involvement. President Bashar al-Assad condemned the murders.Lebanese President Emil Lahoud, a Christian allied with Syria, promised a full investigation. His government says it has asked for help from Swiss and other foreign experts.On Wednesday, an estimated two hundred thousand people attended the funeral for Mister Hariri. His family told President Lahoud and cabinet members not to attend. Protesters shouted "Syria out!" The Beirut newspaper An-Nahar called the funeral "a huge vote for unity and sovereignty."On Friday Lebanese opposition leaders called for a peaceful "uprising for independence." And Lebanon's tourism minister resigned. He said the government was unable to solve what he called the "dangerous situation in the country."On Thursday, President Bush said Syria must honor a United Nations Security Council resolution passed last year. Resolution fifteen-fifty-nine calls for foreign troops to leave Lebanon. Mister Bush described Syria as "out of step" with progress in the Middle East. Syria is not "moving with the democratic movement," in his words.The United States recalled its ambassador to Syria, Margaret Scobey, after the killing of Mister Hariri.His murder comes after years of relative calm in Lebanon. Civil war between Christians and Muslims began in nineteen seventy-five. An Arab force led by Syrian troops intervened in nineteen seventy-six in an effort to end the war. Later, Israel occupied southern Lebanon, staying until two thousand. The civil war was complex and lasted fifteen years.Syria and Lebanon reached a cooperation agreement in nineteen ninety-one. Since the war, the Lebanese have kept a political balance by dividing leadership positions among different religious groups.Rafik Hariri was popular for his efforts to rebuild Lebanon after the war. There are worries that violence could return now that he is gone.In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Doug Johnson.Bush Trip to Europe 01-08I'm Steve Ember with In the News, in VOA Special English.President Bush was in Europe this week for the first time since his re-election in November.On Thursday he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. They discussed Russian democracy and the fight against terrorism. The two leaders also said Iran and North Korea should not have nuclear weapons. On Friday Mister Putin told reporters that he is satisfied with the meeting.Bratislava was the last city visited by Mister Bush on his five-day trip to Europe. In addition to Slovakia, he visited Belgium and Germany.President Bush said he placed importance on a free press and observance of the rule of law during his talks with Mister Putin. Mister Putin rejected any suggestions that Russia is restricting democracy. In his words, "There can be no return to what we had before." The Russian leader also says he and Mister Bush are "very close" on a number of issues such as Iraq, Iran and North Korea.They called for speeding up negotiations for Russian entry into the World Trade Organization. They also said they would work together on international ways to improve the safekeeping of nuclear material.An agreement calls for Russia and the United States to share information about improving nuclear security. They are to jointly develop emergency plans to fight nuclear and radiological attacks. And they are to work together to develop a replacement for highly enriched uranium fuel used in research reactors. The goal is to prevent the uranium from being used to make nuclear weapons.On Wednesday, Mister Bush met in Mainz, Germany, with Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. The German leader had strongly opposed the war in Iraq. But Mister Schroeder says Iraq's future is what is important now.Mister Bush called Europe "America's closest ally." And, he said, "in order for us to have good relations with Europe we have to have good relations with Germany."The two leaders agreed to cooperate on environmental issues, even though the United States is not part of the Kyoto treaty. The United States and Germany are to increase efforts to develop cleaner energy technologies. The aim is to reduce pollution and the industrial gases blamed for atmospheric warming, without limiting economic growth.Several thousand demonstrators marched in Mainz to protest the visit by Mister Bush. There were also protests earlier in Brussels, the headquarters of the European Union and NATO. There, the president met with European Union leaders. And the North Atlantic Treaty Organization announced that all twenty-six of its members would help train Iraqi security forces. But several nations, including Germany, say they only want to do training outside Iraq.In The News, in VOA Special English, was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.I.R.A. Ties Put Pressure on Sinn Fein in 01-09Northern Ireland Peace EffortsThis is Steve Ember with In the News, in VOA Special English.This year is the one hundredth anniversary of Sinn Fein, the main political party for Roman Catholics in Northern Ireland. But these days there is little to celebrate.Sinn Fein serves as the political organization of the Irish Republican Army. And the I.R.A. is being widely condemned over recent cases of robbery and murder. The Irish Republican Army began in nineteen nineteen. This week the American diplomat for Northern Ireland said it is time to "go out of business."On Thursday, the British House of Commons voted to take away the right of parliamentary pay for Sinn Fein members. The party holds four seats in the British Parliament. The European Parliament is considering similar action.Next Thursday is Saint Patrick's Day, an Irish celebration. Gerry Adams, the leader of Sinn Fein, was not invited this year to join President Bush for the traditional observance at the White House. The heads of other political parties in Northern Ireland were not invited either. But White House officials have invited the five sisters of a truck driver killed in January by the I.R.A.In the Gaelic language, Sinn Fein means "we ourselves" or "ourselves alone." The group started in nineteen oh five as a loose coalition of labor organizations. At that time, Britain ruled all of Ireland. Sinn Fein supporters wanted at least some independence from the British.Today the territory is separated into the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland. Most Irish citizens are Roman Catholic. But Northern Ireland is a British province, and the population is mostly Protestant.Years of violence between Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland began in nineteen sixty-nine. Bombings were common. In nineteenninety-seven, the Irish Republican Army declared a ceasefire. Peace talks led to a power-sharing agreement in April of the following year, on the Christian observance of Good Friday.But political troubles continued. In October of two thousand two, British Prime Minister Tony Blair suspended the administration of Roman Catholics and Protestants. Sinn Fein wants a place in any renewed government. But political observers say its efforts are hurt by evidence against the Irish Republican Army.In December, robbers stole up to fifty million dollars from a Belfast bank. Hostages were taken. Investigators found the I.R.A. responsible, which the group denies. The I.R.A. was ordered to pay a large fine.Then, in January of this year, I.R.A. members killed a Roman Catholic truck driver. His name was Robert McCartney. It happened after a dispute at a drinking place in Belfast.In reaction, the I.R.A. expelled some of its members. It also offered to shoot the men who killed Robert McCartney. But his family wants the killers to face justice. In the words of a family member, "Only in a court will the truth come out."In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.Wolfowitz and the World Bank 01-10I'm Steve Ember with IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.President Bush this week nominated Paul Wolfowitz to become president ofthe World Bank. The current head of the bank, James Wolfensohn, has held that position for ten years. His second term ends May thirty-first.Mister Wolfensohn announced in January that he would not seek a third term as leader of the development bank. It provides loans, policy advice and other assistance to help countries reduce poverty.Paul Wolfowitz has served in both the State Department and the Defense Department. For the last four years he has been deputy defense secretary under Donald Rumsfeld. Mister Wolfowitz was a major planner of the invasion of Iraq two years ago. He is often called the "architect" of the war.Some aid groups and others criticized the choice of an official so closely linked to the Iraq war to lead the World Bank. European reaction was mixed. Japan welcomed the nomination.Mister Wolfowitz recently traveled to South Asia to see the damage from the earthquake and tsunami waves in December. He helped plan American military assistance to the area.His nomination must be approved by the twenty-four directors of the World Bank. They represent one hundred eighty-four member countries. Traditionally, an American leads the World Bank while a European heads the International Monetary Fund.Paul Wolfowitz has taught at Yale and Johns Hopkins universities. During the late nineteen eighties, he served as ambassador to Indonesia. He won praise as a diplomat.Later, Mister Wolfowitz served as undersecretary of defense for policy under the first President Bush. As such, he developed policy during the Persian Gulf War after Iraq invaded Kuwait in nineteen ninety.In two thousand one he was a leading supporter of military strikes against al Qaida and the Taliban in Afghanistan. That was after the September eleventh terrorist attacks on the United States.Each year, the World Bank provides thousands of millions of dollars to developing countries. Education and health programs often receive money. But critics of the World Bank say programs for the poor are often cut as a result of financial reforms required to get loans. They say rich countries get richer, while poor countries struggle to repay.。
