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COMMENTARY -- WAR -- (the news is directly below):
You have gone back in time and are standing in the midst of a lush ancient forest. You hear and see some large vegetarian dinosaurs feeding on the moist soft leaves of brush and trees. You also see skulking about like a cat after a mouse, other smaller dinosaurs with a lighter build about them trying to catch and eat even smaller dinosaurs. You also see small dinosaurs feeding on the vegetation. Suddenly you hear a loud screech which terrifies every creature in this setting and sends them running for fear. The screech is coming from a large version of the lighter built and fast moving dinosaur with teeth designed to rip and tear other animal flesh. It quickly moves up on the large vegetarian. It lacks the weight of the vegetarian it is pursuing but has more speed and agility. It's massive and powerful jaws are set into motion as it lunges upon the vegetarian and immediately draws blood as it rips and tears away at a vital spot. The vegetarian tries to defend itself by using its heavy tail to whack the aggressor but it was too slow this time in defending itself and it quickly weakened because of pain and loss of blood. Dizzy and in weakness it dropped to the ground and took its last breath. The aggressor ruthlessly tore away at the most tasty spots and then left the carcass for scavengers.
In the natural world this story describes the "food chain" and the "predatory" character of those creatures at the top of the food chain. The predatory behavior is driven by hunger and the instinct of the predator to feed and care for it's young. Although all animals have some kind of reasoning capability their instincts most often prevail and their reasoning is subordinate to these instincts to make them more effective at surviving.
How does this story relate to war? Is war wrong? Is war necessary? What is accomplished by war?
Mankind is to be above the animals, that is he should be exercising his reasoning capabilities over his instincts. But mankind often does not do that. Tribal behavior is something like wolf pack behavior. There is a kind of civilized order within the pack but anything outside the pack is considered fair game. There is usually a pack leader. In many ways, the societies and cultures and communities of mankind are like the pack where the reasoning capabilities of the individuals in the pack and the consensus of the pack is directed at serving the primitive instincts of survival.
Although man is more technically capable as he sits atop the food chain, many of the nations, societies, cultures, and communities of man are more predatory in character with leaders that know how to control the pack and maintain their control over the pack. If allowed, these predatory packs of mankind will act just like the predatory dinosaur. No amount of talk or reasoning will prevent the attack because the overall social behavior is predatory and reason is used to make the predatory behavior more successful. The only defense against such predators is to be both prepared and more capable if attacked. But often a defensive posture will fail as it did with the vegetarian dinosaur which was no threat to the other dinosaurs. Many animal packs that are vegetarian adopt defensive and preventative postures as a pack to minimize any predatory attack on members within the vegetarian pack. Buffalo, cattle, and many other animals do this.
But only mankind has two things the animals don't have. Man is smart enough to anticipate a predatory attack and respond in a defensive manoeuvre of defense to disable or kill the predatory enemy before the "screech" of death is heard. Man has the means and abilities to develop sophisticated weaponry. Compare this weaponry to the teeth of the attacking dinosaur and the tail of the vegetarian dinosaur.
But if a society or community of man is not aware of such dangers by other predatory type societies and communities then it peacefully and obliviously eats, drinks, sleeps, reproduces, plays, and in other ways occupies itself. When the "screech" of impending death is heard it may be too late. This is especially true if the predatory society has technological superiority and readiness to use that technology in an aggressive manner. This susceptibility scenario is also true if a society or community of man has been deceived into thinking that the predators are their friends or that arbitration, deals, and discourse will stop the aggression. Nothing will stop the predatory nation or community from its behavior other than its own destruction. A predatory human or human society is far more committed to violent aggression than is a predatory animal seeking a prey for a source of food. A predator is ruthless and uncaring whether it be a dinosaur, a wolf, or man. The "whimper" (or dialog to prevent aggression) that precedes death is understood by the predator as victory and the prey can be savaged. There are those that feel that a kind of social remedial exercise involving discourse, and various other forms of reward and penalty administered against the predatory society, by some powerful majority, will cause such predatory communities to change. This is foolishness as long as the pack leader remains leader. The leaders drive the communities. This is true even in western democratic nations. Sometimes leaders reflect the views of the community that elected them and perhaps leaders exploit the community that elected them.
When leaders have control of the key social institutions they can use these institutions to brain wash the community as a whole. If leaders don't have control of the key social institutions then new potential pack leaders can use these institutions to brain wash the community and thereafter supplant the pack leader. For example, often the educational institutions are infiltrated with authority figures that have a profound influence on those they teach. So it is not unusual in just about every society to see social discontent first voiced by universities and institutions of higher learning. The so called media in the form of newspapers, magazines, radio and TV industry, the publishing industry, and the movie industry are powerful means of brainwashing a society and re-engineering the "average" social mentality. A third category is the religious institutions, seminaries, and related organizations. Whoever controls the content of these institutions inevitably controls the pack mentality. Laws and government are derived from this mentality. As the mentality changes so also do the laws and inclinations of government.
As long as the average human being allows himself or herself to be herded along in a pack type social environment there will be predatory societies that feed on the other societies. They will skulk about and wait for their moment. They will form unholy and wicked alliances with each other only to eventually turn on one another. War in this context simply realigns those at the top of the food chain. War is for the purpose of establishing different leaders, it rarely occurs for the purpose of true peace and prosperity directed from a global perspective. Although the word peace is used a lot today its meaning varies depending upon who uses it. Peace as used by world leaders means the establishment of their objectives at the cost of their opponents. World leaders shake each others hands in such deceptive gestures of peace. It is a paradox. It is a horrible dilemma. If any society disarms, adopts arbitration and dialog to effect change then they will be perceived as manipulatable through that dialog. They will also be perceived by the potential aggressor as weak because they rely too heavily on a so called diplomatic solution to disputes. Meanwhile the predatory society or societies will take whatever gain they can through the dialog and when their moment comes, lunge, and with their mighty jaws and sharp teeth rip and tear away at the vulnerabilities of their prey.
Therefore, God must manipulate the devil who influences man towards predatory behavior. The devil incarnate is Anti-Christ. The Anti-Christ or Satan is any human being that uses their reasoning capabilities to serve their primitive instincts. By so doing they have opened up and turned over their mental "real estate" to the spiritual forces of darkness that bring only death. The spiritual force of evil is only able to influence the human mind through the mechanism of our primitive instincts for survival. If we lust and are preoccupied with the things and values of a world driven by such instincts then we have been deceived into a form of mental slavery that brings only hatred and death in its wake.
Jesus Christ is the answer. He is both an example of what we must be like as humans and he is the facilitator/mediator/interface whereby we can all know and experience the love/caring of God.
If you have any comments, questions, or concerns you can email this ministry at thilts@help-for-you.com
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. . . Day by Day with VOA .. . . BBC -- Monday, 6 January, 2003, 12:06 GMT . Turkey and Jordan
discuss Iraq crisis
.
Both leaders are worried
about the effect a war would have Turkish Prime Minister Abdullah Gul is in Jordan, on the latest leg
of a tour of the Middle East aimed at avoiding a US-led war against
Iraq.
The Turkish leader arrived in Jordan from Egypt, where he joined President Hosni Mubarak in calling for strong efforts to prevent a conflict. A key ally of the United States and the only Muslim member of Nato, Turkey is under increasing pressure from Washington to show firm support for a military action against Iraq. Jordanian warning Mr Gul was met at Marka airport in Amman by his Jordanian counterpart, Ali Abu Ragheb - he is also due to hold talks with King Abdullah. "Turkey and Jordan shall be the two countries, besides Iraq, most adversely affected in case of war against Iraq," a Turkish statement read. "They have been the two countries which have exerted most efforts to prevent it. "Bilateral consultations on shaping a concerted course of action to exhaust all the possibilities of averting war are considered very timely." King Abdullah has repeatedly warned against a war against Iraq, and said Jordan will not be used as a launch pad for a strike on its neighbour. Efforts continue Speaking in Cairo on Sunday, Mr Gul said that there was "still a chance for a peaceful solution".
The war would cost Turkey billions of dollars in lost trade. Ankara is also worried about the possibility that a Kurdish state could be established in northern Iraq. Turkish Foreign Minister Yasar Yakis has said that a US request to station American troops in Turkey has "few chances" of being approved by the parliament because of strong public opposition. Turkey's diplomatic efforts are continuing this week, with the visit of the leader of Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the Turkic-speaking nations of the Caucasus and Central Asia. His visit starts on 7 January in Azerbaijan and includes talks in Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. . BBC -- Monday, 6 January, 2003, 15:51 GMT . US hospital
ship to sail towards Iraq
.
USNSF Comfort has the
capacity for 1,000 casualties
Her deployment is part of the growing US build-up for possible war with Iraq. The navy will not say exactly where the ship is heading but it is thought to be Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. She will have about 300 of a total crew of more than 1,000 aboard. Most staff will only be flown out to join the vessel if war looks imminent. Floating hospital The Comfort is a sobering reminder of the potential costs of conflict.
Her departure is the clearest signal yet that a new phase in the US build-up is under way. Thousands of ground troops and squadrons of aircraft are also preparing to leave. But this is not yet the final build-up, and Pentagon officials say the number of deployment orders issued so far still account for only about half of the 50,000 or so reinforcements originally expected at this stage. The Pentagon still seems to be pacing its preparations for war to ratchet up the pressure on Baghdad on one hand, while keeping options open on the other. But that could quickly change, and more deployment orders are expected in the coming days and weeks. . BBC -- Saturday, 4 January, 2003, 22:08 GMT . Women set to
join Iran police
.
The women have been
training for three years
About 400 newly qualified policewomen will soon be joining their male counterparts, and working on the streets in Tehran. It will be the first time since the revolution in 1979 that women will graduate from the police university and become fully trained officers.
The new recruits have been training since 1999 at a complex in Tehran. Aged between 17 and 23 years old, they have spent the last three years attending intensive military courses, including judo, fencing, using firearms and laying mines. The only courses still restricted to men are the use of heavy machine-guns and grenade launchers. No chador Since the early years of the revolution, women have only worked behind the scenes in the police force, mostly in administration, or to help their male colleagues conduct body searches of female suspects.
But because of the sensitive nature of the Islamic Republic - and with more and more crimes being committed by women, especially in the smuggling of goods - the government decided that it was necessary to have policewomen back on the beat. The new officers will spend most of their time investigating crimes committed by women and children. But if there is no male officer around, they will also be expected to tackle a male suspect. Much time has been spent trying to decide what they will wear. Taking inspiration from Islamic, European and African countries, they have finally come up with the Iranian solution. Apparently they will not need to wear the cloak-like black chador - instead their uniform will consist of trousers and a long coat, and maybe even a ski suit, depending on the mission. The new recruits are to graduate in March and are expected to be on the beat shortly afterwards. . BBC -- Monday, 6 January, 2003, 17:58 GMT . Milky Way's
star 'doughnut'
.
A ring of stars
surrounds the Milky Way A vast, but previously unknown structure has been discovered around
the edges of our galaxy, the Milky Way.
The first large area surveys of the sky have revealed several hundred million stars surrounding the galaxy's main disc. The ring, which has the appearance of a giant doughnut, could be the remains of a satellite galaxy. Astronomers believe it could hold clues as to how the Milky Way and other galaxies evolved. Giant doughnut An international team of astronomers looked at images of the Milky Way from previous surveys. They found that the brightness and colour of some objects did not match up to their expectations. Dr Mike Irwin, from the Institute of Astronomy at the University of Cambridge, UK, was one of the researchers behind the work. He told BBC News Online: "There's a component that doesn't fit in with the standard picture of our own galaxy." Arms and disc This giant doughnut-like ring of stars appears to encircle the Milky Way. The ring is estimated to contain several hundred million stars - about 1% of the total number of stars in our galaxy. The disc is not completely round, though, as it has been warped, most probably from encounters with orbiting satellite galaxies. The Milky Way's is a spiral galaxy - it has arms that sweep away from a nucleus of star formation. Its disc is roughly 100,000 light-years across, with the Sun (and the planets) embedded in it. Galaxy evolution The astronomers say they cannot be sure how the ring formed, but the idea that it represents the remains of a satellite galaxy consumed by the Milky Way seems plausible. Another explanation could be that the stars originally came from the disc of the Milky Way itself, and their orbits have been warped or spread over time so that they now wander far from the disc plane. Detailed studies of the ring could help explain how galaxies evolve. According to Dr Irwin, something odd happened about 10 billion years ago. As yet, they cannot satisfactorily explain it, but researchers will now be looking for the phenomenon in other galaxies. The findings were announced at the American Astronomical Society's meeting in Seattle, Washington, US. . BBC -- Monday, 6 January, 2003, 13:50 GMT . Team aims
to crack Antarctic ice secrets
.
Melting of
glaciers is critical to world ecology
The team of scientists from Chile's independent Centre for Scientific Studies and the US space agency (Nasa) has teamed up with the Chilean Navy to make a series of flights over some of Antarctica's most important and unexplored regions. Their aim has been to create the most detailed maps ever made of the ice surface and the underlying geology, so scientists can accurately measure the impact of climate change. The mission's head, Chilean theoretical physicist Claudio Teitelboim, described Pine Island as "the Holy Grail" of Antarctic Glaciology.
Glaciologist Gino Casassa said recent discoveries had made the study critically important. "These glaciers are already responding to global warming at a rate that has really surprised the scientific community. "We've seen them responding over the past decade. But now we can see the disintegration of the ice sheets much faster than we thought. There's evidence that both small and large glaciers could disintegrate even in our own lifetime."
It stretches some 50 kilometres across in places, with ice up to four kilometres deep. It pushes out into the ocean, its mouth protected by the Antarctic sea ice. The head of Nasa's team, Waleed Abdulat, said one theory was that the sea ice offers a restraint or back pressure, keeping the glaciers in place. "If you remove that back pressure, the theory suggests that the ice will accelerate much more rapidly, causing a corresponding rise in sea-levels," he said. In order to carry out the study, Dr Teitelboim invited Nasa to send some of its own scientists and state-of-the-art technology, and convinced the Chilean Navy to dedicate a P-3 Orion aircraft normally used for hunting submarines.
"This approach is bold," said Dr Teitelboim. "It's not the standard method with lots of logistics and ground support, but it's a hit-and-run mission." But he pointed out that the collaboration between a civilian research institute and the Chilean navy was also unprecedented in a country still wary of the military institutions that were responsible for brutal repression through the 1970s and 80s. "It's not only very unusual, but it is also very important to help close that gap and heal the wounds of the past," he said. For the expedition, the scientists stripped the P-3 of its usual armaments and submarine-detecting equipment, replacing them with five key instruments of their own.
It will take months to process the colossal amount of data into meaningful results, but when it is done, they will provide baseline information for future similar flights. Even so, the numbers have already indicated that the substrata beneath Pine Island Glacier makes it inherently much more unstable than was previously thought. "These flights have been incredibly successful," said Claudio Teitelboim. "At every step of the way, the collaboration has worked perfectly, the technology worked perfectly, and even the weather couldn't have been better. "But the bad news is that it looks as though the rock surface makes Pine Island Glacier very unstable indeed. "We'll have to do a lot more work to confirm the results, but they don't look very positive." . BBC -- Monday, 6 January, 2003, 11:55 GMT . Afghan
peacekeepers issue Iraq warning
.
Hundreds of
Turkish troops are in Afghanistan on peace-keeping duty
The commander of the International Security Force (Isaf), Major-General Hilmi Akin Zorlu, said that if there were a war, Isaf would take precautions to protect foreigners.
But he said that in the event of war in Iraq, there may be many sympathisers in Afghanistan because of the two country's shared Muslim religion. Those at risk, he said, were those working for Isaf and US troops, as well as United Nations staff and other foreigners in the country. Regular attacks Isaf's Turkish commander said his force would take extra security measures to help defend all foreigners if necessary. American forces hunting for Taleban and al-Qaeda remnants in eastern Afghanistan have come under regular attack from armed people opposed to their presence there, but attacks in Kabul have been relatively rare. There were two grenade attacks in Kabul last month, one against American soldiers and another against an Isaf base, but General Zorlu said these were isolated incidents. In general, he said, security in the capital continued to improve. Arms finds The international force frequently finds caches of weapons and ammunition in Kabul. The most recent incident was last week, when some explosive material was removed from a school in the city. Schools are on holiday at the moment and no further details were given about this incident. Most weapons and explosives appear to be left over from earlier fighting and the general said it is unlikely they are connected with any terrorist activity. Turkey is currently leading the international force in Kabul, but Germany and the Netherlands are due to take over joint leadership early in February. . BBC -- Monday, 6 January, 2003, 13:35 GMT . Bhutan patrol kills rebels
.
Bhutan has
been under pressure from India for action
Four rebels died in the attack.
The rebels were intercepted by a Bhutanese patrol in the Manas reserve forest near the Bhutan-India border on Monday. The Bhutanese suffered no casualties. The rest of the rebel group fled. Indian pressure The Indian army had previously moved troops to the forest to intercept rebels. The rebels have maintained several bases in southern Bhutan since the early 1990s. Bhutan has been under pressure from India to evict them but the Himalayan kingdom's government preferred persuasion. Several Bhutanese ministers have met the rebel leaders during the past two years asking them to leave, but with no success, Indian officials say. . Cambodian Leader Vows Khmer Rouge Genocide Trials . . . Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has vowed to put surviving members of the Khmer Rouge on trial for genocide, saying it is the only way to clear the country of a tragic legacy. His comments come hours before Cambodia resumes talks in New York with the United Nations about setting up a special tribunal. Prime Minister Hun Sen, addressing a crowd of thousands Monday, said that it was inevitable that a trial of former Khmer Rouge leaders would take place. The pain caused by the regime, he said, had left too much damage behind to warrant a simple apology. Nearly two million people died from starvation, torture or execution under the radical Maoist Khmer Rouge government, which ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. The prime minister's speech comes on the eve of the 24th anniversary of the Khmer Rouge being driven from power by a combined force of Cambodians and the Vietnamese Army. His comments also came as Phnom Penh's lead negotiator resumes talks with the United Nations in New York on creating a joint genocide tribunal. Ordinary citizens here are frustrated that most of the movement's senior leaders live still freely inside the country and they don't expect trials anytime soon. Talks between Phnom Penh and the United Nations over a tribunal have dragged on for years. Discussions broke down 11 months ago when U.N. officials pulled out of the process, concerned that the Cambodian version of the tribunal would not meet international standards of justice. Only last month did the United Nations decide to return to the negotiating table. It is hard to find a family that was not scarred by the Khmer Rouge. Most Cambodians want a trial so they can get answers to the most destructive period in the country's history and many still have not be able to account for missing relatives. And with a general election set for July, politicians are aware that there are votes to be had by lending their support to the tribunal process. But the fact that it has taken so many years to get to this stage gives some indication of just how politically sensitive the issue is. After being ousted from power, the Khmer Rouge continued to wage a guerrilla war, but many leaders defected to the government in the 1990s under an amnesty that helped bring an end to the fighting. Some of the senior Khmer Rouge leaders, such as Pol Pot, are already dead. If the slow pace of the talks in recent years is any guide, several more could die unpunished before the surviving few make it into court.
. Chavez Supporters March in Caracas . . Supporters of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez are marching in Caracas to protest the shooting deaths of two pro-government demonstrators. The supporters rallied outside the attorney general's office Monday to demand an investigation into the deaths, which occurred Friday during clashes between pro and anti-government demonstrators. It is unclear who fired the shots, but President Chavez blames the deaths on the police and says the killers will be brought to justice. On Sunday, thousands of Chavez supporters also took to the streets to protest the deaths. The demonstrators followed a funeral caravan transporting one of the victims to a cemetery. President Chavez has also vowed to punish the leaders of a general strike that has crippled the country's vital oil industry. The opposition says it will continue the work stoppage in an effort to force Mr. Chavez to resign or call early elections. Mr. Chavez said Sunday in a televised addressed he will apply the nation's laws to restore peace after the recent street clashes following weeks of unrest. He has described the strikers as terrorists and traitors who are trying to oust him by shutting down the oil industry. He has said he would consider imposing a state of emergency. The former paratrooper was elected in 1998 and survived a short-lived coup in April. Critics say his leftist-leaning reforms are driving the oil-rich nation into economic ruin and social chaos. Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
. IAEA Demands North Korean Compliance . . The International Atomic Energy Agency has given North Korea one last chance to comply with demands that it abandon its nuclear ambitions and re-admit inspectors who were kicked out of the country last week.
They were expelled after North Korea removed monitoring cameras and other safeguards installed around its main nuclear complex at Yongbyon, north of the capital. Although the Atomic Energy Agency set no deadline for North Korean compliance, Mr. ElBaradei said North Korea would have days, not weeks, to comply. There was no immediate reaction from North Korea. In Washington, the Bush administration applauded the U.N. nuclear agency's tough statement. Meanwhile, U.S., Japanese and South Korean diplomats were meeting to discuss ways of easing tensions with North Korea. Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
. Indonesian Police Give Bali Bombing Blast Evidence to Prosecutors . . . Less than three months after suspected Islamic militants detonated a massive car bomb outside a Bali nightclub, Indonesian police have handed their first dossier to prosecutors. Investigators hope the first trial could start as early as the middle of February. The 1,600 page dossier details the evidence the police have amassed against Amrozi. The motorcycle mechanic has confessed to buying much of the explosive used in the bomb. Mr. Amrozi has also admitted to owning the van in which the bomb was loaded before it exploded outside the Sari nightclub, in Bali's tourist district. More than 190 people, most of them Western tourists, died in the October 12 blast. Mr. Amrozi was the first to be arrested in the case, and he led police to many of his suspected accomplices. The police have arrested 15 people in connection with the bombing. Among them is Mr. Amrozi's elder brother, Mukhlas, who allegedly was in charge of planning the attack. Mr. Mukhlas has been accused of being a senior member of Jemaah Islamiyah, a regional organization dedicated to using violence to establish an Islamic state in Southeast Asia. Police hope to give prosecutors their evidence against Mr. Mukhlas next week. Prosecutors have two weeks to consider the evidence against Mr. Amrozi before deciding whether to file charges. The head of the police investigation, Major General Made Mangku Pastika, says he hopes Mr. Amrozi's trial will begin in the middle of next month. He is likely to be tried under new anti-terrorism legislation and could face the death penalty. The Indonesian police, assisted by officers from Australia, the United States and Britain, have won widespread praise for their handling of the investigation. Time magazine named General Pastika one of its people of the year for his success in tracking down the bombers.
. Inspectors Reject Iraq Spy Charge . . . The International Atomic Energy Agency has denied charges by Iraqi President Saddam Hussein that its inspectors are spying in Iraq. The agency says its inspectors are working within United Nations Security Council rules.
The IAEA denied the accusations. "We would say we have been carrying out our mandate in a professional, systematic, and polite manner," said spokeswoman Melissa Fleming. "We are working in accordance to our mandate under the resolution and we are not going beyond that in any way. Any accusation that we are an intelligence body that is implying that we are reporting or collecting information for national governments is flatly wrong. We have a mandate under the Security Council and we are not in the employ of one government." Ms. Fleming added that the inspectors have not been searching people, but rather focusing on facilities and looking at documents. The inspectors have also been interviewing Iraqi scientists, as authorized by the Security Council. U.S. officials recently called for the inspectors to be more aggressive in their search for banned weapons in Iraq.
. Israel Bars Palestinians From Key Meetings After Tel Aviv Attack . Israel has barred Palestinian officials from two key meetings this month in the wake of a double suicide bombing. The Israeli government said it will prevent Palestinian officials from attending a conference in London next week to discuss internal reforms in the Palestinian territories. Israel also will not allow the Palestinian Central Council to hold a planned meeting this week in Ramallah to consider a new Palestinian constitution. And Israel said it will shut down three Palestinian universities allegedly used to incite violence. Palestinian Cabinet Minister Saeb Erekat said Israel is trying to prevent the peace process from moving forward. The developments came hours after two Palestinian suicide bombers blew themselves up Sunday in Tel Aviv, killing at least 22 people and wounding 100 others. Many of the victims were migrant workers. Palestinian officials condemned the bombings, as did Russia, China, the European Union and the United States. On Monday, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said Israel has the right to defend itself, but he added that it should be mindful of the consequences of that right. The militant group Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, which is linked to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the attack and named two men from Nablus as the bombers. Hours after the bombings, Israeli helicopter gunships fired missiles at two metal-processing workshops in Gaza City. Israeli officials say the workshops were used to make weapons. Palestinians say eight people were slightly wounded in the helicopter strike. Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.
. New Round of Sri Lanka Peace Talks Expected to be Toughest Yet . . . The fourth round of peace talks between the Sri Lankan government and Tamil rebels are expected to be the toughest yet. Thorny security issues threaten to bog down this round of peace talks, but negotiators remain optimistic they will continue to produce results. The core of the controversy is the government's demand that the Tamil Tiger rebels disarm before it closes military camps in Sri Lanka's war-torn north. The camps must be closed so refugees can return to their homes in high-security zones. The chief Tamil negotiator, Anton Balasingham, says the security issues must be resolved before the talks can move forward. He warns that the rebels will not disarm. He and the government's top negotiator, GL Peiris, held informal, closed-door talks Sunday. The Norwegian-sponsored talks, which began last September, already have made progress. Most significantly, the Tamils have dropped their demand for an independent state and instead agreed to autonomy under a federal state. The negotiations are aimed at ending the 19-year civil war that has claimed more than 60,000 lives and devastated the country's economy. The ethnic Tamil minority says it has long been discriminated against by Sri Lanka's Sinhalese majority. Sanjay Gathia, from the human rights group Asia Forum, said "the negotiations will be definitely quite tough. But it won't derail the talks as such, because I think both the parties have come so far and tried to resolve certain issues quite open-heartedly." Mr. Gathia said any agreement on security issues will likely include concessions from both sides. "Peiris is expecting some kind of response measure from the LTT, in case the government is trying to take some action, you know, for like probably reducing the number of army personnel in those areas," he said. Negotiators have said the peace talks hold the best hope for ending the civil war.
. North Korea Lashes Out at US Missile Defense System . . . North Korea has lashed out at the United States for developing a missile defense system it says shows intent to attack the Asian nation. North Korea has repeatedly said it feels threatened by Washington and says that gives it the right to have nuclear weapons, despite its non-proliferation pledges. North Korea slammed Washington Monday, again accusing the United States of planning to launch a military strike against the hardline communist state. It says the United States wants to use force to resolve the current crisis over North Korea's nuclear weapons development. An official Korean Central News Agency statement says Washington's planned missile defense system is part of a cunning trick to justify a U.S. attack. The United States has been working on missile defense for more than a decade to destroy any incoming ballistic missiles fired at the United States. President Bush last month authorized the U.S. military to begin deploying the system from 2004. The system is primarily being designed to defend the American soil from small-scale attacks by North Korea, Iran, and what it calls other rogue states with developing missile capabilities and chemical and nuclear weapons programs. Monday's latest North Korean accusations come on the same day the United States, South Korea and Japan open a high level, two-day meeting in Washington on resolving the North Korea nuclear issue. In December, the North began reactivating a nuclear complex frozen under a 1994 agreement with the United States. It is believed to be capable of producing plutonium for nuclear bombs. Pyongyang has also expelled inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency. Both moves come in response to a U.S.-led decision to stop oil shipments to the North after evidence Pyongyang was committing other nuclear violations. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Monday urged the North to adhere to the nuclear commitments it made to Japan last year as well as the international community. He said Japan will continue to try to persuade the North that abandoning it nuclear program will be beneficial. Washington and its allies have underscored their commitment to settling this issue with diplomatic means. China and Russia, with closer ties to North Korea, have been consulted to use their influence. Meanwhile, also on Monday, the U.S. military commander in South Korea flagged another security concern related to North Korea. General Leon La Porte said North Korean military officials refused to discuss armistice violations at a December 30 meeting with the U.S.-led United Nations Command, which oversees security of the Demilitarized Zone separating North and South Korea since 1953. South Korea and the U.N. Command say that North Korean troops repeatedly brought light machine guns into the DMZ last month, even though truce rules only allow small arms and rifles into the area.
. Saddam Accuses UN Weapons Inspectors of Spying . . .
In a taped, televised speech marking Iraq's Army Day, Saddam Hussein accused the U.N. arms inspectors of carrying out what he called pure intelligence work. The Iraqi leader accused the inspectors of collecting names of Iraqi scientists, asking intrusive questions and inquiring about army camps and weapons that are not prohibited. He accused the United States of trying to push the inspectors to go beyond their mandate by persuading inspection teams to be more aggressive about questioning Iraqi scientists on the country's arms programs. President Hussein also accused the United States of stoking tensions to divert attention from what he called America's failed Mideast and economic policies and Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. The Iraqi president declared that Iraq's people and army would prevail against any U.S.-led military attack because he said justice is on their side. Meanwhile, U.N. inspection teams examined at least four Iraqi sites for banned weapons on Monday, a day after they carried out a record 16 searches.
. UN Refugee Agency Cautions Afghans Returning Home . . The United Nations refugee agency says it is concerned a large number of Afghan refugees returning home this year could put too much pressure on the country's crumbling infrastructure. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says more than two million refugees returned to Afghanistan last year, only to find the country in ruins. It says another 1.5 million refugees are expected to return this year. But the agency warns they should first consider the difficulties they are likely to face. Agency officials say jobs remain scarce throughout Afghanistan and health care is inadequate. They also say there is a widespread lack of clean water and sanitation. A Geneva spokesman for the refugee agency, Peter Kessler, says the United Nations fears Western countries may try to force Afghan refugees to return home prematurely. He says countries should try to pace the return of rejected asylum seekers so as not to overwhelm Afghanistan's infrastructure. He also says countries should wait until after the winter before sending the refugees home.
. Zimbabwe Riots Blamed on Food Shortages . . . In Zimbabwe, shortages of food are being blamed for two riots in recent days. One of the riots took place Sunday, the other on Friday. Both happened because of shortages of maize, and in each case eyewitnesses blamed government supporters for the violence. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Much time has been
spent trying to decide what they will wear 
