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The global SARS epidemic is prompting countries and territories most affected by the disease to take drastic measures in an effort to contain the virus. As of late Thursday, at least 263 people had died of SARS, and more than 4400 had been infected. World Health Organization officials say the worst-hit areas are Hong Kong, Singapore, Toronto, Canada), Beijing and two other regions in China. In Beijing Thursday, officials sealed off one of the city's largest hospitals. No one was being allowed to enter or leave the People's Hospital of Beijing University, where several health care workers are said to have contracted the disease. Officials in Taiwan also closed a major hospital in the capital, Taipei, after the facility reported its highest single day rise in SARS cases, five. Some 200 other suspected cases at the Taipei Municipal Hoping Hospital are being kept in isolation. Hong Kong authorities began checking the temperatures of people crossing into the territory from mainland China. Health officials said anyone found to be sick will be sent to the hospital. In Singapore, officials announced they will put electronic monitors on any SARS patient who is caught violating home quarantine orders.
. End of article 1.
 Anyone interested in the question would do well to follow the proceedings of a four-month trial that is currently under way in Paris.
But for those patient enough to watch, it provides a fascinating insight into the moral vacuum that existed at the heart of France just 10 years ago. The three men who ran the then state-owned oil firm Elf-Aquitaine in the early 1990s - chief executive Loik Le Floch-Prigent, his "general affairs manager" Alfred Sirven and the company's Mr Africa Andre Tarallo - are accused of raking off hundreds of millions of dollars of company money. Illicit money machine But the interest lies less in their personal enrichment than in the extraordinary mixture of secret accounts, bribes, personal favours and political influence-buying that was not just tolerated, but officially sanctioned by successive French governments.
Billions passed through this complex and illicit money machine. What the defendants creamed off was just a tiny percentage. At the heart of the system was Elf's Africa connection. With at times disarming frankness, the three men have spoken out for the first time about how French state assets - tax-payers' money in other words - was sprayed around the continent. "Clearly in most petrol-producing countries it is the head of state or king who is the real beneficiary," Le Floch-Prigent said. "The Elf system had been at the heart of the French state for years. It was not so much secret as opaque.
"So the money went to the names that the heads of these countries designated. If it sometimes ended up in an orphanage then I am very happy. But let's say it didn't always end up in an orphanage." Countries mentioned in the investigation include Cameroon, Gabon, Angola and Congo - though no criminal charges have been brought against the countries' leaders, who all deny wrong-doing. The Elf money that the French state used to buy influence and contacts in Africa passed through a host of interlocking bank accounts in Switzerland, which were masterminded by Sirven. These were given code-names like Tomato, Othello, Bonifacio, Mineral and Salad, and their titular holders were often third parties, many of whom figure among the 34 other accused in the trial. Savimbi's money This week for example a former member of the European parliament, Yves Verwaerde - who acted as a lobbyist for the late Angolan opposition leader Jonas Savimbi - told the court how he was approached by Sirven, who wanted to keep a line open to Savimbi's Unita rebels in case they came to power one day.
Mr Verwaerde opened account Salad which then received $2m from account Mineral operated by Sirven. Most of the money went to Savimbi, but Mr Verwaerde also managed to acquire a luxury villa in Ibiza. Mr Le Floch-Prigent and Mr Sirven have also stated categorically that part of the money sloshing around in Elf's secret funds ended up financing politicians and parties in France - though they have not named names. Mr Le Floch-Prigent said that when he took over at Elf in 1989 the money principally benefited the Gaullist Rally for the Republic (RPR) party, but Mitterrand - newly re-elected as Socialist president - "asked me to balance things out so that other parties would profit". Marital pay-off Mitterrand also featured in another revealing episode - Mr Le Floch-Prigent's multi-million-dollar divorce.
"I told (Mitterrand), 'I am probably going to divorce my wife and that could have repercussions given her character. We made a lot of trips to Africa together and the collateral damage could be significant for the country and Elf'," he told the court. Mitterrand then refused his offer to resign and instead told him, "You must sort out the problem", which Le Floch-Prigent took as authority to buy his wife's silence with the equivalent of 5m euros in Elf cash. As the disgraced former chief executive
put it: "Elf was an enterprise which distorted the sense of reality."
  . End of article 2.
The Indonesian government says it is canceling peace talks with separatists from Aceh Province. The talks were intended to salvage Aceh's peace process, which may now be on the verge of collapse. Indonesia's
top security minister says the government will not attend a special meeting in
Geneva, marking the latest snag in peace negotiations between the government
and the separatists of Aceh Province.
The meeting would have brought together government officials, rebel leaders, and members of the Swiss organization, the Henri Dunant Center, which mediated the December peace accord now in danger of collapsing. The emergency session was scrapped at the last minute, as Mr. Yudhoyono accused the rebels of violating the cease-fire and continuing to push for Aceh's independence. Mr. Yudhoyono says the government will hold its own emergency meeting, without saying when it would be, to determine its next steps. The cancellation follows days of bickering on a venue and date for the meeting. The peace plan for the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement was meant to end more than two decades of fighting in Aceh. Thousands have died in the conflict. But since the beginning, the two sides have interpreted the accord differently. The government says that by signing the plan, the rebels agreed to drop their demands for independence. As a concession, Aceh would receive broader powers through a special autonomy law. But the rebels say the accord left open the possibility of an independence referendum that would allow the Acehnese to vote on their political future. As part of the plan, the Henri Dunant Center deployed scores of international observers in field offices throughout Aceh to monitor the cease-fire between government troops and the rebels. Last month, the Center was forced to recall its monitors to the provincial capital, after they were threatened by violence. The presence of monitors was credited for a period of relative peace and stability in the province, but since the withdrawal of the observers, cease-fire violations have reportedly soared.
. End of article 3.
A top Iranian official has rejected U.S. suggestions that Tehran is interfering in Iraq's transition to a new government. Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi says Iran has no role in Iraqi affairs and is not seeking to promote the role of Shi'ite Muslims, who make up the majority of the population in both countries. Mr. Kharazi made his comments Thursday, at a joint news conference with visiting French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin in Tehran. He also stated that Iran would defend its borders, one day after the U.S. Central Command said U.S. troops have started patrols near the Iranian border in northeastern Iraq. On Wednesday, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the United States has made it clear to Iran not to interfere with Iraq's road to democracy. The White House was reacting to a New York Times report that Iranian agents have entered southern Iraq to build ties with Shi'ite Muslim clerics, with an eye towards advancing Iranian interests. U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told the Associated Press Thursday, that the United States will not let an Iranian-style government led by clerics take hold in Iraq. The New York Times article, citing U.S. intelligence reports, says some of the Iranian agents belong to the military wing of an Iraqi exile group called The Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq. The group gets training and support from the Iranian government. Asked about the report, Mr. Kharazi said Thursday that the group also known as the Badr Brigade, is an Iraqi movement and does not include any Iranians. Jay Garner, the retired American general in charge of Iraq's reconstruction, told reporters Thursday that Iran has influenced recent Iraqi protests against the U.S. presence in the country. Some information for this report provided by AP.
. End of article 4.
A member of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades of Mr. Arafat's Fatah organization said it had carried out the suicide bombing in Kfar Saba. He identified the bomber as 18-year-old Ahmed Katib, from a refugee camp in the northern West Bank town of Nablus.
Israeli police say the bomber detonated explosives when he was challenged by security guards at the entrance to the city's new train station. The explosion, during the morning rush hour, killed one of the guards, identified as 23-year-old Alexander Kostyuk, and wounded several bystanders. An official in the office of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says the Kfar Saba attack is another vivid example of the cruelty of Palestinian terrorism and its readiness to strike at innocent Israelis at any and every opportunity. In a separate incident hours later, two Palestinians were shot dead by Israeli troops in a village near the West Bank town of Ramallah. Israeli troops reportedly opened fire, after youths pelted them with rocks. The dead were said to be aged 24 and 18. Two others were reported wounded. The Israeli army claimed the soldiers felt their lives were in danger, and shot at the Palestinians. The latest violence came one day after Mr. Arafat and his prime minister-designate agreed on the formation of a new Palestinian Cabinet. President Bush has pledged that, once the Cabinet is installed, he will make public a so-called "road map" for peace that, among other points, proposes the establishment of a Palestinian state by 2005.
. End of article 5.
The former chief of Iraqi military intelligence, General Zuhayr Talib Abd al-Sattar al-Naqib - the 21st most-wanted man on the list - surrendered to US forces in Baghdad, US officials said. The US has also captured the former head of the air defence forces, Muzahim Sa'b Hassan al-Tikriti (10), Iraq's former trade minister, Mohammed Mahdi al-Salih (48) and an Iraqi intelligence officer not on the wanted list.
Gen al-Naqib was head of the Directorate of Military Intelligence, which monitored the loyalty of Iraq's regular army, provided security at Iraqi military facilities and collected intelligence on military forces opposing Iraq. In an interview before his surrender, he said he had nothing to apologise for for being a member of Saddam Hussein's regime. The series of captures could potentially be of great benefit to the US military in its hunt for weapons of mass destruction and information about other Iraqi leaders, says the BBC's Nick Childs in Washington. Gen al-Naqib may also be able to provide details of Iraqi military intelligence operations abroad and any possible links with terrorist organisations. Much will depend on how co-operative the captives are, but certainly Muzahim Sa'b Hassan al-Tikriti - the highest-ranking officer captured so far - is close to Saddam Hussein and his family, our correspondent adds. In other developments:
"He is suspected of having knowledge of Iraqi Intelligence service activities in the United States, including names of persons spying for Iraq," said Central Command spokesman Jim Wilkinson. In spite of the spate of captures, neither Saddam Hussein nor his two sons have yet been caught. The UK Defence Secretary, Geoff Hoon, on a visit to southern Iraq on Wednesday, said he believed the former leader was still alive and hiding in the country. KEY STORIES
. End of article 6.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD, says economic growth in developed countries remains weak, but should improve in 2004. The Paris-based organization, in its semi-annual forecast, says the United States should lead the way to economic recovery. The OECD says the quick end to war in Iraq has removed some political uncertainty. But the organization says underlying problems with the world economy continue, and it predicts that short-term growth will be weak and hesitant. The organization expects the U.S. economy to outperform Europe and Asia, and forecasts growth of about 2.5 percent this year, and four percent in 2004. The OECD forecast, its Economic Outlook, says the United States has benefited from low interest rates, a strong housing market and heavy consumer spending, and that its economy should pick up as investment increases. But unemployment is not expected to fall in the United States, and it will remain at near record levels in Japan and parts of Europe. In Europe, the organization foresees very little growth this year, and only 2.5 percent next year. In Japan, which has been in and out of recession for the past decade, recent growth is not expected to continue. The OECD says it expects inflation to fall in Europe and rise in the United States, because the dollar has lost value against the euro. Japan's deflation is expected to continue. Growth in some non-OECD countries, such as China, is predicted to exceed that of the member countries. But the organization warns that the crisis caused by the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, the disease known as SARS, around the globe may disrupt economies in Asia and elsewhere.
. End of article 7.
Official OPEC output quotas will be increased in June by 900,000 barrels per day, to 25.4 million barrels. The decision, made Thursday at a special meeting of OPEC ministers, means the amount of oil on the market will actually be cut by two million barrels per day. Estimates show that in February and March, average production
was 27.4 million barrels per day. Ministers said OPEC has decided to control
production to avoid an anticipated crash in prices resulting from the end of
the war in Iraq and seasonal fall in demand.
"It's being proactive on the downside of prices which is what it's done and how it has micro-managed the market over the last few years, and so it's going to work to ensure that the price stays within that band of 22-28 dollars per barrel for the OPEC basket," said Mr. Alkadiri. "Moving forward if it can do that, if it can take that oil off the market and if it can ensure that the stockpile in the second quarter is not too great, then it is actually in a good position to manage markets in the second half of the year and finds itself in something of a driving seat, particularly as a return of Iraqi exports looks like it's going to be delayed for a couple of months." Iraq, although a founding member of the cartel, is excluded from the OPEC quota system because of United Nations sanctions imposed on the country after its 1990 invasion of neighboring Kuwait. Iraq did not participate in Thursday's meeting in Vienna. Mr. Alkadiri says a significant amount of investment is required before post-war Iraq can get production up to around five million to six million barrels per day. He estimates that as much as $50 billion may be necessary. The cartel has yet to deal with the problem of reintegrating Iraq, something it is expected to look at in June, when OPEC ministers meet in Qatar.
. End of article 8.
A senior Pentagon official says he believes U.S. troops have taken custody of former Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz - the most recognizable Iraqi after Saddam Hussein himself. The official tells VOA that no details are available and that U.S. Central Command should release further information shortly. Tariq Aziz, number 43 on the U.S. list of 55 most wanted Iraqis, was Saddam Hussien's main foreign policy advisor and the chief conduit between Baghdad and the west. Mr. Aziz was also the only Christian member of Saddam's most loyal officials and he was believed to have had little power inside the Iraqi government because he is not a Muslim. Earlier Thursday, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said coalition forces have captured more of the 55 most-wanted Iraqis than has been revealed so far. He told the Associated Press that officials will identify them as soon as as the identities are confirmed. On Wednesday, U.S. officials announced the capture of three former Iraqi officials, including the number 10 man on the list, Muzahim Sa'b Hassan al-Tikriti, commander of Iraq's air defenses. Officials also say they are holding the former Iraqi trade minister and the ex-chief of military intelligence. Some information for this report provided by AP.
. End of article 9.
In Sri Lanka, Tamil Tiger rebels are withdrawing from a meeting on humanitarian issues, days after they suspended peace talks with the government. Western countries are urging the rebels to return to the negotiating table. Peace talks in Sri Lanka endured another setback on Thursday, as Tamil Tigers told the government they will not attend a crucial meeting on development. The meeting had been planned for Friday to discuss immediate humanitarian needs in the country's embattled north and east. The Tigers want the government to show progress on earlier promises to resettle Tamil refugees and improve living conditions for the minority Tamil community. Tamil Tigers, who have fought for a separate homeland for nearly two decades, suspended peace negotiations earlier this week, accusing the government of doing little to rebuild war-ravaged infrastructure, despite several rounds of peace talks. They complained the government was attempting to marginalize their role in the peace process. During the Norwegian-brokered negotiations that began last year, the rebels have agreed to accept political autonomy in the north and east, instead of a separate Tamil homeland. The government has yet to make a formal response to the latest setback in negotiations with the Tigers. But chief government negotiator Gamini Peiris said Friday that the "door has not been slammed shut on the peace process." He expressed hope that talks will resume "sooner rather than later." Mr. Peiris says the government is trying to deliver on its promises that Tamils benefit from the peace process. He says the government is ready to go ahead with 18 reconstruction projects identified as "urgent." Troops are preparing to leave several buildings in the north and east, so that refugees can move in. A political analyst at the Center for Policy Alternatives, Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, points out that the Tigers have said they have no intention of breaking the cease-fire. "What we have to get used to is that, in any kind of peace process, things are never going to run totally smoothly," he said. "There are going to be instances of this nature. What I want to emphasize is that it is a suspension, rather than an abandonment or jettisoning of the process." Meanwhile, the United States and France expressed hopes that talks will resume soon, and called on the rebels to return to negotiations. Diplomats say redevelopment work in the north and the east has been slow, but expectations of quick action are unrealistic. Norwegian mediators say the Tigers are still committed to the truce, despite the latest challenges.
. End of article 10.
Secretary of State Colin Powell says three-way U.S.-North Korean-Chinese talks in Beijing on North Korea's nuclear program are over and that the two days of meetings were marked by strong statements by the parties. He said the international community is united in insisting on a de-nuclearized Korean peninsula and that the United States and its allies will not respond to threats. Mr. Powell says the Beijing talks were preliminary and not intended to produce any agreements, and says he hopes the North Korean delegation will return home with a clearer understanding of the depth of world concern about its nuclear program.
Mr. Powell gave no specifics on the talks other than to say that strong views were presented. But he told a questioner the North Koreans should know they will achieve nothing with threats. "They should not leave this series of discussions that have been held in Beijing with the slightest impression that the United States and its partners and the nations in the region will be intimidated by bellicose statements or by threats or actions they think might get them more attention, or might forces us to make a concession that we would not otherwise make," he said. "They would be very ill-advised to move in that direction." The secretary said the one thing that was absolutely clear from the meeting is that there is unity among the international community that the Korean peninsula must not be allowed to become nuclear. Mr. Powell said the Bush administration wants a diplomatic solution but "will remove no options from the table." He also said North Korea has nothing to fear from ending its nuclear program, and said if it does, nations in the region are ready to help it "out of its isolation, and out of the destitute circumstances in which its people live." The talks were the highest-level contacts between the United States and North Korea since last October. That is when Pyongyang authorities acknowledged to a U.S. envoy that the country had a covert uranium-enrichment program in violation of various agreements including the 1994 "agreed framework" with Washington that ostensibly froze the North Korean nuclear program. In his speech to the private U.S.-Asia Pacific Council, Mr. Powell said the U.S. experience with the "agreed framework" made it more apparent that the nuclear question had to be dealt with multilaterally. He said Pyongyang would like to make it a U.S.-North Korean problem, but it is not.
. End of article 11.
Former Iraqi deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz is in the custody of American forces, US Central Command says. Tariq Aziz was deputy prime minister in the Iraqi regime and one of the best-known members of government in the West. The BBC's Pentagon correspondent, Nick Childs, says it could be the most significant arrest by coalition forces so far. Mr Aziz may have information on the location of Saddam Hussein and any programmes to develop weapons of mass destruction, which was the reason for the US-led coalition going to war. He is listed among Iraq's so-called "dirty dozen" and as a member of the Revolutionary Command Council he is wanted by the US for war crimes against Kuwait, Iran and his own people. US President George W Bush did not answer questions about the claimed capture but gave a thumbs-up signal to reporters at a function. Leaders targeted Details are scarce and it is not known where or how Mr Aziz was arrested or even whether he surrendered.
Some may be put before war crimes tribunals, but correspondents say in the short term coalition leaders will be more anxious to get information from them about how the regime functioned and where weapons might be stored. None of the targeted officials was captured as US-led forces swept through Iraq, but the coalition says it has taken 12 into custody since the regime was overthrown. Saddam Hussein's scientific adviser, General Amir al-Saadi, gave himself up but there have also been several arrests. There had been fears that regime leaders would flee Iraq, perhaps into Syria. But arrests continue to be made in Iraq, and officials such as UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw say they believe Saddam Hussein is still inside his country. Loyal aide Mr Aziz, the only Christian high up in the regime, was often sent abroad to argue Iraq's case. He served for many years as Iraq's foreign minister and met Pope John Paul shortly before the war began to call for peace. Correspondents say he was one of Saddam Hussein's most loyal aides. But they add that as he was not part of the Tikriti clan, he did not wield much power. Mr Aziz is number 43 on the American list
of 55 most-wanted officials from Saddam Hussein's administration and features
as the eight of spades on the Pentagon's deck of playing cards. . End of article 12.
Former Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, the most recognizable Iraqi after Saddam Hussein himself, is in U.S. custody. Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke has now confirmed the Iraqi official was taken into custody late Thursday. Pentagon sources say intermediaries first approached U.S. officials in Baghdad Wednesday to discuss his surrender. U.S. Central Command, which is in charge of U.S. operations in Iraq, also issued a brief statement saying the deputy prime minister is in custody and that he was number 43 on the U.S. list of 55 most wanted Iraqis. Tariq Aziz was Saddam Hussien's main foreign policy advisor and the chief conduit between Baghdad and the west. Mr. Aziz was also the only Christian member of Saddam's most loyal officials and he was believed to have had little power inside the Iraqi government because he is not a Muslim. Earlier Thursday, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said coalition forces have captured more of the 55 most-wanted Iraqis than has been revealed so far. He told the Associated Press that officials will identify them as soon as as the identities are confirmed. On Wednesday, U.S. officials announced the capture of three former Iraqi officials, including the number 10 man on the list, Muzahim Sa'b Hassan al-Tikriti, commander of Iraq's air defenses. Officials also say they are holding the former Iraqi trade minister and the ex-chief of military intelligence. Some information for this report provided by AP.
. End of article 13.
Updated: 24
Apr 2003
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If the money sometimes ended up in an
orphanage then I am very happy - but let's say it didn't always end up in an
orphanage 
