Check out the important world news stories on a day-by-day basis from January 1996 through to September 30 1997. From January 1997 onwards, these stories are segmented by world region, making it easier to find what you are looking for.
Pages are also included through to December 31 1998, as these dates occur, you can download the information using our \JInternet Updater.\j
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"January 1, 1996",2,0,0,0
FIFA President, Joao Havelange, promises the 2006 World Cup \Jsoccer\j finals to South Africa.
Amazing revelations of Sir Winston Churchill's funeral, namely the making of arrangements years before he died, are made in British parliament.
The Japanese Prime Minister, Mr Tomiichi Murayama, makes claims of improvement in the Japanese economy as a result of consumer spending and improved performance of the yen against the dollar.
PLO Chairman, Yasser Arafat, urges Palestinians to vote for the best candidate in the coming election-even if it means not voting for him.
John Major, Britain's Prime Minister, announces he may have to call an early election, courtesy of defecting party members and MPs.
Senate leaders in the US fail to end a 16-day shutdown of government services.
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 7.0 strikes Sulawesi, an island in \JIndonesia\j.
New figures reveal that New York's crime rate in 1995 was the lowest since the 1970s.
Scientists in Paris find four dead blue whales, all suspected of dying from the \Jmeasles\j.
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"January 2, 1996",3,0,0,0
Rome prepares for one of the largest intakes of tourists ever, expected between 1999 and 2001; the reason being the coming of the second millennium since the birth of Christ.
King Fahd of Saudi \JArabia\j hands over his rule to Prince Abdullah after his health rapidly deteriorates as a result of a recent stroke.
Russia confirms that it missed a December 1991 deadline to destroy tanks and weapons; Uzbekistan, \JKazakhstan\j and Turkmenistan also missed the deadline.
Lives of the Egyptian President and his MPs are threatened in \JCairo\j after the Islamic Group attack a village.
A bus crash in Zaire claims 72 lives.
Pneumonia claims the life of one of America's greatest WWII military officials, Admiral Arleigh Burke.
The President of \JBurundi\j expresses alarm during his New Year message to his people, that their country faces the possibility of deterioration as a result of the in-fighting between the two major army controllers, the Hutus and Tutsis.
1950s and 60s rock legend Buddy Holly's songs are brought back to the 1990s courtesy of a tribute album by Holly's friends, including names such as Waylon Jennings and Mark Knopfler.
Atlanta is on the downhill run to the 1996 Olympics as preparations for the largest Olympics yet are almost finalized. 197 countries have been invited to attend and all have accepted.
Figures reveal that China's \Jinflation\j fell in 1995, but foreign investment rose.
#
"January 3, 1996",4,0,0,0
The United States major phone company, AT & T, announces it will shed 13 per cent of its workforce (about 40,000 jobs).
The Senate in the US passes a bill to end the shutdown of government services.
Officials reveal that ten East Timorese men are due to return home after 37 years in exile in \JPortugal\j.
High profile opium trafficker, Khun Sa, surrenders to the Burmese Government.
Salman Rushdie wins the Whitbread Prize for his latest novel The Moor's Last Sigh.
Greek Socialist Party members decide to elect a new Prime Minister after Andreas Papandreou, the current Prime Minister, is still on a life-support system after 44 days.
Threats from Islamic militants are made to the United States if the American government takes covert action against \JIran\j.
Twenty people are killed and 48 injured in a rocket attack in Kabul, \JAfghanistan\j's capital city.
Elections in \JJerusalem\j are viewed by worldwide critics as being fraudulent and rigged by Yasser Arafat after a further three contenders withdraw their candidacy.
The trial of the century is finally over and O.J. Simpson is acquitted of murder in the first degree.
#
"January 4, 1996",5,0,0,0
Japanese researchers say they have come across the antibody that kills \JHIV\j infected cells.
Disgraced \Jsoccer\j legend, Diego Maradona, tells a magazine of his hard struggle to conquer drug addiction.
Six people are killed in a New Delhi bomb blast; the Jammu and Kashmir Islamic Front responsible say it is in protest against acts committed by Indian security squads.
Members of a Costa Rican gang, who have kidnapped a Swiss and a German woman, demand $US1 million ransom.
Lech Walesa, former Polish President, is fined 1,000 zloyts for not maintaining 1990 election promises.
Doctors at a San Francisco \Jhospital\j announce that a man suffering from AIDS, who had \Jbaboon\j bone marrow transplanted into him, is due to be released from \Jhospital\j soon.
Madonna appears in court against Robert Hoskins, the man accused of stalking her.
An eight o'clock curfew is placed on Care \JAustralia\j workers in \JNairobi\j after a Goma Christmas Day massacre.
Thirty-two people are killed and 60 injured when warfare erupts between Burmese troops and Karen forces at the Thai border town of Mae Sot.
Singapore transport planners decide to spend more than $19 billion on a state-of-the-art public transport system.
Princess Diana is reported to have accepted the demands of the Queen to divorce Prince Charles.
The Greek Socialist Party begins the process of selecting a new Prime Minister to replace Andreas Papandreou who is in bad health.
Bosnian Serbs release three of their 16 hostages in \JSarajevo\j.
China withdraws its bid for the 2004 Olympics.
Maori protesters in New Zealand object to the visit of the replica of Captain Cook's boat the \IEndeavour.\i
#
"January 5, 1996",6,0,0,0
Mr Tomiichi Murayama, \JJapan\j's Prime Minister, announces he will resign.
The US announces a $US2 million reward for information leading to Burmese drug lord Khun Sa's arrest.
Eighty people are killed in a sudden cold snap in Mexico.
Liberian guerillas ambush and hold hostage 130 members of a peacekeeping force in \JNigeria\j.
The US still experiences difficulties in establishing a Budget.
#
"January 6, 1996",7,0,0,0
Experts claim that \Jpollution\j is one of the factors for the possible \Jextinction\j of up to twenty species of rare animals.
Christopher Reeve, the American actor best known for his role as Superman, takes his first breaths without the aid of a respirator, after being paralyzed as a result of a horse riding accident last year.
Azuma Nelson is named boxer of the year by the World Boxing Council.
The Princess of Wales, Diana Spencer, hires one of Britain's best divorce lawyers.
David Hempleman-Adams achieves the amazing feat of walking solo and unaided to the South Pole.
America, \JRussia\j and the \JUkraine\j combine forces to demolish a missile silo.
#
"January 7, 1996",8,0,0,0
A Chinese Government report claims that children have been found starving and dying in the country's orphanages.
Bill Clinton finally announces a balanced seven year budget plan for America.
The United States deploys additional forces to the Gulf.
Forty planes are shot or forced down in \JColombia\j after a massive anti-narcotic operation.
Princess Anne has security stepped up as a result of an alleged stalker.
One of the leaders of the Sicilian Mafia, Salvatore "Toto" Riina, is forced to appear in court in relation to a car bombing in \JPalermo\j in 1992.
England's largest lottery jackpot, worth approximately ú172 million is to be divided by three winners.
More than 100,000 people attend the funeral in \JJerusalem\j of one of the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas' most prominent terrorists, Yehiya Ayyash, who was recently assassinated.
#
"January 8, 1996",9,0,0,0
Jakarta suffers the worst flooding in twenty years, with eight people already dead and hundreds injured.
Bill Clinton's fifth Budget proposal is knocked back by the Republicans.
Former French President, Francois Mitterrand, dies after a battle with prostate cancer.
A cold snap hits New York with temperatures dropping to 10 degrees C below zero.
Fourteen people die in America as a result of wild blizzards that are currently sweeping the country.
Boris Yeltsin, \JRussia\j's President, searches for a new foreign minister after the resignation of Andrei Kozyrev.
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"January 9, 1996",10,0,0,0
Security upgrades are made for the imminent visit of US President, Bill Clinton, to \JSarajevo\j.
Nine people are killed in \JIndonesia\j when guerillas attack their vehicle.
Record snow falls are recorded in Philadelphia, as well as one of the worst snow storms in New York's history.
The Prime Minister of \JFrance\j announces a day of mourning in honor of the former president, Francois Mitterrand.
900,000 yen compensation is paid to a family from \JOkinawa\j for the alleged rape of their 12-year-old daughter by three American servicemen.
An overloaded cargo plane crashes into Zaire's capital city, \JKinshasa\j, killing 250 citizens.
A huge oil spill in Moscow is located from a pipe running into the Belaya River.
Recent blizzards cause the New York Stock Markets to delay trading.
Pop singer Madonna's stalker is found guilty by a Los Angeles jury.
Chechen rebels take 2,000 people hostage in Kizlar.
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"January 10, 1996",11,0,0,0
Rebels in Irian Jaya take 14 hostages near Mapnduma.
The Chechen hostage situation eases when hostages are released.
Lille submits its bid for the 2004 Summer Olympics.
Lech Walesa, \JPoland\j's ex-president, applies for a job as an electrician at Gdansk shipyards.
India bans abortions of healthy female fetuses.
US snow storms so far claim 87 lives.
Yevgeny Primakov, \JRussia\j's Foreign Intelligence Service Chief, is assigned the post of Foreign Minister.
Israel starts to release Palestinian prisoners in accordance with a deal negotiated with the PLO.
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"January 11, 1996",12,0,0,0
The candidates for the 2004 Olympic Games are: \JAthens\j, Buenos Aires, Cape Town, \JIstanbul\j, Lille, Rio De Janeiro, \JRome\j, San Juan, Seville, Stockholm and St Petersburg.
King Hussein of Jordan pays his first visit to Tel Aviv amidst some of the tightest security ever, as Israel begins releasing 1200 Palestinian prisoners.
Stock prices fall after Bill Clinton warns that the Budget might not pass until November.
A morbid discovery in Bosnia by officials reveals a mass grave containing a suspected 8,000 bodies.
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"January 12, 1996",13,0,0,0
Trouble "brews" in \JPakistan\j as leading beer manufacturers lock in bitter feuds.
Irian separatists who took 14 hostages, warn that the hostages' lives will be in jeopardy if their rescue is attempted.
Tension flares in \JSarajevo\j as anticipation of an order from Serbian authorities for all Serbs to leave \JSarajevo\j grows.
Fighting resumes between the Bougainville Revolutionary Army and Papua New Guinean forces in Bougainville.
Russia does not cooperate in the hostage situation in \JChechnya\j.
New research figures reveal that there are 9.5 million Internet users in the US.
Space Shuttle \IEndeavour\i begins its search of a Japanese satellite.
1970s and 80s punk rock band The Sex Pistols announce their reunion tour.
Greek Prime Minister, Andreas Papandreou, who is in a serious condition in \Jhospital\j, indicates he is ready to resign.
The former South Korean President, Chun Doo Hwan, will be brought to trial charged with accepting bribes from various high-profile Korean companies and having been the catalyst behind a 1979 coup.
The Italian Prime Minister, Lamberto Dini, resigns, in order to avoid facing a no-confidence vote against him.
#
"January 14, 1996",14,0,0,0
Bill Clinton visits war-torn Bosnia.
The British Broadcasting Bill looks at being changed in the wake of Rupert Murdoch's bid for the European TV rights to all Olympic Games until 2020.
The Algerian Muslim bombers claim responsibility for a bomb in Paris late last year.
Yigal Amir, Hagai Amir and Dror Adani are charged in Tel Aviv for a plot to murder the former Prime Minister of Israel.
Three thousand citizens of \JNagoya\j, \JJapan\j, protest over the rape, and other crimes, committed by US servicemen based in their country.
Lucien Bouchard replaces Jacques Parizeau as the latest Premier of Quebec.
Russian soldiers hold back from a village where Chechen rebels are keeping hostages.
Indonesian soldiers accelerate their attempt to free hostages that were taken by the Free Papua Movement.
#
"January 15, 1996",15,0,0,0
It is reported that China is arranging an underground nuclear test before the nuclear test ban treaty comes into effect.
Russia closes negotiations with nuclear reactor operators in Europe to sell uranium to them.
A US report claims that organized crime monopolizes a large percentage of Russian banks.
Jorge Sampaio becomes the new President of \JPortugal\j.
The Chinese Government decides to slash the People's Liberation Army by 500,000.
Russian soldiers attack the Chechen rebels who are holding hostages in the village of Pervomaiskoye.
#
"January 16, 1996",16,0,0,0
The Greek Prime Minister, Andreas Papandreou announces his resignation.
Chinese archaeologists in Xuzhou dig up a 2,000 year old shroud made of jade in which a king had been buried.
Bill Clinton warns India that he will cut off economic aid to them if they go ahead and conduct nuclear tests.
Singapore assigns a new Filipino ambassador.
King Moshoeshoe II of \JLesotho\j dies after a car accident.
Juan Garcia Abrego, one of the top drug dealers in Mexico, is arrested.
A Pakistan court charges a Canadian aid worker with a bomb that destroyed the Egyptian Embassy.
#
"January 17, 1996",17,0,0,0
Russian soldiers shell the Chechen guerillas who are still holding 80 hostages.
Seven opposition politicians in India are charged with accepting bribes.
Sierra Leone's government leader, Captain Valentine Strasser, is overthrown in a coup.
#
"January 18, 1996",18,0,0,0
President Boris Yeltsin announces that the hostages taken by Chechen rebels have been freed.
Apple Computers announce they will have to cut 3,000 staff worldwide.
NATO forces withdraw troops in Bosnia.
Buckingham Palace confirms that the Queen will not help The Duchess of York with her one million pound overdraft.
The safety of the hostages in Irian Jaya is in doubt as \JIndonesia\j prepares to attack the Free Papua Movement.
Three of the seven politicians in India who were charged with bribery resign.
Fighting closes a Rwandan refugee camp in \JBurundi\j; 15,000 escape to the Tanzanian border.
Space scientists in the US say they have discovered two new planets in which organisms may be able to live.
#
"January 19, 1996",19,0,0,0
Iraq tells the United Nations that it wants to sell $US2 billion worth of oil to pay for much-needed food and health requirements for its people.
Mr Costas Simitis becomes the new Prime Minister of \JGreece\j.
Boris Yeltsin announces the end of the strike on the Chechen rebels in Pervomaiskoye.
Lisa Marie Presley files for divorce from Michael Jackson.
Ten foreigners die in a fire in a hostel in \JGermany\j.
Indonesia's foreign minister confirms his country would not back \JSingapore\j in voting that \JAustralia\j join the Association of South-East Asian Nations.
A French court bans a book about the late President Francois Mitterrand.
The British Government announces prisoners giving birth will no longer be handcuffed.
Famous jazz player, Gerry Mulligan, dies from difficulties arising after surgery.
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"January 20, 1996",20,0,0,0
George Burns celebrates his 100th birthday.
Twenty-nine people are killed and many missing after an Indonesian ferry sinks.
UN Secretary, Boutros Boutros-Ghali insists on the release of 14 hostages taken by the Free Papua Movement.
Dagestan grieves over the death of nearly 43 hostages taken by Chechen rebels.
The Duchess of York returns a $75,000 BMW she can no longer afford.
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"January 21, 1996",21,0,0,0
The Duchess of York reaches an agreement to enable her to pay all her debts.
Palestinians in East \JJerusalem\j are deterred from voting at the first ever Palestinian elections, where Yasser Arafat claims victory.
Chechen rebels reveal they are still holding hostages in eastern \JChechnya\j.
Over 100 people are still missing after a ferry sunk in \JIndonesia\j.
A cyclone hits Madagascar and 10,000 are left destitute.
Mufti of Tajikistan, England's spiritual leader of the Muslims, is found dead.
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"January 22, 1996",22,0,0,0
Don Simpson, producer of \IBeverly Hills Cop\i and \ITop Gun,\i dies in Los Angeles.
PLO officials announce that the results of the election will clear the way for an eventual Palestinian independent state.
A war crimes investigator from the US visits a newly-discovered mass grave site in Bosnia.
The Tanzanian border is closed when thousands of Rwandan refugees flee there to escape violence.
A state of emergency is declared in Buenos Aires after fire rages through Bariloche.
One of the 14 hostages held in Irian Jaya by the Free Papua Movement is released.
Indian troops kill seven Muslims in Kashmir.
Bosnian's Prime Minister, Haris Silajdzic, announces his resignation; Hasan Muratovic will replace him.
The east coast of America suffers severe flooding.
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"January 23, 1996",23,0,0,0
Princess Diana's private secretary resigns.
A Japanese newspaper claims that \JIodine\j 131 was detected near Mururoa \JAtoll\j after the nuclear testing by \JFrance\j.
Data sent back by a space probe reveals that Jupiter is a lot different than previously thought.
The US Government faces a default on its debts if Congress doesn't raise the debt limit.
The leader of the Chechen rebels, Salman Raduyev, vows to keep fighting \JRussia\j.
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"January 24, 1996",24,0,0,0
Tanzania reopens its borders to 12,000 \JRwanda\j refugees who fled violence in \JBurundi\j.
Princess Diana's chauffeur and her personal assistant both resign.
Reports reveal that \JJapan\j suffered its first trade surplus fall in five years.
#
"January 25, 1996",25,0,0,0
The US Government warns China not to attack \JTaiwan\j.
Three soldiers are killed in an explosion in \JSarajevo\j.
Fifteen rebels are killed in Bougainville in a battle between soldiers and rebels.
#
"January 26, 1996",26,0,0,0
The price of gold in London is at its highest for five years.
AT & T reports a loss of $US2.68 billion for the last quarter of 1995.
The World Health Organization wants the last container of the smallpox virus destroyed by the end of the decade.
India's Opposition Leader calls on the Prime Minister to step down over alleged corruption activities.
The Indonesian Government reveals that 60 civilians have been killed in Irian Jaya by the Indonesian military in attempts to defuse the Free Papua Movement.
Australia appeals to \JRussia\j and China to agree to a total ban on nuclear testing.
Britain's Prime Minister, John Major, seeks to fix a disagreement with John Bruton, the Irish Prime Minister.
Bill Clinton's wife, Hillary, after being subpoenaed, appears in court regarding the Whitewater affair.
#
"January 27, 1996",27,0,0,0
Thousands protest in Bogota, \JColombia\j, insisting on President Ernesto Samper's resignation.
The Bosnian Government makes an agreement with the Serbs to release hundreds of prisoners of war.
Australian Prime Minister, Paul Keating, announces the date of March 2 for the country's general election.
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"January 28, 1996",28,0,0,0
Taiwan announces it will practice naval exercises to prepare themselves against \JBeijing\j's forces.
France detonates its sixth and biggest nuclear blast at Fangataufa \JAtoll\j.
Around 250 Bosnian Serb prisoners are freed by the Croatian and Bosnian governments.
Lieutenant-Colonel Ibrahim Bare Mainassara is named \JNiger\j's new President, when Mahamane Ousmane was overthrown in a coup.
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"January 29, 1996",29,0,0,0
The 1987 winner of the Nobel Prize for literature, Joseph Brodsky, dies of heart failure.
Yemeni tribesmen release 17 French hostages.
Five people are killed after a light plane crash on New Zealand's South Island.
Portuguese Prime Minister, Mr Guterres, announces he fully backs East \JTimor\j in their fight for freedom.
Indian and Pakistani soldiers exchange gunfire after \JPakistan\j accused India of firing a rocket into a mosque in Kashmir.
Magic Johnson announces his return to \Jbasketball\j, signing up with the Los Angeles Lakers.
King Mswati III of \JSwaziland\j commands his subjects return to work or face war.
The head of the Nation of \JIslam\j in the US, Louis Farrakhan, and Nelson Mandela, carry out a successful meeting.
Chinese soldiers who will enforce law in Hong Kong from 1997 are already being trained.
Tamil Tigers attack an army camp in Colombo and kill 33 people.
Fire destroys much of \JItaly\j's 18th century La Fenice opera house.
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"January 30, 1996",30,0,0,0
Greece and Turkey fight over an island in the Aegean Sea.
Female refugees from Srebrenica march on the Red Cross office in Bosnia.
Japan's recession looks to be nearly over.
Scientists warn that large amounts of radioactive waste will leak from the atolls where \JFrance\j conducted nuclear tests.
Eight people are killed and many more injured when gunmen open fire on thousands of people queuing for jobs in \JJohannesburg\j.
#
"January 31, 1996",31,0,0,0
Bombay officially changes its name to \JMumbai\j.
Bill Clinton successfully intervenes in the fight between \JGreece\j and Turkey over an island in the Aegean Sea.
Two Tamil Tigers are arrested in Sri Lanka after a major bomb is exploded there.
Bosnia appoints Hasan Muratovic as the Prime Minister of the dual State.
Ambassadors at the \JNicaragua\j Foreign Ministry are released after being held by students.
A museum being built in \JEgypt\j is stopped after archaeologists reveal it was being built on top of a cemetery over 2,600 years old.
The Free Papua Movement threatens to kill 13 hostages if \JIndonesia\j uses military force to free them.
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"February 1, 1996",32,0,0,0
A bomb explodes outside a Sri Lankan bank in Colombo, killing at least 80 and injuring thousands.
The Republicans lose a seat to the Democrats in a by-election in Oregon, USA.
The United Nations backs \JEthiopia\j in their request for the \Jextradition\j of terrorists in \JSudan\j.
The Maltese Falcon statue is auctioned for a record price for a movie prop.
Polish President, Aleksander Kwasniewski, appoints Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz as the new Prime Minister.
Champion bridge player, Terence Reese, dies in England, aged 82.
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"February 2, 1996",33,0,0,0
Officials announce that charges of \Jmanslaughter\j for the death of Ayrton Senna will be laid.
Gold bullion jumps to its highest price in over five years.
Scores of Democrats boycott Jacques Chirac's address to Congress in Washington.
NATO peacekeepers kill a sniper in \JSarajevo\j.
Health officials in Moscow reveal that over 400 people have died due to freezing temperatures.
A grenade explodes amongst a crowd at a railway station in Manila, \JPhilippines\j.
The Sri Lankan Government ensures the Australian cricketers safety at the World Cup in Colombo.
Over 100 people die when a bomb explodes in Shaoyang, China.
Turkey threatens \JAthens\j with war if it extends its territorial waters.
Italy's President, Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, appoints Antonio Maccanico as the Prime Minister-designate.
#
"February 3, 1996",34,0,0,0
Actor, singer and dancer, Gene Kelly, dies aged 83.
Actress Audrey Meadows announces she has terminal cancer.
The World Health Organization claims that bacteria resistant to \Jantibiotics\j is a serious problem.
A fox kills the Queen's flamingos at Buckingham Palace.
Taiwan tests a new air-to-air missile.
#
"February 4, 1996",35,0,0,0
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 7.0 strikes Lijiang, China, killing hundreds and injuring thousands.
The Red Cross airlifts food into Afghan's capital after roads were cut off due to fighting.
Coalminers in \JRussia\j end their two-day strike.
Michael Spindler, president and chief executive of Apple Computer, is sacked.
#
"February 5, 1996",36,0,0,0
A Colombian cargo plane crashes in \JParaguay\j, killing all four members on board and at least 18 on the ground.
Over 100 people are injured when 30,000 people turn up to ice skate on a frozen lake in the Netherlands.
Actress Audrey Meadows dies of cancer, aged 71.
An assassination attempt is made on the Guatemalan President, Alvaro Arzu.
Archaeologists announce they have found the relics of Lord \JBuddha\j in Kathmandu.
Lijiang experiences major aftershocks after their worst \Jearthquake\j in eight years hit yesterday.
#
"February 6, 1996",37,0,0,0
Tommy Mitchell, who was a member of the English Bodyline cricket team, dies aged 93.
Masashi Yamada, who was stripped of his pro-am title after cheating, shuts down the $34.4 million golf course he owns in Stratford-upon-Avon.
Police in London unveil a new-look jacket and a new police cap to replace the bobby.
The Bosnian Government holds two Bosnian Serb officers accused of war crimes.
Soldiers in Irian Jaya closely follow rebels from the Free Papua Movement, who are detaining 13 hostages, towards the border of Papua New Guinea.
#
"February 7, 1996",38,0,0,0
NATO confirms it will not interfere with the Bosnian Government's capturing of two Bosnian Serbs they have accused of war crimes.
Jean-Bertrand Aristide hands over the Haitian presidency to Rene Preval.
Russia sells over 70 SU-27 fighter planes to China.
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"February 8, 1996",39,0,0,0
A Boeing 757 carrying mainly Germans crashes into the Caribbean Sea near the Dominican Republic.
The Irish Foreign Minister proposes a peace conference for Northern Ireland.
The Prime Minister of Vanuatu, Serge Vohor, announces his resignation.
Hundreds of Chechen protesters in Grozny demand the retreat of Russian forces.
The Prime Minister of Israel, Shimon Peres, announces a general election for May.
Madonna begins the filming of \IEvita.\i
#
"February 9, 1996",40,0,0,0
Colombo steps up security after bomb threats by Tamil Tigers.
Japan orders South Korea to stop work on a wharf on a disputed island in the \JJapan\j Sea.
China threatens to boycott the \JAtlanta\j Olympics if top Taiwanese officials attend.
China and Britain argue over who will be granted permanent residency in Hong Kong in 1997.
All 189 people on board a Boeing 757 that crashed near the Dominican Republic are presumed dead.
Russian forces in Grozny confront Chechen protesters.
A Bosnian Serb military official halts communication with \JNATO\j in protest at the Bosnian Government's holding of two Bosnian Serb officers accused of war crimes.
#
"February 10, 1996",41,0,0,0
A surgeon in \JBelgium\j, using a high-tech computer, takes charge of a \Jstomach\j operation in Holland.
Astronomers announce a newly-discovered \Jcomet\j will be visible in the night sky at the end of March.
The IRA announces the end of the cease-fire and claims responsibility for a bomb explosion in London.
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"February 11, 1996",42,0,0,0
Security is stepped-up in London and \JBelfast\j after the IRA bomb blast yesterday.
Rescuers attempt to retrieve people trapped in a collapsed highway tunnel in \JJapan\j.
Japan and South Korea fight over ownership of three islets in the \JJapan\j Sea.
Bill Clinton continues to support a peace settlement for Northern Ireland.
#
"February 12, 1996",43,0,0,0
Colombian police find a truck full of explosives outside a Buddhist temple.
US studies report that almost 10,000 people worldwide acquire the \JHIV\j virus every day.
Japan orders China to withdraw their ships searching for oil around the Senkaku Islands, which are claimed by China, \JTaiwan\j and \JJapan\j.
Irish Prime Minister John Bruton urges John Major to abandon elections for Northern Ireland.
Heavyweight boxer, Tommy Morrison, is banned indefinitely from boxing, due to an alleged \JHIV\j positive test.
A disease similar to \Jcholera\j kills dozens of people in \JTimor\j.
Chechen protesters in Grozny dismantle, following the loss of six lives while fighting with Russian troops.
#
"February 13, 1996",44,0,0,0
Indonesia continues plans to build a $2.1 billion nuclear power station.
Over 300 cars are involved in a pile-up on a freeway in \JItaly\j.
The Tamil United Liberation Front president accuses Sri Lankan soldiers of killing two dozen Tamil civilians.
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"February 14, 1996",45,0,0,0
Both British and Irish Governments decide to hold talks with Northern Ireland to get the peace plan up and running.
Time Warner and MAI announce they will build huge film and TV studios in London.
Sri Lanka attacks a vessel carrying weapons for Tamil Tigers.
Archaeologists in \JEgypt\j unearth 2500 BC murals in the Fifth Dynasty Sahu Ra pyramid.
#
"February 15, 1996",46,0,0,0
Presidents of \JSerbia\j, \JCroatia\j and Bosnia are asked to attend a meeting to enforce the signing of the Dayton treaty.
A Chinese rocket explodes just after take-off in \JBeijing\j.
The President of \JColombia\j, Ernesto Samper, is charged with electoral \Jfraud\j and cover-up.
The British Government sends 500 troops back to Northern Ireland, following the end of the 17-month-long cease-fire.
Sri Lanka closes schools, fearing violent Tamil attacks.
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"February 16, 1996",47,0,0,0
Mud slides in Rio de Janeiro kill dozens of people.
A guerilla group in \JAthens\j fires a grenade at the US Embassy.
London police safely destroy a suspected IRA bomb located in a \Jtelephone\j booth in the busy theater district of London.
A palace used for defense is the center for an explosion in Kabul, Islamabad.
Boris Yeltsin announces he will stand for another term as President, while the Communist Party announces Gennady Zyuganov as their candidate.
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"February 17, 1996",48,0,0,0
A reward of one million pounds is offered by Scotland Yard for information on the IRA bombers.
McLean Stevenson, best known for his role as a surgeon in \IMASH,\i dies of a heart attack, aged 66.
Two trains carrying passengers collide near Washington DC, killing at least a dozen people.
#
"February 18, 1996",49,0,0,0
The Health Minister of \JJapan\j claims responsibility and apologizes for the deaths of hundreds of people who contracted \JHIV\j through contaminated blood.
Italy announces April 21 for general elections.
Two of the rebels who are holding 13 hostages in Irian Jaya surrender.
Another IRA bomb is blasted in London, this time on a double-decker bus.
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"February 19, 1996",50,0,0,0
Pat Brown, a former Californian Governor, dies aged 90.
An overloaded Filipino ferry is ripped apart by massive waves, killing over 60 people.
Two bombs explode in \JAlgiers\j, killing a dozen people.
Pete Sampras takes Andre Agassi's title of World No. 1 men's tennis player.
#
"February 20, 1996",51,0,0,0
The IRA threatens to extend its terrorist activities to other cities in Britain.
Archaeologists reveal that they have dug up the world's oldest musical instrument-a flute-probably made by Neanderthals over 45,000 years ago.
Twelve Russian hostages in Dagestan are freed by Chechen rebels. Meanwhile, Russian soldiers return fire at rebels in a village in north-eastern \JChechnya\j.
A member of the Indian Government, Kamal Nath, resigns, following his name being linked to a bribery scandal.
Japan declares a 200 nautical mile zone around its coast, worsening relationships with South Korea and China over ownership of islands.
Maverick Republican Pat Buchanan wins the New Hampshire presidential primary election.
#
"February 21, 1996",52,0,0,0
Bosnian Serb leaders announce all Serbs should leave \JSarajevo\j or face living under Muslim-Croat federation.
Russian soldiers announce they have won a battle with Chechen rebels in Novogroznensky, near Grozny.
The US announces it will apply sanctions against China, following their supplying of nuclear materials to \JPakistan\j.
London police uncover a bomb factory believed to be owned by the IRA.
The Red Cross sends in staff to find 12 hostages held by the Free Papua Movement in Irian Jaya.
President Fidel Ramos of the \JPhilippines\j orders an investigation into the sinking of an overloaded ferry.
#
"February 22, 1996",53,0,0,0
Thousands of Serbs in \JSarajevo\j plea for assistance to move out.
126 people are reported to have been murdered at the Sao Paulo \Jcarnival\j in \JBrazil\j.
An oil tanker which ran aground off the Welsh coast last week, spills 65,000 tons of crude oil.
Twenty Tamil Tigers are killed in Colombo after they attack a military base.
#
"February 23, 1996",54,0,0,0
A tidal wave hits the northern coast of \JPeru\j, killing 10 people.
A US F-14 crashes in the Persian Gulf, the third F-14 crash in 4 weeks.
French President, Jacques Chirac, announces the shut-down of the Mururoa \JAtoll\j nuclear test site.
Peter Thurnham, a member of John Major's Conservative Party, resigns to stand as an independent.
US President, Bill Clinton, announces he may move a US air base off the island of \JOkinawa\j, \JJapan\j.
Fourteen more Indian politicians are charged with accepting bribes.
#
"February 24, 1996",55,0,0,0
Astronomers in Hawaii find the most distant known galaxy in the universe-14,000 million light-years away.
#
"February 25, 1996",56,0,0,0
Hamas, the Islamic extremists, detonate two bombs, one in \JJerusalem\j and the other in Ashkelon, killing 25 people.
Steve Forbes wins the \JDelaware\j Republican presidential primary election.
Cuban fighter planes shoot down a couple of planes belonging to a Cuban exile group in Miami.
NATO ensures Serbs in \JSarajevo\j that they will provide safe transport for their evacuation.
Malaysian Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, announces he will oppose \JAustralia\j attending future Asia-Europe summit meetings.
#
"February 26, 1996",57,0,0,0
The US condemns \JCuba\j for shooting down two exile planes.
The Israeli Government urges Yasser Arafat to help put a stop to the bombings by Muslim militants.
Former South Korean President, Chun Doo Hwan, attends court on charges of bribery.
A bomb explodes in a shopping center in Tirana, \JAlbania\j.
NASA fails another attempt to tow a satellite through space when the 20 km (12 mile) tether breaks away from their space shuttle.
#
"February 27, 1996",58,0,0,0
Haing Ngor, who won an Oscar for his part in \IThe Killing Fields,\i is shot dead.
Tens of thousands of Tibetans face the possibility of frostbite and starvation as a severe snowstorm settles in.
John Major avoids a vote of no confidence when a backbencher decides not to abandon the Conservatives.
#
"February 28, 1996",59,0,0,0
Indonesia plans to limit international shipping in their waters to three sea-lanes.
Soldiers in India and \JPakistan\j exchange gunfire near the border of Kashmir.
The Irish and British Prime Ministers hold talks regarding the Northern Ireland peace process.
A top Government official in \JJapan\j admits he received bribes to keep contaminated blood in circulation.
#
"February 29, 1996",60,0,0,0
Nearly thirty people are killed when a bus and car collide in \JSpain\j.
Warren Buffett overtakes Bill Gates to becomes the world's richest businessman; he is estimated to be worth over $US16 billion.
The Irish and British Prime Ministers set June 10 aside for all-party talks; the IRA can participate only if it restores its cease-fire.
Princess Diana finally agrees to a royal divorce.
#
"March 1, 1996",61,0,0,0
Japan and Britain support \JAustralia\j's fight to join Asia-Europe summit meetings.
John Major visits Hong Kong.
The militant Islamic Hamas group announces they will cease attacks if Israel releases Palestinian prisoners.
The Portuguese and Indonesian governments meet to end their fight over East \JTimor\j.
Kenya beats the West Indies in a cricket match in the World Cup in India.
All 123 passengers on board a Boeing 737 that crashed in the \JAndes\j are confirmed dead.
The Bosnian Government announces that the Serb crisis in \JSarajevo\j is over.
Princess Diana's divorce lawyer threatens to halt proceedings unless her demands are met by the palace.
The IRA refuses to restore the cease-fire.
50,000 police in \JTaiwan\j continue to clean up criminal activities for the coming election.
#
"March 2, 1996",62,0,0,0
Security is stepped-up after police find a prowler outside Princess Diana's living quarters.
Sothebys prepare for their biggest ever auction-that of Jackie Kennedy Onassis' personal possessions.
China announces it will persist in applying military pressure on \JTaiwan\j.
The US Government dispatches ships and fighter jets to make sure Cuban exiles don't start any acts of war in the \JFlorida\j Straits.
Imelda Marcos is said to owe a law company $4.5 million from 1991.
Liberal Party leader John Howard becomes the new prime minister of \JAustralia\j.
#
"March 3, 1996",63,0,0,0
Malaysia's Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, presses for \JAustralia\j's indefinite exclusion from the Asia-Europe summit meetings.
Records indicate that New York has just had its whitest winter in more than 100 years.
Another bomb explodes on a bus in \JJerusalem\j, killing 19 people; the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, claims responsibility.
Scientists at NASA release results of a study which indicate that dams built all over the world affect the orbital rotation of the Earth.
Bob Dole claims victory over Pat Buchanan in the South Carolina primary presidential election.
#
"March 4, 1996",64,0,0,0
Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Peres, demands Yasser Arafat put a stop to the Hamas Movement's terrorist attacks, or risk any chance of a peace process.
Right-wing Popular Party leader, Jose Maria Aznar, claims victory in the Spanish general election.
The leaders of the Motherland Party and True Path Party in Turkey form a joint coalition government to rule the country.
Famous French author, Marguerite Duras, dies aged 81.
John Major announces he will allow Hong Kong residents without visas to enter Britain after 1997.
Following fears of a coup, the Prime Minister of \JBangladesh\j, Khaleda Zia, offers to stand down.
Mamonas Assassinas, a well-known Brazilian music group, are involved in a plane crash near Sao Paulo, killing all five members.
Most government ministers in the Cook Islands call on the Prime Minister, Geoffrey Henry, to resign.
The political wing of the IRA, Sinn Fein, is refused any involvement in Northern Ireland peace talks.
Senator Bob Dole claims victory in the Puerto Rico presidential primary election.
#
"March 5, 1996",65,0,0,0
A bomb explodes in Tel Aviv, Israel, the fourth bomb in nine days by the Hamas movement; 14 people are killed.
China announces it will test missiles near \JTaiwan\j ports.
A senior member of the Pol Pot terrorist group defects to the government.
#
"March 6, 1996",66,0,0,0
The Sri Lankan cricket team score a record 5-398 in their one-day game against \JKenya\j.
Senator Bob Dole claims victory in the Georgia presidential primary election, making it his eighth primary election win.
Israel storms Palestinian villages and arrests suspected bombers.
Nelson Mandela undergoes extensive health tests.
The commander of the Chechen guerillas is killed in \JChechnya\j.
Houses are evacuated following a \Jvolcano\j eruption in \JJapan\j.
The US Government announces a bill will be introduced to cancel US visas of people who have any dealings with \JCuba\j.
#
"March 7, 1996",67,0,0,0
The United Nations announces an end to aid for over 35,000 Vietnamese boat people.
Chechen rebels attack Russian forces in Grozny.
#
"March 8, 1996",68,0,0,0
The International Chess Federation announces \JBaghdad\j as the venue for the next world championships.
Dozens are trapped and 17 people die after a five-story building collapses in \JBombay\j.
Hundreds of people are left dead when Chechen rebels take control of a large portion of Grozny.
Taiwan prepares its warships following China's missile tests near their ports.
Senator Bob Dole claims victory in the New York presidential primary election.
#
"March 9, 1996",69,0,0,0
A bomb explodes in an underground station in London, amazingly causing no deaths or injuries.
The threat of war between \JTaiwan\j and China escalates when China fires its fourth test missile near Taiwanese ports.
#
"March 10, 1996",70,0,0,0
George Burns, who recently turned 100, dies of heart failure.
China threatens to use live ammunition in its missile tests near \JTaiwan\j.
The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, announces they will continue terrorist attacks on the Israelis.
Russian soldiers regain control of Grozny from Chechen rebels.
The space shuttle Columbia lands at Cape Canaveral after 15 days in space.
#
"March 11, 1996",71,0,0,0
The US Government sends naval ships to \JTaiwan\j to discourage China from testing missiles there. Meanwhile China warns the US not to get involved.
Tamil Tigers attack and kill 20 commandos in Colombo.
The British Government will investigate the selling at auction of an IRA filing cabinet full of classified information.
The Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, announces he has arrested three key figures of the Hamas movement.
#
"March 12, 1996",72,0,0,0
Pressure is put on Boris Yeltsin to sack his Defense Minister over the Chechen crisis.
The Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, is banned from traveling for free on the royal train.
The US Government sends more warships to \JTaiwan\j as China continues to test missiles in the area.
Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank warn they will shoot if Israel enters their towns.
#
"March 13, 1996",73,0,0,0
Sixteen school children aged four and five, and their school teacher, are shot dead by a single gunman in a school in Dunblane, Scotland. The gunman then kills himself.
China continues its missile testing near \JTaiwan\j despite heavy presence from US warships.
Hundreds of people from a Papuan village continue a four-day riot near a gold and copper mine.
Pakistani military shoot dead Naeem Sherri, a senior member of the Mohajir Quami Movement.
Princess Diana denies having an affair with Will Carling.
Steve Forbes, a runner in the Republican presidential race in the US, may bow out, as Senator Bob Dole claims victory in all seven primary elections today.
#
"March 14, 1996",74,0,0,0
Taiwan asks the US for more military help against the threat of a Chinese invasion.
Rebels in \JColombia\j explode a bomb attached to a donkey, killing 11 police officers.
Steve Forbes ends his bid for the US presidency; he spent over $US30 million on his campaign.
The Free Papua Movement threatens to kill 12 hostages if they don't get what they have demanded.
Reports indicate that the Dunblane massacre gunman, Thomas Hamilton, had a history of abusing children.
#
"March 15, 1996",75,0,0,0
Israel wants to erect an electronic fence to stop Palestinian terrorists entering their state.
A full inquiry is to be conducted regarding the Dunblane massacre.
China confirms to the US that they will not attack \JTaiwan\j.
A newly-released report indicates that the United Nations failed to act on the Rwandan crisis in 1994 which left 800,000 people dead.
The Opposition Leader in Zimbabwe asks if the elections can be postponed for three months.
#
"March 16, 1996",76,0,0,0
China defers the testing of missiles off \JTaiwan\j.
Poachers kill a white \Jrhinoceros\j in Zaire; leaving only 29 left in the world.
#
"March 17, 1996",77,0,0,0
Millions of people in Britain hold a minute's silence for the school children and their teacher who died in the Dunblane massacre.
20,000 Taiwanese protest against China's missile tests.
The Russian Parliament votes overwhelmingly to restore the Soviet Union, however Boris Yeltsin is not in favor.
Zimbabwe's elections go ahead, despite there being only one candidate.
Mike Tyson regains his WBC heavyweight title.
#
"March 18, 1996",78,0,0,0
Tamil Tigers kill five policemen in Sri Lanka.
The US announces that it will apply pressure on China and \JRussia\j to support a global ban on nuclear testing.
Many Taiwanese islands are evacuated following orders from China.
Russian Communist leader, Gennady Zuganov, announces he will try to restore the Soviet Union if he comes to power.
Russia unveils a new \Jsupersonic\j plane, a Tu-144LL, which is bigger and faster than the \JConcorde\j.
Sri Lanka defeats \JAustralia\j in the World Cup cricket finals.
#
"March 19, 1996",79,0,0,0
A fire in a Manila nightclub kills 150 people.
Nelson and Winnie Mandela appear in court for divorce proceedings.
Famous Greek poet, Odysseus Elytis, dies of a heart attack.
Tamil Tigers kill 18 soldiers in Jaffna, Colombo.
#
"March 20, 1996",80,0,0,0
Billionaire Ross Perot announces he may run in the presidential elections.
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 6.9 strikes Xinjiang, China.
The divorce of Nelson and Winnie Mandela is granted.
Archaeologists reveal that \JStonehenge\j may be five hundred years older than previously thought.
Former Sarajevan civilians return to their homes after Serbs hand back the suburb of Grbavica.
The US Secretary of State condemns the Russian Parliament's vote to restore the Soviet Union.
Faulty wiring is found to be the cause of an inferno in a Manila club which claimed the lives of 151 people.
#
"March 21, 1996",81,0,0,0
The United Nations reveals \JIraq\j still has scud missiles in their possession.
Israeli soldiers blow up three houses belonging to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers.
NATO soldiers attempt to resolve a dispute between Muslims and Serbs over a boundary line in Dobrinja, a suburb in \JSarajevo\j.
The British Government announces there is a strong link between mad cow disease (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy) and the human form, Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease.
#
"March 22, 1996",82,0,0,0
A restoration of the IRA cease-fire looks slim after the date of elections in Northern Ireland is announced.
Reports that the President of \JColombia\j, Ernesto Samper, took millions of dollars in bribes from major drug traffickers, are confirmed by a US official.
Environment ministers in Jakarta announce that nearly 73 per cent of its water has e-coli bacteria present.
The United States launches its space shuttle Atlantis at Cape Canaveral.
Ex-Greek Prime Minister, Andreas Papandreou, finally leaves \Jhospital\j following a bout of \Jpneumonia\j contracted last November.
Islamic militants from the Hamas movement break away and form the Islamic National Salvation Party.
Scientists confirm that a million people may be infected with CJD. Meanwhile many countries ban the import of British beef and millions of \Jcattle\j may have to be slaughtered.
#
"March 23, 1996",83,0,0,0
Madonna's convicted stalker is jailed for ten years.
Taiwan holds its first ever direct presidential elections.
Figures reveal that Mike Tyson has earned over $80 million from three fights since he was released from prison.
Britain, the US and \JFrance\j join 11 other countries, including China and \JRussia\j, in declaring they will sign the Treaty of Raratonga, making the South Pacific nuclear free.
33 people die when an avalanche crashes into the Neelum Valley.
#
"March 24, 1996",84,0,0,0
Lee Ten-hui of the Kuomintang Party claims victory in the Taiwanese elections.
Bosnia releases over 100 Serb prisoners to their own territory.
#
"March 25, 1996",85,0,0,0
Nuclear equipment smuggled out of the Soviet Union is allegedly being sold in \JPakistan\j.
The British Health Department announces that it will not accept organ and blood donations from people with CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease).
Russian soldiers shell the village of Grozny, Chechen's capital.
Officials in India place a curfew on an Islamic shrine in Kashmir following a battle between police and Muslim militants, killing 11 people.
China ends its missile testing off \JTaiwan\j.
Tibet suffers its worst ever snowstorms.
Beijing votes to cancel Hong Kong's legislature in 1997.
Pope John Paul II is said to have cancer.
#
"March 26, 1996",86,0,0,0
Europe bans the import of British beef following the mad cow disease scare. Meanwhile John Major refuses to cull over ten million \Jcattle\j.
Bangladesh passes a bill to hold general elections under a neutral government.
The Khmer Rouge kidnaps 26 Cambodians while they cleared mines.
Masahide Ota, the Governor of \JOkinawa\j, says he will not sign papers forcing locals to renew leases for the US military.
An Iraqi terrorist group member declares that his group is sponsored by the US.
#
"March 27, 1996",87,0,0,0
Former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin's murderer is sentenced to life imprisonment.
Greenpeace reveals that Shell has been dumping contaminated water into an area which supplies part of Turkey's drinking water.
Senator Bob Dole claims victory in presidential primary elections in Nevada, \JCalifornia\j and Washington State.
Cuba warns the US after they say two US planes entered their air space; however, the US denies any of their planes entered Cuban air space.
Following pressure from farmers, John Major considers culling 11 million \Jcattle\j.
The International Monetary Fund agrees to lend \JRussia\j just over $US10 billion.
A radio station in \JRussia\j reports that as a result of Russian soldiers and Chechen rebels fighting in Samashki, \JChechnya\j, over 500 people are dead.
26 Cambodian hostages taken by the Khmer Rouge are released.
#
"March 28, 1996",88,0,0,0
Thousand of people working in the British \Jcattle\j industry lose their jobs.
The chief executive of Apple Computer expects to report a loss of $US700 million for the second quarter.
High-profile former Japanese politician, Shin Kanemaru, dies aged 81.
A portion of the roof of one of the world's oldest mosques, the Amr ibn el-As mosque in \JEgypt\j, collapses during repairs.
The President of \JTaiwan\j, Lee Teng-hui, declares he will try to gain his country a seat at the United Nations.
#
"March 29, 1996",89,0,0,0
A scientist in New York discovers two men who are immune to \JHIV\j.
The military in Israel arrest hundreds of Palestinians in order to find Hamas movement members.
The State of \JTexas\j sues the \Jtobacco\j industry in the Federal court.
Queues of up to 10,000 people per day are reported outside the \JImmigration\j Department in Hong Kong as residents apply for British naturalization.
A copper mine in the \JPhilippines\j inadvertently contaminates a river and over 2,000 people are evacuated.
Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, signs documents to force locals to renew leases for US military bases.
A fire kills 77 people in an Indonesian shopping complex.
North Korea claims that a war with South Korea is unavoidable.
Thousands of Zulus hold a protest march to commemorate the second anniversary of the eight Zulus killed outside the African National Congress headquarters.
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 5.7 strikes \JEcuador\j, killing over 60 people.
#
"March 30, 1996",90,0,0,0
A bomb accidentally dropped by \JRussia\j kills 10 people in \JChechnya\j.
#
"March 31, 1996",91,0,0,0
Tamil Tigers attack a navy ship off Vettilaikerni, Sri Lanka, killing 45 people.
The Mayor of Bogor, \JIndonesia\j, denies 77 people were killed by a fire in a shopping center; he says the figure is only ten.
The Olympic flame begins its 26,000 kilometer (16,000 mile) expedition from \JGreece\j to \JAtlanta\j.
Thousands of spectators crowd a park in Kabul to watch the public hangings of three men.
The Prime Minister of \JBangladesh\j, Begum Khaleda Zia, announces her resignation.
The \JImmigration\j Department in Hong Kong opens for 24 hours a day to process the tens of thousands of applications for British naturalization.
Hezbollah guerillas fire rockets at northern Israel.
Boris Yeltsin announces he will withdraw his soldiers from \JChechnya\j.
#
"April 1, 1996",92,0,0,0
Israeli Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, announces he may hold a referendum before signing peace agreements with the Palestinians.
Mitsubishi Bank Ltd and Bank of \JTokyo\j Ltd merge to form the biggest bank in the world.
Chechen rebels attack and kill 28 Russian troops.
The British Government decides to cull 3 million \Jcattle\j to help eradicate mad cow disease.
The Chinese Government warns the US and \JJapan\j not to support \JTaiwan\j's struggle for independence.
Muhammad Habibur Rahman becomes neutral caretaker Prime Minister of \JBangladesh\j, following the resignation of Begum Khaleda Zia.
#
"April 2, 1996",93,0,0,0
The Hamas terrorist group announces it will resume bombings in Israel.
Russian soldiers continue to attack Chechen rebels despite Boris Yeltsin's orders to stop.
The President of \JBelarus\j, Aleksander Lukashenko, and \JRussia\j's President, Boris Yeltsin, announce they will sign a treaty to unite their country's political, trade, and military bodies to line up with the European Union.
The United Nations begins cutting staff; in all 10,000 jobs will go.
#
"April 3, 1996",94,0,0,0
Five members of the Afrikaner Resistance Movement are sentenced to prison for 26 years after being found guilty of exploding a bomb in \JJohannesburg\j in 1994 which killed 20 people.
The Prime Minister of New Zealand, Jim Bolger, is left leading without a majority after a minister deserts him for the First Party.
China announces it will lay charges against 18 people involved in a $3 billion \Jfraud\j scheme against the \JBeijing\j Municipal Government.
Thousands of people in \JFrance\j and Britain are questioned over unrelated pedophile rings.
#
"April 4, 1996",95,0,0,0
A US military plane crashes near \JDubrovnik\j Airport in \JCroatia\j, killing 33 people, including the US Commerce Secretary, Ron Brown.
One of America's most wanted men, Theodore Kaczynski, believed to be the Unabomber, is captured by the \JFBI\j.
Over 200 Vietnamese boat people are freed in Hong Kong after a loophole in the legal system is found.
#
"April 5, 1996",96,0,0,0
US officials reveal that Bill Clinton secretly supported Bosnia receiving arms from \JIran\j in 1994, despite a United Nations restriction.
Scientists in \JJapan\j claim they have discovered an \Jenzyme\j that will repair genes which have been damaged by UV rays.
An 82-year-old German SS captain during World War II is to face charges for war crimes committed in \JItaly\j in 1944.
#
"April 6, 1996",97,0,0,0
A gunman shoots dead ten people, including himself, at a wedding in Canada.
Oscar-winning actress Greer Garson dies, aged 92.
#
"April 7, 1996",98,0,0,0
North Korean forces move into the demilitarized zone, despite warnings from South Korea and the United Nations.
A researcher claims that mad cow disease may have been caused by organo-phosphate \Jpesticide\j used over ten years ago.
An avalanche in \JQuito\j, \JEcuador\j, kills eight people and traps many others.
The Red Cross and officials investigating war crimes argue over rights to a mass grave site in Bosnia.
The US Government says it may return half the land they lease for military bases on the Japanese island of \JOkinawa\j.
Sri Lankan soldiers kill nine Tamil Tigers, following the Tamil's attack on Sri Lankan police, which claimed 18 lives.
#
"April 8, 1996",99,0,0,0
The South Korean Government appeals to the US to send surveillance planes to monitor North Korea's encroachment of the demilitarized zone.
The President of Sri Lanka, Chandrika Kumaratunga, announces that police will have greater powers to hold terrorists for extended time periods.
Officials reveal that the PLO and their enemies, the Jewish settlers, have been involved in secret peace talks for a couple of years.
Foreigners prepare to evacuate \JLiberia\j as fighting against warlords continues.
Leader of the Chechen rebels, General Dzhokhar Dudayev, agrees to hold peace talks with Boris Yeltsin.
Over eighty people are killed in \JMogadishu\j as a result of fighting between supporters of Mohamed Farah Aideed and Osman Ali Hassan Atto.
A train crash in Zaire claims the lives of nearly 100 people.
#
"April 9, 1996",100,0,0,0
Loyalist demonstrators riot in the streets of \JBelfast\j.
Cambodia's Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, insists enemies are planning to assassinate him.
The Islamic Hezbollah movement fires rockets into a Jewish village bordering \JLebanon\j.
South Korea warns North Korea they will attack their soldiers if they cross over the demilitarized zone.
#
"April 10, 1996",101,0,0,0
IBM announces it may sign a contract with Apple Computer to sub-license its Macintosh system for other corporations to make clones.
A Croat commandant is being held by the United Nations for alleged war crimes.
Warlords agree to a cease-fire in \JLiberia\j's capital, \JMonrovia\j.
Indonesia sends eight warships to Natuna Islands where pirates allegedly shot the captain of a small vessel.
Archaeologists dig up 6,000-year-old relics in China.
#
"April 11, 1996",102,0,0,0
Israeli ships and helicopters fire at southern \JLebanon\j.
The Dunblane massacre school gym is demolished.
Chinese and French prime ministers differ over human rights issues.
Foreigners are still being evacuated from \JLiberia\j as fighting in \JMonrovia\j continues.
Thousands of Turkish soldiers close in on Kurdish guerillas in south-east Turkey.
A seven year old pilot who set out to fly across the US and back, crashes the single-engined Cessna and all three occupants die.
#
"April 12, 1996",103,0,0,0
A fire at \JDusseldorf\j airport in \JGermany\j kills sixteen people.
Hezbollah troops fire back at Israel, forcing Israel to retaliate with air attacks.
A scientist in America claims he has created a test to diagnose mad cow disease.
A by-election win for the British Labour Party in Staffordshire South-East leaves John Major's Conservative Government with a one-seat majority.
#
"April 13, 1996",104,0,0,0
Investigators claim that the plane flown by a seven year old pilot that crashed and killed all on board was overloaded.
Israel steps up its attacks on \JLebanon\j, dropping bombs near the village of Hinniyeh.
John Major admits his government is in trouble after the Labour Party won a by-election and reduced his lead to only one seat.
#
"April 14, 1996",105,0,0,0
Dozens of villages in \JLebanon\j are evacuated due to heavy fighting by the Israelis and Hezbollah guerillas.
A bomb explodes in a \Jhospital\j in \JPakistan\j, killing four people.
Russian forces begin to withdraw soldiers from \JChechnya\j.
Peter Sampras reclaims his number one spot in the world tennis rankings.
Aid workers in \JLiberia\j flee as factional fighting in \JMonrovia\j worsens.
#
"April 15, 1996",106,0,0,0
Nick Faldo wins the US Masters (golf).
Israel warns they will continue bombing \JLebanon\j until the Islamic extremists, Hezbollah, stop their attacks on Jewish villages.
The US Government announces it will close six military bases in \JOkinawa\j, \JJapan\j.
Fourteen people are shot dead by an Indonesian army officer armed with a \Jmachine-gun\j at Timika Airport in Irian Jaya.
Faction leader, Roosevelt Johnson, demands the release of his soldiers who are being held by rival forces in \JLiberia\j.
#
"April 16, 1996",107,0,0,0
American spies claim that \JRussia\j is building a massive underground military compound.
US President, Bill Clinton, and South Korean President, Kim Young-sam, ask North Korea and China to join them for peace talks.
The US Government intervenes in the Israel/Lebanon crisis, asking leaders to cease all rocket attacks.
#
"April 17, 1996",108,0,0,0
Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, and US President, Bill Clinton, sign an agreement that will see \JJapan\j commit $20 billion for a security alliance with the US.
The High Court in England announces the Duke and Duchess of York will be granted a divorce at the end of May.
Chechen rebels attack and kill 26 Russians in southern \JChechnya\j.
Hezbollah rejects America's proposal to halt rocket attacks against Israel.
Indonesia announces it will allow Australian ships east-west passage through its archipelago.
China supports \JRussia\j in its bid to join the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.
The British Government announces it will undertake legal proceedings against the European Union's worldwide ban on British beef.
#
"April 18, 1996",109,0,0,0
Israeli soldiers attack a United Nations base in southern \JLebanon\j; up to 100 people are killed.
A suspected IRA bomb explodes near Chelsea, London; there are no casualties.
Islamic extremists are blamed for the massacre of 18 foreigners outside a \JCairo\j hotel.
Malaysia sends 300 Vietnamese boat people back home.
Pat Buchanan announces his withdrawal from the Republican presidential nominations.
Astronomers from the US claim to have found a new planet 50 light years from Earth.
#
"April 19, 1996",110,0,0,0
Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters continue attacking each other despite pleas from other country's leaders to stop.
Archaeologists reveal that the 14,000-year-old art found in caves in the Amazon jungle is closely related to Australian Aboriginal rock art.
United Nations secretary, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, condemns Israel's attack on a United Nations base which killed over 100 people.
The Sri Lankan Government administers an indefinite curfew in northern Sri Lanka, where Tamil Tigers are present.
A head-on train crash in India kills 53 people.
#
"April 20, 1996",111,0,0,0
Warring factions in \JLiberia\j again agree to another cease-fire.
#
"April 21, 1996",112,0,0,0
Police in \JBrazil\j kill 19 farmers seeking land.
Sri Lankan soldiers attack and kill Tamil Tigers in the northern Jaffna peninsula.
Kashmiri separatists claim responsibility for a bomb explosion in New Delhi two days ago, which killed 14 people.
US peacekeepers arrive in \JMonrovia\j, \JLiberia\j, to remove gunmen off the streets.
The US Secretary of State arrives in Israel to try and secure a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah guerillas.
The Group of Seven industrialized nations agree to ban nuclear testing.
#
"April 22, 1996",113,0,0,0
The center-left Olive Tree coalition claims victory (with the help of the Marxist Communist Refoundation Party) in Italian elections. It is the center-left's first win in 50 years.
Sri Lankan soldiers in the Jaffna peninsula claim to have cut off Tamil Tigers from the mainland.
Gunmen attack and kill 20 people in \JBurundi\j, \JNairobi\j.
Muhammed Maccido is named as the new sultan for the Muslims of \JNigeria\j.
Queen Elizabeth cancels her 70th birthday party at a London restaurant because details were leaked to newspapers.
#
"April 23, 1996",114,0,0,0
Cook Islands Prime Minister, Geoffrey Henry, announces he will have to cut government staff drastically or face \Jbankruptcy\j.
Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, and Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, sign an agreement to increase political and commercial relationships.
Steffi Graf may have to pay back over ú20 million in back taxes and fees following an investigation into her affairs that her father used to look after.
Hezbollah guerillas fire Katyusha rockets into the north of Israel and hundreds of thousands of Lebanese refugees are in urgent need of medical aid and food.
An opposition minister in the New Zealand Government, Michael Laws, announces his resignation.
A former aide of Kim Young-sam, the South Korean President, admits he accepted bribes of over $1 million.
Thousands of Tamil villagers return to their homes in the Jaffna peninsula, Sri Lanka, after they were forced to leave due to heavy fighting.
The US Government announces a plan to help Vietnamese boat people.
The Ukrainian Government says it will continue plans to close the nuclear plant at \JChernobyl\j.
Heavy rains and flooding occur in Kabul, \JAfghanistan\j.
A Greek coast guard shoots at a Turkish boat after it tried to smuggle illegal immigrants into \JGreece\j.
Sotheby's begin the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis auction.
#
"April 24, 1996",115,0,0,0
Canadian Conrad Black makes a ú275 million offer to buy out the UK newspaper \IThe Telegraph.\i
Walt Disney Co. reports a loss of $US25 million for the second quarter.
A fire destroys deserted villages near \JChernobyl\j, sending radioactive clouds over two and a half million residents in \JKiev\j.
Chechen officials confirm that their leader, General Dzhokhar Dudayev, was killed four days ago by Russian soldiers.
Record prices are set at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis auction.
The Israelis and Hezbollah guerillas continue their attacks on each other.
Members of Commonwealth countries agree to impose sanctions on \JNigeria\j against their military regime.
#
"April 25, 1996",116,0,0,0
The PLO announces it will excise calls for Israel's destruction from its founding charter.
A 1996 US Budget is finally announced.
Former cricketer Imran Khan enters Pakistani politics with the formation of the Movement for Justice.
The IRA's Sinn Fein announces it will contest the coming elections in Northern Ireland.
#
"April 26, 1996",117,0,0,0
The Israeli's attack a pro-Syrian group in \JLebanon\j.
Mourners congregate near \JChernobyl\j nuclear plant for the 10th anniversary of the worst nuclear disaster ever.
Sri Lankan soldiers take control of the northern Jaffna peninsula from the Tamil Tigers; hundreds of thousands of Tamil refugees are left stranded.
China's, \JRussia\j's, \JKazakhstan\j's, \JKyrgyzstan\j's and Tajikistan's leaders agree to turn their common border into a peace zone.
Pepsi-Cola makes a deal with the Mir space station, possibly putting a huge billboard up in space.
British police make arrests in London following an unsuccessful attempt by the IRA to blow up Hammersmith Road Bridge in London's south-west.
#
"April 27, 1996",118,0,0,0
The IRA claims responsibility for bombs found under the Thames Bridge.
The US Secretary of State helps Israeli Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, and Lebanese Prime Minister, Rafic Hariri, agree to a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah guerillas.
Voting begins in India's general election.
A bomb explodes on a bus in India killing 15 people.
Chechen rebels attack a pro-Russian ministry office near Grozny.
Thousands of people riot in Baucau, a former Portuguese colony of East \JTimor\j.
Former \JCIA\j director, William Colby, mysteriously disappears while boating near Washington DC.
#
"April 28, 1996",119,0,0,0
Thirty five people are shot dead and many are injured when a lone gunman, Martin Bryant, goes on a shooting rampage in Port Arthur, \JTasmania\j, \JAustralia\j; it is the world's worst-ever massacre by a single person.
Indonesia's First Lady, Madam Tien Suharto, dies aged 72.
Former Chechen leader Dzhokhar Dudayev's widow announces she will travel to Moscow to attempt to stop the war in \JChechnya\j.
General elections in Western \JSamoa\j leave Independents holding the balance of power.
Tamil Tigers offer peace talks with the Sri Lankan Government.
Thousands of Lebanese refugees return home following the announcement of a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah guerillas.
A bomb explodes on a bus in \JPakistan\j, killing approximately 40 people.
There are fresh claims that the new Chechen leader, Zelimkhan Yandarbyev, has been killed by rivals.
#
"April 29, 1996",120,0,0,0
The US Government commits to upgrading Israel's security; they will provide confidential satellite data that will detect any missile attacks.
US President Bill Clinton faces trial via video link-up concerning the Whitewater affair.
A bus crash in \JPeru\j kills approximately 30 people and injures others.
#
"April 30, 1996",121,0,0,0
The US and Chinese governments end talks concerning global environmental problems.
North Korea lets the US act as peacekeepers against South Korea, but only under certain conditions.
NATO has trouble keeping peace between Muslims and Serb civilians returning to their homes.
The United Nations faces \Jbankruptcy\j as it runs out of funds, mainly due to debts owed by the US.
#
"May 1, 1996",122,0,0,0
China announces it will grant permanent residency to foreigners in Hong Kong who have worked and lived there for the past seven years.
A survey in the US reports that international \Jterrorism\j is increasing.
The head of a major South Korean bank is arrested on bribery charges.
Leader of the Chechen rebels, Zelimkhan Yandarbyev, proving reports of his death were wrong, announces he will continue his fight against the Russians.
#
"May 2, 1996",123,0,0,0
An unknown novel by Louisa May Alcott (author of \ILittle Women),\i is found in the \Jarchives\j at Harvard University.
Yasser Arafat and Bill Clinton meet for Middle East talks at the White House.
The Israeli Government announces it will go ahead and pull troops out of the West Bank city of \JHebron\j.
#
"May 3, 1996",124,0,0,0
Chinese dissident, Liu Gang, who was sent to prison for his role in the Tiananmen Square protests, is granted political asylum in the US.
Yasser Arafat wants the United Nations to take on a "more effective role" in the Middle East peace talks.
Singapore passes a law to enable terminally ill patients the right to have treatment stopped.
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 6.4 hits \JMongolia\j; so far eight people are killed.
A suspected Tamil Tiger bomb explodes in Sri Lanka, killing five people.
#
"May 4, 1996",125,0,0,0
A plane from \JSudan\j crashes and kills over 50 people at Shigla, north of \JKhartoum\j.
2.5 million \Jcattle\j in England reported to have mad cow disease are slaughtered.
Jose Maria Aznar, leader of the Popular Party in \JSpain\j, is voted into power as Prime Minister.
#
"May 5, 1996",126,0,0,0
The United Nations fails to secure a global ban on landmines.
The Israeli Government and the PLO begin peace talks.
Pakistani Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, says she will only sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty on nuclear weapons if India does.
Fighting between warlords breaks out in \JMonrovia\j, \JLiberia\j again.
Chechen rebels shoot down a Russian plane.
Salvatore Cucuzza, a top Mafia boss, is arrested by Italian police in \JPalermo\j.
#
"May 6, 1996",127,0,0,0
Anonymous humanitarian sources in \JBurundi\j claim that over 200 Hutus were killed by the Tutsi Army in April.
Fierce fighting continues in \JMonrovia\j, \JLiberia\j, between Charles Taylor and Roosevelt Johnson loyalists.
Eighty people die when a boat off Sierra Leone sinks due to engine failure.
Thailand's opposition government accuses Prime Minister Banharn Silpa-archa of lying about his father's nationality, enabling him to stand in elections.
US police find the body of former \JCIA\j agent, William Colby, following his disappearance on a boating trip.
#
"May 7, 1996",128,0,0,0
Sri Lanka attacks a boat full of Tamil Tigers off the Jaffna peninsula.
The South African Government postpones local elections due to violence in the KwaZulu-Natal province.
#
"May 8, 1996",129,0,0,0
A bomb explodes on a bus near \JLahore\j, \JPakistan\j, killing up to nine people.
Government sources indicate that China will conduct a nuclear test in a couple of weeks near north-west Xinjiang.
Famous Spanish bullfighter, Luis Miguel Dominguin, dies aged 69.
Russian soldiers capture the village of Goiskoye in \JChechnya\j.
Black and white leaders in South Africa agree on a permanent constitution regarding the property clause.
Health care officials in the Ivory Coast claim that more than 100,000 people have contracted bacterial meningitis in the past few months, of which 10,000 have already died.
#
"May 9, 1996",130,0,0,0
The US Government announces it will impose sanctions on China if they continue pirating American CDs, software and movies.
The Filipino Government considers calling for the death penalty for convicted pedophiles.
Russians on the Antarctic Expedition are left stranded with limited food and fuel supplies.
Tamil civilians start returning home to the Jaffna peninsula, which they were forced to evacuate after fighting broke out.
Dissidents within the defeated Congress-I Party in India turn to Sonia Gandhi to win her support to remove the Prime Minister, Narasimha Rao, as leader of the party.
Deputy President of South Africa, F. W. de Klerk, announces the white-led National Party will withdraw from Nelson Mandela's Government of National Unity.
Thousands of \JBurundi\j refugees flee into Zaire following fierce fighting between Tutsi and Hutu armies.
The Red Cross announces it will not continue efforts to free 11 hostages held by the Free Papua Movement in Irian Jaya.
New information reveals that in 1926 the first man to fly over the North Pole, Richard Byrd, stopped 240 kilometers (149 miles) short; the honors now go to Norwegian Roald Amundsen.
#
"May 10, 1996",131,0,0,0
Two hundred Vietnamese boat people escape from a detention center in Hong Kong.
The Duchess of York makes a ú1.3 million book deal in the US.
The results of the general election in India leave no clear winner.
Ugandans vote for a president for the first time since claiming independence 34 years ago.
#
"May 11, 1996",132,0,0,0
Fourteen soldiers are killed in a mid-air collision during an American-British war exercise in North Carolina.
The British Government is under pressure following \JAustralia\j's ban on semi-automatic guns.
Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani is fined over $80,000 for bribing tax inspectors.
Manchester United defeat Liverpool in the \Jsoccer\j FA Cup in England.
An American Valujet DC-9 crashes into the \JEverglades\j, \JFlorida\j, following a fire in the cockpit; there are no survivors of the 109 people on board.
#
"May 12, 1996",133,0,0,0
Israeli soldiers return fire on Hezbollah guerillas in \JLebanon\j.
The President-elect in \JUganda\j, Yoweri Museveni, is sworn into office.
The Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party in India claims victory to control parliament.
#
"May 13, 1996",134,0,0,0
Singer Bob Geldof and Paula Yates are granted a divorce by the London courts.
Nine mountaineers, including New Zealander Rob Hall, die while attempting to climb Mt Everest during a severe blizzard.
The US and West Africans warn \JLiberia\j to stop fighting or face worldwide isolation.
Chechen rebel, Shamil Basayev, refuses to meet with Boris Yeltsin for peace talks.
#
"May 14, 1996",135,0,0,0
Israel's Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, announces he will step up security against Palestinian terrorists.
An overcrowded ship full of Liberian refugees docks in \JGhana\j, following the United Nations promise of aid.
Steffi Graf breaks the record for staying at the number one spot for tennis at 332 weeks.
A main left-wing party in India announces it will not join an alliance to block a Hindu-led Government, paving the way for the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party to form a government.
The President of \JIran\j, Hashemi Rafsanjani, opens a railway line between the Persian Gulf and Turkmenistan.
Hong Kong sends over 100 Vietnamese boat people back to \JHanoi\j.
A tornado sweeps through Tangail in \JBangladesh\j, killing over 300 people.
Seventeen hundred Muslim separatists in China are arrested by the military, following orders of a crackdown on activists.
#
"May 15, 1996",136,0,0,0
Tens of thousands of people are left homeless after a \Jtornado\j hit Tangail, \JBangladesh\j; the final death toll may reach over 800.
The Free Papua Movement releases nine of the 11 hostages held in Irian Jaya.
Talks break down between Chinese and US officials regarding China's copyright piracy industry.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee, leader of the Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party is appointed caretaker Prime Minister of India.
China agrees to join the US in a four-nation summit to restore peace to North and South Korea.
#
"May 17, 1996",137,0,0,0
A senior officer in the US Navy, Admiral Jeremy Boorda, fatally shoots himself half an hour before he was to be interviewed by \INewsweek,\i who were investigating him regarding his medals.
Argentinean scientists report the discovery of \Jdinosaur\j bones in the Moroccan desert that are larger than the Tyrannosaurus rex.
Pressure is on \JSerbia\j to turn President Radovan Karadzic over to United Nations war crime's officials.
Leader of the Olive Tree coalition, Romano Prodi, is named Italian prime minister-designate.
The World Wide Fund for Nature announces the tiger is on the brink of \Jextinction\j.
Boris Yeltsin, on the campaign trail, announces he will cancel conscription and the death penalty.
Tofilau Eti Alesana claims victory in the Western Samoan elections.
The Indian Prime Minister announces his cabinet line-up.
US President Bill Clinton decides not to support a US ban on using landmines.
The United Nations offers Saddam Hussein a deal for \JIraq\j to sell oil on the condition that the revenue collected will be used for food and medical supplies for his people.
#
"May 18, 1996",138,0,0,0
Bosnian Serb leader, Radovan Karadzic, appoints Gojko Klickovic as Prime Minister after he dismissed Rajko Kasagic.
The \JAtlanta\j Olympic stadium is officially opened by US Vice President Al Gore.
#
"May 19, 1996",139,0,0,0
An assassination attempt is made on the Turkish President, Suleyman Demirel.
The United Nations announces that the Bosnian Serb leader, Radovan Karadzic, may step down.
Turkish soldiers attack and kill 60 \JKurds\j in the province of Batman.
The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, threatens to take revenge on Israel for arresting a top Hamas member.
Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui is sworn in and he is expected to announce that \JTaiwan\j will not seek independence.
#
"May 20, 1996",140,0,0,0
Actor Jon Pertwee, best known for his Doctor Who role, has died aged 77.
Serb separatists deny that President Radovan Karadzic will step down.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin says he will risk assassination attempts and travel to \JChechnya\j for peace talks.
The World Health Organization statistics report that 50,000 people are dying every day from preventable diseases such as \Jmalaria\j, \Jcholera\j and tuberculosis.
Italian police arrest Giovanni Brusca, believed to be the head of the Mafia.
#
"May 21, 1996",141,0,0,0
Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, agrees to a United Nations deal to sell oil to buy much-needed food and medical supplies for his country with the proceeds.
The head of the \JBangladesh\j Army, Lieutenant-General Abu Saleh Mohammad Nasim, is dismissed for violating orders, and placed under house arrest.
The US Government announces it will renew trading with China, despite disagreements over copyright piracy.
The US Government steps up security following an explosion at an \JFBI\j office.
Chinese police shoot dead nine armed Muslim separatists in Xinjiang.
Russian soldiers attack more Chechen villages by air.
Head of the IRA's political wing Sinn Fein, Gerry Adams, announces he may accept disarmament conditions so he may be allowed to attend peace talks.
#
"May 22, 1996",142,0,0,0
Burma's military regime detains more politicians from Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy, bringing the total number detained to 80.
A bomb explodes at a shopping center in New Delhi, killing 16 people.
A Tanzanian ferry sinks in Lake Victoria; claiming the lives of up to 400 people.
Five generals from the \JBangladesh\j Army are placed under house arrest.
Bosnia threatens to pull out of September elections if Bosnian Serb leaders, Radovan Karadzic, and General Ratko Mladic, are not stripped from power.
Over twenty Russian troops are killed by Chechen rebels near the town of Bamut.
British Prime Minister, John Major, threatens to halt European business until the European Union lifts the ban on British beef.
Russians film a Pepsi commercial aboard the space station Mir.
#
"May 23, 1996",143,0,0,0
British actor, Patrick Cargill, best known for the lead role in \IFather, Dear Father,\i dies aged 77.
Aung San Suu Kyi announces that \JBurma\j's military regime has arrested a total of 191 members from her National League for Democracy Party.
Japanese President, Ryutaro Hashimoto, announces his country will spend up to $90 million for a super-spy agency.
French soldiers continue to attack mutineers in the Central African Republic.
A North Korean soldier defects to South Korea.
#
"May 24, 1996",144,0,0,0
Lebanon's Ambassador to South Africa, Charbel Stepha, announces he will be going back to \JBeirut\j where he says it's safer.
Two ferries on \JBangladesh\j's Jamuna River collide; 100 people are missing after one sinks.
The death toll for the Tanzanian ferry disaster may reach 600.
Burma's military regime detains more members of the National League for Democracy, bringing the total detained to 217.
A former prisoner of war in Vietnam is named as the new US Ambassador to Vietnam, the first one appointed since 1975.
French soldiers in the Central African Republic defeat mutineers and the Government reclaims control of the capital from the rebels.
The US Government announces it will sell over 450 Stinger anti-aircraft missiles to \JTaiwan\j.
The North Korean soldier who defected to South Korea confirms that \Jmalnutrition\j and \Jfamine\j are getting worse in North Korea.
The final stage of England's Windsor Castle restoration is started.
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, agrees to meet with Chechen rebel leader, Zelimkhan Yandarbyev, in Moscow for peace talks.
#
"May 25, 1996",145,0,0,0
Burma's military regime threatens to arrest Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the National League for Democracy.
The British Government appeals to the European Court of Justice to lift the European Union's worldwide ban on British beef.
Divers recovering bodies from the Tanzanian ferry disaster fear the death toll could reach 1000.
#
"May 26, 1996",146,0,0,0
Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Chechen rebel leader Zelimkhan Yandarbyev agree to an immediate cease-fire in \JChechnya\j.
The leader of the National League for Democracy in \JBangladesh\j, Aung San Suu Kyi, pledges a national campaign to force a return to democracy.
Israeli Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, secretly talks with Hamas, the Islamic Resistance Movement, to try and stop suicide bombings in the lead up to the elections.
Chinese authorities confirm up to 84 people are dead after an explosion at a coalmine.
#
"May 27, 1996",147,0,0,0
Burma's military regime indicates it may be ready to talk with Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy.
One of John Major's ministers threatens to resign over the Government's handling of the worldwide ban on their beef.
Twenty-five members of a wedding party in New Delhi are killed when their car collides with a train.
#
"May 28, 1996",148,0,0,0
India's newly elected Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, announces his resignation, rather than face a no-confidence vote in Parliament.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin flies to \JChechnya\j for a peace visit, leaving the Chechen rebel leader behind in Moscow, ensuring Yeltsin's safety.
A British mine-clearing expert, who is being held hostage by the Khmer Rouge, is forced to make explosives and home-made mines.
Closing a congress of her National League for Democracy Party, Aung San Suu Kyi calls on \JBurma\j's military regime to release political prisoners.
Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma dismisses Prime Minister Yevhen Marchuk.
National elections are held in Israel.
#
"May 29, 1996",149,0,0,0
Two of US President Bill Clinton's partners in the Whitewater affair are convicted on \Jfraud\j charges.
Elections are held in Northern Ireland.
France halts military cooperation with \JBurundi\j following the death of over 50 Tutsi refugees by the Hutu Army.
United Front leader and Indian Prime Minister-designate, H. D. Deve Gowda, takes action to form a center-left government.
Burma's military regime orders civilians to attend rallies to protest against Aung San Suu Kyi, the democracy leader.
#
"May 30, 1996",150,0,0,0
Right-wing Likud Party leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, is set to become the new Prime Minister of Israel.
US President Bill Clinton is issued another \Jsubpoena\j regarding the Whitewater affair.
A French archaeologist unearths tombs in \JCairo\j containing Fatimid rulers from \JEgypt\j.
#
"May 31, 1996",151,0,0,0
Former Israeli Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, announces he will not serve in a government with newly-elected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Sri Lankan Government orders striking power workers back to work after a three day strike disrupts the nation.
A Venezuelan court finds former president Carlos Andrew Perez guilty of corruption.
Israeli soldiers and Hezbollah guerillas continue attacks.
Researchers claim that the hole in the ozone layer could start closing within ten years.
#
"June 1, 1996",152,0,0,0
In a very close result, Benjamin Netanyahu is named Israel's newest prime minister. Meanwhile Yasser Arafat fears the newly-appointed leader may endanger the Israel/PLO peace process.
H. D. Deve Gowda takes office in India and leads a five-party government.
A train collision in western \JSiberia\j kills 17 people.
Burma's military regime releases over 80 of the 260 political prisoners belonging to Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy Party.
Former president of India, Neelam Sanjiva, dies aged 83.
#
"June 2, 1996",153,0,0,0
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces he is eager to continue the peace process between his country and the PLO.
Russian troops and Chechen rebels continue to fight despite the agreed cease-fire.
A train and bus collision in Mexico kills over 30 people.
US Secretary of State, Warren Christopher, arrives in Geneva to conduct peace talks with Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian leaders.
John Major is under pressure to allow Sinn Fein into Northern Ireland peace talks following Sinn Fein's 15 per cent win in Northern Ireland elections.
The Czech Republic's Prime Minister, Vaclav Klaus, gains less than 30 per cent of the vote in elections as the country's people favor the leftist Social Democrats.
#
"June 3, 1996",154,0,0,0
Desmond Tutu preaches his final sermon as head of the Anglican Church in southern Africa, including South Africa, \JNamibia\j, \JSwaziland\j, \JLesotho\j, \JMozambique\j, and St Helena.
The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, announces it will continue to resist Israel until Israel removes troops from Palestinian land.
#
"June 4, 1996",155,0,0,0
Thousand of people gather in Victoria Park, Hong Kong, to commemorate the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
Syria freezes negotiations with Israel in a no-confidence vote against newly-elected Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
A United Nations conference on human settlement reports that many developing countries will face severe shortages of water by 2010.
Speaking in his new role as opposition leader in South Africa, F. W. de Klerk promises the government a fight on economic policy and post-apartheid change.
NATO restructures to allow European members to start military action autonomously of the US.
The European Union partially lifts the worldwide ban on British beef and allows the selling of beef derivatives.
Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer meets with the Japanese Government to discuss \JIndonesia\j's plans to constrain its shipping lanes.
The Japanese accidentally shoot down a US military plane during exercises; no deaths are reported.
The unmanned European rocket Ariane 5 blows up 45 seconds after take-off; it was a $10 billion attempt by Europe to dominate the space race.
#
"June 5, 1996",156,0,0,0
Rebels on Bougainville Island attack and kill six civilians.
The US Government announces it may sell 28 F-16 jets to \JIndonesia\j and give the money to \JPakistan\j, who previously paid for the jets but didn't receive them because the US accused them of building nuclear weapons.
Following a summit in Jordan, Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, King Hussein of Jordan, and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, step up efforts to continue peace negotiations in the Middle East.
Russian opposition leader, Gennady Zyuganov, calls on other candidates to join forces with him against Boris Yeltsin.
The Hutus Army kills three Red Cross members in \JBurundi\j.
The \JUkraine\j Government announces it has completely disarmed its nuclear missiles, sending them to \JRussia\j to be destroyed.
#
"June 6, 1996",157,0,0,0
The Khmer Rouge announces that their leader, Pol Pot, has died; however these claims are unconfirmed.
Israeli Prime Minister-elect Benjamin Netanyahu confirms he will not consider dividing \JJerusalem\j for the Palestinians.
Over 200 workers in a gold mine in Yunnan province, China, are killed following a landslide.
Satellite photographs discover an area in Bosnia where nearly 3,000 Muslims may be buried.
The IRA announces it will not decommission any of its weapons.
A fire in \JAlaska\j rages uncontrollably causing over 1,000 people to evacuate their homes.
#
"June 7, 1996",158,0,0,0
The United Nations announces that AIDS is spreading quickly in Asia and Africa; 1.3 million people worldwide have AIDS.
Russian cosmonauts continue filming the Pepsi Cola commercial at the Mir space station.
Max Factor Junior dies in Los Angeles, aged 91.
Burma's military regime bans all gatherings of supporters outside Aung San Suu Kyi's house.
British and Irish leaders ask a former senator in the US, George Mitchell, to be chairman at their peace talks.
Thirteen people die in a \Jhelicopter\j crash near \JDortmund\j, \JGermany\j.
#
"June 8, 1996",159,0,0,0
The Queen officially opens Paul McCartney's Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts.
China conducts a nuclear test at Lop Nor nuclear station in western China.
Scotland Yard arrests six men in connection with an IRA bomb at Canary Wharf, London.
Syrian, Egyptian and Saudi Arabian leaders continue talks on the Middle East peace plan.
#
"June 9, 1996",160,0,0,0
Over 10,000 people gather outside Aung San Suu Kyi's house, despite \JBurma\j's military regime banning them, in support of her push for democracy.
Secret government files show that the US Government lied to hundreds of former Vietnam commandos' families, stating that they were dead, when in fact they were not.
World leaders condemn China's latest nuclear test.
Leaders in \JSyria\j, \JEgypt\j, and Saudi \JArabia\j, warn the newly-elected Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, that another war is imminent if he doesn't continue with peace negotiations.
Tamil Tigers kill 17 Sri Lankan troops in an army camp.
#
"June 10, 1996",161,0,0,0
Hezbollah guerillas kill five Israeli soldiers in South \JLebanon\j.
Indian and Pakistani leaders announce they are ready to resume formal talks after almost 30 months.
#
"June 11, 1996",162,0,0,0
Eight people are killed in three separate bomb explosions in Gujranwala, \JPakistan\j.
Peace talks in Northern Ireland begin without Sinn Fein, the political wing of the IRA, who refuses to call a cease-fire.
Russian and Chechen leaders sign agreements to end the war and remove roadblocks and troops by August.
US police announce they have arrested 18 Mafia members in New York.
Nearly 50 people are killed when a bomb explodes in a shopping center near Sao Paulo, \JBrazil\j.
#
"June 12, 1996",163,0,0,0
Eighteen Australian soldiers are killed when two Blackhawk helicopters collide during exercises in northern \JQueensland\j, \JAustralia\j.
Center-left Indian Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda wins a vote of confidence in parliament.
A bomb explodes at an underground train station in Moscow, killing four people.
#
"June 13, 1996",164,0,0,0
Hundreds of thousands of people gather outside the \JKremlin\j in support of Boris Yeltsin's election campaign.
A Garuda plane crashes seconds after it takes off at \JFukuoka\j Airport in southern \JJapan\j; three people are killed and over 100 are injured.
The US Government announces it has evidence that \JPakistan\j is housing medium-range ballistic missiles and has developed nuclear warheads for these missiles.
The mayor of Zhukovsky, \JRussia\j, is shot and killed outside his home.
#
"June 14, 1996",165,0,0,0
Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams supports Britain's and Ireland's decision for former US senator George Mitchell to chair peace talks.
Eighteen people die in \JAnkara\j, Turkey, following a bus and a petrol tanker collision.
Approximately 50 civilians are feared dead following a snowstorm in Kashmir, India.
Results from \JBangladesh\j's general elections have Sheikh Hasina Wazed assured of a victory.
#
"June 15, 1996",166,0,0,0
A suspected IRA car bomb explodes outside a busy shopping center in Manchester, England, injuring over 200 people.
Boris Yeltsin makes a final plea for Russians to vote for him in general elections tomorrow.
A cyclone hits the south-east coast of India, killing over thirty people.
Famous jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald dies aged 78.
#
"June 16, 1996",167,0,0,0
General elections are held in \JRussia\j.
NATO and Russian officials approve proposals for joint military development and arms control.
The US Government may impose sanctions against \JBurma\j's military regime.
Over 300,000 Germans protest against cuts in welfare payments.
#
"June 17, 1996",168,0,0,0
Boris Yeltsin and Gennady Zyuganov prepare for a second round of voting in \JRussia\j as the first round results are too close for a clear majority.
Tourists in New Zealand are evacuated from the slopes when Mount Ruapehu erupts sending sulfurous gas and ash over the North Island.
The US and French governments sign a secret agreement enabling them to share information regarding nuclear testing.
Chinese and US governments move a step closer to an agreement on the protection of US copyrights in China.
Fifteen people are crushed to death in \JZambia\j at a World Cup qualifying \Jsoccer\j match between \JZambia\j and \JSudan\j.
An antique dealer in Paris claims to have found Joan of Arc's suit of armor.
#
"June 18, 1996",169,0,0,0
The Papua New Guinean Government says it is ready to destroy the Bougainville Revolutionary Army.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin appoints Alexander Lebed as head of the Security Council and dismisses General Pavel Grachev as his Defense Minister.
Auckland International Airport in New Zealand closes as Mount Ruapehu continues to erupt.
The Chinese and US governments make an eleventh-hour deal on China's illegal copyright trade.
Biologists in Rio de Janeiro report that the last known specimen of a rare bird, the blue ara, has disappeared.
#
"June 19, 1996",170,0,0,0
A newly-discovered hand-written manuscript by Mozart is expected to sell for around $50,000 at a London auction house.
A UN embargo on military equipment and weapons against Yugoslavia is lifted.
#
"June 20, 1996",171,0,0,0
Troops in Papua New Guinea launch an attack on rebels on the island of Bougainville.
Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan warns Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer to stay out of his country's affairs.
The US Government announces it will veto Boutros Boutros-Ghali's attempt for another five-year term as head of the United Nations.
The US Senate votes to give $US20 million to 281 Vietnamese commandos of the Vietnam War who were written off as dead.
The Islamic Hamas resistance movement offers Israel's Government a cease-fire if they promise to stop attacks, release Hamas prisoners and open up the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Pro-British Protestant politicians announce they will not accept former US senator, George Mitchell, as chairman of Northern Ireland peace talks.
Bosnian Serb leaders announce they want to set up their own court to try war criminals.
Flash floods occur in Tuscany, \JItaly\j, killing 11 people.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin dismisses two chiefs of security and his Deputy Prime Minister, Oleg Soskovyets.
Thousands of Indonesians gather in Jakarta in support of opposition leader, Megawati Sukarnoputri, who is facing a leadership challenge from a break-away faction of the pro-democracy party.
#
"June 21, 1996",172,0,0,0
Papua New Guinean troops kill 13 Bougainville Revolutionary Army rebels.
The Indian Government announces it will only sign a treaty banning nuclear testing if provisions are included to limit nuclear weapons research and there is a schedule for nuclear disarmament.
The European Parliament urges European Union nations to halt arms sales to \JIndonesia\j.
British police want all private ownership of handguns banned.
Space shuttle Columbia launches at Cape Canaveral for a two and a half week trip.
The United Nations finalizes the destruction of a massive germ warfare plant in \JIraq\j.
#
"June 22, 1996",173,0,0,0
Russian cosmonauts on the Mir space station extend their stay because \JRussia\j cannot afford to bring them down yet.
The US Whitewater investigation is to include a separate investigation into whether the White House illegally gained secret \JFBI\j files on high level Republicans in 1993.
Cairo, \JEgypt\j, holds a two-day summit for 13 Arab leaders and eight other countries to discuss the new Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's peace plans.
#
"June 23, 1996",174,0,0,0
Indonesia's pro-democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri announces she will appeal to win back her leadership after she was ousted by a break-away faction of her party.
Arab leaders attending a summit in \JCairo\j say that Israel should declare a Palestinian State with East \JJerusalem\j as the capital.
Colonel Gaddafi defies a United Nations Lybian flight ban when he flies from there to \JCairo\j to attend the Arab summit.
A summit attended by European Union leaders ends a ban on British beef exports.
Former Greek Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou dies from a heart attack at the age of 77.
Papua New Guinean soldiers and Bougainville Revolutionary Army rebels continue fighting.
Bosnian Serb President Radovan Karadzic announces he will resign.
Sheikh Hasina Wazed of the \JBangladesh\j Awami League is sworn in as Prime Minister of \JBangladesh\j.
Flooding continues in \JItaly\j and \JAustria\j, so far leaving 14 dead.
Severe fires occur in \JMongolia\j; 10 million hectares of land has so far been destroyed.
#
"June 24, 1996",175,0,0,0
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces he will not give up land for a Palestinian State.
A survey in Hong Kong reveals that over 56% of residents don't have any confidence in the Chinese committee set up to oversee the handing over of Hong Kong to China.
Sri Lanka's President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, announces she wants to rebuild Jaffna Town as the "Peace City of Sri Lanka."
Hundreds of Papua New Guinean troops move in on Bougainville Revolutionary Army rebels near the unused Panguna copper mine.
The President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, announces his Government will seize white-owned land after the whites stole land from the blacks.
The Khmer Rouge announces that Pol Pot is alive and well and has not died as previously reported.
#
"June 25, 1996",176,0,0,0
The Premiere of Bougainville supports its claim for independence and says the Papua New Guinean troops would not succeed with their offensive.
Pakistan steps up security following riots by right-wing Jamaat-i-Islami party workers that left two people dead and many others injured.
#
"June 26, 1996",177,0,0,0
Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister is under pressure to halt his Government's military offensive against the Bougainville Revolutionary Army.
Bosnian Serb President Radovan Karadzic announces he will only resign if certain conditions are met.
Elections are held in the KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa, amid heavy security.
The World Health Organization announces that South Africa is in the middle of a serious tuberculosis epidemic.
A terrorist bomb explodes in a US military complex in Saudi \JArabia\j claiming the lives of 23 people.
Megawati Sukarnoputri, leader of the democracy party in \JIndonesia\j, takes legal action against her removal from leadership.
#
"June 27, 1996",178,0,0,0
The Bosnian Serb Prime Minister, Gojko Klickovic, announces that the Bosnian Serb President, Radovan Karadzic, will not contest the September elections.
Scientists in the US announce they have discovered a way to accurately date ancient wood from the eastern Mediterranean.
A recently-discovered Mozart aria is auctioned for $170,000, over three times the expected amount.
At the opening of the G7 summit, Bill Clinton announces that \Jterrorism\j will be on the top of the agenda.
Taliban rebels attack the city of Kabul, killing over 50 people, in protest at Gulbuddin Hekmatyar becoming the new Prime Minister of \JAfghanistan\j.
#
"June 28, 1996",179,0,0,0
Turkish soldiers attack Kurdish guerillas in northern \JIraq\j, killing over 40 \JKurds\j.
Czech Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus, leading without a majority, signs a government agreement with two coalition parties.
The United Nations treaty on the banning of nuclear tests is put on hold following India's refusal to sign.
Tamil leaders discard the Sri Lankan Government's proposals for the Tamil's requests for greater autonomy.
A bomb explodes in a hotel in Rawalpindi, \JPakistan\j.
Thousands of Indonesians gather outside Parliament in Jakarta to show their support for ousted democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri.
Cameras on the \Jspacecraft\j \JGalileo\j take pictures of Jupiter's largest moon, Ganymede.
Taliban rebels in \JAfghanistan\j reject the Prime Minister's peace offer.
Producer of 17 James Bond films, Cubby Broccoli, dies aged 87.
Necmettin Erbakan becomes the first Islamic Prime Minister of Turkey.
#
"June 29, 1996",180,0,0,0
Nelson Mandela's African National Congress party wins most votes so far in the KwaZulu-Natal elections.
#
"June 30, 1996",181,0,0,0
Bosnian Serb President Radovan Karadzic officially resigns.
Russian Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov announces that Boris Yeltsin cannot run the country because of deteriorating health.
#
"July 1, 1996",182,0,0,0
A recent survey ranks American Bill Gates, owner of Microsoft Corp, as the world's richest private citizen, estimated to be worth $US18 billion.
The Democratic Union Coalition Party in \JMongolia\j claims victory in general elections; the outgoing Mongolian Revolutionary People's Party had ruled for the previous 75 years.
The State of Haryana, India, prohibits the sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol.
Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis is voted in as president of the reigning Pasok socialist movement.
Over sixty Sri Lankan soldiers and Tamil Tigers are killed following heavy fighting.
Left-wing Olafur Ragnar Grimsson is named \JIceland\j's new president.
Fears for Boris Yeltsin's health grow when he cancels appointments for five days running.
American actress and model Margaux Hemingway, aged 41, is found dead in her apartment.
#
"July 2, 1996",183,0,0,0
A firecracker factory in south-western China explodes, killing 40 people and injuring over 45.
#
"July 3, 1996",184,0,0,0
Russians vote in the second round of general elections.
Papua New Guinean officials announce that over half their military is preparing for war with the Bougainville Revolutionary Army.
Embattled Indonesian pro-democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri is banned from taking part in next year's elections.
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 6 on the Richter scale strikes central \JTibet\j.
Flooding continues in southern China, leaving over 140 dead.
US officials investigating the bombing of a US military base in Saudi \JArabia\j announce that it may have been the work of terrorists from other countries.
Hutu rebels kill over 80 Tutsi troops in a Burundian tea plantation.
#
"July 4, 1996",185,0,0,0
Boris Yeltsin claims victory in the Russian presidency election.
A Tamil suicide bomber in the northern Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka, kills over 15 people.
A public petition against the Soeharto Government's authoritarian nature is released in \JIndonesia\j.
Over 40 Jews are murdered by angry Polish citizens in Kielce, \JPoland\j.
#
"July 5, 1996",186,0,0,0
The death toll from the floods in southern China rises to over 300.
Indonesia's Government announces that President Soeharto will journey to Europe for health reasons.
The Princess of Wales is offered a divorce settlement rumored to be ú20 million.
Australian officials decide to go ahead with building a $55 million bridge in Vietnam; it will be \JAustralia\j's biggest aid project.
The IRA promises to continue fighting against the British Government.
Serbia wants the new Bosnian Serb leader, Biljana Plavsic, to have Radovan Karadzic, the old leader, extradited for war crimes.
Muslim extremists announce they will fight the Filipino Government for a new Islamic State.
#
"July 6, 1996",187,0,0,0
US health officials find a new strain of AIDS that is not found by blood tests currently in use.
Thousands of people gather in \JPamplona\j, \JSpain\j, for the San Fermin festival, better known as the running of the bulls.
Steffi Graf from \JGermany\j wins the women's singles final at Wimbledon.
#
"July 7, 1996",188,0,0,0
Amnesty International reports that Papua New Guinean troops are guilty of human rights abuses on the island of Bougainville.
Russian soldiers back down on their promise to remove roadblocks in \JChechnya\j.
Lawrence Leung, Hong Kong's Director of \JImmigration\j, resigns; he is the third senior public servant to resign since January.
Tens of hundreds of people in \JBangladesh\j evacuate their homes due to flooding.
Richard Krajicek from the Netherlands wins the men's singles final at Wimbledon.
#
"July 8, 1996",189,0,0,0
The International Court of Justice votes to reject the threat or use of nuclear weapons in war, but is undecided on their use in a self-defense situation.
Dr Peter Piot from the United Nations AIDS program announces that India has the greatest number of people with the \JHIV\j virus.
US President Bill Clinton videotapes evidence for another Whitewater-related case.
Indonesian soldiers and over 20,000 supporters of ousted pro-democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri clash during riots.
Islamic fighters are still causing havoc in Bosnia, despite a condition of the Dayton peace accord that they leave.
#
"July 9, 1996",190,0,0,0
Thousands of Loyalist Orangemen riot in Northern Ireland, attacking police and terrorizing Catholics.
Fighting continues between Chechen rebels and Russian troops in south-western \JChechnya\j; six Russian soldiers are killed.
The UN war crimes tribunal announces that it is adamant for Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic to stand trial for war crimes.
A man armed with a machete attacks children and adults in a British school, luckily no one is killed.
#
"July 10, 1996",191,0,0,0
Wild rioting by Loyalists continues in Northern Ireland while Britain announces they may send in more soldiers.
Twenty people are killed when \JRussia\j launches air raids in south-east \JChechnya\j.
General Ibrahim Bare Mainassara claims victory in \JNiger\j's presidential elections.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits with US President Bill Clinton primarily to talk about continuing the peace process in the Middle East.
#
"July 11, 1996",192,0,0,0
Police in Northern Ireland allow Loyalist Orangemen to march through Portadown, terrorizing Catholics. Meanwhile the British Army sends more troops to Northern Ireland.
Chechnya is bombed by Russian warplanes hoping to destroy the Chechen leader's headquarters.
#
"July 12, 1996",193,0,0,0
The official divorce settlement between the Prince and Princess of Wales is finally announced; Diana loses Her Royal Highness title but keeps Princess of Wales unless she remarries, and she gets a ú60 million cash payout.
The United Nations War Crimes Tribunal issues warrants for the arrest of Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and army commander Ratko Mladic.
Rioting continues in Northern Ireland.
Figures accumulated by the Papua New Guinean Government reveal that up to 10,000 people were killed in seven years of fighting on the island of Bougainville.
A bomb explodes on a trolleybus in Moscow injuring over 20 people.
Following a visit to a medical clinic in \JGermany\j, Indonesian President Soeharto is given a clean bill of health.
Seventeen Tamil Tigers are killed when Sri Lankan troops capture the town of Vakarai.
#
"July 14, 1996",194,0,0,0
The US pressures \JSerbia\j to remove Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and army commander Ratko Mladic from power.
Police and hundreds of rioters clash in Northern Ireland where a bomb damages a hotel in Enniskillen. Meanwhile the Social Democratic and Labour Party announces it is withdrawing from peace talks.
Thirteen Sri Lankan soldiers are killed in the northern Jaffna Peninsula following an attack by Tamil Tigers.
Cyclist Djamolidine Abdoujaparov from Uzbekistan wins the annual Tour de \JFrance\j.
#
"July 15, 1996",195,0,0,0
The IRA denies any involvement in yesterday's bombing of a hotel in Enniskillen.
Australia welcomes \JBurma\j joining ASEAN Regional Forum talks.
Over 50 people are crushed to death in India during a Hindu festival.
Indonesia strongly opposes \JAustralia\j's desertion over a solar electrification project.
A Belgian military \Jaircraft\j crashes at an air base in Eindhoven, Holland, killing over 30 people.
Two hundred and fifty Papua New Guinean troops withdraw from Aropa.
#
"July 16, 1996",196,0,0,0
US vice-president Al Gore and Russian President Boris Yeltsin hold a meeting.
Serb police warn \JNATO\j that attempting to detain Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and army commander Ratko Mladic would be unwise.
Bill Clinton agonizes over a decision of whether or not to let Americans sue foreign companies who have traded property of US citizens seized by \JCuba\j after the 1959 revolution.
A popular national park in Sri Lanka closes due to increased occupation by Tamil Tigers.
#
"July 17, 1996",197,0,0,0
At the Geneva climate summit, the US announces it wants worldwide action to protect the world's climate.
The Princess of Wales reports that she will withdraw her services from over 100 charity organizations.
US President Bill Clinton places a six month delay on the Helms-Burton anti-Cuban law which allows foreign companies who trade in assets taken from US citizens by \JCuba\j to be sued.
NATO warns Bosnian Serb soldiers not to get in the way of Radovan Karadzic's arrest for war crimes.
An assassination is attempted on the life of Ukrainian Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Jordan's Prime Minister Abdul-Karim al-Kabariti.
Food poisoning in \JJapan\j has left almost 5,000 people, mainly school children, ill.
A TWA jumbo jet flight from New York to Paris explodes in mid-air and crashes into the Atlantic off Long Island; there are no survivors of the 230 on board.
#
"July 18, 1996",198,0,0,0
Igor Rodionov is named as \JRussia\j's new Defense Minister.
Scientists announce they have discovered how to measure the motion of the inner core of the Earth.
Tamil Tigers launch one of their biggest battles when they attack a government army base in Sri Lanka, reportedly killing over 500 soldiers.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with \JEgypt\j's President Hosni Mubarak.
#
"July 19, 1996",199,0,0,0
The US announces that a terrorist bomb may have been the cause of the TWA Flight 800's explosion which killed 230 people.
Security is tightened at the \JAtlanta\j Olympic site following the alleged terrorist attack on TWA Flight 800.
Chechen commander Salman Raduyev, whose death was reported in March, is found to be alive.
Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic announces his withdrawal from politics.
The United Nations reveals that fighting in \JBurundi\j may lead to hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths.
A meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak does little to heal the Middle East peace process.
Over 7,000 people have now been affected by food poisoning in \JJapan\j.
The death toll for people killed in floods in China reaches over 700.
Eighty five thousand spectators attend the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in \JAtlanta\j; Muhammad Ali officially opens the games when he lights the Olympic flame.
#
"July 20, 1996",200,0,0,0
Divers search for any clues to the cause of the explosion of TWA Flight 800 which killed all 230 people on board.
Prince Andrew announces he will resign from the Royal Navy to spend more time with his family.
The Chinese Olympic Committee announces that all of its 310 athletes in \JAtlanta\j were subjected to drug tests before leaving China for the Games.
#
"July 21, 1996",201,0,0,0
Indonesia announces the development of new military \Jaircraft\j with their aim to sell them to \JAustralia\j.
Over 300 people are killed when Hutus attack Tutsis in \JBurundi\j.
Heavy fighting continues in northern Sri Lanka between government troops and Tamil Tigers.
As Irish swimmer Michelle Smith wins her second gold medal at the \JAtlanta\j Olympics, questions arise as to whether or not her performance was enhanced by drugs.
#
"July 22, 1996",202,0,0,0
Floodwaters rise in \JBangladesh\j leaving hundreds of thousands of people homeless.
Thousands of Tutsis in \JBurundi\j protest against the slaughter of hundreds of people killed by the Hutus.
Thousands of civilians in Montreal, Canada, are evacuated due to rising floodwaters.
A bomb explodes at \JLahore\j International Airport, \JPakistan\j, killing nine people and injuring many others.
#
"July 23, 1996",203,0,0,0
The Bougainville Revolutionary Army and the Papua New Guinean Government both indicate they are ready to compromise on autonomy for the island.
US \JFBI\j investigators discover a chemical residue on the wing of TWA Flight 800 that exploded, indicating that it was probably a bomb.
Burundi's Government continues sending thousands of Rwandan Hutu refugees back to their homes, with many dying on the way.
The ASEAN Regional Forum focuses on \JBurma\j's abuse of human rights.
A trial on a new AIDS drug, 3TC, reveals that it may halve the number of AIDS-related deaths.
The United States beats \JRussia\j, the favorites, in winning gold in the women's gymnastic teams event at \JAtlanta\j.
#
"July 24, 1996",204,0,0,0
Media from around the world criticize the city of \JAtlanta\j for poor organization during the \JAtlanta\j Olympics.
The International Monetary Fund delays paying \JRussia\j a portion of its $13 billion loan.
Talks between Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy on continuing the Middle East peace process prove positive.
Japan seeks help from the United States in helping to combat their worst food poisoning outbreak in 50 years.
Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien promises $US150 million in emergency funds to help victims of recent flooding.
Over 30 per cent of \JBangladesh\j is affected by heavy flooding.
A bomb explosion in Colombo leaves 15 people dead.
The \JFBI\j announces that initial tests on a wing of TWA Flight 800, indicating that a bomb caused the explosion, may not have been accurate.
Michelle Smith of Ireland wins her third gold medal for swimming at the \JAtlanta\j Olympics.
#
"July 25, 1996",205,0,0,0
Burundi's Hutu Government is overthrown by the Tutsis in a military coup; former military president Pierre Buyoya is named new President. Meanwhile the United Nations intervenes to attempt to instill peace.
The TWA Flight 800 black boxes are found by divers.
Twenty seven Tamil Tigers are questioned by Sri Lankan police following a bomb explosion on a train in Colombo which killed 70 people.
US President Bill Clinton supports a bill that will see sanctions imposed on companies investing in \JIran\j and \JLibya\j.
#
"July 26, 1996",206,0,0,0
US President Bill Clinton increases security for all planes leaving and arriving the country's airports.
The Sri Lankan Government undertakes an offensive against Tamil Tiger rebels.
Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea Sir Julius Chan accuses the Australian media of ignorance and incompetence when reporting on his country.
The US Senate votes to impose sanctions on \JBurma\j if they harm or arrest the opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat holds hopeful peace talks with Syrian President Hafez al-Assad.
#
"July 27, 1996",207,0,0,0
A bomb explodes in Centennial Olympic Park \JAtlanta\j during a concert where Olympic athletes attend; two people are killed and over 100 are injured.
Reports from London claim that Prince Charles has bought Camilla Parker Bowles a $50,000 diamond ring.
Investigators announce that the black boxes from TWA Flight 800 confirm that there were no signs of engine trouble when it exploded in mid-air.
Canadian Donovan Bailey breaks the world record when he wins gold for the 100 m sprint in 9.84 seconds at the \JAtlanta\j Olympics. Former 100 m gold medalist Lindford Christie is disqualified for breaking twice.
US Gail Devers wins gold for the 100 m sprint at \JAtlanta\j with a time of 10.94 seconds.
#
"July 28, 1996",208,0,0,0
Marines are made available to help restrain pro-democracy rioters in Jakarta.
The \JFBI\j continues its search for those responsible for the pipe bomb that exploded during a concert at Centennial Park near the \JAtlanta\j Olympic Stadium.
Hundreds of Turkish prisoners announce they will end their 10-week hunger strike following the government agreeing to accepting some of their demands.
Nearly 30,000 people in South Korea are left homeless, and many feared dead, after flooding and landslides occur.
China detonates what it says is its last nuclear bomb test.
Lee Lai-shan from Hong Kong wins her country's first ever, and also last, Olympic medal when she takes gold in the women's Mistral sailboarding class event.
#
"July 29, 1996",209,0,0,0
The Human Rights Commission in \JIndonesia\j claims that human rights violations occurred during the previous week's political riots.
Burundi's new military leader Pierre Buyoya announces he will form a broad-based government with national unity.
US investigators indicate that a bomb in the forward cargo hold was the most probable cause for the explosion of TWA Flight 800 which killed 230 people.
American athlete Carl Lewis wins his ninth Olympic gold medal when he comes first in the long jump final.
#
"July 30, 1996",210,0,0,0
Rioting in \JIndonesia\j worsens and the military is ordered to shoot any troublemakers.
Syria announces it wants to continue peace talks with Israel under the watchful eye of the US.
Members of the G7 summit in Paris unanimously agree to fight \Jterrorism\j.
China, along with India, object to certain clauses of the global treaty banning nuclear testing.
The Tutsi army allegedly attacks and kills over 50 Hutus in \JBurundi\j.
FBI investigators announce that they have found no hard evidence that a terrorist bomb was the cause of the TWA Flight 800 explosion.
Russian Andrey Chemerkin sets a new world record when he lifts 260 kg in the clean and jerk final for the super heavyweights.
#
"July 31, 1996",211,0,0,0
An American security guard, hailed a hero for his rescue work during the Centennial Olympic Park bombing in \JAtlanta\j, is named as a suspect.
The Indonesian Army announces that a left-wing organization will be arrested and that the pro-democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri may be implicated for recent riots in the country.
Two opposition party leaders of \JBelarus\j seek political asylum in the US.
The \JFBI\j finds evidence that TWA Flight 800 was exploded by a bomb.
The Organization of African Unity agrees to imposing economic sanctions on \JBurundi\j, due to continued fighting in the country.
#
"August 1, 1996",212,0,0,0
Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan admits that his country has committed human rights abuses during their conflict with the Bougainville Revolutionary Army.
US President Bill Clinton announces changes to welfare payments that will see families only being able to receive welfare for a lifetime total of five years.
Political riots continue in \JIndonesia\j.
US sprinter Michael Johnson wins gold in the 200 m sprint at \JAtlanta\j with a world record of 19.68 seconds and consequently becomes the first ever to win the 200 m and 400 m finals at the one Olympics.
#
"August 2, 1996",213,0,0,0
Somali faction leader General Mohamed Farah Aideed killed by a gunshot wound.
Arthur C. Clarke, 79-year-old author of the book \I2001: A Space Odyssey,\i is paid a reported nine figure sum for his new book \I3001: The Final Odyssey.\i
The military regime in \JBurma\j refuses to talk with the pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Muchtar Pakpahan, leader of the Indonesian Labour Union, is arrested by officials on charges relating to political riots.
#
"August 3, 1996",214,0,0,0
Russian President Boris Yeltsin launches an investigation into the missing 60 billion rubles meant for miners who are now striking over unpaid wages.
The Japanese Government claims responsibility for the recent food poisoning outbreak which affected over 9,000 people.
Indonesia's pro-democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri is summoned by police for questioning.
Palestinians condemn Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to lift bans on Jewish settlements in occupied lands.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Juan Antonio Samaranch presents Muhammad Ali with a new gold medal, replacing his 1960 medal that he threw into the river in protest over the treatment of blacks.
For the first time in history the American men's 4 x 100 m relay team settles for an Olympic silver medal after the Canadians beat them for gold.
Burundian runner Venuste Niyongabo wins his country's first ever Olympic gold medal when he comes first in the 5,000 m finals.
#
"August 4, 1996",215,0,0,0
Costa Rican swimmer and \JAtlanta\j gold medalist, Claudia Poll, may be stripped of her medal for wearing a Pepsi t-shirt while receiving it.
America claims the number one spot in the 1996 Olympic medal tally with 44 gold, 32 silver, and 25 bronze medals.
NBC in America is criticized over its biased coverage of the Olympic Games.
Coca-Cola signs a deal with the IOC to ensure that it will be the only soft drink available at the Games until 2008.
Indonesia's pro-democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri refuses to be questioned by the police, sending her lawyers instead.
Iraqi Olympic weightlifter Raed Ahmed is granted political asylum in the US.
Speculation is rife that Boris Yeltsin is in poor health and some say he will be unable to continue ruling \JRussia\j.
#
"August 5, 1996",216,0,0,0
Indonesia's military investigates allegations that their People's Democratic Party was receiving funds from the Australian Labor Party.
Hundreds of people are killed during a Sri Lankan Government offensive on Tamil Tigers.
US divers retrieve part of the cockpit of TWA Flight 800 that exploded in mid air killing all 230 on board.
Hussein Aideed succeeds his late father, Mohamed Farah Aideed, as president of \JSomalia\j.
#
"August 6, 1996",217,0,0,0
The Chinese Government attempts to fix up the country's banking system which is in financial crisis.
The Russian Government demands that Chechen rebels cease their assault or all peace talks will be canceled.
A British woman who wants to abort one of two healthy twins because she can't afford both, is offered over ú60,000 not to go through with the \Jabortion\j.
Indonesia's pro-democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri, after being summoned, announces she will attend talks with police.
America's European traders are unhappy with Bill Clinton's decision to punish foreign companies investing millions of dollars in \JIran\j's and \JLibya\j's oil industries.
The Syrian Government announces it will cease peace talks with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Hundreds of Tamil Tigers and Sri Lankan troops are killed during heavy fighting.
Up to 30 people are killed in floodwaters and landslides in \JNepal\j.
#
"August 7, 1996",218,0,0,0
US officials announce that NASA has discovered a life form on the planet Mars.
Russian soldiers and Chechen rebels continue fierce fighting in Grozny.
China agrees to sign the treaty on banning nuclear testing, leaving India the only country unwilling to sign.
A British woman who was offered over ú60,000 not to abort one of her twins has allegedly already had the \Jabortion\j.
#
"August 8, 1996",219,0,0,0
Cambodia's Second Prime Minister Hun Sen announces that up to 3,000 Khmer Rouge fighters have defected to the government, including the deputy leader, Ieng Sary.
Russian soldiers and Chechen rebels continue fighting for the city of Grozny.
The British Government bans an annual march by pro-British Protestants in Ireland.
Over 70 tourists are killed and many more are missing when flash flooding causes a mudslide at a camping site in \JSpain\j.
US President Bill Clinton announces that a summit will be held on the US space program following the discovery of possible life on Mars.
#
"August 9, 1996",220,0,0,0
US scientists claim that up to one in ten people have mutant genes that protect them from catching AIDS.
The US security guard named as a suspect in the \JAtlanta\j Olympic Centennial Park bombing is set to receive a formal apology from the \JFBI\j.
Rwanda is set to join other African nations by imposing sanctions against \JBurundi\j.
Tamil Tigers appeal to the Sri Lankan Government to stop its attacks on civilians.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is inaugurated for a second term in office.
Sir Frank Whittle, inventor of the jet engine, dies aged 89.
#
"August 10, 1996",221,0,0,0
After hours of questioning by police, \JIndonesia\j's pro-democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri is asked to return later for more talks.
#
"August 11, 1996",222,0,0,0
Khmer Rouge soldiers capture defecting troops along the Thai-Cambodian border.
A British woman, pregnant with octuplets, is determined to have them all.
Over 50,000 citizens loyal to \JIndonesia\j's Soeharto Government hold a rally to support their leader.
#
"August 12, 1996",223,0,0,0
The leader of \JIndonesia\j's illegal People's Democratic Party, Budiman Sudjatmiko, is arrested for allegedly starting last month's political riots.
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat urges Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to meet with him to try and resume the Middle East peace process.
Runner for US presidency, Bob Dole, receives an increase in public support following his announcement that Jack Kemp, a former gridiron player, is his running mate.
#
"August 13, 1996",224,0,0,0
South Korean police and hundreds of students clash during riots in Seoul.
British MPs dispute over whether to ban handguns or not.
Ten Iraqi officers are executed for their involvement in an attempted coup.
Turkey signs a $US23 billion deal with \JIran\j to buy natural gas from them, despite the US threatening economic sanctions.
#
"August 14, 1996",225,0,0,0
Despite an agreed cease-fire, Russian troops launch a rocket attack at Chechen refugees.
Thousands of South Korean police fire tear gas at rioting students wanting reunification with North Korea.
#
"August 15, 1996",226,0,0,0
US President Bill Clinton is allegedly $2 million in debt due to legal costs relating to the Whitewater scandal.
India sticks with its original decision to block the global nuclear test ban treaty.
Bob Dole is officially named the nominee for president for the Republican Party in the US.
The Paralympics officially opens in \JAtlanta\j, with quadriplegic actor Christopher Reeve acting as master of ceremonies.
#
"August 16, 1996",227,0,0,0
Indonesian President Soeharto bans any new political parties in the country.
Member of parliament and daughter of \JThailand\j's Prime Minister, Kanchana Silpa-archa publicly announces that she wants her father, Banharn Silpa-archa, to retire from politics for health reasons.
Former senior Khmer Rouge member Ieng Sary appeals to Cambodians to restore peace.
Pope John Paul II is taken to \Jhospital\j for health tests.
Fighting between Russian troops and Chechen rebels begins to ease.
US divers recover the last of the engines belonging to TWA Flight 800 that exploded and killed all 230 on board.
Thirty-five people are electrocuted when a power line falls down during a fireworks display in \JPeru\j.
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat asks US President Bill Clinton for assistance to stop Israel from expanding Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
#
"August 17, 1996",228,0,0,0
Sources within Buckingham Palace claim that a bracelet worth ú50,000 has been stolen from a display case.
#
"August 18, 1996",229,0,0,0
More than 10,000 South Korean police surround a university in Seoul where rioting students call for the reunification with North Korea.
Ross Perot wins the presidential nomination for the Reform Party in the US; meanwhile Bob Dole's popularity is increasing and Bill Clinton's is decreasing.
Russian and Chechen troops agree to call a cease-fire.
#
"August 19, 1996",230,0,0,0
Fifteen hundred South Korean students who have barricaded themselves in a university threaten to blow up gas cylinders if they are arrested.
#
"August 20, 1996",231,0,0,0
Japanese scientists plan to use frozen woolly mammoth sperm to fertilize an elephant's egg and hopefully produce a hybrid.
Philippine President Fidel Ramos and rebel leader Nur Misuari agree to restore peace to the country.
South Korean students calling for reunification with North Korea surrender to riot police following a seven-day siege at a university.
Over 5,000 South Korean students are arrested over the recent riots at a university.
#
"August 22, 1996",233,0,0,0
David Peter McMillan, an Australian imprisoned on drug smuggling charges in the "Bangkok Hilton", a prison in \JThailand\j, escapes-the first foreigner ever to escape from this prison.
Russia overtakes America as the top arms seller to developing countries.
The two prime ministers of \JCambodia\j feud over the recent Khmer Rouge split.
Libya's Colonel Gaddafi is preparing to arrest up to 1,500 business people on charges of corruption.
Indonesia's opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri sues the government for $27 million, claiming they defamed her when they accused her of attempting to overthrow the Soeharto Government.
#
"August 23, 1996",234,0,0,0
Health officials in India announce that Mother Teresa is in intensive care suffering from \Jmalaria\j.
The US Government threatens sanctions against \JBurma\j following the arrest and jailing of dozens of \JBurma\j's opposition members.
Amnesty International reports that human rights continue to worsen in \JBurundi\j following the recent takeover by the military.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin wants peace talks held over the continuing crisis in \JChechnya\j, as the cease-fire is not working.
#
"August 24, 1996",235,0,0,0
A truce between Russian soldiers and Chechen rebels comes into effect following Boris Yeltsin's interference.
Up to 70 Hindus are killed and 50,000 left stranded following a landslide in India.
#
"August 25, 1996",236,0,0,0
US officials accuse \JPakistan\j of secretly building a missile factory; \JPakistan\j denies the accusations.
Mother Teresa's condition worsens following her hospitalization for \Jmalaria\j and a heart condition.
Peace talks between \JRussia\j and Chechen rebels are put on hold due to legalities.
Russian swimmer and \JAtlanta\j Olympic gold medalist Alexander Popov suffers serious wounds after being stabbed in Moscow.
Israeli President Ezer Weizman offers to hold peace talks with PLO President Yasser Arafat, after Arafat told him he was upset over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of the Middle East peace process.
#
"August 26, 1996",237,0,0,0
Former South Korean presidents Chun Doo Hwan and Roh Tae Woo are charged and sentenced for \Jtreason\j and mutiny for their roles in a massacre 16 years ago following a military coup; Chun is sentenced to death, while Roh is sentenced to 22 years imprisonment.
Up to 65,000 Hindu pilgrims are left stranded in the \JHimalayas\j following severe blizzards.
#
"August 27, 1996",238,0,0,0
Iraqis hijack a Sudanese Airways plane carrying almost 200 passengers and crew on its way from \JSudan\j to Jordan; the plane eventually lands in London and all passengers are released unharmed.
South Korean President Kim Young Sam announces that he may pardon nine businessman charged with bribery connected to former presidents Chun Doo Hwan and Roh Tae Woo.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin says that \JChechnya\j must remain part of \JRussia\j.
The Cambodian Government announces that it will grant amnesties to breakaway Khmer Rouge leaders.
#
"August 28, 1996",239,0,0,0
Scientists announce they have discovered a protein in frogs' eggs that may be effective in treating cancer.
A first-ever global summit on child sexual abuse opens in Stockholm.
British Prime Minister John Major announces that he will warn the Queen that the monarchy will be ruined if Prince Charles decides to marry Camilla Parker Bowlers.
A former high-ranking police officer in South Africa is convicted of dozens of \Japartheid\j crimes, including murder, committed in the early 1990s.
US basketballer Michael Jordan is the richest commercial spokesman in sports for the sixth year running; so far this year he has taken home almost $US40 million.
Prince Charles and Princess Diana are officially divorced.
#
"August 29, 1996",240,0,0,0
Target stores across America announce they will not sell cigarettes anymore.
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat claims that Israel is doing nothing to restore peace by announcing plans for Jewish settlements on the West Bank.
US President Bill Clinton becomes the first Democratic presidential candidate since 1936 to be renominated unopposed.
A Russian airplane crashes on the \JArctic\j island of Spitzbergen; all 141 on board are killed.
Scientists in England estimate that over 700,000 \Jcattle\j affected by mad cow disease have been eaten.
American Robert Frowick, who is organizing the elections in Bosnia, delays the municipal part of the voting due to \Jfraud\j among the Bosnian Serbs.
The 126 countries attending the World Congress Against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in Stockholm adopt a declaration to eradicate child sexual abuse.
There is a typhoid outbreak among Tamil refugees escaping fighting in Sri Lanka.
#
"August 30, 1996",241,0,0,0
US President Bill Clinton's chief White House strategist Dick Morris resigns over an alleged sex scandal.
The US Commerce Department announces that the economy grew much quicker than expected between April and June, causing the Dow Jones Average to decline.
The Philippine Government announces it will use the death penalty for child sex offenders.
Australian Lisa Marie Smith, who recently skipped bail in \JThailand\j on drug charges, has allegedly left the country and is unlikely ever to return to face charges.
A draft peace agreement is signed by the Manila Government and the Muslim rebel group, Moro National Liberation Front, effectively ending a 25-year-old civil war.
US specialist divers lift a huge portion of the \ITitanic's\i hull off the ocean bed, eventually to be shown in an exhibition.
Vincent Gigante, leader of America's most powerful mob, is to finally face murder charges, after previously pleading insanity.
Up to 15,000 French farmers, worried about mad cow disease, stage a protest by raiding trucks carrying beef from Britain and other countries.
A mudslide washes away a small village in Kuala Lumpur, killing 10 people and leaving dozens missing.
Chinese and British governments are unable to agree on how to conduct a farewell ceremony for Britain's handing over of Hong Kong in 1997.
US marines are enlisted to help firefighters in Los Angeles extinguish up to 50 major fires.
A poll in Britain shows that 52 per cent of the population agree to abolish the monarchy.
#
"August 31, 1996",242,0,0,0
A large portion of the hull from the \ITitanic,\i that US divers recovered from the ocean floor, falls back down two and a half miles into the ocean after a cable that was carrying it snapped.
A recent poll in the US shows Bill Clinton is favored by Americans for preferred president, at 54 per cent, with Bob Dole on 34 per cent, and Ross Perot on 8 per cent.
The Chinese Government announces it wants to improve trade and economic relations with \JAustralia\j.
Russia's defense leader Alexander Lebed and Chechen's military leader Aslan Maskhadov both agree to defer a decision on whether \JChechnya\j should become independent at the end of 2001.
#
"September 1, 1996",243,0,0,0
Boris Yeltsin, the Russian President, raises concerns about the peace settlement signed between the security chief, Mr Alexander Lebed, and the Chechen rebels.
In an effort to establish new Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, Norwegian diplomats commence talks to bring the two sides together.
Traces of two chemicals, used in plastic explosives, are uncovered in the wreckage of one area of TWA Flight 800's cabin-the strongest evidence linking the crash to a bomb.
An inquiry into the deaths of 240 Hindu pilgrims killed by a blizzard in the \JHimalayas\j is to be conducted by the Indian Government.
Pacific Island leaders, outraged by proposals by a US firm to dump nuclear waste in Palmyra \JAtoll\j, plan to carry a resolution condemning such moves.
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, makes his first overseas trip as Prime Minister to the Marshall Islands.
Iraqi troops and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) guerillas attempt to drive out a rival Kurdish faction from Arbil in northern \JIraq\j which could signal the end of the independent Kurdish region.
Iraq warns the US Administration to keep out of the Kurdish region in the north, threatening to turn the area into another Vietnam if the US intervenes.
The expense records of former White House political adviser, Dick Morris, will be examined to ensure that American taxpayers did not finance his alleged affair with a prostitute.
The office of the South African President announces that Nelson Mandela and the widow of the former Mozambican president, Samora Machel, are involved in a serious relationship.
#
"September 2, 1996",244,0,0,0
Almost 100 Iraqi defectors are executed by \JBaghdad\j forces in the Kurdish city of Arbil in northern \JIraq\j.
The Clinton Administration pledges that Saddam Hussein will face the consequences of \JIraq\j's invasion of the Kurdish enclave in northern \JIraq\j.
The UN suspends the US$2 billion deal which permitted \JIraq\j to sell oil to raise cash for food and medicine.
Due to the Iraqi offensive, secret negotiations between representatives from the US and two rival Kurdish factions cease.
Bob Dole, the US Republican presidential challenger, accuses President Clinton of being too lenient with \JIraq\j.
Alzheimer's disease is taken a step closer to prevention with the discovery by Australian and US researchers that the onset of the disease is similar to a head injury.
Finnish scientists will soon release details of the world's first anti-gravity device. The device, which is 30 cm (12 in) wide, is believed to reduce considerably the weight of anything suspended over it.
The Marshall Islands, which are threatened by the rising sea levels, will try to convince the Australian Government to reverse their opposition to the greenhouse gas reduction targets.
Mr Gunawan Muhammad, the head of \JIndonesia\j's independent election monitor, is summoned for questioning about the July riots.
The Philippine Government and Muslim rebels sign an historic peace agreement which signals the end of a 24-year civil war.
The Russian Government approves a plan, which was signed by the national security chief, Mr Alexander Lebed and the rebel Chechen leadership, to end the war in \JChechnya\j.
Due to escalating crime rates in South Africa, the African National Congress (ANC) will review the case for the return of capital punishment.
Middle East talks, between the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu and the Palestinian President, Mr Arafat, could commence this week.
Due to Mother Teresa's recent illness, calls are made for her to be replaced as head of the Missionaries of Charity.
#
"September 3, 1996",245,0,0,0
As a consequence of the Iraqi assault on the Kurdish region in northern Iraqi, the US Administration orders its cruise missiles to fire against air defense and communications facilities in southern Iraqi. In retaliation, Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, announces that Iraqi no longer recognizes the UN no-fly zone.
Russia condemns the US air strikes against southern \JIraq\j and demands that all military conflict ceases.
Claims are made that the US Government's air strikes on southern \JIraq\j places considerable strains on the \JNATO\j alliance and could damage relations with \JRussia\j.
Fears for the personal safety of Muslim rebel chief, Nur Misuari, lead him to cancel the ceremony to mark the historic agreement between the Philippine Government and the rebels which signaled the end of the 24-year civil war.
Burma's pro-democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, is denounced by the military junta for allegedly associating with subversives.
China alerts the US that the Sino-US relationship could be damaged if human rights issues continue to be sensationalized.
In return for a pardon for their leader, Ieng Sary, Khmer Rouge \Jdissidents\j opposed to Pol Pot vow to allow the Cambodian Government access to resource-rich areas under their control.
Agreements are reached which will allow the first summit meeting to be held between the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat.
A major Scottish heritage symbol, a medieval casket thought to contain the embalmed heart of King Robert the Bruce, undergoes tests by high-tech equipment.
#
"September 4, 1996",246,0,0,0
Mr Alexander Lebed, the Russian national security chief, reveals that nearly 90,000 people died, and hundreds of thousands were injured, during the Chechen war.
Over the last two years, Israel has allegedly deposited almost US$100 million into a secret bank account for Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat.
An American multi-millionaire purchases a 1975 Ford Escort previously belonging to Pope John Paul II for $US102,000.
California becomes the first American state to give legislative approval to a bill which demands chemical \Jcastration\j for offenders with a history of repeated child molestation.
Former American president, Ronald Reagan, is awarded $US562,111 for expenses incurred during the Iran-Contra legal case.
Concern about the forthcoming Bosnian general election grows, as human rights abuses and forced expulsions continue.
The \JMaastricht Treaty\j discussions reopen in Brussels. The Irish President is determined to compile a draft for the revised European Union constitution.
The American oil giant, Unocal, is sued by Burmese opposition groups over the Burma-Thai gas pipeline which they allege is causing human rights abuses.
Mr Win Htein, personal assistant to the Burmese pro-democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, has his jail sentence doubled.
As a result of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's refusal to accept no-fly zones and his threats to shoot down US \Jaircraft\j, American President Bill Clinton orders a second missile attack on \JIraq\j.
The American Government decides to extend the no-fly zone over southern \JIraq\j.
Massound Barzani's Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP) forms an alliance with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein as a move to combat the internal struggles among the \JKurds\j.
The American military assault against \JIraq\j places pressure on the American Administration's relationship with many Middle Eastern countries as it is widely condemned by the 22-member Arab League.
#
"September 5, 1996",247,0,0,0
Turkey threatens to become involved in the Iraqi crisis and is believed to be planning air and land assaults against the Kurdish rebels in northern \JIraq\j.
The US Administration believes that the US military mission against \JIraq\j was successful but is prepared to order further military action in the area if circumstances change.
Mr Ross Perot, the US Reform Party presidential nominee, claims that President Clinton is trying to improve his political image and boost his ratings in the polls with his missile assaults against \JIraq\j.
International charity organizations, who are leaving the war-torn area of northern \JIraq\j, warn that a humanitarian crisis is likely to occur in the Iraqi Kurdistan region.
It is revealed by the UN Security Council that Britain fails to re-establish the Gulf War coalition.
It is announced that Boris Yeltsin, the Russian President, is to undergo heart surgery.
Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, meets with the Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, to discuss the peace process. As a consequence of the meeting, there are threats of revolt within Mr Netanyahu's right-wing Likud Party.
Legal action by Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, the former leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), against senior government officials is postponed once again.
The forthcoming Bosnian elections are jeopardized, as the Bosnian President Mr Izetbegovic warns that a boycott will occur if the separatist Croat state in the south is not dispersed.
The United Nations General Assembly is ready to accept an Australian-led resolution, leading the way for the signing of a major global nuclear test-ban treaty.
Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto, the Japanese Prime Minister, is put under pressure to schedule general elections for October.
The Chinese Government restricts access to certain large internet sites, as it wishes to retain strict control over the flow of information into China.
The Chinese Government reveals it would like to hold talks with Hong Kong's Democratic Party to discuss the maintenance of democracy in Hong Kong.
A major hurricane, Hurricane Fran, forces thousands of people in the American states from Georgia to Carolina to flee their homes, as it approaches the coastline at speeds of over 100 mph.
Ms Susan McDougal, a former business associate of US President Bill Clinton, is placed in contempt of court after declining to answer questions from a Whitewater prosecutor.
France decides to send a government delegation to the Marshall Islands in an attempt to restore relations after the recent French nuclear tests in the Pacific.
#
"September 6, 1996",248,0,0,0
Khmer Rouge guerillas loyal to Pol Pot occupy a village in north-west \JCambodia\j.
Mother Teresa is released from \Jhospital\j after suffering from heart problems and \Jmalaria\j.
The announcement that Russian President Boris Yeltsin is to undergo open heart surgery causes a leadership struggle for control of \JRussia\j.
The people of the Russian state of \JChechnya\j celebrate the end of the Chechen war.
Hong Kong's Chief Justice, Sir Ti Liang, tenders his resignation after declaring his intention to run as Hong Kong's first chief executive after the 1997 handover to China.
Australia manages to foster the support of nearly 100 countries for a planned treaty which bans nuclear tests.
Chinese archaeologists in Sanzingdui in China's Sichuan Province uncover treasures from a previously unknown ancient civilization.
A court in New York finds Ramzi Ahmed Yousef and two accomplices guilty of a terrorist plan to blow up 12 American \Jaircraft\j.
It is acknowledged by the head of the Organization for Security and Cooperation, who is supervising the Bosnian elections, that the conditions of the Dayton agreement are not being met.
The criticism by some members of the Likud Party of the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, leads the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, to threaten to dismiss five Cabinet ministers.
Comments made after the Israeli-Palestinian talks by the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, about his opposition to the Palestinian State, annoy Palestinian negotiators.
Mrs Leah Rabin, the widow of assassinated former Israeli Prime Minister Itzhak Rabin, speaks out against the Israeli Prime Minister's meeting with the Palestinian leader Mr Yasser Arafat. As leader of the opposition Mr Netanyahu had been highly critical of Mr Rabin's peace talks.
France is unwilling to patrol the American-established no-fly zone over southern \JIraq\j.
A \IWashington Post\i-ABC News poll shows that the Iraqi conflict has improved US President Bill Clinton's popularity and placed him well ahead of Republican opponent Bob Dole.
Indonesia's human rights record raises concern that leads the American Government to delay until 1997 the sale of nine F-16 fighter planes.
The Indian State of Kashmir prepares for its first general elections in over 10 years.
Hurricane Fran kills at least 11 people and causes power failures in cities and towns along the east coast of America.
Iraqi forces withdraw from northern \JIraq\j, as reports come in of fighting between two rival Kurdish factions about the Turkish plan to set up a buffer zone on the Iraqi border.
Thousands of Arab people in \JIraq\j march against the American Administration's military assault against \JIraq\j.
In America, the author of a new book on the O. J. Simpson trial claims that the defense knew that Simpson had murdered his ex-wife and her friend and that Simpson knew the verdict of the case before it was officially announced.
The widow of \JMozambique\j President Samora Machel, Graca Machel, reveals that she will not marry South African President Nelson Mandela, but will continue their close relationship.
American intelligence reports reveal that the royalties which Adolf Hitler received from his book \IMein Kampf\i are still being held in a Swiss bank account.
Former White House political adviser, Dick Morris, who resigned over an alleged sex scandal, signs a book deal worth over $US1 million.
#
"September 7, 1996",249,0,0,0
The Iraqi Government claims victory over the American Administration after its Kurdistan Democratic (KDP) ally captures seven villages from rival \JKurds\j.
Demands are made for Russian President Boris Yeltsin to stand down as leader, after he announced that he will undergo major heart surgery.
The Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty may be signed within two weeks, after \JAustralia\j led the way to overcome a previous veto by India.
A South African court finds that parts of the new constitution need to be reworked.
A state of emergency is called in the American state of North Carolina after Hurricane Fran wreaks havoc and kills 12 people.
#
"September 8, 1996",250,0,0,0
In a special referendum held in the island of \JOkinawa\j, \JJapan\j electors vote for the reduction of the number of American military bases.
Christian vigilantes in the \JPhilippines\j demonstrate their firepower which they warn might be used to fight against the new agreement between the Philippine Government and the Muslim rebels.
Opinion polls show that the Israeli people support the Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu's meeting with the Palestinian President, Mr Yasser Arafat.
Israel is determined to institute the agreements reached during Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
A gene essential for the development of normal breathing, which could help in comprehending breathing problems such as sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), is detected by scientists in the US.
Eleven people are killed during the elections held in the state of Kashmir, India, the first elections in almost ten years.
Cambodian Prime Ministers, Mr Hun Sen and Prince Norodom Sihanouk, declare that Khmer Rouge guerillas faithful to Mr Ieng Sary have consented to recognize the power of the Cambodian Government.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin puts on a show of confidence despite the rumored leadership struggle.
The Bosnian elections are to go ahead as the ruling Muslim party dismissed any moves to boycott the vote.
Hurricane Fran leaves hundreds of thousands of homes on the east coast of America without power and is responsible for the deaths of at least 21 people.
Iraq alleges that it fired missiles at American \Jaircraft\j in the no-fly zones in northern and southern \JIraq\j, as European powers continue to criticize American missile attacks on \JIraq\j.
The Iraqi attack on the Kurdish enclave in northern \JIraq\j ended a six-year secret \JCIA\j mission against the Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
Turkey's intention to set up a security zone on the Turkish-Iraqi border is endorsed by the Clinton Administration, but is denounced by European Union countries, \JRussia\j, and pro-Western Arab nations.
It is disclosed that a recent assassination attempt on the President of \JIraq\j, Saddam Hussein, had been made by one of his bodyguards.
Kurdish forces supported by the Iraqi Government are reported to have occupied the town of Koi Sanjack in northern \JIraq\j.
#
"September 9, 1996",251,0,0,0
US President, Bill Clinton, arranges to meet Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, as America is keen for Israel to take more positive measures to improve Israeli-Palestinian relations.
US President Bill Clinton warns that he will order more US military assaults against \JIraq\j if Iraqi air defense facilities continue to be restored.
An Iraqi-backed Kurdish faction occupies two important towns in northern \JIraq\j which forces thousands of \JKurds\j to flee from the region and causes the Kurdish group, ousted from Arbil, to demand American help.
Nearly 200 Iraqi \JArabs\j, who have links with the CIA-backed opposition to the Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, ask for political asylum in America as they believe they will be killed by \JIraq\j's secret police.
Alliances, established in northern \JIraq\j after the Gulf War, are threatened by the American military assaults against \JIraq\j, Iraqi military attacks, and the fighting among the Kurdish rival factions.
Lal Krishna Advani, president of India's main opposition party, the Hindu Nationalist Bharatiya Janata, is accused of corruption.
White House officials are convinced that US President, Bill Clinton, will win the forthcoming election by an overwhelming majority.
Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, will try to persuade the American Administration to reduce the size of its military bases on the island of \JOkinawa\j.
Russian troops continue to withdraw from \JChechnya\j, as details of the final peace agreement are discussed.
Two Libyans suspected of blowing up Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, are not likely to be brought to trial according to their Scottish lawyer, as he claims the Scottish and American authorities are not prepared to compromise on the case.
Mr Ieng Sary, the Khmer Rouge leader, verifies that he has come to an understanding on a cease-fire with the Cambodian Government, and hopes for an amnesty to safeguard his freedom.
An analysis of \JFiji\j's racially-based constitution demands that indigenous Fijians concede their rights of political domination over ethnic Indians.
India refuses to allow other countries to direct its nuclear policy, as the United Nations General Assembly prepares to adopt a global nuclear test-ban treaty.
The Indonesian Government announces that opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri's newly-opened political office is not legal.
Separatist Bosnian Serb leaders request secession, which alarms Muslims who are afraid that Bosnia faces permanent division after the forthcoming election.
An ex-governor of Jakarta, \JIndonesia\j, and the senior editor of a banned weekly magazine, \ITempo,\i undergo questioning by the attorney-general over a riots subversion inquiry.
Twelve Papua New Guinean soldiers are believed to have been killed by rebel fighters on Bougainville Island.
American tennis player, Pete Sampras, wins his fourth US Open title.
#
"September 10, 1996",252,0,0,0
Twenty-four Papua New Guinean soldiers are feared dead or injured, after rebel fighters entrapped them on the southern tip of Bougainville Island.
A new political party is likely to enter the Japanese political party after receiving the support of the Japanese Health Minister, Naoto Kan.
Ms Susan McDougal, a former business partner of Bill Clinton and his wife, is sent to jail after refusing to answer questions about Whitewater land deals.
A Kurdish faction supported by \JIraq\j's President Saddam Hussein occupies the city of Sulaymaniyah in northern \JIraq\j, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee their homes.
US President Bill Clinton is unwilling to undertake any military mission to rescue opponents of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, but pledges to help them, though he does not specify exactly how.
At a meeting between the American President and Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu tells Mr Clinton that he is keen to restart peace talks with \JSyria\j but is unwilling to accept a precondition that Israel withdraws from the Golan Heights.
The Australian Government welcomes the support of 126 countries for the Australian-backed Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty.
India continues to oppose the historic Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, as the Indian Government believes that the treaty text is flawed.
Typhoon Sally kills nearly 140 people and leaves 130 missing in Guangdong Province in southern China.
A report which analyzes \JFiji\j's constitution calls for the country to revert back to the multi-ethnic democracy which it lost in the 1987 military coup.
A group of right-wing Japanese students spark off a territorial dispute between \JJapan\j and China by sailing to islands north-east of \JTaiwan\j and repairing a typhoon-damaged lighthouse.
A plan to transport victims of ethnic cleansing in Bosnia back to their villages, sparks off a controversy and threatens the forthcoming elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Talks directed at ending the impasse in the Northern Ireland peace process are stopped abruptly after unionists argue.
The American Government sends Paul Hare, a special envoy, to \JAngola\j to attempt to restart peace talks between the rebel leaders and the Government.
Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, the former leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), is questioned for ten hours by the Indonesian authorities.
The lawyers of Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, suspects in the 1995 bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City, USA refuse to confirm reports that the \JFBI\j has discovered a hand-drawn map of the building in Nicholas' home.
Australian exports of beef to \JJapan\j fall by 35 per cent as Japanese people consume less beef due to a recent serious outbreak of food poisoning.
#
"September 11, 1996",253,0,0,0
Thousands of Kurdish people in northern \JIraq\j continue to flee from the town of Sulaymaniyah occupied by Iraqi-supported Kurdish allies, as Saddam Hussein claims that \JIraq\j controls northern \JIraq\j.
The United States Government warns \JIraq\j that if it tries to restore its southern air defenses then America will order another military air strike.
Iraqi military forces shoot at two American F-16 fighter planes patrolling the no-fly zone in northern \JIraq\j, prompting the US to begin preparations for further air strikes against \JIraq\j.
It is uncovered by American intelligence sources that the Greek Government is supporting the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in Turkey.
Swiss banks are under increasing pressure to release billions of dollars worth of gold collected from Adolf Hitler during the war.
China protests against a small group of right-wing Japanese students landing on the Senkaku/Diaoya islands-the islands are at the center of a sovereignty controversy between \JTokyo\j, \JBeijing\j, and Taipei.
Burundi soldiers continue to search for the body of the Catholic \JArchbishop\j of \JBurundi\j, the Most Rev Joachim Ruhuna, who was assassinated two days ago.
Mr Hashimoto, the Japanese Prime Minister, makes a pledge to spend 5 billion yen to restore the island of \JOkinawa\j which settles the ongoing disputes about the future of the island.
Mr Ross Perot, United States presidential candidate, chooses a non-political economist, Dr Pat Choate, as his vice-presidential running mate.
The German Government uncovers a harsh budget for 1997 which cuts back on federal spending in an attempt to qualify for the European monetary union.
Hurricane Hortense causes severe flooding in San Juan, Puerto Rica and leaves seven people dead.
Mr Nur Masuari, a former Marxist professor and now an Islamic rebel, is announced governor of the autonomous Muslim region in the southern \JPhilippines\j.
In Israel three Jewish extremists are found guilty of assassinating former Prime Minister Itzhak Rabin.
The United Nations votes to adopt the world's first global nuclear test-ban treaty, a major accomplishment for \JAustralia\j who led the way in bringing the matter to a vote.
The American Senate votes to limit the lawfulness of same-sex marriages and disallows an attempt to ban employment discrimination based on sexual persuasion.
A few days before the historic general elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bosnian Serbs are fined for demanding withdrawal from the elections.
Papua New Guinea Defense Force reinforcements track down seven soldiers who had been cornered after rebel fighting broke out in the southern tip of the Island of Bougainville.
Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, the former leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), holds talks with supporters.
#
"September 12, 1996",254,0,0,0
Following an Iraqi missile attack on American fighters in the no-fly zone in northern \JIraq\j, President Clinton sends eight F-117A stealth bombers to \JKuwait\j in readiness for the American retaliation against \JIraq\j.
The City of \JKuwait\j awaits an Iraqi reprisal after it allows American F-117 stealth bombers to use its air bases.
Tens of thousands of Kurdish refugees fleeing from northern \JIraq\j, afraid to return to their home and terrified of entering temporary refugee camps, accuse Western relief agencies and governments of neglecting them.
Bob Dole, American presidential challenger, persuades Republicans not to lose faith in his campaign, as colleagues advise that a landslide win for President Clinton could cost the Republicans control of the Congress.
India continues to be unwilling to support a global nuclear test-ban treaty.
The \JFBI\j is following up leads on a new suspect in the \JAtlanta\j Olympic Games park bombing.
Two assistant secretaries of the US Department of Health and Human Services resign, after American President Clinton signs a Bill that ends a 60-year-old guarantee to assist all poor American people.
An American doctor claims that poet Edgar Allen Poe died of \Jrabies\j.
A march to celebrate the anniversary of the 1973 Chilean coup results in 20 people being injured and 73 arrested.
The forthcoming Bosnian elections are likely to be marred by ill-preparation and claims of intimidation, \Jfraud\j, and election rigging. It is claimed the elections will either prolong peace or aggravate the situation in Bosnia.
Amnesty International requests that the Cambodian Government reconsiders before giving the Khmer Rouge faction leader, Ieng Sary, a pardon.
Russian doctors are unwilling to operate on Boris Yeltsin, suggesting that he should have the operation done overseas, as the Russian health system is drastically underfunded.
A Japanese court rejects an appeal for a shorter sentence for two American soldiers found guilty of raping a Japanese schoolgirl last year.
Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto is not likely to set a date for the general elections until the future of the American bases on the island of \JOkinawa\j has been decided.
An American Federal appeal court reverses a ruling to transfer the former \JPhilippines\j President Ferdinand Marcos' Swiss bank accounts to the United States.
Tamil Tiger rebels in eastern Sri Lanka fire at a civilian bus, killing nearly 11 \JSinhalese\j people and injuring another 27.
It is reported that Pope John Paul II is suffering from Parkinson's disease and has a tumor which is sparking off rumors of a secession.
#
"September 13, 1996",255,0,0,0
The Chinese Government jails over 100 Buddhist monks as it steps up its campaign to quell political opposition at Buddhist monasteries in \JTibet\j and tries to weaken loyalty to the Tibetan exiled religious leader, the Dalai Lama.
In a change of tactics, American Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole alters his campaign strategy in an effort to close the gap in the opinion polls between him and President Bill Clinton.
A further American military assault against \JIraq\j seems likely, as American \Jaircraft\j carrier \IUSS Enterprise\i is sent to the Persian Gulf and stealth bombers are ordered into position for attack.
The American Administration promises to rescue nearly 2,000 Kurdish people who helped military and relief activities in northern \JIraq\j, as well as giving many of them asylum in the United States.
Indian women's groups protest against the Miss World competition, which is scheduled to be held in India in November, and warn they will conduct a public suicide.
After a year's acrimonious discussions, the Governor of the Japanese island of \JOkinawa\j, Masahide Ota, agrees to extend the land leases for the American military bases on the island.
In reply to protests from the Chinese and Taiwanese Governments, the Japanese Government is unwilling to dismantle a lighthouse recently built by a Japanese extreme right-wing group on the disputed Diaoyu islands in the East China Sea.
The Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, now requests two foreign doctors to be involved in his forthcoming heart operation, despite announcing previously he trusted Russian doctors to carry out the surgery.
Members of the Congressional Black \JCaucus\j demand an inquest into reports that the \JCIA\j launched crack-cocaine into black neighborhoods during the 1980s as a way to raise revenue for the Nicaraguan Contra rebels.
Archaeologists in the state of Virginia in the US uncover a skeleton of one of English America's very first settlers.
In \JAfghanistan\j the rebel Talibaan Islamic militia occupies Lahman and Junar which are pro-Government provinces.
Sri Lankan Government troops start once again shelling the political headquarters of the Tamil Tiger guerillas in the northern town of Kilinochichi.
Two new opinion polls place the American President Bill Clinton well ahead of Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole.
In the southern Guangxi province in China, 39 people are killed by Typhoon Sally, bringing the death toll to at least 178.
In his will the late Greek socialist leader Andreas Papandreou bequeaths all his possessions to his second wife Dimitra Liani-Papandreou.
Twenty-five American and Italian tourists on safari in \JTanzania\j's \JSerengeti\j National Park are ambushed, two people are seriously wounded.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, wants to alter an agreement to hand over parts of the town of \JHebron\j in the West Bank to the Palestinian Liberation Organization.
Israeli forces shoot at supposed Hezbollah bases and also ambush a group of guerillas they found in Israel's occupation zone in southern \JLebanon\j.
#
"September 14, 1996",256,0,0,0
German Chancellor Helmut Kohl offers the assistance of two prominent German cardiologists to help with Russian President Boris Yeltsin's forthcoming heart surgery.
American President Bill Clinton orders 5,000 troops to \JKuwait\j for a military exercise which is also seen as a display of American military force against \JIraq\j.
Seven members of the Solidarity of Indonesian Students for Democracy are arrested for allegedly instigating recent riots in Jakarta.
After the American Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole goes public with his medical history, the American Government releases President Bill Clinton's medical records.
A new \Jbiography\j of Pope John Paul II claims that the Pope had access to American intelligence reports, as well as reportedly assisting the \JCIA\j and former American President Reagan to attempt to overthrow the Soviet empire.
#
"September 15, 1996",257,0,0,0
The American Government begins to evacuate 2,500 Iraqi Kurd refugees from northern \JIraq\j.
Despite the Iraqi Government's assertion that it will no longer shoot at American \Jaircraft\j in the no-fly zones, the American Administration continues to expand its forces in the Persian Gulf, leaving \JIraq\j unsure of America's intentions.
Dr William Perry, the United States Defense Secretary, is sent to the Middle East to convince Arab allies that there is more at risk in America's stance against \JIraq\j than boosting American President Bill Clinton's image in the run up to the election.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin's heart surgery is delayed as he undergoes further routine medical tests.
It is announced that Pope John Paul II will have his appendix removed by the end of the year.
Afghan Government \Jaircraft\j attack targets in the rebel-occupied eastern city of Jalalabad, injuring 25 people.
Ex-members of the British pop band the Beatles appear in Japanese \Jtelevision\j advertisements, the ads will only be broadcast in \JJapan\j.
The Khmer Rouge leader, Ieng Sary, is given a pardon for his involvement in the "killing fields" of the late 1970s.
India's Supreme Court rejects \Jhomicide\j charges against eight former senior executives of the Union Carbide, the company responsible for a toxic gas leak in 1984 which killed 4,500 people.
Subaru Takahashi, a Japanese schoolboy, sets a record as the youngest person to sail solo across the Pacific Ocean.
A secret report on the pigeon infestation in Trafalgar Square, London, recommends that a major culling should be conducted.
International overseers of the Bosnian elections promise to continue nation-building despite a warning by the nationalist Muslim SDA party that they will not accept the result of the Bosnian Serb election.
Muslim survivors of ethnic cleansing carried out during the war in former Yugoslavia return to their homes to vote in the first general election since the war ended in November 1995.
The United States embarks on a new international peace movement for Bosnia-Herzegovina, as nearly 1.9 million Bosnians voted in the general elections to rebuild a united country from the ethnic groups destroyed by the war.
After ten years, the leaders of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) plan to meet, which could signal an end to its 27-year campaign to get the British out of Northern Ireland.
#
"September 16, 1996",258,0,0,0
The United States is permitted to dispatch more ground troops to \JKuwait\j.
As leaders of the IRA meet for the first time in ten years, they rule out discussing a cease-fire.
The Australian Foreign Minister, Mr Alexander Downer, promises to work at restoring French-Australian links, after relations were strained due to recent French nuclear testing.
Prince Abdullah, the Crown Prince of Saudi \JArabia\j, steps in as mediator in a dispute between the Emir of the Gulf State of \JQatar\j, Sheikh Hamed, and his father, Sheikh Khalifa, over $US8 billion claimed to be missing from the \JQatar\j treasury.
The civil trial against American O. J. Simpson commences in \JCalifornia\j.
In three weeks' time the presidents of Bosnia and \JSerbia\j will meet in Paris in an effort to bring together Bosnia's former warring sectors.
In \JAfghanistan\j, government planes bomb the rebel Talibaan-occupied city of Jalalabad, killing 12 people and wounding 50 others.
Former Indonesian opposition leader Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri's nomination for 1997's general elections is rejected.
Hong Kong begins the process of repatriation of Vietnamese boat-people by moving refugees to a top security camp.
NASA announces the lift-off of the space shuttle Atlantis for its fourth meeting with orbiting Russian space station Mir.
The head of the Papua New Guinea Defense force asks politicians from the island of Bougainville to help gain the release of five security force members captured during a rebel ambush.
Violence keeps voters away from the Indian State of Kashmir in their first elections in nearly ten years.
In an attempt to restore peace between the warring Kurdish factions, a senior American official will meet the leader of the Iraq-backed Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in Turkey.
In the initial results of Bosnia's general elections, it looks likely that the Muslim President, Mr Alija Izetbegovic, is likely to beat his Serbian opponent.
#
"September 17, 1996",259,0,0,0
American President Bill Clinton says that the United States is not actively striving to get involved in any further military action against \JIraq\j, as America cools off its plans for another strike.
The first meeting between senior Cambodian military commanders and leaders of eight renegade Khmer Rouge factions commences in Pailin, \JCambodia\j.
Talibaan rebel militia leaders claim that they will shortly occupy the capital of \JAfghanistan\j, Kabul, and will set up the first pure Islamic state in the world.
A former South African Government assassin claims that ex-president, Mr P. W. Botha, was involved in the murders of many anti-apartheid activists.
After spending six months in orbit on the Russian Mir station, female \Jastronaut\j Shannon Lucid is preparing to transfer to the American space shuttle Atlantis.
The former national security adviser to American presidents Kennedy and Johnson, McGeorge Bundy, dies.
The American Administration warns Israel and \JSyria\j to retain self-control in order to avoid an outbreak of war.
Thail officials prepare for a possible election and change of leadership as the Government is accused of corruption and misgovernment.
Fears of war breaking out in the Russian state of \JChechnya\j prompt the Russian security chief Alexander Lebed to return to restore the peace initiative.
#
"September 18, 1996",260,0,0,0
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is admitted to \Jhospital\j for tests, sparking off reports that his health is deteriorating.
Muslim President, Dr Alija Izetbegovic, beats the Bosnian Serb leader, Mr Momcilo Krajisnik, to become the first leader of Bosnia's new collective presidency.
The Indonesian Government claims that the former opposition leader Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri's new office premises are not legal.
Mr Spiro Agnew, who was vice-president to former American President, Mr Richard Nixon, dies at the age of 77.
The Thai Prime Minister, Mr Banharn Silpa-archa, is denounced as corrupt, as a parliamentary no-confidence debate against him commences.
The American Administration attempts to convince the Iraqi \JKurds\j to break off alliances with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
The American-Iraqi conflict cools off, as the United States shows less signs of a further attack against them.
An ex-Czech defense official claims that American troops who went missing during the Korean War died either in medical experiments or were sent to the Soviet Union.
An attack by Islamic Talibaan militia on western Kabul, \JAfghanistan\j fails after being halted by Afghan Government troops.
Cambodian King Norodom Sihanouk stands by his decision to grant an amnesty to Khmer Rouge leader Ieng Sary.
#
"September 19, 1996",261,0,0,0
The Bosnia-Herzegovina President, Mr Izetbegovic, reiterates his loyalty to the new united republic.
A former South African police colonel accuses ex-president, Mr F. W. de Klerk, of being involved in campaigns to murder \Jdissidents\j of the former \Japartheid\j government.
Newly 200 out of 3,500 American troop reinforcements arrive in \JKuwait\j, as the United States continues to strengthen its military presence in the Gulf.
A refugee camp in \JIran\j is attacked by Kurdish forces backed by Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, killing four people.
China and its allies stop moves for the fourth consecutive year to permit United Nations membership for \JTaiwan\j.
Former Israeli Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, announces that he will not run for the prime minister's job in the next elections in 2000 but may join a unity government.
The American space shuttle Atlantis joins up with \JRussia\j's Mir station, as female \Jastronaut\j Shannon Lucid prepares to transfer to Atlantis for the trip home.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin will transfer control of \JRussia\j's nuclear weapons to the Prime Minister, Viktor Chernomyrdin, when he has heart surgery shortly.
The American Administration discontinues a recommendation by former president George Bush to put a man on Mars by 2019 and opts to aim to put a robot on Mars by 2000.
The United States announces it will proceed with its intention to sell F-16 fighter jets to \JIndonesia\j, while asking other countries to aid American attempts to improve human rights in \JIndonesia\j.
#
"September 20, 1996",262,0,0,0
Thai Prime Minister Banharn Silpa-archa's Chart Thai party, is accused of blackmailing a bank.
A CIA chief claims that the latest US-Iraqi conflict has strengthened the political image of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
Discussions between the Chinese and British authorities about the 1997 Hong Kong handover ceremonies come to a standstill.
Chinese and Russian researchers establish that the first printed material using movable type dates back to the Western Xia Dynasty (1031-1227).
Leading German supermodel Claudia Schiffer announces her retirement.
Large sculpted boulders, similar to \JStonehenge\j in the UK, are discovered in the Kimberley in Western \JAustralia\j which could possibly mean that Australian history will have to be rewritten.
The 35-year-old guerilla war in \JGuatemala\j comes to an end, as Government authorities and left-wing rebel forces sign a peace treaty.
Israel announces that it intends to build 2,000 new homes in the Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Pope John Paul II commences a four-day visit to \JFrance\j.
#
"September 21, 1996",263,0,0,0
The brother of \JPakistan\j Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Murtaza Bhutto, dies after a shoot-out with police.
#
"September 22, 1996",264,0,0,0
It is disclosed that Russian President Boris Yeltsin had a fourth heart attack during the summer, as a Russian cardiologist claims that surgery may be too dangerous to perform.
Declassified American and British intelligence sources reveal that Nazi booty worth billions of dollars stolen from Jews during the second World War was sent to \JSwitzerland\j for safekeeping.
More confirmation of corruption in the Bosnian elections crops up, with voting returns of up to 103 per cent, placing uncertainty over the results.
In a display of American military strength, 300 more American troops arrive in \JKuwait\j and US \Jaircraft\j begin patrols over \JIraq\j.
American President Bill Clinton signs anti-gay legislation which prohibits gay marriages.
Thai Prime Minister Banharn Silpa-archa is ousted by his coalition partners; a former military chief is seen as his likely replacement.
Former Indian Prime Minister, Mr P. V. Narasimha Rao, resigns as head of the Indian Congress Party.
Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto is accused of murdering her brother, Murtaza Bhutto, by her mother.
#
"September 23, 1996",265,0,0,0
Followers of murdered Pakistani Murtaza Bhutto want his Arab-born widow to head their party.
Due to accusations of corruption, a recount is ordered in the Bosnian elections, which shows that Alija Izetbegovic did win the presidency.
The United States looks likely to withdraw one of its \Jaircraft\j carriers from the Persian Gulf, as \JIraq\j backs down.
Sri Lankan Government troops attack the headquarters of the separatist Tamil Tiger rebel group in the town of Kilinochchi.
The leader of the Greek Panhellenic Socialist Movement, Costas Simitis, wins the general elections in \JGreece\j.
Settlement of a \Jdefamation\j lawsuit called by former Indonesian opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri, against a government official, is reached out of court.
The British Government thwarts a plan by the IRA, which could have seen the IRA's biggest bomb attack on mainland Britain.
Thai Prime Minister Banharn Silpa-archa fights off pressure from the Government to resign early in favor of his deputy, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh.
#
"September 24, 1996",266,0,0,0
Pressure is on Russian President Boris Yeltsin to resign due to ill-health.
Mr Sitaram Kesri replaces Mr P. V. Narasimha Rao as leader of India's Congress Party.
The former Indonesian opposition leader, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, is ordered to close down her party's new offices within three days.
Leader of the world's nuclear powers-the US, \JRussia\j, Britain, \JFrance\j, and China-sign an historic treaty to stop nuclear testing throughout the world.
Mr Ross Perot, the US Reform Party nominee, takes legal action in which he insists on the right to participate in the American presidential debates.
Sri Lankan Government troops occupy a rebel-held village in northern Sri Lanka following three days of fighting in which 146 people died.
The death of Mr Murtaza Bhutto, the brother of the Pakistani Prime Minister Ms Benazir Bhutto, sparks off religious riots in which a Sunni Muslim mosque is attacked and two Shi'ite Muslim leaders are killed.
Police in London reveal more details of the proposed IRA bomb attack which was foiled by authorities, as future Northern Ireland peace talks are in jeopardy.
#
"September 25, 1996",267,0,0,0
The former Indonesian opposition leader, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, fights against the instructions by the Indonesian Government to close her party's new headquarters.
In \JAfghanistan\j, rebel Talibaan fighters allege that they have reached the eastern fringes of Kabul in their fight for control of the capital.
The United States praises \JAustralia\j for its role in initiating the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-an Treaty (CTBT) which was signed by five nuclear powers.
The American Administration promises to pay $US20 million in compensation to 500 South Vietnamese who helped the \JCIA\j during the Vietnam war.
British police stand by their decision to fatally shoot an unarmed IRA suspect.
A post-mortem report on Murtaza Bhutto, the estranged brother of the Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, reveals that he was killed by security forces.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is finally given the go-ahead for heart surgery.
#
"September 26, 1996",268,0,0,0
Despite requests from the United Nations Security Council for a cease-fire, the government in \JAfghanistan\j sends reinforcements to fight against the rebel Talibaan militia near the capital Kabul.
After 188 days in space, female \Jastronaut\j Shannon Lucid returns to Earth aboard the shuttle Atlantis.
Former Indian Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao is charged with corruption.
The head of a Hong Kong group protesting against Japanese ownership of the Diaoyu islands dies as he plunges into the sea in an attempt to reach the islands.
Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto announces that he will dissolve parliament and set the election date for October 20.
A former South African assassin claims that the South African security services were involved in the assassination of Swedish Prime Minister Olaf Palme, in 1986.
Nearly 51 people are killed, as relations between Israel and Palestine worsen and hopes of peace fade.
#
"September 27, 1996",269,0,0,0
Talibaan militia occupy \JAfghanistan\j's capital Kabul, announce that they are the new Afghan Government, establish strict Islamic law, and hang former president Najibullah.
Fighting continues between Israeli and Palestinian forces near \JJerusalem\j's Al-Aqsa mosque, leaving at least 57 people dead.
Israel announces a state of emergency in the Palestinian territories, as \JJerusalem\j's police force is doubled.
Many countries in the West, including the United States, voice their opposition to Israel's actions in Gaza and the West Bank, as support mounts for Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
In \JBurma\j, authorities arrest pro-democracy politicians and prevent access to the house of democracy leader Ms Aung San Suu Kyi in order to stop a party meeting.
The Indonesian Government shuts down the party headquarters of former opposition and democracy leader, Megawati Sukarnoputri.
Tamil guerillas fight Sri Lankan Government forces near the town of Kilinochchi, at least 500 people have been killed in the clashes.
#
"September 28, 1996",270,0,0,0
Fighting between Israeli and Palestinian forces continues, as the Israeli Government stands firm and offers no hope of an end to the crisis.
#
"September 29, 1996",271,0,0,0
Israel warns that it will re-occupy self-governing Arab cities and disarm Palestinian police if the fighting between Palestinians and Israelis continues.
American President Bill Clinton calls for a Palestinian-Israeli peace summit, as Israel goes ahead with reopening the archaeological tunnel near the Al-Aqsa mosque in \JJerusalem\j.
Sri Lankan Government troops occupy the town of Kilinochchi in northern Sri Lanka which was the last main town under the control of Tamil Tiger guerillas.
In \JBurma\j, authorities threaten to stop democracy leader Ms Aung San Suu Kyi's weekend meetings with the public, as they believe they upset the balance of Burmese law and order.
The decision to call an election by Thai Prime Minister, Banharn Silpa-archa, leads to many deserting the Chart Thai party.
Talibaan militia, who have occupied the Afghan capital of Kabul, strengthen their hold over the city and institute strict Islamic law.
#
"September 30, 1996",272,0,0,0
Officials at a meeting of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), decide not to admit \JBurma\j as a full member in 1997.
A skeleton recently uncovered in Washington State, US, is said to be 9,300 years old.
Government forces in Sri Lanka occupy the regional headquarters of the Tamil Tiger rebels.
Palestine and \JEgypt\j rebel against the United States' plans for a Middle East peace summit, as Yasser Arafat requests a postponement of talks with Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu until the weekend.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, is criticized by crucial coalition partners for damaging the peace process.
#
"October 1, 1996",273,0,0,0
The Talibaan militia plans to move into northern \JAfghanistan\j in a campaign to take control of the whole country.
The Pakistani Prime Minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, denies that the Afghan Talibaan militia is backed by \JPakistan\j.
The Palestinian and Israeli leaders, Mr Yasser Arafat and Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, depart for a peace summit in the US, but prospects for a successful outcome look grim, as both sides are unwilling to compromise their positions.
American President Bill Clinton could jeopardize his success in the forthcoming elections if the Middle East peace summit held in Washington is not successful.
Burmese authorities arrest more than 550 members or supporters of Ms Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) Party.
The Northern Ireland peace process is endangered after loyalist groups threaten to withdraw
from peace talks.
The British Governor of Hong Kong, Mr Chris Patten, will give the final address as British Governor at possibly the last democratically elected Legislative Council in Hong Kong.
In the US, Black groups are planning to sue the American Government over claims that it was behind the introduction of \Jcocaine\j into L.A. in the 1980s and used the profits to fund right-wing Contra rebels in \JNicaragua\j.
#
"October 2, 1996",274,0,0,0
European countries voice their support of Palestinian demands for the closure of the \JJerusalem\j tunnel and for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from \JHebron\j.
Israel's Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, Palestine's leader, Mr Arafat, King Hussein of Jordan and American President Bill Clinton hold a cordial meeting at the White House to discuss the Middle East peace.
Hong Kong's British Governor, Mr Chris Patten, challenges the Chinese authorities to leave Hong Kong as a free and democratic society.
In \JAfghanistan\j the Talibaan militia pursue the ousted government's top military commander, Mr Ahmed Shah Massoud, who is on the run.
The American Government concedes that over 15,000 troops could have been exposed to chemical weapons during the Gulf War.
A Peruvian \Jaircraft\j crashes near Lima, the capital of \JPeru\j, killing almost all of the 70 passengers and crew on board.
The UN Security Council votes to remove sanctions placed on the former Yugoslavia in 1992.
The Canadian Mounties uncover one of the largest illegal drug laboratories ever in North America, the drugs are said to be worth almost US$42 million.
A major Indonesian military figure warns the former pro-democracy leader, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, to stop creating trouble.
Mr Alexander Lebed, the Russian security chief, says that \JRussia\j should get involved in the Afghan crisis and assist retreating government troops.
#
"October 3, 1996",275,0,0,0
Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese opposition leader, promises to continue fighting for democracy in \JBurma\j.
Talibaan militia gather at the mouth of the \JSalang\j tunnel in northern \JAfghanistan\j, waiting for an order to fight with the troops of Uzbed warlord General Abdul Rashid Dostum.
As Palestinian officials return home, they claim that the peace summit held in Washington, US between Israel and Palestine was a failure, after the Israeli Prime Minister refused to compromise and fears of violence escalated.
Wislawa Szymborska, a Polish poet, wins the $1.4 million 1996 Nobel Prize for Literature.
The crash of a Peruvian \Jaircraft\j yesterday is attributed to a faulty computer navigation system.
#
"October 4, 1996",276,0,0,0
A report by the IUCN-World Conservation Union claims that a quarter of the world's \Jmammal\j species are in danger of \Jextinction\j.
To gain a final settlement to the Chechen war, Russian and Chechen leaders sign a joint statement which aims to maintain peace.
Leaders of \JRussia\j and four central Asian republics prepare to meet to talk about security on the southern border areas, following the Talibaan militia's rise to power in \JAfghanistan\j.
In \JJapan\j the world's first "paperless" newspaper is sold, it comes in the form of a small electronic wallet.
An Australian pilot who was held captive in \JSomalia\j for 131 days is released from jail.
Israel wants to impose severe controls on Palestinian police to avoid them from ever shooting against the Jewish State.
Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic and Bosnian leader Dr Alija Izetbegovic meet in Paris and agree to exchange ambassadors which is a pre-condition of the Dayton agreement.
The Russian national security chief, Mr Alexander Lebed, threatens to resign over President Boris Yeltsin's choice of candidate for a military appointment.
The United States forbids Burmese military leaders and their families to enter the US, following the authority's crackdown on the Burmese opposition party.
#
"October 5, 1996",277,0,0,0
Pope John Paul II is admitted to \Jhospital\j for an appendix operation.
In \JIceland\j a \Jvolcano\j erupts under a \Jglacier\j, and is in danger of bursting the ice cap which could lead to severe flooding.
It is announced that the American State Department will conduct an inquiry into what happened to the gold booty which the Nazis accumulated during the Second World War.
#
"October 6, 1996",278,0,0,0
Serbian leaders refuse to attend the first session of Bosnia's newly elected parliament which hampers the peace process and is seen as a blow to the new post-war government.
In \JBurma\j, authorities release more than 50 supporters of opposition leader Ms Aung San Suu Kyi.
Yao Wenyuan, the only remaining survivor of China's "Gang of Four" is declared officially free.
Clashes occur between Islamic Talibaan militia and ex-government troops in Panjshir valley, \JAfghanistan\j.
The North Korean Government arrests an American citizen who is charged with spying for South Korea.
Mr Warren Christopher, the US Secretary of State, commences talks with Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, in an attempt to encourage a peace settlement between Israel and Palestine.
#
"October 7, 1996",279,0,0,0
Mr Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian President, prepares to fly to Israel for peace talks with Israeli President Mr Ezer Weizman.
Australian Professor Peter Doherty wins the Nobel Prize for Medicine in conjunction with Professor Rolf Zinkernagel of \JSwitzerland\j.
Talibaan rebel fighters continue to clash with ex-government troops in northern \JAfghanistan\j, while requesting international recognition and aid.
Taiwanese and Hong Kong demonstrators land on the disputed Diaoyu islands, while \JJapan\j tries to instill calm into the situation.
After a major televised debate, American President Bill Clinton continues to take the lead in the polls over Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole.
Concern mounts over Pope John Paul II's health, as it is rumored that he may be suffering from more than an inflamed appendix.
In Kashmir, India, Muslim rebels kill seven supporters of the National Conference Party in an act of revenge against people who assisted in the general elections.
#
"October 8, 1996",280,0,0,0
The IRA plants two car bombs at British army barracks in Lisburn, Northern Ireland injuring 23 people and placing the peace process in danger.
The Palestinian President, Mr Yasser Arafat, arrives in Israel for talks with Israeli President Mr Ezer Weizman.
It is claimed that Talibaan militia allegedly used poison gas against government troops in Kabul, \JAfghanistan\j.
Fighting continues in \JAfghanistan\j between Talibaan militia and troops loyal to the former government.
In \JCambodia\j five Khmer Rouge divisions, which amounts to 5,000 soldiers, desert and align themselves with the Cambodian Government.
Demonstrations against the economic policies of Pakistani Prime Minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, take place in \JLahore\j, \JPakistan\j.
A report published by Earthscan claims that the world's population will top 10.6 billion in 2080.
Pope John Paul II undergoes an appendicitis operation and is given a clean bill of health.
#
"October 9, 1996",281,0,0,0
In an effort to curb further political unrest, the Indonesian Government lays charges against many supporters of pro-democracy leader Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri.
Ex-government troops in \JAfghanistan\j corner a large portion of the Islamic Talibaan militia in the \JSalang\j Pass as well as wounding many of their opponents in the clashes.
The IRA admits responsibility for the recent car bomb attacks at British army barracks in Lisburn, while Northern Ireland seems set for a bout of renewed violence.
In Kashmir, India, pro-India party leader, Dr Farooq Abdullah, takes office as head of the region's first government in seven years.
King Hussein of Jordan, Israel's closest ally, cautions that there could be another war in the Middle East due to the Israeli Prime Minister's conceitedness.
#
"October 10, 1996",282,0,0,0
Talibaan militia in Kabul, \JAfghanistan\j begin to forcefully conscript young men and boys to fight against their opposition in the north of the country, as the UN evacuates its foreign staff.
All legal cases against the Indonesian Government brought to court by democracy leader Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri are thrown out by the authorities.
The State of \JBavaria\j warns that it will expatriate Bosnian war refugees.
In an effort to improve relations between Israel and Jordan, Israel will send a special envoy to Jordan.
Former Indian Prime Minister Mr P. V. Narasimha Rao is formally charged with \Jforgery\j and released on bail.
#
"October 11, 1996",283,0,0,0
Mr Carl Bildt, an international mediator, calls on foreign peacekeeping forces to remain in Bosnia until 1998 to help the peace process.
Five people die in the Indonesian town of Situbondo in East Java, after riots break out in which property and churches are demolished.
After four days of talks on the Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank town of \JHebron\j, the Palestinian President, Mr Yasser Arafat, claims that no progress has been achieved.
Mr Magnus Malan, the ex-South African Defense Minister, has charges of ordering the murder of 13 black people dismissed.
Afghan fighters attack Talibaan militia near the Bagram air base north of Kabul in \JAfghanistan\j.
The Nobel Peace Prize is given to the Most Rev Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo and Mr Jose Ramos-Horta for their peace-making attempts in East Timor-the award is unlikely be viewed kindly by the Indonesian authorities.
The Canadian Defense Ministry demands an inquiry into photographs which show troops posing with the remnants of people who were killed by a minefield in \JKuwait\j in the Gulf War.
#
"October 12, 1996",284,0,0,0
It is announced that Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, wishes to withdraw nearly all Israeli forces from the West Bank town of \JHebron\j.
#
"October 13, 1996",285,0,0,0
Indonesian President, Mr Soeharto, condemns the decision to award the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize to political activist Mr Jose Ramos-Horta.
Civilians are wounded during clashes between forces loyal to the former Afghan Government and Talibaan militia, just north of Kabul, \JAfghanistan\j.
Mr Theodore Miriung, the Premier of Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, is assassinated.
In Washington, D.C. thousands of Hispanic people demonstrate against \Jimmigration\j and welfare reforms.
Kurdish rebels opposed to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein occupy the northern area of Sulaymaniya which they had lost a month ago to a Kurdish faction backed by Saddam Hussein.
In a report by the Indonesian Commission of Human Rights, the Indonesian Government and security forces are charged with initiating two days of riots in Jakarta in July.
#
"October 14, 1996",286,0,0,0
The Vatican announces that Pope John Paul II is suffering from Parkinson's disease.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo condemns \JIndonesia\j's military rule in East \JTimor\j, \JIndonesia\j.
In \JAfghanistan\j ex-government troops recapture two critical towns north of Kabul.
The US suggests a 24-hour delay for any further talks between Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu, giving them time to iron out differences over Israel's delayed withdrawal from \JHebron\j.
Indonesian pro-democracy leader Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri attends the trials of 60 of her supporters who are charged with rioting.
Mr Newt Gingrich, the speaker of the US States Congress, demands an inquiry to ascertain if the Clinton administration favored an Indonesian business which had contributed $US800,000 to Democratic Party campaigns since 1992.
#
"October 15, 1996",287,0,0,0
Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Belo meets with Indonesian President Soeharto in Dili, East \JTimor\j.
In Korea 468 students go to court on charges of organizing violent pro-North Korean demonstrations in August.
In \JAfghanistan\j, Talibaan militia and ex-government forces continue to clash, as fighting closes in on the capital Kabul.
In the American presidential campaign President Clinton is accused of allegedly taking donations from rich Indonesians which may have influenced his policies on East \JTimor\j.
King Hussein of Jordan travels to the West Bank to meet with Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, in a demonstration of support for the Palestinians in their dispute with Israel.
A Kurdish faction backed by Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein goes to Arbil in northern \JIraq\j to defend it against fighters from an opposing Kurdish group.
#
"October 16, 1996",288,0,0,0
In the American presidential campaign, Republican nominee Bob Dole launches an attack on President Bill Clinton's character and morals.
Britain is likely to ban all handguns, except small calibre guns, in light of a report issued on the massacre in Dunblane, Scotland.
Ex-government forces in Kabul, \JAfghanistan\j warn Talibaan militia that they will not give up their fight for the capital Kabul.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is given the go-ahead for heart surgery.
The American Administration is getting reconnaissance \Jaircraft\j ready to observe North Korea's test firing of a nuclear Nodong-1 missile.
The Japanese Liberal Democratic Party is being touted as the likely winner of the forthcoming general elections in \JJapan\j.
#
"October 17, 1996",289,0,0,0
It seems very likely that American President Bill Clinton will win another four-year term in office.
Papua New Guinea Defense Force troops are linked to the recent murder of Theodore Miriung, the premier of the island of Bougainville.
Russian Security Chief Alexander Lebed is denounced for allegedly planning a coup.
Jewish people in the West Bank town of \JHebron\j caution that they will use private troops to protect them from Palestinian attacks if Israeli forces are withdrawn.
Iraqi Kurdish rebels attempt to regain the city of Arbil in northern \JIraq\j from an Iraqi-backed rival group.
In \JPakistan\j, Imran Khan, former cricketer and now politician, is preparing to file charges of corruption against the Prime Minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto and her husband, Mr Asif Ali Zardari.
A union between two of \JAfghanistan\j's fighting forces endangers the Talibaan militia's stronghold over Kabul.
In \JGuatemala\j City, nearly 83 people are crushed to death in a stampede as \Jsoccer\j fans rush to get into an overcrowded \Jsoccer\j stadium.
Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission sends people to East Java to study the causes of the Situbondo riot which left five people dead.
#
"October 18, 1996",290,0,0,0
Russian President Boris Yeltsin sacks national security chief Alexander Lebed.
The Clinton Administration announces that it intends to go ahead with the sale of nine F-16 jet fighters to \JIndonesia\j.
It is believed that the crash of the TWA Flight 800 in July was caused by a mechanical failure and not a bomb as previously suspected.
The Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP) warns that it will ask for help from Iraqi President Saddam Hussein if Western countries convince \JIran\j to stop supporting rival groups.
The former Afghan government's military leader, General Ahmad Shah Massoud, demands that Talibaan militia withdraw from the capital of \JAfghanistan\j, Kabul, and hand it over to the UN or else go to war.
The American Senate banking committee accuses Swiss banks of profiting from victims of the \JHolocaust\j by diverting money taken from Jews to Swiss citizens.
A badly planned event led to yesterday's stampede at a \Jsoccer\j stadium in \JGuatemala\j City which killed 83 people.
Mr Newt Gingrich, the US House Speaker, demands that the sale of F-16 jet fighters to \JIndonesia\j be suspended until an investigation is made into political donations by wealthy Indonesians to the Democrats.
#
"October 19, 1996",291,0,0,0
Russian President Boris Yeltsin names a moderate, Mr Ivan Rybkin, as the new Russian security chief.
The United States begins to evacuate nearly 700 Iraqi refugees who were forced to flee from an Iraqi-backed Kurdish faction.
#
"October 20, 1996",292,0,0,0
Talks are delayed again between Israel and Palestine on the Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank town of \JHebron\j.
In the US two opinion polls show that President Bill Clinton holds a large lead over Republican opponent Bob Dole.
Former Afghan military leader General Ahmad Shah Massoud orders rockets to be fired on the capital of \JAfghanistan\j, Kabul, as a warning to the Talibaan militia.
The Japanese Liberal Democratic Party looks likely to win \JJapan\j's general elections.
#
"October 21, 1996",293,0,0,0
In Brussels, the \JBelgium\j Prime Minister, Mr Dehaene, guarantees major changes in the legal system after thousands of people demonstrate against the handling of a recent pedophile case.
The \JPhilippines\j bans Nobel Peace Prize winner Mr Jose Ramos-Horta from visiting Manila during the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit, as they say he would embarrass the government.
Fighting continues between Talibaan militia and former government forces north of Kabul, \JAfghanistan\j.
The Japanese Prime Minister, Mr Hashimoto's Liberal Democratic Party prepares to establish a new government without forming a coalition.
The outcry over donations by the Indonesian Lippo group to the American Democratic Party is encouraging the two presidential nominees to promise reform when it comes to campaign contributions.
Hong Kong's Catholic bishop, Cardinal John Baptist Wu Cheng-chung, discloses that he will retire on July 1, 1997-the day Hong Kong is handed over to China-signaling the Catholic Church expects problems under Chinese rule.
#
"October 22, 1996",294,0,0,0
Australia fails to gain non-permanent membership to the United Nations Security Council.
Nicaraguan people vote for Mr Arnoldo Aleman of the Liberal Alliance for president-he defeated Sandinista leader and ex-president Mr Daniel Ortega.
As the US fails to reach a solution in talks between Israel and Palestine over the Israeli withdrawal from \JHebron\j, there is pressure on Israel to accept more involvement from Europe.
Documents belonging to the late Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi, discovered after 50 years, are put up for sale.
Thousands of Hutu refugees from \JRwanda\j and \JBurundi\j escape to eastern Zaire to avoid fighting between Zairean forces and ethnic Tutsis.
General Abdul Rashid Dostum, leader of former Afghan government forces, issues a warning to Talibaan militia to withdraw from Kabul, as international pressure increases for a cease-fire.
Former South African President, Mr P. W. Botha, and two of his cabinet ministers, are blamed for ordering a spate of violence in the 1980s.
The Indonesian Government disclaims any connection with the disputed contributions by an Indonesian businessman to the American Democratic Party.
Mr Vytautas Landsbergis, the Lithuanian independent leader, defeats former communist opponents in \JLithuania\j's parliamentary elections.
#
"October 23, 1996",295,0,0,0
In southern \JCalifornia\j, USA, thousands of people are forced to flee their homes as the area is hit by fire-storms.
French President Jacques Chirac appeals to \JArabs\j to give up using violence to gain a Palestinian state.
American President Bill Clinton recommends that \JNATO\j be expanded and shoul allow the entry of former Soviet bloc countries by the year 1999.
Lawyers acting for supporters of former Indonesian opposition leader, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, abandon the law courts, claiming that the judge was conducting an unfair trial.
Fighting in eastern Zaire between ethnic Tutsis and Zairean troops prevents vital food supplies from reaching thousands of refugees.
The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission warns that it will \Jsubpoena\j ex-president Mr P. W. Botha over \Japartheid\j crimes unless he assists with investigations.
The Norwegian Prime Minister, Mrs Gro Harlem Brundtland, announces her resignation.
An American Boeing 707 cargo plane explodes in mid-air over Manta, \JEcuador\j, killing at least 100 people.
#
"October 24, 1996",296,0,0,0
Authorities in \JBurma\j continue to hold Mr Kyi Maung-a senior adviser to the democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi-in custody.
The Russian Prime Minister, Mr Victor Chernomyrdin, warns the Russian secret service to stay out of the political tussle for power.
The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) launches rockets and shells at a rival Kurdish faction in northern \JIraq\j which destroys the cease-fire established by the US just hours earlier.
It is alleged that documents uncovered reveal that the sacked Russian security chief, Mr Alexander Lebed, was planning to stage a coup d'Θtat against Mr Yeltsin's government.
On the anniversary of former Israeli Prime Minister Itzhak Rabin's death, hundreds of people march peacefully in his memory.
Thousands of Hutu refugees seek refuge in the town of Bukavu, Zaire to avoid fighting between the Zairean army and Tutsis.
French Prime Minister Jacques Chirac again requests a greater role for Europe in the failing Middle East peace talks despite the offer previously being refused by the US and Israel.
Swiss authorities will establish an investigative body to conduct an inquiry into the missing Jewish assets which were placed in Swiss banks during the Nazi German rule.
It is believed that Mrs Gro Harlem Brundtland, who resigned as \JNorway\j's Prime Minister, may be seeking the United Nations Secretary-General position.
#
"October 25, 1996",297,0,0,0
American investigators are yet to discover the cause of the TWA Flight 800 crash in July.
In \JPakistan\j 11 policemen are charged in connection with the death of the Prime Minister's brother, Mr Murtaza Bhutto.
Two Israeli soldiers are killed and four others wounded in a bomb attack in south \JLebanon\j.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin tells his political enemies to stop squabbling in what is seen as an attempt to reassert his power.
It is believed that the UN Secretary-General, Dr Boutros Boutros-Ghali, will call a regional conference to discuss the crisis in Zaire, \JRwanda\j and \JBurundi\j.
Hundreds of people riot in St Petersburg, \JFlorida\j, USA after police fatally shoot a black motorist.
Talibaan militia use MiG fighters to bomb villages north of Kabul and succeed in pushing back rival General Ahmad Shad Massoud's forces.
Mr Lee Yang-Ho, the former South Korean defense minister, and three businessmen from the company Daewoo, face charges of corruption and bribery.
Indonesian military authorities claim that a riot held in Situbondo, East Java, in which five people were killed, was organized.
China announces that it wishes to send Chinese troops to Hong Kong for defense reasons before the 1997 handover of Hong Kong to China.
The Japanese Prime Minister continues to search for political allies to join his coalition which would enable him to form a new government.
In \JBurma\j, Mr Kyi Maung, senior advisor to democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, is still held in custody, while Ms Suu Kyi is effectively under house arrest once again.
#
"October 26, 1996",298,0,0,0
In St Petersburg, \JFlorida\j, USA a state of emergency is declared and the sale of handguns is stopped after rioting erupted when a black motorist was fatally shot by police.
Europe, USA, \JJapan\j, and \JAustralia\j put international pressure on the Burmese authorities after the arrest of democracy leader Ms Aung San Suu Kyi's senior advisor Mr Kyi Maung.
#
"October 27, 1996",299,0,0,0
Media magnate Rupert Murdoch makes a US$1 million contribution to the Californian Republican party.
As fighting between Tutsi rebels and the Zairean army continues in Zaire, it is feared that a humanitarian crisis will erupt in this part of Africa.
American security guard, Mr Robert Jewell, the prime suspect in the July \JAtlanta\j Olympic bombing, is officially declared innocent by Federal authorities.
Prior to the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) summit, the \JPhilippines\j Government tightens its security, banning entry to many human rights activists.
In Saudi \JArabia\j authorities arrest three Saudis and three Shi'ite Muslims in connection with a truck bombing in June which killed 19 American soldiers in the City of Dhahran.
In an attempt to put pressure on the Burmese authorities, \JBurma\j's military leaders will not be allowed to enter any country in the European Union.
#
"October 28, 1996",300,0,0,0
General Abdul Rashid Dostum's forces launch ground and air attacks on the Talibaan militia, however they have no impact on the Talibaan's position.
In \JCairo\j, \JEgypt\j at least 100 people are killed after an apartment block collapses.
Maung Kyi, senior advisor to Burmese democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, is released from custody.
The American Administration and Arab leaders put pressure on Israel and Palestine to finalize details on the Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank town of \JHebron\j.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, is publicly criticized over the proposed Israeli withdrawal from \JHebron\j by his brother-in-law Mr Haggai Ben-Artzi, who announced his resignation from the Likud Party and his intention to move to \JHebron\j.
Tutsi fighters continue to defeat Zaire's armed forces, threatening to divide up Zaire.
#
"October 29, 1996",301,0,0,0
Russian President Boris Yeltsin cancels his meetings held in \Jhospital\j which is seen as another signal of his weakening political power.
Authorities in \JRwanda\j claim that they have no involvement in the crisis in Zaire.
In \JPakistan\j, police and soldiers stop nearly 2,000 demonstrating militant Islamic students from mobbing the national parliament in what is seen as an effort to start a constitutional crisis.
The Australian Government is criticized by South-East Asian newspapers and magazines over its policy towards Asia.
In the United States the Democrat and Republican parties, in the final week in the run up to presidential elections, embark on campaigns to convince the public to vote.
In Baukavu, Zaire soldiers and citizens run amuck and begin looting, while the UN attempts to get supplies to nearly 700,000 Hutu refugees fleeing the violence.
It is estimated by researchers at the University of \JIndonesia\j that between 12,000 and 31,000 people die from AIDS in \JIndonesia\j every year.
#
"October 30, 1996",302,0,0,0
Former South African \Japartheid\j assassin, Mr Eugene de Kock, is jailed for life.
The American Republican Party attacks the Democrat Party for failing to disclose in a report presidential campaign donations and spending.
Chinese dissident, Mr Wang Dan, is given a ten-year jail sentence after being found guilty of planning to overthrow the Chinese Government.
Zairean President, Mr Sese Seko Mobutu, from his sickbed in \JSwitzerland\j, attempts to restore calm to Zaire and orders the eastern provinces of South and North Kivu to be put under military control.
The Japanese Liberal Democratic Party is unsuccessful in its attempt to gain the support of former coalition members or independents which will mean a shaky minority government.
Rioting occurs in the occupied West Bank, \JHebron\j after an Arab boy is allegedly bashed to death by a Jewish settler.
#
"October 31, 1996",303,0,0,0
In Sao Paulo, \JBrazil\j, 95 people are killed after an \Jaircraft\j crashes into a residential area minutes after takeoff.
Rwanda and Zaire are on the brink of a full-scale war, as fighting continues in eastern Zaire.
The Zairean President, Mr Mobutu, continues his exile in \JSwitzerland\j and, as yet, has made no announcement on the fighting in Zaire.
Former Afghan Government troops bomb the capital of \JAfghanistan\j, Kabul, and attack Islamic Talibaan militia north of Kabul.
The Japanese Liberal Party comes to an agreement with former coalition partners which allows it to form a new government.
American President Bill Clinton maintains a 16-point lead over his Republican opponent Bob Dole in the US presidential campaign.
#
"November 1, 1996",304,0,0,0
Chinese dissident Wang Dan's harsh jail sentence of 11 years raises fears about how the Chinese authorities will handle criticism once it resumes control of Hong Kong.
French film director, Marcel CarnΘ, dies.
British scientists allege that they have uncovered evidence of life on Mars which dates back 600,000 years.
The new United Nations delegate to central Africa, Mr Raymond ChrΘtien, announces that his first task will be to work towards a cease-fire in Zaire.
International aid organizations are preparing to evacuate over 100 foreign employees from the town of Goma in eastern Zaire.
The Zairean Parliament votes to cut diplomatic relations with \JRwanda\j, \JBurundi\j, and \JUganda\j.
Former Bulgarian prime minister Andrei Lukanov is murdered.
Fighting between Islamic Talibaan militia and former Afghan government soldiers continues in \JAfghanistan\j.
Pope John II nominates Monsignor Joseph Zen as successor to Hong Kong's Cardinal John Baptist Wu Cheng-chung, who will retire when China resumes control of Hong Kong in 1997.
The Serbian President, Mr Slobodan Milosevic, claims that his coalition will win the Yugoslav elections.
American Republican challenger Bob Dole continues his battle in the presidential campaign against heavy odds - American President Bill Clinton holds a double-digit lead.
Indian authorities lay more corruption charges against former Indian prime minister, Mr P. V. Narasimha Rao.
After 14 years in power, German Chancellor Dr Helmut Kohl sets a record as \JGermany\j's longest-serving Chancellor this century.
#
"November 2, 1996",305,0,0,0
All aid workers in Goma, eastern Zaire, are evacuated to the Town of Gisenyi, \JRwanda\j.
It is predicted that only 55% of the voting population will vote in the American elections this coming week.
#
"November 3, 1996",306,0,0,0
After international aid agencies withdraw from Zaire, efforts to get food to more than one million Rwandan and Burundian refugees fail, which leaves thousands dying from starvation.
It is feared if aid is not given to the one million refugees in Zaire, the crisis could lead to the biggest humanitarian catastrophe in the world.
The Rwandan army takes over the town of Goma in eastern Zaire.
American navy divers undertake a final trip to retrieve wreckage from TWA Flight 800 which crashed in July.
In the Egyptian port of Alexandria, archaeologists on a diving expedition believe that they have uncovered the remains of the Lighthouse of Pharos and the royal palace of Cleopatra.
Israelis gather to commemorate the death of former prime minister, Yitzhak Rabin, who was assassinated a year ago.
Yugoslavs vote in the general elections.
Allegations over donations to the American Democrat Party begin to erode President Bill Clinton's lead in the presidential campaign.
The Australian Government announces that it will continue to push for better human rights in \JBurma\j but will not join other Western countries in imposing sanctions.
The Cambodian Government comes to a peace agreement with a renegade faction of the Khmer Rouge.
#
"November 4, 1996",307,0,0,0
The United Nations attempts to find a way to get involved in the crisis in Zaire and re-establish aid to the area.
An Irish newspaper claims that the British Government and the Irish Republican Army are involved in secret talks via a middleman in an attempt to restore the cease-fire in Northern Ireland.
Another main Khmer Rouge faction, led by Nuon Paet, agrees to unite with the Cambodian Government forces.
#
"November 5, 1996",308,0,0,0
In \JBurma\j, authorities arrest a dozen supporters of democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, after stopping them from going to hear her deliver a speech.
An October plane crash in Lima, \JPeru\j, is believed to have been caused by workers forgetting to take off duct tape from critical sensors after cleaning the \Jaircraft\j.
A Zairean rebel leader announces a three-week cease-fire between Zaire's army and Tutsi fighters in Zaire.
Medical authorities successfully perform multiple heart by-pass surgery on Russian President Boris Yeltsin.
The American public votes in the presidential and congressional elections.
The President of \JPakistan\j, Farooq Ahmed Leghari, sacks Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and her government, after accusations of corruption are made.
#
"November 6, 1996",309,0,0,0
The sacked Pakistani Prime Minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, claims that her government's removal was a constitutional coup and promises to regain her position in the February elections.
US President Bill Clinton wins a second term in office but his Democrat Party fails to gain a majority number of seats in the Congress or Senate.
A UN report alleges that Rwandan Hutu rebels, who are fighting in eastern Zaire, have been supplied with weapons from Europe and South Africa.
Plans are drawn up to send a UN force to eastern Zaire in an attempt to rescue more than one million refugees.
Not quite a day after undergoing heart by-pass surgery, Russian President Boris Yeltsin resumes full presidential powers.
#
"November 7, 1996",310,0,0,0
Sacked Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto condemns her former friend and colleague President Farooq Leghari for dismissing her.
Japan re-elects Mr Hashimoto, the leader of \JJapan\j's Liberal Democratic Party, as Prime Minister.
Plans for an international force to rescue more than 1.2 million refugees in eastern Zaire are drawn up after receiving the go-ahead from the Zairean President, Mr Mobutu.
Bosnian Serbs destroy the homes of Muslims who had asked for permission to visit their villages in a Serb-controlled region.
Republican leaders of Congress offer support to the newly-elected American President Bill Clinton.
In an effort to satisfy the American human rights movement, Chinese authorities release dissident Mr Chen Ziming on medical parole, prior to the US Secretary of State, Mr Warren Christopher's visit to China.
#
"November 8, 1996",311,0,0,0
Russian President Boris Yeltsin continues to make a speedy recovery from recent heart by-pass surgery.
In London, UK, the infamous Carnaby Street is sold for ú90 million.
The Cambodian Government holds a ceremony to welcome thousands of former Khmer Rouge fighters into its army.
It is revealed that the Bosnian Government has been caught smuggling heavy artillery arms into Bosnia via southern \JCroatia\j.
It is alleged that TWA Flight 800 which crashed in July, was mistakenly shot down by a missile fired by a US Navy warship.
As the Clinton Administration in the US heads to another term in office, key members of the Cabinet resign, including Secretary of State Warren Christopher.
In Lagos, \JNigeria\j, a Boeing 727 crashes and all 141 people on board are presumed dead.
NASA launches the American Mars Global Surveyor on a mission to locate life on Mars.
Mr Imran Khan, former cricketer and now politician, is on the campaign trail in \JPakistan\j and condemns sacked Pakistani Prime Minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto.
The cease-fire in Zaire fails, which sees the renewal of fighting in a violent civil war.
As the international community slowly draws up plans for international aid to Zaire, Zairean refugees are "dying like flies".
In \JAfghanistan\j, Islamic Talibaan militia are told that international aid will be cut unless they halt the cultivation of opium.
A cyclone in India's south-eastern state of Andhra Pradesh kills up to 2,000 people.
#
"November 9, 1996",312,0,0,0
American President Bill Clinton announces that businessman, Mr Erskine Bowles, will be his new chief of staff.
#
"November 10, 1996",313,0,0,0
The US Navy and \JFBI\j deny that TWA Flight 800 was shot down by an American missile.
Zairean President Mr Mobutu promises to return to Zaire in several weeks time to handle the growing crisis there.
American singer Frank Sinatra is released from \Jhospital\j after a health scare.
In Papua New Guinea, authorities place main towns on a curfew, following a period of violent crime.
International figures criticize the United Nations for failing to go to the assistance of one million refugees in Zaire.
It is announced that sacked Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and her husband Asif Ali Zardari, will have criminal charges laid against them.
Thirteen people are killed in a bomb explosion at a Moscow cemetery.
#
"November 11, 1996",314,0,0,0
A UN spokesperson announces that Zairean rebels are willing to allow access via a humanitarian corridor to more than one million Rwandan and Burundian refugees who are trapped by the fighting.
The Khmer Rouge gives Nuon Paet, a well-known leader of the guerrilla faction, the status of "hero".
China forbids the importation of certain American goods, which will aggravate trade relations between the American Administration and China.
The Burmese democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, asks the European Union to impose sanctions against \JBurma\j's military authorities.
Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, the Indonesian opposition leader, reveals that she was informed prior to her party headquarters being taken over in July.
In \JRussia\j, police commence a search for the people responsible for planting a bomb at a Moscow cemetery - the explosion killed 13 people.
The Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, calls on a European Union delegation to convince Israel to implement its plan to remove troops from the West Bank town of \JHebron\j.
#
"November 12, 1996",315,0,0,0
Pro-government supporters demonstrating in Jakarta call for Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Carlos Belo to be banished from \JIndonesia\j.
Mr Warren Christopher, on his last overseas trip to Israel before resigning as American Secretary of State, attempts to negotiate a peace settlement between the Israelis and Palestinians.
General Ratko Mladic fails to obey orders from the Bosnian Serb President, Ms Biljana Plavsic, to resign as army leader.
International aid agencies manage to get some supplies to starving refugees in Goma, eastern Zaire, but are given severe warnings about making any deals with Tutsi rebel fighters.
An investigation claims that the American \JCIA\j is innocent of charges of introducing cheap \Jcocaine\j onto the streets of LA and using the profits to fund \JCIA\j training of Nicaraguan Contras.
#
"November 13, 1996",316,0,0,0
A Saudi jumbo jet and a Kazakh \Jaircraft\j crash in mid-air over New Delhi, India, killing all 351 passengers and crew.
In \JSwitzerland\j, $US1.3 million in assets belonging to Jewish victims of the Nazi \Jholocaust\j has been discovered by the Swiss banking ombudsman.
Zairean President Mr Mobutu wants more than one million Hutu refugees to return home to \JRwanda\j.
Serb police and Muslim citizens fight in Celic, Bosnia - the most serious violation of the cease-fire since the general elections.
Former Pakistani Prime Minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, goes to court in an attempt to overturn the decision by President Farooq Leghari to sack her.
An \Jearthquake\j in southern \JPeru\j kills seven people and injures 500 others.
International aid organizations are stopped by rebels from reaching thousands of refugees in Bukavu, Eastern Zaire, while plans to send an international force to Zaire are discussed.
#
"November 14, 1996",317,0,0,0
American President Bill Clinton grudgingly promises to send 1,000 soldiers to Zaire as part of an international humanitarian rescue mission led by Canada.
Air traffic controllers are blamed for the recent crash between a Kazakh cargo plane and a Saudi jumbo in India.
Pope John Paul II gives the first address at the beginning of the World Food Summit which is being held in \JRome\j.
Demonstrations in support of the Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Carlos Filipe Belo are held in Dili, East \JTimor\j.
Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, postpones a trip to the US so he can take control of discussions on the withdrawal of troops from the town of \JHebron\j on the West Bank.
The wrangle for control of the Bosnian army continues, as Bosnian Serb leaders attempt to reach a compromise.
#
"November 15, 1996",318,0,0,0
In Israel, the High Court allows the secret police the power to torture an Islamic extremist to glean information about a terrorist attack.
Reactions to the proposed Zaire international peace force are mixed, while Tutsi rebels claim that the limited mandate of the force will render it useless.
Mr Nelson Mandela, the South African President, sends a team to \JTanzania\j for discussions on South Africa's role in the international rescue mission to Zaire.
Palestinians in the West Bank town of \JHebron\j celebrate the forthcoming withdrawal of Israeli troops.
In Sydney, \JAustralia\j, touring pop star Michael Jackson marries Ms Debbie Rowe, who is expecting their first child early in 1997.
#
"November 16, 1996",319,0,0,0
American President Bill Clinton announces that 10,000 soldiers will remain in the NATO-led force in Bosnia.
#
"November 17, 1996",320,0,0,0
Hundreds of thousands of Rwandan Hutu refugees return to \JRwanda\j, inundating aid organizations and forcing the West to rethink the role of the multinational humanitarian force.
Indonesian authorities tell Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Carlos Ximines Filipe Belo to keep out of politics.
Shipping tycoon, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, looks likely to become Hong Kong's first leader under Chinese rule.
A bomb explodes in a military apartment block in the southern Russian republic of Dagestan, killing 17 people and injuring many others.
#
"November 18, 1996",321,0,0,0
A Russian Mars probe, experiencing rocket motor failure, crashes in the Pacific Ocean off Easter Island, west of \JChile\j.
It is revealed that European armaments companies sold weapons to the exiled Hutu army.
The international humanitarian mission to help out refugees in Zaire is put in doubt as thousands of refugees return to \JRwanda\j.
Authorities arrest another minister from the sacked Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's government.
The American oil company, Texaco, pays out $US176 million to settle a case of racial discrimination - the largest payout in US history.
#
"November 19, 1996",322,0,0,0
A fire breaks out on a freight train traveling through the Channel Tunnel from \JFrance\j to England, injuring 34 people.
An ex-military leader, Mr Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, is set to become \JThailand\j's next prime minister, after making a coalition deal with one of his former enemies.
Cuban leader Fidel Castro meets with Pope John Paul II in \JRome\j.
Aid organizations say the crisis in central Africa is far from over and would still welcome some military assistance with their relief efforts.
In the wake of the Dunblane massacre, the British Government refuses to institute a ban on all handguns.
Factions fighting in \JAfghanistan\j admit to a UN envoy that they are willing to come to an agreement on a cease-fire but do not know how it would be implemented.
#
"November 20, 1996",323,0,0,0
American President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, visit \JAustralia\j en route to the APEC forum in Manila, the \JPhilippines\j.
Plans to send an international military force to Zaire are postponed, as \JRwanda\j does not want military intervention.
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's legal battle to get her government reinstated suffers a delay as parts of her petition are deemed irrelevant and scandalous.
Authorities allow the Miss World competition to proceed in India despite widespread protests.
The US puts pressure on the United Nations Secretary-General Dr Boutros Boutros-Ghali to resign - the only nation to withdraw support for Dr Boutros-Ghali's second term in office.
NASA launches Columbia, the 15-year-old American space shuttle, on a scientific mission, carrying the oldest \Jastronaut\j ever, 61-year-old Dr Story Musgrave.
#
"November 21, 1996",324,0,0,0
At least 39 people die when a 16-story office block in Hong Kong catches fire.
Australia supports US opposition to a move by Asian governments to increase membership of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC).
Mr Newt Gingrich is re-elected as Speaker of the American House of Representatives.
Germany and Bosnia make a deal to repatriate 300,000 refugees from the war in the former Yugoslavia.
Another group of thousands of Rwandan refugees starts to return to \JRwanda\j, lessening the need for the international UN force.
#
"November 22, 1996",325,0,0,0
In investigations into the worst fire in an office block in Hong Kong, it is claimed that up to 80 per cent of Hong Kong's office buildings are fire traps.
Palestinian authorities claim that they are prepared to fight against the Israeli expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
The Japanese Prime Minister, Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto, claims that donations from two welfare organizations are legal.
Mr P. W. Botha, former South African President, claims that he was not involved in any of the violence during the \Japartheid\j reign.
As discussions about the international humanitarian force to Zaire take place in \JGermany\j, heavy fighting and large refugee movements continue.
Mother Teresa is hospitalized after experiencing heart failure.
In Northern Ireland, British troops detonate a large bomb which had been placed outside the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) headquarters in \JLondonderry\j.
#
"November 23, 1996",326,0,0,0
Over 200,000 Rwandan Hutu refugees, fleeing fighting between Rwandan Hutu troops and Zairean rebels, hide in the mountains in eastern Zaire.
British fashion photographer, Terence Donovan, commits suicide.
#
"November 24, 1996",327,0,0,0
The Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum commences in Manila, the \JPhilippines\j.
An Ethiopian Airlines \Jaircraft\j, which was hijacked over East Africa, crashes in the \JComoros\j Islands after it runs out of fuel, killing at least 120 people.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin orders the withdrawal of Russian troops from \JChechnya\j so it can commence the process to elect its own leaders.
American and British sources reveal that scientists in the UK have carried out radiation tests on humans for the last 30 years.
Rwandan refugees continue their mass exodus to \JRwanda\j, while international humanitarian aid looks in doubt.
In \JBangalore\j, India, authorities arrest over 1,500 people who demonstrated against the Miss World contest.
#
"November 25, 1996",328,0,0,0
Zairean rebels allow UN officials access to evaluate the need for aid to wartime refugees, while plans for an international humanitarian force are still not confirmed.
At the APEC meeting in Manila, \JPhilippines\j, 18 world leaders support a plan to create a single Pacific Rim economy by 2020 as well as the US push to loosen controls on global trade in information technology.
Rescuers continue to pull out bodies from the wreckage of the hijacked Ethiopian airliner which crashed off the \JComoros\j Islands, East Africa.
Egypt, \JSyria\j and Jordan announce their disapproval of Israeli plans to expand Jewish settlements in the occupied Golan Heights.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Bishop Carlos Belo appeals for a fresh start in the relationship between East \JTimor\j and Indonesian authorities.
#
"November 26, 1996",329,0,0,0
In Zaire, Tutsi rebels murder at least 300 Rwandan and Burundian Hutu refugees at Chimanga camp, south-west of Bukavu.
In the civil trial against American footballer O. J. Simpson, who is accused of murdering his ex-wife and her friend, it is revealed that he failed a polygraph test.
French truck drivers strike, causing widespread shortages of food and fuel.
To stave off widespread hunger and disease, \JIraq\j comes to a $US2 billion agreement with the UN regarding selling small amounts of oil to finance its humanitarian requirements.
More than 50,000 people demonstrate in \JBelgrade\j, \JSerbia\j, to force President Milosevic's Socialist Party to accept defeat in the recent elections - results which the Party recently annulled.
One of Albert Einstein's vital scientific manuscripts sells at auction for $US400,000.
Mother Teresa asks to be allowed to die but then permits doctors to conduct an angiogram test.
#
"November 27, 1996",330,0,0,0
Indonesian authorities acquit 124 supporters of opposition leader Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri who were arrested four months ago in connection with riots in Jakarta.
The American Administration claims that the Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu is endangering the Middle East peace talks by proposing to expand Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
French transport workers continue to strike, threatening to bring the country to a standstill.
During his Asian trip, American President Bill Clinton gives his support to the Burmese democracy leader Ms Aung San Suu Kyi and highlights the need for the spread of democracy in Asia.
Thousands of Rwandan Hutu refugees, who had been missing for a month in the bush in East Zaire, appear in Minova, west of Lake Kivu.
#
"November 28, 1996",331,0,0,0
Authorities in \JThailand\j shoot a drug gang after the gang surrenders; the killings are publicly condemned.
In a widespread show of dissatisfaction, Serbs refuse to cast their vote in the new elections called by the Serbian President, Mr Slobodan Milosevic, who was unhappy with the results of the previous election.
General Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb commander of the army, agrees to step down after fighting for control with the President Ms Plavsic.
British comedian and star of the Goons show, Michael Bentine, dies in London.
South African President, Mr Nelson Mandela, announces that South Africa will cut off links with \JTaiwan\j in favor of diplomatic relations with China.
Nearly 126 UN member countries demand an end to the Israeli expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
#
"November 29, 1996",332,0,0,0
It is uncovered that troops from the Papua New Guinea Defense Force, and civilians, were guilty of murdering Bougainville Premier Theodore Miriung.
Muslim academics in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, claim that pages from the world's oldest Koran, dating from AD646-656, have been pulled out and put up for auction by Christie's, the London auctioneers.
In \JBelgrade\j, \JSerbia\j, demonstrations continue against corruption at the ballot and calls are made to overthrow President Slobodan Milosevic.
The international force which was to be sent to Zaire now seems unlikely, although 20 countries agree to parachute food to Rwandan Hutu refugees in Zaire.
Mr F. W. de Klerk, the former South African president, claims that Mr Nelson Mandela gave in to the Chinese communist demands when he decided to stop diplomatic relations with \JTaiwan\j.
Seven weeks after general elections were held in New Zealand, there is still no conclusive results.
Astronauts aboard the space shuttle Columbia are forced to give up attempting a spacewalk after failing to open the hatch.
British Prime Minister John Major refuses to allow the Irish Republican Army to participate in any future peace talks on Northern Ireland until a lasting cease-fire is announced.
#
"November 30, 1996",333,0,0,0
Mother Teresa is in a stable condition after undergoing major heart surgery.
Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir Mohammad, calls Australian Independent MP Pauline Hanson "a little bit moronic" for her anti-Asian \Jimmigration\j opinions.
The United Nations claims that Rwandan-backed Zairean rebels have expanded their power base over much of Zaire's eastern border area.
William Perry, the American Defense Secretary, threatens that the US would go to war if \JIran\j or \JIraq\j presented any military danger.
#
"December 1, 1996",334,0,0,0
The Stone of Scone, a symbol of Scottish nationhood and sovereignty, is returned to Edinburgh Castle - the stone was taken from Scotland in 1296 by King Edward I to punish his enemies.
The French truck strike ends after an agreement is reached.
The leaders of ASEAN remain undecided about giving full membership of ASEAN to \JBurma\j; it was agreed \JBurma\j would join with \JCambodia\j and Laos though no date of entry was given.
Mrs Ghinva Bhutto, the widow of the murdered brother of the former Pakistani prime minister Ms Benazir Bhutto, takes over control of her late husband's party faction.
The United Nations World Food Program reveals that over 150,000 people have died in the civil war in \JBurundi\j and there is a shortage of food and also refugee problems in the country.
Mother Teresa is reported to be in a critical condition at a \JCalcutta\j \Jhospital\j.
#
"December 2, 1996",335,0,0,0
An American history student discovers that Hitler kept secret the fact that thousands of Nazi soldiers were of Jewish origin.
Fears mount that a further crisis is about to erupt in Central Africa, as Zaire and \JUganda\j warn of retaliation against each other as fighting again breaks out in \JBurundi\j.
Demonstrations against President Slobodan Milosevic's Government continue in \JSerbia\j.
Despite widespread denouncement of Israeli expansions of Jewish settlements, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives the go-ahead for houses to be built in the Jordan Valley.
The Thai deputy police chief is alleged to have ordered the shooting of six members of an alleged drug ring.
American pop singer Tiny Tim dies in \JMinneapolis\j, USA.
Japan and the US sign a deal to cut back the size of the disputed US military bases on the Japanese island of \JOkinawa\j by one fifth.
#
"December 3, 1996",336,0,0,0
A Pentagon official announces that an American \Jspacecraft\j has discovered ice on the moon which will have implications for further scientific exploration of the planet.
Mr Vaclav Havel, the President of the Czech Republic, undergoes an operation to treat lung cancer.
African countries put forward alternative candidates for the job of UN Secretary-General which weakens Boutros Boutros-Ghali's campaign to win a second term in office.
Zairean rebels occupy more land and declare they will attempt to overthrow the Government of Zaire.
To ensure residency of Hong Kong, China stipulates that emigrants must return to the island by June 30, 1997.
A gas explosion occurs in a coal mine in Shanxi province, China, killing over 100 workers.
Burmese authorities arrest hundreds of people participating in the largest anti-government demonstrations since 1988.
#
"December 4, 1996",337,0,0,0
A bomb explodes in a passenger train at a Paris underground station, killing two people and injuring 51 others.
One of the world's worst serial murderers, South African Moses Sithole, confesses to killing 29 women - it is alleged that he is responsible for the deaths of at least 38 people.
As widespread anti-government protests continue in \JSerbia\j, the government shuts down the last two remaining independent radio stations.
In Zaire, rebels say that they have occupied three main towns and are about to take over the last government-controlled city in eastern Zaire.
Following large anti-government demonstrations in \JBurma\j, the democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, is again placed under house arrest as authorities clamp down on government opponents.
A cyclone which threatens the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh forces 50,000 to flee their homes.
A volcano erupts on the island of Manam, Papua New Guinea, killing four people and forcing hundreds more to evacuate.
NASA announces it will use its Lunar Prospector \Jspacecraft\j to investigate claims of finding ice on the moon.
The British Public Record Office reveals that Hitler offered the Duke and Duchess of Windsor the office of puppet king and queen of Britain at the beginning of the Second World War.
#
"December 5, 1996",338,0,0,0
The Indonesian Minister for Mines, Mr Ida Bagus Sudjana, is accused of stealing $30.5 million from a state-owned mining company.
In South Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, soldiers attack a church, killing nine people.
The US condemns the Serbian Government for closing radio stations, while widespread anti-government demonstrations continue.
Dr Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the United Nations Secretary-General, postpones his bid for a second term in office so he can observe how much influence other African nations wield in the Security Council.
Israeli and Palestinian authorities agree to meet to discuss the stalemate over \JHebron\j in the West Bank.
Former Japanese vice-health minister, Mr Nobuharu Okamitsu, is arrested on charges of bribery.
Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese opposition leader, is no longer under house arrest.
In \JGuatemala\j, rebel and government leaders agree to sign a peace deal, ending 36 years of civil war.
#
"December 6, 1996",339,0,0,0
US President Bill Clinton chooses Ms Madeleine Albright as American Secretary of State, the first female to hold this position.
Serbian President, Mr Slobodan Milosevic, makes a few compromises after weeks of anti-government demonstrations and denouncements.
It is alleged that the leader of an Algerian Islamic terrorist group was responsible for the recent bombing in the Paris underground.
It is announced that American President Bill Clinton will meet with Russian President Boris Yeltsin early in 1997.
The Japanese Government is embroiled in a controversy over charges of bribery.
The American Administration cautions Zairean rebels against pursuing a policy of separatism in eastern Zaire.
Actor Woody Allen is prevented from visiting his adopted daughter, Dylan.
#
"December 7, 1996",340,0,0,0
The Minister for Information in \JSerbia\j resigns in protest over the Government's clamp down on the media.
#
"December 8, 1996",341,0,0,0
For the first time in 17 years the British Conservative Party loses its parliamentary majority.
The Palestinian Liberation Organization's leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, claims that there is a real danger of an Arab-Israeli war as fighting erupts in South \JLebanon\j.
In \JBurma\j, students demonstrate and establish a students' union, despite threats from authorities.
The Supreme Court of \JSerbia\j disallows the opposition's appeal against election rigging.
Mother Teresa's condition worsens and concern for her health continues to mount.
#
"December 9, 1996",342,0,0,0
Burmese authorities close universities after student protests, as opposition leader Ms Aung San Suu Kyi denounces the force used to break up the demonstrations.
The first meeting of the World Trade Organization is held in \JSingapore\j.
A poll conducted in Asia shows that senior businessmen are worried about the Australian Government's handling of the Asian migration debate instigated by independent MP Pauline Hanson.
Sudanese rebels release Australian nurse, Ms Maree Worthington, whom they were holding captive for five weeks.
Pakistani authorities launch a campaign to stamp out the production of drugs.
#
"December 10, 1996",343,0,0,0
Two months after a general election, New Zealand finally gets a new center-right coalition Government led by Prime Minister Mr Jim Bolger and Mr Winston Peters as Treasurer and Deputy Prime Minister.
In \JNorway\j, Indonesians Bishop Carlos Belo and Mr Jose Ramos Horta are presented with the Nobel Peace Prize.
NATO condemns Serbian President Mr Slobodan Milosevic's decision to invalidate the results of the November elections.
Mr Tung Chee-hwa, a Hong Kong shipping tycoon, looks likely to be appointed as the first Chinese person as governor of Hong Kong.
The American \JFBI\j offers a reward of $US500,000 for information on the \JAtlanta\j Olympics bomber.
South Africa's new Constitution becomes law.
#
"December 11, 1996",344,0,0,0
In Hong Kong the shipping tycoon Mr Tung Chee-hwa is elected as the first Chief Executive when Hong Kong comes under Chinese authority in July 1997.
Israeli authorities release plans to expand the Jewish settlements in Arab east \JJerusalem\j, which causes outrage among Palestinians.
The new government of New Zealand intends to place restrictions on foreigners purchasing farms and large publicly owned assets.
Ghana's Mr Kofi Annan and the Ivory Coast's Mr Amara Essy emerge as favorites in the contest for the position as new Secretary-General of the United Nations.
The Serbian President, Mr Slobodan Milosevic, comes under pressure from the United States and other Western nations to recognize the demands of demonstrators protesting against the cancellation of election results.
Iraqi President, Mr Saddam Hussein, under UN authority, starts the process which allows Iraqi oil to flow to world markets for the first time in six years.
#
"December 12, 1996",345,0,0,0
At the World Trade Organization meeting held in \JSingapore\j, America and the European Union agree to get rid of worldwide tariffs for information technology.
Israeli authorities demand that the Palestinian Liberation Organization hands over the terrorists responsible for fatally shooting a Jewish mother and her son in the West Bank.
Hong Kong's newly chosen Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee-hwa, announces that the Chief Secretary under British rule, Mrs Anson Chan, will continue in her role after July 1 - a decision welcomed by many people.
British broadcaster Willie Rushton dies at the age of 59.
American authorities uncover evidence that strongly connects \JIran\j with the bombings of US military operations in Saudi \JArabia\j in June.
The British explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes is forced to give up his attempt to be the first man to walk without assistance across \JAntarctica\j due to health problems.
#
"December 13, 1996",346,0,0,0
United Nations' officials claim that Rwandan refugees have fled their camps in \JTanzania\j but instead of returning home to \JRwanda\j have headed east into the bush.
Uday Hussein, the eldest son of the Iraqi President, is attacked and believed to be in a critical condition.
In South Africa, thousands of people apply to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for amnesties for crimes committed during the \Japartheid\j era.
The opposition campaign against the Serbian President's decision to annul the November 17 election results begins to wane.
The list of suspects linked to the attempted assassination of Uday Hussein, the unpopular and hated eldest son of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, continues to grow.
Kofi Annan from \JGhana\j is chosen by the United Nations Security Council as the next UN Secretary-General.
#
"December 15, 1996",347,0,0,0
New Zealand plans to hold a referendum in 1997 to see if the monarchy will be retained or the country will become a republic.
Hundreds of thousands of Rwandan refugees return to \JRwanda\j from \JTanzania\j.
Israeli President, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, continues to support the expansion of Jewish settlements on the West Bank.
Demonstrations against Serbian President Mr Slobodan Milosevic continue, as demands for the end to election \Jfraud\j mount.
An Australian consular official is sent to Saudi \JArabia\j to help solve the murder of Australian nurse Ms Yvonne Gilford.
Families of the victims of TWA Flight 800, which crashed in July, meet airline executives to demand compensation, despite no public official explanation for the accident.
#
"December 16, 1996",348,0,0,0
Former leading American officials send a letter to Israeli President Mr Benjamin Netanyahu asking him to rethink Israel's expansion of the Jewish settlements and promote peace in the Middle East.
The death sentence for former South Korean president Chun Doo Hwan is changed to life in prison and his successor Roh Tae Woo's sentence is cut to 17 years.
Zairean President, Mr Mobutu, plans to return to Zaire after spending six weeks in \JFrance\j recovering from treatment for prostate cancer.
Pakistani President, Mr Farooq Leghari, issues a verbal assault on former Pakistani prime minister Ms Benazir Bhutto while justifying the right to use his constitutional authority to sack her.
Over 250,000 demonstrators in \JBelgrade\j accuse the Serbian Government of election \Jfraud\j, as a court in the city of Nis orders the election commission to reinstate an opposition victory.
#
"December 17, 1996",349,0,0,0
The leader of the UK's grand prix racing team, Frank Williams, and five others, are to be charged with \Jmanslaughter\j over the death of Brazilian racing champion Ayrton Senna in 1994.
Following a summit in \JNairobi\j, Africa, the presidents of South Africa, \JKenya\j, Zimbabwe, and \JCameroon\j pledge to take steps to help end the crisis in eastern Zaire.
In \JSerbia\j, the opposition rejects any deal to end the election \Jfraud\j crisis despite a number of concessions by President Slobodan Milosevic.
Discussions between Israel and Palestine on the withdrawal from the West Bank city of \JHebron\j recommence, as America claims that Israel is damaging the peace process by providing finance for the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza.
Former South Korean defense minister, Lee Yang-Ho, is given a four-year jail sentence for corruption over arms deals.
The author, explorer, farmer, soldier and conservationist, Sir Laurens van der Post, dies in London at the age of 90.
In the Russian State of \JChechnya\j, six Western International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) workers are shot dead in their sleep.
#
"December 18, 1996",350,0,0,0
Mystery still surrounds the slaughter of six Red Cross workers in the Russian State of \JChechnya\j.
Rebels from the pro-Cuban Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) take more than 480 people hostage after infiltrating a party at the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, \JPeru\j - while demanding the release of comrades from jail. Nearly 170 women and elderly are released immediately.
Mr Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong's chief-in-waiting, commences discussions with China's Foreign Minister on his role in Hong Kong's future.
Kofi Annan is sworn in as Secretary-General of the United Nations until 2001.
Wreckage from the space shuttle Challenger, which crashed 11 years ago, is washed up on the coast of \JFlorida\j, US.
Mr Mobutu, the President of Zaire, returns to his country after months of treatment for cancer in Europe.
#
"December 19, 1996",351,0,0,0
Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni dies at the age of 72.
Negotiations continue between Peruvian authorities and left-wing rebels, who are holding over 300 people hostage in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, while the rebels threaten to kill hostages if 300 comrades are not released from jail.
International aid organizations withdraw workers from the Russian State of \JChechnya\j after the slaughter of six medical staff from the Red Cross.
Mother Teresa is released from \Jhospital\j three weeks after suffering a heart attack.
Mr Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of sacked Pakistani prime minister Ms Benazir Bhutto, is charged in connection with the murder of Ms Bhutto's brother, Mr Murtaza Bhutto.
Two Palestinian men are jailed for life and a third is given a 15-year jail sentence for murdering a Jewish settler and her son.
#
"December 20, 1996",352,0,0,0
No solution is reached in the three-day hostage crisis in \JPeru\j, as the US sends a security team and the UK sends six SAS commandos.
China's last eunuch, Sun Yaoting, dies at the age of 94.
Iraq buys 300,000 tonnes of wheat from \JFrance\j and \JAustralia\j, its biggest food purchase in six years.
Chinese authorities in Hong Kong choose 400 candidates for the "provisional legislature" - the Chinese form of Hong Kong's elected Legislative Council.
A Tibetan human rights group claims that many \JHollywood\j actors have been banned by Chinese authorities from going to \JTibet\j, including Martin Scorsese, Brad Pitt, and Harrison Ford.
Authorities in the Russian State of \JChechnya\j arrest some suspects in connection with the deaths of six Red Cross workers.
#
"December 21, 1996",353,0,0,0
American footballer O. J. Simpson, who was acquitted of murdering his ex-wife and her friend, is awarded custody of his two children.
The estate of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis is valued at $US43.7 million, it was originally thought to be worth up to $US100 million.
#
"December 22, 1996",354,0,0,0
Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori urges left-wing rebels to release over 300 hostages at the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, and guarantees that no force will be used against them if they do so.
It is claimed that Palestinians have called for the removal of American mediator, Mr Dennis Ross, from the Middle East peace talks.
China nominates a shadow parliament as a replacement to Hong Kong's elected legislature, which is likely to worsen relations between Britain and China in the lead-up to the 1997 handover.
#
"December 23, 1996",355,0,0,0
Tupac Amaru rebels release a further 225 hostages from the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, \JPeru\j, but threaten to kill the remaining hostages.
The Northern Ireland peace process is damaged after a bomb explodes in a car in the Ardoyne area of north \JBelfast\j, Ireland, injuring a senior IRA officer.
After an absence of five months, Russian President Boris Yeltsin returns to the \JKremlin\j.
The \JPhilippines\j President, Mr Ramos, is recovering after surgery to treat a blocked artery.
#
"December 24, 1996",356,0,0,0
A bomb explodes in a church in Frankfurt, \JGermany\j, killing three people and injuring 13 others.
Three bombs explode during peak-hour Christmas shopping at Worcester, South Africa, killing three people and injuring 80 others.
#
"December 25, 1996",357,0,0,0
Two British nurses are charged with the recent murder of Australian nurse, Ms Yvonne Gilford, in Saudi \JArabia\j.
The Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement releases Uruguay's ambassador to \JPeru\j from hostage at the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, after authorities in Uruguay release two Tupac Amaru members from jail.
Clashes continue between the Serbian Government and opposition forces, leaving 58 people wounded, as the American Administration accuses President Milosevic of causing the violence.
Cuba is conducting an anti-AIDS vaccine experiment on humans.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) claims that nearly 150,000 refugees are dying of starvation in Zaire.
James Earl Ray, the assassin of renowned black civil rights leader Dr Martin Luther King, is reported to be critically ill.
Israeli-Palestinian talks over Israel's withdrawal from the West Bank town of \JHebron\j anger Jewish settlers, who occupy two buildings in \JHebron\j's Arab casbah area.
Riots break out, killing one and injuring 11 others, at the homecoming of Indonesian Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Carlos Belo in Dili, East \JTimor\j.
#
"December 26, 1996",358,0,0,0
The Serbian Government bans demonstrations to prevent support for the opposition, which has been making accusations of election rigging for weeks.
British saxophonist Ronnie Scott dies in London at the age of 69.
Two bombs explode at a Buddhist temple in \JRangoon\j, \JBurma\j, killing four people and wounding 18 others.
In his Christmas message, Pope John Paul II focuses on the humanitarian crisis in Central Africa.
In Lima, \JPeru\j, an explosion is heard at the Japanese ambassador's home where Tupac Amaru rebels hold over 100 people hostage - the First Secretary of the Japanese Embassy in Lima is released after falling ill.
Eighty-eight people are killed and many others are missing after a storm hits the State of \JSabah\j in eastern \JMalaysia\j.
Mr Dennis Ross, the American Middle East mediator, claims that Israel and Palestine will sign an agreement on the city of \JHebron\j early next week.
#
"December 27, 1996",359,0,0,0
The Guatemalan Ambassador to \JPeru\j is released by Tupac Amaru rebels, who are holding 103 people hostage at the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, as \JJapan\j makes a request to the Group of Seven members to assist in working out a solution to the hostage crisis.
In South Korea over 1.7 million workers go on strike in protest against strict new labor laws.
Chechen authorities take another 15 people into custody in connection with the deaths of six Red Cross workers.
At least 600 people are arrested in connection with the attempted assassination of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's eldest son, Uday Hussein.
Despite warnings to end protests from the Serbian President, Mr Slobodan Milosevic, about 60,000 continue to demonstrate against his government.
The death toll from the storm that hit the State of \JSabah\j in eastern \JMalaysia\j rises to 127.
The former Russian national security chief, Mr Alexander Lebed, drums up support from troops to launch a new political party.
Members of Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu's cabinet threaten to withdraw their support in protest against the plan to remove Israeli troops from the West Bank town of \JHebron\j.
#
"December 28, 1996",360,0,0,0
In \JIndonesia\j three people are killed and 15 injured after Muslims riot in an attack against Christian churches and Chinese businesses.
The Peruvian President, Alberto Fujimori, calls a state of emergency in Lima and expands the powers of the army and police to deal with the hostage crisis.
#
"December 29, 1996",361,0,0,0
Over 10,000 people attend the funeral of the first victim of \JSerbia\j's opposition movement in defiance of a ban on demonstrations placed by President Milosevic's Government.
Tupac Amaru rebels release a further 20 hostages from the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima after negotiations with a Peruvian Government representative.
Despite bitterly cold weather and heavy police presence, demonstrators continue to protest in \JSerbia\j against the Government.
In \JRwanda\j thousands of Hutu refugees returning home from \JTanzania\j head towards their villages.
Indonesian authorities arrest 120 people in connection with rioting in the West Java towns of Tasikmalaya and Ciawi which killed four people.
Israel and Palestine seem likely to sign an agreement on the West Bank town of \JHebron\j, as Israel reopens the \JHebron\j University after its closure ten months ago.
A strike by thousands of workers in South Korea over new labor laws enters its fourth day, despite clashes with riot police in Seoul.
Tibetan authorities arrest an American-trained filmmaker, Ngawang Choepel, on charges of spying.
Europe is hit by bitterly cold weather which has so far killed 60 people.
#
"December 30, 1996",362,0,0,0
Israel and Palestine prepare to sign an historic agreement on the withdrawal of Israeli troops from \JHebron\j in the West Bank.
After 36 years of civil war, the Guatemalan Government and left-wing rebels sign a final peace agreement.
France closes down its nuclear testing center in Mururoa in the South Pacific.
On the thirteenth day of the hostage crisis in Lima, \JPeru\j, the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement continues to hold 83 people captive despite progress made in negotiations with the Peruvian Government.
After two years of war, the remaining Russian troops are withdrawn from the State of \JChechnya\j.
In \JSerbia\j, several divisions of the armed forces voice their support of the opposition movement which is protesting against President Slobodan Milosevic's Government.
Eight Indonesian children are injured after playing with a hand grenade which exploded in Cibalong, West Java - the area affected by recent riots.
One of \JPakistan\j's leading fundamentalist Islamist parties, the Jamaat-i-Islami, threatens to blackball the forthcoming general elections due to claims that corruption is still rampant.
#
"December 31, 1996",363,0,0,0
Paul McCartney is awarded a knighthood in the Queen's birthday honors list.
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is expected to reinstate 15-year-old Grand Duke Georgy Mikhailovich Romanov, the heir-apparent to \JRussia\j's last tsar, as head of \JRussia\j's imperial family.
More than 50 people are killed when a bomb explodes on a crowded train in north-east India.
Dozens of members of the Burmese Communist Party and the National League for Democracy, headed by Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, are arrested for taking part in recent student protests.
Ex-senior leader of China, 92-year-old Deng Xiaoping, is rushed to \Jhospital\j for emergency treatment.
Peru's President, Alberto Fujimori, may allow the rebels, who are holding over 80 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, to leave the country safely if they agree to free the hostages.
Hundreds of people in the Caucasus mountains in \JRussia\j are trapped by avalanches.
#
"January 1, 1997",364,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Concern grows for China's paramount leader, Mr Deng Xiaoping, whose health is believed to be deteriorating rapidly. \I(China)\i
A railway bridge near Goreshawar in the State of Assam in north-east India is blown up by tribal separatists; no injuries are reported in this latest incident. Two days ago militant separatists allegedly planted a bomb on a passenger train which exploded in Kokrajhar 100 miles northeast and killed 38 people. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Former UN Secretary-General Dr Boutros Bourtros-Ghali ends his term in office, making one last plea to the USA to pay the $US1.5 billion that it owes the United Nations. \I(USA)\i
In Lima, \JPeru\j, the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement permits cameras into the Japanese ambassador's residence where 81 people are being held captive. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A Jewish soldier fires at a crowd of people in an Arab market in the town of \JHebron\j in the West Bank, injuring seven people, in a desperate attempt to thwart the \JHebron\j peace agreement. \I(Israel)\i
A week after an avalanche blocked a tunnel in the Caucasus Mountains in Tbilisi, Georgia, rescuers manage to free nearly 240 of the 300 trapped people. So far, there has only been one death and the road is expected to be cleared in the next few days. \I(Russia)\i
The United Nations Security Council decides that sanctions against \JIraq\j should be reinstated, as no progress has been made in tracking down prisoners of war or missing people. For six months the sanctions will not be enforced, allowing \JIraq\j to sell oil in exchange for food and medical supplies for Iraqi people. \I(Iraq)\i
Pope John Paul II in his New Year message calls for forgiveness and peace and demands an end to conflicts throughout the world. \I(Italy)\i
Fifteen Muslim fundamentalists are given the death sentence in \JAlgeria\j for their involvement in armed terrorist groups. Since 1993, over 1,200 fundamentalists have been sentenced to death, many in absentia, for their connections with terrorist factions. \I((Algeria)\i
Despite the bitter cold, over 250,000 people bang drums, pots and pans in \JBelgrade\j to show their support of the Serbian opposition. Numbers were lower than expected as the Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic's Government has banned demonstrations. \I(Serbia)\i
#
"January 2, 1997",365,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
At the Dieng Plateau in central Java, \JIndonesia\j, a crater emits poisonous gas. In 1979 a similar incident occurred which led to the deaths of 179 people. \I(Indonesia)\i
In West \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j, five people die in clashes between members of the local Dayak tribe and migrants from the island of Madura. \I(Indonesia)\i
Burmese authorities announce that they will continue to place restrictions on opposition leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi. Universities are also to remain shut following December's unrest. \I(Burma)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA), who are involved in the Lima hostage crisis, frees seven more hostages from captive despite the Peruvian President's refusal to offer any compromises. The release came after the Peruvian Bishop Juan Luis Cipriani spent five hours in discussions with the rebels -- the MRTA called it a "goodwill gesture". \I(Peru)\i
Scientists claim that there are over 200 stray \Jasteroids\j which may coincide with the Earth's orbit. \I(USA)\i
The new Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ghanaian Mr Kofi Annan, begins his term in office. He reportedly wants all member nations to keep up with their UN commitments, a veiled reference to the $2 billion owed by the US, and promises to reform the United Nations. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A bomb explodes on a bus in the Syrian capital of Damascus, killing 15 people and injuring 30 others. Syrian authorities allege that Israel's Mossad intelligence service was responsible for the bombing. \I(Syria)\i
Northern Irish police defuse a bomb left by the IRA in the grounds of \JBelfast\j Castle where hundreds of people had gathered to celebrate the New Year. The truck contained over 1,000 pounds of explosives. \I(N. Ireland)\i
Europe is still suffering from bitterly cold weather which has been responsible for the deaths of at least 150 people. Many of those killed during this period of freezing weather have been the elderly and homeless. \I(Europe)\i
The outgoing Swiss President, Mr Jean-Pascal Delamuraz, claims that demands for a compensation fund for victims of the \JHolocaust\j who lost their assets during the Nazi reign are tantamount to blackmail. His remarks cause outrage worldwide. \I(Switzerland)\i
Kurdish rebel camps situated on the Turkish border are attacked by Turkish \Jaircraft\j as Turkish forces continue a cross-border campaign against the guerrillas. \I(Turkey)\i
#
"January 3, 1997",366,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The People's Action Party (PAP) in \JSingapore\j wins another five-year term in office in an election campaign which was very damaging to the opposition and strengthened Prime Minister's Goh Chok Tong's stronghold. As only 36 out of the 83 parliamentary seats were actually contested, victory was always certain for the PAP. \I(Singapore)\i
An Indian tribal group, the Bodoland Liberation Tigers Force, admits responsibility for the bombing of a passenger train in the state of Assam. \I(India)\i
The caretaker Pakistani Government arrests Mr Hakim Ali Zardari, the father-in-law of sacked Prime Minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, and Mr Nawaz Khokhar, the former minister of science and technology. This is seen as attempt to show the Government is being tough with its anti-corruption drive. \I(Pakistan)\i
Rioting between two ethnic groups, the indigenous Dayak group and migrants from the island of Madura, worsens in West \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j. The violent clashes, which have been responsible for the deaths of at least five people, have caused thousands of people to flee their homes. \I(Indonesia)\i
A bomb explodes outside the home of Kashmir Chief Minister, Mr Farooq Abdullah, in Srinagar, India which kills four people. Jamait-ul-Mujahideen, a militant Kashmiri separatist group, claims responsibility for the attack. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Alberto Fujimori, the Peruvian President, claims that the hostage crisis is not damaging the Government or preventing foreign investment. In another move, Mr Fujimori announces that key officials, including the president of \JPeru\j's Supreme Court, held hostage have been replaced. This is a step which could be seen as an attempt to lessen the rebels' negotiation powers. \I(Peru)\i
It is recommended by the American congressional ethics subcommittee that the speaker of the US House of Representatives, Mr Newt Gingrich, be given a warning after an investigation into an ethics transgression. \I(USA)\i
Francisco "Pancho" Morales, who invented the margarita -- a tequila-based cocktail, dies in El Paso, \JTexas\j at the age of 78. \I(USA)\i
Five states in western USA are affected by terrible flooding following heavy rains and water from melting snow. The flooding leaves tens of thousands of people homeless. \I(USA)\i
American security guard Richard Jewell, who was falsely accused by the \JFBI\j as a suspect in the bombing at the \JAtlanta\j Olympic Games, reaches a settlement worth US$500,000 with NBC. \I(USA)\i
In southern \JColombia\j a passenger bus goes over a cliff edge, killing 37 people and injuring 3 others. \I(Colombia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Another Israeli soldier is arrested in connection with the attack on an Arab market in \JHebron\j in the West Bank. \I(Israel)\i
Israeli \Jaircraft\j bomb villages in southern \JLebanon\j in retaliation for Hezbollah guerrillas' attacks on Israel's security zone. The security zone in southern \JLebanon\j was set in 1985 to safeguard against guerrilla attacks on Israel's northern towns. \I(Israel)\i
Rebels seize the town of Bunia and goldmines in north-east Zaire after days of fighting with government troops which leave hundreds dead. \I(Zaire)\i
In \JLibya\j, six senior soldiers and two civilians are executed for their involvement in an attempt to launch a coup against Colonel Muammar Gaddafi in October 1993. The Libyan leader has never acknowledged that an attempted coup occurred. \I(Libya)\i
A bitterly cold snap continues to grip most of Europe, killing at least 150 people. \I(Europe)\i
The Serbian Orthodox Church condemns the Government of President Slobodan Milosevic, claiming that the Government has encouraged violence and \Jfraud\j in elections. It is seen as one of the worst verbal attacks on the Government by the Church since it came into power ten years ago. The Serbian Foreign Minister, Mr Milan Milutinovic, sends a letter to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) stating that the Serbian opposition did win nine seats in the municipal elections. \I(Serbia)\i
#
"January 4, 1997",367,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Two bombs explode in the Indian capital of New Delhi, killing one person and injuring 11 others. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. \I(India)\i
Burmese authorities allow opposition leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, to meet up with 500 supporters. She expressed her gratitude to the government for allowing such a large gathering to proceed. \I(Burma)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The \JFBI\j reports that violent crime rates in the US dropped in the first half of 1996. As combating crime rates was a pivotal point of President Clinton's election campaign, he claims that the Government has made a difference in fighting crime. \I(USA)\i
A state of emergency is called in 37 counties in northern \JCalifornia\j after heavy flooding forces over 100,000 people from their homes. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A court in \JRwanda\j gives two Rwandan Hutus the death sentence for their involvement in crimes and deaths against humanity. They were the first suspects to go on trial. Over 90,000 Rwandans are in jail suspected of crimes related to the deaths of 800,000 minority Tutsis and Hutu moderates. \I(Rwanda)\i
The Vatican confirms that Pope John Paul II will visit \JCuba\j in January 1998. It will be the Pope's first visit to communist \JCuba\j, the only country in Latin America that he has not visited. \I(Italy)\i
A gas explosion in a bank in the town of Theux, \JBelgium\j, kills two people and injures many others. \I(Belgium)\i
Despite pressure from the opposition and Western nations to concede defeat, the Serbian Government orders an election to be held again in the city of Nis where the Government lost its seat. \I(Serbia)\i
For the second day in succession, Israeli \Jaircraft\j attack guerrilla bases in south \JLebanon\j in retaliation for the rebels' attack on an Israeli patrol. \I(Israel) (Lebanon)\i
#
"January 5, 1997",368,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In Phnom Penh, Cambodian police blast demonstrators with fire hoses where garment workers are protesting against wages and conditions. \I(Cambodia)\i
Ethnic groups who have been rioting in West \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j, agree to halt the fighting. \I(Indonesia)\i
Strikes continue in South Korea, as workers protest against the Government's new labor laws. \I(South Korea)\i
Attempts by Japanese authorities to clean up an oil spill are thwarted by bad weather. The oil spill occurred after a Russian tanker split in two, polluting Japanese waters with 26,000 barrels of oil. \I(Japan) (Russia)\i
Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese opposition leader, calls for political discourse and reinforces her aim to continue struggling for democracy. \I(Burma)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A Japanese newspaper, the \I( Mainichi Shimbun),\i claims that the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement is demanding $38 million for the release of Japanese executives held hostage in Lima. The Japanese Government claims to have no knowledge of such demands and says that it has not been approached by the MRTA. \I(Peru)\i
Mr Bill Clinton, the US President, declares \JCalifornia\j and \JIdaho\j flood disaster areas, where storms have created havoc and killed at least 20 people. After a change in the weather, Californians face the daunting task of cleaning up after severe storms, which left thousands of people homeless. \I(USA)\i
Despite investigations into the alleged ethical violations of Mr Newt Gingrich, Republicans are confident that the speaker of the American House of Representatives will be re-elected. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The President of the Czech Republic, Mr Vaclav Havel, marries actor Ms Dagmar Veskrnova. Mr Havel is recovering from recent surgery to treat lung cancer. \I(Czech Republic)\i
The Russian government contemplates its troop withdrawal from the state of Chechyna. The withdrawal was part of an agreement made last year between Moscow and Chechen separatists. It looks likely that the Chechen authorities will hold an election in late January. \I(Russia) (Chechyna)\i
For the third day in a row, Israeli \Jaircraft\j attack guerrilla hideouts in south \JLebanon\j. At present, it is not known if there have been any casualties. \I(Israel) (Lebanon)\i
Jets, belonging to the Afghan warlord Rashid Dostum, bomb the Afghan capital Kabul, killing four people. In another incident in Kabul, a bomb explodes in a vegetable cart killing another four people, and injuring many others. The Talibaan militia blame Dostum and military chief Ahmed Shah Massood for the attacks. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Europe is hit by the lowest temperatures in three decades, while the weather continues to create turmoil. The latest death toll due to the bitterly cold snap has been put at 200. \I(Europe)\i
Muslim guerrillas attack Ben Achour village in Blida Province, \JAlgeria\j, killing 16 people. The attack follows a statement by the Algerian Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahai that the government had nearly quelled any dissent from Muslim guerrilla factions. \I(Algeria)\i
An unknown right-wing South African group claims responsibility for the Christmas Eve bombings in the town of Worcester which killed four people. There is growing concern in South Africa that the right-wing activities may be a sign of growing opposition to the new democratic government. \I(South Africa)\i
The British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, appeals to Protestants in N. Ireland to maintain their cease-fire. It is believed that the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF) are contemplating ending their two-year truce and launching a fight again pro-Irish nationalist enemies if the IRA kills anyone. \I(N. Ireland) (United Kingdom)\i
Zairean President, Mr Mobutu, is hiring mercenary soldiers and will ask for Morocco's assistance to curb a rebellion in eastern Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
Mr Nebojsa Covic, the mayor of \JBelgrade\j, \JSerbia\j, steps down in protest at the Government's refusal to acknowledge electoral defeat in \JBelgrade\j. The President, Mr Slobodan Milosevic, comes under increasing pressure from the United States to accept all opposition victories in the recent elections. \I(Serbia)\i
The Israeli-Palestinian agreement over the West Bank town of \JHebron\j could be jeopardized by Israeli cabinet members refusing to support crucial Palestinian demands. In another attempt to stop the settlement on \JHebron\j proceeding, Jewish settlers move seven mobile homes onto Artis Hill in the West Bank, claiming that they are going to establish a new settlement there. \I(Israel)\i
It is believed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mr Yassar Arafat met secretly to discuss breaking the deadlock over the \JHebron\j settlement.
The American special envoy, Mr Dennis Ross, arranged the meeting after separate discussions with each leader the previous day. \I(Israel)\i
#
"January 6, 1997",369,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In South Korea mass strikes take place, as union leaders are called by courts for questioning. It is now being seen as a showdown between the Government and workers. \I(South Korea)\i
Indonesian President Mr Soeharto voices his concern over the recent riots in West \JKalimantan\j, claiming that such unrest is damaging to the country's future. \I(Indonesia)\i
Nobel Peace Prize laureate, JosΘ Ramos-Horta, encourages the Japanese Prime Minister Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto to raise the question of human rights when he visits \JIndonesia\j next week. \I(Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American billionaire and real estate investor, Harry Helmsley, one of New York's richest businessmen, dies at the age of 87. \I(USA)\i
Police search the home of a six-year-old American beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey, who was murdered in her home the day after Christmas. Her parents have fallen under suspicion after they hired separate lawyers. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Serbian capital of \JBelgrade\j is brought to a standstill, as protesters against President Slobodan's Government drove their cars into the main streets, despite the Government ban on demonstrations. \I(Serbia)\i
In Turkey, over 100,000 workers protest in the capital \JAnkara\j against corruption. \I(Turkey)\i
Mr Pierre Mauroy, former French Premier, claims that he knew that deceased French President, Mr Francois Mitterrand, was suffering from cancer when he was first elected in 1981. \I(France)\i
The Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak claims that the Israeli Prime Minister Mr Benjamin Netanyahu has destroyed the relationship of trust between Israel and \JEgypt\j. \I(Egypt)\i
Survivors from a shipping disaster, where two vessels crowded with people crashed off the coast of Malta on Christmas Day, recount their stories of the struggle to stay alive. Over 280 Indian, Pakistani and Sri Lankan migrants are presumed dead. \IGreece)\i
Russian authorities clear the Roksky tunnel, which links \JRussia\j and Georgia, after it was blocked by an avalanche two weeks ago. Last week, over 300 people trapped inside the tunnel were freed. \I(Russia)\i
In Northern Ireland, the IRA releases a video, seen as an attempt to improve support for the IRA's campaign of violence after the collapse of the peace talks. It features footage of Sinn Fein leaders Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness who have always denied their association with the IRA. \I(N. Ireland)\i
The two British nurses charged with the murder of Australian nurse, Ms Yvonne Gilford, in Saudi \JArabia\j withdraw their confessions plus a statement that one had an affair with the deceased nurse. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
The British Conservative Party is rocked by another sex scandal. Mr Jerry Hayes, a Conservative MP, is alleged to have been involved in a homosexual relationship with an underage teenager. \I(United Kingdom)\i
In Bangui, Central African Republic French troops attack a rebel soldier camp, killing at least six people. The rebels had occupied part of the capital for a six-week period. \I(Central African Republic)\i
Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, says that he is unable to make any further concessions on reaching a settlement about the Israeli withdrawal of troops from \JHebron\j. \I(Israel)
#
"January 7, 1997",370,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Mr Imran Khan, former cricketer turned politician, is served with a paternity suit. Mr Khan denies that he is the four-year-old girl's father. \I(Pakistan)\i
Media and medical workers join the mass strikes in South Korea, despite appeals from the President, Mr Kim Young-sam, for labor peace. \I(South Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement refuses to release any more of the 74 hostages until negotiations recommence. Witchdoctors from the Peruvian highlands attempt to end the hostage crisis using potions and skulls. The Japanese Prime Minister, Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto, criticizes the Peruvian Government's handling of the hostage crisis and believes that a solution will not come for some time. \I(Peru)\i
States in the Western USA begin a major clean-up after flooding and storms caused havoc and major damage to the \Jinfrastructure\j. \I(USA)\i
Torrential rain and flooding for over a week in south-east \JBrazil\j causes the deaths of at least 67 people and leaves thousands of others homeless. \I(Brazil)\i
Former Canadian Prime Minister, Mr Brian Mulroney, settles his C$50 million case against the Canadian Government out of court. The Government had alleged that Mr Mulroney had accepted C$5 million in bribes in the purchase by Air Canada of 34 \Jaircraft\j in 1988. \I(Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Russian President, Mr Boris Yeltsin, is forced to cancel meetings due to ill health, raising further speculation about the state of his health. \I(Russia)\i
In Monaco the Grimaldis royal family prepare to celebrate 700 years of power. \I(Monaco)\i
To mark the first anniversary of the death of former President Francois Mitterrand, \JFrance\j will hold a number of grand and special events. \I(France)\i
Hopes of peace are shattered in Northern Ireland, as a series of bomb scares, punishment attacks, and a rocket attack by the IRA on the Royal Courts of Justice, take place. \I(N. Ireland)\i
Protesters against the Serbian Government continue to ignore bans on marches, as more than 200,000 people demonstrate. It is claimed that senior army officers are preparing to revolt against President Slobodan's Government. \I(Serbia)\i
A Sri Lankan theologian, Rev. Tissa Balasuriya, is excommunicated by the Vatican because he questioned the Church's teaching on \Jbaptism\j, original sin, and the virginity of Mary as well as challenging the authority of the Pope. \I(Italy) (Sri Lanka)\i
The settlement on \JHebron\j suffers another setback, as Israel requests that further troop withdrawals from the West Bank be put off for nearly two years. The American envoy, Mr Dennis Ross, attempts to set up another meeting between the Israeli and Palestinian leaders to end the differences between them and work out a deal on the Israeli withdrawal from \JHebron\j. \I(Israel)\i
One of the alleged suspects involved in the Christmas Eve bombing of the South African town of Worcester is arrested. \I(S. Africa)\i
#
"January 8, 1997",371,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In South Korea, union leaders give the Government one week to do away with its new labor laws or face a total work ban by public service employees. The President, Mr Kim Young- sam, dismisses the strikers' demands for removal of the new law. \I(South Korea)\i
The newly established Pakistani Council for Defense and National Security, which has formalized the army's role in the country's political structure, is considering calling a state of emergency to deal with the troubled political and economic situation. \I(Pakistan)\i
The Cambodian Khmer Rouge guerrilla faction continues to disintegrate with more than 900 members defecting to the Government of \JCambodia\j. \I(Cambodia)\i
The oil spill from a Russian tanker which split in two is endangering wildlife and is starting to spread to the coastline after the area was hit by bad weather. \I(Japan)\i
China criticizes the decision of the American Administration to grant a visa to \JTaiwan\j vice president and premier, Mr Lien Chan, claiming it could damage USA-China relations. \I(China)\i
Chinese authorities claim that the paramount leader, Mr Deng Xiaoping, is in reasonably good health. \I(China)\i
In Hong Kong, it is decided that Queen Elizabeth II's profile will be removed from postage stamps. Many organizations are also dropping the word "royal" from their names in preparation for the July handover to China. \I(Hong Kong) (China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Newt Gingrich, the American Speaker of the House of Representatives, narrowly manages to get re-elected to the position despite the continuing investigation into his alleged unethical behavior. Mr Gingrich apologizes to the House of Representatives for being arrogant. \I(USA)\i
Negotiations to free the hostages held captive by rebels in Lima have come to a halt. Concern is now being expressed for the health of the 74 hostages. The Peruvian President, Mr Alberto Fujimori, reiterates that he will not give in to the rebels' demands to free 440 comrades from Peruvian jails. \I(Peru)\i
The American Supreme Court begins a case to decide over the right to \Jeuthanasia\j. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
As incidents of violence return to N. Ireland, any hopes of a peace settlement diminish. A second attack on a security target occurs in Ulster. \I(N. Ireland)\i
Researchers in \JNamibia\j claim that new evidence shows that the reason for a giraffe's long neck is so it can use its neck to club opposition when vying for the best females. \I(Namibia)\i
British tycoon Richard Branson is forced to end his attempt to circle the globe in a hot air \Jballoon\j, as the \Jballoon\j began descending rapidly and dangerously. \I(United Kingdom)\i
In an attempt to placate Jews worldwide, after a Swiss official made some remarks that Jewish demands for compensation were blackmail, Swiss authorities offer to use money from unclaimed bank accounts to set up a fund for \JHolocaust\j victims and their families. The offer fails to appease Jews who are still outraged by the recent comments. \I(Switzerland)\i
Two car bombs explode in \JAlgeria\j, killing 20 people and injuring 111 others. An Algerian rebel leader warns of a new spate of bomb attacks. \I(Algeria)\i
Hundreds of European mercenaries recruited by ex-French government security officers meet in eastern Zaire. The intention is that the mercenaries will provide back-up to the Zairean army. \I(Zaire)\i
In Britain, the Prime Minister, Mr John Major, has the country guessing over the proposed election dates -- possible choices are March, April or May. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Eighteen minutes from the classic 1946 movie \I(The Big Sleep),\i starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, is discovered in \Jarchives\j. \I(United Kingdom)\i
The American negotiator, Mr Dennis Ross, in the Middle East talks steps up efforts to finalize a deal between Palestinians and Israelis on the Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank town of \JHebron\j. He encourages the Israeli and Palestinian leaders to meet to solve their differences. \I(Israel)\i
Two Russian monkeys, who had been in space for two weeks, safely return to earth after a mission to test the effects of weightlessness on plants and animals. \I(Russia)\i
#
"January 9, 1997",372,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
South Korean authorities issue arrest warrants against 20 union leaders which leads to violent demonstrations in protest. Despite President Kim Young-sam's appeal for an end to the labor strikes, the protests spread. \I(South Korea)\i
In \JCambodia\j police break up protests by garment workers -- the eighth demonstration in recent weeks. \I(Cambodia)\i
Pakistani political parties criticize the new national security council which allows the military political participation. \I(Pakistan)\i
Mr Imran Khan, the former cricketer turned politician, claims that the paternity suit being launched against him is part of a plot to weaken his political position. \I(Pakistan)\i
The Singaporean opposition party calls for a police investigation into election irregularities after claiming that people voted twice in the election. \I(Singapore)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Dr Madeleine Albright, the American Secretary of State-designate, announces that the US foreign policy agenda will focus on Europe followed closely by Asia. \I(USA)\i
The result of the US Supreme Court's ruling on \Jeuthanasia\j is not expected for months though privately a vote will take place this week. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Russian President, Mr Boris Yeltsin, is hospitalized with \Jpneumonia\j. Concern grows over the deteriorating health of the President who recently underwent major heart surgery. \I(Russia)\i
Prince Rainier of Monaco urges his son Prince Albert to marry, as the royal family celebrates 700 years of power. \I(Monaco)\i
A new vaccine against \Jmalaria\j is successful in its first round of testing -- a series of tests are to be conducted in Africa. \I(United Kingdom)\i
It is believed that British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, is about to launch a campaign for re-election despite lagging behind in the polls. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Swiss authorities refuse to apologize for comments by its former president about attempts to gain compensation for \JHolocaust\j victims. His comments, claiming the demands were "blackmail", upset Jewish communities worldwide. \I(Switzerland)\i
The Serbian President, Mr Slobodan Milosevic, concedes that the opposition did win control of the city of Nis. This concession is seen as a sign that the President is anxious to end the protest movement which has been going on for seven weeks after the Government annulled the election results. \I(Serbia)\i
The Israeli-Palestinian agreement on the West Bank town of \JHebron\j encounters more obstacles as the issue of when the Israeli troops will be withdrawn is discussed. The Palestinian leader, Mr Yassar Arafat, is annoyed by the suggestion that the withdrawal should be delayed for two more years. \I(Israel)\i
#
"January 10, 1997",373,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In Hyderabad, India left-wing rebels allegedly murder 16 policemen and 2 civilians in an assault on a police station. \I(India)\i
Union leaders in South Korea manage to avoid arrest by taking refuge in Myongdong Cathedral in Seoul. The leaders warn that any attempt to arrest them would lead to all-out strikes. \I(South Korea)\i
The former \JBangladesh\j President, Mr Hussain Muhammad Ershad, is released from prison after serving a six-year jail sentence. Rival activists riot over his release, leaving at least 20 people injured. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Police in \JHaiti\j injure several people in an attempt to prevent an anti-government demonstration. \I(Haiti)\i
In Sri Lanka, Government soldiers resist attacks by Tamil rebels in the north of the country and manage to retain control of two critical army camps. It is believed that over 800 soldiers from both sides were killed or injured in one of the worst battles in the history of the 24-year civil war. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Shots are heard from inside the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, \JPeru\j, where left-wing rebels are holding 74 people hostage. No explanation has been issued for the gunfire. In another major development, it is believed that \JPeru\j is discussing safe passage out of the country for the 20 Tupac Amaru Revolutionary rebels. \I(Peru)\i
The American House of Representatives ethics committee prepares to release details of the speaker, Mr Newt Gingrich's alleged misuse of tax-exempt funds to pay for a lecture course. \I(USA)\i
American singer, Frank Sinatra, is believed to have suffered from a heart attack. \I(USA)\i
The US Supreme Court receives arguments for the right to doctor-assisted suicide but reacts unfavorably to them. \I(USA)\i
In America more than 100,000 pagers buzz at the same time, after a nationwide paging service went berserk. \I(USA)\i
Twenty-nine people die in an air crash in \JDetroit\j after the \Jaircraft\j hits a snow storm. \I(USA)\i
British rock star, David Bowie, celebrates his 50th birthday by holding a concert in Madison Square Garden, New York. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Twelve people are injured after two pipe bombs, loaded with nails, explode in garbage bins near the central bus terminal in old Tel Aviv. The Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, threatens to retaliate if those people responsible come from the areas controlled by the Palestinian Liberation Organization. \I(Israel)\i
Mr Alexander Lebed, the former Russian national security adviser, calls for the resignation of the Russian President Mr Boris Yeltsin. Mr Yeltsin has been hospitalized with \Jpneumonia\j. \I(Russia)\i
The European Parliament accuses Britain of mishandling the "mad cow" disease. \I(United Kingdom)\i
After a 12-hour confrontation with students, Serbian police back off and tear down a barricade which was preventing the students from demonstrating. More than 2,000 students were joined by \JBelgrade\j residents. \I(Serbia)\i
The \Jpetroleum\j company, Shell, denies claims by the World Council of Churches (WCC) that the company is liable for much of \JNigeria\j's environmental destruction. \I(Nigeria)\i
It is claimed that the foreign mercenaries assisting the Zairean Government are being paid by \JFrance\j. The Zairean President, Mr Mobutu, returns to \JFrance\j to undergo some medical treatment, three weeks after his return to Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
Hollywood stars write an open letter published in the \I(International Herald Tribune)\i which accuses \JGermany\j of persecuting members of the Church of \JScientology\j in much the same way as Nazi \JGermany\j handled the Jews. German Chancellor, Mr Helmut Kohl, claims that the letter is "rubbish" and has no intention of replying. \I(Germany)\i
#
"January 11, 1997",374,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Mr Kwon Young Gil, leader of the South Korean trade union, claims that workers will not back down and end strikes even though the Government appears ready to offer a peaceful solution to the crisis. \I(South Korea)\i
Government and rebel sources in Sri Lanka confirm that over 800 people were killed last week in fighting to gain control of two army bases. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Burmese authorities stop supporters of the opposition leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, from meeting. \I(Burma)\i
To stamp out any dissent, Chinese authorities arrest three pro-democracy activists in a nationwide campaign. \I(China)\i
In \JIndonesia\j, four policemen are sacked for attacking a Muslim teacher. The attack started off the riots in Tasikmalaya in West Java last month. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
China vetoes a move by the United Nations to send military observers to \JGuatemala\j to oversee the peace agreement which ends the 36-year-old war between the Government and leftist guerrillas. It is thought that China vetoed the motion because \JGuatemala\j continues to recognize \JTaiwan\j. \I(Guatemala)\i
Scientists in \JChicago\j and Madrid discover that a chemical in grape skins, resveratrol, prevents cancer. \I(USA)\i
Bad weather is responsible for the deaths of at least 20 people, as the USA is hit by snow, sleet and freezing rain. \I(USA)\i
In an attempt to improve his image, the Peruvian President, Mr Alberto Fujimori, visits shantytowns claiming that he can improve their lot in life rather than the Tupac Amaru Movement rebels. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Mullah Mohammed Rabbani, the Talibaan militia's second-in-command, reappears in \JAfghanistan\j after a two-month absence. \I(Afghanistan)\i
In an attempt to thwart the 1993 peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization, Islamic militants in the West Bank city of Nablus demonstrate. \I(Middle East)\i
During his visit to India, the British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, drops clues that he may call a general election on May 1. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Pope John Paul II meets the new Australian Ambassador to the Vatican, Mr Edward Stevens; at the discussion the Pope condemns Australian \Jeuthanasia\j legislation. \I(Italy)\i
In \JBulgaria\j, riot police are posted outside the Bulgarian Parliament as the opposition held demonstrations, demanding an early election. \I(Bulgaria)\i
After a bomb explosion in Tempo village in the south-west of Northern Ireland, which caused no injuries, the IRA threatens informers that it will retaliate if IRA members' lives are put in jeopardy. \I(N. Ireland)\i
#
"January 12, 1997",375,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi wins a battle to retrieve Mahatma Gandhi's ashes from a bank in India. Tushar is expected to take the ashes through India, ending up at the Ganges River on January 30 to scatter them in the river; this will be the anniversary of Gandhi's assassination in 1948. \I(India)\i
The 450-kilometre oil spill off the coast of \JJapan\j is stopped from entering nuclear reactors at Wakasa Bay. It is now estimated that the Russian tanker spilled almost 20,000 tones of fuel oil. \I(Japan)\i
Tony Bullimore, the British yachtsmen rescued by the Australian Defense Force 2,600 km off the coast of Western \JAustralia\j, and Thierry Dubois, the French yachtsmen whom Australians also rescued near where they found Bullimore, are to receive a huge welcome when they arrive in Fremantle, Western \JAustralia\j tomorrow. The Australian navy ship HMAS \IAdelaide\i and its crew will also receive a huge welcome home. \I(Australia)\i
A new superior general for the Roman Catholic order is to be elected after poor health forces Mother Teresa to relinquish her position in February. As well as a superior general, four other members will be elected in a confidential ballot. \I(India)\i
Following claims that elections in \JPakistan\j would be postponed, President Farooq Ahmed Leghari announces that they will go ahead on February 3 as planned. If former prime minister Benazir Bhutto's petition to be reinstated goes ahead, elections will not take place. \I(Pakistan)\i
Sri Lankan troops continue their search for the Tamil Tiger guerrillas who killed or wounded 800 people during their attack on two army camps. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A Canadian yachtsman (Gerry Roufs) competing in the same solo round-the-world race as rescued Bullimore and Dubois is still missing, believed to be somewhere near Easter Island. Rescuers are reported to have lost faith in finding Roufs, after not hearing from him for five days. \I(Easter Island) (Canada)\i
It is reported that champion golfer, Arnold Palmer, has prostate cancer. 67-year-old Palmer cancels a tournament he was scheduled to play in next week. \I(USA)\i
It is claimed that newly-married John F. Kennedy jnr and his wife Carolyn Bessette are to seek a divorce; Carolyn is reported to be demanding $US10 million after only four months of marriage. \I(USA)\i
Below freezing temperatures and blizzards cause havoc throughout America, with North Dakota hardest hit. Over 30 people have died in the United States in the last four days due to the inclement weather. \I(USA)\i
Space shuttle Atlantis launches from the Kennedy Space Center, heading for the Russian Mir space station. When it reaches the space station, Atlantis will pick up \Jastronaut\j John Blaha and leave behind Jerry Linenger for just over four months. \I(USA)\i
The US Federal \JAviation\j Authority is to check for abrasions on the fuel tank wiring of all Boeing 747 planes. This follows the confirmation that it was the fuel tank that caused the explosion when TWA Flight 800 blew up after taking off from Kennedy Airport in New York, killing all 230 passengers and crew. \I(USA)\i
More than fifty years after the end of the Second World War, a former US Army member becomes the first US black soldier who served in the Second World War to be awarded the Medal of Honor. Seventy-seven year old Vernon Baker receives the award at the White House, while six of his compatriots, also black, posthumously receive the award. \I(USA)\i
The Peruvian government, keen to end the 26-day hostage drama, offers to send their chief negotiator to meet with the head of the Tupac Amaru rebel group who are still holding 74 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima. \I(Peru)\i
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale hits Mexico City; so far the extent of the damage and the injuries are unknown. \I(Mexico)\i
The parents of the murdered six-year-old American beauty, JonBenet Ramsey, go into hiding as a safety precaution. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Following 55 days of protests against his government's refusal to approve opposition wins in the November elections, Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic may be forced to back down after his government met with students representing the tens of thousands of demonstrators. \I(Serbia)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin's doctors say his health is improving while he recovers from \Jpneumonia\j, although this does not stop the rumors that Yeltsin is too ill to continue running the country. \I(Russia)\i
Mortars are fired into a small police station in Northern Ireland; the mortars, which do not explode, are believed to be the work of the IRA. Bomb disposal officials from the British Army are called in to defuse them. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Over 80 people in \JGabon\j come into contact with the Ebola virus, five are isolated in \Jhospital\j. The Ebola virus has no known cure and in six months has killed over 40 people in \JGabon\j. \I(Gabon)\i
Princess Diana of Wales is set to visit \JAngola\j to help raise support, led by the Red Cross, to place a global ban on the use of landmines. Over ten million landmines are believed to be scattered throughout \JAngola\j, killing and injuring thousands of people each year. \I(Angola)\i
Following a crucial meeting between King Hussein of Jordan and Palestinian chairman Yasser Arafat, a proposal for the Middle East peace process looks set to go ahead when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agrees to meet with King Hussein to hear a new compromise for peace. US mediator Dennis Ross announces that he will stay in the Middle East for now and not return to Washington as previously planned. \I(Israel)\i
Newly-elected attorney-general in Israel, Roni Bar-On, officially tells Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he will not be taking up this position. Since he was appointed three days ago, there has been a petition against him taking this position because he was a former member of the Likud Central Committee. \I(Israel)\i
Israel's Defense Minister claims that the proposed agreement for the Middle East will not necessarily secure safety among the Jews and Palestinians in the \JHebron\j area. \I(Israel)\i
A train traveling from Milan to \JRome\j comes off the rails in \JPiacenza\j, \JItaly\j, killing eight people and injuring dozens more. The seven-car train derails while rounding a bend in the track. \I(Italy)\i
Following Richard Branson's failed attempt to circumnavigate the world in a \Jballoon\j, two men, one from \JSwitzerland\j and the other from \JBelgium\j, launch their \Jballoon\j from \JSwitzerland\j but are forced to land six hours later in the south of \JFrance\j. Kerosene fumes are blamed for the forced landing. \I(Switzerland)\i
Controversial French novelist, politician, and editor, Jean-Edern Hallier, dies aged 60, following a \Jbicycle\j accident. \I(France)\i
In \JBulgaria\j, police push their way through thousands of people to free lawmakers trapped inside \JBulgaria\j's Parliament building. Demonstrators had been demanding new elections, and voicing complaints about low salaries, crime and high \Jinflation\j. \I(Bulgaria)\i
Cyprus is determined to buy anti-aircraft missiles from \JRussia\j despite protests from Turkey and \JGreece\j. \I(Cyprus)\i
#
"January 13, 1997",376,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Rescued yachtsmen Tony Bullimore from the United Kingdom and Thierry Dubois from \JFrance\j, along with the crew from the HMAS \IAdelaide\i (their rescuers) arrive in Fremantle, Western \JAustralia\j to thousands of well-wishers, politicians and journalists. In Tony Bullimore's speech he generously thanks \JAustralia\j for giving him back his life. \I(Australia)\i
Two delegates from both the Chinese and Taiwanese Foreign Ministries fly to Africa to gain support from the African countries to recognize either China or \JTaiwan\j. China hopes to gain recognition from the nations that currently recognize \JTaiwan\j, but \JTaiwan\j hopes to keep their support. \I(China) (Taiwan)\i
South Korea's military is in training to run the country's public transport system and other vital services in the wake of the nationwide strike that may see up to 1.7 million union members go out on strike, effectively bring South Korea to a standstill. \I(South Korea)\i
The Supreme Court in \JPakistan\j upholds the provision under which President Farooq Leghari dismissed prime minister Benazir Bhutto in November. Nawaz Sharif from the \JPakistan\j Muslim League is the favorite to become the next prime minister of the country. \I(Pakistan)\i
The death toll for the fierce Tamil Tiger attack on Sri Lankan soldiers last week rises to over 220, sixty more soldiers than previously thought. The death toll for the Tamil Tigers is estimated at around 350. Injuries and deaths on both sides are believed to be around 1000 people. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The oil spill cleanup off \JJapan\j's coastline continues, with special temporary fences being built to keep the oil out of a nuclear power plant at Wakasa Bay. The captain of the Russian tanker which spilled the oil is still missing. \I(Japan)\i
Mahatma Gandhi's great-grandson, Tushar Gandhi, who has won the right to take possession of Mahatma's ashes, is told by an Indian court that he is not allowed to take them on a tour of India before scattering them in the Ganges on January 30. Instead they will stay in the bank vault until January 30 when he will scatter them on the anniversary of his great-grandfather's death. \I(India)\i
The Dalai Lama accepts an offer from \JTaiwan\j to visit the country despite warnings from China. \I(Taiwan) (Tibet)\i
British Prime Minister John Major, winding up his South Asian visit, travels to the Khyber Pass, a known area for heroin trafficking, to call for tougher penalties for drug dealers. \I(Pakistan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US President Bill Clinton's lawyers want an emerging alleged sexual harassment case against Clinton to be postponed until he has finished his second term in office. The woman who has filed the case says it happened six years ago when Clinton was Governor of \JArkansas\j. \I(USA)\i
Five people are killed when a \Jhelicopter\j crashes into a mountain peak in Kimberley, Canada. \I(Canada)\i
American Steve Fossett launches his \Jballoon\j from St. Louis, in an attempt to be the first to travel solo around the world in a \Jballoon\j. Two earlier attempts this week in the United Kingdom and \JSwitzerland\j both failed shortly after take-off. \I(USA)\i
O.J. Simpson admits in court that he was unfaithful to his wife Nicole Brown Simpson saying that it was dishonest but that he was not a liar. \I(USA)\i
The Hubble Space \JTelescope\j provides astronomers with strong evidence that there are black holes in many galaxies in the universe; until proof was found, black holes were only theories. \I(USA)\i
Authorities defuse two letter bombs after they were sent to a UN bureau of an Arab newspaper in London. Police intercept thousands of parcels going to the UN headquarters in Manhattan after two more bombs were found and defused in the Arab newspaper's office there. \I(USA)\i
Gunshots are heard from inside the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, where Tupac Amaru rebels are still holding 74 hostages. However, there are no reports of injuries. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
King Hussein of Jordan arrives in Gaza, Israel to meet with Palestinian chairman Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the withdrawal of Israel from the West Bank. It is expected letters of assurance from the US will be handed to both the Israelis and Palestinians regarding the withdrawal of Israel from the West Bank area. \I(Israel)\i
Thousands of demonstrators in Sofia, \JBulgaria\j, call for a new election but the governing Socialist Party refuse to call one. The country still has no prime minister following the resignation of Zhan Videnov in December. \I(Bulgaria)\i
The Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's son, Uday, who was recently attacked, is still believed to be in a serious condition and will need further operations for his injuries. \I(Iraq)\i
The President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, is under pressure from his country to minimize his expensive overseas trips and lavish spending to concentrate on Zimbabwe's poor economy. \I(Zimbabwe)\i
The Greek Foreign Minister, Theodore Pangalos, urges the Serb President Slobodan Milosevic to accept the recent opposition wins in the elections, while protests continue against Milosevic's Socialist Government to also accept the opposition victories. \I(Serbia)\i
The Greek Cypriot Government announces that it will not deploy Russian anti-aircraft missiles on Cyprus for at least 16 months, but this did not mean that the Cyprus crisis was over. The Turkish Cypriot Government warmly welcomes the Greek Cypriot Government's announcement. \I(Cyprus\i
#
"January 14, 1997",377,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Rescued British yachtsman Tony Bullimore undergoes surgery in Western \JAustralia\j to treat frostbite on his fingers. Bullimore also spends two hours in a decompression chamber to treat poor blood circulation to his feet. Rescued French yachtsman Thierry Dubois flies to Adelaide in South \JAustralia\j to honor Australian defense forces involved in the three recent sailing rescues. \I(Australia)\i
The massive strike in South Korea worsens when dock workers call an indefinite strike and 5,000 white-collar workers take to the streets demanding President Kim Young Sam abandon the new strict labor laws. The three week strike is estimated to have mounted to over $3 billion in production losses. \I(South Korea)\i
Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto claims that the US military presence in \JJapan\j was a key ingredient to peace in the region and calls on \JTaiwan\j and China to try to work out their conflicts peacefully. \I(Japan)\i
The Japanese island of Kanmurijima, where tens of thousands of white-faced shearwater birds nest this time of year, is threatened by oil slicks from the Russian tanker that spilled most of its fuel oil off the coast of \JJapan\j. Environment officials in \JJapan\j call for more volunteers to help clean up the disaster. \I(Japan)\i
British Prime Minister John Major, visiting \JPakistan\j to encourage more trade with Britain, calls on India and \JPakistan\j to solve the Kashmir conflict. \I(Pakistan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In a response to the US Government's announcement that it may cut aid to South Africa if it sells weapons to \JSyria\j, South African President Nelson Mandela condemns the decision. \I(USA)\i
Supreme Court judges in America hold a meeting to decide whether President Bill Clinton should face an alleged sexual harassment charge while still in office or wait until he finishes his second term. \I(USA)\i
Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori hints that he may transport the Tupac Amaru rebels, who are still holding 74 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, to another country if they release the hostages, but he is determined not to give in to their demands of releasing 400 comrades from prison. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Approximately 400,000 people gather in the streets of \JBelgrade\j to celebrate the Orthodox New Year's Eve while also demonstrating against Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic and his government for not recognizing opposition victories in local elections. \I(Serbia)\i
Petar Stoyanov, who will become President of \JBulgaria\j in a few days time, announces that he will call early elections in the wake of tens of thousands of protesters demanding an immediate election. \I(Bulgaria)\i
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assures his Cabinet members that he will not sign any agreement until it satisfied the country's security needs. He also tells his government that the proposed \JHebron\j agreement does not mean that Israel will hand over a major portion of the West Bank area to the Palestinians. \I(Israel)\i
It is claimed that Russian President Boris Yeltsin has called for a referendum on reuniting his country with \JBelarus\j; meanwhile Alexander Lebed, former head of the National Security Council, and the leader of the Communists, Gennady Zyuganov, call for Yeltsin to stand down due to his on-going health problems. \I(Russia)\i
Rebel members of the John Garang's \JSudan\j People's Liberation Army attack and seize the eastern \JSudan\j towns of Kurmuk, Geissan and Ora, while the President of \JSudan\j, Omar el-Bashir, announces that his country's soldiers will "defend the homeland and deter the enemies of \JIslam\j and humanity." \I(Sudan)\i
Greece is hit by severe rain storms, leaving five people dead and causing millions of dollars worth of flood damage. \I(Greece)\i
Archaeologists in \JGreece\j claim they have uncovered the ancient site of \JLyceum\j, where Aristotle taught after leaving \JPlato\j's Academy. Aristotle lived from 384 BC to 322 BC. \I(Greece)\i
Nobel Prize winner for Chemistry, Lord Todd, dies aged 89.\I(United Kingdom)\i
A bus crash in \JCairo\j kills over 30 people and injures others when it plunges off a bridge into the Nile River. \I(Egypt)\i
The British Government expresses annoyance when the European Union Competition Commissioner in Brussels threatens to take British Airways to court if a merger between British Airways and American Airlines is approved. This merger, if successful, will create the world's biggest airline. \I(United Kingdom)\i
#
"January 15, 1997",378,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Hong Kong's politicians accuse \JAustralia\j of not supporting Britain and its democratic reforms when Hong Kong is handed over to China in July, while \JAustralia\j's Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, avoids any criticism towards China in a bid to keep China on side. \I(Hong Kong)\i
Police use tear-gas on approximately 25,000 striking workers in Seoul as the general strike enters its second day. \I(South Korea)\i
The Malaysian Government announces that it will not allow a British ship carrying recycled nuclear waste from \JFrance\j to \JJapan\j to enter its waterways. \I(Malaysia)\i
One of the largest ever \Jcocaine\j hauls in New Zealand is seized by police in Auckland. \I(New Zealand)\i
An explosion, believed to be a bomb, kills three people in a New Delhi mosque. Reports of the number of people injured are still unclear. \I(India)\i
Up to 1,000 journalists in Sri Lanka hold a demonstration against the government for its recent crackdown on the country's media. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The clean-up of the massive oil spill off \JJapan\j's coast is hampered by bad weather and rough seas. The oil slick continues to spread, causing considerable environmental damage. \I(Japan)\i
The Humans Rights Group in Asia claims that a proposed visit to China by United States Vice President Al Gore in March should not go ahead because the human rights situation is not improving in China and a visit by USA will not help matters. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Golfer Arnold Palmer, who has only just found out he has prostate cancer, is to undergo immediate surgery. \I(USA)\i
Astronomers at \JPennsylvania\j State University say that there is more chance of finding evidence of life forms on planets' moons and not on the planets themselves. \I(USA)\i
US President Bill Clinton congratulates Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on their signing of the \JHebron\j peace deal. Clinton also thanks King Hussein of Jordan for his much-needed help in securing the agreement. \I(USA)\i
US Vice President Al Gore announces that all Boeing 737s in USA will have to have their rudder's improved in order to prevent unexplained disasters. \I(USA)\i
Tupac Amaru rebels still holding 74 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima signal that they are ready to accept the government's proposal for mediators to step in to try to end the four week crisis. \I(Peru)\i
American Steve Fossett, who launched his \Jballoon\j two days ago in an attempt to be the first to fly solo around the world in a \Jballoon\j, runs into trouble when \JRussia\j doesn't allow him to fly over their air space. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A new vaccine, Twinrix Adult, is launched in London. It is a combined vaccine that guards against both hepatitis A and B. \I(United Kingdom)\i
The approval for a new runway at Manchester Airport will see this airport become the second busiest, after Heathrow, in England. Environmentalists and residents living nearby oppose the ú170 million runway. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Prince Edward reportedly signs a ú1.3 million deal with a US broadcaster to make documentaries for the \Jtelevision\j station. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Following revelations that four women were infected with hepatitis B from their surgeons during operations in Britain, British surgeons are to undertake more stringent health checks. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat sign an historic peace deal that will see self-rule for Palestinians in \JHebron\j and the deployment of Israeli soldiers in the West Bank. \I(Israel)\i
Extra soldiers and police are brought into \JHebron\j to enable a safe and smooth deployment of the area. \I(Israel)\i
The Police Prime Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz confirms that his government will do everything in its power to return the assets of Jewish people or their heirs that were seized during World War II. \I(Poland)\i
The Russian Parliament attempts to oust President Boris Yeltsin, claiming him to be unfit to remain in office. Yeltsin is still in \Jhospital\j recovering from \Jpneumonia\j. \I(Russia)\i
Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic may finally succumb to opposition pressure and eight weeks of street demonstrations when \JSerbia\j's electoral commissions announces they will restore election victories to the opposition. \I(Serbia)\i
Sudanese President al-Bashir declares a holy war against rebels when they overrun the town of Geissan and threaten to cut off power to the capital city. \I(Sudan)\i
#
"January 16, 1997",379,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Striking union leaders in South Korea reject the government's offer of introducing safeguards on job security. The continuing strike in South Korea causes millions of dollars worth of loss from potential exports and even more from production. \I(South Korea)\i
Over a dozen people are injured in Manila when Philippine police try to force squatters out of a slum colony where some of them have been living illegally in the area for up to ten years. \I(Philippines)\i
As the Taiwanese Government announces that the Pope has accepted an invitation to visit its country, China strongly protests against any proposed visit by the Pope to \JTaiwan\j, which consequently causes more friction between the Catholic Church and \JBeijing\j. \I(China) (Taiwan)\i
A Canadian astronomer in \JAustralia\j claims that the Big Bang happened 15 billion years ago and not 10-13 billion years ago as most scientists believe. \I(Australia)\i
The Malaysian Government extends the amnesty period for illegal immigrants to surrender before imposing new strict penalties, including a fine and imprisonment. \I(Malaysia)\i
The government in Sri Lanka reports that it is not willing to negotiate with Tamil Tiger rebels if they keep insisting upon a separate state. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Golfer Arnold Palmer recuperates after successful surgery for prostate cancer. \I(USA)\i
Tupac Amaru rebels holding hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima accept the Peruvian Government's offer to supply mediators as long as there is are representatives from \JGuatemala\j and from Europe. \I(Peru)\i
The US Energy Department reveals that American soldiers accidentally left behind \Jplutonium\j in \JHanoi\j during the Vietnam War. This was only recently discovered by senior officials at the US Energy Department, who are negotiating with \JHanoi\j to retrieve it. \I(USA)\i
Plaintiffs in the O.J. Simpson civil trial being held in \JCalifornia\j claim that evidence certifies that O.J. Simpson was at the crime scene (where his estranged wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman were found dead). \I(USA)\i
The son of comedian Bill Cosby is found dead on the side of a Los Angeles roadway. Ennis William Cosby was fatally shot in a probable bungled robbery attempt. \I(USA)\i
A cold snap including strong winds and snow in the Upper Midwest of USA causes main roads and schools to shut down. \JWisconsin\j and \JMinnesota\j are affected and so far six people have died due to the weather. \I(USA)\i
The Peruvian Government rejects the Tupac Amaru rebel's demand that \JGuatemala\j sends a mediator to help solve the month-old hostage crisis in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima. \I(Peru)\i
Protesters demonstrating against massive budget cuts in \JHaiti\j demand that the prime minister step down. \I(Haiti)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Talibaan militia in \JAfghanistan\j capture an air base north of Kabul and also the town of Charikar. \I(Afghanistan)\i
The historical \JHebron\j deal signed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, causes a rift within the Israeli Government, with one minister, Benjamin Begin, resigning. \I(Israel)\i
Doctors in \JRussia\j admit that President Boris Yeltsin's \Jpneumonia\j is linked to his heart condition and his recovery is not going as well as they had hoped. Yeltsin's stay in \Jhospital\j is extended for an estimated three weeks. \I(Russia)\i
Heavy rain and thunderstorms cause widespread flooding in Haifa, breaking a winter \Jdrought\j and topping up much-needed water levels. \I(Israel)\i
As demonstrations calling for an early election continue in \JBulgaria\j, the government organizes an emergency importation of wheat as the country faces starvation and poverty. \I(Bulgaria)\i
A French court is to decide whether an 87-year-old \JVichy\j official should stand trial for deporting hundreds of Jews to Nazi death camps during World War II. \I(France)\i
Muslim guerrillas and Algerian forces exchange fire in the streets of the casbah in Boufarik, south of \JAlgiers\j. Fourteen people are reported killed when a bomb explodes in a marketplace. \I(Algeria)\i
MP for Meriden in the United Kingdom, Iain Mills, is found dead in his London home. \I(United Kingdom)\i
#
"January 17, 1997",380,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The investigation into the murder of Bougainville's Premier Theodore Miriung in October is postponed when pro-government fighters threaten police. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Seven union leaders in South Korea continue to hide from authorities in a cathedral to keep from being arrested while workers continue nationwide strikes. \I(South Korea)\i
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child makes a proposal to \JBurma\j for them to stop child military conscription. The Burmese Government denies that they conscript children for the military. \I(Burma)\i
A Japanese \Jcult\j member who is accused of being behind the \JTokyo\j subway gas attack in March 1995, denies that his \Jcult\j tried to bring down the Japanese Government in a coup. \I(Japan)\i
An Australian bishop claims that he has proof that an Indonesian soldier was supposed to assassinate Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Carlos Belo at the end of last year but was stopped at the last moment by Belo supporters who then turned around and killed him. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Canadian environmentalist and businessman Maurice Strong is appointed by the newly-elected United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, to help guide reforms to the United Nations. \I(Canada)\i
Police investigating the murder yesterday of Bill Cosby's son, Ennis Cosby, in Los Angeles, claim that there were two witnesses to the fatal shooting. \I(USA)\i
Blizzards and extreme temperatures still continue in the Upper Midwest around \JMinnesota\j where hundreds of people are forced to stay indoors because of the inclement weather. \I(USA)\i
A Delta rocket launching from Cape Canaveral explodes shortly after take-off. The rocket was holding a million dollar Global Positioning System satellite for the nation's Air Force. \I(USA)\i
Tupac Amaru rebels holding hostages at the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima release one hostage, Peruvian Luis Valencia Hirano. They are still holding 73 people. Meanwhile former US president Jimmy Carter offers to mediate in an attempt to solve the crisis. \I(Peru)\i
US House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, may pay a fine of approximately $US300,000 for ethics charges, while still being able to keep his job. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Alleged Australian pedophile, Philip Bell, who has been on the run from Australian police for 18 months, is finally found in South Africa and placed under arrest. \JInterpol\j, who were involved in the arrest, will apply for Bell to be extradited. \I(South Africa)\i
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa reports that the chief of defense General Goerg Meiring was involved in State-sponsored murder during the \Japartheid\j era. \I(South Africa)\i
Following the withdrawal of Israeli troops from \JHebron\j, Palestinians fly the Palestinian flag at the military building to celebrate the end of 30 years of Israeli occupation. Israel still controls 20 per cent of \JHebron\j, mainly where the Jews have settled. \I(Israel)\i
The President of \JSudan\j, Omar al-Beshir, closes universities and calls up students for military service to be ready to fight against \JEthiopia\j. \I(Sudan)\i
Former Anglican \JArchbishop\j of Southern Africa, Desmond Tutu, has surgery for prostate cancer. \I(South Africa)\i
In a bid to settle the eight-week crisis, where protesters demand the reinstatement of opposition victories in local elections, Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic promises to reshuffle economic reforms and also his Cabinet. The European Union recommends that its members should halt relations with \JSerbia\j until the crisis is solved. \I(Serbia)\i
Thousands of people continue protests against the government in \JBulgaria\j. To avoid starvation among the people the government is to import millions of dollars worth of wheat from America to continue the country's bread supply. \I(Bulgaria)\i
A Polish oil company strikes a deal with Dor Energy, Israel, for them to construct 400 gas stations in \JPoland\j over the next five years. \I(Poland)\i
Ireland, the last European country to legalize divorce, grants its first divorce in the High Court. Tens of thousands of more people in the country are now hopeful that their divorces will be granted too. \I(Ireland)\i
American Steve Fossett, attempting to be the first to fly solo around the world in a \Jballoon\j, runs into trouble when \JLibya\j refuses him permission to fly over the country's air space. \I(Libya)\i
France says it will not let Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's son, Uday Hussein, into the country to receive medical treatment after he was attacked in December. \I(France)\i
#
"January 18, 1997",381,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A Norwegian explorer, Boerge Ousland, becomes the first person to cross the Antarctic alone. It took him 64 days to travel 2,830 km. \I(Antarctica)\i
Over 25 people are reported dead and dozens are injured when a bomb explodes in \JLahore\j, \JPakistan\j. The bomb was said to be planted in a motorbike outside a courthouse. \I(Pakistan)\i
South Korean striking workers slowly continue to return to work, but union leaders vow to keep fighting the government to rewrite the new strict labor laws, giving the government a deadline of mid-February. \I(South Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Frank Sinatra is released from a Los Angeles medical center three weeks after suffering a heart attack.\I(USA)\i
A Chilean pilot reports spotting missing yachtsmen, Canadian Gerry Roufs, in Chilean waters off Cape Horn. Gerry Roufs is competing in the solo round-the-world yacht race and has not been heard from for nearly two weeks. \I(Chile) (Canada)\i
The White House ethics committee confirms that US House Speaker Newt Gingrich will be fined $US300,000 for ethics violations as well as being reprimanded. \I(USA)\i
Former US presidential candidate for the Democrats, Paul Tsongas, dies from \Jpneumonia\j, he was aged 55. \I(USA)\i
Astronomer Clyde Tombaugh, discoverer of the planet Pluto, dies aged 90. \I(USA)\i
In a bid to impose a tougher stance towards the IRA, the US Government announces that it will not allow Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams a visa to enter its country. \I(USA)\i
US President Bill Clinton announces that he will call for a global ban on land mines at a United Nations conference this week. America, along with Britain want 'smart' mines, which self-destruct after a period of time, to be excluded from the ban. China and \JRussia\j are expected to oppose the global land-mine ban. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is to make a visit to \JHebron\j to address the people from the headquarters of the Palestinian police. \I(Israel)\i
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes it clear that the Golan Heights area will remain in Israel's control for historic and economic reasons. \I(Israel)\i
American Steve Fossett, while attempting to fly solo round-the-world in a hot air \Jballoon\j, eventually receives permission from \JLibya\j to fly over its air space but not before wasting a large amount of fuel. \I(Libya)\i
In an attempt to solve the nine-week crisis, a human rights spokesperson for the United Nations pleads with Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic to accept opposition victories in local elections. \I(Serbia)\i
The Department of Trade and Industry in the United Kingdom reports that it has received evidence that the Iraqi Government or agents acting on its behalf has placed orders with British companies to suggest that it is rebuilding its scud missiles and other weapons. \I(United Kingdom) (Iraq)\i
In a bid to impose a tougher stance towards the IRA, the US Government announces that it will not allow Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams a visa to enter its country. \I(Ireland)\i
#
"January 19, 1997",382,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Tamil Tigers attack a Sri Lankan police post in Kebitigollewa, killing a reported twenty men. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Police in South Korea announce that they will not try to arrest seven union members who are seeking refuge in a cathedral after they agreed to stop the massive strike that has cost the country millions of dollars. The union leaders still want the government to rewrite the new strict labor laws and they say they will encourage workers to strike every Wednesday until the government backs down. \I(South Korea)\i
Approximately half of the 15,000 people that were evacuated a couple of days ago start returning to their homes in the Central Java province in \JIndonesia\j near the Merapi \Jvolcano\j which is still erupting. \I(Indonesia)\i
Following a government crackdown on guerrillas in India, up to 25,000 Indian troops move into Assam to set up a unified command. \I(India)\i
American Steve Fossett, attempting to be the first to fly round the world solo in a hot air \Jballoon\j, is forced to land in India due to low fuel. However, Fossett broke the world record for the longest time in a \Jballoon\j. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Freezing conditions in Washington D.C. don't stop tens of thousands of Americans turning up for the three-day celebrations of President Bill Clinton's inauguration. \I(USA)\i
NASA is to conduct an investigation into the recent explosion of the Delta II rocket that blew up shortly after launching last week. The $US55 million rocket was carrying a $US40 million Air Force navigational satellite. \I(USA)\i
The US Energy Department says that Vietnam can keep a small portion of the \Jplutonium\j that America only just discovered was accidentally left there during the Vietnam War. \I(USA)\i
American Steve Fossett, attempting to be the first to fly round the world solo in a hot air \Jballoon\j, is forced to land in India due to low fuel. However, Fossett broke the world record for the longest time in a \Jballoon\j. \I(USA)\i
US House Speaker Newt Gingrich may be forced to pay the $US300,000 fine imposed for ethics violations out of his own pocket rather than from campaign funds. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Heavy fighting erupts in \JSudan\j for the province of Kurmuk, as the \JSudan\j Government reports that \JEthiopia\j has captured Yaqub Hussein, the Commissioner of Kurmuk Province. Thousands of Sudanese volunteers turn up in response to the government's calls for mobilization. \I(Sudan) (Ethiopia)\i
Up to 60,000 Palestinians turn out to greet Palestinian Yasser Arafat on his arrival in \JHebron\j. Arafat's last visit to \JHebron\j was over 30 years ago. \I(Israel)\i
The Talibaan militia in \JAfghanistan\j announces that it will conduct house-to-house searches in their recently captured towns to confiscate all weapons. \I(Afghanistan)\i
A car bomb explosion in a cafΘ in \JAlgiers\j kills over 20 people and injures others. \I(Algeria)\i
Rebels in \JSudan\j report that they killed approximately 150 government soldiers who were stopping them from heading towards a dam in the east of \JSudan\j. \I(Sudan)\i
Four Muslims are sentenced to death in \JCairo\j for the murder in 1994 of two policemen in south \JCairo\j. \I(Egypt)\i
A tanker carrying fuel and a cargo ship collide in the North Sea just off \JFrance\j. Officials claim that the \Jgasoline\j that was spilled would evaporate and would cause minimal \Jpollution\j. \I(France)\i
Staff at the headquarters of the French bank CrΘdit Foncier in Paris hold the bank's governor and other executives hostage in a protest at the government's decision to close the bank. \I(France)\i
Three Spanish aid workers are shot dead in \JRwanda\j by Hutu extremists and the United Nations claims that it may halt operations in the nation. \I(Rwanda)\i
#
"January 20, 1997",383,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Candidates for the Golkar Party just announced in \JIndonesia\j include four of President Soeharto's children and one of his daughters-in-law. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto announces that his government will receive an economic overhaul and there will be big cuts in spending. \I(Japan)\i
South Korea's President, Kim Young Sam, finally agrees to meet with opposition leaders to talk about revising the new strict labor laws which have caused massive strikes in the country. \I(South Korea)\i
The republic of \JNauru\j, situated in the central Pacific, announces that it will hold a general election on February 8 in order to elect a stable government, as it has had four presidents in the last 10 weeks. \I(Nauru)\i
Up to three dozen people are reported dead in China following severe snowstorms. Thousands more people are stranded in their homes. \I(China)\i
Three female members of the Bhutto family, deposed premier Benazir; her murdered brother's wife, Ghinva; and Benazir's mother, Nusrat are all set to contest the elections due to be held in February. \I(Pakistan)\i
The Japanese Government asks for assistance from as many private boat owners as possible to help clean up the massive oil spill from a Russian tanker almost three weeks ago. The slick has spread along 900 km of the Japanese coastline with irreparable environmental damage occurring near shellfish farms and bird sanctuaries. \I(Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US President Bill Clinton is sworn in for a second term as President of America. Clinton's inaugural speech takes 22 minutes as he calls for racial and political unity saying "We must succeed as one America". \I(USA)\i
Madonna takes out the best actress award in a musical for her role in \IEvita;\i while Australian actor Geoffrey Rush takes the best actor award in a drama for his role in \IShine;\i and British actress Brenda Blethyn wins the best actress award in a drama for her role in \ISecrets and Lies,\i at the Golden Globe Awards in America. \I(USA)\i
Intelligence sources in USA believe that a Saudi Shi'ite, Ahmed Mughasil, ordered the bombing of a US military base in Dhahran, Saudi \JArabia\j last year, which killed 19 US servicemen. \I(USA)\i
It is revealed by a released hostage that a lover of one of the Tupac Amaru rebels is one of the 300 comrades that the rebels are demanding be released from prison. The Tupac Amaru rebels are still holding 73 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Petar Stoyanov of the UDF Party is sworn in as the Bulgarian President. Up to 60,000 citizens enter the 13th day of demonstrations against the current Socialist Party Government, calling for an immediate election. \I(Bulgaria)\i
In a bid to solve the crisis at CrΘdit Foncier, the French bank in Paris where staff hold the governor of the bank and four senior executives hostage, the French Government appoints a mediator. \I(France)\i
Turkey says it will develop naval bases in northern Cyprus if \JGreece\j continues to plan similar facilities in southern Cyprus. \I(Cyprus) (Greece) (Turkey)\i
The Prime Minister of Zaire, Leon Kengo wa Dondo, declares war on Tutsi rebels in order to recover land on its eastern border. \I(Zaire)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is almost ready to be released from \Jhospital\j but he will not return to full-time work until he is completely recovered from \Jpneumonia\j. \I(Russia)\i
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approves the building of more Jewish homes in the Jordan Valley in the West Bank, claiming that Israel will always keep control of the Jordan Valley area. Meanwhile, Netanyahu claims that he wants to resume peace talks with the Syrian Government. \I(Israel) (Syria)\i
A month after receiving a pay rise, politicians in Israel are now to receive thousands of dollars a year extra to help pay for the rent on their offices. \I(Israel)\i
Thousands of Israeli Jews who are against the newly-signed \JHebron\j agreement attend a rally to mourn the historic decision. \I(Israel)\i
Thousands of Albanians blame the President Sali Berisha for failed pyramid schemes where some citizens of \JAlbania\j have lost all their money. \I(Albania)\i
#
"January 21, 1997",384,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A billionaire Australian-based Orthodox Jew, who helped fund Israeli Prime Minister's Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party, says he opposes the historic \JHebron\j agreement and he will help Jewish settlers expand in \JHebron\j. \I(Australia)\i
Over 40 homes are destroyed and hundreds of people are evacuated when bushfires rage and in around Melbourne. A three-day heatwave in the city does not help the hundreds of firefighters control the flames. \I(Australia)\i
Xinjiang province in China is hit by two earthquakes measuring 6.4 and 6.3 on the Richter Scale. Over ten people are reported dead and many more injured. \I(China)\i
A member of the Japanese Government reports that \JJapan\j, the US, and South Korea have been discussing a contingency plan for the \Jfamine\j crisis in North Korea. \I(Japan) (North Korea)\i
The Governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, urges his successor when Hong Kong is handed to China, Tung Chee-hwa, not to accept new legislation that will abandon civil rights in Hong Kong. \I(Hong Kong) (China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Advertisers in America pay up to $US2.4 million a minute for their commercials to air during this weekend's Super Bowl XXXI. \I(USA)\i
US President Bill Clinton enters his second term as president with a 60 per cent approval rating. \I(USA)\i
US House Speaker Newt Gingrich receives a reprimand from the House of Representatives; this is in conjunction with his $US300,000 fine for ethics violations. \I(USA)\i
Colonel Tom Parker, best known as Elvis Presley's manager, dies in Las Vegas, aged 87. \I(USA)\i
A woman in America is arrested after she falsely claims to be the illegitimate daughter of Bill Cosby, but police do not think this is related to the murder of Cosby's son, Ennis, earlier this week. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A billionaire Australian-based Orthodox Jew, who help fund Israeli Prime Minister's Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party, says he opposes the historic Israeli \JHebron\j agreement and he will help Jewish settlers expand in \JHebron\j. \I(Israel)\i
US government officials in the Middle East start encouraging Arab countries to improve ties with Israel following the historic \JHebron\j deal. \I(Israel)\i
Israel and the Palestinian Authority start to advertise for more tourism to the area in the wake of the new \JHebron\j agreement. Already there are signs that tourism is on the rise. \I(Israel)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is released from \Jhospital\j after nearly two weeks following a bout of \Jpneumonia\j. \I(Russia)\i
The opposition government in \JSerbia\j says that a war is imminent if President Slobodan Milosevic does not agree to recognize opposition victories in local elections held at the end of last year. \I(Serbia)\i
Germany and the Czech Republic sign a declaration to end their post World War II ill feelings of one another and to end over 50 years of friction. \I(Czech Republic) (Germany)\i
The oldest living survivor of the \ITitanic\i disaster in 1912, Edith Haisman, dies in England, aged 100. \I(United Kingdom)\i
A bomb explodes in \JAlgiers\j, killing up to 20 people; this is the second bomb in a week that has rocked the city, the first bomb killed 66 people. \I(Algeria)\i
#
"January 22, 1997",385,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Opposition parties in South Korea decline President Kim Young-sam's offer to recommence the discussions on the new labor law. Thousands of workers go on a one-day strike in an effort to prevent the new labor law from going ahead. \I(South Korea)\i
India announces that it is willing to assist Sri Lanka bring the separatist war to an end. \I(India)\i
In northeast India rebels announce that they are halting their campaign for a separate homeland and call a cease-fire. \I(India)\i
In Mindanao island, the \JPhilippines\j, government soldiers kill 20 Muslim rebels in violent fighting using gunships. \I(Philippines)\i
Indonesian President Soeharto establishes "riot alert" centers to stop further outbreaks of violence. The Government believes that military action, rather than a political solution, will curb any future violence. \I(Indonesia)\i
The province of Xinjiang in China is hit by further snow storms that have already killed 36 people which has prevented rescue work. \I(China)\i
It is predicted that the Japanese population is rapidly aging and by the year 2050 over 23% of the population will be over the age of 65. \I(Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American \Jastronaut\j, John Blaha, returns to earth after spending four months on the Russian space station Mir. \I(USA)\i
Peruvian police throw stones at the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima where Marxist rebels are holding 73 people captive. The Red Cross has requested neighbors to allow their houses to be utilized for discussions in an effort to end the six-week crisis. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The skeleton of an unknown flesh-eating \Jdinosaur\j is uncovered on the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Sudanese rebels say that they have murdered hundreds of government soldiers and are about to capture a major hydro-electric dam. The rebels are attempting to overthrow the Islamic Government. \I(Sudan)\i
The Socialists leaders of \JBulgaria\j admit that the country has been misgoverned for two years and announce that they will investigate the claims of corruption. \I(Bulgaria)\i
The South African Government halts its plan to sell armaments to \JSyria\j and will reconsider the proposal in three years' time. \I(South Africa)\i
#
"January 23, 1997",386,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Cambodian army is increasingly taking control from Khmer Rouge rebels of an illegal logging organization which is destroying the country's parks and forests. \I(Cambodia)\i
Talibaan militia in \JAfghanistan\j occupy two main towns north of Kabul and announce that it is plans to move up the \JSalang\j Pass towards the Panjsher Valley. \I(Afghanistan)\i
In \JPakistan\j, former cricketer turned politician, Mr Imran Khan attempts to win support for his Movement for Justice in the lead-up to the February general election. \I(Pakistan)\i
A Taiwanese Power Company (Taipower) is sending 5,000 barrels of nuclear waste for disposal to \JRussia\j on a trial basis. \I(Taiwan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Shots are fired inside the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima where Marxist rebels are holding 73 people hostage. The Peruvian President, Mr Fujimori, refuses to negotiate with the rebels in a new tough stance. \I(Peru)\i
The United States examines a plan with \JRussia\j which would go further than the 1993 START II program to cut nuclear weapons by 50% in ten years' time. \I(USA)\i
An American congressional group condemns China's moves to stop democracy in China, claiming such attempts could damage US trade privileges. \I(USA)\i
The US is annoyed by an agreement which Canada has signed with \JCuba\j which covers cooperation on human rights and proposes retaliating against the American law to punish \JCuba\j's foreign investors. \I(USA) (Canada) (Cuba)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Vatican calls for smoking to be prohibited, claiming that it is an addictive habit equivalent to using heroin. \I(Italy)\i
In \JRussia\j, opposition parties promise to continue their campaign to have the President, Mr Boris Yeltsin, removed on the grounds that ill-health make him unfit for office. \I(Russia)\i
British astronomers witness the birth of a star 5,000 light-years away, at the center of the Lagoon Nebula. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Maurice Papon, a suspected Nazi collaborator, is ordered by the French Supreme Court to stand trial for crimes against humanity -- he has been fighting his case for 15 years. \I(France)\i
Masood, the Israeli foreign intelligence agency, announce that war is likely between \JSyria\j and Israel unless peace talks between the two countries recommence in the near future. \I(Israel)\i
The Sudanese Government announces that it has prevented rebels' attempts to seize a main hydro-electric power station in the eastern Blue Nile State. \I(Sudan)\i
Scientists in Tel Aviv establish a program to save vultures from \Jextinction\j. \I(Israel)\i
In an attempt to thwart the South African peace process, the wife of a senior colored MP is raped on Robben Island, by a white man. \I(S. Africa)\i
The new Russian equivalent of the \JKGB\j denies claims made by \JChechnya\j that it was responsible for the murder of six Red Cross workers in \JChechnya\j. \I(Chechnya)\i
The \JFBI\j claims that Saudi Arabian authorities held back evidence relating to the bombing of American barracks, which killed 19 people in June, 1996. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
#
"January 24, 1997",387,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Union leaders in Seoul, South Korea, leave the Myongdong Cathedral which has been their refuge for more than one month of industrial action. The opposition party announces that it is ready to discuss in parliament the new labor law which has been the cause of strikes. The South Korean Government is criticized by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for not satisfying its obligations to key trade union freedoms. \I(South Korea)\i
The incoming chief executive of Hong Kong, Mr Tung Chee-hwa, requests that 26 human rights laws be abolished before China takes over the territory in July this year. The outgoing British Governor, Mr Chris Patten, demands that the laws must remain intact. \I(Hong Kong) (China)\i
In the province of Xinjiang in China, authorities attempt to continue rescue work after two disasters hit the area. An \Jearthquake\j left hundreds of thousands of people homeless and 12 dead, while snow blizzards killed 36 people and left hundreds of thousands trapped. \I(China)\i
In Srinagar, India, police arrest more than 100 suspected separatist guerrillas ahead of India's Republic Day celebrations. \I(India)\i
The North Korean Government protests against \JTaiwan\j's intention to send nuclear waste to North Korea. \I(N. Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American President, Mr Bill Clinton, promises to pay the money owed to the United Nations if the new Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, introduces a program of reform for the world body. \I(USA)\i
In an effort to gain concessions for political prisoners in China, the USA is not pushing so hard on China's human rights record. \I(USA)\i
Despite the heavy military presence around the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, where Marxist rebels are holding 73 people captive, no end appears to be in sight to the crisis. \I(Peru)\i
Dr Madeleine Albright is sworn in as the American Secretary of State -- the first woman in US history to hold the position. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Swiss Government agrees to establish a \JHolocaust\j memorial fund after it is pressurized by Jewish groups around the world. It is believed that \JSwitzerland\j profited from assets taken from victims of the \JHolocaust\j during the Nazi era. \I(Switzerland)\i
The Moroccan Government begins a crackdown on the Muslim extremist movement, fearing an eruption of violence similar to recent events in \JAlgeria\j. \I(Morocco)\i
Mr Peter Graf, the father of German tennis star Steffi Graf, is found guilty of not paying taxes on his daughter's earnings and is sentenced to three years and nine months in jail. \I(Germany)\i
The Prince of Wales voices his objections to British taxpayers having to foot the ú60 million bill to replace the Royal Yacht Britannia. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Guerrillas murder at least 46 people and a suburban mayor in a village south of the Algerian capital, \JAlgiers\j, in the latest violent incident. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. \I(Algeria)\i
Chechnya prepares for a general election, after two years of civil war. \I(Chechnya)\i
The Red Cross organization announces that it will introduce armed guards for its staff after nine Red Cross workers were murdered in 1996. \I(Switzerland)\i
The British Government nearly dismisses its participation in a single currency and claims that the European initiative will fail. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Mr Alexander Lebed, the former Russian national security chief, attends US President Bill Clinton's inauguration which is seen as a sign of US support for the Russian President's main political opponent. \I(USA)\i
Talibaan militia fail to turn up to peace talks due to be held in Tehran with former Afghan president, Mr Burhanuddin Rabbani. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Violence erupts during anti-government protest in \JSerbia\j, as police use clubs against demonstrators blocking a freeway in Kragujevac. The protest was about control of the media. \I(Serbia)\i
The third anniversary of the 1994 \JHebron\j massacre is commemorated by thousands of people. \I(West Bank)\i
The Rwandan army kills hundreds of people in a military operation against Hutu rebels, who are believed to have killed 50 people, including three Spanish aid workers. \I(Rwanda)\i
#
"January 25, 1997",388,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In China, five people are sentenced to jail for participating in a petition which demanded democratic rights that was distributed on Tiananmen Square. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In \JPeru\j, military activities around the Japanese ambassador's residence, where Marxist rebels are holding 73 people hostage, stop the Red Cross from gaining access to the captives. \I(Peru)\i
A man threatens to explode a bomb at the Paramount studios in L.A. \I(USA)\i
California is again hit by fierce storms, as concern about renewed flooding mounts. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Rebels in \JAlgeria\j hack 22 people to death; in the last two weeks more than 200 people have died in the recent outbreak of violence. \I(Algeria)\i
The health of Russian President, Mr Boris Yeltsin, is still a cause for concern, as the \JKremlin\j reschedules a summit planned for next week. \I(Russia)\i
Germany and \JFrance\j enter into discussions on a nuclear defense pact. \I(France)\i
The Irish Government stops all official contacts with Sinn Fein, the political arm of the IRA, accusing its leaders of bad faith. \I(N. Ireland)\i
Calls are made for the resignation of Swiss economics minister, Mr Jean-Pascal Delamuraz, whose comments about the fund for \JHolocaust\j victims caused outrage in Jewish circles. \I(Switzerland)\i
Speculation mounts that German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, will resign after his loyal second in command, Wolfgang SchΣuble, announces that he would like to be \JGermany\j's new chancellor. \I(Germany)\i
The Palestinian Liberation Organization's leader, Mr Yassar Arafat, says the PLO will not revise its charter as long as Israel does not use a constitution. \I(Israel)\i
According to the Syrian newspaper, \I(Tishrin),\i \JSyria\j is willing to recommence talks with Israel on the basis of the UN Resolution 242 which "calls for trading land for peace." \I(Syria)\i
Saudia Arabian authorities refuse to allow the US to get involved in the investigation into the bombing of American barracks which killed 19 people in 1996. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
#
"January 26, 1997",389,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The new Chinese form of the Hong Kong legislature meets in Shenzen, China, as it begins the process of choosing a president and establishing an agenda. \I(Hong Kong) (China)\i
The Thai Prime Minister, Mr Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, will meet with thousands of poor rural people who came to \JBangkok\j to protest. \I(Thailand)\i
New Delhi bans smoking in movie theaters, buses, parks and other public places -- the first Indian city to issue such a ban. \I(India)\i
Eastern \JIndonesia\j is hit by a series of earthquakes, though there were no reports of injuries or damage. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A Peruvian national police general is released by Marxist rebels in Lima, \JPeru\j, who are holding 72 people hostage at the Japanese ambassador's residence. \I(Peru)\i
The new American Secretary for State, Dr Madeleine Albright, vows that she will discuss human rights and Hong Kong's future with China. \I(USA)\i
An American financed study, the Cambodian Genocide Program, reveals that over 2 million people died under Cambodian Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot. \I(USA)\i
Guilherme de Padua, a former Brazilian soap star, is sentence to 19 years jail for murdering his co-star, Ms Daniella Perez. \I(Brazil)\i
Three bank robbers are suspects in the \JAtlanta\j Olympic Games bombing. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In an about-turn, the Vatican supports a new kind of fertility treatment for women. Previously, Pope John Paul II objected to any type of invasive treatment. \I(Italy)\i
In the Russian State of \JChechnya\j, a Chechen commander, Mr Shamil Basayev, demands independence from \JRussia\j. \I(Russia) (Chechnya)\i
In Madagascar, six people are killed and thousands left homeless after the country is hit by a \Jcyclone\j. \I(Madagascar)\i
Mr Berisha, the President of \JAlbania\j, makes a plea for calm after thousands of people demonstrate when pyramid investment schemes collapse. The army is used to control the protests. \I(Albania)\i
Rebels in Zaire fight against government soldiers in the east of the country. Rebels have control of a 450-mile piece of land along Zaire's eastern border. \I(Zaire)\i
The British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, reveals that he has many doubts about a single European currency. \I(United Kingdom)\i
It is revealed that an investigation will commence into claims that the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, attempted to place a close associate in the position of attorney-general as a trade-off to stop corruption charges against a main political ally. \I(Israel)\i
A British soldier is wounded after a car bomb explodes in Ballynahinch in Northern Ireland. \I(N. Ireland)\i
The Afghan Talibaan militia claim to have occupied the areas of Shinwari and Siagird in the Ghorband Valley in the north Parwan province of \JAfghanistan\j. \I(Afghanistan)\i
According to a Jesuit priest, Mother Teresa is in very poor health and will die soon. \I(India)\i
#
"January 27, 1997",390,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The South Korean President, Mr Kim Young-sam, announces an investigation into the Hanbo Steel and General Construction Company which folded up after failing to honor promissory notes worth millions of dollars. \I(South Korea)\i
It is believed that the Indian Prime Minister, H D Deve Gowda, is in a political fight for power with his main rival, Sitaram Kesri, but his position is safe for the present. \I(India)\i
Ms Jemima Goldsmith, the wife of Pakistani politician Mr Imran Khan, denies that her wealthy financier father Sir James Goldsmith is providing money to support Khan's political campaign. \I(Pakistan)\i
Thousands of poor people from country areas demonstrate outside Government House in \JBangkok\j, \JThailand\j. The Thai Prime Minister, Mr Chavalit, vows to look into their grievances. \I(Thailand)\i
Singapore's deputy prime minister, Mr Lee Hsien Loong, says that lawyers are examining further suspected defamatory remarks made by opposition politician Mr Tang Liang Hong. Mr Hong has already had six \Jdefamation\j suits filed against him by various members of the People's Action Party for previous comments. \I(Singapore)\i
ASEAN decides to accept \JBurma\j as a new member to the association in 1997 despite the possibility of its inclusion causing problems with the West. \I(Singapore)\i
The Burmese pro-democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, encourages multinational organizations to stop doing business in \JBurma\j. She claims that investing in \JBurma\j only assists the Burmese military and does nothing to promote justice and equality. \I(Burma)\i
\BThe Americas\b
It seems likely that the American administration will withdraw support for President Slobodan Milosevic of \JSerbia\j and President Franjo Tudjman of \JCroatia\j. \I(USA)\i
US political parties come under increasing pressure to launch an investigation into methods of fundraising after the rumors surrounding the last election campaign. \I(USA)\i
The Swiss ambassador to the US resigns after it is revealed that he suggested fighting any claims for compensation by \JHolocaust\j victims. \I(USA)\i
Peruvian soldiers show off their military power outside the Japanese ambassador's residence where 73 people are still being held hostage by Marxist rebels. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Thousands of people demonstrate in Sofia, \JBulgaria\j, demanding a general election. However, the Socialist Party refuses and insists on establishing a new Cabinet. \I(Bulgaria)\i
Mercenaries fighting in Zaire's civil war use gunships in their attempts to regain land occupied by rebel forces. \I(Zaire)\i
Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, claims he has a plan for peace to settle any differences with Palestinians. Mr Netanyahu says that the plan could go ahead without the need for a national referendum. \I(Israel)\i
In \JBelgrade\j, \JSerbia\j, more than 300,000 people join a religious and pro-democracy march. \I(Serbia)\i
Over 20,000 people demonstrate in clashes with the police in \JAlbania\j and attempt to storm the parliament in protest against the collapse of savings schemes. The army tries to quell the violence -- the worst incident since the President, Mr Sali Berisha came to power in 1992. \I(Albania)\i
Sudanese authorities claim that its soldiers killed more than 300 Ethiopian troops who were trying to invade the country near the eastern border. \I(Sudan)\i
The people of the Russian State of \JChechnya\j vote for a new leader and government in the country's general elections. \I(Russia) (Chechnya)\i
The Afghan warlord Rashid Dostum bombs a highway north of Kabul in an effort to stop advances by the Talibaan militia. \I(Afghanistan)\i
#
"January 28, 1997",391,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Street vendors riot in Jakarta causing damage to buildings. This is another sign of how volatile the Indonesian population is at present. \I(Indonesia)\i
The South Korean Confederation of Trade Unions cancels its weekly strikes after the country is hit by economic chaos caused by the collapse of Hanbo, one of the country's largest steelmakers. \I(South Korea)\i
China and \JFrance\j sign a deal which will encourage cooperation in space technology. \I(China)\i
A Philippines' electric company is threatening to cut the power off to the former President Marcos' \Jcrypt\j if bills are not paid. \I(Philippines)\i
Mahatma Gandhi's great grandson, Tushar Arun Gandhi, plans to take his grandfather's ashes on a last pilgrimage to the Ganges River. \I(India)\i
Burmese pro-democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, denounces the jail sentences given to 14 students who were involved in anti-government protests. \I(Burma)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the summing up at the O.J. Simpson civil case, both sides appeal to the jury to ignore arguments presented by the opposite side. \I(USA)\i
American President, Mr Bill Clinton, announces that he will try to encourage the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, to recommence talks with \JSyria\j when he meets with Mr Netanyahu in February. \I(USA)\i
Former suspect in the \JAtlanta\j Olympics bombing, Mr Richard Jewell, settles his case against CNN and launches another suit against an \JAtlanta\j newspaper. \I(USA)\i
Outside the besieged Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, Peruvian police and Marxist rebels get involved in a battle of the airwaves. \I(Peru)\i
An American report on human rights reveals that there were no Chinese \Jdissidents\j who had not been put in jail or exiled by the end of 1996. \I(USA)\i
The American State Department is likely to condemn \JGermany\j's treatment of the Church of \JScientology\j. The issue has already soured diplomatic relations between the two countries. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
France will try to track down Jewish assets stolen during the Nazi occupation. \I(France)\i
Mr Aslan Maskhadov, the rebel leader, wins the \JChechnya\j's presidential elections according to results of the ballot count. \I(Russia) (Chechnya)\i
Due to the recent attacks on Red Cross workers, the organization decides, for the first time in its history, not to fly the Red Cross flag in conflict areas, as people associate it closely with the West. \I(Switzerland)\i
The eldest son of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, Uday Hussein, who was the victim of a recent assassination attempt, marries the daughter of one his father's most violent bodyguards. \I(Iraq)\i
Spain asks the United Kingdom to share the sovereignty of \JGibraltar\j for 100 years and then pass control of the colony to \JSpain\j. However, the United Kingdom rejects the offer, claiming that the people of \JGibraltar\j wish to remain United Kingdom citizens. \I(United Kingdom)\i
It is believed that the Serbian President, Mr Slobodan Milosevic, will seek exile in \JGreece\j if the pressure from opposition parties becomes all too much. \I(Serbia)\i
Ex-security officers confess to the murder of anti-apartheid campaigner, Mr Steve Biko, in South Africa. They are hoping to be granted an amnesty from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. \I(S. Africa)\i
Israeli police forcefully remove Palestinian Bedouins and destroy their camp to allow for the expansion of Jewish settlements. \I(West Bank)\i
Mr Boris Yeltsin, the Russian President, cancels his visit to Holland which increases fears about his health and ability to govern \JRussia\j. \I(Russia)\i
China and \JFrance\j sign a deal which will encourage cooperation in space technology. \I(France)\i
#
"January 29, 1997",392,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Malaysia is planning to expatriate thousands of illegal foreign workers once a deadline for them to give themselves up expires in the next few days. \I(Malaysia)\i
Taiwanese power workers clash with South Korean anti-nuclear demonstrators, who are on a hunger strike, over \JTaiwan\j's proposals to send nuclear waste to North Korea. \I(Taiwan)\i
A fire in an office building in \JBombay\j kills three people and traps many others. \I(India)\i
The Pakistani President Farooq Leghari's decision to sack former prime minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, is upheld by the country's Supreme Court. The result means that the general elections will go ahead in February as planned. \I(Pakistan)\i
US officials are in China trying to gain some concessions on human rights that would make it futile for the US to support a UN resolution criticizing China's policy. \I(China)\i
Four Australian mining firms are blamed for environmental damage and violation of the rights of people in \JKalimantan\j, Indonesian \JBorneo\j, by the Indonesian parliament. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The jury in the civil case against O.J. Simpson, who is accused of murdering his ex-wife Nicole Simpson and her friend Ronald Coleman, retires. \I(USA)\i
It is thought that \JPeru\j may allow \JJapan\j a bigger role in helping to end the hostage crisis in Lima. \I(Peru)\i
It is announced that American President Bill Clinton plans to meet with leaders of Israel, Palestine, \JEgypt\j and Jordan in the next few months. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission wants the former policemen, who confessed to the murder of anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko, to release the names of their superiors. \I(South Africa)\i
In \JRwanda\j, a Tutsi (Froduald Karamira), accused of being responsible for the deaths of over half a million people, goes on trial. \I(Rwanda)\i
Diana, the Princess of Wales, announces that she will give her wedding dress to the Victoria & Albert Museum in London as well as selling 65 evening dresses for charity. \I(United Kingdom)\i
Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, places his first wife, Sajida Talfah, under house arrest. \I(Iraq)\i
In \JSerbia\j, police abolish plans to try to keep demonstrators off the streets of \JBelgrade\j after thousands of protests gather in the city. The opposition asks the army and workers to join the protest. \I(Serbia)\i
The Socialist Party in \JBulgaria\j begins to set up a new Government despite demands from President Stoyanov to call an immediate election. \I(Bulgaria)\i
In the capital of \JAlgeria\j, \JAlgiers\j, fundamentalists murder one of the country's top trade union officials Mr Abdelhak Benhamouda. \I(Algeria)\i
In an attempt to stop demonstrations against the Government, \JAlbanian\j President, Mr Sali Berisha, guarantees that investors in the collapsed pyramid schemes will have their money refunded. \I(Albania)\i
Syria will recommence talks with Israel on condition that discussions start where they "left off" under Labor. \I(Syria)\i
Many Swiss intellectuals and celebrities criticize the Swiss Government's handling of the issue surrounding the assets of victims of the \JHolocaust\j. \I(Switzerland)\i
Britain is suffering from one of the driest periods in 250 years. \I(United Kingdom)\i
The UN reports that troops in \JBurundi\j round up thousands of people and murder at least 1,000 civilians. \I(Burundi)\i
Zaire claims that Ugandan soldiers are helping rebels. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"January 30, 1997",393,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Three people die and thousands of others are left homeless after Burmese rebels attacked refugee camps on the border between \JThailand\j and \JBurma\j. \I(Burma) (Thailand)\i
The head of the Japanese auto manufacturer, Toyota, encourages the United Kingdom to participate in the single European currency movement and threatens to stop building any new factories there if the Government fails to do so. \I(Japan)\i
The Princess Royal officially opens the British consulate in Hong Kong. \I(Hong Kong)\i
The decision by the Pakistani Supreme Court to uphold the President's decision to sack Ms Benazir Bhutto is seen as a major setback to her political life and hampers any real attempts to make a comeback to power. \I(Pakistan)\i
The ashes of Mahatma Gandhi are scattered over the River Ganges almost fifty years after his assassination. \I(India)\i
Police are used to separate Muslims from Chinese in the Town of Rengasdenklok in West Java after thousands of Muslim youths went on the rampage destroying property. \I(Indonesia)\i
The founder of the Hanbo Group is called for questioning about the collapse of the company which has shaken the whole of South Korea. \I(South Korea)\i
Taiwan expels South Korean anti-nuclear demonstrators for protesting against \JTaiwan\j's intentions to send nuclear waste to North Korea. \I(Taiwan)\i
The \JSingapore\j Prime Minister, Mr Goh Chok Tong, files another \Jdefamation\j suit against opposition politician Tang Liang Hong. \I(Singapore)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In an attempt to bring a solution to the hostage crisis in Lima, the Peruvian President Mr Alberto Fujimori will meet the Japanese Prime Minister Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto. \I(Peru)\i
Mr Richard Jewell, who was wrongly suspected of the \JAtlanta\j Olympics Games bombing, agrees to make a movie with 20th Century Fox about the experience with the \JFBI\j. \I(USA)\i
Peruvian police search for a group of leftist rebels believed to be acting as messengers for the Marxist rebels holding 72 people hostage. \I(Peru)\i
Extra police are placed outside the courthouse where the jury are deliberating in the O.J. Simpson case, after it is feared that violence will erupt when the verdict is announced. \I(USA)\i
The American Government draws up a proposal to pay the money it owes the United Nations. However, the plan will only be instituted if the UN is reformed and payment will commence in October 1. \I(USA)\i
A newly released document reveals that \JSwitzerland\j accepted 100 tons of gold stolen by the Nazis from the \JBelgium\j national treasury. \I(USA)\i
The UN Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, wants the US to pay the $1 billion dues in arrears within two years. \I(USA)\i
It is thought that Saudi \JArabia\j is considering buying $30 billion worth of American F-16 fighter jets. \I(USA)\i
The biggest ever discovered drug laboratory in \JColombia\j is closed down. \I(Colombia)\i
The American Secretary of State, Dr Madeleine Albright, plans to visit China at the end of February. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Bulgaria's leading Socialist Party calls on opposition parties to meet to discuss setting a date for a general election. \I(Bulgaria)\i
Teachers in \JSerbia\j go on strike in protest against President Slobodan Milosevic's Government. \I(Serbia)\i
In \JBulgaria\j, people attempt to exchange their savings as the local currency collapses. \I(Bulgaria)\i
Northern Ireland commemorates the 25th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, where British troops killed 14 civilians during a protest march; calls are made for an investigation to be held into the shootings. \I(N. Ireland)\i
Three Israeli troops are killed and others wounded when a bomb, planted by the pro-Iranian Hezbollah guerrillas, exploded in South \JLebanon\j. \I(Lebanon)\i
The Islamic group Hamas threatens that if the US extradites one of its leaders to Israel that they would retaliate. \I(Israel)\i
The Great Seal belonging to Queen Elizabeth I is found in a trunk in a mews house. \I(United Kingdom)\i
As the United Kingdom Labor party takes a lead by 25 points in the latest opinion poll, it seems unlikely that an early general election will be called. \I(United Kingdom)\i
#
"January 31, 1997",394,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Muslim youths continue to destroy property owned by Chinese Christians and Buddhists in the town of Rengasdenklok on the outskirts of Jakarta, \JIndonesia\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
Indian air experts warn of future air crashes if the country's \Javiation\j system is not upgraded. \I(India)\i
The founder of the South Korean company Hanbo, which collapsed after failing to meet debt repayments, is arrested on charges of illegally writing checks. \I(South Korea)\i
Sacked Pakistani prime minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto and her main political opponent, Mr Nawaz Sharif, fight to gain support for their respective parties in the final lead-up to the forthcoming elections. \I(Pakistan)\i
American analysts claim that China managed to stifle all forms of public dissension in 1996 -- it is thought that 1996 was the worst year for Chinese \Jdissenters\j since the 1989 demonstration in Tiananmen Square. \I(China)\i
Despite worldwide condemnation, China's Hong Kong Preparatory Committee meets to vote on abolishing Hong Kong's human rights laws. \I(Hong Kong) (China)\i
In Vietnam, four people are given the death sentence for their participation in the downfall of the company Tamexco which lost $52.05 million. \I(Vietnam)\i
As the Talibaan militia make headway in their campaign to seize the north of \JAfghanistan\j, panic spreads as people in the northern region stock up on food and the local currency collapses. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Human rights organizations in \JBangladesh\j say that they believe Australian aid is being used to evict traditional landowners from their properties in the east of the country. \I(Bangladesh)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American Administration supports a worldwide campaign to raise finance for small loans to help poor people start their own businesses. \I(USA)\i
Jamaica refuses to give permission to US drug hunters to enter the island. \I(Jamaica)\i
Up to US$75,000 is offered as reward in return for information about the killer of actor Bill Cosby's son -- Ennis Cosby was shot dead on a L.A. freeway last month. \I(USA)\i
The only black juror in the O.J. Simpson civil case is dismissed which means deliberations will have to restart. \I(USA)\i
The American State Department's yearly report on human rights highlights Indonesian human right abuses and claims that its human rights record has seriously deteriorated. \I(USA)\i
Peruvian President, Mr Alberto Fujimori, prepares to travel to Canada to meet up with Japanese Prime Minister, Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto, to discuss the Lima hostage crisis. \I(Peru)\i
In New York, the world's smallest Rembrandt portrait sells for $3.7 million; it is thought to be the world's most expensive painting. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Israel asks \JSyria\j to try to prevent Hezbollah guerrilla attacks on Israeli forces after a recent incident killed three Israeli soldiers in South \JLebanon\j. \I(Lebanon)\i
The British Government is to establish an official commission to look into ways to stop the disputed sectarian marches in Northern Ireland. \I(United Kingdom)\i
The Red Cross reunites thousands of Rwandan children with their families. \I(Rwanda)\i
Russian President, Mr Boris Yeltsin, returns to the Krelim while still recuperating from \Jpneumonia\j. \I(Russia)\i
The fire that destroyed La Fenice opera house in Venice in 1996 is blamed on Mafia-supported arson. \I(Italy)\i
In \JCroatia\j, a Belgian soldier is shot dead, the latest shooting in the run-up to the March elections. \I(Croatia)\i
The Serbian opposition cautiously welcomes President Slobadan's decision to recognize opposition victories in the municipal elections. \I(Serbia)\i
Bulgarian President, Mr Petar Stoyanov, encourages the socialist government to resign after anti-government demonstrations take place. \I(Bulgaria)\i
In \JAlbania\j, opposition parties join forces to insist that the Government resigns after police arrest nearly 150 people after a series of violent clashes occur. \I(Albania)\i
The Ugandan President, Mr Yoweri Museveni, claims that \JUganda\j and \JSudan\j are preparing for war. \JUganda\j believes that the \JSudan\j is providing support to anti-Museveni rebels. \I(Uganda) (Sudan)\i
In \JItaly\j, five people are arrested in connection with the fashion designer Maurizio Gucci's murder, including his ex-wife. \I(Italy)\i
The Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu meets with the Swiss President Mr Arnold Koller. Mr Koller and Mr Netanyahu attempt to smooth out Swiss-Jewish relations after comments by a Swiss official about the \JHolocaust\j angered Jewish communities worldwide. \I(Switzerland)\i
South African President Nelson Mandela nominates his main political opponent, Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi, as the country's acting President. \I(S. Africa)\i
#
"February 1, 1997",395,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
An \Jearthquake\j measuring five on the Richter scale hits the Indonesian island of Bali, so far there have been no reports of any damage. \I(Indonesia)\i
According to local newspapers, the prospects of sacked Pakistani prime minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, being voted back into power are bleak. \I(Pakistan)\i
In China, Hong Kong's Preparatory Committee votes that Hong Kong's bill of rights and two ordinances be reworked; in effect Hong Kong's civil liberties are to be abolished. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto, the Japanese Prime Minister, arrives in Canada for talks with Peruvian President Mr Alberto Fujimori, in an effort to end the Lima hostage crisis. Mr Hashimoto encourages Mr Fujimori to negotiate with the Marxist rebels. \I(Peru, Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Ryutaro Hashimoto, the Japanese Prime Minister, arrives in Canada for talks with Peruvian President Mr Alberto Fujimori, in an effort to end the Lima hostage crisis. Mr Hashimoto encourages Mr Fujimori to negotiate with the Marxist rebels. \I(Peru, Japan)\i
In Houston, USA, Garcia Abrego, a Mexican drug king, is given 11 life sentences and a fine of $US128 million. \I(USA)\i
The jury members in the O.J. Simpson civil trial are ordered not to have any contact with the media and all communication with the outside world is monitored. \I(USA)\i
Captain Mark Phillips, the former husband of Princess Anne, marries American heiress Sandy Pfluger. \I(USA)\i
The American annual report on human rights highlights that both Israeli and Palestinian security troops have been involved in serious human rights abuses. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The American annual report on human rights highlights that both Israeli and Palestinian security troops have been involved in serious human rights abuses. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, is to meet up with King Hussein of Jordan in \JAmman\j, in an effort to warm bilateral ties between the two countries. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
The Prince of Wales proposes that his relationship with his mistress, Ms Camilla Parker Bowles, is seen as more open and public. \I(UK)\i
Twenty European tourists are killed in an aircrash in \JDakar\j, \JSenegal\j. \I(Senegal)\i
Iraqi authorities denounce claims by American and Kuwaiti officials that it is moving soldiers towards \JKuwait\j. \I(Iraq, Kuwait)\i
Mr Amr Moussa, the Egyptian Foreign Minister, claims that if Israel withdrew from Palestinian-owned land, its relations with \JSyria\j and \JEgypt\j would improve. \I(Egypt, \JSyria\j, Israel)\i
Support for Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic's Government continues to dwindle, as a former ally claims that he is ignoring the will of the people. \I(Serbia)\i
Accusations that \JSwitzerland\j helped the Nazis during the Second World War and a recent revival of anti-semitism shock the country. \I(Switzerland)\i
Protesters in \JBulgaria\j block the main road and railway line to \JGreece\j, demanding that the Socialist Government resigns. \I(Bulgaria)\i
#
"February 2, 1997",396,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The former Pakistani prime minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, warns that if she does not win the general elections she will boycott parliament and cause trouble for the new government. At the start of election day, very few people turn out at the polling stations. \I(Pakistan)\i
Mr Kim Jong II is to take over as the North Korean head of state, three years after the death of his father Kim Il Sung, the previous head of state. \I(North Korea)\i
Calls are made by the South Korean Opposition for President Kim Young-sam's key economic aide, Lee Suk-chae, to be sacked over his role in the Hanbo Group collapse. \I(South Korea)\i
The first independent Cambodian trade union holds its maiden summit. \I(Cambodia)\i
In Sri Lanka 37 people die during fighting between Tamil Tiger rebels and security soldiers. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Indonesian authorities arrest more people in connection with the Muslim riots west of the capital Jakarta, while fresh violence erupts in the city of \JBandung\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
After discussions with Japanese Prime Minister Mr Hashimoto in Canada, Peruvian President Mr Fujimori agrees to recommence negotiations with the Tupac Amaru Movement rebels who are still holding 72 hostages in Lima. \I(Peru, Japan)\i
It seems likely that the USA and Vietnam will shortly resume normal diplomatic relations, 22 years after the end of the Vietnam War. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
The new UN Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, announces during a visit to \JSwitzerland\j that he will attempt to smooth relations between \JPortugal\j and \JIndonesia\j in order to bring about a solution to the East \JTimor\j problem. \I(Portugal, Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
After discussions with Japanese Prime Minister Mr Hashimoto in Canada, Peruvian President Mr Fujimori agrees to recommence negotiations with the Tupac Amaru Movement rebels who are still holding 72 hostages in Lima. \I(Peru, Japan)\i
The American Government's case against the Oklahoma bombers, who were responsible for the deaths of 168 people in 1995, is collapsing. It is thought that the main suspect Tim McVeigh may even be released. \I(USA)\i
It seems likely that the USA and Vietnam will shortly resume normal diplomatic relations, 22 years after the end of the Vietnam War. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Palestinian leader, Mr Arafat, and Israeli leader, Mr Netanyahu, agree to meet for discussions during their attendance at an economic summit in \JSwitzerland\j. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Zairian President, Mr Mobutu, arrives in Morocco for discussions with King Hassan to try to get his army's help after mercenaries in Zaire appear to have failed to quell rebels. \I(Zaire, Morocco)\i
The German Government is criticized after confessing it gave Nazi war criminals pensions, while victims of the \JHolocaust\j were given no compensation at all. \I(Germany)\i
Reports reveal that the Russian armed forces are in a state of disarray and the defense ministry is financially crippled. \I(Russia)\i
An ex-chief judge accuses \JAlbanian\j President Sali Berisha and his government of using money from pyramid schemes to finance election campaigns. \I(Albania)\i
Albanians fighting for a separate independent state in \JKosovo\j in southern \JSerbia\j, condemn President Milosevic's recent police restrictions after three people were fatally shot. \I(Albania, Serbia)\i
It is disclosed that UK Ministry of Defense scientists conducted secret germ warfare tests in London until 1977. \I(UK)\i
The new UN Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, announces during a visit to \JSwitzerland\j that he will attempt to smooth relations between \JPortugal\j and \JIndonesia\j in order to bring about a solution to the East \JTimor\j problem. \I(Portugal, Indonesia)\i
Belgian pedophile, Marc Dutroux, is charged with killing two teenagers. He has previously been charged with murdering six other children and kidnapping two others. \I(Belgium)\i
In Medea, \JAlgeria\j, 31 people are brutally murdered; Muslim fundamentalists are thought to be responsible for the killings. \I(Algeria)\i
Gibraltar's Chief Minister rejects any plans for Anglo-Spanish co-sovereignty of the island as proposed by the Spanish Foreign Minister. \I(Gibraltar)\i
#
"February 3, 1997",397,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Britain proposes giving UK passports to thousands of Indian and Pakistani citizens of Hong Kong. \I(UK, Hong Kong, India, Pakistan)\i
Singaporean opposition member, Mr Tang Liang Hong, has his twelfth \Jdefamation\j suit filed against him by senior minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew and his son Deputy Prime Minister Mr Lee Hsien Loong. \I(Singapore)\i
North Korea reveals that it is experiencing a drastic food shortage and appeals for international assistance. \I(North Korea)\i
Pakistani President Farooq Leghari says that he would sack another corrupt government. \I(Pakistan)\i
The people of \JPakistan\j vote in the country's general elections; the army oversees the voting at the ballot stations. \I(Pakistan)\i
China uses heavy \Jcensorship\j in the media and the arts in an attempt to abolish any form of dissent. \I(China)\i
Australian Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, calls for a summit on whether \JAustralia\j should become a republic. \I(Australia)\i
At a forthcoming meeting between the European Union and ASEAN, ASEAN announces that it is willing to discuss the situation in \JMyanmar\j but not enter into talks about the East \JTimor\j problem. \I(Indonesia, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Burmese pro-democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, claims that supporters of the military junta had been encouraged to attempt to murder her. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that the spread of \JHIV\j in Asia will promote the growth of tuberculosis in the region. \I(Asia)\i
Taiwanese President Mr Lee Teng-hui wants \JGermany\j to sell submarines to \JTaiwan\j. \I(Taiwan, Germany)\i
The Indonesian army warns that it will use force if riots continue to erupt in \JIndonesia\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
Negotiations between China and the US make some headway on trade but no progress is made in the area of human rights. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Bill Clinton, the American President, encourages the Peruvian President Mr Fujimori to search for a peaceful end to the Lima hostage crisis. \I(USA, Peru)\i
An El Greco painting, \IChrist on the Cross,\i sells for a record $AUD4.2 million at a Christie's auction in New York. \I(USA)\i
O.J. Simpson's defense team calls for a mistrial after a juror is removed. Their request is denied. \I(USA)\i
Negotiations between China and the US make some headway on trade but no progress is made in the area of human rights. \I(USA, China)\i
Military police in \JGuatemala\j end their five-day protest against proposed job cuts to take place when the new peace agreement is instituted. \I(Guatemala)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Pope John Paul II meets with Israeli Prime Minister Mr Benjamin Netanyahu in \JRome\j to discuss the Middle East peace process. \I(Italy, Israel)\i
Taiwanese President Mr Lee Teng-hui wants \JGermany\j to sell submarines to \JTaiwan\j. \I(Taiwan, Germany)\i
Britain proposes giving UK passports to thousands of Indian and Pakistani citizens of Hong Kong. \I(UK, Hong Kong, India, Pakistan)\i
Separatists explode 61 bombs on the island of \JCorsica\j in retaliation for the French Government's crackdown - no injuries are reported. \I(Corsica)\i
In \JBulgaria\j, the Opposition declines an offer by the Socialist Government to form a temporary coalition. \I(Bulgaria)\i
Mrs Winnie Mandela, former wife of South African President Mr Nelson Mandela, claims that the African National Congress was involved in the 1993 murder of Mr Chris Hani, one of its popular members. \I(South Africa)\i
A major step in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process is taken when Israel reopens a road which leads to the West Bank town of \JHebron\j. \I(Israel, West Bank)\i
In an attempt to disperse a march by thousands of opposition protesters, Serbian police attack demonstrators with clubs, water cannons, and tear gas, in the most violent clash of the six-week protest. \I(Serbia)\i
During the economic conference in \JSwitzerland\j, Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mr Arafat meet and agree to continue discussions when they return home. Mr Arafat earlier criticized Israel's economic sanctions against Palestine, Israel's unwillingness to follow through on the \JHebron\j peace settlement and the expansion of Jewish settlements. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Russia is highly critical of the move to expand \JNATO\j to include \JPoland\j and other Eastern European countries, claiming it would be \JNATO\j's "biggest error in 50 years." \I(Russia, Poland)\i
Mr Boris Yeltsin, on his return to the international world of politics after a run of ill health, meets with French President Mr Jacques Chirac in Moscow. \I(Russia)\i
Thousands of people march in Northern Ireland to commemorate the twenty-fifth anniversary of "Bloody Sunday" - where 13 Catholic demonstrators were killed by British soldiers. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Hundreds of people are involved in a stampede at a mosque in western \JIran\j, at least five people die and 44 others are injured. \I(Iran)\i
Eleven people die after two trains crash in \JCairo\j, \JEgypt\j. \I(Egypt)\i
#
"February 4, 1997",398,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In light of the recent riots, Indonesian authorities forbid all social and political meetings involving large numbers until after the forthcoming elections. \I(Indonesia)\i
In South Korea leading bankers are questioned about the loan scandal surrounding the collapse of the Hanbo Group. \I(South Korea)\i
South Korean environmentalists agree to co-operate with Greenpeace in a campaign to stop the transportation of Taiwanese nuclear waste to North Korea. \I(South Korea, North Korea)\i
Severe flooding in the \JQueensland\j town of Charleville forces 400 people to evacuate - the region is declared a natural disaster area. \I(Australia)\i
Sri Lankan troops commence a new campaign against Tamil rebels in the north of the country. The President, Ms Chandrika Kumaratunga, announces that she is still searching for a solution to the civil war. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Former Pakistani prime minister Ms Benazir Bhutto's future political career looks bleak, following one of her party's worst election defeats in its history. \I(Pakistan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American Republican politician Mr Bob Dole reveals that his wife, Elizabeth Dole, may run for the presidency in 2000. \I(USA)\i
The family of civil rights leader Martin Luther King is demanding a new trial for the alleged assassin James Earl Ray in light of Ray's later denial that he murdered King. \I(USA)\i
Discussions on American President Clinton's nominee as Chief of the \JCIA\j, Anthony Lake, are expected to be fierce. There is pressure on President Clinton to choose another candidate. \I(USA)\i
The American ambassador to \JFrance\j, Ms Pamela Harriman, is in \Jhospital\j in Paris after suffering a suspected stroke. \I(USA, France)\i
In the civil case against O.J. Simpson, Simpson is found guilty of murdering his ex-wife and her friend Ronald Goldman. Simpson is ordered to pay $US8.5 million in damages. \I(USA)\i
The US, UK and \JFrance\j agree to stop the distribution of $US68 million in gold that the Nazis stole from European banks - it has been stored for the past 50 years. \I(USA, UK, France)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
After the use of violence and force against protesters, the Serbian Opposition calls for all-out passive resistance to President Slobodan Milosevic's Government. President Milosevic finally accepts the Opposition's successes in the municipal elections. \I(Serbia)\i
The Russian Prime Minister, Mr Victor Chernomyrdin, claims that the expansion of \JNATO\j will endanger Mr Yeltsin's Government as well as encourage Russian extremists to call for war against the West. \I(Russia)\i
The American ambassador to \JFrance\j, Ms Pamela Harriman, is in \Jhospital\j in Paris after suffering a suspected stroke. \I(USA, France)\i
The US, UK and \JFrance\j agree to stop the distribution of $US68 million in gold that the Nazis stole from European banks - it has been stored for the past fifty years. \I(US, UK, France)\i
As the British Prime Minister Mr John Major continues to refuse to announce the date of the general election, a local election in Wirral South is called. \I(UK)\i
Britain commences investigations into its biggest child sexual abuse case after reports from children's homes in Wales are released. \I(UK)\i
Zairian soldiers are ordered to go to the province of Shaba to protect it from attacks by the rebels. \I(Zaire)\i
British author, Iris Murdoch, is reported to be suffering from Alzheimer's disease. \I(UK)\i
#
"February 5, 1997",399,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Ousted Pakistani prime minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, accedes to the general election results and gives up any plans to boycott parliament. The \JPakistan\j Muslim League (PML) party led by Mr Nawaz Sharif forms the country's new government. \I(Pakistan)\i
South Korean environmentalists demonstrate aboard 40 boats in the lead-up to an attempted sea blockage to prevent the transportation of Taiwanese nuclear waste to North Korea. \I(South Korea, \JTaiwan\j, North Korea)\i
The Indonesian Government announces that all political speeches to be broadcast as part of the election are to be censored by officials. \I(Indonesia)\i
The environmental group Greenpeace reveals that it has videotaped cracks in the Antarctic ice shelf. \I(New Zealand)\i
Sri Lankan troops begin a major campaign against Tamil rebels in an effort to reopen an access route to the government-controlled town of Vavuniya. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
On the eve of Chinese New Year, China's paramount leader Mr Deng Xiaoping receives visits from the President Jiang Zemin and Premier Mr Li Peng. Deng Xiaoping is reportedly in good health. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In his State of the Union speech, American President Mr Clinton calls for an upgrade of the education system, a more balanced budget, and a reform to campaign finances. \I(USA)\i
The discovery that the new Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, is of Jewish descent, should in no way affect her participation in the Middle East peace talks. \I(USA)\i
A senior negotiator in the Peruvian hostage crisis says that the government and the rebel leaders must compromise in order for talks to begin. \I(Peru)\i
Jurors in the civil case against O.J. Simpson try to determine his worth and then they will decide on punitive damages. \I(USA)\i
Ms Pamela Harriman, the American envoy to \JFrance\j, dies in Paris at the age of 76. \I(USA, France)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Two Israeli military helicopters, transporting troops to South \JLebanon\j, crash in midair over northern \JGalilee\j, killing all 73 passengers. An investigation is to be conducted. \I(Israel, South Lebanon)\i
Zairian rebels announce a deadline of two weeks for President Mr Mobutu to give up power or they will launch a major military campaign against the government. \I(Zaire)\i
Ms Pamela Harriman, the American envoy to \JFrance\j, dies in Paris at the age of 76. \I(USA, France)\i
Five United Nations officials conducting investigations into human rights abuses in \JRwanda\j are murdered. After the killings, the Red Cross organization announces that it will remove its aid workers from the country. \I(Rwanda)\i
The ruling Socialist Party in \JBulgaria\j caves into pressure and announces that it will hold elections, following 30 days of protests against the government. \I(Bulgaria)\i
Speculation in \JGermany\j mounts about how long Helmut Kohl will remain in the role of Chancellor. \I(Germany)\i
The number of unemployed German people increases to 4.6 million, the highest figure since 1993, quelling any hopes of improvements in the labor market. \I(Germany)\i
Three of the main Swiss banks set up a \JHolocaust\j Fund, worth 100 million Swiss francs, as means to compensate victims of the Nazi era. \I(Switzerland)\i
In \JIran\j at least 70 people die after the northeastern region is hit by earthquakes and aftershocks. \I(Iran)\i
A bomb, allegedly planted by the IRA, explodes in Dungannon, Northern Ireland. No injuries are reported. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
#
"February 6, 1997",400,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Indonesian soldiers are sent to West \JKalimantan\j to quell riots between the indigenous Dayak people and Muslim immigrants. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Chinese Government is unhappy over an American report on China's human rights record, claiming that the American media is biased and disreputable. \I(China, USA)\i
Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, the Indonesian pro-democracy leader, does not reply to a summons by police in connection with a meeting held at her home in January. \I(Indonesia)\i
Due to the severe food shortage in North Korea, the United Nations is proposing to launch a worldwide campaign for humanitarian assistance. \I(North Korea)\i
Pakistan's new Prime Minister, Mr Nawaz Sharif, celebrates and gives thanks for his landslide victory in the country's elections. \I(Pakistan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American State Department voices its concern over the Zairian civil war which continues to worsen as well as increasingly involve nearby countries. \I(USA)\i
The Chinese Government is unhappy over an American report on China's human rights record, claiming that the American media is biased and disreputable. \I(China, USA)\i
It is announced that the American actor Elizabeth Taylor has a benign tumor in her brain. Surgery is to be conducted shortly. \I(USA)\i
It is reported that O.J. Simpson is worth only $US500,000 and not the figure of US$8 million released previously. \I(USA)\i
The Ecuadorian Congress votes to oust President Abdala Bucaram from office due to his "mental incapacity." \I(Ecuador)\i
In Lima, mediators meet with Tupac Amaru Movement rebels, who are holding 72 people hostage, in an effort to end the crisis. \I(Peru)\i
American attorney general, Ms Janet Reno, claims that the number of people using heroin has increased, as heroin has become cheaper and purer. \I(USA)\i
The writer of an anonymous letter about the recent murder of six-year-old American beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey is asked to contact the police. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Turkey's Islamic Government is in danger as the Opposition fights against moves by the government to bring religion into matters of state. \I(Turkey)\i
British troops uncover a stockpile of weapons and arrest over ten people in Northern Ireland. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Staff from the British auctioneers, Sotheby's, are suspended after being charged with smuggling paintings into the UK. \I(UK)\i
Hundreds of people, whites and coloreds, demonstrate against discrimination by the government in towns outside \JJohannesburg\j. It is reported that four people are killed and hundreds of others are injured in the clashes. \I(South Africa)\i
Four United Nations officials are taken hostage by rebels in Tajikistan. \I(Tajikistan)\i
Despite assurances from Serbian President Milosevic to recognize election victories, the Opposition accuses him of trying to con them out of certain victories. \I(Serbia)\i
Thousands of people protest against the \JAlbanian\j Government which they believe is at fault for causing the collapse of pyramid investment schemes. \I(Albania)\i
After the murder of five United Nations officials, the UN decides to withdraw hundreds of aid workers, both expatriate and locals, from western \JRwanda\j. \I(Rwanda)\i
Mr Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, announces that Israel will continue to send soldiers to South \JLebanon\j despite the recent aircrash which killed 72 military personnel. \I(Israel, South Lebanon)\i
#
"February 7, 1997",401,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Hong Kong celebrates the Chinese New Year - the year of the ox - with a mixture of trepidation and anticipation. A British tourist is killed by a float which went out of control during the New Year parade. \I(Hong Kong)\i
In an attempt to stop overcrowding in prisons, \JBangladesh\j will free more than 1,000 prisoners. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Thousands of Muslims riot in central \JPakistan\j, damaging property and killing two people. \I(Pakistan)\i
Charles Sobhraj, the mass murderer, is due for release after spending more than 20 years in Indian prisons. \I(India)\i
Voting commences in elections in the Indian State of Punjab. \I(India)\i
New violent clashes occur between the indigenous locals and migrants from the Madura Island in West \JKalimantan\j, despite the presence of police. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Actor Mia Farrow's book \IWhat Falls Away,\i about her relationship with film actor and director Woody Allen, is released. \I(USA)\i
Mexico's Opposition party, the National Action Party, is embroiled in scandal, spoiling its chances of coming to power. \I(Mexico)\i
Mediators in the Lima hostage crisis say that progress is being made. \I(Peru)\i
In the case against the Oklahoma bomb suspect, Timothy McVeigh, it is revealed that he expected to cause a kind of "uprising." \I(USA)\i
Researchers with the government indicate that children in the USA are much more likely to be murdered, commit suicide, or to die because of a gun, than children in other developed nations. \I(USA)\i
The jury members in the civil case against O.J. Simpson are told that Simpson is $US3.7 million richer since he was found guilty of the murders of his ex-wife and her friend; meanwhile the defense paints a picture of him being quite poor. \I(USA)\i
It is announced that American President Bill Clinton will meet up with Russian President Boris Yeltsin in \JFinland\j in March. \I(USA, Russia)\i
The Hawaii Senate approves a ban on same-sex marriages. \I(USA)\i
Five people are arrested in \JGermany\j in connection with the 1986 bombing of a West Berlin nightclub which led to an American air attack on \JLibya\j. \I(Germany, USA, Libya)\i
The American space agency, NASA, announces it will loan up to $US20 million to Russian aerospace companies who are lacking funds. \I(USA, Russia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Albanians vow that they will continue to stage protests against the government until their money from the failed pyramid investment schemes is refunded. \I(Albania)\i
The American space agency, NASA, announces it will loan up to $US20 million to Russian aerospace companies who are lacking funds. \I(USA, Russia)\i
It is announced that American President Bill Clinton will meet up with Russian President Boris Yeltsin in \JFinland\j in March. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Five people are arrested in \JGermany\j in connection with the 1986 bombing of a West Berlin nightclub which led to an American air attack on \JLibya\j. \I(Germany, USA, Libya)\i
Jewish leaders welcome the move by three major Swiss banks to establish a 100 million Swiss francs \JHolocaust\j humanitarian fund. \I(Switzerland)\i
In Tajikistan, over 15 relief workers and journalists are taken hostage by rebels. \I(Takijistan)\i
Talibaan militia in \JAfghanistan\j prepare to invade the north of the country after having achieved several military advances. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Rebel forces in eastern Zaire continue to be make military gains over government troops. The United Nations plans to pull out its workers from the town of \JKisangani\j, as the fighting draws closer to the area. \I(Zaire)\i
The Serbian Opposition announces that they will halt all street protests once the government has reinstated all the municipal election victories. \I(Serbia)\i
A British widow, Ms Diane Blood, wins her fight to be artificially inseminated with her dead husband's sperm - a major legal victory. \I(UK)\i
Calm returns to \JJohannesburg\j after violent clashes occurred in mixed-race townships. \I(South Africa)\i
#
"February 8, 1997",402,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In the town of Raurimu in the North Island of New Zealand, a gunman goes berserk killing at least six people and injuring five others. \I(New Zealand)\i
The people of North Korea are facing difficult times, as food shortages continue and winter weather hits the country. \I(North Korea)\i
According to a study released by the Pentagon, China and \JRussia\j could emerge as military peers of the US in their regions. \I(USA, China, Russia)\i
China criticizes the agreement between \JCambodia\j and \JTaiwan\j to open up commercial air connections. \I(China, \JCambodia\j, Taiwan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
According to a study released by the Pentagon, China and \JRussia\j could emerge as military peers of the US in their regions. \I(USA, China, Russia)\i
Ecuadorian President Abdala Bucaram refuses to resign after Congress voted to sack him from office on the grounds of mental incompetence. It is hoped that the military will be able to solve the political crisis. \I(Ecuador)\i
Peruvian President Mr Fujimori flies to London, which means that, until his return, little progress will be made in negotiations with the Marxist rebels involved in the hostage crisis. \I(Peru)\i
The American \JImmigration\j and Naturalization Service reports that about 5 million illegal immigrants are residing in the US. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
According to a study released by the Pentagon, China and \JRussia\j could emerge as military peers of the US in their regions. \I(USA, China, Russia)\i
Tajik rebels, who are holding at least 15 people hostage, including nine United Nations officials, issue new demands. \I(Tajikistan)\i
It is reported that the Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, has cleared off her million dollar debts. \I(UK)\i
Israel announces that it will release 23 of its female Palestinian prisoners. \I(Israel)\i
Silvio Berlusconi, the former prime minister of \JItaly\j, is to have further charges of corruption filed against him. \I(Italy)\i
In Zaire, rebels gain ground against government troops, forcing thousands of people to escape from the region. \I(Zaire)\i
Ms Camilla Parker Bowles, the Prince of Wales's mistress, accuses two journalists of harassment. \I(UK)\i
#
"February 9, 1997",403,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In West \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j, a main road in the province is reopened after it was closed by police due to rioting between local Dayak people and migrants from Madura Island. \I(Indonesia)\i
After yesterday's massacre in New Zealand, calls are renewed for stricter gun laws. New Zealand's legislation on \Jfirearms\j is behind many other countries in the world. Stephen Anderson is charged with murder. \I(New Zealand)\i
Hong Kong's chief-designate, Mr Tung Chee-hwa, is recognized as a state leader by Chinese authorities. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Australia is asked by the International Federation of the Red Cross to provide assistance for North Korea, which is suffering from food shortages and widespread flooding. \I(Australia, North Korea)\i
It is thought that India and \JPakistan\j are ready to recommence discussions after a two-year stalemate. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Bucaram is ousted as President of \JEcuador\j. The Vice-President, Ms Rosalia Arteaga, is to act as interim president. \I(Eucador)\i
It is believed that the former \JCIA\j agent-turned-spy, Aldrich Ames, betrayed 25 spies to the former Soviet Union. \I(USA)\i
The American sports shoe producer, Reebok, initiates a million dollar lawsuit against the makers of the movie \IJerry Maguire\i for omitting a scene, shot at Reebok's cost, as a semi-advertisement. \I(USA)\i
France awards the recently deceased American ambassador to \JFrance\j, Ms Pamela Harriman, the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor. \I(France, USA)\i
The family of Juan Mendonza, one of the 72 people held hostage at the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, pleads with the Tupac Amaru rebels for his release due to ill health. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Rebel troops in eastern Zaire occupy large tracts of land and now endanger the Mobutu Government. Government forces and mercenaries have so far been unable to put up much resistance to the rebel fighters. \I(Zaire)\i
Diana, Princess of Wales, refuses to continue to support a book published for AIDS research after she feared that it might offend the Royal Family. The book apparently contains pictures of naked men opposite photographs of the Royal Family. \I(UK)\i
In an attempt to appease Russian opposition to the expansion of \JNATO\j, \JNATO\j calls for a special security forum with close Russian involvement. \I(Russia)\i
It is believed that rebels have killed over 20 people during fighting in northern \JUganda\j. \I(Uganda)\i
Spanish authorities discover a 44-year-old woman who had been kept in a pit for 40 years by her own family. \I(Spain)\i
Speculation over the state of Russian President Yeltsin's health continues to mount, as the country faces increasing economic crises. \I(Russia)\i
Albanian police use batons on people protesting against the government's involvement in the collapse of the pyramid investment schemes. \I(Albania)\i
Thousands of Rwandan Hutu refugees, who disappeared into the Zairian jungle last year, reappear in dire need of assistance. \I(Zaire)\i
It is thought that the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, will be questioned by police in connection with the influence-trading affair. \I(Israel)\i
After suffering from the flu, Pope John Paul II returns to public duties. \I(Italy)\i
In Tula, \JRussia\j, local elections commence - the seat was vacated by former national security chief Mr Alexander Lebed. \I(Russia)\i
France awards the recently deceased American ambassador to \JFrance\j, Ms Pamela Harriman, the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor. \I(France, USA)\i
It is revealed that negotiations are under way concerning the possible withdrawal of Israeli troops from South \JLebanon\j. \I(Israel, South Lebanon)\i
The President of Tajikistan fails to gain the release of hostages, which includes UN personnel, held by Tajik rebels. \I(Tajikistan)\i
#
"February 10, 1997",404,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In the region of Xinjiang in China, thousands of Uighur Muslims riot and clash with Han Chinese, killing at least 10 people. Authorities arrest over 1,000 people. \I(China)\i
Mass murderer Charles Sobhraj fails in his bid to be released from prison when an Indian court refuses to grant him bail - it is believed that he will launch an appeal. \I(India)\i
It is reported that Stephen Anderson, the man accused of the recent massacre of six people in New Zealand, has a history of mental illness. \I(New Zealand)\i
In the State of Punjab, a pro-Sikh regional party and its Hindu nationalist ally defeat the ruling Congress party in the State's elections. \I(India)\i
Three politicians are brought in for questioning by the South Korean state prosecutors in connection with loans to the collapsed Hanbo Steel Company. \I(South Korea)\i
In Port Moresby an Australian judge gives three Papua New Guinean men the death penalty for murder. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
One of American President Clinton's former Whitewater business partners, James McDougal, alters his story. He now claims that the President was present at a 1986 meeting where an illegal loan was discussed. \I(USA)\i
It is believed that the American ambassador to Ireland, Ms Jean Kennedy Smith, will be removed from her post due to her strong pro-nationalist opinions which differ from the Administration's policy on Ireland. \I(USA, Ireland)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Rwandan army begins a major show of force against Hutu militants who they blame for the recent murders of foreign aid workers and local officers. \I(Rwanda)\i
It is believed that the American ambassador to Ireland, Ms Jean Kennedy Smith, will be removed from her post due to her strong pro-nationalist opinions which differ from the Administration's policy on Ireland. \I(USA, Ireland)\i
Indian's Special Protection Group must ensure the safety of Priyanka Gandhi, the daughter of assassinated Indian leader Rajiv Gandhi, who is to get married next week. \I(India)\i
The Russian President, Mr Boris Yeltsin, attempts to make amends with the former Russian State of \JChechnya\j by sending a representative to the presidential inauguration ceremony. \I(Russia, Chechnya)\i
The Serbian Opposition continues to battle with the government and claims the fight for democratic reforms is yet to happen. \I(Serbia)\i
British yachtsman Tony Bullimore returns to the UK after his terrifying ordeal of spending four days trapped below his boat before being rescued by the Australian navy in January. \I(UK)\i
Thousands of people clash with riot police in Vlore, a southern port in \JAlbania\j; many people are reported injured. \I(Albania)\i
The National Front, the anti-immigrant party in \JFrance\j, led by Jean-Marie Le Pen, wins control of the municipal council of Vitrolles in the south of \JFrance\j. It is seen as a major defeat of the government and opposition parties. \I(France)\i
#
"February 11, 1997",405,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Australian movie, \IShine,\i is nominated for seven Oscars by the \JHollywood\j Academy of Motion Pictures. \I(Australia)\i
In New York two men are found guilty of the 1991 murder of Mr Yankel Rosenbaum, a visiting Australian scholar to the US. Mr Rosenbaum was killed after a crowd went on the rampage when a black child was run over and killed by a car driven by a Jew. \I(USA, Australia)\i
A Sri Lankan MP and a bodyguard are shot dead during clashes between supporters of the ruling People's Alliance and the opposition United National Party in Colombo. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
China becomes increasingly concerned about the rising number of unemployed people. It is thought that the figure might hit 7.4 per cent of the population by 2000. \I(China)\i
The American Administration admits that \Jaircraft\j fired thousands of radioactive bullets during military drills over the Japanese island of \JOkinawa\j. The Japanese Government is angry that it has taken the US a year to disclose the information. \I(USA, Japan)\i
China announces that the efforts to protect the giant panda, as well as the captive breeding programs, have been successful. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In New York two men are found guilty of the 1991 murder of Mr Yankel Rosenbaum, a visiting Australian scholar to the US. Mr Rosenbaum was killed after a crowd went on the rampage when a black child was run over and killed by a car driven by a Jew. \I(USA, Australia)\i
The American Administration admits that \Jaircraft\j fired thousands of radioactive bullets during military drills over the Japanese island of \JOkinawa\j. The Japanese Government is angry that it has taken the US a year to disclose the information. \I(USA, Japan)\i
The jury in the civil case against O.J. Simpson decrees that he should pay $US25 million in punitive damages. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British film \IThe English Patient,\i is nominated for 12 Oscars by the \JHollywood\j Academy of Motion Pictures. \I(UK)\i
In \JAlbania\j, people continue to clash with police during protests against the government's involvement in the collapse of the pyramid investment schemes. \I(Albania)\i
Muslims are expelled by Bosnian Croats from the town of Mostar. Outbreaks of violence in the town have killed at least one person and injured 22 others. \I(Bosnia)\i
The Government of Tajikistan is prepared to make a deal with rebels who are holding several foreign aid workers hostage. \I(Tajikistan)\i
Mr Malcolm Rifkind, the British Foreign Secretary, warns that \JGreece\j and Turkey may go to war over the island of Cyprus. \I(Greece, Turkey, Cyprus)\i
Mr Alexander Korzhakov, a former chief of President Yeltsin's bodyguards, wins a parliamentary seat. He has already warned that he will reveal \JKremlin\j secrets. \I(Russia)\i
#
"February 12, 1997",406,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Nearly 100 Muslim separatist leaders, who organized last week's riots in the Chinese province of Xinjiang, are executed by the Chinese Government. \I(China)\i
It is reported that major priceless works of art are being removed from Hong Kong prior to the island's handover to the Chinese authorities. \I(Hong Kong)\i
Mr Kim Woo Suk, the South Korean Minister of Home Affairs, quits after it is announced that he will be investigated in connection with the Hanbo Group loans affair. \I(South Korea)\i
Mr Hwang Jang Yop, a leading North Korean official, and his assistant Mr Kim Duk Hung, flee North Korea and ask for asylum at the South Korean embassy in China. North Korean officials claim that the two have been kidnapped by South Korea. \I(North Korea, South Korea, China)\i
The border between West \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j, and \JSarawak\j is reopened by \JMalaysia\j after recent riots. \I(Malaysia, Indonesia)\i
Thousands of people meet at the home of Burmese pro-democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, to celebrate Burmese Union Day. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American Administration cautions \JRussia\j about providing help to \JIran\j's missile program. The US believes that such assistance could endanger American soldiers in Saudi \JArabia\j and other Middle East allies. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Iran)\i
Thousands of people demonstrate against Colombian President Ernesto Samper's economic saving proposals. \I(Colombia)\i
In an effort to solve the Lima hostage crisis, a Peruvian Government negotiator and a leader of the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement hold discussions. \I(Peru)\i
Mr Fabian Alarcon is elected as President of \JEcuador\j after the resignation of Ms Rosalia Arteaga, who was initially chosen as President when Abdala Bucaram was recently ousted. \I(Ecuador)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Thirty-one Palestinian female prisoners are released from Israeli jails to a warm welcome from PLO chairman Yasser Arafat. \I(West Bank)\i
Albanian authorities decide against instituting emergency rule in the port of Vlore, where three people were killed in recent rioting. \I(Albania)\i
Another South African former police officer admits that he was involved in the death of black activist Steve Biko twenty years ago. \I(South Africa)\i
The American Administration cautions \JRussia\j about providing help to \JIran\j's missile program. The US believes that such assistance could endanger American soldiers in Saudi \JArabia\j and other Middle East allies. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Iran)\i
The Zairian rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, claims that his soldiers have occupied the town of Isiro and are heading towards Buta. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"February 13, 1997",407,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Charles Sobhraj, one of India's most infamous murderers, is released on bail after more than 20 years in prison. \I(India)\i
In South Korea, authorities issue arrest warrants for two MPs and a former Cabinet minister over their involvement in the Hanbo loans case. \I(South Korea)\i
Thousands of Karen people flee to \JThailand\j to seek asylum from the fighting between Karen rebels and Burmese soldiers in \JMyanmar\j. \I(Thailand, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
In West \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j, the Dayak tribespeople are believed to be cutting off the heads of rival immigrants from the island of Madura. \I(Indonesia)\i
Negotiations are underway between South Korea and China over the future of North Korean defector Mr Hwang Jang Yop. \I(South Korea, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Fred Goldman, the father of murder victim Ronald Goldman, is willing to give up the punitive damages bill of millions of dollars awarded to him if O.J. Simpson publicly confesses to being the murderer. \I(USA)\i
Mr Fujimori, the Peruvian President, returns to \JPeru\j after an overseas visit. The Lima hostage crisis continues with no solution in sight. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In Northern Ireland, a British soldier is murdered by the IRA. Authorities are concerned that Loyalist factions will seek revenge. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Serbian teachers join the protest movement against the Government of President Slobodan Milosevic. \I(Serbia)\i
In \JBulgaria\j, President Petar Stoyanov announces that elections will be held on April, 19, and nominates a caretaker government to guide the country to the polls. \I(Bulgaria)\i
In the port of Vlore, \JAlbania\j, where clashes between police and protesters took place last week, a policeman is shot dead. \I(Albania)\i
A United Nations report finds that the Rwandan genocide trials have not been conducted properly. Senior officials are called for talks with UN Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan. \I(Rwanda)\i
#
"February 14, 1997",408,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
China refuses to be pressured into making an immediate decision about the future of North Korean defector Mr Hwang Jang Yop. Mr Hwang claims that thousands of North Korean spies are operating in South Korea. \I(China, North Korea, South Korea)\i
About 100 people demonstrate outside the Taiwanese embassy in South Korea against the proposals by \JTaiwan\j to ship nuclear waste to North Korea. \I(Taiwan, South Korea, North Korea)\i
About 70 youths are arrested by the Indonesian army over their involvement in recent rioting in Viqueque in East \JTimor\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
Six people are taken into custody in connection with the recent killing of a Sri Lankan MP. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Indian police disperse a gathering of hundreds of Christians protesting against violent attacks against them. \I(India)\i
Leaders from the EU and ASEAN meet in \JSingapore\j and agree on ways to increase business and trade relations. \I(Singapore)\i
Japan's oldest written character, dating back to the fourth century, is discovered on a piece of wooden armor. \I(Japan)\i
Malaysia opposes \JAustralia\j's admission to a new dialog forum between Asian and European countries. \I(Malaysia, Australia)\i
The American Administration launches an investigation into reports that China provided financial backing for the American Democratic Party's election campaign. \I(USA, China)\i
China criticizes both the US and \JJapan\j for failing to release the news that the US used radioactive bullets during military exercises in \JOkinawa\j, \JJapan\j over one year ago. \JJapan\j was only informed by the US a month ago of the news. \I(China, USA, Japan)\i
British pop star, Elton John, cancels his proposed concerts that were to mark Hong Kong's return to China, following suggestions that the public listens to the concerts through headphones. \I(UK, Hong Kong)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Ms Debbie Rowe, wife of American popstar Michael Jackson, gives birth to a baby boy. \I(USA)\i
Mr Ernesto Samper, the President of \JEcuador\j, weathers an attempted assassination involving an attack on his jet. \I(Ecuador)\i
During discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, American President Bill Clinton encourages Mr Netanyahu to recommence peace talks with \JSyria\j. \I(USA, Israel, Syria)\i
The town of Brcko in Bosnia is at the center of controversy after it was revealed that an American mediator had decided to temporarily hand it over to the Serbs. Muslims stage a protest, while the US fears that no side will be happy about the final decision. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
The American Administration launches an investigation into reports that China provided financial backing for the American Democratic Party's election campaign. \I(USA, China)\i
In a book about to be released by the relatives of murder victim Ronald Goldman, the family clearly states its belief that O.J. Simpson was the murderer. \I(USA)\i
Former business associate and friend of American President Bill Clinton, Susan McDougal, who is currently serving a jail sentence, comes under increasing pressure to confess to the President's involvement in Whitewater. \I(USA)\i
Astronauts from the spaceshuttle \IDiscovery\i update the Hubble Space \JTelescope\j by installing two new eyes to improve its view of the Universe. \I(USA)\i
China criticizes both the US and \JJapan\j for failing to release the news that the US used radioactive bullets during military exercises in \JOkinawa\j, \JJapan\j over one year ago. \JJapan\j was only informed by the US a month ago of the news. \I(China, USA, Japan)\i
Israeli authorities claim to have known of the new American Secretary of State Ms Madeleine Albright's Jewish origins for more than two years. \I(Israel, USA)\i
The American computer magnate, Bill Gates, is reported to have increased his wealth to $US29 billion in 1996 - he is on his way to becoming the richest person in the world ever. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British Labor Party pushes hard for an early general election to be called by the government. \I(UK)\i
Mercenaries employed by the Zairian Government to assist the army are fleeing the country as rebels make significant headway. \I(Zaire)\i
Israeli authorities claim to have known of the new American Secretary of State Ms Madeleine Albright's Jewish origins for more than two years. \I(Israel, USA)\i
British pop star, Elton John, cancels his proposed concerts that were to mark Hong Kong's return to China, following suggestions that the public listens to the concerts through headphones. \I(UK, Hong Kong)\i
Sotheby's chief executive officer launches an investigation into claims that the firm was responsible for smuggling art works out of Europe for sale in Britain. \I(UK)\i
Loyalists in Northern Ireland decide whether to keep to their 28-month-old cease-fire after a British soldier is killed, presumably by the IRA. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
During discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, American President Bill Clinton encourages Mr Netanyahu to recommence peace talks with \JSyria\j. \I(USA, Israel, Syria)\i
In \JAlbania\j, protesters demand that the government refunds their money that they put into the collapsed pyramid investment schemes. \I(Albania)\i
The town of Brcko in Bosnia is at the center of controversy after it was revealed that an American mediator had decided to give it to the Serbs. Muslims stage a protest, while the US fears that no side will be happy about the final decision. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
Tajik rebels claim that they have killed a UN official who they had been holding hostage. \I(Tajikistan)\i
#
"February 15, 1997",409,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
China's paramount leader, Deng Xiaoping, is reported to be seriously ill having suffered a major stroke. \I(China)\i
North Korea is reportedly in a desperate state, with people starving and thousands dying from hunger; floods are causing chaos and the crops are failing. \I(North Korea)\i
The Burmese army murders villagers in the south of the country, as the army attempts to clear the land in order to make way for international investment and force out minorities. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
North Korean defector, Mr Hwang Jang Yop, says that if his request for refuge in South Korea is denied, he will die in South Korea's Chinese embassy. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Astronauts from the spaceshuttle \IDiscovery,\i who are repairing the Hubble Space \JTelescope\j, move into higher orbit to avoid colliding with a piece of space junk. \I(USA)\i
Iraq claims that the American Administration's policy of "dual containment" towards \JIran\j and \JIraq\j is not fair. \JIraq\j says that the USA is overlooking \JIran\j's purchase of weapons while pressing for the continuance of UN sanctions against \JIraq\j. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Iraq)\i
Progress is believed to have been made during talks between a Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement leader and a Peruvian Government official regarding ending the Lima hostage crisis. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Mr Boris Yeltsin, the Russian leader, dismisses demands by the Opposition that his constitutional powers should be reduced. \I(Russia)\i
The British Government considers a plan to send a peacekeeping force to the island of Cyprus, after grave fears arose that \JGreece\j and Turkey would go to war over the island. \I(UK, Cyprus, \JGreece\j, Turkey)\i
In \JRwanda\j, Froduald Karamira is sentenced to death for war crimes committed during 1994 when hundreds of thousands of Tutsis and Hutus were murdered; he is ordered to pay $AUD22 million in compensation to families of the victims. \I(Rwanda)\i
British author Salman Rushdie, on the eighth anniversary of the Iranian \Ifatwa,\i claims that the EU has done nothing to remove the \Ifatwa.\i \I(UK, Iran)\i
Syria announces that it is prepared to recommence peace talks with Israel immediately, if Israel will abandon the Golan Heights. \I(Israel, Syria)\i
Rebels in Zaire warn that they will attack the largest refugee camp unless Rwandans armed by the government leave the country. \I(Zaire)\i
After the Serbian Government finally agrees to recognize the Opposition's election victories, the Opposition is prepared to bring to a halt the protest campaign. The Opposition demands that the media has controls lifted within a three-week period. \I(Serbia)\i
Iraq claims that the American Administration's policy of "dual containment" towards \JIran\j and \JIraq\j is not fair. \JIraq\j says that the USA is overlooking \JIran\j's purchase of weapons while pressing for the continuance of UN sanctions against \JIraq\j. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Iraq)\i
A photograph published in the British \ISunday Times\i magazine reveals that formula one racing driver Ayrton Senna may have crashed into debris on the racetrack which could have caused his fatal accident in 1994. \I(UK)\i
It is believed that the jazz musician Ronnie Scott, who died in December 1996, committed suicide. \I(UK)\i
#
"February 16, 1997",410,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In Seoul, South Korea, North Korean defector Lee Han Young is shot, allegedly by North Korean agents. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
In southern Sri Lanka, troops and protesters clash, leaving two dead and over 30 others wounded. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The Indonesian army is to remain in West \JKalimantan\j, where recent violent ethnic riots occurred. \I(Indonesia)\i
China is enmeshed in the diplomatic crisis between South and North Korea. Chinese police are at the ready to stop North Korea from forcing their way into the South Korean embassy to retrieve defector Mr Hwang Jang Yop. \I(China, North Korea, South Korea)\i
A leading North Korean official, Mr Kim Duk Hong, who defected to South Korea last week, apparently revealed last year that North Korea has five atomic bombs. \I(North Korea)\i
At an ASEM \I(Asia-Europe Meeting)\i held in \JSingapore\j, it is announced that human rights issues and the admission of new members will be discussed. However, the matter of \JMyanmar\j's entry still remains unresolved. \I(Singapore)\i
International aid agencies try to cope with the influx of thousands of Karen people into \JThailand\j after they were forced to leave their homes by Burmese troops. \I(Thailand, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
The release from prison of the infamous Indian criminal, Charles Sobhraj, is delayed by two days. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Discussions between the Peruvian Government and Tupac Amaru rebel leaders about the Lima hostage crisis are yet to reach any solution. The government mediator now appears more wary of finding an immediate solution. \I(Peru)\i
The mother of murder victim Ronald Goldman says that she wants justice to be carried out and she is not trying to make money out of the O.J. Simpson case. \I(USA)\i
Astronauts from the spaceshuttle \IDiscovery\i carry out a fifth spacewalk to repair faulty \Jinsulation\j on the Hubble Space \JTelescope\j. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
It is claimed by a member of the Russian security forces that President Boris Yeltsin needs assistance in walking and is showing early symptoms of Parkinson's disease. \I(Russia)\i
Albanian President, Mr Berisha, publicly confesses that his government has made errors over the pyramid savings schemes and permits demonstrations outside the capital. \I(Albania)\i
Tajik rebels release five of the eleven hostages they are holding, following a warning from the government that it would use force to secure their release. \I(Tajikistan)\i
Captain Hani Ayad, the Palestinian intelligence chief, is arrested in Nablus for torturing a prisoner to death. \I(Palestine)\i
In a newly released report by the World Health Organization (WHO), it is revealed that a Russian male cannot expect to live longer than 58 years - a figure significantly below many other countries in the world. \I(Russia)\i
Zairian rebels make significant progress in eastern Zaire, and President Mr Mobutu gets ready to defend the capital, \JKinshasa\j. The President forbids any demonstrations and imposes restrictions on the media. It is rumored that private businessman are willing to fund their own army to drive back the rebels. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"February 17, 1997",411,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Mr Hwang Jang Yop, a recent defector from North Korea, is rumored to have revealed that another seven leading North Korean officials are preparing to defect to South Korea. \I(North Korea)\i
Thousands more Karen refugees are expected in \JThailand\j, as the Burmese army continues its drive into south-east \JMyanmar\j, which is still controlled by Karen guerrillas. \I(Thailand, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Bo Mya, the leader of the Karen guerrillas, uses refugees as a human shield to try to stop a split within the ranks of his troops. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
India expels an American diplomat; as a counterstroke the US banishes two Indian diplomats. \I(India, USA)\i
An Australian school principal commits suicide just before his appearance at a royal commission which is looking into pedophilia. It is alleged that he covered up allegations of child abuse at his school. \I(Australia)\i
Indian authorities attempt to extradite an Italian businessman over an armaments deal made with the Indian Government over ten years ago. \I(India)\i
The Dalai Lama commends the Taiwanese President Mr Lee Teng-hui's attempts to initiate democratic reforms. \I(Taiwan)\i
Papua New Guinean soldiers thought to have been responsible for the murder of the Premier of Bougainville, Mr Theodore Miriung, are also believed to have tampered with evidence. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Thousands of Muslims attack Christians and destroy property in Khanewal in Punjab province in \JPakistan\j. So far, two people have died and many others are wounded. \I(Pakistan)\i
Thirty-two people are killed in a village in the Indian State of Tripura. Authorities arrest 80 guerrillas in connection with the murders. \I(India)\i
Ms Sirimavo Bandaranaike, the Sri Lankan Prime Minister, is hospitalized due to a \Jstomach\j illness. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
China claims that it did not participate in the funding of the American Democrat's election campaign. \I(USA, China)\i
American authorities keep a careful track of accounts about the deteriorating health of China's paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The leading American House of Representatives investigator issues another 20 subpoenas in connection with investigations into foreign funding of the 1996 election campaign. \I(USA)\i
China claims that it did not participate in the funding of the American Democrat's election campaign. \I(USA, China)\i
India expels an American diplomat; as a counterstroke the US banishes two Indian diplomats. \I(India, USA)\i
American authorities keep a careful track of accounts about the deteriorating health of China's paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. \I(USA, China)\i
The American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, is on her first official overseas visit where she will discuss with allies the plan to expand \JNATO\j. \I(USA)\i
Plans to secure the release of the people held hostage in Lima are revealed. Meanwhile, talks to find a solution to the crisis continue. Rebels vow to hold out as long as possible, claiming any plan to invade the Japanese ambassador's residence could lead to death for the hostages as well as the rebels. \I(Peru)\i
The diplomatic immunity in Washington of Georgian diplomat George Makharadze is removed as he faces charges of \Jmanslaughter\j of a young American girl - he allegedly crashed into her while driving under the influence of alcohol. \I(USA, Georgia)\i
The American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, urges \JGermany\j to cut links with \JIran\j, \JIraq\j and \JLibya\j. \I(Germany, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Rebels, who are holding six people hostage in Tajikistan, fail to appear for talks with the President Imomali Rakhmonov. \I(Tajikistan)\i
Zairian Government troops attack three rebel-occupied towns in the east of the country and promise to step up their campaign. \I(Zaire)\i
The diplomatic immunity in Washington of Georgian diplomat George Makharadze is removed as he faces charges of \Jmanslaughter\j of a young American girl - he allegedly crashed into her while driving under the influence of alcohol. \I(USA, Georgia)\i
It is claimed in a Russian newspaper that the President's wife Naina Yeltsin is also urging her husband to resign, however, Mrs Yeltsin denies the report. \I(Russia)\i
The American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, urges \JGermany\j to cut links with \JIran\j, \JIraq\j and \JLibya\j. \I(Germany, USA)\i
Poland fears that \JRussia\j is conducting a campaign to stop its admission to \JNATO\j. \I(Russia, Poland)\i
#
"February 18, 1997",412,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Mr Nawaz Sharif is sworn in as \JPakistan\j's new Prime Minister, promising to lead a "clean" government. \I(Pakistan)\i
Chinese authorities try to halt rumors that the country's paramount leader, Deng Xiaoping, is critically ill and dying. \I(China)\i
North Korea wants evidence that recent defector Mr Hwang Jang Yop is willingly seeking asylum and is not being held in the \JBeijing\j's South Korean embassy against his will. Talks between South Korea and China fail to bring about a solution on Mr Hwang's fate. \I(North Korea, China, South Korea)\i
The infamous murderer, Charles Sobhraj, released after spending 20 years in Indian prisons, is immediately re-arrested after his release - he is detained while \Jimmigration\j officials examine his case. \I(India)\i
The Burmese army prepares for its final attack on the Karen guerrillas at the Thai-Burmese border. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Order is restored to a town in the Chinese province of Xinjiang, where recent riots erupted. \I(China)\i
Cambodia is informed by Indonesian Foreign Minister, Mr Ali Alatas, that it will be granted admission to ASEAN in July 1997. \I(Cambodia, Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A new American study reveals that Walt Disney Company was one of the main financial contributors to the 1995-96 US election campaigns. \I(USA)\i
American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, suggests that \JNATO\j and \JRussia\j create a joint force for peacekeeping and special crisis management projects. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Mr Kenneth Starr, the Whitewater prosecutor, decides to retire from the Whitewater inquiry. \I(USA)\i
Mr Carlos Ruckauf, the Argentinean Vice-President, calls for a banning of the new film \IEvita,\i labeling it "offensive." \I(Argentina)\i
James Earl Ray, the alleged killer of civil rights activist Martin Luther King, plans to go on \Jtelevision\j to plead for a liver - he is dying of \Jcirrhosis\j of the liver. \I(USA)\i
Medical experts from the Red Cross examine the hostages held captive in Lima by the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement - no major problems are reported. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Thirty-three villagers in the town of Blida, \JAlgeria\j are decapitated by Muslim guerrillas. \I(Algeria)\i
Tajik rebels release the five remaining hostages - five UN officials - ending the two-week crisis. \I(Tajikistan)\i
American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, suggests that \JNATO\j and \JRussia\j create a joint force for peacekeeping and special crisis management projects. \I(USA, Russia)\i
The Zairian army threatens to increase the number of air attacks on rebel-occupied areas. \I(Zaire)\i
Israeli \Jaircraft\j bomb two villages in South \JLebanon\j, killing one person and seriously injuring another. \I(Israel, South Lebanon)\i
Russian President Mr Boris Yeltsin meets with Palestinian leader Mr Arafat at the \JKremlin\j. \I(Russia)\i
French actors and media personalities demand a boycott of proposed \Jimmigration\j laws which are presently being discussed in parliament. \I(France)\i
The British Government weathers a parliamentary move condemning Prime Minister John Major's handling of the mad cow disease crisis. \I(UK)\i
The British Life Insurance Association brings in a new ruling for applicants of life insurance policies that forces people to reveal whether they have undergone genetic testing. \I(UK)\i
#
"February 19, 1997",413,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In South Korea, prosecutors intend to indict ten middle-ranking officials in the investigation into the collapse of the Hanbo Group. There is widespread criticism of the investigation. \I(South Korea)\i
Chinese authorities close down the office of paramount leader, Mr Deng Xiaoping, which reads as a sign of the leader's ailing health. \I(China)\i
In \JKalimantan\j, Dayak tribal chiefs claim that a peace accord between them and migrants from the island of Madura will not last. They have sent out the so-called "red cup" of war. The past three weeks of riots have left hundreds of people dead. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Australian Government gives $AUD4 million in aid to the Red Cross Organization to help 30,000 people in the island of Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. \I(Papua New Guinea, Australia)\i
Hundreds of Karen guerrillas surrender their weapons to the Burmese army. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Lebanese authorities arrest five members of the Japanese Red Army in Beka'a Valley. The Red Army has close links with Palestinian guerrillas. \I(Lebanon, Japan)\i
Australian Philip Bell, who is accused of pedophilia, is to be extradited from South Africa to face charges in \JAustralia\j. \I(South Africa, Australia)\i
Vietnam sends its first official military contingent to the US. \I(Vietnam, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Daniel Gajdusek, a Nobel Peace prize winner, confesses that he is guilty of child abuse; he will serve a maximum of one year in prison. \I(USA)\i
A mudslide in an Andean village in southern \JPeru\j kills 33 people and over 100 others are reported missing. \I(Peru)\i
The repair work to the Hubble Space \JTelescope\j is completed; the \IDiscovery\i spaceshuttle continues its mission. \I(USA)\i
Vietnam sends its first official military contingent to the US. \I(Vietnam, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Lebanese authorities arrest five members of the Japanese Red Army in Beka'a Valley. The Red Army has close links with Palestinian guerrillas. \I(Lebanon, Japan)\i
Australian Philip Bell, who is accused of pedophilia, is to be extradited from South Africa to face charges in \JAustralia\j. \I(South Africa, Australia)\i
It is reported that the Zairian Government has given weapons to Hutu guerrillas among the Rwandan refugees in the east of the country. Talks between rebels and the government are scheduled to be held in South Africa. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"February 20, 1997",414,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
China's paramount leader, Deng Xiaoping, dies at the age of 92. World leaders send their condolences to Deng's family as well as paying tribute to the leader. \I(China)\i
In \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j the army arrests 86 people in connection with recent ethnic unrest in Sungai Kunyit. \I(Indonesia)\i
The USA and South Korea propose nearly $US16 million in food aid to North Korea. \I(USA, South Korea, North Korea)\i
Seven people are killed at an Iranian cultural center in \JPakistan\j. \I(Pakistan, Iran)\i
\BThe Americas\b
It is now thought that nearly 300 people died in the mudslide in two remote Andean villages in \JPeru\j yesterday. \I(Peru)\i
The USA and South Korea propose nearly $US16 million in food aid to North Korea. \I(USA, South Korea, North Korea)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Ms Mirjana Markovic, the wife of Serbian President Mr Slobodan Milosevic, claims that members of the Opposition are "militant enraged ... sick beasts." \I(Serbia)\i
It is claimed that \JIraq\j is building up its army presence in the south-east of the country near the border to \JIran\j. \I(Iraq, Iran)\i
Peace talks are held in South Africa between Zairian rebel leaders and government officials, including South African Deputy President Mr Thabo Mbeki and American mediators. \I(South Africa)\i
Seven people are killed at an Iranian cultural center in \JPakistan\j. \I(Pakistan, Iran)\i
#
"February 21, 1997",415,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A memorial service is to be held next week for China's paramount leader, Deng Xiaoping, at \JBeijing\j's Great Hall of the People. Following Deng's wishes, the funeral will be modest and without grandeur. \I(China)\i
In an effort to ensure that peace reigns in China, authorities institute tight security measures in volatile areas. Local authorities are forbidden from organizing mourning ceremonies in case they lead to protests. \I(China)\i
Chinese authorities forbid the family of Deng Xiaoping to release a letter on Deng's death as it differs from the official version. \I(China)\i
It is speculated that the Premier of North Korea, Mr Kang Song San, may have been sacked from office. Mr Hong Song Nam is named as acting premier. \I(North Korea)\i
Hong Kong celebrates the opening of a new runway at Chek Lap Kok Airport. \I(Hong Kong)\i
The violent attack on the Iranian cultural center in \JPakistan\j yesterday is blamed on the Sunni Muslim Group. \I(Pakistan, Iran)\i
India announces plans to test a contentious new missile. The move is condemned by the US. \I(India, USA)\i
Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, the Indonesian Opposition leader, sues police over an attempt to interrogate her without proper authority. \I(Indonesia)\i
A state-owned oil well in southern India catches fire. People protest, as the fire causes damage to the surrounding area. \I(India)\i
One of South Korean President Kim Young-sam's sons is questioned about his participation in the Hanbo Group loans scandal. \I(South Korea)\i
A boat, carrying hundreds of Tamil refugees, sinks off the coast of Sri Lanka; 130 people are feared drowned. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
\BThe Americas\b
An investigation into the funding of the American election campaign extends to many countries and over a hundred people are served with subpoenas. \I(USA)\i
Weather conditions hamper the rescue of victims of a mudslide in \JPeru\j. It is thought so far 300 people have died. \I(Peru)\i
India plans to test a contentious new missile. The move is condemned by the US. \I(India, USA)\i
During her visit to \JRussia\j, the American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, admits there are still issues to be resolved between \JRussia\j and \JNATO\j over the proposed expansion of \JNATO\j into Eastern Europe. \I(USA, Russia)\i
The American actor, Elizabeth Taylor, undergoes surgery to remove a tumor from her brain. \I(USA)\i
Croatian high school computer hackers manage to access a US military base computer. \I(Croatia, USA)\i
The Mexican Government's main anti-drug fighter, General Jose de Jesus Gutierrez Rebollo, is arrested and accused of involvement with a leading criminal. \I(Mexico)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Australian businessman, Mr Joseph Gutnick, is widely criticized by Palestinians and Israelis for privately financing Jewish settlements in the West Bank. \I(Israel, West Bank)\i
The violent attack on the Iranian cultural center in \JPakistan\j yesterday is blamed on the Sunni Muslim Group. \I(Pakistan, Iran)\i
In \JRomania\j, prisoners protest about over-crowding in jails. \I(Romania)\i
During her visit to \JRussia\j, the American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, admits there are still issues to be resolved between \JRussia\j and \JNATO\j over the proposed expansion of \JNATO\j into Eastern Europe. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Croatian high school computer hackers manage to access a US military base computer. \I(Croatia, USA)\i
Thousands of Serbs apply for Croatian citizenship. They have been encouraged by the United Nations transitional administration \I(UNTAES)\i to apply, so they can participate in \JCroatia\j's economic future. \I(Croatia)\i
#
"February 22, 1997",416,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Thousands of East Timorese people set fire to Muslim homes in \JIndonesia\j. Rioting occurs in the town of Ambeno which kills at least one person and wounds seven others. \I(Indonesia)\i
A ferry catches fire in the Pacific Ocean off Wellington. Twenty-five people drift in life rafts to await rescue. \I(New Zealand)\i
American security sources claim that Chinese President Jiang Zemin has no guarantee of retaining office and faces threats from at least seven other parties. \I(USA, China)\i
China is now in a six-day mourning period for the paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. \I(China)\i
Chinese leaders ask the people to support them to continue Deng Xiaoping's legacy of economic reforms. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
After announcing his decision to retire, the Whitewater prosecutor Mr Kenneth Starr changes his mind due to public pressure to remain in the position. \I(USA)\i
American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, criticizes the Church of \JScientology\j for its protests to the German Government about the treatment of German Scientologists. \I(USA, Germany)\i
American security sources claim that Chinese President Jiang Zemin has no guarantee of retaining office and faces threats from at least seven other parties. \I(USA, China)\i
The imprisonment of top Mexican anti-drugs fighter, Jose de Jesus Gutierrez Rebollo, creates fears in the US that he was privy to classified information. \I(Mexico, USA)\i
Hopes of a peaceful solution to the Lima hostage crisis rise, following further talks between government and rebel representatives. \I(Peru)\i
A bomb explodes in the city of \JAtlanta\j - the fourth bomb in a seven-month period. Police investigate the possibility that a serial bomber may be responsible. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Three British men are released from jail after serving 18-year sentences for the murder of newspaper boy Carl Bridgewater, following the discovery that the evidence was faulty. \I(UK)\i
Two sets of sisters are found murdered in Boulogne, \JFrance\j - they went missing ten days ago after a local \Jcarnival\j. \I(France)\i
Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, may be questioned by police about the controversial appointment of associate Roni Bar-On as attorney-general. \I(Israel)\i
British military personnel contemplate establishing their own trade union for the very first time in history. \I(UK)\i
American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, criticizes the Church of \JScientology\j for its protests to the German Government about the treatment of German Scientologists. \I(USA, Germany)\i
A recent poll indicates that Irish and Spanish people are in favor of female priests as well as marriage for \Jclergy\j. \I(Ireland, Spain)\i
In \JFrance\j thousands of people demonstrate against a proposed new \Jimmigration\j law. The law wants French people to inform authorities about the movements of Arab and African immigrants. \I(France)\i
The government accuses rebels in Zaire of breaking the cease-fire. A cease-fire was called once peace talks commenced in South Africa. \I(Zaire, South Africa)\i
#
"February 23, 1997",417,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australia threatens to stop its $320 million aid program to Papua New Guinea if it continues with a proposal to use mercenaries to attack rebels. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Deng Xiaoping, the Chinese paramount leader, is cremated at the Babaoshan revolutionary cemetery in \JBeijing\j. \I(China)\i
Chinese forbids foreign journalists to enter China. Journalists in China are uncertain whether they are permitted to cover the funeral of Deng Xiaoping. \I(China)\i
A fire breaks out at a Hindu religious meeting in eastern India, killing more than 120 people and injuring hundreds of others. \I(India)\i
The son of South Korean President Kim Young-sam is cleared of any misconduct in the Hanbo loans affair. \I(South Korea)\i
Despite condemnation from the US, India goes ahead with test-firing a disputed new missile. \I(USA, India)\i
A fire in a 36-story building in \JBangkok\j kills two people; another 93 are rescued. \I(Thailand)\i
Mr Choe Kwang, the North Korean defense minister, dies suddenly. The power structure in North Korea has been overhauled dramatically with the recent defection of Mr Hwang Jang Yop, the alleged sacking of Mr Kang Song San and the promotion of two military marshals. \I(North Korea)\i
Mr Jiang Zemin, the Chinese President, vows to continue to reform policies. \I(China)\i
Mr Jose Ramos-Horta, the Nobel Peace prize laureate, claims that the recent rioting in East \JTimor\j is symptomatic of the tension in the region. \I(Indonesia)\i
The former sacked Pakistani prime minister, Ms Benazir Bhutto, claims at a judicial tribunal that the murder of her brother Murtaza was part of a plan to overthrow her government. \I(Pakistan)\i
The Indonesian President, Mr Soeharto, meets with the Burmese leader, General Ne Win, to discuss \JMyanmar\j's admission to ASEAN. \I(Indonesia, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
In her ten-country first overseas trip, the American Secretary of State Ms Madeleine Albright makes her last stop in China. She is expected to leave prior to the funeral of Chinese paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Flooding and heavy rains continue to wreak havoc in \JPeru\j. Thousands of people have been made homeless and at least 63 people have died. \I(Peru)\i
On the observation deck at the top of the Empire State Building, New York, a Palestinian man shoots at a group of tourists, killing one person and injuring six others before killing himself. \I(USA)\i
To counter Russian criticism of plans to expand \JNATO\j, the American Administration hands over a proposal to Congress to support its policy and halt the disapproval. \I(USA)\i
Love letters, written by Cuban leader Fidel Castro when he was 26, are published by a Spanish newspaper. \I(Cuba)\i
Despite condemnation from the US, India goes ahead with test-firing a disputed new missile. \I(USA, India)\i
A report reveals that 380 people died in American air crashes in 1996. This makes 1996 the worst year since 1985 for deaths caused by air disasters. \I(USA)\i
In her ten-country first overseas trip, the American Secretary of State Ms Madeleine Albright makes her last stop in China. She is expected to leave prior to the funeral of Chinese paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. \I(USA, China)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In a world first, Scottish scientists discover a method of producing the clone of an adult animal. The prospects of human \Jcloning\j become even more real and feared. \I(UK)\i
The Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, informs King Hussein of Jordan of Israel's plans to build thousands of homes for Jews on Har Homa and homes for \JArabs\j in the \JJerusalem\j area. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
The leader of the German Social Democrat Party, Gerhard Schr÷der, makes it clear that if elected leader he would put off the introduction of the European monetary union. \I(Germany)\i
The Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu hires one of Israel's top criminal lawyers to represent him in the investigation into the hiring of Roni Bar-On as attorney-general. \I(Israel)\i
Eleven Palestinians drown after their van is swept away by a flash flood. \I(Palestine)\i
In the Russian State of \JChechnya\j, thousands gather to commemorate the 53rd anniversary of Chechens' deportation to \JSiberia\j and Central Asia under Stalin. \I(Chechnya)\i
In \JSerbia\j, the Opposition chooses one of its leaders as Mayor of \JBelgrade\j. Mr Zoran Djindjic's appointment marks the end to President Milosevic's domination of power. \I(Serbia)\i
In the \JCongo\j, the bodies of hundreds of elephants who had been shot dead are discovered - it is one of the largest poaching undertakings in recent years. \I(Africa)\i
#
"February 24, 1997",418,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Papua New Guinea plans to hire foreign mercenaries to assist in the rebel situation on the island of Bougainville after \JAustralia\j refuses to provide electronic intelligence to support a campaign to attack rebels. \JAustralia\j strongly recommends that Papua New Guinea should avoid hiring mercenaries. \I(Papua New Guinea, Australia)\i
China's legislature votes to abandon 14 of Hong Kong's civil liberties laws and change ten others. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
Three people die when Muslim guerrillas seize a ferry in the southern \JPhilippines\j. \I(Philippines)\i
A search continues to find and rescue victims of a fire which broke out at a Hindu religious ceremony in eastern India. \I(India)\i
Despite being warned by China, \JTibet\j's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, plans to go ahead with a trip to \JTaiwan\j. \I(China, \JTibet\j, Taiwan)\i
In \JCambodia\j there are calls for an international boycott of landmines - it is common knowledge that landmines kill or mame hundreds of Cambodians each month. \I(Cambodia)\i
In order to cut \JPakistan\j's foreign debt, the new Prime Minister Mr Nawaz Sharif introduces savings plans. \I(Pakistan)\i
Malaysia calls for other countries to accept the admission of \JMyanmar\j into ASEAN. \I(Malaysia, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
An investigation commences into the fire in a \JBangkok\j office building which killed three people. \I(Thailand)\i
Mr Le Van Bang is chosen as Vietnam's first ambassador to the United States. \I(Vietnam)\i
It is revealed that just after World War II, the USA put \JJapan\j under pressure to drop any compensation claims over the sinking of a Japanese cruise liner. \I(USA, Japan)\i
During her time in China, the American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, entreats the leaders of China to release political prisoners. \I(USA, China)\i
Thousands of people gather in a village in the southwestern province of Sichuan, the birthplace of Deng Xiaoping, to pay their final respects to the paramount leader. \I(China)\i
It appears that the USA and China might come to an agreement over the human rights issues after long-standing disputes. \I(China, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
It appears that the USA and China might come to an agreement over the human rights issues after long-standing disputes. \I(China, USA)\i
It is revealed that just after World War II, the USA put \JJapan\j under pressure to drop any compensation claims over the sinking of a Japanese cruise liner. \I(USA, Japan)\i
American President, Mr Bill Clinton, wants a bioethics advisory commission to look into the ramifications of the recent \Jcloning\j discovery in the UK. \I(USA)\i
After the recent massacre atop the Empire State Building, where a gunman killed one person and injured others, security is tightened. \I(USA)\i
American computer magnate, Bill Gates, is not as wealthy as he was reported to be earlier this month - he is ranked 31st in a record of America's wealthy. \I(USA)\i
The American actor Christopher Reeves, who was paralyzed in a horseriding accident, is to return to acting in a updated version of Hitchcock's film \IRear Window.\i \I(USA)\i
It is believed that the \JFBI\j received a letter claiming responsibility for the latest \JAtlanta\j bombing. \I(USA)\i
Reports continue to be published about the new American Secretary of State's Jewish roots. Ms Albright was only recently informed of her Jewish heritage. \I(USA)\i
During her time in China the American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, entreats the leaders of China to release political prisoners. \I(USA, China)\i
France will reconsider its decision to rejoin \JNATO\j if the USA refuses to surrender control of the Southern Command. \I(France, USA)\i
American President Bill Clinton and his wife are cleared by Whitewater prosecutors of any conspiracy in connection with the death of their friend Vince Foster. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Mr Boris Yeltsin, the Russian President, launches a campaign to stamp out any further speculation about his ailing health. He also demands a reorganization of his cabinet after the government's failure of paying wages and pensions. \I(Russia)\i
In \JPiacenza\j, \JItaly\j, a painting by Gustav Klimt is stolen from an art gallery. \I(Italy)\i
Croatian President, Mr Franjo Tudjman, says that he will try for re-election to office despite it being thought that he is terminally ill. \I(Croatia)\i
The first criminal in the UK to be identified by a "voice identity parade" is appealing against his sentence. \I(UK)\i
German Chancellor Helmut Kohl invites the Opposition to participate in discussions about the overhaul of the tax system. \I(Germany)\i
France will reconsider its decision to rejoin \JNATO\j if the USA refuses to surrender control of the Southern Command. \I(France, USA)\i
Serbian businessman, Bogoljub Karic, announces that he will run for presidency if the Opposition cannot find a viable candidate. \I(Serbia)\i
Thousands of Germans demonstrate against proposals to transport nuclear waste across \JGermany\j, from Neckarwestheim to Gorleben. \I(Germany)\i
It is revealed that the ailing London underground will be sold for ú2 billion. The profits will be used to construct a new network. \I(UK)\i
It is reported that \JRussia\j has been sending armaments to \JAfghanistan\j to help them in their fight against the Islamic Talibaan militia. \I(Russia, Afghanistan)\i
Russia's space program is in jeopardy due to a shortage of funds and a recent fire on the space station Mir. \I(Russia)\i
#
"February 25, 1997",419,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A memorial service attended by over 10,000 of China's top political establishments is held for Deng Xiaoping at the Great Hall of the People in \JBeijing\j. \I(China)\i
China's leaders vow to strengthen ties with the USA and refuse to be pressurized by the USA over human rights issues. \I(China, USA)\i
It is revealed that Papua New Guinea is grooming an elite force to fight rebels, made up of 150 native soldiers and police who are experts in anti-terrorism. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
A report by Amnesty International details a number of human rights abuses by Papua New Guinean soldiers on the island of Bougainville. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
In \JThailand\j, an Australian man is on trial for allegedly raping and beating two young girls under the age of 15. \I(Thailand)\i
The South Korean leader, Mr Kim Young-sam, publicly apologizes for the role his son and colleagues played in the Hanbo loan scandal and the new labor law which caused a series of strikes. \I(South Korea)\i
It is now thought that 204 people died when a fire ripped through a Hindu religious campsite in India. \I(India)\i
Due to the stringent conditions placed on political campaigning, the Indonesian Muslim United Development Party is thinking of blackballing the forthcoming elections. \I(Indonesia)\i
In \JIndonesia\j, Mr Amien Rais, the leader of the Muhammadiyah Muslim Organization, resigns. It is thought he was forced out of office because of his public censure of the government. Mr Rais promises to continue criticizing the government. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
China's leaders vow to strengthen ties with the USA and refuse to be pressurized by the USA over human rights issues. \I(China, USA)\i
It is reported that America has developed a nuclear bomb with the capacity to attack targets well below the Earth's surface. \I(USA)\i
Government and Tupac Amaru rebel representatives continue talks in Lima in an effort to end the ten-week hostage crisis. \I(Peru)\i
Thousands of sea lions face death following of an oil spill off the coast of Uruguay. \I(Uruguay)\i
The Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles publicizes the names of thousands of Jewish people's Swiss bank accounts which were frozen in the 1940s. \I(USA)\i
The reasons for a gunman killing one person and injuring eight others at the top of the Empire State Building in New York still remain uncertain. It is thought that he managed to possess a gun by using a loophole in the federal gun control law. \I(USA)\i
The American President, Bill Clinton, urges the Saudi Arabian authorities to be more helpful in the investigation into the 1996 bombing of American quarters in Saudi \JArabia\j. \I(USA, Saudia Arabia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Mr Boris Yeltsin is calling for the sacking of several government ministers who he claims have been spreading rumors about his health and are responsible for a fall in his popularity. \I(Russia)\i
Leaders from the Afghan Talibaan militia and opposition alliance meet for discussions on ending the war in \JAfghanistan\j in \JPakistan\j. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Rev. Canaan Banana, the President of Zimbabwe, is charged with homosexual rape. \I(Zimbabwe)\i
Israeli troops kill one person and injure three others in the West Bank village of Hizme. \I(Israel, West Bank)\i
In \JAlgeria\j, the Armed Islamic Group kills 17 passengers on a bus. Over the past few days at least 29 civilians have been murdered. \I(Algeria)\i
About 80 designer dresses owned by Diana, Princess of Wales are to go on sale in an auction by Christies. Proceeds of the sale will be donated to charity. \I(UK)\i
It is thought that Virgin and Railtrack are the companies most likely to be interested in purchasing the London Underground. \I(UK)\i
Iran announces it will conduct a presidential election on May, 23. \I(Iran)\i
The American President, Bill Clinton, urges the Saudi Arabian authorities to be more helpful in the investigation into the 1996 bombing of American quarters in Saudi \JArabia\j. \I(USA, Saudia Arabia)\i
Tiit Vahi, the Estonian prime minister, announces his resignation. \I(Estonia)\i
The Zairian rebel leader, Commander Laurent Kabila, goes to South Africa to attend peace talks with the South African Government and US Government representatives in an effort to bring about a solution to Zaire's civil war. \I(Zaire, South Africa)\i
At Har Homa outside \JJerusalem\j, the proposed site for the construction of Jewish homes, hundreds of Palestinian people demonstrate. \I(West Bank)\i
Plans to expand Jewish settlements are a threat to the Israeli-Palestinian peace proposals. The Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu is hoping to stem criticism by announcing plans to build more houses for \JArabs\j near \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel)\i
#
"February 26, 1997",420,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In \JIndonesia\j a questionable law is passed which allows 12 new nuclear power plants to be built. Critics fear that \JIndonesia\j's background of volcanic and \Jearthquake\j activity could mean the introduction of nuclear plants is a recipe for disaster. \I(Indonesia)\i
It is thought that over 200 people have been killed during recent ethnic riots in West \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
Australia tries to drum up international support to condemn Papua New Guinea's plans to use foreign mercenaries to attack rebels on the island of Bougainville. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Three bombs explode on buses in China's Xinjiang province, killing seven people and injuring many more. The military and police guard the region. \I(China)\i
Mr Lee Han Young, the North Korean defector who was shot in Seoul 11 days ago, dies. \I(North Korea)\i
The South Korean President, Mr Kim Young-sam, reorganizes his cabinet. \I(South Korea)\i
The Cambodian King, Norodom Sihanouk, wants to give up the monarchy and become a common citizen. However, he is afraid that by doing so it would cause great instability in the country. \I(Cambodia)\i
Discussions between China and South Korea on the fate of North Korean defector Hwang Jang Yop are due to recommence this week. \I(China, North Korea, South Korea)\i
The Taiwanese Government conducts tests with US manufactured Patriot missiles. \I(Taiwan)\i
The Australian Olympic Committee proposes to offer the British cheap packages to attend the 2000 Games in Sydney. \I(Australia)\i
It is hoped that the Australian businessman, James Peng, who is currently serving an 18-year prison sentence in China, will be released in the post-Deng era. \I(China)\i
It is revealed that all family members of China's paramount leader Deng Xiaoping, and many senior leaders, were present when he died. \I(China)\i
The Indonesian Nobel Peace prize laureate Jose Ramos-Horta urges the American President to increase pressure on \JIndonesia\j and approve a referendum in East \JTimor\j. \I(USA, Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American Administration plans to set aside $US21 billion for a ten-year plan to combat drugs, targeted at America's youth. \I(USA)\i
John Du Pont, the American multi-millionaire, is found guilty of the third degree murder of wrestler David Schultz. His claims of insanity are rejected by the jury, but he is found to be mentally ill. \I(USA)\i
A letter written by the gunman, who shot and killed people from the top of the Empire State Building last week, states that he was acting in retaliation against the treatment of Palestinians by the USA, Israel and other nations. \I(USA, Israel)\i
American President Bill Clinton and Chilean President Eduardo Frei press for freer trade in the Americas. \I(USA, Chile)\i
The Indonesian Nobel Peace prize laureate Jose Ramos-Horta urges the American President to increase pressure on \JIndonesia\j and approve a referendum in East \JTimor\j. \I(USA, Indonesia)\i
The Pentagon confesses that senior military officers were aware that \JIraq\j was storing chemical weapons in a depot a few weeks before US troops blew up the building during the 1991 Gulf War. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Amnesty International's report, \IBreaking the Silence,\i demands that the murders and attacks on homosexual people stop. \I(UK)\i
The Pentagon confesses that senior military officers were aware that \JIraq\j was storing chemical weapons in a depot a few weeks before US troops blew up the building during the 1991 Gulf War. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
A letter written by the gunman, who shot and killed people from the top of the Empire State Building last week, states that he was acting in retaliation against the treatment of Palestinians by the USA, Israel and other nations. \I(USA, Israel)\i
One person is killed and three others injured when Israeli troops fire during a clash in the West Bank village of Hizme. \I(Israel, West Bank)\i
Over 30 police are wounded in Paris during demonstrations against the proposed new \Jimmigration\j laws. \I(France)\i
There are reports coming out of \JBelgium\j that mass graves are being discovered in Zaire. The Zairian rebel leader Laurent Kablia is in South Africa for peace talks. \I(Zaire, Belgium)\i
Crown Prince Hassan of Jordan refuses to attend the opening of a peace center in Israel in protest over Israel's plans to expand Jewish settlements. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
The Czech Republic parliament passes a constitutional law which recognizes border changes between the Republic and \JSlovakia\j. \I(Czech Republic, Slovakia)\i
Over a hundred relatives of victims of the Saudi Arabian airlines crash over India last year receive compensation. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
The British Labor Party continues to maintain a lead in the opinion polls, while the by-election in the seat of South Wirral is held. \I(UK)\i
The British composer Andrew Lloyd Webber becomes Lord Lloyd-Webber on his admission to the House of Lords. \I(UK)\i
In an effort to save money, the Duchess of York moves back to Sunninghill - the home which she previously shared with her ex-husband, the Duke of York. \I(UK)\i
#
"February 27, 1997",421,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australian hospitals are asked if they would be willing to treat foreign mercenaries working in Papua New Guinea in the event of injury. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Papua New Guinea's plans to use foreign mercenaries is questioned by a major human rights group in the Supreme Court. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif claims that \JPakistan\j's relationship with India will only improve if a referendum is conducted in the controversial state of Kashmir. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Thailand pressures thousands of refugees, who fled the heavy fighting between Karen rebels and Burmese soldiers, to return to \JMyanmar\j. Amnesty International asks \JThailand\j to stop forcing Karen refugees back to \JMyanmar\j. \I(Thailand, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
The South Korean Yonhap News Agency publishes a report that claims a fierce argument between North Korean leader Kim Il Sung and his son Kim Jong II may have caused Kim Il Sung's death. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
In Aceh province in \JIndonesia\j, the army arrests 13 people in connection with a separatist movement who wish to establish an Islamic state. \I(Indonesia)\i
During the July handover of Hong Kong to China, China vows that its soldiers will take over "discreetly and sensitively." \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
Thousands of people, who suffered rights abuses under the rule of Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos, are angry at a Swiss court's refusal to release millions of dollars from his Swiss bank accounts. \I(Philippines, Switzerland)\i
Police arrest several people in connection with the bombings of three buses in the Chinese province of Xinjiang. \I(China)\i
Chinese President Jiang Zemin receives support from nearly all government departments. \I(China)\i
The ashes of Deng Xiaoping are to be scattered over Chinese territorial waters. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, is expected to urge American President Bill Clinton during a forthcoming meeting in Washington to try to get Israel to change its mind about establishing Jewish settlements in Har Homa. \I(Palestine, USA, Israel)\i
Police are now in doubt over the authenticity of a letter claiming responsibility for the \JAtlanta\j bombings. \I(USA)\i
American Secretary of State Madeleine Albright meets with Saudi Defense Minister, Prince Sultan, in Washington. \I(USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
An American engineer is freed after being kidnapped over two weeks ago in Yemen. \I(USA, Yemen)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, is at the center of controversy for giving permission to financial backers of the presidential campaign to be allowed to spend the night in the Lincoln Bedroom at the White House. \I(USA)\i
Hillary Clinton, the wife of American President Bill Clinton, receives a \JGrammy\j award for the recording of her book \It Takes A Village.\i \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Ancient spears, which can be traced back 400,000 years, are discovered in an open-cast mine in \JGermany\j. \I(Germany)\i
An American engineer is freed after being kidnapped over two weeks ago in Yemen. \I(USA, Yemen)\i
The IDF and police are placed on full alert after the approval to commence construction of Jewish homes in Har Homa is granted. \I(Israel)\i
If Palestinians allow the building of Jewish homes in Har Homa to proceed quietly, it is reported that Israel will withdraw from 10 per cent of the West Bank. \I(Israel, West Bank)\i
American Secretary of State Madeleine Albright meets with Saudi Defense Minister, Prince Sultan, in Washington. \I(USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
Thousands of people, who suffered rights abuses under the rule of Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos, are angry at a Swiss court's refusal to release millions of dollars from his Swiss bank accounts. \I(Philippines, Switzerland)\i
Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, is expected to urge American President Bill Clinton during a forthcoming meeting in Washington to try to get Israel to change its mind about establishing Jewish settlements in Har Homa. \I(Palestine, USA, Israel)\i
A bomb planted by the IRA is discovered near police quarters in west \JBelfast\j. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Holocaust survivors will participate in the board which will organize the \JHolocaust\j humanitarian fund set up by the Swiss Government. \I(Switzerland)\i
Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, threatens to use force if Palestinians demonstrate against plans for new Jewish homes in Har Homa in East \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel)\i
Divorce is allowed in the Irish Republic for the first time since 1921. So far, there is no significant increase in people filing for divorce. \I(Ireland)\i
Speculation mounts in \JRussia\j that the Prime Minister, Mr Victor Chernomyrdin, is about to be sacked by President Boris Yeltsin. Mr Yeltsin has warned that he will sack several cabinet members thought to be responsible for rumors about his ailing health. \I(Russia)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is about to make an announcement about plans to salvage \JRussia\j's ailing armed forces. \I(Russia)\i
Serbian Opposition leaders visit Crown Prince Alexander, who lives in exile in the UK, asking him to consider taking up the monarchy in a republican \JSerbia\j. \I(Serbia)\i
Two senior officials of the UN war crimes tribunal are sacked the Mr Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary-General, after it was discovered that a Rwandan tribunal was mismanaged. \I(Rwanda)\i
A British doctor is at the center of controversy over his decision to establish a test-tube sex-selection practice in \JRiyadh\j, Saudi \JArabia\j. \I(UK)\i
The controversial new French \Jimmigration\j law is changed following violent protests and disputes. The clause demanding that French people report on the whereabouts of foreigners is abolished. \I(France)\i
The Vatican demands that there is worldwide prohibition of attempts to clone humans. Fears of \Jcloning\j are rising due to the successful \Jcloning\j of an adult sheep in Scotland. \I(Italy, Scotland)\i
President Saddam Hussein of \JIraq\j is believed to be getting ready to attack a western protected enclave in northern \JIraq\j. \I(Iraq)\i
#
"February 28, 1997",422,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Papua New Guinea refuses to disclose any details of a proposed live-fire training exercise to be run by mercenaries. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The introduction of controversial new labor laws to South Korea is delayed by parliament. \I(South Korea)\i
South Korean President, Mr Kim Young-sam reorganizes his cabinet and nominates a former home minister as the new chief of staff. \I(South Korea)\i
The first post-Deng political conferences are held in China. \I(China)\i
A chemical bomb explodes in a shopping center in Bondi, Sydney, injuring 19 people. \I(Australia)\i
An \Jearthquake\j registering 6.2 on the Richter scale hits the province of \JBaluchistan\j in \JPakistan\j, killing 48 people. \I(Pakistan)\i
The Indonesian Government decrees that all public servants must vote for the ruling Golkar Party in the forthcoming elections. This contradicts laws which protect citizen's freedom of choice in voting. \I(Indonesia)\i
Mr Kim Kwang Jin, the North Korean deputy defense minister, dies. \I(North Korea)\i
Thai authorities are criticized for forcing Burmese refugees, who fled fighting between Karen rebels and the Burmese army, back to \JMyanmar\j. \JThailand\j denies that it is forcibly making the refugees return to \JMyanmar\j. \I(Thailand, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
China cautions the USA against continuing to sell armaments to \JTaiwan\j. China threatens the matter could affect American-Chinese relations. \I(China, USA)\i
The UK and the USA join \JAustralia\j and New Zealand in denouncing Papua New Guinea's plans to use mercenaries against rebel forces on the island of Bougainville. \I(UK, USA, \JAustralia\j, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea)\i
India and \JPakistan\j get ready to recommence talks, with the province of Kashmir still remaining a contentious issue. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
The Indian city of \JBombay\j is hit by a major power failure. \I(India)\i
A Swiss man, found guilty of pedophilia in Sri Lanka, is given a sentence of two years hard labor. \I(Switzerland, Sri Lanka)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American health officials release data showing that the number of people dying from AIDS in the USA has dropped. \I(USA)\i
The UK and the USA join \JAustralia\j and New Zealand in denouncing Papua New Guinea's plans to use mercenaries against rebel forces on the island of Bougainville. \I(UK, USA, \JAustralia\j, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea)\i
Police inquiries into the brutal murder of six-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey now focus on her step-brother. \I(USA)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, reinforces his country's relationship with Mexico in the war against drugs, despite the arrest of top Mexican anti-drug fighter General Jesus Gutierrez Rebollo. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
The Democratic Party announces that it will send back controversial donations worth about $US1.5 million. \I(USA)\i
China cautions the USA against continuing to sell armaments to \JTaiwan\j. China threatens the matter could affect American-Chinese relations. \I(China, USA)\i
It is reported that the prime suspect in the Oklahoma bombing, Timothy McVeigh, confessed to a member of his defense team that he organized the bombing. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The UK and the USA join \JAustralia\j and New Zealand in denouncing Papua New Guinea's plans to use mercenaries against rebel forces on the island of Bougainville. \I(UK, USA, \JAustralia\j, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea)\i
Soaring crime rates in South Africa indicate that citizens are increasingly taking the law into their own hands. \I(South Africa)\i
Queen Elizabeth II is to have a web-site on the Internet. \I(UK)\i
According to a British \Jtelevision\j channel, \JIraq\j has a large store of chemical weapons and is working on the creation of long-range missiles. \I(UK, Iraq)\i
The British Labor Party wins a by-election in Wirral South - it was previously a Conservative stronghold. \I(UK)\i
A British woman celebrates the decision to allow her to take her dead husband's sperm overseas for \Jinfertility\j treatment. \I(UK)\i
Despite major protests, German authorities plan to transport nuclear waste across the country. \I(Germany)\i
Thousands of bits of clothing from the homes of Belgian pedophile Marc Dutroux are put on display in the hope that some relatives may recognize some of the items. \I(Belgium)\i
Thousands of people attend a funeral in Boulogne for two sets of sisters who were raped and murdered; this has led to calls for the return of capital punishment. \I(France)\i
It is believed that there is a secret group in Holland planning to remove Queen Beatrix from the throne and get rid of the monarchy. \I(Holland)\i
Turkey's Islamic Government clashes with the military which is annoyed by the new government's attempt to bring religion into matters of secular state. \I(Turkey)\i
Zairian rebels in South Africa are prepared to participate in talks about ending the civil war, but the Zairian government officials say that they have not been given permission to commence discussions. \I(Zaire)\i
A Swiss man, found guilty of pedophilia in Sri Lanka, is given a sentence of two years hard labor. \I(Switzerland, Sri Lanka)\i
Iran is hit by an \Jearthquake\j measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale, killing over 100 people and wounding many more. It is the second \Jearthquake\j in \JIran\j in one month. \I(Iran)\i
The British Government decides to withdraw funding for the Roslin Institute in Scotland - the institute recently announced its success in \Jcloning\j from an adult sheep. \I(UK)\i
Hundreds of Palestinians gather at Har Homa, the proposed site for new Jewish settlements, to request worldwide assistance in preventing the project. \I(Israel, West Bank)\i
A British historian claims that the ancient historic site of \JStonehenge\j may have been built by the French. \I(UK)\i
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, makes the first move towards ending capital punishment by signing an international protocol. \I(Russia)\i
#
"March 1, 1997",423,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The province of \JBaluchistan\j in \JPakistan\j is hit by aftershocks. At least 50 people died in the recent \Jearthquake\j, and rescue efforts are hampered by bad weather. \I(Pakistan)\i
A crewman of a luxury cruise ship dies after a fire erupts as the ship approaches \JSingapore\j. \I(Singapore)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American Administration vows to continue its support of Mexico's anti-drug program. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
An \Jearthquake\j, registering 5.5 on the Richter scale, hits the Ardabil area in north-west \JIran\j. Over 100 people are killed and hundreds more injured. \I(Iran)\i
British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, claims that the Conservative Party will win the forthcoming general elections despite the dim prospects and the latest by-election defeat. \I(UK)\i
The UN withdraws its aid workers from the city of \JKisangani\j after rebels make significant headway to the south. The UN asks to be allowed continued access to the refugees. \I(Zaire)\i
After the announcement that funding will be cut to the Roslin Institute in Scotland (the institute recently released news of its ability to clone animals) it is thought that scientists will be lured overseas. \I(UK)\i
In Munich, thousands of neo-Nazis clash with police and other protesters. \I(Germany)\i
Senior Turkish military officials and President Suleyman Demirel meet with Prime Minister Mr Erbakan to discuss and attempt to halt the introduction of \JIslam\j into secular affairs. \I(Turkey)\i
In Vlore, \JAlbania\j four demonstrators are killed and 22 others injured in a shooting incident near the secret police quarters. \I(Albania)\i
It is rumored that Queen Elizabeth II wants to draw up a legal document with her former daughter-in-law Sarah Ferguson preventing her from getting involved in potential commercial deals which could lead to embarrassment for the Royal Family. \I(UK)\i
A British newspaper, \IThe Express on Sunday,\i issues an apology to Diana, Princess of Wales about a story which alleged that she would keep half the profits from the sale of her designer dresses. \I(UK)\i
#
"March 2, 1997",424,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The area of \JQuetta\j in the province of \JBaluchistan\j desperately seeks medical supplies to treat victims of the recent \Jearthquake\j. \I(Pakistan)\i
The Indonesian army announces that it will support the ruling Golkar Party in the forthcoming general elections, after years of remaining neutral. \I(Indonesia)\i
Canadian golfer Gail Graham wins the Australian Ladies Masters at the Royal Pines Course in \JQueensland\j. \I(Australia, Canada)\i
For the first time in 50 years, a cargo ship sails directly from China to \JTaiwan\j. This follows an agreement made between China and \JTaiwan\j in January. \I(China, Taiwan)\i
Up to 700,000 people attend the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. \I(Australia)\i
Senior Chinese military officials show their support for President Jiang. \I(China)\i
The province of Xinjiang in China is hit by an \Jearthquake\j. Two people are killed and thousands of others are left homeless. \I(China)\i
A fire breaks out a shipyard in Shanghai, killing eight people and injuring five others. \I(China)\i
Khmer Rouge rebels in \JCambodia\j kill seven villagers and injure others during an attack on Kra Chao village. \I(Cambodia)\i
Australian golfer Richard Green wins the Desert Classic golf tournament - his first European tour win. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, prepares for his trip to the USA. He intends to encourage the American President Mr Clinton to help stop Israel from going ahead with plans to construct Jewish homes in Har Homa. \I(Palestine, USA, Israel)\i
Mr Alberto Fujimori, the Peruvian President, will discuss the Lima hostage crisis when he meets with Dominican Republican President, Mr Fernandez, during his visit to the Republic. \I(Peru, Dominican Republic)\i
Canadian golfer Gail Graham wins the Australian Ladies Masters at the Royal Pines Course in \JQueensland\j. \I(Australia, Canada)\i
American scientists reveal that they have been able to produce monkeys from clone embryos. \I(USA)\i
American boxer Sugar Ray Leonard's attempt to make a comeback is stopped when he is defeated by Puerto Rican Hector "Macho" Camacho. \I(USA)\i
Over 40 people die in \JTexas\j, \JArkansas\j, Mississippi, \JTennessee\j, Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia when the areas are hit by tornadoes, rain and flooding. \I(USA)\i
Golfer Nick Faldo wins the Los Angeles Open golf tournament. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Albanian Prime Minister Aleksander Meksi, and his cabinet, resign after riots erupt in the port of Vlore. It is thought that at least nine people died during the violent protests. The ruling Democratic Party of Mr Berisha does not seem likely to meet the opposition demands. \I(Albania)\i
Iranian authorities believe that over 550 people died in the \Jearthquake\j in Ardabil in north west \JIran\j yesterday. Snow and bitter weather conditions make rescue work difficult and leave thousands of others homeless. It is now feared that the death toll could reach 3,000. \I(Iran)\i
Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, prepares for his trip to the USA. He intends to encourage the American President Mr Clinton to help stop Israel from going ahead with plans to construct Jewish homes in Har Homa. \I(Palestine, USA, Israel)\i
Controversial Irish swimmer, Michelle Smith, breaks another record by making a time of 2 minutes and 01.38 seconds for the 200 meters freestyle. \I(Ireland)\i
The protest against Serbian President Mr Milosevic's Government enters its hundredth day. Thousands of students demonstrate to mark the occasion. \I(Serbia)\i
Thousands of Rwandan Hutu refugees attempt to leave eastern Zaire as Tutsi-led rebels begin to gain ground after capturing the main river town of Kindu. \I(Zaire)\i
Journalists in Kabul are warned by the Talibaan militia against taking photos, saying that any offenders will be severely punished. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Unemployment figures in \JGermany\j rise to 4.8 million - a postwar record. \I(Germany)\i
Thousands of German protests meet to prepare to protest against, and if possible block, the transportation of nuclear waste to the north of the country. \I(Germany)\i
Israeli \Jaircraft\j attack Hezbollah guerrilla targets in South \JLebanon\j. \I(Israel, South Lebanon)\i
Pope John Paul II condemns any experiments which attempt to clone humans. \I(Italy)\i
Zairian President Mobutu enlists the assistance of Serbian soldiers as mercenaries to help Government troops in the civil war. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"March 3, 1997",425,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The family of China's paramount leader Deng Xiaoping scatter his ashes over the East China Sea. \I(China)\i
Over 135 people die in a train crash in the province of Punjab in \JPakistan\j. \I(Pakistan)\i
A Philippines electricity company cuts the power to the \Jmausoleum\j of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos - the Marcos family owes the company thousands of dollars. \I(Philippines)\i
The Australian Test cricket team scores a record 628 runs against South Africa, as they take the lead in the first cricket Test in \JJohannesburg\j. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
The US monitors any changes in the Chinese leadership post-Deng during discussions in \JSwitzerland\j about China's efforts to join the World Trade Organization. \I(USA, China)\i
One person dies after a bomb explodes in the town of Nuwara Eliya close to the holiday home of Sri Lankan President Mrs Chandrika Kumaratunga. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
An Indonesian Muslim Party, the United Development Party, claims it may ignore the Government's restrictions on election campaigning as well as voting to boycott the elections in one critical area. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Indonesian pro-democracy leader, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, is again questioned by police about an alleged illegal political gathering in her home. \I(Indonesia)\i
It is believed that a former Australian SAS officer, representing the Solomon Islands, bought thousands of Australian armaments in 1996 - it is now claimed that the weapons were headed for Bougainville rebels in Papua New Guinea. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
One of \JMalaysia\j's richest businessmen, car manufacturer Yahaya Ahmad, is killed in a \Jhelicopter\j crash. \I(Malaysia)\i
An Australian woman, suffering from terminal cancer, becomes the fourth person to die under the Northern Territory's disputed \Jeuthanasia\j law. \I(Australia)\i
Myanmar (formerly Burma) says that it would like to join ASEAN but is not overly anxious to do so. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Taiwan is likely to recommence live-fire missile practice later this month - a move likely to anger China. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
Fourteen Indian Ocean countries form a trading bloc. The Indian Ocean Rim initiative is made up of \JAustralia\j, India, \JIndonesia\j, \JKenya\j, Madagascar, \JMalaysia\j, \JMauritius\j, \JMozambique\j, Oman, \JSingapore\j, South Africa, Sri Lanka, \JTanzania\j and Yemen. \I(Australia, India, \JIndonesia\j, \JKenya\j, Madagascar, \JMalaysia\j, \JMauritius\j, \JMozambique\j, Oman, \JSingapore\j, South Africa, Sri Lanka, \JTanzania\j, Yemen)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The US monitors any changes in the Chinese leadership post-Deng during discussions in \JSwitzerland\j about China's efforts to join the World Trade Organization. \I(USA, China)\i
The \JCIA\j drops over 1,000 informers after an investigation into their efficiency and human rights backgrounds. \I(USA)\i
Scientists believe that the weed killer, Roundup, could become a new treatment for cancer and AIDS. \I(USA)\i
It is revealed that American Vice-President, Mr Al Gore, played a vital role in drumming up financial support for the Democratic Party's election campaign. So far, he has avoided attracting any controversy in the investigation into election funds. \I(USA)\i
Canada's latest anti-smoking law forbids smoking in all of Toronto's bars and restaurants unless owners seal and separately ventilate rooms. \I(Canada)\i
The wreckage of English pirate Blackbeard's ship \IQueen Anne's Revenge\i is believed to have been discovered off the coast of North Carolina. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A state of emergency is called in \JAlbania\j after widespread violent rioting affects the country. All media coverage of the unrest is stopped. \I(Albania)\i
The Turkish military draws up a 20-point plan to resist the introduction of \JIslam\j into secular affairs by the Government. \I(Turkey)\i
The Australian Test cricket team scores a record 628 runs against South Africa, as they take the lead in the first cricket Test in \JJohannesburg\j. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
A plan is approved by EU environment ministers to try to cut emissions of greenhouse gases by 15 per cent of 1990 figures by 2010. \I(Europe)\i
There are already signs that Israel will not meet the deadline for withdrawing its troops out of the West Bank. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
In Papua New Guinea, opposition groups demand a royal commission into Australian share dealings in connection with the use of mercenaries on the island of Bougainville. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Thousands of Bibles are destroyed by Russian orthodox priests. It is believed to be an attempt to stop freedom of religion. \I(Russia)\i
Fourteen Indian Ocean countries form a trading bloc. The Indian Ocean Rim initiative is made up of \JAustralia\j, India, \JIndonesia\j, \JKenya\j, Madagascar, \JMalaysia\j, \JMauritius\j, \JMozambique\j, Oman, \JSingapore\j, South Africa, Sri Lanka, \JTanzania\j and Yemen. \I(Australia, India, \JIndonesia\j, \JKenya\j, Madagascar, \JMalaysia\j, \JMauritius\j, \JMozambique\j, Oman, \JSingapore\j, South Africa, Sri Lanka, \JTanzania\j, Yemen)\i
#
"March 4, 1997",426,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Australian Government formulates proposals to pressure Papua New Guinea into abandoning a plan to use foreign mercenaries. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Pakistani authorities will conduct an investigation into the train crash in central \JPakistan\j which killed 126 people. \I(Pakistan)\i
For the first time in over 40 years, representatives from the two Koreas will meet with American officials in New York for peace talks. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
Indonesian President Mr Soeharto takes a tough stance against opponents planning to overthrow the Government in a coup d'etat. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Japanese capital city of \JTokyo\j is hit by an \Jearthquake\j registering 5.6 on the Richter scale. There are no reports of damage or injuries. \I(Japan)\i
Authorities in East \JTimor\j arrest nine people in connection with clashes between East Timorese and migrants from South Sulawesi. \I(Indonesia)\i
In a reorganization of the South Korean Government, President Kim Young-sam names Mr Koh Kun as the new Prime Minister. Mr Koh is well-respected and is viewed as incorruptible. \I(South Korea)\i
The Australian cricket team defeats South Africa by an innings and 196 runs in the first Test in \JJohannesburg\j. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
Chinese authorities announce that they will invite the American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, to Hong Kong's handover ceremony in July. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong)\i
In retaliation for criticism of China's human rights record by the USA, China attacks America's human rights performance. \I(China, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
For the first time in over 40 years, representatives from the two Koreas will meet with American officials in New York for peace talks. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
It is believed that \JCuba\j will offer asylum, if requested by \JPeru\j, to the Tupac Amaru Movement rebels who are holding 72 people hostage in Lima. \I(Cuba, Peru)\i
American President Bill Clinton meets with Palestinian leader Mr Yasser Arafat in Washington. After the meeting Mr Clinton voices his disapproval of Israel's plans to build Jewish homes in Har Homa, claiming such proposals will affect peace in the area. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
The American State Department asks Zairian rebels to stop their push into eastern Zaire, claiming that it is endangering the hopes of a peaceful end to the civil war. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
Chinese authorities announce that they will invite the American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, to Hong Kong's handover ceremony in July. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong)\i
In retaliation for criticism of China's human rights record by the USA, China attacks America's human rights performance. \I(China, USA)\i
The American Administration's decision to stop all funding for human \Jcloning\j research is widely applauded in the community. \I(USA)\i
Tupac Amaru rebels, who are holding 72 people hostage in Lima, refuse \JCuba\j's offer of asylum. \I(Peru, Cuba)\i
The American Republican Party is investigating claims that the Administration encouraged the \Jimmigration\j service to give citizenship to at least one million people just prior to the election in 1996. \I(USA)\i
Bolivia is hit by torrential rain. It is reported that flooding has been responsible for the deaths of at least 16 people. \I(Bolivia)\i
American actor, Elizabeth Taylor, is believed to have suffered a seizure shortly after being released from \Jhospital\j following brain surgery. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The UN Security Council reinstates sanctions against \JIraq\j - it is thought that \JIraq\j could be hiding nerve gas after the country failed to prove it had been destroyed. \I(Iraq)\i
The American State Department asks Zairian rebels to stop their push into eastern Zaire, claiming that it is endangering the hopes of a peaceful end to the civil war. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
The Russian parliament considers banning capital punishment. \I(Russia)\i
American President Bill Clinton meets with Palestinian leader Mr Yasser Arafat in Washington. After the meeting Mr Clinton voices his disapproval of Israel's plans to build Jewish homes in Har Homa, claiming such proposals will affect peace in the area. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
Neighboring countries of \JAlbania\j become increasingly concerned about the state of unrest in \JAlbania\j. President Berisha's Government attempts to halt the widespread violent unrest. \I(Albania)\i
Turkey's Islamic Prime Minister, Mr Erbakan, refuses to accept proposals by the military-led National Security Council to weed out Islamic radicals from the Government. \I(Turkey)\i
#
"March 5, 1997",427,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Three British universities are asked by the Indonesian military to help set up the first officer training program to include international law and human rights. \I(Indonesia)\i
Mr Kang Kyong Shik is named as the new South Korean Finance Minister. \I(South Korea)\i
It is proposed that during the New York meeting between the two Koreas, a joint US-South Korean plan for North Korea and China to join them in talks will be discussed. \I(USA, North Korea, South Korea, China)\i
In an effort to halt the use of foreign mercenaries by Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands plans to appeal to the International Court of Justice in The Hague. \I(Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands)\i
Tamil Tiger guerrillas launch an attack on Sri Lanka's airforce base in the east of the country. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
For security reasons, the murder trial of Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of former Pakistani prime minister Ms Benazir Bhutto, will be conducted inside the prison where he is being held. \I(Pakistan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
It is proposed that during the New York meeting between the two Koreas, a joint US-South Korean plan for North Korea and China to join them in talks will be discussed. \I(USA, North Korea, South Korea, China)\i
Two tourists, a German and an Austrian, taken hostage in \JColombia\j by guerrillas, die when soldiers attack the guerrillas' camp. \I(Colombia)\i
Storms and atrocious weather conditions are responsible for the deaths of 50 people in \JArkansas\j, Ohio and Kentucky. \I(USA)\i
American President Bill Clinton's wife, Hillary Clinton, becomes embroiled in the latest controversy over the Democrats fund-raising methods. Mrs Clinton allegedly approved a 1994 memo which listed potential financial supporters. \I(USA)\i
The American President, Bill Clinton, wants stricter gun laws for foreigners coming to the US. This follows the recent shooting incident at the top of the Empire State Building by a Palestinian - he had managed to gain access to a gun after only three weeks in the country. \I(USA)\i
Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, meets with former US presidents Mr George Bush and Mr Jimmy Carter - Mr Arafat wants to rally support from the UN against Israel's decision to build Jewish homes in Har Homa. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
The Peruvian Government draws up a proposal to end the Lima hostage crisis. However, the Tupac Amaru rebels do not seem prepared to agree to it. \I(Peru)\i
American child-actor, Macaulay Culkin, gains access to his $US7 million fortune. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In \JAlbania\j, government troops clash with rebels in the southern port of Sarande. \JAlbania\j is still gripped by violent unrest. \I(Albania)\i
Tired of being the victims, Liberian villagers seek revenge when they attack and murder former guerrillas. \I(Liberia)\i
Four Palestinian offices in \JJerusalem\j are closed by Israeli police following orders from Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Palestinian leader, Mr Yasser Arafat, meets with former US presidents Mr George Bush and Mr Jimmy Carter - Mr Arafat wants to rally support against Israel's decision to build Jewish homes in Har Homa. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
The Russian prosecutor-general, Mr Yuri Skuratov, is publicly blamed by President Yeltsin for the rising crime rates. \I(Russia)\i
Thousands of Germans demonstrate against the transportation of nuclear waste across the country. \I(Germany)\i
Over 40 international aid workers are expelled from Zaire, following government claims that their withdrawal from the city \JKisangani\j led to the deaths of thousands of Rwandan Hutus and Zairians. \I(Zaire)\i
A UN official reports that \JIraq\j is not using the money from the UN oil-for-food agreement to purchase food. \I(Iraq)\i
In \JIraq\j many people continue to celebrate the attempted assassination of Uday Hussein. Saddam Hussein's eldest son is well known and feared for his brutality - it is widely hoped that he has been paralyzed. \I(Iraq)\i
#
"March 6, 1997",428,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Sri Bintang Pamungkas, a former Indonesian MP and pro-democracy campaigner, is arrested on charges of subversion. \I(Indonesia)\i
Chinese authorities arrest 20 Uighur Muslims believed to have been responsible for planting bombs on buses in the province of Xinjiang. \I(China)\i
The Chinese Premier, Mr Li Peng, offers hope about the possibility of political reorganization and human rights reform in talks with US representatives. \I(China, USA)\i
A legal case is to be heard against the Papua New Guinean Government in an effort to halt the hiring of foreign mercenaries to end the Bougainville problem. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The first meeting for 25 years between North and South Korea in New York goes ahead. However, North Korea is unwilling to make any firm commitments to further discussions. In an attempt to encourage North Korea to participate in further talks, the USA and South Korea cancel a joint military exercise. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
Tamil Tigers kill over 38 people during an attack on an army camp in eastern Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan troops claim to have killed 125 guerrillas. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The murder trial of Mr Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of former Pakistani prime minister Ms Benazir Bhutto, is delayed until late March. Mr Abdullah Shaf, the former chief minister of Sindh province, is also arrested in connection with the murder of Murtaza Bhutto, the brother of Ms Bhutto. \I(Pakistan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
An investigation is to be conducted by a Congress committee to determine if overseas governments tried to interfere in the 1996 elections. \I(USA)\i
The first meeting for 25 years between North and South Korea in New York goes ahead. However, North Korea is unwilling to make any firm commitments to further discussions. In an attempt to encourage North Korea to participate in further talks, the USA and South Korea cancel a joint military exercise. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
The President of \JGuyana\j, Mr Cheddi Jagan, dies at the age of 78. \I(Guyana)\i
The Chinese Premier, Mr Li Peng, offers hope about the possibility of political reorganization and human rights reform in talks with US representatives. \I(China, USA)\i
American \Jaircraft\j deliver over 1,000 peacekeeping soldiers to \JLiberia\j. The troops are there to safeguard a peace plan which ends seven years of civil war. \I(Liberia, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Despite widespread unrest throughout \JAlbania\j, President Sali Berisha rejects any offers of assistance by western mediators. \I(Albania)\i
Mr Boris Yeltsin, the Russian President, initiates a campaign to force down crime rates and encourage economic reforms. \I(Russia)\i
The Turkish Prime Minister, Mr Erbakan, finally agrees to a plan to halt the spread of Islamic radicalism. \I(Turkey)\i
Despite international disapproval, Israel intends to go ahead with plans to construct Jewish homes in Har Homa. \I(Israel)\i
The Palestinian Liberation Authority encourages Palestinians to demonstrate at Har Homa against the building of Jewish homes there. \I(Palestine)\i
Victims of the Nazi \Jholocaust\j welcome the announcement by Swiss President Mr Arnold Koller that a second $US5 billion humanitarian fund will be established. \I(Switzerland)\i
Zairian President, Mr Mobutu, accepts a UN plan to end the country's civil war. However, rebels continue to make advances in eastern Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
American \Jaircraft\j deliver over 1,000 peacekeeping soldiers to \JLiberia\j. The troops are there to safeguard a peace plan which ends seven years of civil war. \I(Liberia, USA)\i
Northern Ireland peace talks are put on hold until after the May general election. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
\ITΩte de Femme,\i a painting by Picasso worth ú700,000, is stolen from a London art gallery by a man wielding a sawn-off shotgun. \I(UK)\i
#
"March 7, 1997",429,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
An attack by Tamil Tiger guerrillas on the Sri Lankan Vavunativu army camp in the area of Batticaloa leaves over 270 people dead. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Both European and international trade unions pressure Brussels to punish \JBurma\j's military junta by imposing severe economic sanctions. \I(Europe, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Indonesian President Mr Soeharto asks the army reserve to be ready for action to curb any further political dissension. The President makes it clear that anti-government groups will not be condoned. \I(Indonesia)\i
Indonesian opposition parties voice their discontent with strict government regulations on electoral campaigning. \I(Indonesia)\i
Mohammed Yusus Ganai, the leader of the Hizbul Mujahideen, is shot by Indian security forces in the state of \JJammu-Kashmir\j. \I(Jammu-Kashmir)\i
China removes the statement about crimes of counter-revolution from the criminal code, as part of a legal shake-up. \I(China)\i
The computer magnate and head of Microsoft Corporation, Bill Gates, is given head-of-state treatment during a visit to India. \I(USA, India)\i
Mr Sher Bahadur Deuba, the Prime Minister of \JNepal\j, resigns after 17 months in power. \I(Nepal)\i
Talks on the fate of North Korean defector, Mr Hwang Jang Yop, continue between China, South Korea and North Korea. \I(China, South Korea, North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Former Jamaican prime minister, Mr Michael Manley, dies from cancer at the age of 72. \I(Jamaica)\i
In the investigation into the murder of six-year-old beauty queen, JonBenet Ramsey, her halfbrother and halfsister are cleared of any involvement in the crime. \I(USA)\i
Tupac Amaru Movement rebels who are still holding 72 people hostage in Lima halt all negotiations with Peruvian Government negotiators. They believe that the Government is plotting to free the hostages and think that a underground tunnel is being constructed. \I(Peru)\i
A recent report shows that Americans continue to get bigger - \Jobesity\j in adults increased by 9 per cent from 1980 to 1994, despite health warnings. \I(USA)\i
The computer magnate and head of Microsoft Corporation, Bill Gates, is given head-of-state treatment during a visit to India. \I(USA, India)\i
An American expert in animal \Jcloning\j claims that \Jcloning\j of humans could produce abnormal children. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Albanian President Mr Berisha meets with opposition parties and formulates a plan to end the civil war by calling a 48-hour cease-fire during which the rebels could give up their weapons. Rebels in southern \JAlbania\j reject President Sali Berisha's demands for them to lay down their arms. \I(Albania)\i
Zairian rebels continue their advance towards the city of \JKisangani\j in eastern Zaire - it looks like the city will fall to rebel occupation at any time. \I(Zaire)\i
In an effort to stop the civil war, a European diplomatic mission visits \JAlbania\j to encourage the Government to find a political solution to the country's escalating problems. \I(Albania)\i
The British Labor Party leads by 26 points in the latest opinion poll, just a few weeks before the UK's general election. \I(UK)\i
Both European and international trade unions pressure Brussels to punish \JBurma\j's military junta by imposing severe economic sanctions. \I(Europe, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma)\i
The Gdansk shipyard in \JPoland\j is about to close and 3,600 workers are to lose their jobs after the shipyard was found to be bankrupt late last year. \I(Poland)\i
It is feared that \JBelgium\j is about to be hit by another pedophile scandal when a nine-year-old girl is found murdered. \I(Belgium)\i
Bitter conditions in north-west \JIran\j put thousands of people already left homeless by a recent \Jearthquake\j in danger. \I(Iran)\i
The Israeli Cabinet consents to a plan by the Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, to pass another nine per cent of the West Bank to the Palestinians. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
British scientists, who discovered a method to clone a lamb from an adult sheep, claim that human \Jcloning\j will be possible within a couple of years. \I(UK)\i
#
"March 8, 1997",430,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cyclone Gavin hits the \JFiji\j islands, killing three people. \I(Fiji)\i
A Japanese newspaper claims that North Korean defector, Mr Hwang Jang Yop, will be allowed to proceed to South Korea via a third country but not the USA. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Adak Island in \JAlaska\j is hit by an \Jearthquake\j measuring 4.6 on the Richter scale. \I(Alaska)\i
An American diplomat is ordered to leave \JGermany\j after he is charged with spying. \I(USA, Germany)\i
A Japanese newspaper claims that North Korean defector, Mr Hwang Jang Yop, will be allowed to proceed to South Korea via a third country but not the USA. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
Despite military threats from the US, \JLibya\j continues in the construction of the world's biggest chemical weapons factory. \I(USA, Libya)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Demonstrators in \JAlbania\j refuse to accept a 48-hour Government cease-fire. Rebels occupy another town in the south of the country. The protesters are angry over the Government's role in the collapse of the pyramid investment schemes. \I(Albania)\i
An American diplomat is ordered to leave \JGermany\j after he is charged with spying. \I(USA, Germany)\i
French officials claim that the unwillingness of \JSyria\j and Israel to compromise means that peace talks are unlikely to recommence in the near future. \I(Syria, Israel, France)\i
Contenders for the 2004 Olympic Games are announced by the International Olympic Committee. They are \JAthens\j, \JRome\j, Stockholm, Buenos Aires and Cape Town. \I(Switzerland)\i
Half of \JSwitzerland\j's population agrees with the Government's decision to establish a humanitarian fund for \JHolocaust\j victims. \I(Switzerland)\i
Despite military threats from the US, \JLibya\j continues in the construction of the world's biggest chemical weapons factory. \I(USA, Libya)\i
An \Jearthquake\j registering 4.4 on the Richter scale hits Accra in \JGhana\j. \I(Ghana)\i
Thousands of Palestinians demonstrate at Har Homa - the proposed site for new Jewish homes. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Zairian rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, consents to enter discussions on halting the rebel push against the Government in the east of the country. \I(Zaire)\i
The worldwide racing car business, Formula One, is to be sold on the stock market. It will be one of the largest sports-related flotations, worth an estimated ú2.5 billion. \I(UK)\i
Doctors in \JBelgium\j reveal that they accidentally cloned a human being while experimenting with \Jinfertility\j treatment four years ago. \I(Belgium)\i
#
"March 9, 1997",431,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The McLaren team of Scot David Coulthard and Mika Hakkinen wins the Qantas Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park, Melbourne. \I(Australia)\i
The death toll from \JCyclone\j Gavin which hit the islands of \JFiji\j rises to four. Twelve people are believed to be missing. \I(Fiji)\i
Australian Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, holds private talks with Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan. The discussions focus on the proposed use of foreign mercenaries by Papua New Guinea to solve the Bougainville problem. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Muslim separatists are believed to be responsible for two bomb explosions in \JBeijing\j, injuring eight people. Security measures are tightened. \I(China)\i
New labor laws, which replace the disputed Labor Bill, threaten to spark off another serious of strikes in South Korea. \I(South Korea)\i
A solar eclipse coincides with the Hale-Bopp \Jcomet\j - much to the delight of Chinese and Russian astronomers. \I(China, Russia)\i
An American human rights organization claims that China is pressuring Hong Kong authorities to make Vietnamese refugee camp conditions unbearable, in order to force refugees to return to Vietnam. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American actor, Elizabeth Taylor, is released from \Jhospital\j after suffering from a seizure. \I(USA)\i
An American human rights organization claims that China is pressuring Hong Kong authorities to make Vietnamese refugee camp conditions unbearable, in order to force refugees to return to Vietnam. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam)\i
An American report says that there is no clear evidence to suggest that non-monetary belongings of \JHolocaust\j victims went directly to Swiss banks. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
Israel welcomes the US rejection of a UN Security Council resolution which would have disapproved of the construction of Jewish homes in Har Homa. The Palestine community is outraged by the move. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Arab nations demand an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council following America's decision to ban the Council's resolution which calls for Israel to stop its construction of Jewish homes in Har Homa. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The President of \JAlbania\j, Sali Berisha, does not increase the 48-hour cease-fire. However, he vows to hold an election within two months. Rebels seize the largest military camp in southern \JAlbania\j. \I(Albania)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin's decision to promote Mr Anatoly Chubais to First Deputy Prime Minister causes widespread outcry. Mr Chubais is unpopular and hated throughout \JRussia\j. \I(Russia)\i
Israel welcomes the US rejection of a UN Security Council resolution which would have disapproved of the construction of Jewish homes in Har Homa. The Palestine community is outraged by the move. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Arab nations demand an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council following America's decision to ban the Council's resolution which calls for Israel to stop its construction of Jewish homes in Har Homa. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Pope John Paul II disapproves of Israel's recent decision to build Jewish homes at Har Homa, claiming that it could endanger the peace process. \I(Italy, Israel)\i
Palestine disapproves of Israel's decision to pull out troops from nine per cent of the West Bank. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
A solar eclipse coincides with the Hale-Bopp \Jcomet\j - much to the delight of Chinese and Russian astronomers. \I(China, Russia)\i
Iraq asks \JEgypt\j for help to get UN sanctions removed, claiming they have destroyed the country. \I(Iraq, Egypt)\i
An American report says that there is no clear evidence to suggest that non-monetary belongings of \JHolocaust\j victims went directly to Swiss banks. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
Thousands of people attend the funeral in \JBelgium\j of nine-year-old Loubna Benaissa -a murder victim of Patrick Derochette who has a record of pedophile crimes. \I(Belgium)\i
Kenya is in danger of experiencing a \Jdrought\j, following a non-rain period of 18 months. \I(Kenya)\i
#
"March 10, 1997",432,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
To encourage Papua New Guinea to drop its plans to use foreign mercenaries, \JAustralia\j offers additional aid and assistance with military training. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Five South Korean soldiers accidentally wander across the border between the two Koreas, causing some alarm. Meanwhile South Korea cautions North Korea against any challenges over the defection of Mr Hwang Jang Yop. \I(South Korea, North Korea)\i
The Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader, claims that violence in \JTibet\j could worsen. He blames China for following a policy of "cultural genocide." \I(Tibet, China)\i
A Taiwanese man hijacks a Taiwanese \Jaircraft\j, forcing it to fly to China. He gives himself up to authorities in Xiamen on China's south-east coast. \I(China)\i
Communists and their allies in \JNepal\j plan to set up a new government. \I(Nepal)\i
The Sri Lankan Government rules out any possibility of an end to the civil war through negotiation despite the recent secret visit by a Tamil Tiger rebel leader. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The Mayor of \JBeijing\j claims that there is no connection between the bombings in the city and the Muslim separatist movement. \I(China)\i
Indian authorities wish to deport infamous criminal Charles Sobhraj but have yet to find any country willing to accept him. \I(India)\i
The American business community disapproves of sanctions against \JBurma\j and supports the Southeast Asian policy of "constructive engagement." \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Russia proposes to sell nuclear fuel rods made of uranium to \JTaiwan\j in return for taking \JTaiwan\j's nuclear waste. \I(Russia, Taiwan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The leader of the Tupac Amaru Movement rebels, Mr Nestor Cerpa, says that he is ready to recommence discussions with the Peruvian Government over the release of the 72 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima. \I(Peru)\i
Allegations that the Chinese Government tried to direct illegal campaign donations to members of the USA Congress result in calls for further investigations into campaign donations. \I(USA)\i
American Superior Court Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki signs three judgments amounting to $US33.5 million against O.J. Simpson. \I(USA)\i
The American business community disapproves of sanctions against \JBurma\j and supports the Southeast Asian policy of "constructive engagement." \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
The American Administration claims that the US veto of the UN Security Council's resolution against Israel's construction plans should not be interpreted as approval. President Clinton asks the Arab world to understand the reasons for the veto. \I(USA, Israel)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Despite \JAlbanian\j President Berisha's offer to hold elections in the next two months, rebels continue to demand that the President resigns. \I(Albania)\i
The American Administration claims that the US veto of the UN Security Council's resolution against Israel's construction plans should not be interpreted as approval. President Clinton asks the Arab world to understand the reasons for the veto. \I(USA, Israel)\i
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat claims that the peace process is in danger due to Israel's reluctance to withdraw more soldiers from the West Bank. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
King Hussein of Jordan sends a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Mr Netanyahu in which he voices his disapproval of Israel's plans to go ahead with the construction of Jewish homes in Har Homa, the closing of PLO offices in \JJerusalem\j, and the extent of the withdrawal from the West Bank. \I(Jordan, Israel)\i
Sir George Gardiner, a British MP who recently resigned from the Conservative Party, warns that Prime Minister John Major will suffer a humiliating defeat at the forthcoming elections. \I(UK)\i
Thousands of Serbian people demonstrate against President Milosevic's Government. They call for the removal of media restrictions. \I(Serbia)\i
The claims that a Belgian boy was cloned four years ago are firmly denied by the head of the laboratory where the alleged \Jcloning\j took place. \I(Belgium)\i
Thousands of people protest in Paris against a controversial new \Jimmigration\j law. \I(France)\i
Russia proposes to sell nuclear fuel rods made of uranium to \JTaiwan\j in return for taking \JTaiwan\j's nuclear waste. \I(Russia, Taiwan)\i
Thousands of civilians leave the Zairian city of \JKisangani\j, as rebels advance towards the city. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"March 11, 1997",433,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The World Bank and other international organizations re-examine loans to Papua New Guinea worth $AUD210 million in light of Papua New Guinea's plans to hire foreign mercenaries. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Mr Lokendra Bahadur Chand is named by King Birendra as \JNepal\j's new Prime Minister. \I(Nepal)\i
The Vietnam Government consents to pay back America millions of dollars in debt; the debt was run up for construction projects in the former South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, to improve trade relations. \I(Vietnam, USA)\i
Indonesian opposition leader, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, claims that Supreme Court judges were under instruction from the Government to rule against her. \I(Indonesia)\i
Mr Tang Liang Hong, a Singaporean opposition politician, claims that his family met with financial disaster due to a High Court ruling which wiped out his defense against a series of \Jdefamation\j suits filed by members of the People's Action Party. \I(Singapore)\i
It is possible that the North Korean defector, Mr Hwang Jang Yop, may make a stopover in \JAustralia\j en route to South Korea. \I(North Korea, \JAustralia\j, South Korea)\i
Opposition parties in \JIndonesia\j make official complaints about the restrictions of election campaigning. \I(Indonesia)\i
It is declared by an environmentalist that New Delhi's water is so polluted that it could lead to cancer. \I(India)\i
Water ruins a petition, which contained hundreds of thousands of signatures, demanding a constitutional change to allow \JPhilippines\j President Ramos to run for a second term. \I(Philippines)\i
Chinese authorities say that they made no financial contributions to the American Democrats election campaign. \I(China, USA)\i
Vietnam proposes to censor all Internet information and restrict access to the service. \I(Vietnam)\i
A Chinese scientist claims that China has been conducting \Jcloning\j experiments on animals since 1993. \I(China)\i
An explosion at a coal mine in Lushan in China's Henan province kills at least 89 people and injures many others. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Mariano Hernan Salvatti is named by Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo as the new chief of the Anti-Drug Institute. \I(Mexico)\i
The Vietnam Government consents to pay back America millions of dollars in debt; the debt was run up for construction projects in the former South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, to improve trade relations. \I(Vietnam, USA)\i
Chinese authorities say that they made no financial contributions to the American Democrats election campaign. \I(China, USA)\i
A grand jury will look at the video which reportedly shows a missile heading towards the doomed TWA Flight 800 which crashed in July 1996, killing all passengers. \I(USA)\i
A Norwegian diver discovers the wreck of a Spanish ship, \ILa Capitana Jes·s Marφa,\i off the coast of \JEcuador\j. It is believed to contain treasures worth $US3.5 billion. \I(Norway, Ecuador)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Albanian President Mr Sali Berisha's position looks increasingly in danger, as rebels refuse to accept his promise to hold elections and their control in the south strengthens. \I(Albania)\i
British murderer Peter Sutcliffe, known as the Yorkshire Ripper, is attacked and blinded in one eye by a fellow prisoner. \I(UK)\i
The World Health Organization voices its disapproval of human \Jcloning\j but says other \Jcloning\j experiments could be useful in the field of medicine. \I(Switzerland)\i
Mr Ahmed Qreia, a leading Palestinian MP, demands a withdrawal from talks with Israel, as Israel is only willing to hand over 9 per cent of the West Bank rather than the anticipated 30 per cent. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, hails his recent visit to \JRussia\j as a success. \I(Israel, Russia)\i
Rebels in Yemen release six German tourists they were holding hostage. \I(Yemen)\i
Turkish foreign minister, Ms Tansu Ciller, admits that torture does occur in Turkey and makes a promise to try to stop the practice. \I(Turkey)\i
The Zairian Government rejects claims that the rebels have seized control over entry to the city of \JKisangani\j in eastern Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
The \Jcomet\j Hale-Bopp is being hailed as one of the best-viewing comets in the twentieth century. \I(UK)\i
A Norwegian diver discovers the wreck of a Spanish ship, \ILa Capitana Jes·s Marφa,\i off the coast of \JEcuador\j. It is believed to contain treasures worth $US3.5 billion. \I(Norway, Ecuador)\i
#
"March 12, 1997",434,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cyclone Justin hits Papua New Guinea, killing 26 people and damaging property. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Indonesia postpones the building of its first nuclear power plant to 2020, after new energy sources are found. \I(Indonesia)\i
Singaporean opposition MP, Mr Tang Liang Hong, says that he will only return to \JSingapore\j to face legal action if he is given a guarantee that he will not be arrested. \I(Singapore)\i
The Thai Government orders an investigation into a judge's decision to free a drug lord who arranged the largest shipment of heroin ever seized by US authorities. \I(Thailand)\i
When Hong Kong is handed over to China in July, it is estimated that Hong Kong will have reserves of $HK330 billion. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
The Japanese Government orders an investigation into a fire at a nuclear reprocessing plant at Tokai. It is believed that 35 people were exposed to low levels of radiation. \I(Japan)\i
Australian tennis player Mark Philippoussis, known as the Scud, beats American former world number 1 player Andre Agassi at the Indian Wells Tournament in the US. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Indian authorities claim that China has illegally invaded 38,000 square kilometers of its land in the state of Kashmir. \I(India, China)\i
Over 60 people die when a Indonesian ship sinks in bad weather conditions in the East Java sea. \I(Indonesia)\i
Maoris in New Zealand launch a campaign for a name change - from New Zealand to Aotearoa - which is New Zealand's second name. \I(New Zealand)\i
Taiwan reportedly will sign a trade agreement with \JNicaragua\j, \JGuatemala\j, Cost Rica, El Salvador and \JHonduras\j. \I(Taiwan, \JNicaragua\j, \JGuatemala\j, Cost Rica, El Salvador, Honduras)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Speculation resurfaces that the TWA Flight 800, which crashed in July last year, was hit by a missile. \I(USA)\i
American academics claim that they discovered pieces of a "lost gospel" which they say has conversations between Jesus Christ and the disciples. \I(USA)\i
Zairians demonstrate in \JKinshasa\j against the USA. They are dismayed at America's reluctance to help solve the civil war. Only the French Government has initiated discussions about getting involved in the war. \I(Zaire, USA, France)\i
Taiwan reportedly will sign a trade agreement with \JNicaragua\j, \JGuatemala\j, Cost Rica, El Salvador and \JHonduras\j. \I(Taiwan, \JNicaragua\j, \JGuatemala\j, Cost Rica, El Salvador, Honduras)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Mr Bashkim Fino, a relatively unknown socialist, is named by President Berisha as \JAlbania\j's new Prime Minister. Rebels continue to advance to the north of the country, looting and capturing main military installations. Increasingly, \JAlbania\j is heading towards a state of anarchy. \I(Albania)\i
The Israeli cabinet plans to meet to discuss the deteriorating relations with Palestine. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
The French Government launches a campaign to stop Europe moving its clocks forward every spring and putting them back every autumn. \I(France)\i
The trial against six men charged in connection with the death of racing driver Ayrton Senna in 1994 resumes in \JRome\j. \I(Italy)\i
Palestine halts any official talks with Israel and calls an international conference in Gaza for discussions about the latest problems in Israeli-Palestinian relations. So far, Israel is reluctant to compromise or revise its plans. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
Scottish scientist, Ian Wilmut, who discovered the method to clone an adult sheep, condemns human \Jcloning\j. \I(UK)\i
Zairians demonstrate in \JKinshasa\j against the USA. They are dismayed at America's reluctance to help solve the civil war. Only the French Government has initiated discussions about getting involved in the war. \I(Zaire, USA, France)\i
The President of Ireland, Ms Mary Robinson, says that she will not be running for a second term in office. It is anticipated she will run for the position of United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights. \I(Ireland)\i
#
"March 13, 1997",435,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Sister Nirmala is appointed by the Missionaries of Charity as successor to their head, Mother Teresa. \I(India)\i
Singapore's senior minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, apologizes for his derogatory remarks about a Malaysian state. \I(Singapore, Malaysia)\i
Mr Ali Alatas, the Indonesian Foreign Minister, promises to ask \JMalaysia\j to change its mind about vetoing the inclusion of \JAustralia\j in an Asian-European summit. \I(Indonesia, \JMalaysia\j, Australia)\i
Sri Lankan troops attack the main Mullaitivu camp of Tamil Tiger rebels. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Sir Julius Chan, the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, rejects Australian demands and inducements to drop plans to hire foreign mercenaries. \I(Papua New Guinea, Australia)\i
A white Australian man, who posed as an Aboriginal female writer, admits his deception. His book \IMy Own Sweet Time\i won the 1996 Dobbie award. \I(Australia)\i
The Foreign Minister of India holds out hope that officials from India and \JPakistan\j will be able to meet shortly for discussions. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
The Chinese Government issues a stern warning against the proposed meeting between \JTibet\j's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, and the Taiwanese President Mr Lee Teng-hui. \I(China, \JTibet\j, Taiwan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Los Angeles police arrest one man and take two others in for questioning over the murder of actor Bill Cosby's son Ennis Cosby. \I(USA)\i
American tennis player Pete Sampras experiences his first defeat in 1997 against Czech Republican player Bohdan Ulihrach at the Champions Cup in \JCalifornia\j. \I(USA)\i
America removes its diplomats from \JAlbania\j due to the worsening crisis. President Berisha and the opposition agree to form a new coalition government for the country. All borders, airports and ports are shut down. \I(USA, Albania)\i
The \JFBI\j searches for nine people who they believe witnessed the bombing in Centennial Olympic Park during the 1996 \JAtlanta\j Olympics. \I(USA)\i
The US considers sending further humanitarian aid to Zaire. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
The Cuban leader, Fidel Castro, says that \JCuba\j will continue to follow \Jcommunism\j unlike other countries in the eastern block who have dropped \Jcommunism\j. \I(Cuba)\i
The US condemns the murder of seven Israeli school girls by a Jordanian soldier. \I(USA, Israel)\i
Tensions in relations between Canada and \JNigeria\j lead Canada to close its offices in Lagos, cancel diplomatic communications, and evacuate its High Commissioner. \I(Canada, Nigeria)\i
Evidence which supports the claims that TWA Flight 800 was shot down by a US Navy missile during a military training exercise is reported to have been discovered. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A Jordanian soldier opens fire at an Israeli tourist group on the island of Naharayim on the Israeli-Jordanian border, killing at least seven people and injuring six others. The group was mainly made up Israeli school girls on a school excursion. \I(Jordan, Israel)\i
The US condemns the murder of seven Israeli school girls by a Jordanian soldier. \I(USA, Israel)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, pledges that construction will commence in Har Homa next week, despite increasing international condemnation of the project. Over 50 countries have voiced their disapproval of Israel's plans. \I(Israel)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin is criticized in Parliament for choosing Mr Anatoly Chubais as First Deputy Prime Minister. Mr Chubais is widely condemned in \JRussia\j. \I(Russia)\i
Nigerian authorities charge Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka and 11 others with \Jtreason\j over a series of recent explosions. \I(Nigeria)\i
On the first anniversary of the Dunblane massacre in Scotland, candles are lit at 7 pm to remember the school children left dead by a deranged killer. \I(UK)\i
The disputed prison ship, \IThe Resolution,\i arrives in the UK from New York. It is to be used to solve the crisis of overcrowding in British jails. \I(UK)\i
The US considers sending further humanitarian aid to Zaire. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
America removes its diplomats from \JAlbania\j due to the worsening crisis. President Berisha and the opposition agree to form a new coalition government for the country. All borders, airports and ports are shut down. \I(USA, Albania)\i
To encourage Russian President Yeltsin to accept the expansion of \JNATO\j in eastern Europe, \JRussia\j is asked to participate in the Group of Seven's summit. \I(Russia)\i
Tensions in relations between Canada and \JNigeria\j lead Canada to close its offices in Lagos, cancel diplomatic communications, and evacuate its High Commissioner. \I(Canada, Nigeria)\i
Islamic militants open fire on a crowd of civilians in a Coptic Christian village in southern \JEgypt\j. Twelve people are believed to have died. \I(Egypt)\i
#
"March 14, 1997",436,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Accusations of bribery and corruption endanger Manila's largest real estate project and possibly President Ramos's bid for re-election. \I(Philippines)\i
The Communist leader in charge of China's Xinjiang province claims that many of the separatists responsible for the recent bombings have been arrested. \I(China)\i
Chinese Premier Mr Li Peng says that post-Deng leadership is strong and ready to lead China. \I(China)\i
In China, a ban on human \Jcloning\j is demanded. \I(China)\i
It is claimed that imprisoned Australian murderer Martin Bryant, who shot 35 people dead at Port Arthur in \JTasmania\j in 1996, has twice tried to take his own life. \I(Australia)\i
Thousands of North Korean civilians assist with the repairing of river embankments and planting trees - damaged which occurred in the latest bout of severe flooding. \I(North Korea)\i
UMNO, the youth arm of \JMalaysia\j's main party, plans to sue senior Singaporean minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, for his recent derogatory remarks about the Malaysian state of Johore. \I(Malaysia, Singapore)\i
Indonesian President Soeharto threatens to deal harshly with any group who incites boycotting of the May elections. \I(Indonesia)\i
The America's Cup, the international yachting trophy which was last won by New Zealand, is damaged after a man attacks it with a sledgehammer. \I(New Zealand)\i
\BThe Americas\b
On the agenda of the forthcoming meeting between American President Clinton and Russian President Yeltsin are cuts in the long-range nuclear weapons held by each country and the controversial expansion of \JNATO\j. \I(USA, Russia)\i
The American Administration and \JFrance\j argue over the role they should play in the Zairian civil war. \JFrance\j is pressuring the EU to interfere, while the USA turns out the idea of an international force. \I(USA, France)\i
American President Bill Clinton is to undergo surgery to treat a torn \Jtendon\j after he hurt his knee when he missed a step during a visit to golfer Greg Norman's home. \I(USA)\i
A Russian immigrant is believed to have been arrested in connection with the death of actor Bill Cosby's son. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
On the agenda of the forthcoming meeting between American President Clinton and Russian President Yeltsin are cuts in the long-range nuclear weapons held by each country and the controversial expansion of \JNATO\j. \I(USA, Russia)\i
At least 20 foreigners held hostage by youths in Lagos are released when the Nigerian navy comes to the rescue. \I(Nigeria)\i
The American Administration and \JFrance\j argue over the role they should play in the Zairian civil war. \JFrance\j is pressuring the EU to interfere, while the USA turns out the idea of an international force. \I(USA, France)\i
A bomb explodes in Short Strand in eastern \JBelfast\j, injuring three people. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
An Iranian transport \Jaircraft\j crashes in northern \JIran\j - there are no reports on the fate of the passengers and crew. \I(Iran)\i
Israel claims that Arab countries incited tensions which led to the killing of seven Israeli school girls by a Jordanian soldier earlier this month. \I(Israel)\i
The United Nations General Assembly condemns Israel's plans to construct Jewish homes in Har Homa. The Assembly accuses Israel of endangering the peace process and says that the plans are illegal. \I(Israel)\i
Conditions in \JAlbania\j continue to deteriorate as anarchy and turmoil reign. International countries evacuate their diplomats as looters attack the capital Tirana. It is also believed that President Berisha's family have fled to \JItaly\j. The evacuation of Americans is stopped after helicopters are fired at. \I(Albania)\i
Macedonia, Yugoslavia, and other countries bordering \JAlbania\j take preventative measures to stop the unrest from \JAlbania\j spreading. \I(Albania, Macedonia, Yugoslavia)\i
#
"March 15, 1997",437,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A man is charged with attacking the America's Cup with a sledgehammer. It is thought that he was trying to raise the issue of \JMaori\j sovereignty in New Zealand. \I(New Zealand)\i
The Chinese Government signals that it has nearly come to a decision on the fate of North Korean defector, Mr Hwang Jang Yop, who took refuge in \JBeijing\j's South Korean embassy over a month ago. \I(China, North Korea, South Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Former American tennis player John McEnroe marries rock singer Patty Smyth in Hawaii. \I(USA)\i
American film-maker, Fred Zinnemann, dies in London at the age of 89. \I(USA)\i
All American citizens are safely evacuated from \JAlbania\j. \I(USA, Albania)\i
The \JFBI\j manages to locate seven out of the nine people it wishes to question in connection with the 1996 \JAtlanta\j Olympics bombing. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Mr Franz Vranitzky, an European envoy, claims the only way to rescue \JAlbania\j from the state of anarchy and chaos is to send in an international force. \I(Albania)\i
Zairian rebels attack the city of \JKisangani\j. Government sources deny that the city is now in rebel control. \I(Zaire)\i
All American citizens are safely evacuated from \JAlbania\j. \I(USA, Albania)\i
The Israeli cabinet votes to proceed with construction in Har Homa despite fears that it could lead to further violence in the region. \I(Israel)\i
Scientists in \JBelgium\j claim to have uncovered the cause of the disease multiple sclerosis. They believe it is caused by \Jantibodies\j against the herpes virus 6. \I(Belgium)\i
Speculation about the health of South African President Nelson Mandela mounts, after he cancels another official engagement. \I(South Africa)\i
King Hussein of Jordan visits \JJerusalem\j to pay his respects to the families of the seven school girls shot dead by a Jordanian soldier. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
At a summit held in Gaza, the leader of Palestine, Mr Yasser Arafat, warns international representatives that recent Israeli actions have seriously damaged the peace process. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"March 16, 1997",438,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Bus drivers on the Indonesian tourist island of Lombok go on a rampage. It is the latest incidence of violence erupting in \JIndonesia\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
Singapore's senior minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, accuses the British Governor to Hong Kong, Mr Chris Patten, of wasting time. He claims that Mr Patten should have been paving the way for the smooth transition of Hong Kong to China rather than trying to implement changes. \I(Singapore, Hong Kong, China)\i
The \JPhilippines\j Government is asked to allow North Korean defector, Mr Hwang Jang Yop, to make a stopover in Manila en route to South Korea. \I(Philippines, North Korea, South Korea)\i
Police question South Korean Prime Minister Kim Young-sam's former doctor over the accusations of \Jfraud\j against the Prime Minister's son. \I(South Korea)\i
Head of the Papua New Guinean defense force, General Singirok, and police chiefs, demand that Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan resigns within 48 hours over his decision to use foreign mercenaries. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Migrants from Madura Island and leaders of the indigenous Dayak tribe, who fought recently in West \JKalimantan\j province, make peace. \I(Indonesia)\i
Australian cyclist, Gary Neiwand, is fined $AUD1,000 for taking a banned stimulant. He claims to have overlooked that cough medication contained the substance. \I(Australia)\i
During the second Test between South Africa at Port Elizabeth in South Africa, the Australian cricket team is plagued by injuries. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
China warns that it might take revenge if certain nations continue to condemn its human rights record. \I(China)\i
Mother Teresa announces that she wishes to establish a clinic for AIDS patients in the USA. \I(India, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American President Clinton's recent knee injury is likely to hamper his lifestyle and he will have to undergo six months of \Jphysiotherapy\j. \I(USA)\i
The American President's wife, Mrs Hillary Clinton and his daughter, leave for a six-country tour of Africa. \I(USA)\i
Mother Teresa announces that she wishes to establish a clinic for AIDS patients in the USA. \I(India, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Thousands of Albanians attempt to flee the anarchy that is gripping the country. Many attempting to escape crowd the ports in an effort to get a safe passage via sea to \JItaly\j. \I(Albania, Italy)\i
British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, is to enter into a series of televised debates with Labor leader, Mr Tony Blair. \I(UK)\i
The Russian Prime Minister, Mr Victor Chernomyrdin, draws up a list of new cabinet members. Mr Yeltsin will announce the new cabinet shortly before he leaves for the \JHelsinki\j summit with US President Clinton. \I(Russia)\i
The Russian President, Mr Boris Yeltsin, orders his Government to fix the financial problems that have been lingering for months. \I(Russia)\i
During the second Test between South Africa at Port Elizabeth in South Africa, the Australian cricket team is plagued by injuries. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
A portrait of the Jordanian soldier responsible for murdering seven Israeli school girls begins to emerge. He is reportedly a violent person and mentally unstable but not politically motivated. \I(Jordan)\i
Hundreds of people volunteer for a new security force to stabilize and restore order to \JAlbania\j after President Berisha's Government made a \Jtelevision\j appeal for help. \I(Albania)\i
The European Union arranges to send a team of civil and military experts to help solve the crisis in \JAlbania\j. \I(Europe, Albania)\i
Allegations are made that French banks also profited from the assets of \JHolocaust\j victims during World War II in the same way that Swiss banks did. \I(France, Switzerland)\i
The Loyalist cease-fire in Northern Ireland is in jeopardy after a Catholic man is shot dead in \JBelfast\j. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
After Zairian rebels capture the city of \JKisangani\j, they refuse requests by the United Nations for a cease-fire in order to continue peace talks. President Mobutu cancels his arrangements to return from \JFrance\j after the fall of \JKisangani\j. \I(Zaire)\i
Colonel Juma Oris, the Ugandan rebel leader, is killed after his forces were attacked by Government troops. \I(Uganda)\i
Tajikistan soldiers capture the rebel leader Bakhrom Sadirov. \I(Tajikistan)\i
#
"March 17, 1997",439,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Dean Capobianco, the Australian sprinter, receives a four-year suspension from the International Amateur \JAthletics\j Federation after being found guilty of taking steroids. \I(Australia)\i
The capital of \JIndonesia\j, Jakarta, is hit by a series of earthquakes. \I(Indonesia)\i
Over 35 people drown when a ferry in northern \JMyanmar\j capsizes during a storm. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Brigadier General Jerry Singirok, the chief of the Papua New Guinean army, is sacked by the cabinet. General Singirok and Prime Minister Chan have been arguing over the use of foreign mercenaries to solve the rebel problem on the island of Bougainville. Earlier, General Singirok had called for the resignation of the Prime Minister. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Australian cricket team defeats South Africa in the second Test at Port Elizabeth. \JAustralia\j leads by 2-0 in the three-Test tournament. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
Taiwan orders shoulder-fired missiles from the USA after \JFrance\j refuses to sell the missiles to \JTaiwan\j. \I(France, USA, Taiwan)\i
Two former economic aides to South Korean President Mr Kim Young-sam are accused of participating in the Hanbo loans scandal. \I(South Korea)\i
The British Government announces that it will contribute ú495,000 in food aid to North Korea. \I(UK, North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Due to his recent knee injury, the American President is forced to delay his summit in \JHelsinki\j with Russian President Yeltsin by one day. \I(USA, Russia)\i
In an effort to satisfy American critics of the United Nations, the Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, institutes a number of managerial reforms. \I(USA)\i
Ms Janet Jagan, the widow of the former president Cheddi Jagan, is appointed as first female Prime Minister of \JGuyana\j. \I(Guyana)\i
American Marines assist with the evacuation of thousands of foreigners from \JDurres\j in \JAlbania\j. \I(USA, Albania)\i
Taiwan orders shoulder-fired missiles from the USA after \JFrance\j refuses to sell the missiles to \JTaiwan\j. \I(France, USA, Taiwan)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, announces that a general election will be held on May, 1. One of the latest opinion polls gives the Labour Party a 28-point lead. \I(UK)\i
The British Government announces that it will contribute ú495,000 in food aid to North Korea. \I(UK, North Korea)\i
Due to his recent knee injury, the American President is forced to delay his summit in \JHelsinki\j with Russian President Yeltsin by one day. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Reports in Zaire claim that the occupation of the city of \JKisangani\j signals the end of President Mobutu Sese Seko's rule. Hundreds of foreigners and wealthy Zairians flee \JKisangani\j. \I(Zaire)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin offers the position of first deputy prime minister to Mr Boris Nemtsov. He will share the position with Mr Anatoly Chubais. Mr Nemtsov will be responsible for social matters and relations. \I(Russia)\i
Palestine refuses to attend a summit with Jordan and Israel in an attempt to solve the peace process. \I(Palestine, Jordan, Israel)\i
Fatos Nano, he leader of the \JAlbanian\j opposition socialist party, begs Albanians to remain in the country, surrender their weapons and follow orders from the new Government. \I(Albania)\i
Thousands and thousands of Albanians flee to southern \JItaly\j. Already, southern \JItaly\j feels overwhelmed by the sheer volume of refugees. \I(Albania, Italy)\i
Thousands of European labor union members protest in Brussels over the loss of jobs. \I(Belgium)\i
The construction of Jewish homes in Har Homa is scheduled to commence tomorrow. Palestine warns it may be forced to use violence if the construction goes ahead. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
American Marines assist with the evacuation of thousands of foreigners from \JDurres\j in \JAlbania\j. \I(USA, Albania)\i
The Australian cricket team defeats South Africa in the second Test at Port Elizabeth. \JAustralia\j leads by 2-0 in the three-Test tournament. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
#
"March 18, 1997",440,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Sir Julius Chan, the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, says that the sacked army leader, Brigadier General Jerry Singirok, may be charged with \Jtreason\j. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Australian Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, threatens to withdraw thousands of dollars of aid to Papua New Guinea if the use of foreign mercenaries on Bougainville proceeds. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Brigadier General Jerry Singirok orders Papua New Guinean soldiers to remain calm after his sacking by the Prime Minister. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Over 40 foreign mercenaries are detained in Papua New Guinea, despite orders by Prime Minister Chan to release them. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Thousands of people are expected to attend the ceremony to mark the appointment of Dr Basilio do Nascimiento as the second bishop in East \JTimor\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
North Korean defector, Mr Hwang Jang Yop, flies to Manila en route to South Korea. Mr Hwang sought refuge for 35 days in the South Korean embassy in \JBeijing\j. \I(South Korea, North Korea, \JPhilippines\j, China)\i
The South Korean Prime Minister, Mr Koh Kun, demands that a new inquiry be launched into the Hanbo loans affair. He condemned the first investigations as being inadequate. \I(South Korea)\i
A ship transporting radioactive waste from \JFrance\j arrives in northern \JJapan\j. The ship is met by crowds of protesters. \I(Japan, France)\i
The \JPhilippines\j army attacks a Muslim camp in the south of the country, killing ten high school students. \I(Philippines)\i
The director of the World Food Program claims that millions of North Korean children are dying of starvation and appeals for more assistance. \I(North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Mr Anthony Lake, who was nominated by the American President for the position of \JCIA\j director, withdraws his name from the list of candidates. Mr Lake is tired of the drawn out lengthy procedure to confirm his nomination. \I(USA)\i
An American team composed of military advisors and civilians leaves for Zaire to assess the situation there. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
Southern \JCalifornia\j is hit by an \Jearthquake\j, measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale - there are no reports of injuries or serious damage. \I(USA)\i
In Mexico another army general is arrested on charges of bribery and corruption. \I(Mexico)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
It is reported that the British Prime Minister, Mr John Major, is in the worst position at the commencement of an election campaign in the polls since the Second World War. \I(UK)\i
A ship transporting radioactive waste from \JFrance\j arrives in northern \JJapan\j. The ship is met by crowds of protesters. \I(Japan, France)\i
In \JAlgeria\j, Muslim fundamentalists plant a series of bombs which kill at least 18 people and injure many others. \I(Algeria)\i
Nearly 50 people are believed to have died when a Russian passenger \Jaircraft\j crashes in the south of \JRussia\j. \I(Russia)\i
The World Formula One champion, Damon Hill, receives an OBE from Queen Elizabeth II. \I(UK)\i
The Israeli army and police prepare to defend Har Homa as an outbreak of violence by Palestinian opposition and demonstrators is anticipated. Construction finally commences at the site of Har Homa. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
The leader of the opposition socialist party, Mr Fatos Nano, who was recently released from prison after serving a four-year sentence, reinforces his claims to the leadership of \JAlbania\j. \I(Albania)\i
Italy warns it will institute tighter controls on the number of \JAlbanian\j refugees arriving in the country. \I(Italy, Albania)\i
An American team composed of military advisors and civilians leaves for Zaire to assess the situation there. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
The Zairian Parliament passes a vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister Mr Leon Kengo wa Dondo. \I(Zaire)\i
With the introduction of new blood into the Russian Cabinet, President Yeltsin revives \JRussia\j's economic reform campaign. \I(Russia)\i
#
"March 19, 1997",441,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Following heavy protesting, Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan announces that his government may remove the mercenaries that he brought into the country to help fight Bougainville rebels. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Australia sends diplomat Philip Flood to Port Moresby in an attempt to solve the crisis in Papua New Guinea. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
One week before Australian Prime Minister John Howard visits China, China expresses concern over \JAustralia\j's military ties with the United States and warns \JAustralia\j to stay out of its human rights issues. \I(China, Australia)\i
While inaugurating East \JTimor\j's second bishop, the Pope calls for a quick and recognized settlement for East \JTimor\j. \I(East Timor)\i
The Sri Lankan President, Ms Chandrika Kumaratunga, pleads with her people to vote for her in tomorrow's elections. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Hwang Jang Yop, the senior defector from North Korea, is reportedly safe in the \JPhilippines\j, but only temporarily. \I(North Korea, Philippines)\i
The South Korean Parliament is to hold a televised hearing in April investigating accusations of corruption by President Kim Young-sam's son. \I(South Korea)\i
A senior member of \JCambodia\j's Parliament calls for peace from the political parties fighting over the monarchy. \I(Cambodia)\i
A newly-released report by health and environmental authorities in \JBangkok\j indicates that dust levels are extremely high, mainly due to building works and motor vehicles crowding the city. \I(Thailand)\i
An explosion occurs at a police compound in Jalalabad, \JAfghanistan\j. Over 40 people are reported dead and hundreds of homes destroyed; it is yet to be determined if the explosion was accidental or not. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Taiwan test-fires two US-made Hawk missiles in the \JTaiwan\j Straits from Tamsui base. \I(Taiwan)\i
A truck in China spills 200 drums of toxic \Jcyanide\j into the Xijiang River; emergency warning notices are issued in several nearby areas. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US President Bill Clinton appoints George Tenet as director of the \JCIA\j, following the withdrawal of nominee Anthony Lake. \I(USA)\i
Thirty-four victims of the Oklahoma City bombing in April 1995 start legal action against the US Government, claiming that the government could have prevented the bombing. \I(USA)\i
Hundreds of people are evacuated and roads are closed when floods and mudslides occur in Washington. \I(USA)\i
US President Bill Clinton welcomes Russian President Boris Yeltsin's new Cabinet reforms. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Following recent fundraising scandals, US Vice-President Al Gore may have to work a little harder if he wants to become the Democratic candidate for President. \I(USA)\i
Dutch-born American painter, Willem de Kooning, dies in New York, aged 92. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
South Africa announces that it will introduce legislation to stop foreign countries using the company Executive Outcomes to deploy mercenaries. \I(South Africa)\i
British Prime Minister John Major agrees to a live \Jtelevision\j debate with Labour opposition leader Tony Blair in the lead-up to the country's elections. \I(UK)\i
Scientists in Berlin announce that they have discovered a major breakthrough in the treatment of tuberculosis that has the potential to save the lives of hundreds of thousands of people each year. \I(Germany)\i
Parliament members in Zaire vote to dismiss the country's Prime Minister, Leon Kengo wa Dondo. \I(Zaire)\i
A mass exodus is reported in war-torn Zaire, as rebels capture the country's third largest city, \JKisangani\j. \I(Zaire)\i
As Israel is condemned worldwide for starting the construction of Jewish settlements in east \JJerusalem\j, Palestinian President Yasser Arafat calls for peace among his people. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to speed up final talks for negotiating territories, even welcoming US President Bill Clinton's involvement; Palestinian President Yasser Arafat says that he will not talk unless Netanyahu stops the building of a Jewish settlement on Har Homa. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat is to meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to discuss the Israeli/Palestinian Har Homa crisis. \I(Israel, Palestine, Egypt)\i
Albania's rebel National Salvation Committee warns President Sali Berisha that rebel leaders will march on the capital if he doesn't step down immediately. However, there are many areas in \JAlbania\j that support the President. \I(Albania)\i
Italy declares a state of emergency to help cope with more than 10,000 refugees from \JAlbania\j. \I(Albania, Italy)\i
US President Bill Clinton welcomes Russian President Boris Yeltsin's new Cabinet reforms. \I(USA, Russia)\i
#
"March 20, 1997",442,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Three envoys of Australian Prime Minister John Howard meet with Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan to demand that Papua New Guinea stops its military offensive on Bougainville and sends all foreign mercenaries home. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
The Bougainville Revolutionary Army warns \JAustralia\j not to send anymore military aid to Papua New Guinea, even if Papua New Guinea decides to send foreign mercenaries home. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
An inquiry is to be conducted into the foreign mercenaries hired by Papua New Guinea. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
It is reported that senior figures within China are challenging Chinese President Jiang Zemin's leadership. \I(China)\i
The \Jorang-utan\j population in \JBorneo\j is shrinking at an alarming rate - it is reported that childless couples steal them from the wild to raise as their own children. \I(Borneo)\i
Officials who are hiding the North Korean defector Hwang Jang Yop in the \JPhilippines\j keep the defector's location a secret. \I(The Philippines)\i
As Sri Lanka is about to go to the polls, officials claim that due to recent violence, voters are likely to stay away on election day. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
India announces that it will ease travel restrictions to neighboring Pakistanis. \I(Pakistan, India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Golfer Arnold Palmer, who underwent prostate cancer surgery just over two months ago, returns to competition golf. \I(USA)\i
On the eve of the United States-Russian summit in \JHelsinki\j, US President Bill Clinton reiterates that he wants \JNATO\j to be expanded; however, Russian President Boris Yeltsin is strongly against \JNATO\j's expansion. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Officials investigating the six-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey's murder allow JonBenet's parents access to DNA testing; officials are also investigating the ransom note, claiming that the note resembles JonBenet's mother's handwriting. \I(USA)\i
Government officials announce that they will toughen laws to help eliminate Quebec's war with \Jmotorcycle\j gangs. \I(Canada)\i
Cuba's President Fidel Castro offers political asylum to the Tupac Amaru rebels who are still holding 72 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima. \I(Peru, Cuba)\i
Canadian Elvis Stojko wins the men's world ice-skating championship for the third time. \I(Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
British \Jsoccer\j team Manchester United reaches the semi-finals of the European Cup. \I(UK)\i
During the British election campaign, Opposition leader Tony Blair is 20 per cent ahead of Prime Minister John Major. \I(UK)\i
On the eve of the United States-Russian summit in \JHelsinki\j, US President Bill Clinton reiterates that he wants \JNATO\j to be expanded; however, Russian President Boris Yeltsin is strongly against \JNATO\j's expansion. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Israeli soldiers bomb suspected guerrilla targets near the Syrian border in \JLebanon\j. \I(Israel, Lebanon)\i
Violence fills the streets of \JBethlehem\j when Palestinians clash with Israeli soldiers over the controversial Jewish settlement being built in east \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel)\i
King Hussein of Jordan dismisses Prime Minister Abdul-Karim al-Kabariti; a former prime minister, Abdul-Salam al-Majali is appointed as the new prime minister. \I(Jordan)\i
The United Nations calls on member nations to donate over $US300 million dollars to help feed and keep up medical aid for refugees in central Africa. \I(Africa)\i
The President of Zaire, Mobutu Sese Seko, calls for a cease-fire and promises to hold an election. \I(Zaire)\i
The first food delivery in the United Nations' oil-for-food program arrives in \JIraq\j; \JIraq\j is permitted to sell oil to buy food and medical requirements for its people. \I(Iraq)\i
#
"March 21, 1997",443,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Australian Federal Government organizes to evacuate 12,000 Australian citizens from Papua New Guinea due to the recent fighting involving foreign mercenaries. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
As the foreign mercenaries are sent home from Papua New Guinea, the sacked military commander, Brigadier-General Jerry Singirok again demands that Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan steps down over his alleged lying over why he hired the mercenaries. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
As polling booths open in Sri Lanka, more violence strikes the country when a bomb explodes outside a polling station 50 kilometers from Colombo; a dozen people are reported injured. The government consequently imposes a night-long curfew. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Four opposition leaders in \JBangladesh\j are arrested over alleged acts of \Jterrorism\j. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Over 60 per cent of Japanese legislators want the nation's US-imposed constitution amended. \I(Japan)\i
The Indian Government ends direct rule over India's largest state, Uttar Pradesh, as Kumari Mayawati is sworn in as its chief minister. \I(India)\i
Officials investigating the nuclear explosion in Tokai two weeks ago indicate that the explosion was much worse than previously believed. \I(Japan)\i
Prince Norodom Sirivudh, the half-brother of King Norodom Sihanouk, is granted a royal pardon over an alleged plot to assassinate Second Prime Minister Hun Sen. \I(Cambodia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
At the ATP Tour and Corel WTA Tour awards in Miami Beach, Pete Sampras wins the tennis player of the year award; Steffi Graf wins the women's player of the year award and the most exciting player award; Martina Navratilova wins the David Gray special service award for her contributions to tennis; Martina Hingis wins the women's most improved player award; and Tim Henman wins the men's most improved player award. \I(USA)\i
Scientists in America discover vital clues from a soldier who died 80 years ago leading them to the identity of the deadly Spanish flu virus that killed between 20 and 40 million people in one season. \I(USA)\i
\IThe Wall Street Journal\i is ordered to pay over $US220 million to a former brokerage company in \JTexas\j that claimed \IThe Wall Street Journal\i forced them out of business; the \IJournal\i is expected to appeal the decision. \I(USA)\i
The American House of Representatives votes to ban "partial-birth abortions" - a procedure for late-term abortions that involves crushing the fetus' skull before removing it. \I(USA)\i
It is reported that O.J. Simpson may lose his Brentwood mansion if he doesn't come up with $US86,000 in mortgage payments. \I(USA)\i
In a world-first, an American \Jcigarette\j company admits that smoking is addictive and that it causes cancer. The Liggett Group agrees to put warning labels on all of their packaging. \I(USA)\i
During the Russian-American summit in \JHelsinki\j, US President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin come away at odds over the expansion of \JNATO\j. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Scientists in America discover a way to improve the detection of colon and skin cancers. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A suicide bomber is responsible for an explosion in a cafΘ in Tel Aviv, killing four people and injuring over 40 - the explosion is said to be in retaliation for Israel's decision to build a Jewish settlement in the disputed east \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel)\i
Italy considers sending military assistance to \JAlbania\j to help solve the crisis and to oversee the distribution of humanitarian aid. \I(Italy, Albania)\i
Rev Wilbert Awdry, the creator of Thomas the Tank Engine, dies aged 85. \I(UK)\i
Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, is optimistic that a ceasefire will be enforced in war-torn Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
The International Amateur Athletic Federation announces that Seville, \JSpain\j will hold the 1999 world championships. \I(Spain)\i
In the British election campaign, Prime Minister John Major accuses Opposition Labour leader Tony Blair of "double standards." \I(UK)\i
During the Russian-American summit in \JHelsinki\j, US President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin come away at odds over the expansion of \JNATO\j. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Author and short story writer V.S. Pritchett dies aged 96. \I(UK)\i
Former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney takes legal action to stop the lyrics of \IPenny Lane\i being sold at auction. \I(UK)\i
Russia and \JIraq\j agree on a $US3.5 billion oil deal, despite the United Nation's embargo. \I(Russia, Iraq)\i
#
"March 22, 1997",444,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
It is reported that the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Sir Julius Chan, has requested that \JAustralia\j sends troops over to help quell an army uprising in the country. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
It is reported that companies from Britain helped to secure a multi-million dollar oil deal between \JIraq\j and China, despite a United Nations embargo. \I(Iraq, Britain, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Following the Russian-American summit in \JHelsinki\j, US President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin agree to commence talks on reducing nuclear stockpiles. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The Dominican Government announces that it will grant asylum to the Tupac Amaru rebels who are still holding 72 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima; \JCuba\j also previously offered asylum to the rebels. \I(Dominica, \JPeru\j, Cuba)\i
At a United Nations Security Council meeting, America blocks a resolution that would have called on Israel to halt the controversial Jewish settlement at Har Homa; America, however, says that it does not support the project in any way. \I(Israel, USA)\i
FBI investigators claim that a photograph taken near TWA Flight 800 just before it exploded shows a picture of an unarmed Navy plane and not a missile as some people believe. \I(USA)\i
One thousand US military personnel head for war-torn Zaire in an effort to solve the crisis. \I(Zaire, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Following the Russian-American summit in \JHelsinki\j, US President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin agree to commence talks on reducing nuclear stockpiles. Yeltsin also claims that he wants \JRussia\j to join the European Union. \I(Russia, USA)\i
One thousand US military personnel head for war-torn Zaire in an effort to solve the crisis. \I(Zaire, USA)\i
Holland health authorities report the country's first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as "mad cow disease." \I(Holland)\i
It is confirmed that a Hamas member was responsible for the suicide bombing of a cafΘ in Tel Aviv this week that killed four people and injured many more. \I(Israel)\i
In separate incidents, up to 100 people are wounded during clashes between Palestinians and Israelis in \JHebron\j; the Israeli military consequently imposes a curfew in the area. \I(Israel)\i
At a United Nations Security Council meeting, America blocks a resolution that would have called on Israel to halt the controversial Jewish settlement at Har Homa; America, however, says that it does not support the project in any way. \I(Israel, USA)\i
It is reported that companies from Britain helped to secure a multi-million dollar oil deal between \JIraq\j and China, despite a United Nations embargo. \I(Iraq, Britain, China)\i
Over ú800,000 was raised during an auction selling Beatles' memorabilia; Paul McCartney successfully stops the lyrics of \IPenny Lane\i from being sold. \I(UK)\i
Rebels in \JAlgeria\j violently murder over 30 civilians in a village in the province of Medea. \I(Algeria)\i
Hundreds of supporters line the streets to cheer Laurent Kabila, Zaire's rebel leader, on his way to his headquarters in the recently captured city of \JKisangani\j. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"March 23, 1997",445,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan refuses to stand down over the foreign mercenaries incident, despite pressure from Opposition leaders and the sacked military chief, Brigadier-General Jerry Singirok. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Australia's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer, refuses to say whether \JAustralia\j will be sending any troops to embattled Papua New Guinea. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
With the US Government investigating claims that the Chinese embassy illegally donated money to the last US election campaign, US Vice-President Al Gore's visit to China this week will not help in improving relations between the two countries. \I(China, USA)\i
The Sri Lankan Government is voted in again at the local elections; President Chandrika Kumaratunga promises to restore peace by the end of 1997. The main opposition party in the country accuses the government of vote rigging and threatens to take legal action. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Indian Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda condemns the murder of seven Hindus in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir State. \I(India)\i
Fiji beats South Africa in the final of the Rugby Union World Cup Sevens tournament. \I(Fiji, South Africa)\i
Security is tightened around the streets of \JRangoon\j in the wake of recent violent attacks against mosques. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Police arrest some of the hundreds of South Korean students who demand that South Korean's President Kim Young-sam step down and also accuse his son of corruption. \I(South Korea)\i
Dozens of people are injured in violent attacks during a one-day nationwide strike in \JBangladesh\j which was called by the opposition \JBangladesh\j Nationalist Party (BNP). \I(Bangladesh)\i
Taiwanese President Lee Teng-heu agrees to meet with the Dalai Lama at Taipei Guest House later this week, despite China condemning the meeting. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American Tara Lipinski wins the women's world figure skating championship - she is the youngest ever, at 14 years, nine months and 32 days, to win the title. \I(USA)\i
With the US Government investigating claims that the Chinese embassy illegally donated money to the last US election campaign, US Vice-President Al Gore's visit to China this week will not help in improving relations between the two countries. \I(China, USA)\i
A former employee of the US Government claims that hackers retrieved top secret information from US Government computers and offered the information to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein during the Gulf War. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
It is expected that the American \Jtobacco\j industry will plummet following the Liggett Group admitting that smoking is addictive, causes cancer and can kill; major \Jtobacco\j companies in America try to stop the Liggett Group from handing over potentially incriminating secret documents between \Jtobacco\j companies to appropriate authorities. \I(USA)\i
US President Bill Clinton promises to boost US investment in \JRussia\j following Russian President Boris Yeltsin's last minute decision at the Russian-American summit to agree to a plan for \JNATO\j to include Moscow's former east European satellites. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Five members of the \Jcult\j Order of the Solar Temple die in a murder-suicide incident in Quebec. \I(Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A former employee of the US Government claims that hackers retrieved top secret information from US Government computers and offered the information to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein during the Gulf War. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls off peace talks with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat following the recent bombing in a cafΘ in Israel by the Hamas. Meanwhile violence continues in the West Bank. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Rebel forces in Zaire say they will continue capturing more of the country if President Mobuto Sese Seko does not step down. \I(Zaire)\i
US President Bill Clinton promises to boost US investment in \JRussia\j following Russian President Boris Yeltsin's last minute decision at the Russian-American summit to agree to a plan for \JNATO\j to include Moscow's former east European satellites. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Fiji beats South Africa in the final of the Rugby Union World Cup Sevens tournament. \I(Fiji, South Africa)\i
The Technion university is to award King Hussein of Jordan an honorary doctorate to recognize his commitment to peace in the Middle East. \I(Jordan)\i
A British author claims that \Jarchives\j in \JSwitzerland\j disclose a 50-year conspiracy by Swiss bankers to hide Nazi loot and steal money from Jews. \I(Switzerland)\i
The British Army considers rewriting the discipline and standards guidelines that would remove the ban on homosexuals joining the army. \I(UK)\i
#
"March 24, 1997",446,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Three ministers who were opposed to the appointment of foreign mercenaries by Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan resign; other ministers are also expected to resign. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Members of Papua New Guinea's defense force are expected to join a public protest demanding that Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan steps down. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Sri Lankan Government pleads with the Australian Government to help stop Tamils that are living in \JAustralia\j sending money to rebels in Sri Lanka. \I(Australia, Sri Lanka)\i
Sri Lankan navy gunboats cause the sinking of a dozen Tamil Tiger boats in a battle off the coast of northeastern Sri Lanka; up to 80 rebels are killed in the battle. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Five ethnic Uygurs are executed in China after their involvement in riots in February in Xinjiang province. \I(China)\i
The Dalai Lama claims that his visit to \JTaiwan\j will help \JTibet\j and China come closer together. \I(China, \JTibet\j, Taiwan)\i
China signs a deal with US-based Boeing which will see China purchase five 777-200 series passenger jets worth $US685 million. Another deal, worth $US1.3 billion, is struck between General Motors and a Chinese car manufacturer to make Buick cars. \I(USA, China)\i
A train collides with a bus in South Korea, killing over a dozen people and injuring many more. \I(South Korea)\i
The Senate in \JAustralia\j looks set to vote out the Northern Territory's \Jeuthanasia\j legislation in the third and final vote yet to be passed. Two terminally ill patients who have already filled out necessary paperwork to legally use the \Jeuthanasia\j legislation appeal to the Governor-General to allow them to be exempt from the law if it is overturned in the Senate. \I(Australia)\i
Singaporean Prime Minister Toh Chok Tong claims that the race debate in \JAustralia\j, that was started when Australian Independent MP Pauline Hanson made controversial comments on race and \Jimmigration\j, has damaged ties between the two countries; Australian Prime Minister John Howard is due to visit \JSingapore\j later this week. \I(Singapore, Australia)\i
A new high-speed train in \JJapan\j tops the world's fastest average speed on a commercial run, at 151.5 miles per hour, with a top speed of 187 miles per hour. \I(Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
China signs a deal with US-based Boeing which will see China purchase five 777-200 series passenger jets worth $US685 million. Another deal, worth $US1.3 billion, is struck between General Motors and a Chinese car manufacturer to make Buick cars. \I(USA, China)\i
US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright announces that she may visit the Middle East, but only if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat resume peace talks. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
General Motors recalls 1,400 1997 Corvettes following the discovery of a faulty suspension rod. \I(USA)\i
NASA announces that they are developing unmanned space vehicles that will be able to fly ten times the speed of sound; this $US33 million project is set to launch in 1999. \I(USA)\i
American soldiers prepare to evacuate US citizens from Zaire as the rebels continue to capture more areas in the country. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
According to new information in the hands of the US Government, Nazi \JGermany\j sold over $US700 million worth of looted gold to \JSwitzerland\j, \JPortugal\j, \JSpain\j, Sweden, and Turkey during World War II. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, \JSwitzerland\j, \JPortugal\j, \JSpain\j, Sweden, Turkey)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Security officials in Israel publicly accuse Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat of approving terrorist attacks and riots. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Dozens of people, mainly Palestinians, are injured during riots in \JBethlehem\j and \JHebron\j. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright announces that she may visit the Middle East, but only if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat resume peace talks. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
The Deputy President of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, meets with Zaire's President Mobutu Sese Seko in an attempt to find a solution to Zaire's six month civil war. \I(South Africa, Zaire)\i
The President of Zaire, Mobutu Sese Seko, dismisses Prime Minister Leon Kengo wa Dondo. \I(Zaire)\i
American soldiers prepare to evacuate US citizens from Zaire as the rebels continue to capture more areas in the country. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
During Britain's election campaign, Allan Stewart, the member for Eastwood - the Conservative's safest seat in Scotland - resigns following investigations into his private life. \I(UK)\i
Scientists in \JFrance\j claim that drinking three or four glasses of wine per day helps prevent Alzheimer's disease. \I(France)\i
Road workers in Israel discover huge pavers near the Wailing Wall in \JJerusalem\j said to be part of a 4th century Roman road. \I(Israel)\i
Thirty-eight Indian teenage boys are released from Pakistani prisons; they were originally imprisoned for fishing in Pakistani waters. \I(Pakistan, India)\i
According to new information in the hands of the US Government, Nazi \JGermany\j sold over $US700 million worth of looted gold to \JSwitzerland\j, \JPortugal\j, \JSpain\j, Sweden, and Turkey during World War II. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, \JSwitzerland\j, \JPortugal\j, \JSpain\j, Sweden, Turkey)\i
#
"March 25, 1997",447,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australian actor Geoffrey Rush wins the best actor Oscar at the 69th Academy Awards for his role in the Australian movie \IShine.\i Rush is the second Australian to take this coveted award. \I(Australia)\i
A team of scientists in \JAustralia\j and a team in Sweden both discover (within a day of each other) a gene that enhances the growth of blood vessels in the heart, possibly leading to a successful therapy which will replace drugs and surgery. \I(Australia, Sweden)\i
Papua New Guinea's President, Sir Julius Chan, survives a parliamentary motion calling on him to stand down following his handling of the foreign mercenaries case. Thousands of protesters, including soldiers, gather outside Parliament House to demand his resignation. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Authorities in New Zealand ban \Jsquid\j fishing in the Southern Ocean in order to protect endangered Hooker's sea-lions; the sea-lions can become entangled in fishing nets and drown. \I(New Zealand)\i
Controversial Australian Independent MP Pauline Hanson, who publicly voiced her anti-immigration views last year, announces that she will form her own party, called Pauline Hanson's One Nation. \I(Australia)\i
Two terminally ill patients in \JAustralia\j who were going to use the Northern Territory's \Jeuthanasia\j laws before the Senate overturned them this week, consider ending their lives prematurely before the Governor-General signs the bill and makes \Jeuthanasia\j illegal. \I(Australia)\i
Sri Lanka refuses Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's offer to mediate a settlement in Sri Lanka's war; this war against Tamil Tiger guerrillas has killed approximately 50,000 people. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The ruling military government in \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma) claims that recent violence between Buddhists and Muslims is politically motivated by groups wanting to create instability in the country. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
\BThe Americas\b
Judges in Mississippi and \JTexas\j prevent the major \Jtobacco\j companies in the US from taking any legal action against the Liggett Group when it hands over potentially incriminating secret documents between \Jtobacco\j companies to authorities. \I(USA)\i
Authorities in \JBelarus\j accuse an American diplomat, Serge Alexandrov, of being a spy, and order him to leave the country; America consequently stops $US40 million in aid to \JBelarus\j, claiming \JBelarus\j does not meet international human rights standards. \I(Belarus, USA)\i
An Israeli government official claims that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat knew about the 1993 bombing of New York City's World Trade Center and that he met with terrorists to discuss the bombing. \I(Israel, USA)\i
Former US president, 72-year-old George Bush, parachutes from a plane; this is a first for an American president. \I(USA)\i
Lawyers of O.J. Simpson appeal to the civil court, claiming that Simpson didn't get a fair trial and that $US33.5 million is too much compensation to pay to the murdered
victim's families. \I(USA)\i
US envoy Dennis Ross departs for the Middle East to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in an attempt to restart peace negotiations following a week of violence between Palestinians and Israelis. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
Government officials in \JCuba\j and \JPeru\j, and the Tupac Amaru rebels who are still holding 72 hostages in the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, are close to agreeing on a deal that will see the hostages go free in exchange for giving the rebels asylum in \JCuba\j and releasing 17 of the 300 prisoners that the rebels want released. \I(Cuba, Peru)\i
Half a dozen companies from around the world bid for a license to salvage what is believed to be $US4 million worth of gold and silver from a Spanish \Jgalleon\j which sank off the coast of \JEcuador\j in 1654. \I(Ecuador)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A team of scientists in \JAustralia\j and a team in Sweden both discover (within a day of each other) a gene that enhances the growth of blood vessels in the heart, possibly leading to a successful therapy which will replace drugs and surgery. \I(Australia, Sweden)\i
Authorities in \JBelarus\j accuse an American diplomat, Serge Alexandrov, of being a spy, and order him to leave the country; America consequently stops $US40 million in aid to \JBelarus\j, claiming \JBelarus\j does not meet international human rights standards. \I(Belarus, USA)\i
Sudanese rebels capture the town of Kajo-Kaji. \I(Sudan)\i
The President of Zaire, Mobutu Seso Seko, is expected to announce a new prime minister in the near future and is planning to negotiate with rebel leader Commander Laurent Kabila in an attempt to end the nation's six-month-old crisis. \I(Zaire)\i
Prison officers at a Northern Ireland maximum security prison discover a tunnel that had been built by prisoners planning a mass breakout. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
The British movie \IThe English Patient\i wins a massive nine Oscars at the 69th Academy Awards, including best picture, best supporting actress (Juliette Binoche), best art direction, best editing, best sound, best \Jcinematography\j, best director, best costume design and best dramatic score. \I(UK)\i
An Israeli government official claims that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat knew about the 1993 bombing of New York City's World Trade Center and that he met with terrorists to discuss the bombing. \I(Israel, USA)\i
For the sixth consecutive day, violence continues between Palestinians and Israelis in \JBethlehem\j and \JHebron\j. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
US envoy Dennis Ross returns to the Middle East to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in an attempt to restart peace negotiations following a week of violence between Palestinians and Israelis. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
Orlando Figes wins the 1997 ú10,000 W.H. Smith Literary Award prize for his book titled \IA People's Tragedy: The Russian Revolution 1891-1924.\i \I(UK)\i
Approximately 20,000 steelworkers in Frankfurt protest against the power of German banks. \I(Germany)\i
Italy is expected to send 5,000 soldiers to \JAlbania\j to oversee the distribution of aid to refugees. \I(Albania, Italy)\i
#
"March 26, 1997",448,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister, Sir Julius Chan announces that he is stepping down, along with his defense and finance ministers; thousands of civilians cheer his decision. Chan finally succumbed to pressure to resign over his hiring of foreign mercenaries for use against Bougainville rebels. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
A wild pig, \ISus bucculentus,\i first described in the 1880s, is rediscovered in dense forest near the border of Laos and Vietnam. \I(Laos, Vietnam)\i
The top golf players from around the world get ready for the Players Championship tournament with American Tiger Woods the favorite to win the event; the world's number one player, Australian Greg Norman will also be contesting. \I(USA, Australia)\i
US Vice-President Al Gore gets ready to leave China following his successful visit while Australian Prime Minister John Howard gets ready to arrive in China for his official visit. \I(USA, China, Australia)\i
After previously agreeing to allow foreign countries access to monitor the country's elections, Indonesian President Soeharto now says that they cannot monitor the elections. \I(Indonesia)\i
Japan's former vice health minister, Nobuharu Okamitsu, admits that he took bribes during his term as vice health minister; he now faces a five year jail term. \I(Japan)\i
The two main political parties in \JCambodia\j agree to hold general elections at the end of 1998. \I(Cambodia)\i
The President of \JPakistan\j, Farooq Ahmed Leghari, calls on the Indian Government to accept the right of Kashmir to self-determination. \I(Pakistan, India)\i
Despite China's strong opposition, senior \JTaiwan\j government officials meet with the Dalai Lama in Taipei. \I(China, \JTaiwan\j, Tibet)\i
A factory dormitory in Fujian collapses, killing at least 35 people and injuring many more. \I(China)\i
United States, North Korean, and South Korean diplomats meet in New York to discuss the war between South and North Korea. \I(USA, North Korea, South Korea)\i
It is reported that the Malaysian Government is halting political ties with \JSingapore\j following a diplomatic row between the two nations. \I(Singapore, Malaysia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The top golf players from around the world get ready for the Players Championship tournament with American Tiger Woods the favorite to win the event; the world's number one player, Australian Greg Norman will also be contesting. \I(USA, Australia)\i
Soldiers from \JBelgium\j, \JFrance\j, Britain and America are ready at \JCongo\j's \JBrazzaville\j Airport in preparation to evacuate foreigners from war-torn Zaire. \I(Belgium, \JFrance\j, Britain, USA, Zaire)\i
US Vice-President Al Gore gets ready to leave China following his successful visit while Australian Prime Minister John Howard gets ready to arrive in China for his official visit. \I(USA, China, Australia)\i
Violence still continues in \JBethlehem\j and \JHebron\j and it is hoped that US envoy Dennis Ross's visit will restore peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
In what is described as a mass suicide, 39 people are found dead in a mansion in \JCalifornia\j; the victims are believed to have belonged to a \Jcult\j. \I(USA)\i
NASA reports that a million dollar camera attached to the Hubble Space \JTelescope\j is not working properly. \I(USA)\i
United States, North Korean, and South Korean diplomats meet in New York to discuss the war between South and North Korea. \I(USA, North Korea, South Korea)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A Spanish woman claiming to be a baroness is jailed for attempting to \Jfraud\j British companies of ú16,000 billion. \I(Spain, UK)\i
Soldiers from \JBelgium\j, \JFrance\j, Britain and America are ready at \JCongo\j's \JBrazzaville\j Airport in preparation to evacuate foreigners from war-torn Zaire. \I(Belgium, \JFrance\j, Britain, USA, Zaire)\i
Ten European Union members head for \JAlbania\j in an attempt to quell unrest in the nation which was caused when thousands of Albanians lost money in collapsed pyramid savings schemes in what they say was the fault of the Government. \I(Albania)\i
A teenage girl who had a troubled upbringing becomes Britain's youngest convicted female murderer when a court finds her guilty of murder which she committed at the age of 12. \I(UK)\i
Two bombs explode on railway tracks in north-western England; no injuries are reported. It is widely believed that they were planted by the IRA. \I(UK)\i
Violence still continues in \JBethlehem\j and \JHebron\j and it is hoped that US envoy Dennis Ross's visit will restore peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
Earthquakes hit Israel, \JLebanon\j and \JSyria\j; there are no reports of serious damage or injury. \I(Israel, \JLebanon\j, Syria)\i
The Conservative MP for Beckenham is accused of having an affair with a teenager while Conservative candidate Tim Smith resigns after he admitted receiving envelopes with large amounts of cash in them. \I(UK)\i
The Russian Government pledges to pay back all wages and pensions owed to millions of Russians. \I(Russia)\i
Boutros-Boutros Ghali, the former United Nations Secretary-General, is set to become head of the community of 49 French-speaking countries. \I(France)\i
#
"March 27, 1997",449,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
An American mining company, Freeport, who won a multi-million contract to mine the huge gold find in Busang, \JIndonesia\j, claims that the amount of gold was grossly overstated. The chief geologist of the Canadian company, Bre-X Minerals, who made the find, was found dead last week when he either fell of jumped from a \Jhelicopter\j. \I(Indonesia, USA, Canada)\i
Pakistan and India begin formal talks, mainly about the disputed territory of Kashmir. \I(Pakistan, India)\i
John Giheno is appointed caretaker Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, replacing Sir Julius Chan following his resignation yesterday. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Dalai Lama meets with Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui in \JTaiwan\j; China condemns the meeting. \I(Taiwan, \JTibet\j, China)\i
Thousands of Burmese soldiers celebrate Army Day; tight security is in force following a fortnight of attacks on Muslim mosques. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
The Malaysian Government denies that it is freezing political ties with \JSingapore\j. \I(Malaysia, Singapore)\i
Thousands of Indians in India protest against \JPakistan\j's support of Muslim separatists in Kashmir. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Australia's Governor-General signs the anti-euthanasia bill, officially making \Jeuthanasia\j illegal in \JAustralia\j. Two terminally ill patients previously pleaded with the Governor-General to delay signing the bill until they had time to use the Northern Territory's \Jeuthanasia\j legislation legally. \I(Australia)\i
North Korea says it will hold four-nation peace talks only if the United States can guarantee food aid for the country. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
Peru's President Alberto Fujimori claims that the hostage crisis in Lima is coming to an end; it is reported that the hostages who are being held inside the Japanese ambassador's residence will be freed and the Tupac Amaru rebels will receive a multi-million dollar payoff and asylum in \JCuba\j. \JJapan\j considers giving economic aid to \JCuba\j if \JCuba\j agrees to accept the rebels. \I(Peru, \JCuba\j, Japan)\i
The Sydney Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games appoints its fourth chief executive in 12 months following the forced resignation of Mal Hemmerling. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
An American mining company, Freeport, who won a multi-million contract to mine the huge gold find in Busang, \JIndonesia\j, claims that the amount of gold was grossly overstated. The chief geologist of the Canadian company, Bre-X Minerals, who made the find, was found dead last week when he either fell of jumped from a \Jhelicopter\j. \I(Indonesia, USA, Canada)\i
Mystery still surrounds the deaths of 39 people inside a Californian mansion yesterday, but it is believed that they all ingested a cocktail of alcohol and phenobarbital. \I(USA)\i
US envoy Dennis Ross arrives in Israel to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in an attempt to help them restart peace negotiations; the Middle East peace process is in turmoil following a week of violence in \JBethlehem\j and \JHebron\j. \I(USA, Israel)\i
A judge orders O.J. Simpson to hand over some of his personal items to help pay for the $US33.5 million compensation settlement to the murdered victims' families. \I(USA)\i
Convicted murderer Charles Manson is denied parole for the ninth time; Manson is in prison for the 1969 murder of actress Sharon Tate and six other people. \I(USA)\i
The US Government announces that it will step up efforts to subsidize health insurance costs for up to 10 million children in the country. \I(USA)\i
Shining Path rebels are said to be responsible for two bombs exploding in Lima, killing two people and injuring others. \I(Peru)\i
Peru's President Alberto Fujimori claims that the hostage crisis in Lima is coming to an end; it is reported that the hostages who are being held inside the Japanese ambassador's residence will be freed and the Tupac Amaru rebels will receive a multi-million dollar payoff and asylum in \JCuba\j. \JJapan\j considers giving economic aid to \JCuba\j if \JCuba\j agrees to accept the rebels. \I(Peru, \JCuba\j, Japan)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Rebels in Zaire agree to meet with President Mobutu Sese Seko to negotiate an end to the civil war. \I(Zaire)\i
US envoy Dennis Ross arrives in Israel to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in an attempt to help them restart peace negotiations; the Middle East peace process is in turmoil following a week of violence in \JBethlehem\j and \JHebron\j. \I(USA, Israel)\i
Shoul Eisenberg, chairman of the Israel Corporation, dies aged 76. Eisenberg played a major part in gaining full diplomatic ties between Israel and China. \I(Israel)\i
The Conservative MP, Allan Stewart, who announced his resignation earlier this week, reportedly suffers a nervous breakdown. \I(UK)\i
#
"March 28, 1997",450,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A plane loaded with weapons arrives in the Northern Territory from \JBangkok\j after authorities in Papua New Guinea refused to let it land there. The weapons, worth millions of dollars, were reportedly supplied by Sandline, the company who also supplied foreign mercenaries for the Papua New Guinean Government. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
Australian golfer Stuart Appleby becomes one of the hot favorites to win the Players Championship in \JFlorida\j, following his most successful year to date. \I(Australia, USA)\i
The Canadian company, Bre-X Minerals, who found what was believed to be a massive gold discovery in Busang, \JIndonesia\j, but later on was revealed that it was not nearly as much as first reported, suffers when its shares drop by 80 per cent. \I(Canada, Indonesia)\i
A recent report from America reveals that factories in Vietnam making Nike brand shoes pay their workers an average of only $US1.60 per day and that working conditions are appalling. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
The Chinese central government assures Hong Kong's leader-in-waiting, Tung Chee-hwa, that he has the government's support. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
After three years, India and \JPakistan\j resume talks on the disputed Kashmir; however, a resolution is still not in sight. \I(Pakistan, India)\i
Approximately fourteen people in the \JPhilippines\j are nailed to crosses in an Easter ritual re-enacting the death of Jesus. \I(The Philippines)\i
The chairman of the collapsed Hanbo Group, Chung Bo Keun, is arrested for allegedly stealing over $US40 million from the Hanbo Group; Chung Bo Keun's father is already in custody, along with nine other people, for similar offenses. \I(South Korea)\i
China announces that it will step up its efforts to stop drug traffickers and drug-related crimes. \I(China)\i
China continues to accuse the Dalai Lama of trying to split China during his recent visit to \JTaiwan\j. \I(Taiwan, China, Tibet)\i
A member of a Japanese \Jcult\j - the \Jcult\j that is believed to be responsible for a gas attack on the \JTokyo\j Underground in 1995 - claims that the \Jcult\j planned to release poisonous gas in Washington and New York as well, but their plans were foiled. \I(Japan, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Australian golfer Stuart Appleby becomes one of the hot favorites to win the Players Championship in \JFlorida\j, following his most successful year to date. \I(Australia, USA)\i
A videotape left behind from the 39 \Jcult\j members who all committed suicide earlier this week in \JCalifornia\j reveals that they all believed that the Hale-Bopp \Jcomet\j, now visible in the Northern Hemisphere, was their ticket to heaven. The victims were all thought to be computer programmers and public interest in the \Jcult\j's Web Site causes massive jams through the Internet. \I(USA)\i
The Canadian company, Bre-X Minerals, who found what was believed to be a massive gold discovery in Busang, \JIndonesia\j, but later on was revealed that it was not nearly as much as first reported, suffers when its shares drop by 80 per cent. \I(Canada, Indonesia)\i
A recent report from America reveals that factories in Vietnam making Nike brand shoes pay their workers an average of only $US1.60 per day and that working conditions are appalling. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
The 18-year-old man accused of murdering Bill Cosby's son in January pleads not guilty in a Los Angeles court. \I(USA)\i
Officials start confiscating items belonging to O.J. Simpson as ordered by a judge; these items are to be sold to help pay for the $US33.5 million settlement Simpson has to pay to his murdered ex-wife's and her murdered friend's families. \I(USA)\i
James Earl Ray, who is in prison for the 1968 murder of Martin Luther King, tells the son of Luther King that he had nothing to do with the assassination. \I(USA)\i
America announces that it is going to grant asylum for up to 18,000 Bosnian refugees who are still living in Europe. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
A member of a Japanese \Jcult\j - the \Jcult\j that is believed to be responsible for a gas attack on the \JTokyo\j Underground in 1995 - claims that the \Jcult\j planned to release poisonous gas in Washington and New York as well, but their plans were foiled. \I(Japan, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Israeli tanks and soldiers are sent to the West Bank in an attempt to quell recent unrest between Palestinians and Israelis. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
Seventeen people are fatally shot during a violent attack in \JAlbania\j, while Red Cross workers step up efforts to transport aid to \JAlbanian\j refugees. \I(Albania)\i
The United Nations agrees to send forces to \JAlbania\j to oversee the distribution of aid to the needy in the wake of recent unrest in the country. \I(Albania)\i
Approximately two million workers in \JRussia\j protest against the government by holding strikes and demonstrations; the workers are protesting against unpaid wages and pensions. \I(Russia)\i
Rebels in Zaire claim that they have captured the town of Kasenga and say they won't stop moving until President Mobutu Sese Seko agrees to talk. \I(Zaire)\i
America announces that it is going to grant asylum for up to 18,000 Bosnian refugees who are still living in Europe. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Thousands of doctors and medical workers in \JFrance\j hold demonstrations in Paris, protesting against the Government's cuts to medical spending. \I(France)\i
#
"March 29, 1997",451,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Seven people are killed, including a member of the opposition party, when three grenades explode at a political demonstration in \JCambodia\j. \I(Cambodia)\i
Two explosions at a bus station in Kashmir kill 18 people and injure many more. \I(Jammu-Kashmir)\i
An investigation is underway by the British Government into a British company who allegedly helped set up oils deals between China and \JIraq\j that breached United Nations sanctions. \I(UK, China, Iraq)\i
A World Health Organization report indicates that China has the one of the highest rates of suicide in the world. \I(China)\i
Australian golfer Steve Elkington takes the lead so far in the Players Championship tournament in \JFlorida\j. \I(Australia, Florida)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US envoy Dennis Ross leaves the Middle East following talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat; Ross was sent by US President Bill Clinton to help restart the Middle East peace process that was halted when violence erupted between Israelis and Palestinians. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
Mysterious stories begin to unravel regarding the 39 \Jcult\j members who committed suicide earlier this week in \JCalifornia\j. \I(USA)\i
Tornadoes cause damage in \JTennessee\j following strong storms in \JIndiana\j and Kentucky which killed two people. \I(USA)\i
It is believed that the man behind the bombing of a US military base in Saudi \JArabia\j in 1996 is hiding in \JIran\j; some officials believe that \JIran\j and \JSyria\j were behind the bombing that killed 19 US servicemen. \I(USA, \JIran\j, \JSyria\j, Saudi Arabia)\i
As the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing trial is about to start, with Timothy McVeigh the prime suspect, it is reported that some evidence was tampered with. The bomb caused the death of 168 people and injured hundreds more. \I(USA)\i
French-Canadian Jacques Villeneuve takes pole position in the Brazilian Grand Prix tomorrow; he is widely believed to succeed Damon Hill as world champion. \I(Brazil, Canada)\i
Australian golfer Steve Elkington takes the lead so far in the Players Championship tournament in \JFlorida\j. \I(Australia, Florida)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A boat carrying refugees from \JAlbania\j sinks in the Adriatic Sea following a collision with an Italian Navy ship; over 60 people are believed to have drowned in the incident. \I(Albania)\i
Winds over 120 miles per hour hit many areas in \JGermany\j, the Czech Republic, and \JPoland\j, reportedly killing 12 people and causing damage to many parts of Europe. \I(Germany, Czech Republic, Poland)\i
Hundreds of thousands of Russian workers return to work following a strike over unpaid wages and pensions from the government. \I(Russia)\i
US envoy Dennis Ross leaves the Middle East following talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat; Ross was sent by US President Bill Clinton to help restart the Middle East peace process that was halted when violence erupted between Israelis and Palestinians. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
As Land Day is celebrated in Israeli, security is stepped up to quell expected violence. \I(Israel)\i
It is believed that the man behind the bombing of a US military base in Saudi \JArabia\j in 1996 is hiding in \JIran\j; some officials believe that \JIran\j and \JSyria\j were behind the bombing that killed 19 US servicemen. \I(USA, \JIran\j, \JSyria\j, Saudi Arabia)\i
Zaire's army chief reports that the rebels have not captured the town of Kasenga as previously claimed. \I(Zaire)\i
Air \JFrance\j Europe holds a snap strike, forcing thousands of Easter travelers to find other forms of transport. \I(France)\i
British Prime Minister John Major announces that he wants MPs Neil Hamilton and Piers Merchant to stand down following their alleged scandalous activities. \I(UK)\i
The family of rock star Jimi Hendrix, who have just won control of his estate after a lengthy legal battle, wants to open a museum in his honor and release new and unheard of versions of his songs. \I(UK)\i
An investigation is underway by the British Government into a British company who allegedly helped set up oils deals between China and \JIraq\j that breached United Nations sanctions. \I(UK, China, Iraq)\i
#
"March 30, 1997",452,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Human rights groups around the world attack Prime Minister John Howard's soft approach to human rights issues while on his visit to China; this comes after the US Vice-President Al Gore took a similar approach with Chinese leaders earlier this month. \I(Australia, China, USA)\i
More talks between India and \JPakistan\j are doubtful following recent violence in the disputed Kashmir region. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
The collapsed Hanbo company in South Korea is accused of more illegal dealings, this time involving an illegal purchase of a North Korean steel mill. \I(South Korea, North Korea)\i
Police in Sri Lanka arrest a Tamil Tiger who they suspected of planning to assassinate President Chandrika Kumaratunga. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Japan and China agree to improve bilateral relations and Chinese Premier Li Peng and Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto announce that they will visit each other's country during 1997. \I(Japan, China)\i
Taiwan announces that it will fund up to $HK1.4 million for \JTibet\j's Dalai Lama to build an office in \JTaiwan\j. \I(Tibet, Taiwan)\i
US House Speaker Newt Gingrich, on a visit to China, says that his country will defend \JTaiwan\j if China ever launched an attack. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Human rights groups around the world attack Prime Minister John Howard's soft approach to human rights issues while on his visit to China; this comes after the US Vice-President Al Gore took a similar approach with Chinese leaders earlier this month. \I(Australia, China, USA)\i
Sixteen-year-old Swiss tennis player Martina Hingis becomes the youngest player to take the number one tennis spot when she beats Monica Seles in the Lipton Championships in \JFlorida\j, USA. \I(Switzerland, USA)\i
Tourists at Kennedy Space Center, \JFlorida\j are injured when a severe wind storm rips through the area. \I(USA)\i
US House Speaker Newt Gingrich, on a visit to China, says that his country will defend \JTaiwan\j if China ever launched an attack. \I(USA, China)\i
An investigation is underway into the US Government's involvement in the looted gold from Nazi \JGermany\j during World War II; a similar investigation is currently underway into \JSwitzerland\j's involvement. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, Switzerland)\i
The Peruvian President, Alberto Fujimori, refuses to release jailed rebels as a condition of the Tupac Amaru rebels releasing the 72 hostages from the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima; Tupac Amaru rebels say that they will not budge until jailed comrades are released. \I(Peru)\i
The United States and Saudi \JArabia\j both want to try the suspect in the 1996 bombing of the US military base in Saudi \JArabia\j which killed 19 Americans. The suspect is currently being detained in Canada. \I(Saudi \JArabia\j, USA, Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Sixteen-year-old Swiss tennis player Martina Hingis becomes the youngest player to take the number one tennis spot when she beats Monica Seles in the Lipton Championships in \JFlorida\j, USA. \I(Switzerland, USA)\i
Conservative Party member Sir Michael Hirst becomes the third party member to resign this week, following alleged homosexual activities. \I(UK)\i
A suspected IRA bomb is found and defused outside a British army base. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
A Palestinian is fatally shot in the West Bank following violence between Israeli \JArabs\j and Palestinians; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeals for calm and pleads with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to help stop the violence. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
Aid workers in Zaire confirm that rebels have captured the town of Kasenga and are heading towards another town, \JLubumbashi\j, the second largest city in Zaire and an area rich in copper. \I(Zaire)\i
Eight people are fatally shot when a man randomly fires a \Jmachine-gun\j in two schools in Sanaa. \I(Yemeni)\i
An investigation is underway into the US Government's involvement in the looted gold from Nazi \JGermany\j during World War II; a similar investigation is currently underway into \JSwitzerland\j's involvement. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, Switzerland)\i
Jean-Marie Le Pen is re-elected as leader of the opposition National Front party in \JFrance\j, despite only yesterday tens of thousands of people protesting against his party. \I(France)\i
The Arab League pleads with its 22 countries to end any ties with Israel as long as Israel continues with plans to build Jewish settlements in east \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel)\i
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) claims that brown bears have returned to the Italian Alps for the first time in over 130 years. \I(Italy)\i
#
"March 31, 1997",453,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australian golfer David Graham wins the $US800,000 Southwestern Bell Dominion Seniors in San Antonio, America. \I(Australia, USA)\i
The Indonesian Department of Agriculture says that if no more cases of \Janthrax\j are reported in \JAustralia\j within a week then they will lift their bans on importing Australian meat. \I(Australia, Indonesia)\i
The military helicopters loaded with arms that arrived in the Northern Territory earlier this week, following Papua New Guinea's refusal to accept them, are said to be in poor condition and that they would only last another six months at the most. The weapons were supplied by the mercenary company that the Papua New Guinean Government hired for use against Bougainville rebels. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
During a visit to China, Australian Prime Minister John Howard presses Chinese Premier Li Peng to discuss human rights issues and "suggests" that China release an Australian prisoner serving 18 years for \Jembezzlement\j. \I(Australia, China)\i
Three Australians in \JBangkok\j are all sentenced to 50 years imprisonment for trafficking heroin. \I(Australia, Thailand)\i
Australian golfer Steve Elkington wins the Players Championship tournament in \JFlorida\j by a massive seven strokes. Elkington becomes the top money earner on the US PGA tour so far for 1997. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Indian Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda is asked to seek a vote of confidence in the Lower House of Parliament by the beginning of next week following the Congress Party withdrawing support for his United Front Government. \I(India)\i
Five American shareholders launch legal action against Canadian company Bre-X Minerals, claiming fraudulence over the supposed billion-dollar gold find at Busang. \I(Canada, USA, Indonesia)\i
South Korea announces that it will now send food aid to North Korea, following an earlier ban on aid. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
Cambodian dissident Sam Rainsy, who survived a grenade attack that killed 16 people, vows to continue to fight corruption in the country. \I(Cambodia)\i
During the trial on the Hanbo loans affair in South Korea, President Kim Young-sam's associates profusely apologize for their wrongdoings. \I(South Korea)\i
Hundreds of Karen refugees flee \JMyanmar\j to \JThailand\j as rebels sweep through villages in \JMyanmar\j. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
\BThe Americas\b
Australian golfer David Graham wins the $US800,000 Southwestern Bell Dominion Seniors in San Antonio, America. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Australian golfer Steve Elkington wins the Players Championship tournament in \JFlorida\j by a massive seven strokes. Elkington becomes the top money earner on the US PGA tour so far for 1997. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Austrian tennis player Thomas Muster wins the Lipton championships in America. \I(USA, Austria)\i
It is revealed that the 39 \Jcult\j members who took their lives earlier this week in \JCalifornia\j each took out $US1 million insurance policies with British insurers in the event of alien abduction, alien impregnation or death by aliens. \I(USA, UK)\i
US President Bill Clinton appoints General Wesley Clark as the next top \JNATO\j military commander and head of US forces in Europe. \I(USA)\i
Five American shareholders launch legal action against Canadian company Bre-X Minerals, claiming fraudulence over the supposed billion-dollar gold find at Busang. \I(Canada, USA, Indonesia)\i
Favorite Formula One driver Canadian Jacques Villeneuve wins the Brazilian Grand Prix. \I(Brazil, Canada)\i
American golfer John Daly, after withdrawing from the Players Championship tournament in \JFlorida\j, announces that he is checking into the Betty Ford Clinic to begin treatment for \Jalcoholism\j. \I(USA)\i
Selection begins for the jury for the trial of Timothy McVeigh, the main suspect in the Oklahoma City bombing in April 1995 which killed 168 people. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Austrian tennis player Thomas Muster wins the Lipton championships in America. \I(USA, Austria)\i
Officials uncover a hidden IRA training camp near the Northern Ireland border; firing ranges and weapons are also uncovered. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
It is revealed that the 39 \Jcult\j members who took their lives earlier this week in \JCalifornia\j each took out $US1 million insurance policies with British insurers in the event of alien abduction, alien impregnation or death by aliens. \I(USA, UK)\i
Arab League leaders unanimously decide to recommend imposing sanctions against Israel as long as Israel continues to build Jewish settlements in east \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Albania accepts Italians into the country to oversee the distribution of aid but sternly warns Italian troops to stay away or be killed. \I(Italy, Albania)\i
Over twenty people are killed and many more injured when a passenger train derails in \JSpain\j. \I(Spain)\i
#
"April 1, 1997",454,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
During his overseas visit to China the Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, claims that \JAustralia\j's defense agreement with the United States is not a major issue for the Chinese Government. \I(Australia, China)\i
An investigation into the hiring of foreign mercenaries by the Papua New Guinean Government commences in Port Moresby. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
It is reported by an American Government official that thousands of North Koreans have died of hunger since September due to the dire food shortages. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
In \JPakistan\j a constitutional amendment is passed by parliament which prevents the President from sacking a government. \I(Pakistan)\i
South Korean President, Kim Young-sam, and opposition leaders agree to concentrate on reviving the economy and put the issue of the Hanbo Group collapse aside for the present. \I(South Korea)\i
In \JCambodia\j it is thought that nearly 15 journalists were killed or wounded after a grenade attack on an opposition demonstration in Phnom Penh. \I(Cambodia)\i
As a result of the lack of ammunition, Indian authorities cannot use thousands of assault weapons purchased from Rumania. North Korea has failed to meet an agreement to supply the ammunition. \I(India, Rumania, North Korea)\i
The Indian United Front ruling coalition asks for assistance from its former ally, the Indian Congress Party, in an effort to prevent its collapse. \I(India)\i
Newt Gingrich, the US congressional chief, meets with Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, in Taipei. \I(USA, Taiwan)\i
Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, is believed to be preparing for a visit to mainland China. \I(Tibet, China)\i
An American representative to the United Nations and Chinese \Jdissidents\j again criticize China's human rights record. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The trial of the alleged Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, commences in the USA. The first major task is to choose a jury which is unbiased and has not been influenced by the media coverage of the case. \I(USA)\i
The American Administration is donating $US3 million to help with the repatriation of thousands of Rwandan refugees in eastern Zaire. \I(USA, \JRwanda\j, Zaire)\i
In New York, the United Nations Security Council gives the go ahead for 186 international police officers to be sent to the Bosnian town of Brcko. Serbs and Muslims are embroiled in a dispute over the ownership of the town. \I(USA)\i
An American representative to the UN and Chinese \Jdissidents\j again criticize China's human rights record. \I(USA, China)\i
It is reported by an American Government official that thousands of North Koreans have died of hunger since September due to the dire food shortages. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
Two members of the Heaven's Gate \Jcult\j, which committed mass suicide last week, are believed to have purchased a \Jtelescope\j early in 1997 in an effort to track down the spaceship they thought was coming to collect them. \I(USA)\i
A major reform of the World Bank could mean the loss of nearly 700 jobs from the Washington headquarters. \I(USA)\i
The space probe, Pioneer-10, retires after 25 years' service because its technology is no longer current. \I(USA)\i
Scientists in New York announce that they have developed artificial human chromosomes, the strands that carry genes, which could assist in the progress of gene therapy. \I(USA)\i
Newt Gingrich, the US congressional chief, meets with Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, in Taipei. \I(USA, Taiwan)\i
The US President, Bill Clinton, meets with King Hussein of Jordan to discuss the recent crisis in the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. \I(USA, Jordan, Israel, Palestine)\i
A mediator in the Peruvian hostage crisis paints a gloomy picture and does not hold out much hope for a solution in the near future. \I(Peru)\i
An American Air Force plane crashes in a street in Tegucigalpa, \JHonduras\j, killing three people and injuring seven others. \I(USA, Honduras)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In Huarte Araquil in northern \JSpain\j 19 people die and nearly 90 others are injured after a train derails. In another rail accident in Azuqueca de Henares two people die and 20 are injured. \I(Spain)\i
The US President, Bill Clinton, meets with King Hussein of Jordan to discuss the recent crisis in the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. \I(USA, Jordan, Israel, Palestine)\i
The British Prime Minister, John Major, attempts to curb the growing speculation about corruption and sex scandals within the Conservative Party. \I(UK)\i
The American Administration is donating $US3 million to help with the repatriation of thousands of Rwandan refugees in eastern Zaire. \I(USA, \JRwanda\j, Zaire)\i
In an effort to reunite the former Russian states, the Presidents of \JRussia\j and \JBelarus\j are expected to sign an agreement outlining their union. \I(Russia, Belarus)\i
Two Palestinian suicide bombers, using the disguise of Palestinian police uniforms, kill themselves and injure five others. It is thought that they were attempting to kill Jewish school children traveling by bus to school. \I(Israel)\i
As a result of the lack of ammunition, Indian authorities cannot use thousands of assault weapons purchased from Rumania. North Korea has failed to meet an agreement to supply the ammunition. \I(India, Rumania, North Korea)\i
Algerian soldiers kill at least 20 Islamic militants who had sought refuge in a mountainous area east of \JAlgiers\j. \I(Algeria)\i
#
"April 2, 1997",455,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australia is embroiled in controversy after agreeing to accept four helicopters, meant to be delivered to Papua New Guinea, from the British mercenary organization Sandline International. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea)\i
An inquiry into the hiring of foreign mercenaries by the Papua New Guinean Government reveals that the Government wanted the mission to be finished by June before the elections. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Red Cross organization issues a warning that thousands of North Koreans are likely to die of starvation due to the severe shortage of food supplies. \I(North Korea)\i
The Thai Prime Minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, visits China. \I(Thailand, China)\i
The Indonesian President, Mr Soeharto, insinuates that he may be too old to run for another five-year stint in office-President Soeharto is 77 years old. \I(Indonesia)\i
The family of one of the \JPhilippines\j' leading geologists claims that it is unlikely that he committed suicide by falling from a \Jhelicopter\j several weeks ago after making a major discovery of gold. \I(Philippines)\i
The \JPhilippines\j Government permits the North Korean defector, Hwang Jang Yop, and his assistant, Kim Duk Hong, to extend their stay in the \JPhilippines\j. \I(North Korea, Philippines)\i
Philippines troops kill seven members of a Muslim faction in a clash in the south of the country. \I(Philippines)\i
Prince Norodom Ranariddh, the Cambodian co-Premier, demands that an independent investigation is conducted into the recent grenade attack during an opposition demonstration. \I(Cambodia)\i
America's support of the UN resolution, which criticizes China's human rights record, angers China who accuses the US of hypocrisy. \I(China, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In an effort to recommence the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, American President, Bill Clinton, calls emergency talks with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. A meeting is to be held next week in Washington. The US denies that it attempting to set up a summit meeting between Israel and Palestine. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
The newspaper, \IThe \JArizona\j Republic,\i uncovers a story that the American \Jtobacco\j industry juggled \Jnicotine\j levels and marketed its product specifically at young people despite acknowledging the toxic effects of \Jnicotine\j. \I(USA)\i
America's support of the UN resolution, which criticizes China's human rights record, angers China who accuses the US of hypocrisy. \I(China, USA)\i
On behalf of nine \JHolocaust\j victims, Jewish lawyers are suing for $US7 billion for claims on life insurance policies that were never met. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British Prime Minister, John Major, prepares to release the Conservative Party's manifesto for the forthcoming general election. The Conservative Party fared better in a recent opinion poll, narrowing the Labour Party's lead to 14 points. \I(UK)\i
The Zairian parliament chooses opposition leader, Etienne Tshisekedi, as its candidate for Prime Minister. This is being read as a sign for President Mobutu to start talking with rebel leader Laurent Kabila. \I(Zaire)\i
In an effort to recommence the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, American President, Bill Clinton, calls emergency talks with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. A meeting is to be held next week in Washington. The US denies that it attempting to set up a summit meeting between Israel and Palestine. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Bosnian orphans, who were plucked from the war zone, are sent home from \JGermany\j after spending four years there. \I(Germany, Bosnia)\i
Francie Molly, a Sinn Fein leader, praises two armed men who made an appearance at an Easter Rising commemoration march. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
An international group of soldiers is expected to arrive in \JAlbania\j later this week-their task will be to protect aid shipments. \I(Albania)\i
#
"April 3, 1997",456,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The US and South Korea threaten North Korea that it will not receive any humanitarian aid in the form of food or economic assistance unless it agrees to peace talks. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
An Australian report reveals that \JAborigines\j have one of the world's shortest life expectancies. \I(Australia)\i
In \JCambodia\j a French businessman is murdered after it is thought he witnessed a grenade attack on an opposition demonstration. \I(France, Cambodia)\i
A seminar scheduled to be held this month in \JIndonesia\j is put back until after the general elections, as it is expected to slander President Soeharto. \I(Indonesia)\i
Tourism in the Japanese town of Ito is in danger of being destroyed after it is hit by thousands of small earthquakes during the last month. \I(Japan)\i
An Australian academic accuses the American sports shoe manufacturer, Nike, of brutal exploitation of people in its Indonesian factories. \I(Australia, USA, Indonesia)\i
China tells the US to adopt one policy towards \JTaiwan\j rather than use several different tactics. \I(China, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American scientists, using information from the \Jspacecraft\j \JGalileo\j, discover molecules containing carbon and \Jnitrogen\j on the moons Ganymede and Calisto. \I(USA)\i
The US and South Korea threaten North Korea that it will not receive any humanitarian aid in the form of food or economic assistance unless it agrees to peace talks. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
An American Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt \Jaircraft\j and its cargo go missing in \JArizona\j. \I(USA)\i
An Australian academic accuses the American sports shoe manufacturer, Nike, of brutal exploitation of people in its Indonesian factories. \I(Australia, USA, Indonesia)\i
China tells the US to adopt one policy towards \JTaiwan\j rather than use several different tactics. \I(China, USA)\i
Peruvian authorities isolate guerrillas in a prison in the \JAndes\j. The move suggests it is part of a scheme to end the hostage crisis. \I(Peru)\i
The United Nations Security Council approves a plan to keep peacekeepers in \JHaiti\j until the end of July. \I(USA, Haiti)\i
Israel drops its \Jextradition\j order for the Hamas leader, Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook, from the US, claiming that his presence would worsen Israeli-Palestinian exchanges. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Thousands of people in Minsk clash with police during a protest against the recent agreement which will see \JBelarus\j reintegrated with \JRussia\j. \I(Russia, Belarus)\i
The Islamic \JJihad\j are believed to be responsible for last week's bungled suicide bombers attack in Gaza. \I(Israel)\i
Israel drops its order for the Hamas leader, Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook, to be extradited from the US, claiming that his presence would worsen Israeli-Palestinian exchanges. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
Peace talks between \JRussia\j and \JChechnya\j reach stalemate according to the Chechen President, Aslan Maskhadov. \I(Russia, Chechnya)\i
In \JCambodia\j a French businessman is murdered after it is thought he witnessed a grenade attack on an opposition demonstration. \I(France, Cambodia)\i
It is thought that Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, is about to propose giving asylum to thousands of Turkish \JKurds\j in northern \JIraq\j. \I(Iraq, Turkey)\i
The Polish parliament gives its consent to a new constitution which could signal the end of \Jcommunism\j in \JPoland\j if approved in a referendum. \I(Poland)\i
The British Labour Party prepares to release its election manifesto; it is not expected to contain any new controversial issues. \I(UK)\i
It is believed that nearly ten per cent of Saudi \JArabia\j's workforce is unemployed. Unemployment among young people is particularly rife. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
The Israeli Government refuses to resume peace talks with Palestine until Palestinians stop their bombing campaign. In the latest attack, a firebomb was thrown at a truck transporting Israeli troops, injuring at least 12 people. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, announces that building will continue in Har Homa and issues a warning that action will be taken against Palestinian acts of violence. \I(Israel)\i
Thousands of artworks, stolen from the French by the Nazis, are to be exhibited in the Louvre, Paris. \I(France)\i
The Italian Government announces that it will compensate the families of the \JAlbanian\j refugees who died after their boat collided with an Italian ship. \I(Italy, Albania)\i
The trial of an East German woman for the murder of a young girl in a concentration camp during the Second World War could be the final Nazi war crimes case. \I(Germany)\i
The new Zairian Prime Minister, Etienne Tshisekedi, offers rebels six seats in Cabinet and asks them to surrender their weapons, however, the offer is rejected. \I(Zaire)\i
German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, reveals that he intends to run for a fifth term in office. Over the last few months, it has been rumored that he will retire. \I(Germany)\i
Police in Britain discover two bombs beneath a main highway in Bescot, England, after receiving a tip-off from the IRA. \I(UK)\i
The International Monetary Fund is conducting an inquiry into the transfer of ú100 million by Israel to the President of Palestine, Yasser Arafat. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"April 4, 1997",457,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Cambodian opposition leader, Sam Rainsy, asks \JAustralia\j to stop all aid and support an international investigation into last week's grenade attack on an opposition rally. \I(Cambodia, Australia)\i
Japanese authorities appear unwilling to give a visitor's visa to the Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, for a private visit to the country. \I(Taiwan, Japan)\i
The Taiwanese Government urges South Africa to retain high-level relations despite South Africa's decision to stabilize its ties with China. \I(Taiwan, South Africa, China)\i
Indonesian students claim that to boycott the forthcoming elections is their only option, as the electoral process heavily favors President Soeharto's Government. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Indian Congress Party announces that it is willing to enter discussions with Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda's United Front coalition. \I(India)\i
The infamous criminal, Charles Sobhraj, is to be deported from India to \JFrance\j. \I(India, France)\i
Peace talks between India and \JPakistan\j are to proceed next week despite the problems faced by Indian Prime Minister, H. D. Deve Gowda. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
In East \JTimor\j, Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo claims that protesters arrested two weeks ago have been beaten up in prison. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Australian Davis Cup team beats the Czech Republic team by 2-0 in the first day of the competition held in Adelaide. \I(Australia, Czech Republic)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American Administration is willing to increase financial assistance for Israel's anti-missile defense program including more money for the Arrow missile and a new laser weapon. \I(Israel, USA)\i
The US is the only Western country to vote against a United Nations human rights commission to abolish capital punishment. \I(USA)\i
The cost of independent investigations over the past two years into the affairs of US President Bill Clinton and his wife amount to thousands and thousands of dollars. \I(USA)\i
Despite the forthcoming arrival of an Italian-led international peacekeeping force, violence continues in \JAlbania\j. Gunmen fire at the American ambassador's residence in Tirana. Police seize armaments from homes in the vicinity of the US Embassy. \I(Albania, USA)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, and his wife are accused of using incorrect fundraising methods for the Democrat Party's presidential campaign. \I(USA)\i
An \Jearthquake\j, measuring 3.3 on the Richter scale, hits Los Angeles; there are no reports of injuries and only minor damage occurs. \I(USA)\i
Swiss authorities are ready to seize over $US100 million in alleged drug money which has been placed in Swiss bank accounts by the brother of former Mexican President Raul Salinas de Gortari. \I(Switzerland, Mexico)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The American Administration is willing to increase financial assistance for Israel's anti- missile defense program including more money for the Arrow missile and a new laser weapon. \I(Israel, USA)\i
During a visit to \JGreece\j, the \JAlbanian\j Prime Minister, Bashkim Fino, receives backing from the European Union and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. \I(Albania, Greece)\i
The Taiwanese Government urges South Africa to retain high-level relations despite South Africa's decision to stabilize its ties with China. \I(Taiwan, South Africa, China)\i
British police are forced to evacuate underground stations and cordon off areas in central London after receiving bomb threats from the IRA. \I(UK)\i
The infamous criminal, Charles Sobhraj, is to be deported from India to \JFrance\j. \I(India, France)\i
Despite the forthcoming arrival of an Italian-led international peacekeeping force, violence continues in \JAlbania\j. Gunmen fire at the American ambassador's residence in Tirana. Police seize armaments from homes in the vicinity of the US embassy. \I(Albania, USA)\i
Lech Walesa, former Polish president and leader of the Solidarity trade union, announces that he will establish a new political party. \I(Poland)\i
It is claimed by the French newspaper, \ILe Monde,\i that the Russian Prime Minister, Viktor Chernomyrdin, is worth $US5 billion. Prime Minister Chernomyrdin strongly denies the report. \I(France, Russia)\i
In \JBelarus\j, protesters continue to demonstrate against the agreement made by President Alexander Lukashenko and Russian President, Boris Yeltsin. \I(Belarus, Russia)\i
Amnesty International claims that thousands of Russian prisoners have been tortured to death by police and prison officers. \I(Russia)\i
A special envoy representing Zairian President, Mr Mobutu, arrives in South Africa for peace talks with rebels. \I(Zaire, South Africa)\i
Swiss authorities are ready to seize over $US100 million in alleged drug money which has been placed in Swiss bank accounts by the brother of former Mexican President, Raul Salinas de Gortari. \I(Switzerland, Mexico)\i
Representatives from Zairian President Mobutu's Government are due to meet with rebel leaders to discuss a cease-fire. The end of President Mobutu's 31-year rule seems in sight. \I(Zaire)\i
The Australian Davis Cup team beats the Czech Republic team by 2-0 in the first day of the competition held in Adelaide. \I(Australia, Czech Republic)\i
#
"April 5, 1997",458,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Amnesty International claims that over 4,200 people were executed in the world in 1996-China was responsible for at least 3,500 deaths. \I(Switzerland, China)\i
In response to the report by Amnesty International, China supports its use of the death sentence, claiming it was necessary to stop increasing crime rates. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
\IThe New York Times\i publishes a story which links a drug dealer with the American President, Bill Clinton, claiming he made a $US20,000 donation to the Democrat Party. \I(USA)\i
The search continues for the US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt \Jaircraft\j which went missing over \JArizona\j three days ago. \I(USA)\i
The American poet, Allen Ginsberg, dies in New York at the age of 70. \I(USA)\i
It is reported that American President, Bill Clinton, will suggest a plan to solve the crisis in the Middle East peace process during his discussions with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. \I(USA, Israel)\i
America is preparing for its first non-explosive nuclear test to be held in June. \I(USA)\i
In the USA, there is a campaign to bury the criminals Bonnie and Clyde together. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Authorities cancel the British Grand National horse race held at Aintree after receiving bomb threats from the IRA. Over 70,000 spectators are evacuated. \I(UK)\i
It is reported that Diana, Princess of Wales, is worth ú17 million and is richer than her former husband the Prince of Wales. \I(UK)\i
Failure in equipment on board the Russian \Jspacecraft\j, Mir, leaves only eight days supply of air; a space rescue mission is to be launched. \I(Russia)\i
Amnesty International claims that over 4,200 people were executed in the world in 1996-China was responsible for at least 3,500 deaths. \I(Switzerland, China)\i
Israeli helicopters attack Hizbollah guerrilla camps in the Bekaa valley area. \I(Israel, Lebanon)\i
Zairian rebels capture the diamond-mining town of Mbuji-Mayi. \I(Zaire)\i
It is reported that American President, Bill Clinton, will suggest a plan to solve the crisis in the Middle East peace process during his discussions with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. \I(USA, Israel)\i
#
"April 6, 1997",459,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In the lead-up to Papua New Guinea's June general elections, political tensions increase. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Australian Davis Cup tennis team beats the Czech Republic by 5-0 in Adelaide. \I(Australia, Czech Republic)\i
American Scott Pruett wins the 1997 IndyCarnival \JAustralia\j Formula One racing event held in Surfers Paradise. \I(Australia, USA)\i
In Pathankot, North India, a bomb explodes on a bus, killing one person and wounding eight others. \I(India)\i
The prospect of an agreement being reached between India's United Front ruling coalition and its rival, the Indian Congress Party, seems remote. \I(India)\i
Newspapers in South Korea report that North Korea is prepared to get involved in peace talks with the US, South Korea, and China. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA, China)\i
In light of the growing humanitarian crisis in North Korea, China, the US, and \JJapan\j are attempting to sway North Korea away from the Kim Il Sung economic and political doctrine. \I(North Korea, China, \JJapan\j, USA)\i
Despite Britain's involvement in the Sri Lankan Government's agreement with rebels to work towards the end of the civil war, no peace talks with Tamil Tiger guerrillas are scheduled. \I(Sri Lanka, UK)\i
The Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir, signs a business agreement with opposition Muslim fundamentalists that may eventually lead to political co-operation. \I(Malaysia)\i
Denmark joins forces with the USA and the UK to support the United Nations resolution to condemn China's human rights abuses. \I(Denmark, UK, China, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Peace talks between Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and American President, Bill Clinton, commence today in Washington. Mr Netanyahu is under increasing pressure to get the peace process back on track. \I(USA, Israel)\i
The turnout in \JHaiti\j's election is low, as locals no longer have faith in the electoral process. \I(Haiti)\i
In light of the growing humanitarian crisis in North Korea, China, the US, and \JJapan\j are attempting to sway North Korea way from the Kim Il Sung economic and political doctrine. \I(North Korea, China, \JJapan\j, USA)\i
The American Administration consents to pay the estate of former president, Richard Nixon, $US26 million in compensation for White House documents. \I(USA)\i
Newspapers in South Korea report that North Korea is prepared to get involved in peace talks with the US, South Korea, and China. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA, China)\i
American Scott Pruett wins the 1997 IndyCarnival \JAustralia\j Formula One racing event held in Surfers Paradise. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Denmark joins forces with the USA and the UK to support the United Nations resolution to condemn China's human rights abuses. \I(Denmark, UK, China, USA)\i
The American computer company, Microsoft Corporation, plans to buy WebTV Networks for $US425 million. \I(USA)\i
A poll conducted in \JPeru\j shows that most Peruvians support the Government's stance in the hostage crisis that they should not give in to the rebels' demands. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Australian Davis Cup tennis team beats the Czech Republic by 5-0 in Adelaide. \I(Australia, Czech Republic)\i
Albania's Prime Minister, Bashkim Fino, is ambushed while traveling to the north of the country. The gunmen exploded two bombs and fired gunshots but no one was injured in the fracas. \I(Albania)\i
British pop star, Elton John, celebrates his fiftieth birthday in lavish style. \I(UK)\i
Peace talks between Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and US President, Bill Clinton, commence today in Washington. Mr Netanyahu is under increasing pressure to get the peace process back on track. \I(USA, Israel)\i
It is believed that the former Bosnian Serb leader, Radovan Karadzic, heads a monopoly over the sale of gas, cigarettes, and other goods. It is said that he earns millions of dollars per year. \I(Bosnia-Herzegovina)\i
Zairian rebel forces allow over 200,000 Rwandan Hutu refugees to be transported via air back to \JRwanda\j from camps in \JKisangani\j. \I(Zaire)\i
Despite Britain's involvement in the Sri Lankan Government's agreement with rebels to work towards the end of the civil war, no peace talks with Tamil Tiger guerrillas are scheduled. \I(Sri Lanka, UK)\i
Israel refuses an offer by the European Union to help solve the current crisis in the Middle East peace process. \I(Israel, Europe)\i
Denmark joins forces with the USA and the UK to support the United Nations resolution to condemn China's human rights abuses. \I(Denmark, UK, China, USA)\i
Finnish sailor, Ludde Ingvall, sets a record in his 80ft Grand Mistral maxi, Nicorette, for the fastest time for a monohull crossing of the Atlantic from New York to Cornwall. \I(Finland)\i
In \JFrance\j, a countdown to the year 2000 commences with a large digital clock installed on the Eiffel Tower keeping track of the number of days to the end of the century. \I(France)\i
#
"April 7, 1997",460,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Chung Tae-soo, who established the South Korean company Hanbo, admits that he contributed financially to President Kim Young-sam's election campaign. \I(South Korea)\i
Hutomo Mandala Putra, the youngest son of Indonesian President Soeharto, announces that he is to get married shortly. \I(Indonesia)\i
A bomb explodes at the home of one of \JMyanmar\j's leading military officials, killing his daughter. Security is tightened in \JRangoon\j after the incident. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
An Australian scientist and an American marine salvage expert are suing creationist Allen Roberts over his lectures about an archaeological site in Turkey which many think is the remains of Noah's Ark. \I(Australia, USA, Turkey)\i
It is reported that \JJapan\j's foreign aid donations fell by one third in 1996. \I(Japan)\i
The Chinese region of Xinjiang is hit by two major earthquakes in one day, injuring 14 people and damaging property. \I(China)\i
Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, promises that China will sign one of two main UN conventions which cover human rights. \I(China)\i
China announces that its relations with any country that backs the United Nations resolution condemning China's human rights record may be jeopardized. \I(China)\i
The boss of the British organization Sandline, the company proposing to hire out mercenaries to Papua New Guinea, admits that talks in Hong Kong with the mining tycoon, Tony Buckingham, may have touched on gaining an interest in one of Papua New Guinea's main mines. \I(Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea)\i
The Indonesian town of Pekalongan is placed under military control after thousands of Muslim people riot leaving five people wounded and property severely damaged. \I(Indonesia)\i
American political analysts forecast that North Korea's position is precarious and a collapse is imminent. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
The Indian Congress Party confirms its determination to bring about the downfall of Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda's minority government. \I(India)\i
The United Nations appeals for emergency aid for North Korea. \I(North Korea)i
Vietnam and the US sign an agreement which means that Vietnam will repay the wartime debt of South Vietnam. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American political analysts forecast that North Korea's position is precarious and a collapse is imminent. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
An Australian scientist and an American marine salvage expert are suing creationist Allen Roberts over his lectures about an archaeological site in Turkey which many think is the remains of Noah's Ark. \I(Australia, USA, Turkey)\i
Vietnam and the US sign an agreement which means that Vietnam will repay the wartime debt of South Vietnam. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
Opposition parties in \JHaiti\j condemn the recent elections, claiming they are a \Jfarce\j and demand that the results be ignored. \I(Haiti)\i
Astronauts are forced to cut short Columbia's latest mission after a problem in the electrical generator became potentially dangerous. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, claims that the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is placing the peace process in jeopardy. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
The Chechen leader, Aslan Maskhadov, nominates a controversial guerrilla as acting head of state during his absence to the Middle East. \I(Chechnya)\i
An anonymous British millionairess assists the people of the island of Eigg in Scotland to buy their island. \I(UK)\i
Muslim guerrillas murder more than 80 people in the village of Thalit in \JAlgeria\j using chainsaws or burning people to death. \I(Algeria)\i
An Australian scientist and an American marine salvage expert are suing creationist Allen Roberts over his lectures about an archaeological site in Turkey which many think is the remains of Noah's Ark. \I(Australia, USA, Turkey)\i
In Zaire rebels capture the town of Kipushi and are now reported to be heading towards the city of \JLubumbashi\j. Laurent Kabila, the rebel leader, announces that he wishes to have face-to-face talks with President Mobutu. Thousands of Government troops defect to the rebel cause. \I(Zaire)\i
The World Health Organization (WHO) announces that new and stronger diseases have started to appear despite advances in medical technology. \I(Switzerland)\i
The horse Lord Gyllene wins the 150th Grand National at Aintree; the original race had to be canceled after bomb threats were made by the IRA. \I(UK)\i
#
"April 8, 1997",461,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In an attempt to stave off a humanitarian crisis in North Korea, international efforts of assistance are stepped up. \I(North Korea)\i
A fire in a Hong Kong apartment block kills seven and injures 38 others. \I(Hong Kong)\i
A wealthy Cambodian businessman shoots at a Boeing 737 at \JCambodia\j's international airport after losing his temper over lost baggage. \I(Cambodia)\i
Myanmar's opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, asks in a videotape smuggled out of the country for help from other countries to protect members of her political party from the country's military junta. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
The investigation into the Papua New Guinean Government's deal to hire foreign mercenaries from Sandline will ask Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption to investigate the British company's bank account. \I(Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong)\i
In Geneva the Indonesian Nobel Peace Prize winner, Bishop Jose Ramos-Horta, shows photographic evidence of the terrible atrocities carried out by the Indonesian military in East \JTimor\j. \I(Switzerland, Indonesia)\i
It is announced that Chinese Premier, Li Peng, will visit \JAustralia\j. \I(China, Australia)\i
The American Defense Secretary, William Cohen, announces that the US has no intention of reducing the number of American soldiers based in \JJapan\j. \I(USA, Japan)\i
Charles Sobhraj, the infamous criminal who has just been released from an Indian jail, arrives in \JFrance\j. Police question him about the alleged poisoning of a French citizen. \I(India, France)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Talks between American President, Bill Clinton, and Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, fail after no solution is reached on how to solve the latest crisis in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
American authorities discover a proposal by guerrillas in \JBahrain\j to attack US military bases in the country. The US puts its troops on maximum security alert. \I(USA, Bahrain)\i
Jazz trumpeter, Wynton Marsalis, wins a Pulitzer Prize-the first ever Pulitzer Prize awarded to jazz. \I(USA)\i
In \JHaiti\j, former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide's Lavalas Family party claims to have won the latest elections. \I(Haiti)\i
Mystery continues to surround the disappearance of a US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt \Jaircraft\j over \JArizona\j. \I(USA)\i
The American Defense Secretary, William Cohen, announces that the US has no intention of reducing the number of American soldiers based in \JJapan\j. \I(USA, Japan)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Talks between American President, Bill Clinton, and Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, fail after no solution is reached on how to solve the latest crisis in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
In Geneva the Indonesian Nobel Peace Prize winner, Bishop Jose Ramos-Horta, shows photographic evidence of the terrible atrocities carried out by the Indonesian military in East \JTimor\j. \I(Switzerland, Indonesia)\i
Doubt exists over the Italian-led international force which is to be sent to \JAlbania\j and threatens to bring down Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi's Government. \I(Italy, Albania)\i
In \JGermany\j unemployment rates climb to a post-war record for March. \I(Germany)\i
British astronomers claim to have discovered how galaxies form using theory and evidence provided by telescopes on land and in space. \I(UK)\i
Zairian President Mobutu's 31-year-old rule looks on the verge of collapse; as his Government copes with the crisis, troops surrender and rioting continues. \I(Zaire)\i
Albanians become increasingly despondent after the Italian-led international force fails to arrive in \JAlbania\j. \JItaly\j promises that the troops will begin to arrive in the next week. \I(Albania, Italy)\i
In fighting between Israeli troops and Palestinians in the town of \JHebron\j in the West Bank, two Palestinians are killed and nearly 100 others are injured. \I(West Bank, Israel, Palestine)\i
American authorities discover a proposal by guerrillas in \JBahrain\j to attack US military bases in the country. The US puts its troops on maximum security alert. \I(USA, Bahrain)\i
Charles Sobhraj, the infamous criminal who has just been released from an Indian jail, arrives in \JFrance\j. Police question him about the alleged poisoning of a French citizen. \I(India, France)\i
It is revealed that a subsidiary of the food company NestlΘ has been blackmailed for millions of dollars after receiving warnings that its food products could be poisoned. \I(Germany)\i
#
"April 9, 1997",462,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
It is believed that the Japanese Liberal Democratic Party is preparing to form a new alliance with the Shinshinto party. \I(Japan)\i
Afifudin Musytari, an Indonesian Muslim leader, is to be charged in connection with the riots in the town of Pekalongan in Java. \I(Indonesia)\i
For the first time in eight years, India and \JPakistan\j meet for discussions; on the agenda is the Kashmir crisis. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, is angered by a cover-up by a nuclear fuel reprocessing plant over a fire last month. \I(Japan)\i
In Papua New Guinea, sacked military chief, Brigadier-General Jerry Singirok, tells the inquiry into the Government's hiring of foreign mercenaries that former Prime Minister Chan wanted to establish a palace guard. The purpose of the special force was to provide protection for politicians and other prominent members of society. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The parcel bomb, which killed the daughter of one of \JMyanmar\j's security chiefs, is now believed to have been sent from \JJapan\j. \JMyanmar\j \Jdissidents\j based in \JJapan\j deny any involvement in the bombing. \I(Japan, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
William Cohen, the US Defense Secretary, vows to "lessen the burden" of the US military troops on the Japanese people on the island of \JOkinawa\j. \I(USA, Japan)\i
Hong Kong's Chief Executive designate, Tung Chee-hwa, announces his proposals to halt protests and stop foreign financing of political groups once Hong Kong is handed over to China. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
A key Taiwanese official who handles Chinese-Taiwanese relations is to visit China shortly. His visit is seen as a sign of improving relations between the two countries. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
In \JJohannesburg\j, \JAustralia\j beats South Africa in the fifth one-day international cricket test series. \I(South Africa, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
William Cohen, the US Defense Secretary, vows to "lessen the burden" of the US military troops on the Japanese people on the island of \JOkinawa\j. \I(USA, Japan)\i
Severe flooding in the state of North Dakota creates hazardous conditions. \I(USA)\i
The search still continues for a US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt \Jaircraft\j and its cargo which went missing over a week ago. \I(USA)\i
The US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and special Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, are scheduled to meet with two Palestinian negotiators in Washington to discuss the Middle East crisis. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
The US Golf Masters competition commences in Augusta. \I(USA)\i
An American court allows new tests to be conducted on the rifle and bullet allegedly used to murder the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. \I(USA)\i
The American Administration supports calls for the resignation of Zairian President Mobutu, as the country's second city, \JLubumbashi\j, capitulates to the rebels. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
An unknown composition by the composer Franz Liszt is discovered in \JBelgium\j. \I(Belgium)\i
Leah Rabin, the widow of assassinated Israeli prime minister, Yitzhak Rabin, holds the present Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, responsible for creating the violent climate which led to her husband's death. \I(Israel)\i
The US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and special Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, are scheduled to meet with two Palestinian negotiators in Washington to discuss the Middle East crisis. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
It is thought that \JIran\j is planning to sue over 20 German companies who assisted in the production of chemical weapons. \I(Germany, Iran)\i
In \JJohannesburg\j, \JAustralia\j beats South Africa in the fifth one-day international cricket test series. \I(South Africa, Australia)\i
The Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu, asks Palestinians to remain calm after violence breaks outs in the West Bank town of \JHebron\j. Mr Netanyahu fears that further incidents will cause irreparable damage to the peace process. \I(West Bank, Israel, Palestine)\i
In the UK, BBC foreign correspondent, Martin Bell, is nominated as Independent candidate for the seat of Tatton. \I(UK)\i
Zairian President Mobutu calls a state of emergency and puts military administrators in charge of key government positions. \I(Zaire)\i
The American Administration supports calls for the resignation of Zairian President Mobutu, as the country's second city, \JLubumbashi\j, capitulates to the rebels. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
The funeral of one of the three Palestinians killed in recent rioting in \JHebron\j causes further fighting between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers. At least 30 people are believed to have been wounded in the clashes. \I(West Bank, Palestine, Israel)\i
Pope John Paul II plans to visit Bosnia next weekend where he will award peace prizes to four humanitarian organizations. \I(Bosnia)\i
In Britain, the Conservative Party is 15 points behind the Labour Party according to a recent \ITimes\i newspaper poll. \I(UK)\i
Germany and \JFrance\j reinforce their intentions to introduce the European single currency by 1999. \I(France, Germany)\i
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, publicly criticizes the Prime Minister, Victor Chernomyrdin, and asks for reasons for the poor tax collection records. \I(Russia)\i
#
"April 10, 1997",463,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Australian Government announces that it will not support a United Nations resolution that sets out to condemn China's human rights records. \I(Australia, China)\i
An Indonesian newspaper claims that the body buried in the \JPhilippines\j last week was not that of geologist Michael de Guzman. \I(Indonesia, Philippines)\i
So far, efforts to save the Indian United Front Government fail. Prime Minister, H. D. Deve Gowda, requires the backing of the Indian Congress Party to remain in power. \I(India)\i
The Papua New Guinean investigation into the hiring of foreign mercenaries reveals that an employee of one of Hong Kong's main brokerage organizations, Jardine Fleming, may have been involved in the deal. \I(Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong)\i
It is announced that the Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, plans to visit \JRussia\j. \I(China, Russia)\i
The New Zealand Government postpones its reform of its \Jimmigration\j policy until late in the year. \I(New Zealand)\i
In \JPakistan\j, the Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, dismisses nearly 90 senior civil servants, accusing them of corruption. \I(Pakistan)\i
The Sri Lankan President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, vows that the Government will continue the struggle with Tamil Tiger guerrillas to the very end if necessary. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Soldiers from North and South Korea exchange gunfire in the border area just before American Defense Secretary, William Cohen, is scheduled to visit the area. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Declassified records are released by the American State Department which highlight that the UK and \JFrance\j attempted to foil efforts by the US to recover assets taken by the Nazis. \I(USA, UK, France)\i
Soldiers from North and South Korea exchange gunfire in the border area just before American Defense Secretary, William Cohen, is scheduled to visit the area. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
The American \JCIA\j acknowledges that mistakes may have led to the destruction of an Iraqi warehouse filled with chemical weapons during the Gulf War. It is thought that thousands of US soldiers were exposed to nerve gas. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
It is revealed that former Mexican president, Carlos Salinas de Gortari, was aware that his brother may have been involved in the murder of their ex brother-in-law. \I(Mexico)\i
The space probe \JGalileo\j transmits pictures of the Jupiter moon Europa. The pictures show that it may be the only other planet that has water. \I(USA)\i
After a 20-year ban, the American Administration prepares to resume the sale of advanced armaments to South American countries. \I(USA, South America)\i
The British magazine, \INew Scientist,\i claims that American experts are developing bullets known as BLAMS (Barrel-Launched Adaptive Munitions) which follow their target. \I(UK, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the European cup semi-final, the British football team, Manchester United, is beaten by Borussia \JDortmund\j by 1-0. \I(UK)\i
It is announced that Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, plans to visit \JRussia\j. \I(China, Russia)\i
Declassified records are released by the American State Department which highlight that the UK and \JFrance\j attempted to foil efforts by the US to recover assets taken by the Nazis. \I(USA, UK, France)\i
Shimon Peres, former Israeli prime minister, criticizes the Israeli Government and claims that it should have realized that there would have to be compromises with Palestine if the peace process is to proceed. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
The British magazine, \INew Scientist,\i claims that American experts are developing bullets known as BLAMS (Barrel-Launched Adaptive Munitions) which follow their target. \I(UK, USA)\i
The Australian Government announces that it will not support a United Nations resolution that sets out to condemn China's human rights records. \I(Australia, China)i
A Rwandan court clears a second person, Joseph Karega, of charges of genocide. \I(Rwanda)\i
Zairian rebels capture the country's second city, \JLubumbashi\j. The rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, demands that President Mobutu commences discussions on his resignation or the rebels will start a new offensive. \I(Zaire)\i
Zaire's new Prime Minister, Etienne Tshisekedi, is dismissed from the position after only one week in office. \I(Zaire)\i
Romano Prodi, the Italian Prime Minister, wins the backing of the Chamber of Deputies (the lower house of Parliament) to send Italian soldiers to meet up with the international force being sent to \JAlbania\j. \I(Italy, Albania)\i
The American \JCIA\j acknowledges that mistakes may have led to the destruction of an Iraqi warehouse filled with chemical weapons during the Gulf War. It is thought that thousands of soldiers were exposed to nerve gas. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
A German court accuses \JIran\j's leaders of being responsible for the 1992 assassination of Iranian Kurdish leaders in Berlin's Mykonos restaurant. \I(Germany, Iran)\i
#
"April 11, 1997",464,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodian soldiers are heading towards a Khmer Rouge base, after rebels murdered 12 Government staff. \I(Cambodia)\i
In the sixth one-day international cricket series in \JJohannesburg\j, \JAustralia\j beats South Africa; \JAustralia\j leads by 4-2 in the series. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, tells senate deputy president, Mal Colston, to resign from office after expense \Jfraud\j claims come to light. \I(Australia)\i
The future of Indian Prime Minister H. D. Deve Dowda's minority Government looks bleak, as the Government suffered defeat in a vote of confidence in parliament. \I(India)\i
Two senior South Korean opposition members are called for questioning in connection with the Hanbo loans scandal. \I(South Korea)\i
The Chinese province of Xinjiang is hit by another \Jearthquake\j, measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale, killing nine people and injuring 40 others. \I(China)\i
In \JJapan\j, legislation is passed which permits the US armed forces to continue using land even if the owners refuse to renew leases. \I(Japan, USA)\i
China criticizes the USA and Denmark's support of a United Nations resolution which condemns China's human rights record. China threatens that diplomatic relations could be affected. \I(China, Denmark, USA)\i
It is claimed that by the year 2000 China's ratio of males to females will be severely imbalanced if the current trend to abort or kill female babies continues because of the Government's one-child family policy. \I(China)\i
In Hong Kong there is growing opposition to Chief Executive designate, Tung Chee-hwa's proposals to reduce civil liberties when China takes over the territory in July. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
William Cohen, the American Defense Secretary, rules out large-scale food donations to North Korea until North Korea starts taking apart its threatening military machine. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, cautions of the "dangerous and unpredictable situation" in the Middle East after the US's failure to help bring about any solution to the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
The 21-year-old American golfer, Tiger Woods, takes the lead in the US Masters being held in Augusta, Georgia. Last year's winner, Nick Faldo is knocked out of the winning contenders by scoring a round of 81. \I(USA)\i
The US Administration asks \JGermany\j and other European countries to participate in the US economic boycott of \JIran\j. \I(USA, Germany)\i
In \JJapan\j, legislation is passed which permits the US armed forces to continue using land even if the owners refuse to renew leases. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Plans to build an international space station are delayed due to NASA's funding problems. \I(USA)\i
China criticizes the USA and Denmark's support of a United Nations resolution which condemns China's human rights record. \I(China, Denmark, USA)\i
William Cohen, the American Defense Secretary, rules out large-scale food donations to North Korea until North Korea starts taking apart its threatening military machine. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
The US Air Force believes that the pilot of the missing A-10 Thunderbolt \Jaircraft\j apparently intentionally broke out of the formation. The pilot and the \Jaircraft\j are still missing. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the sixth one-day international cricket series in \JJohannesburg\j, \JAustralia\j beats South Africa; \JAustralia\j leads by 4-2 in the series. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
The US Administration asks \JGermany\j and other European countries to participate in the US economic boycott of \JIran\j. \I(USA, Germany)\i
A British expert helps to save the leading Italian tourist monument, the Leaning Tower of Pisa. He advised the Italians to put large quantities of lead on one side of the base of the monument. \I(UK, Italy)\i
The verdict of a German court, which accused the Iranian leadership of being responsible for the assassination of four leading opposition leaders in a Berlin restaurant, causes turmoil in Europe's relations with \JIran\j. Both \JGermany\j and \JIran\j recall their ambassadors from each other's capitals; 14 other European countries have done the same. \I(Europe, Iran)\i
The American Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, cautions of the "dangerous and unpredictable situation" in the Middle East after the US's failure to help bring about any solution to the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
China criticizes the USA and Denmark's support of a United Nations resolution which condemns China's human rights record. \I(China, Denmark, USA)\i
Israeli security troops join forces with the Palestine Liberation Organization to arrest an Islamic terror cell which is part of Hamas, the Islamic Resistance Movement. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
General Radovan Stojici, a key confidant to Serbian President, Slobodan Milosevic, is shot dead in \JBelgrade\j. \I(Serbia)\i
Commander Salman Raduyev, a Chechen guerrilla leader, is badly wounded in an assassination attempt. \I(Chechnya)\i
In Northern Ireland a female police officer is badly injured after being shot by the IRA outside the courthouse in \JLondonderry\j. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
The first batch of Italian soldiers (from the international force who are to safeguard European Union aid convoys) arrive in \JAlbania\j. \I(Italy, Albania)\i
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, launches a campaign to stamp out corruption in politics once and for all. \I(Russia)\i
The British newspaper, \IThe Times,\i dares the British Prime Minister, John Major, and the leader of the Labour Party, Tony Blair, to participate in a televised debate. \I(UK)\i
Despite increasing demands from Zairian rebels for the resignation of President Mobutu, the President is showing no sign of backing down and continues to struggle to remain in control of Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
Foreigners are told to leave the Zairian capital of \JKinshasa\j, as rebels continue to push towards the city. \I(Zaire)\i
The African National Congress Party sacks an ANC leader in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. He is accused of being a spy; rumors continue to circulate about agents working in the ANC who worked for prior governments. \I(South Africa)\i
#
"April 12, 1997",465,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Government of Indian Prime Minister, H. D. Deve Gowda, collapses after being defeated in a vote of no confidence. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In Washington, Palestinian negotiators, who met with US Government representatives to discuss the peace process, assure the US Administration that the PLO is fighting \Jterrorism\j. \I(Palestine, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, announces that he is thinking of setting up a national unity government with the opposition Labor Party. \I(Israel)\i
The Shroud of Turin is saved from a fire that broke out in an Italian cathedral. \I(Italy)\i
It is revealed by recent surveys that the UK has nearly 10 million voters who have yet to make up their minds about which party to vote for in the forthcoming elections. \I(UK)\i
Zairian rebels give President Mobutu a deadline of today to resign otherwise they intend to occupy the capital city \JKinshasa\j. President Mobutu rejects the deadline set by the rebels. \I(Zaire)\i
Violent clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians continue in the West Bank town of \JHebron\j; seven people are injured. \I(Israel, Palestine, West Bank)\i
The European Union is pushing Yasser Arafat, the leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization, to put a halt to \Jterrorism\j in order to revive the peace process. \I(Europe, Palestine)\i
In Washington, Palestinian negotiators, who met with US Government representatives to discuss the peace process, assure the US Administration that the PLO is fighting \Jterrorism\j. \I(Palestine, USA)\i
The Russian Government plans to overhaul all its underground tunnels and bunkers to provide protection in the event of a nuclear disaster. \I(Russia)\i
The Snowdrop campaign, which was set up after the Dunblane shooting massacre to fight for a ban on handguns, is to stop after the May general elections. \I(UK)\i
#
"April 13, 1997",466,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
As a reprisal against \JAustralia\j's decision to recall its ambassador to \JIran\j, \JIran\j cancels a visit by an Australian business group. \I(Australia, Iran)\i
On the Kashmir border, fighting erupts between Indian and Pakistani forces. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Four South Korean politicians confess that they accepted money from Chung Tae-soo, the founder of the collapsed Hanbo organization. \I(South Korea)\i
The United Malays National Organization is shocked by the resignation of the Chief Minister of \JSelangor\j State. Muhammad Taib faces charges in \JAustralia\j over his possession of undeclared currency worth $AUS1.2 million at Brisbane's airport. \I(Malaysia, Australia)\i
Australian Michael Doohan wins the Malaysian \Jmotorcycle\j Grand Prix which was held at Shah Alam. \I(Australia, Malaysia)\i
In Papua New Guinea thousands of people may be forced to leave their homes after the Tavurvur \Jvolcano\j erupts. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Feng Xiliang, a leading Chinese journalist, is to join \IThe South China Morning Post,\i Hong Kong's main English-language newspaper. \I(Hong Kong)\i
Turmoil reigns in the Indian Congress Party after it joined forces with the Hindu Nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party in an effort to bring down the United Front coalition government. \I(India)\i
It is thought that North Korea will soon agree to participate in peace talks next month. \I(North Korea)\i
The tennis final at the Salem Open between American Michael Chang and Australian Pat Rafter is postponed at match point due to torrential rain. \I(USA, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Improved weather conditions are likely to assist in the US Air Force's search for the missing A-10 Thunderbolt \Jaircraft\j and its pilot. \I(USA)\i
American and Saudi Arabian intelligence officers claim that a leading Iranian government official is connected to a group of Shiite Muslims who they think were responsible for the bombing of a US military base in Saudi \JArabia\j. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Saudi Arabia)\i
American golfer Tiger Woods leads by a record margin in the US Masters championship being held in Augusta, as the contest enters its final day. \I(USA)\i
The European Union announces that it has come to an agreement with the USA over the Helms-Burton Act. The Act allows US citizens to sue foreign businesses that trade in \JCuba\j. \I(Europe, USA, Cuba)\i
The tennis final at the Salem Open between American Michael Chang and Australian Pat Rafter is postponed at match point due to torrential rain. \I(USA, Australia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In London police clash with demonstrators who are attempting to bring anarchy into the general election campaign. \I(UK)\i
The European Union announces that it has come to an agreement with the USA over the Helms-Burton Act. The Act allows US citizens to sue foreign businesses that trade in \JCuba\j. \I(Europe, USA, Cuba)\i
Cholera breaks out among Rwandan Hutu refugees in Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
Israel permits Palestinians who work in Israel to enter the country for the first time in three weeks. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
American and Saudi Arabian intelligence officers claim that a leading Iranian government official is connected to a group of Shiite Muslims who they think were responsible for the bombing of a US military base in Saudi \JArabia\j. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Saudi Arabia)\i
In Bosnia security forces uncover a plan to assassinate Pope John Paul II during his visit; the Pope continued his visit despite the security threat. \I(Bosnia)\i
In a reaction to the German court decision, which found \JIran\j's leadership responsible for the assassination of four main opposition politicians in \JGermany\j, \JIran\j is reviewing all economic and political ties with \JGermany\j. \I(Iran, Germany)\i
As a reprisal against \JAustralia\j's decision to recall its ambassador to \JIran\j, \JIran\j cancels a visit by an Australian business group. \I(Australia, Iran)\i
The Italian Prime Minister, Romano Prodi, arrives in the port of Vlore in \JAlbania\j. He plans to visit Italian troops stationed there. \I(Italy, Albania)\i
Zairian President Mobutu clings to the presidency and will participate in discussions with rebels only if the rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, asks "politely." \I(Zaire)\i
#
"April 14, 1997",467,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Indian Prime Minister, H. D. Deve Gowda, announces that he will resign as the leader of the United Front coalition if his resignation would help in the formation of a more stable government. The United Front alliance commences a search for a replacement. \I(India)\i
Reports surface that local tribespeople in Irian Jaya have spotted Tasmanian tigers. The Indonesian Government plans to send researchers to investigate the claims. \I(Indonesia)\i
Hong Kong's Chief Executive Office announces that it will draw up laws governing the right of abode in the territory. \I(Hong Kong)\i
Troops fighting against the Afghan Talibaan militia step up their attacks and reveal that they plan to capture Kabul by the end of 1997. \I(Afghanistan)\i
The military operation Flying Fish 1997 commences. Five countries, including \JAustralia\j and \JMalaysia\j, are participating. \I(Australia, Malaysia)\i
Iran severs its trade relationship with New Zealand, as part of the reaction against a German court's finding that blamed the Iranian leadership for assassinating four people. \I(New Zealand, \JGermany\j, Iran)\i
The newly built Sikh shrine, Akal Takht, is reopened ten years after it was damaged during a military conflict. \I(India)\i
Muhammad Taib, a Malaysian politician who faces charges of possessing more than $AUS1.2 million in undeclared currency in \JAustralia\j, refuses to resign as vice-president of the United Malays National Organization. \I(Malaysia, Australia)\i
Yukihiko Ikeda, the Japanese Foreign Minister, announces that there are unconfirmed reports that North Korea has ballistic missiles powerful enough to hit \JJapan\j. \I(Japan, North Korea)\i
Hundreds of thousands of people are left homeless in the region of Xinjiang after the area was hit by an \Jearthquake\j last week. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Tiger Woods wins the US Masters competition in Augusta, Georgia. He set several records with his victory: he is the youngest person to win; he is the first black person to win; he won by the greatest margin; and he won with the lowest score. \I(USA)\i
An American organization is given a Europe-wide patent on blood from human umbilical cords. There is outcry in Europe against the decision. \I(Europe, USA)\i
French-Canadian Jacques Villeneuve wins the Argentinean Grand Prix in a Williams car. \I(Canada, Argentina)\i
The American Air Force commences a ground search of the New York Mountain Range for the A-10 Thunderbolt \Jaircraft\j and pilot which went missing over a week ago. \I(USA)\i
It is believed that American scientists have developed a nuclear bomb capable of demolishing underground bunkers. \I(USA)\i
James McDougal, former business associate of American President, Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary, is given a three-year prison sentence for his role in the Whitewater land affair. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Grenades are thrown at a restaurant in Addis Ababa, killing one person and injuring 42 others, including tourists. \I(Ethiopia)\i
Iran severs its trade relationship with New Zealand as part of the reaction against a German court's finding that blamed the Iranian leadership for assassinating four people. \I(New Zealand, \JGermany\j, Iran)\i
In the Algerian village of Boufarik, it is thought that Islamic extremists murdered at least 30 people. \I(Algeria)\i
An American organization is given a Europe-wide patent on blood from human umbilical cords. There is outcry in Europe against the decision. \I(Europe, USA)\i
The capital of Zaire, \JKinshasa\j, prepares for another day of "dead city" protest against President Mobutu's Government. \I(Zaire)\i
In Bosnia, Pope John Paul II pleads with Bosnian political leaders to try to work towards peace. \I(Bosnia)\i
Hundreds of Iranian students protest outside the German Embassy in Tehran against a German court's finding that the Iranian leadership was responsible for the assassination of four political \Jdissidents\j. \I(Iran, Germany)\i
It is speculated that President Mobutu of Zaire may have already removed his wealth from the country. \I(Zaire)\i
In Israel orthodox Jews are angered by the Government's decision to keep \JJerusalem\j's Bar-Ilan Street open during pray times on the Sabbath and threaten to stage protests. \I(Israel)\i
#
"April 15, 1997",468,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In \JCambodia\j, King Norodom Sihanouk's half-brother, who has been in exile for over 18 months, is prevented from returning to Phnom Penh. He is attempting to clear his name after being accused of planning to assassinate the Second Prime Minister, Mr Hun Sen. \I(Cambodia)\i
The Australian Government refuses to be pressured by the American Administration to support a United Nations resolution that condemns China's human rights record. \I(Australia, China, USA)\i
Kim Soo-han, South Korea's parliamentary speaker, refuses to answer questions about rumors that he accepted money from the collapsed Hanbo group. \I(South Korea)\i
The Japanese Government intends to ask prosecutors to charge the state-run Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation with attempting to cover up the country's main nuclear accident. \I(Japan)\i
Thousands of people demonstrate in Jakarta, demanding that the pro-democracy leader, Megawati Sukarnoputri, be allowed to participate in May's general elections. \I(Indonesia)\i
Migrants from the island of Madura are to be sent home from West \JKalimantan\j after months of clashes with the indigenous Dayaks. \I(Indonesia)\i
In Papua New Guinea, sacked Brigadier General Jerry Singirok warns that he may refuse to participate in the inquiry into the use of mercenaries, after being blamed for covering up the army's role in the murder of Bougainville Premier, Theodore Miriung. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Internet is introduced into China by American media \Jmogul\j, Rupert Murdoch, in conjunction with the newspaper the \IPeople's Daily.\i \I(USA, China)\i
An Indonesian newspaper claims that Australian meat is infected with \Janthrax\j disease and warns of deadly consequences. The report is a follow-up to a ban on meat from two Australian states where an outbreak of the disease occurred. Australian authorities attempt to calm fears and assure locals that the meat is safe for consumption. \I(Indonesia, Australia)\i
In North Korea thousands of dollars are spent in renovations to the \Jmausoleum\j of the deceased president Kim Il Sung, despite the dire food shortages and economic downfall. \I(North Korea)\i
Tonnes of ore from the Busang gold property in \JKalimantan\j, \JIndonesia\j, is sent to Western \JAustralia\j for testing. \I(Indonesia, Australia)\i
In Lucknow, northern India, 21 people die and 24 are injured after a tractor pulling a trailer on which they were traveling crashes with a truck. \I(India)\i
Peace talks are due to commence with the US and North Korea. The US will send $US15 million of corn to help North Korean children. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
It is reported that the spread of Aids continues in India. \I(India)\i
Potential candidates to replace H. D. Deve Gowda as India's Prime Minister are being sought. After last week's vote of no confidence, H.D. Deve Gowda agreed to step down as leader of the United Front party. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Duchess of York begins a weekly column for the New York Times Syndicate. \I(USA, UK)\i
The Internet is introduced into China by American media \Jmogul\j, Rupert Murdoch, in conjunction with the newspaper the \IPeople's Daily.\i \I(USA, China)\i
The Australian Government refuses to be pressured by the American Administration to support a United Nations resolution that condemns China's human rights record. \I(Australia, China, USA)\i
According to a recent tax return, American President, Bill Clinton, is a millionaire. However, once outstanding bills are taken into account, his wealth will be somewhat depleted. \I(USA)\i
An American scientist claims that \Jcoffee\j may assist humans in the fight against heart disease and cancer. \I(USA)\i
Peace talks are due to commence with the US and North Korea. The US will send $US15 million of corn to help North Korean children. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
The US Air Force suspends the search for the A-10 Thunderbolt \Jaircraft\j and its pilot after extensive searches uncovered no clues. The \Jaircraft\j went missing on 2 April. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Duchess of York begins a weekly column for the New York Times Syndicate. \I(USA, UK)\i
A fire breaks out an Iranian tent site where thousands of Muslims have gathered for the yearly haj pilgrimage. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
Supporters of the sacked Zairian Prime Minister, Etienne Tshisekedi, announce that they will step up demonstrations against President Mobutu's Government. \I(Zaire)\i
The bedraggled \JAlbanian\j armed forces make an effort to get themselves in order. Recent domestic troubles in \JAlbania\j have seen the disintegration of the army. \I(Albania)\i
More than 1,200 soldiers from \JFrance\j, \JItaly\j, and \JSpain\j arrive in \JAlbania\j as part of an international peacekeeping force. \I(France, \JItaly\j, \JSpain\j, Albania)\i
In \JCroatia\j, President Franjo Tudjman's Croatian Democratic Union wins victories in most municipal governments and the upper house of Parliament in the weekend elections. \I(Croatia)\i
#
"April 16, 1997",469,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
For the very first time, the United Nations Human Rights Commission voices its disapproval of human rights abuses in East \JTimor\j, \JIndonesia\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
Sacked Brigadier General Jerry Singirok walks out of the Papua New Guinean inquiry into the hiring of foreign mercenaries after he is charged with lying. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Fugen, \JJapan\j's only heavy-water nuclear reactor, closes after a power failure and a leak of toxic radioactive material. \I(Japan)\i
A second autopsy is to be done on the body of \JPhilippines\j geologist, Michael de Guzman, who allegedly fell out of a \Jhelicopter\j over \JIndonesia\j. His company Busang Gold claimed to have discovered a large amount of gold. \I(Philippines, Indonesia)\i
The Australian beer company, Foster's, halts all trading in \JMyanmar\j in a protest against the human rights abuses by the military junta. \I(Australia, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
North Korean defector, Hwang Jang-yop, is due to arrive in South Korea next week after spending some time in the \JPhilippines\j. \I(North Korea, South Korea, Philippines)\i
China praises \JAustralia\j, Canada, and \JJapan\j for refusing to support the American-backed United Nations resolution that condemns China's human rights record. The resolution failed to gain backing by 27-16 in the United Nations Human Rights Commission. \I(China, USA, \JAustralia\j, Canada, Japan)\i
G. K. Moopanar, a politician with close links to the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, is leading the contest as a replacement for deposed Prime Minister, H. D. Deve Gowda. \I(India)\i
Despite the German court ruling that \JIran\j was responsible for the 1992 deaths of four \Jdissidents\j, \JAustralia\j will continue normal trade relations with \JIran\j. \I(Germany, \JAustralia\j, Iran)\i
China is angry over the US State Department's decision to sell F-16 fighter jets to \JTaiwan\j. \I(China, USA, Taiwan)\i
The Chinese region of Xinjiang is hit by yet another \Jearthquake\j, measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale. \I(China)\i
Australian cricket captain, Mark Taylor, refuses to step down from the position despite calls from cricketers Dennis Lillee and Terry Alderman. \I(Australia)\i
American actor, Sydney Poitier, is chosen as non-resident ambassador to \JJapan\j for the \JBahamas\j. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, Bahamas)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Two American \Jtobacco\j companies are involved in closed-door discussions with plaintiffs about a settlement that would cover the industry's liability for smoking. Compensation could amount to $US300 billion. \I(USA)\i
China is angry over the US State Department's decision to sell F-16 fighter jets to \JTaiwan\j. \I(China, USA, Taiwan)\i
A recent report states that the \JFBI\j supplied tampered evidence in the Oklahoma City bombing and in other cases. The report heavily criticizes the work practices of the \JFBI\j. \I(USA)\i
China praises \JAustralia\j, Canada, and \JJapan\j for refusing to support the American-backed United Nations resolution that condemns China's human rights record. The resolution failed to gain backing by 27-16 in the United Nations Human Rights Commission. \I(China, USA, \JAustralia\j, Canada, Japan)\i
The mother of JonBenet Ramsey, the murdered six-year-old American beauty queen, is asked to supply police with a fifth handwriting sample. It will be compared with the ransom note found at the scene of the crime. \I(USA)\i
American scientists report that spring now arrives eight days earlier in the \JArctic\j than it did ten years ago. \I(USA)\i
The US pays tribute to the \Jbaseball\j player Jackie Robinson. He was the first black person to play in the majors competition. \I(USA)\i
The US congressional speaker, Newt Gingrich, will pay a $US300,000 ethics penalty from his own finances and will borrow to do so. \I(USA)\i
The Peruvian hostage crisis enters its fifth month; no solution seems in sight. \I(Peru)\i
Israel closes the West Bank to stop further terrorist attacks. The US envoy to the Middle East, Dennis Ross, meets with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to discuss the peace process. \I(West Bank, Israel, USA)\i
The United Nations, after being pressured by the US, condemns \JCuba\j's civil rights record. \I(USA, \JCuba\j, Switzerland)\i
American actor, Sydney Poitier, is chosen as non-resident ambassador to \JJapan\j for the \JBahamas\j. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, Bahamas)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
It is thought that more than 343 Muslim pilgrims died and thousands were injured as fire broke out in a large camp site near the holy city of Mecca where people had gathered for the yearly haj pilgrimage. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
The United Nations, after being pressured by the US, condemns \JCuba\j's civil rights record. \I(USA, \JCuba\j, Switzerland)\i
German authorities are contemplating pressing charges against leading Iranian politicians, including President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, following the outcome of the recent German court case. It found the Iranian leaders responsible for the deaths of four \Jdissidents\j in \JGermany\j. \I(Germany, Iran)\i
Despite the German court ruling that \JIran\j was responsible for the 1992 deaths of four \Jdissidents\j, \JAustralia\j will continue normal trade relations with \JIran\j. \I(Germany, \JAustralia\j, Iran)\i
The Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, meets with the Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, in Malta to discuss the Middle East peace crisis. \I(Palestine, Israel, Malta)\i
In \JLisbon\j, \JPortugal\j, 12 people die after a nightclub is deliberately set on fire. \I(Portugal)\i
An independent report into \JBelgium\j's pedophile scandal shows that two young girls could have been rescued from death if the police authorities had been more competent. \I(Belgium)i
The Zairian Government claims that a former prime minister, Kengo wa Dondo, has fled the country with part of the State Treasury worth millions of dollars. \I(Zaire)\i
It is believed that the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and three other leading politicians from the Israeli Government could face serious charges of corruption. An Israeli prosecutor is expected to announce next week if he will indict the Prime Minister. \I(Israel)\i
Israel closes the West Bank to stop further terrorist attacks. The US envoy to the Middle East, Dennis Ross, meets with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to discuss the peace process. \I(West Bank, Israel, USA)\i
The British Prime Minister, John Major, is faced with a schism within his party. Two of his ministers publicly announce their disapproval of the UK's participation in a single European currency. \I(UK)\i
The Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, meets with German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, in the German resort of Baden-Baden. On the agenda is \JNATO\j's proposed expansion. \I(Russia, Germany)\i
The Austrian international mediator, Franz Vranitzky, encourages \JAlbania\j's Government to commence discussions with the rebels. \I(Austria, Albania)\i
Laurent Kabila, the Zairian rebel leader, meets with South African President, Nelson Mandela, for peace talks. \I(Zaire, South Africa)\i
#
"April 17, 1997",470,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Officials from the US, South Korea, and North Korea meet. It is seen as a sign that North Korea is ready to accept a plan for four-nation talks to end the Korean problem. \I(USA, North Korea, South Korea)\i
The Indian United Front coalition delays choosing a replacement for H. D. Deve Gowda after a senior party member dies. \I(India)\i
A South Korean court rejects an appeal by the former president, Chun Doo-hwan, to cut his life sentence. The sentence given to his successor, Roh Tae-woo, also remains unchanged. \I(South Korea)\i
Indonesian pro-democracy leader, Megawati Sukarnoputri, warns that \JIndonesia\j is on the brink of collapse due to corruption, disorganization, and nepotism. \I(Indonesia)\i
Madeleine Albright, the US Secretary of State, announces that it is anticipated that President Clinton will try for the renewal of Most Favored Nation trading status for China. \I(USA, China)\i
Amnesty International accuses \JAustralia\j of putting trade considerations first in its decision not to support the United Nations resolution that condemned China's human rights record. \I(Australia, China)\i
A clash occurs at a meeting between Hong Kong's pro-democracy activists and pro-China supporters to talk about changes to civil liberties. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
The American Administration claims that the United Nations Human Rights Commission failed the Chinese population by not voting for the resolution condemning China's human rights record. \I(USA, China)\i
The Japanese state-owned nuclear power plant, Fugen, confesses that it did not report at least 11 radioactive leaks over a three-year period. \I(Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American actor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, has heart surgery to treat a congenital heart condition. \I(USA)\i
Officials from the US, South Korea, and North Korea meet. It is seen as a sign that North Korea is ready to accept a plan for four-nation talks to end the Korean problem. \I(USA, North Korea, South Korea)\i
Madeleine Albright, the US Secretary of State, announces that it is anticipated that President Clinton will try for the renewal of Most Favored Nation trading status for China. \I(USA, China)\i
The Red River in Dakota continues to rise, forcing 40 families to leave their homes. \I(USA)\i
The American Administration claims that the United Nations Human Rights Commission failed the Chinese population by not voting for the resolution condemning China's human rights record. \I(USA, China)\i
In \JPeru\j, airline employees are blamed for the deaths of 70 people who died when the Aeroperu Boeing 757 crashed off Lima. They were negligent in failing to take off adhesive tape that covered sensor ports. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Israeli police recommend that the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, be charged with corruption in connection with a political scandal. Other leading political figures also face criminal charges. Mr Netanyahu is standing firm and refuses to consider resigning. \I(Israel)\i
Former Israeli president, Chaim Herzog, dies at the age of 76. \I(Israel)\i
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the religious leader of \JIran\j, accuses the German Government of creating a political storm with the Mykonos verdict. \I(Iran, Germany)\i
Albania's political parties concur that the general election should be held on 29 June. Italian troops, who form part of an international force, take up their posts in the port of Vlore to protest aid shipments. \I(Albania, Italy)\i
The House of Saud is blamed for the fire that broke out at a haj pilgrims' camp site near the holy city of Mecca. Critics claim that the Saudi royalty are not capable of properly organizing the thousands of pilgrims. Over 300 people are believed to have died. Thousands of people perform Eid al-Adha prayers at the Grand Mosque in Mecca as a symbol of the end of the pilgrimage. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
The Zairian diamond company, De Beers, acquiesces to rebels' demands that it cuts off all links with President Mobutu. \I(Zaire)\i
It is revealed that Zairian Government representatives and rebel leaders have agreed in principle to meet up. \I(Zaire)\i
John Major, the British Prime Minister, asks his own party members to support the Conservative Party's European policy to avoid further division within party ranks. \I(UK)\i
#
"April 18, 1997",471,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A newly published book claims that David Bain, who was sentenced to life in prison for killing five members of his family in Dunedin, is innocent. \I(New Zealand)\i
An executive of the Hong Kong brokerage firm, Jardine Fleming, is suspended for his alleged involvement in the Sandline mercenary deal with Papua New Guinea. \I(Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea)\i
The exiled half-brother of \JCambodia\j's King Norodom Sihanouk returns to \JFrance\j after being prevented from going back to \JCambodia\j. Cambodian authorities were prepared to arrest him on his arrival in the country. \I(Cambodia, France)\i
It is reported that North Korea wants diplomatic relations with the USA, as a pre-condition to its participation in Korean peace talks. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
In Hong Kong the Chief Executive designate, Tung Chee-hwa, vows that people will retain their basic civil liberties when China takes over the territory in July. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Prince Norodom Ranariddh of \JCambodia\j claims that the Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, has been plotting to oust him as president of the Funcinpec party. \I(Cambodia)\i
At the world shortcourse swimming championships held in \JGothenburg\j, Sweden, \JAustralia\j's 4 x 100 meters medley relay team set a world record. \I(Sweden, Australia)\i
On the Japanese island of \JOkinawa\j, thousands of people demonstrate against a bill which extends the lease of land to the US army despite objections from landowners. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Greenpeace claims that \JAustralia\j has been responsible for dumping illegal shipments of toxic waste in India. \I(Australia, India)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, is willing to meet Hong Kong's Chief Executive designate in Washington. \I(USA, Hong Kong)\i
In retaliation for some European countries support of the United Nations resolution condemning China's human rights record, China is planning to take action including canceling visits by the Chinese vice premier. \I(China, Europe)\i
\BThe Americas\b
To pay an ethics fine, Newt Gingrich, the American House of Representatives Speaker, is planning to borrow $US400,000 from Republican Bob Dole. \I(USA)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, is willing to meet Hong Kong's Chief Executive designate in Washington. \I(USA, Hong Kong)\i
It is reported that North Korea wants diplomatic relations with the USA, as a pre-condition to its participation in Korean peace talks. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
On the Japanese island of \JOkinawa\j, thousands of people demonstrate against a bill which extends the lease of land to the US army despite objections from landowners. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Thousands of protesters end a two-month trek through \JBrazil\j with a large gathering in \JBrasilia\j. They are demanding agrarian reform. \I(Brazil)\i
In the US, never before released recordings of Elvis Presley, only uncovered recently, are to form part of new album to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of his death. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, announces that \JRussia\j and the former Soviet States will join \JNATO\j on 27 May. \I(Russia)\i
Experts claim that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's political future looks bleak, even if the charges of corruption against him are dropped. It is widely believed that his reputation has been irreparably damaged. \I(Israel)\i
In retaliation for some European countries support of the United Nations resolution condemning China's human rights record, China is planning to take action including canceling visits by the Chinese vice premier. \I(China, Europe)\i
At the world shortcourse swimming championships held in \JGothenburg\j, Sweden, \JAustralia\j's 4 x 100 meters medley relay team set a world record. \I(Sweden, Australia)\i
Russia is thought to be in such dire financial straits that it will be necessary to form a plan to cut back government spending and drop its Federal budget half-way through 1997. \I(Russia)\i
Zairian rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, claims that President Mobutu has instructed his troops to kill all expatriates in \JKinshasa\j in order to gain foreign intervention and prevent his downfall. \I(Zaire)\i
Zairians attack Rwandan refugees and steal aid intended for them, accusing Rwandans of murdering seven Zairians. For the present, all aid is suspended until calm is restored. \I(Zaire, Rwanda)\i
It is thought that Zairian rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, has struck several major business deals with foreign organizations in anticipation of taking over running Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
The British Conservative Party's latest advertisement campaign shows Labour leader, Tony Blair, as a small boy sitting on the lap of a large German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. It is meant to symbolize that Labour will sell out on the European issue. The UK is increasingly anti-Europe. \I(UK, Europe)\i
As \JBulgaria\j, \JRomania\j, and \JAlbania\j undergo increasingly political and economic changes, there is a trend being set which sees the return of exiled monarchs. Exiled King Simeon of \JBulgaria\j this week returned to his native country. Earlier, King Michael of \JRomania\j and King Leka of \JAlbania\j went back to their countries. \I(Bulgaria, \JRomania\j, Albania)\i
Police in the UK arrest an IRA guerrilla in connection with the February 1996 bombing in London's docklands. \I(UK)\i
In Tuscany, \JItaly\j, nine mummies dating from the 16th century are discovered in almost perfect condition. \I(Italy)\i
The exiled half-brother of \JCambodia\j's King Norodom Sihanouk returns to \JFrance\j after being prevented from going back to \JCambodia\j. Cambodian authorities were prepared to arrest him on his arrival in the country. \I(Cambodia, France)\i
It is now thought that at least 400 haj pilgrims died at the camp site in Mecca, Saudi \JArabia\j. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
#
"April 19, 1997",472,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The American President, Bill Clinton, warns China that there will be repercussions if Hong Kong's civil liberties are drastically changed once the territory is given back to China. \I(USA, Hong Kong, China)\i
North Korean defector, Hwang Jang-yop, is due to arrive in South Korea after spending four and half weeks in the \JPhilippines\j. \I(North Korea, South Korea, Philippines)\i
Australia and New Zealand's ambassadors to \JIran\j return there. They were withdrawn as part of Europe's protest against \JIran\j after a court in \JGermany\j found the Iranian leadership guilty of the murder of four \Jdissidents\j. \I(Australia, New Zealand, Germany)\i
North Korea requests more time to consider if it will join in peace talks with the USA and South Korea to end the Korean crisis. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
An Indonesian jet crashes, killing 15 of the 52 passengers on approach to the island of Belitung. \I(Indonesia)\i
In China, 17 people are executed for serious crimes, including murder and rape. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American President, Bill Clinton, warns China that there will be repercussions if Hong Kong's civil liberties are drastically changed once the territory is given back to China. \I(USA, Hong Kong, China)\i
North Korea requests more time to consider if it will join in peace talks with the USA and South Korea to end the Korean crisis. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
In Oklahoma City the two-year anniversary of the Oklahoma bombing is marked by 168 seconds of silence. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Zairian rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, demands that President Mobutu Sese Seko gives up power or his soldiers will occupy the capital, \JKinshasa\j. It appears that peace talks were not on Mr Kabila's agenda. \I(Zaire)\i
British police arrest a second suspected IRA terrorist in connection with the 1996 bombing in London's docklands. \I(UK)\i
An Israeli \Jtelevision\j report claims that the police's case against Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is weak. Mr Netanyahu faces charges of corruption over the appointment of an attorney general. It is thought that support for the Prime Minister is beginning to weaken. \I(Israel)\i
Yasser Arafat, leader of the PLO, orders Palestinian troops to re-establish communication links with their Israeli counterparts after a one-month lapse in contact. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
Police in \JBelgium\j make a grisly discovery of three garbage bags full of dismembered body parts. The search for the "killer of Mons" continues. \I(Belgium)\i
Australia and New Zealand's ambassadors to \JIran\j return to the country. They were withdrawn as part of Europe's protest against \JIran\j after a court in \JGermany\j found the Iranian leadership guilty of the murder of four \Jdissidents\j. \I(Australia, New Zealand, Germany)\i
#
"April 20, 1997",473,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
For the first time in 48 years, a Chinese ship sails directly to \JTaiwan\j. \I(China, Taiwan)\i
Inder Kumar Gujral is named as the new Indian Prime Minister and leader of the United Front coalition. \I(India)\i
North Korean defector, Hwang Jang-yop, arrives in South Korea. He appeals to North Korea to assist its starving population and stop its military action against South Korea. Mr Hwang claims that he defected to prevent North Korea from declaring war. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
Eleven members of \JCambodia\j's royalist Funcinpec Party revolt and support the Second Prime Minister, Mr Hun Sen. It leaves the First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, in a precarious political position. \I(Cambodia)\i
The Sri Lankan Government halts monetary assistance to Tamil refugees in an effort to push them back to their homes in the north of the country. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
It is thought that Japanese authorities are preparing to raid the state-run nuclear power organization that recently covered up one of \JJapan\j's main nuclear accidents. \I(Japan)\i
Jiang Zemin, the Chinese President, leaves for an official visit to \JRussia\j. He will sign an historic troop reduction agreement with \JRussia\j and Central Asian countries. \I(China, Russia)\i
The Chinese Government claims that \JTibet\j's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, utilizes religion to fight for independence for \JTibet\j. \I(Tibet, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Families of victims of the 1995 Oklahoma bombing employ O. J. Simpson's defense lawyer, Johnnie Cochran, to represent them against the Government. \I(USA)\i
Juan Briones, the Peruvian Interior Minister, and Ketin Vidal, the police chief, resign after failing to provide adequate security that resulted in the Lima hostage crisis. \I(Peru)\i
The world's first space funeral takes place. The ashes of many space enthusiasts, including the guru of LSD, Timothy Leary, will be transported into space. \I(USA)\i
Members of the American defense department are campaigning for an attack to be launched against \JIran\j to get back at the mullahs for their alleged participation in the bombing of an American military quarters in Saudi \JArabia\j in 1996. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Saudi Arabia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Israeli newspapers report that Prime Minister Netanyahu's right-wing coalition party may suffer irreparable damage, even if Mr Netanyahu is not charged with \Jfraud\j. \I(Israel)\i
Martin Luther King's alleged assassin, James Earl Ray, is hospitalized with a serious liver complaint. \I(USA)\i
Jiang Zemin, the Chinese President, leaves for an official visit to \JRussia\j. He will sign an historic troop reduction agreement with \JRussia\j and Central Asian countries. \I(China, Russia)\i
The French newspaper, \ILe Monde,\i reports that President Chirac is about to call early legislative elections. \I(France)\i
The British football team Manchester United look likely to win the premiership title, as Manchester beat the Liverpool team by 3-1. \I(UK)\i
Zairian President Mobutu and rebel leader Laurent Kabila agree to meet for peace talks organized by South African President, Nelson Mandela. \I(Zaire, South Africa)\i
Members of the American defense department are campaigning for an attack to be launched against \JIran\j to get back at the mullahs for their alleged participation in the bombing of an American military quarters in Saudi \JArabia\j in 1996. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Saudi Arabia)\i
The United Nations World Food program distributes its first supply of food to Albanians. \I(Albania)\i
It appears that Ivan Kostov's United Democratic Forces party has won \JBulgaria\j's parliamentary elections. \I(Bulgaria)\i
A schism takes place in the British Conservative Party over the issue of Europe in the lead-up to the May general election. \I(UK, Europe)\i
Germany's Foreign Minister, Klaus Kinkel, urges \JIran\j to retain diplomatic links with \JGermany\j. \I(Germany, Iran)\i
In \JItaly\j, police tighten security around Pope John Paul II's papal audience after it is speculated that the Pope could be a target for Islamic terrorists. \I(Italy)\i
#
"April 21, 1997",474,0,0,0
Cambodia's First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, accuses his co-premier, Mr Hun Sen, of involvement in the March grenade attack on an opposition rally. \I(Cambodia)\i
Chinese victims of the 1937-1945 Sino-Japanese war intend to sue the Japanese Government for compensation for \JJapan\j's germ warfare. \I(Japan, China)\i
It is revealed that the new Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, plans to continue with the policy of economic reforms started by the previous governments. \I(India)\i
Soldiers from \JMyanmar\j and rebels clash, killing 23 people. It is thought that they were looking for the treasure of former opium warlord, Khun Sa. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Fighting erupts between \JPhilippines\j security troops and Muslim guerrillas just days before scheduled peace talks. \I(Philippines)\i
China and Vietnam agree to rush talks focusing on land and sea borders. \I(China, Vietnam)\i
Hong Kong's new Tsing-Ma bridge is attacked by vandals just a week before the official opening by former British prime minister, Baroness Margaret Thatcher. \I(Hong Kong)\i
The first Chinese People's Liberation Army troops arrive in Hong Kong in preparation for the July hand-over of the territory to China. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
In Sri Lanka, Pakistani batsman Ijaz Ahmed scores a century in the first test against Sri Lanka. \I(Sri Lanka, Pakistan)\i
Australia tops the medal list in the world shortcourse swimming championships at \JGothenburg\j, Sweden. \I(Australia, Sweden)\i
Australian golfer, Karrie Webb, wins the inaugural Susan G. Komen International held in South Carolina, USA; another win for her in the US LPGA Tour. \I(Australia, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
It is thought that the wreckage of the missing US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt jet has been spotted in a snow covered area of the Rocky Mountains, however, bad weather delays the search. As yet, it is not known what happened to the pilot. \I(USA)\i
A fire breaks out in Grand Forks, North Dakota, forcing thousands of people to leave their homes. The area has already suffered major flooding. \I(USA)\i
Australian golfer, Karrie Webb, wins the inaugural Susan G. Komen International held in South Carolina, USA; another win for her in the US LPGA Tour. \I(Australia, USA)\i
The American Defense Secretary, William Cohen, says that \JIran\j has not been definitely connected to the 1996 bombing of US military quarters in Saudi \JArabia\j. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Saudi Arabia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In Israel, prosecutors decide not to charge the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, with corruption due to a lack of evidence. Members of the opposition appeal to the High Court to reverse the decision. \I(Israel)\i
The American Defense Secretary, William Cohen, says that \JIran\j has not been definitely connected to the 1996 bombing of US military quarters in Saudi \JArabia\j. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Saudi Arabia)\i
Israeli jets attack guerrilla targets in South \JLebanon\j after two Israeli soldiers died in bomb explosions. \I(Israel, South Lebanon)\i
Australia tops the medal list in the world shortcourse swimming championships at \JGothenburg\j, Sweden. \I(Australia, Sweden)\i
French President, Jacques Chirac, commences the process to call an early parliamentary election by dissolving the National Assembly. \I(France)\i
In the UK, sections of Heathrow and Gatwick airports as well as five London railway stations are closed after police received a number of threatening \Jtelephone\j calls. It may be part of the IRA's terrorist campaign in the lead-up to the UK general elections. \I(UK)\i
Gerry Adams, the leader of the political wing of the IRA, Sinn Fein, says his Party is willing to participate in peace talks after the May election. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Europe looks likely to suffer a major \Jdrought\j this coming summer after record low rates of rainfall. \I(Europe)\i
Gennady Zyuganov is re-elected as the Russian Communist leader. \I(Russia)\i
Uday Hussein, the eldest son of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, undergoes further surgery to remove a bullet from his spine. \I(Iraq)\i
The Government of Zaire announces that it will continue to fight against rebels and vows to continue to defend the capital, \JKinshasa\j. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"April 22, 1997",475,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Japan is apparently attempting to get more recognition for \JAustralia\j within Asia, including membership of ASEM (the Asia Europe Meeting). \I(Japan, Australia)\i
The Party of controversial independent Australian politician, Pauline Hanson, releases a publication that claims Aboriginal Australians were once cannibals. \I(Australia)\i
China cautions the American Administration to treat the Tibetan Dalai Lama with care and not allow him to meet leading Government officials during his visit. \I(China, \JTibet\j, USA)\i
Fighting between Muslim rebels and \JPhilippines\j security soldiers leaves 31 people dead. \I(Philippines)\i
New Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, wins a vote of confidence in parliament. \I(India)\i
Hwang Jang-yop, the North Korean defector, claims that North Korea has the power to destroy South Korea using its store of nuclear and chemical armaments. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
Indonesia refuses to accept the United Nations resolution that disapproved of the East \JTimor\j human rights record. \I(Indonesia)\i
In Hong Kong, \Jimmigration\j authorities step up their campaign to stop illegal immigrants from settling in the territory. \I(Hong Kong)\i
The American Administration approves of a proposal to ban all new American investment in \JMyanmar\j due to the human rights record of the military junta there. \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Two Indonesian labor leaders are given jail sentences ranging from four to six years for their involvement in a 1996 strike in \JSurabaya\j. \I(Indonesia)\i
South Korea and the USA do not manage to convince North Korea to participate in peace talks. \I(South Korea, USA, North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the US at the Oklahoma bombing trial, jurors continue to be questioned. The final jury is due to be selected shortly. \I(USA)\i
South Korea and the USA do not manage to convince North Korea to participate in peace talks. \I(South Korea, USA, North Korea)\i
Whitewater prosecutor, Kenneth Starr, claims that there is sufficient evidence to show that investigations into the Whitewater case have been hampered. \I(USA)\i
Trinidad and Tobago are hit by earthquakes, measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale. \I(Trinidad and Tobago)\i
The Peruvian hostage crisis, which lasted over four months, ends when troops storm the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima. Among the casualties were one hostage, two Peruvian soldiers, and 14 Tupac Amaru Movement rebels. \I(Peru)\i
China cautions the American Administration to treat the Tibetan Dalai Lama with care and not allow him to meet leading Government officials during his visit. \I(China, \JTibet\j, USA)\i
The American Administration approves of a proposal to ban all new American investment in \JMyanmar\j due to the human rights record of the military junta there. \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Romania's foreign minister, Adrian Severin, meets with US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, in an effort to gain admission to \JNATO\j. \I(USA, Romania)\i
Iraq contravenes the US "no-fly zone" by sending helicopters to the Saudi \JArabia\j border to collect Muslim pilgrims. \I(Iraq, USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
Reforms continue in the United Nations. It is believed that managerial restructuring could save the United Nations $US100 million. \I(USA)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, visits the disaster-struck town of Grand Forks, North Dakota. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Irish Republican Army continues to wage a terrorist campaign in mainland Britain in the lead-up to the May general election. The latest incident involved bomb hoaxes which paralyzed London's airports, railways, underground, and an English Channel ferry port. \I(UK)\i
In Zaire, rebels advance towards the capital, \JKinshasa\j. \JFrance\j withdraws its support of President Mobutu's Government and suggests a transitional government might help to end the civil war. \I(Zaire, France)\i
Iraq contravenes the US "no-fly zone" by sending helicopters to the Saudi \JArabia\j border to collect Muslim pilgrims. \I(Iraq, USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
Romania's foreign minister, Adrian Severin, meets with US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, in an effort to gain admission to \JNATO\j. \I(USA, Romania)\i
Jacques Santer, the President of the European Commission, criticizes British cynics who oppose British \Jintegration\j in Europe. Mr Santer's comments are condemned both by Prime Minister, John Major, and leader of the opposition, Tony Blair. \I(UK)\i
It is hoped that Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, will focus on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process after surviving the political crisis. It was decided not to indict Mr Netanyahu for corruption. Mr Netanyahu vows to establish a screening process for all senior appointments in the future. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Israeli troops fire at Palestinians who were throwing stones in the West Bank. It is thought that five Palestinians were injured. \I(Israel, West Bank, Palestine)\i
Almost 93 people are murdered by Muslim militants in the Algerian village of Haouch Boughlef-Khemisti in the Bougara district. \I(Algeria)\i
The United Nations asks Zairian rebels to allow humanitarian workers to enter the refugee camps. \I(Zaire)\i
Herbert Zipper, who established a secret orchestra in the Dachau concentration camp in the 1940s, dies at the age of 92. \I(Austria)\i
In the UK a sword, helmet, ceremonial bowl, and the remains of an \JAnglo-Saxon\j king, which are thought to date back to the seventh century, are discovered. \I(UK)\i
#
"April 23, 1997",476,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Former Papua New Guinean Prime Minister, Sir Julius Chan, who was forced to step aside because of the mercenary affair, says that is no real grounds to prevent him from taking up office again. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Indonesian labor activist, Dita Indah Sari, is given a jail sentence of six years for "sowing public hatred" against President Soeharto's Government. \I(Indonesia)\i
An Indonesian soldier is given the death sentence for his role in a massacre in Irian Jaya in 1996. Australian and New Zealand diplomats pressured the Indonesian Government for an outcome to the case, after an Australian pilot was killed in the massacre. \I(Indonesia, \JAustralia\j, New Zealand)\i
Fighting between triads erupts in the island of Macau, leaving one person dead and 11 others wounded. \I(Macau)\i
Australia decides not to join forces with the US in implementing economic sanctions on \JMyanmar\j. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), \JAustralia\j, USA)\i
During the Chinese President Jiang Zemin's visit to \JRussia\j, attempts are made to strengthen relations between \JRussia\j and China. \I(Russia, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
More details of the end to the Lima hostage crisis emerge. It is reported that the Peruvian military had planted explosives below the area that the rebels had turned into an indoor \Jsoccer\j field. All the rooms in the Japanese ambassador's residence had been wired. The Tupac Amaru Movement vows it will launch a campaign of retaliation. \I(Peru)\i
Australia decides not to join forces with the US in implementing economic sanctions on \JMyanmar\j. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), \JAustralia\j, USA)\i
Thousands are forced to leave their homes in the Canadian province of \JManitoba\j after the area is hit by severe flooding. \I(Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In South Africa the white rightist leader, Eugene Terre'Blanche, is found guilty of attempting to murder a black employee and attacking another person. \I(South Africa)\i
During the Chinese President Jiang Zemin's visit to \JRussia\j, attempts are made to strengthen relations between \JRussia\j and China. \I(Russia, China)\i
In the lead-up to the British general election, a poll printed by the newspaper, \IThe Guardian,\i shows that the Labor Party's lead over the Conservatives has fallen from 14 percentage points to just five. \I(UK)\i
Ben Dunne, the former chief executive of one of Ireland's main department stores, admits that he gave former Prime Minister, Charles Haughey, $AUS410,000. \I(Ireland)\i
#
"April 24, 1997",477,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australian tennis player, Mark Philippoussis, beats American Jim Courier by 7-5, 7-5 in the Monte Carlo Open. \I(Australia, USA, Monte Carlo)\i
The political crisis in \JCambodia\j deteriorates as the Second Prime Minister, Mr Hun Sen, warns that he will kill three members of the royalist Funcinpec party if Funcinpec soldiers attack the Cambodian People's Party troops. \I(Cambodia)\i
During the mercenary inquiry in Papua New Guinea, it is revealed that \JAustralia\j agreed to send ships to monitor the situation in the islands if the Government dropped its proposals to use foreign mercenaries. \I(Papua New Guinea, Australia)\i
China and North Korea will be topics high on the agenda of talks between Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, and American President, Bill Clinton, during their meeting today in Washington. \I(Japan, USA, China, North Korea)\i
An agreement to cut the number of military personnel along the Soviet-Chinese border is signed by the presidents of \JRussia\j, China, \JKazakhstan\j, Tajikistan, and \JKyrgyzstan\j.
Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has an informal meeting with US President, Bill Clinton, during his visit to Washington. To avoid upsetting diplomatic relations with China, no formal talks were organized. \I(USA, \JTibet\j, China)\i
It is now believed that hundreds of Indian haj pilgrims, who died in the fire at Mecca, could have escaped if Saudi authorities had not locked them in their compound; the Saudis took this action to prevent a stampede. \I(Saudi \JArabia\j, India)\i
Shoko Asahara, the leader of the Japanese Aum Shinri Kyo \Jcult\j, tells a court that he ordered his members not to attack a Toyko underground station with poison gas but they ignored his instructions. \I(Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The trial of alleged Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, commences in \JDenver\j, USA. \I(USA)\i
Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has an informal meeting with US President, Bill Clinton, during his visit to Washington. To avoid upsetting diplomatic relations with China, no formal talks were organized. \I(USA, \JTibet\j, China)\i
Pieces of the A-10 Thunderbolt Air Force jet, which went missing a few weeks ago, have been positively identified. \I(USA)\i
Australian tennis player, Mark Philippoussis, beats American Jim Courier by 7-5, 7-5 in the Monte Carlo Open. \I(Australia, USA, Monte Carlo)\i
New Zealand authorities are upset by the attempt of a leading Chinese scientist to smuggle cuttings of a new type of apple tree out of Auckland. New Zealand formally protests to the Chinese Government. \I(New Zealand, China)\i
China and North Korea will be topics high on the agenda of talks between Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, and American President, Bill Clinton, during their meeting today in Washington. \I(Japan, USA, China, North Korea)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the village of Omaria in the region of Medea in \JAlgeria\j, another 42 people are savagely murdered by Muslim rebels. \I(Algeria)\i
It is now believed that hundreds of Indian haj pilgrims, who died in the fire at Mecca, could have escaped if Saudi authorities had not locked them in their compound; the Saudis took this action to prevent a stampede. \I(Saudi \JArabia\j, India)\i
The British football team Manchester United loses 1-0 to Borussia \JDortmund\j in the European Cup competition. \I(UK, Germany)\i
The Spanish Open golf competition commences in Madrid. \I(Spain)\i
The controversial issue of German soldiers who deserted during the Second World War is finally solved. It is decided to clear their names. \I(Germany)\i
Zairian rebels occupy the town of Ilebo which is en route to the capital, Kinshasa-an important victory for the rebel forces. \I(Zaire)\i
Australian tennis player, Mark Philippoussis, beats American Jim Courier by 7-5, 7-5 in the Monte Carlo Open. \I(Australia, USA, Monte Carlo)\i
John Major, the British Prime Minister, makes a personal appeal to the British electors, asking them to ignore his Party's antics. \I(UK)\i
An agreement to cut the number of military personnel along the Soviet-Chinese border is signed by the presidents of \JRussia\j, China, \JKazakhstan\j, Tajikistan, and \JKyrgyzstan\j.
Thousands of Indonesian workers, who work for the American sports shoe manufacturer, Nike, walk off the job for the second day in a row demanding better wages and conditions. \I(Indonesia)\i
The leaders of \JCambodia\j's military and police instruct their forces to remain apolitical in the dispute between the First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and the Second Prime Minister, Mr Hun Sen. \I(Cambodia)\i
It is reported that thousands of starving North Koreans are flooding to cities on the Chinese border looking for food. \I(North Korea, China)\i
In the Papua New Guinean inquiry into the mercenary affair, the Defense Minister, Mathias Ijape, says that the mercenaries should be used after the June elections. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Sri Lanka plans to ask the United National cultural authority, \JUNESCO\j, to attempt to halt the proposed destruction by Afghan Talibaan guerrillas of the world's tallest \JBuddha\j. \I(Sri Lanka, Afghanistan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
At the crash site of the US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt jet, human remains are discovered. \I(USA)\i
The human rights organization, Amnesty International, announces that it will hold an inquiry into the deaths of the 14 Marxist guerrillas who died during the Lima hostage crisis. Peruvian authorities deny that they were executed. \I(Peru)\i
An American Air Force truck, which was transporting four guided missiles in Washington, goes missing. \I(USA)\i
Mexico's Government announces that it intends to reorganize its anti-drug operations. This is viewed as an effort to distance the Government from corruption and drug cartels. \I(Mexico)\i
American astronomers claim that they have found a new planet, about the size of Jupiter, orbiting a nearby star, Rho Coronae Borealis. \I(USA)\i
In the investigation into the murder of six-year-old American beauty queen, JonBenet Ramsey, the analysis of a palm print found on the back of the ransom note may lead authorities to the murderer. \I(USA)\i
Canadian world champion Formula One driver, Jacques Villeneuve, warns that he will resign from Formula One driving if new rules to make the sport safer are implemented. \I(Canada)\i
American Golf Masters champion, Tiger Woods, accepts an apology by golfer, Fuzzy Zoeller, for comments Zoeller made after the tournament in Augusta. Many people found his comments offensive. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
British police tighten security measures in the lead-up to the 1 May general election following increasing threats from the IRA. \I(UK)\i
Two explosions occur on major British highways, allegedly planned by the IRA as part of a terrorist campaign in mainland Britain. \I(UK)\i
Over 100,000 Rwandan Hutu refugees are missing. It is thought that local Zairian villagers attacked the refugee camps and forced the refugees to leave. \I(Zaire)\i
Eugene Terre'Blanche, the leader of the South African Resistance Movement, awaits his sentence for the attempted murder and beating of two men. \I(South Africa)\i
At the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, General Magnus Malan, the former security chief during \Japartheid\j, upholds the methods used by his forces to implement \Japartheid\j. \I(South Africa)\i
Thousands of people turn out for the visit of exiled \JAlbanian\j King Leka during his visit to the port of Vlore. \I(Albania)\i
General Momcilo Perisic, the Yugoslav army chief of staff, is given a jail sentence of 20 years for his role in war crimes. \I(Croatia)\i
#
"April 26, 1997",479,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Employees from the Nike sports shoe factories in \JIndonesia\j protest against low wages. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United Nations General Assembly prepares to approve a resolution that insists on the end to Israeli construction on the site of Har Homa and an end to the expansion of Jewish settlements. \I(USA, Israel)\i
The US Senate supports an international treaty that bans chemical weapons. The Senate's backing is seen as a major coup for President Clinton. \I(USA)\i
Peruvian newspapers and former hostages claim that some of the Tupac Amaru rebels were executed despite surrendering to Peruvian soldiers. Authorities continue to deny these reports. \I(Peru)\i
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale hits southern \JCalifornia\j. There were no reports of damage or injuries. \I(USA)\i
Human remains are discovered among the wreckage of the A-10 US Air Force jet that went missing some weeks ago. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The United Nations General Assembly prepares to approve a resolution that insists on the end to Israeli construction on the site of Har Homa and an end to the expansion of Jewish settlements. \I(USA, Israel)\i
It is revealed that the British Conservative Party has received donations from an international organization of Muslim mosques. \I(UK)\i
An alleged IRA terrorist is arrested 14 years after his escape from the Maze prison. He faces \Jextradition\j to the UK. \I(UK)\i
The exchanges between British Prime Minister, John Major, and Opposition leader, Tony Blair, become more vicious and personal in the lead-up to the 1 May general election. \I(UK)\i
Hopes for formal talks between Zairian rebels and the Government dissipate. It is rumored that the country's leaders are preparing to abandon Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
The prospects of Zairian opposition leader, Etienne Tshisekedi, look bleak, as the rebels advance towards the capital, \JKinshasa\j, and peace talks are once again rescheduled. \I(Zaire)\i
Iran ends the largest war games exercise ever organized by its army. \I(Iran)\i
#
"April 27, 1997",480,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, arrives for trade talks with Australian Prime Minister, John Howard. \I(Japan, Australia)\i
At the commencement of the Indonesian election campaign, thousands of people march through the streets of Jakarta, showing their support for the various parties. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, leaves the US after agreeing to corporate with the US on issues such as the environment. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Sam Rainsy, the leader of \JCambodia\j's Khmer National party, claims that the country is on the brink of civil war unless its receives some international aid. \I(Cambodia)\i
Police in the \JPhilippines\j are examining the charred remains of the hotel in the south of the country in which 24 people were killed. They are considering the theory that an arsonist may have been involved. \I(Philippines)\i
Peng Zhen, a victim of Mao Tse-tung's purges, dies at the age of 95. \I(China)\i
The new Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, promises to assist hundreds of Hindu refugees to return to their homes in the Kashmir valley. They were forced to leave because of the rise of Muslim insurgency some years ago. \I(India)\i
In Sri Lanka, Tamil Tiger separatists attack an army patrol, killing 28 people. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Indonesian workers at Nike, the American sports shoe manufacturer, win a 10.7 per cent pay rise after days of fairly violent protests. \I(USA)\i
A North Korean fisherman defects to South Korea. He managed to cross a heavily guarded border area. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
Australian golfer, Greg Norman, leads in the Spanish Open Golf championship. \I(Australia, Spain)\i
Despite American pressure to halt \JMyanmar\j's application for membership of ASEAN, many South-East Asian countries still consider it. \JMalaysia\j and other countries are annoyed by the American interference. \I(Malaysia, USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Three Uighur student activists are executed after being charged with participating in riots in the region of Xinjiang earlier this year. \I(China)\i
Thousands of Japanese people help to clean up beaches which were polluted when a Russian tanker broke in two pieces in January. \I(Japan, Russia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, leaves the US after agreeing to cooperate with the US on issues such as the environment. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Despite American pressure to halt \JMyanmar\j's application for membership of ASEAN, many South-East Asian countries still consider it. \JMalaysia\j and other countries are annoyed by the American interference. \I(Malaysia, USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
The son of the late Senator Robert Kennedy, Michael Kennedy, is accused of conducting an illicit affair with his children's baby-sitter. It appears to be yet another scandal for the Kennedy family. \I(USA)\i
The flooding in the \JManitoba\j region forces thousands to leave their homes and is responsible for the deaths of three others. The Canadian Prime Minister, Jean Chretien, promises federal aid to the area. \I(Canada)\i
A US$100,000 reward is offered for information leading to the killer of six-year-old American beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey. \I(USA)\i
The truck transporting four US Air Force dummy bombs is discovered, after the driver, who ran into financial problems, abandoned it. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Thousands of Rwandans are forced to flee refugee camps after Zairian villagers and rebels attack them. \I(Zaire)\i
The IRA claims responsibility for the bomb that exploded near a motorway in Birmingham. The IRA continues to wage a terrorist campaign in the lead-up to the general election on 1 May. \I(UK)\i
Mr Erbakan, the Turkish Prime Minister, promises to stop the spread of \JIslam\j within Turkey's schools. The military have being pressurizing the Government to stop the spread of \JIslam\j into secular affairs. \I(Turkey)\i
Winnie Mandela is re-elected as leader of the African National Congress women's league. \I(South Africa)\i
The \JUkraine\j asks for international assistance to deal with the consequences of the \JChernobyl\j nuclear disaster. Eleven years have passed since the accident but the region continues to suffer from the effects of the radiation. \I(Ukraine)\i
Australian golfer, Greg Norman, leads in the Spanish Open Golf championship. \I(Australia, Spain)\i
Only days prior to the UK's general election, polls show that the Labour Party is leading by 15 to 24 percentage points over the Conservative Party. \I(UK)\i
Thousands of Japanese people help to clean up beaches that were polluted when a Russian tanker broke in two pieces in January. \I(Japan, Russia)\i
#
"April 28, 1997",481,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Five pro-democracy activists, including the leader of the People's Democratic Party, are given severe jail sentences ranging from seven to thirteen years for subversion. \I(Indonesia)\i
Authorities in India are preparing to prosecute members of the governing coalition, including the leader of the United Front-they are accused of corruption. Such a scandal will place the Government of the new Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, into a crisis. \I(India)\i
China gives its approval to the international Chemical Weapons Convention. \I(China)\i
Two Japanese men land on the disputed Diaoyu islands. It is against Government policy to land on the islands that are also claimed by \JTaiwan\j. \I(Japan, Taiwan)\i
China launches a campaign to cut \Jilliteracy\j among women; women make up to 70 per cent of the country's illiterates. \I(China)\i
Lim Guan-eng, the leader of the Malaysian Democratic Action Party, is found guilty of sedition and risks losing his political seat. \I(Malaysia)\i
The Japanese ambassador to \JPeru\j, Ambassador Morihisa Aoki, returns home to \JJapan\j after his hostage ordeal. \I(Japan, Peru)\i
Human rights organizations declare that China's restructuring of its legal code has given authorities more power to halt dissent. \I(China)\i
British golfer, Mark James, wins the Spanish Open beating \JAustralia\j's Greg Norman in a playoff at La Moraleja II. \I(UK, \JSpain\j, Australia)\i
The American Administration is seriously considering requests by the United Nations World Food Program to supply food to North Korea which is facing a severe \Jfamine\j. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
In an attempt to avoid fighting between Afghan Talibaan militia and opposition forces, thousands of people seek refuge in the capital, Kabul. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Australians remember the 35 people who lost their lives in the Port Arthur massacre a year ago. It is revealed that the killer, Martin Bryant, has tried for the third time to take his own life. \I(Australia)\i
The European Union announces that its sanctions on \JMyanmar\j will be extended for another six months. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), Europe)\i
The American Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, reaches an agreement with China's Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen, which allows US ships to visit Hong Kong port after the July hand-over. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Jean Chretien, the Prime Minister of Canada, calls a national election. \I(Canada)\i
American astronomers believe that they have discovered an "annihilation fountain" spurting up from the center of the Milky Way galaxy. \I(USA)\i
The American Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, reaches an agreement with China's Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen, which allows US ships to visit Hong Kong port after the July hand-over. \I(USA, China)\i
Former Lima hostages talk about their Tupac Amaru captors, describing them as naive and uneducated youths led by four guerrilla leaders. \I(Peru)\i
The Japanese ambassador to \JPeru\j, Ambassador Morihisa Aoki, returns home to \JJapan\j after his hostage ordeal. \I(Japan, Peru)\i
In the trial against alleged Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, it is claimed that he had an envelope full of anti-government material when he was arrested. \I(USA)\i
Members of a separatist group, who want independence for \JTexas\j, occupy a Davis Mountain property. The group released two hostages in exchange for a jailed group member. \I(USA)\i
The American Administration is seriously considering requests by the United Nations World Food Program to supply food to North Korea which is facing a severe \Jfamine\j. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
One of the killers of American student Amy Biehl, who was murdered in South Africa in 1993, applies for an amnesty from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. \I(USA, South Africa)\i
It is reported that Peruvian police have arrested the wives of two Tupac Amaru rebels who are currently serving jail sentences. Peruvian authorities continue to deny reports that rebels were executed and families were not permitted to view the bodies. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
International aid workers find thousands of missing Rwandan Hutu refugees south of \JKisangani\j. The rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, asks for an apology from the United Nations World Food Program which had accused the rebels of murder. Though refugees claim that thousands were slaughtered by a rebel-backed attack in a camp south of \JKisangani\j. \I(Zaire)\i
Zairian rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, gives the United Nations a deadline of 60 days to repatriate the thousands of Rwandan refugees. \I(Zaire)\i
Yemen holds its first general election since 1994. Sixteen people are believed to have died when violence erupted at polling stations. \I(Yemen)\i
One of the killers of American student Amy Biehl, who was murdered in South Africa in 1993, applies for an amnesty from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. \I(USA, South Africa)\i
European ambassadors to \JIran\j continue to return to their posts in Tehran despite being removed after the German court's decision in the Mykonos affair. \I(Europe)\i
In the West Bank town of \JHebron\j, Israeli troops open fire, killing one Palestinian man. The soldiers were there to conduct an inquiry into the deaths of two Jewish women in the West Bank. \I(West Bank, Palestine, Israel)\i
British golfer, Mark James, wins the Spanish Open beating \JAustralia\j's Greg Norman in a playoff at La Moraleja II. \I(UK, \JSpain\j, Australia)\i
Thousands of Iraqis celebrate the sixtieth birthday of President Saddam Hussein. \I(Iraq)\i
The British Prime Minister, John Major, and opposition Labour leader, Tony Blair, attempt to win over swaying voters in the last few frantic days prior to the general election. Polls continue to predict that it will be a major victory for the Labour Party. \I(UK)\i
Alain Juppe, the French Prime Minister, fears that his political future is in doubt, as criticism of his leadership grows. \I(France)\i
A boat loaded with over 570 \JAlbanian\j refugees arrives at the Italian port of Barletta; the boat was originally designed to transport 30 people only. \I(Albania, Italy)\i
The European Union announces that its sanctions on \JMyanmar\j will be extended for another six months. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), Europe)\i
#
"April 29, 1997",482,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In the Indonesian town of Pekalongan, thousands of Muslims demonstrate against President Soeharto's Government. The demonstration forced the closure of many businesses. \I(Indonesia)\i
Indonesian police and soldiers prevent thousands of supporters of a minority Muslim party from demonstrating in Jakarta. \I(Indonesia)\i
John Giheno, the acting Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, claims that \JAustralia\j is meddling with Papua New Guinean affairs and has caused stress in relations between the two countries. \I(Papua New Guinea, Australia)\i
A Singapore court decides to remove remarks from its records made by Senior Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, about the Malaysian city of Johor Bahru. His comments damaged Singapore-Malaysian relations. \I(Singapore, Malaysia)\i
The United Nations World Food Program calls for international assistance for North Korea. The United Nations claims that a disaster of major proportions is waiting to happen in North Korea. \I(North Korea)\i
In an effort to strengthen security and defense ties between \JAustralia\j and \JJapan\j, the Australian Minister of Defense, Mr McLachlan, will conduct official talks in \JJapan\j. \I(Australia, Japan)\i
In a meeting between American Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and Chinese Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen, China's human rights record is again a main issue on the agenda. Ms Albright is highly critical of China on a number of matters. \I(USA, China)\i
After international protests, the Afghan Talibaan militia drops its intentions to demolish two world famous statues of \JBuddha\j. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Indian Prime Minister, Mr Gujral's new ruling coalition gets the backing of former finance minister Mr P. Chidambaram's regional party. \I(India)\i
Authorities in South Korean are intending to arrest the son of President Kim Young-sam, Kim Hyun-chul but not in connection with the Hanbo loans scandal. \I(South Korea)\i
Japan gives a donation of $AUS14.7 million to \JPeru\j to assist with upgrading hospitals and extending its electricity supplies. \I(Japan, Peru)\i
A railway crash occurs in central China on the Guangzhou-Beijing line, killing 90 people and injuring hundreds of others. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Thousands of Canadian troops are sent to the city of \JWinnipeg\j, which is affected by severe flooding; almost 20,000 people have been forced to leave their homes. \I(Canada)\i
Japan gives a donation of $AUS14.7 million to \JPeru\j to assist with upgrading hospitals and extending its electricity supplies. \I(Japan, Peru)\i
It is announced that there are likely to be huge job cuts in US military personnel so that the Pentagon can purchase new hi-tech jet fighters. \I(USA)\i
DNA tests show that the human remains found in the \JColorado\j mountains were those of the pilot of the American Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt jet which went missing. However, the Air Force have yet to find the cargo of four bombs. \I(USA)\i
Bill Richardson, a leading US diplomat, arrives in Zaire for discussions with President Mobutu. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
In a meeting between American Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and Chinese Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen, China's human rights record is again a main issue on the agenda. Ms Albright is highly critical of China on a number of matters. \I(USA, China)\i
O. J. Simpson's request for a new trial is denied. It is judged that the damages of $US33.5 million awarded to the estate of his ex-wife and her friend Ron Goldman's family are fair. \I(USA)\i
American golfer, Fuzzy Zoeller, is again in hot water over his comments about Tiger Woods winning the Masters Golf Competition. Zoeller did apologize to Woods, saying that his comments were meant as a joke. \I(USA)\i
The US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, invites the Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, to Washington for talks about the precarious Middle East peace process. The invitation to Mr Levy is seen as the US bypassing the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. \I(USA, Israel)\i
American Nobel Prize winner, Dr Daniel Gajdusek, is given a jail sentence of 18 months for sexually abusing a young boy. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British Conservative Party continues to lose support, even from traditional supporters such as the newspapers \IThe Times\i and \IThe Financial Times.\i \I(UK)\i
In mainland Britain, the IRA continues to wage a terrorist campaign. Major roads and London's main airports are forced to close due to bomb threats, causing major havoc in the country in the lead-up to the general election. \I(UK)\i
Bill Richardson, a leading US diplomat, arrives in Zaire for discussions with President Mobutu. He has arranged for President Mobutu to meet the rebel leader, Laurent Kabila. \I(USA, Zaire)\i
The international community is concerned about the plight of thousands of Rwandan refugees. It is reported that Zairian rebels kidnapped 50 Rwandan refugees from a children's \Jhospital\j. Rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, continues to deny reports that rebels are harming refugees. \I(Zaire)\i
The US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, invites the Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, to Washington for talks about the precarious Middle East peace process. The invitation to Mr Levy is seen as the US bypassing the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. \I(USA, Israel)\i
The Israeli Defense Minister, Yitzhak Mordechai, announces that the West Bank and Gaza Strip will be reopened after a four-year closure. \I(Israel, West Bank)\i
In Southern \JRussia\j, a bomb explodes, killing one person and injuring 17 others. \I(Russia)\i
Zlatko Aleksovski, a former commander of a detention camp in Bosnia, is extradited to The Hague to face war crime charges by the International Criminal Tribunal. \I(Croatia, Bosnia, The Netherlands)\i
British anti-drug force discovers nearly 250 kg of heroin-the biggest drug haul in recent years. \I(UK)\i
In northwest \JRwanda\j, a gunman kills 17 school girls and their headmistress. \I(Rwanda)\i
British golfer, John Daly, loses his $US10 million sponsorship deal with Wilson sports organization after his drunken behavior at The Players Championship. \I(UK)\i
#
"April 30, 1997",483,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Hong Kong's Chief Executive designate, Tung Chee-hwa, assures pro-democracy supporters that they will be able to air their opinions freely under Chinese rule. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Calls are made for the resignation of Laloo Prasad Yadav, one of the leaders of India's ruling coalition, for his participation in a corruption scandal. \I(India)\i
Former Indian Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram, is to return to his position in the new Government of Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral. \I(India)\i
In a South African court, suspected Australian pedophile, Philip Bell, loses his appeal against \Jextradition\j to \JAustralia\j. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
Hutomo Mandala Putra, the youngest son of Indonesian President Soeharto, marries Ardhia Pramesti Regita Cahyani Suryobandoro. \I(Indonesia)\i
A nuclear power station in \JJapan\j is forced to shut down after a radiation leak. \I(Japan)\i
The leading South Korean opposition party accuses President Kim Young-sam of taking money from the collapsed Hanbo Group to finance his election campaign. \I(South Korea)\i
A Chinese official arrested in connection with the Tiananmen massacre in 1989, Bao Tong, is allowed to return home after seven years in jail. \I(China)\i
It is thought that thousands of illegal Chinese immigrants are arriving in Hong Kong each week. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American newspaper columnist, Mike Royko, dies at the age of 64 in \JChicago\j. \I(USA)\i
American boxing champion, Mike Tyson marries for a second time. \I(USA)\i
In the trial against alleged Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, a witness gives an account of McVeigh informing her of his intentions to plant a bomb in the Oklahoma City Federal building. \I(USA)\i
The Hamas leader, Mousa Abu Marzook, is to be extradited to Jordan from the US. \I(Jordan, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
It is announced that the Russian Government is to sell off the telecommunication organization, Svyazinvest, in an effort to raise revenue. \I(Russia)\i
It is predicted that the British Labour Party will win the UK general election by a large majority. \I(UK)\i
The Hamas leader, Mousa Abu Marzook, is to be extradited to Jordan from the US. \I(Jordan, USA)\i
Relations between \JRussia\j and \JChechnya\j deteriorate as the Russian Interior Minister, General Anatoly Kulikov, accuses \JChechnya\j of acts of \Jterrorism\j. \I(Russia, Chechnya)\i
British Prime Minister, John Major, and Labour opposition leader, Tony Blair, make last-ditch efforts to sway undecided voters prior to the general election. \I(UK)\i
Israeli soldiers kill a Palestinian man at a roadblock. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
An attempted assassination attack on Tajikistan's President, Imomali Rakhmonov, fails. \I(Tajikistan)\i
It is revealed by British financial analyst, Paul Hodges, that insurance companies may have to pay out $US300 billion in compensation for deaths related to \Jtobacco\j. \I(UK)\i
In a South African court, suspected Australian pedophile, Philip Bell, loses his appeal against \Jextradition\j to \JAustralia\j. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
Twenty-two people die after an explosion occurs at a weapons store in the town of Burrel, \JAlbania\j. \I(Albania)\i
The proposed talks between Zairian President Mobutu and rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, look less likely, as controversy surrounds the venue for the discussions. \I(Zaire)\i
Rwandan refugees accuse Zairian rebels of murder and attacks on refugee camps. These accounts are contrary to rebel leader Laurent Kabila's denials of any rebel involvement in attacks on refugees. \I(Zaire)\i
Benjamin Netanyahu says that the Israeli-Palestinian peace process is still alive and going strong, despite rumors that it is almost dead. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"May 1, 1997",484,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The \JPhilippines\j criticizes the decision of the United States and the European Union to impose economic sanctions against \JMyanmar\j. The \JPhilippines\j disagrees that sanctions will assist in the introduction of democracy to \JMyanmar\j. \I(Philippines, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), USA, Europe)\i
The \JPhilippines\j and \JSingapore\j supports \JAustralia\j's admission to ASEM (the Asia-Europe Meeting), despite the Malaysian opposition. \I(Philippines, \JSingapore\j, Malaysia)\i
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, is trying to arrange discussions between \JIndonesia\j and \JPortugal\j in an effort to solve the East \JTimor\j problem. \I(Indonesia, Portugal)\i
Helmut Kohl, the German Chancellor, arrives in \JAustralia\j as part of an 11-day visit to Asia. \I(Germany, \JAustralia\j, Asia)\i
Australia deports murderer, Archie "Mad Dog" McCafferty, back to Scotland after serving 23 years in an Australian jail. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Australia's Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, attacks the policies of anti-immigration MP, Pauline Hanson, and her One Nation Party. \I(Australia)\i
Newt Gingrich, the US House of Representatives Speaker, declares that the US's trade relationship with China will depend on China's deals with Hong Kong. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong)\i
Japanese authorities blame North Korea for the alleged kidnapping of ten Japanese people. \JJapan\j is unwilling to give any humanitarian aid to North Korea. \I(Japan, North Korea)\i
Japan's ambassador to \JPeru\j, Morihisa Aoki, reveals that he firmly backed \JPeru\j's decision to use force to end the Lima hostage crisis. \I(Japan, Peru)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The \JPhilippines\j criticizes the decision of the United States and the European Union to impose economic sanctions against \JMyanmar\j. The \JPhilippines\j disagrees that sanctions will assist in the introduction of democracy to \JMyanmar\j. \I(Philippines, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), USA, Europe)\i
Newt Gingrich, the US House of Representatives Speaker, declares that the US's trade relationship with China will depend on China's deals with Hong Kong. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong)\i
The Mexican Government announces the establishment of a new anti-drugs force. The move was welcomed by American President, Bill Clinton. \I(Mexico, USA)\i
The parents of murdered six-year-old beauty queen, JonBenet Ramsey, claim that they are innocent and appeal for help in tracking down the killer. \I(USA)\i
Japan's ambassador to \JPeru\j, Morihisa Aoki, reveals that he firmly backed \JPeru\j's decision to use force to end the Lima hostage crisis. \I(Japan, Peru)\i
The Peruvian Government lays charges against 19 police officers, accusing them of slack security measures that led to the Lima hostage crisis. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British general election is held. It is predicted that the Labour party will win by a large majority. \I(UK)\i
The \JPhilippines\j criticizes the decision of the United States and the European Union to impose economic sanctions against \JMyanmar\j. The \JPhilippines\j disagrees that sanctions will assist in the introduction of democracy to \JMyanmar\j. \I(Philippines, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), USA, Europe)\i
During a May Day celebration, thousands of communists march in Moscow's Red Square, protesting against President Yeltsin and his Government. \I(Russia)\i
Jean-Marie Le Pen, the leader of the French National Front party, says that he will not stand in the forthcoming parliamentary elections. \I(France)\i
In the World Cup football competition, the English team beats Georgia by 2-0. This fortified England's second place in Group 2. \I(UK, Georgia)\i
Australia deports murderer, Archie "Mad Dog" McCafferty, back to Scotland after serving 23 years in an Australian jail. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Zairian rebels claim that President Mobutu is ready to discuss the terms of his resignation and handover of power. Mr Mobutu has consented to meet rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, on a South African naval ship. \I(Zaire, South Africa)\i
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, is trying to arrange discussions between \JIndonesia\j and \JPortugal\j in an effort to solve the East \JTimor\j problem. \I(Indonesia, Portugal)\i
Near \JAntarctica\j, French and British naval ships prevent fishermen from poaching toothfish, a practice which is increasingly becoming prevalent in the area. \I(Antarctica, \JFrance\j, UK)\i
It is announced that the Swiss Banking Association will disclose the names on bank accounts dating back to the time of the Nazi \Jholocaust\j. \I(Switzerland)\i
Authorities in Israel arrest seven people in connection with a major international drug cartel. \I(Israel)\i
A small remaining section of the Berlin Wall is to be left intact due to its historical significance. \I(Germany)\i
Helmut Kohl, the German Chancellor, arrives in \JAustralia\j as part of an 11-day visit to Asia. \I(Germany, \JAustralia\j, Asia)\i
#
"May 2, 1997",485,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The government of new Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, faces major political problems as police decide to charge the president of his Indian People's Party, Laloo Prasad Yadav, with corruption. Mr Yadav is refusing to resign despite calls from the opposition to do so. \I(India)\i
Efforts are made to quell rumors that Indonesian President Soeharto is about to remarry. \I(Indonesia)\i
Australia's Ambassador to the United Nations, Richard Butler, is named as Executive Chairman of the UN Special Commission (UNSCOM). UNSCOM is in charge of Iraqi disarmament. \I(Australia, Iraq)\i
In Pekalongan, central Java, rioting erupts between supporters of the Government and the opposition Muslim-led United Development Party. \I(Indonesia)\i
Japan orders a Chinese exploration ship to leave waters off the island of \JOkinawa\j because it was breaching territorial waters. \I(China, Japan)\i
Alvaro de Soto, the United Nations Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs, visits \JCambodia\j in an attempt to assess the deteriorating political situation. \I(Cambodia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the American sitcom, \IEllen,\i history is made as the main character, Ellen, acknowledges that she is a lesbian. \I(USA)\i
In \JTexas\j, separatists who have been involved in a five-day siege in Davis Mountains are given a deadline by police to surrender or face their compound being forcibly occupied. \I(USA)\i
In the trial against alleged Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, a gun dealer gives an account of McVeigh asking him for a \Jdetonator\j for a bomb. \I(USA)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, unveils a statue dedicated to former president Franklin Delano Roosevelt. \I(USA)\i
The level of the Red River in \JWinnipeg\j, Canada continues to rise; it is the worst flooding since 1852. \I(Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British Labour Party has an overwhelming victory in the UK general elections. The Conservative Party saw the worst results in over 165 years and the end of 18 years in power. Five Conservative Ministers lost their seats. In Scotland, the Conservative Party lost all its seats. \I(UK)\i
The Palestine Liberation Organization announces that it is prepared to recommence the peace process, despite Israel's refusal to halt the construction of a Jewish settlement in Har Homa. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
It is announced that German tennis player, Michael Stich, will retire at the end of the season. \I(Germany)\i
A former Angolan rebel leader sends hundreds of Angolan guerrillas as a "special bodyguard" for Zairian President Mobutu. It is thought that the Angolan Government has supplied Zairian rebels with soldiers and weapons. \I(Zaire, Angola)\i
International aid workers attempt to help thousands of Rwandan refugees who are trying to escape from Zaire. \I(Rwanda, Zaire)\i
Australia's Ambassador to the United Nations, Richard Butler, is named as Executive Chairman of the UN Special Commission (UNSCOM). UNSCOM is in charge of Iraqi disarmament. \I(Australia, Iraq)\i
Scottish MP, Gordon Brown, is chosen as Britain's new Chancellor of the Exchequer. \I(UK)\i
The new Labour Government in the UK is composed of more female, Black, and Asian MPs than ever before. \I(UK)\i
Islamic extremists are given approval by Muslim \Jclergy\j to kill an Egyptian academic. It is claimed that the work of Dr Hassan Hanafi offends the Koran. \I(Egypt)\i
In Yemen, the ruling General People's Congress looks likely to win the first parliamentary election. \I(Yemen)\i
Egypt is hit by a major sandstorm, forcing airports to close and havoc throughout the country. \I(Egypt)\i
French truck drivers are planning to block main roads in an effort to get the Government to keep its promises made after last year's strike. \I(France)\i
Russian scientists claim that thousands of old satellites and other pieces of space rubbish are orbiting at such low levels that they are in danger of colliding with \Jspacecraft\j. \I(Russia)\i
#
"May 3, 1997",486,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
It is thought that whole North Korean villages are dying of starvation. Hundreds of thousands of people are in danger of dying of \Jmalnutrition\j. \I(North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American property tycoon, Donald Trump, separates from his third wife Marla Maples. \I(USA)\i
The American Justice Department refuses to accept a report by the newspaper, \IThe \JJerusalem\j Post,\i that PLO leader Yasser Arafat was aware of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. \I(USA, Palestine)\i
It is revealed that American special Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, will visit the region. It is hoped that he will be influential in restarting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
On the tropical island of \JBarbados\j, a campaign is launched to replace British Queen Elizabeth II as head of state. \I(Barbados, UK)\i
The siege by Texan separatists ends after four members of the Republic of \JTexas\j secessionist group surrender to the authorities. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Proposed talks between Zairian President Mobutu and rebel leader Laurent Kabila are again postponed. The talks organized by South African President, Nelson Mandela, were to be conducted at sea but Mr Kabila is doubtful of the security arrangements. \I(Zaire, South Africa)\i
Philippe Douste-Blazy, the French Minister of Culture, is stabbed by a mentally unstable person. \I(France)\i
On the tropical island of \JBarbados\j, a campaign is launched to replace British Queen Elizabeth II as head of state. \I(Barbados, UK)\i
British \Jtelevision\j host, Hughie Green, dies at the age of 77 in London. \I(UK)\i
The American Justice Department refuses to accept a report by the newspaper, \IThe \JJerusalem\j Post,\i that PLO leader Yasser Arafat was aware of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. \I(USA, Palestine)\i
Israel refuses to meet with \JSyria\j for peace talks. \JSyria\j only agreed to the talks on the condition that Israel withdraws from the Golan Heights. \I(Israel, Syria)\i
Thousands of Rwandan refugees continue to reappear, after fleeing last week's attacks from Zairian villagers and rebel forces. It is feared that thousands may have died in the massacres. \I(Rwanda, Zaire)\i
South African President, Nelson Mandela, continues to try to entice Zairian President Mobutu and rebel leader Laurent Kabila to attend peace talks aboard a ship off the coast of \JCongo\j. Mr Mobutu did turn up but Mr Kabila failed to make an appearance. \I(South Africa, Zaire)\i
In the UK, Conservative Party members fight for the leadership position just hours after their defeat in the country's general election. \I(UK)\i
The new British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, begins to choose the members of Cabinet for his Government. \I(UK)\i
It is revealed that American special Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, will visit the region. It is hoped that he will be influential in restarting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"May 4, 1997",487,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The human rights group, the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace, publishes a report that highlights the violence and massacres carried out by North Korean-trained Zimbabwean soldiers during a rebellion in \JMatabeleland\j province during the 1980s. \I(North Korea, Zimbabwe)\i
For the first time in five years, Red Cross representatives from both North and South Korea meet. However, they did not manage to settle on a plan for the distribution of food supplies to North Korea. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
In the professional World Aerobic Championships held in Sydney, the women's title is won by Olga Sipkova from the Czech Republic; the men's title is won by Alexandro Viligiardi from \JItaly\j; and the mixed pairs is won by Alba de las Heras and Jonatan Canada from \JSpain\j. \I(Australia, Czech Republic, \JItaly\j, Spain)\i
In \JAfghanistan\j, the Taliban militia punishes five men for shaving or trimming their beards which is seen as an offence to \JIslam\j. \I(Afghanistan)\i
New Zealand Prime Minister Jim Bolger's hold on office is likely to be challenged by the Minister for Agriculture and International Trade, Dr Lockwood Smith. \I(New Zealand)\i
In China media restrictions are gradually being lifted. Recently, China has witnessed the introduction of tabloid-style newspapers and more articles critical of the Government are being printed. \I(China)\i
The Chunichi Crowns golf competition held in \JNagoya\j is won for the third year running by Japanese Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki. \I(Japan)\i
In \JMyanmar\j at a rally of the Union Solidarity and Development Association, the Union promises to punish pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Politicians, protesters, and leading members of the community criticize Australian independent MP, Pauline Hanson, for her racist views. \I(Australia)\i
In discussions between North Korea and the USA about missing US servicemen, progress is made which will allow American authorities access to North Korean records. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Hundreds of people protest outside the office of Hong Kong's Chief Executive designate, Tung Chee-hwa, against his proposals to place restrictions on marches and political groups. \I(Hong Kong)\i
The murder of a Taiwanese actor's daughter leads to calls for the resignation of Premier Lien Chan and the Cabinet. Thousands of people demonstrate outside the President's office, blaming him for the rising crime rates. \I(Taiwan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The five-day siege in \JTexas\j ends when the \JTexas\j separatists surrender to authorities; no charges were laid. Two members of the group escape and are believed to be armed. \I(USA)\i
The American State Department announces that it has found that 1996 was the worst year for \Jterrorism\j with more people killed than ever before. \I(USA)\i
In discussions between North Korea and the USA about missing US servicemen, progress is made which will allow American authorities access to North Korean records. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Millions of \JHolocaust\j victims are remembered in \JHolocaust\j Memorial Day throughout the United States. \I(USA)\i
Madeleine Albright, the US Secretary of State, goes to \JGuatemala\j to give America's backing for a peace agreement that signals the end of the 36-year civil war. \I(USA, Guatemala)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The new British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, is likely to take up residence in No. 11 Downing Street, rather than No. 10, to accommodate his young family. \I(UK)\i
Milos Jakes, the last communist party leader of \JCzechoslovakia\j, and two other party members are charged with \Jtreason\j for their participation in the 1968 rebellion to end the \JPrague\j reforms. \I(Czech Republic)\i
A fire breaks out at the Royal Academy of Art in London. Many artworks were saved and damage was said to be fairly minimal. \I(UK)\i
In the professional World Aerobic Championships held in Sydney, the women's title is won by Olga Sipkova from the Czech Republic; the men's title is won by Alexandro Viligiardi from \JItaly\j; and the mixed pairs is won by Alba de las Heras and Jonatan Canada from \JSpain\j. \I(Australia, Czech Republic, \JItaly\j, Spain)\i
In \JSpain\j, Spaniard Alex Criville wins the 500cc Spanish Grand Prix held in Jerez de la Frontera. \I(Spain)\i
It is reported that 16 German businesses are being investigated in connection with their commercial links to \JIraq\j. It is thought that they sold nuclear technology and Scud rocket parts to \JIraq\j. \I(Germany, Iraq)\i
A South African official reveals that a proposal outlining the resignation of Zairian President Mobutu Sese Seko has been drafted. \I(South Africa, Zaire)\i
The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission is to order Winnie Mandela, the President's former wife, to answer questions about four murders. \I(South Africa)\i
In an effort to recommence the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, the Israeli President, Ezer Weizman, will meet for talks with the Palestine Liberation Organization leader, Yasser Arafat. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
The human rights group, the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace, publishes a report that highlights the violence and massacres carried out by North Korean-trained Zimbabwean soldiers during a rebellion in \JMatabeleland\j province during the 1980s. \I(North Korea, Zimbabwe)\i
#
"May 5, 1997",488,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
During his visit to \JAustralia\j, the German Chancellor Helmut Kohl says that he would back \JAustralia\j's campaign to be included in the Asia-Europe Meetings (ASEM). \I(Australia, Germany)\i
Rebel Papua New Guinean troops are involved in a fraught standoff with police, after police conduct raids on certain organizations connected to the military. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Independent testing of the Canadian mining company Bre-X's infamous Busang gold deposit in \JBorneo\j, believed to be the world's largest gold discovery, uncovers only minimal traces of gold and the alleged misrepresentation of many previous samples. \I(Canada, Borneo)\i
Zhao Ziyang, the former Chinese Communist party chief, is prevented from going to the funeral of statesman Peng Zhen. The Chinese Government still remains suspicious of Mr Ziyang's intentions. \I(China)\i
Indonesian politician, Sri Bintang Pamungkas, fails to win his appeal against a jail sentence given for offending President Soeharto in a speech. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Indonesian army threatens to use force if illegal political street demonstrations continue to be conducted in Jakarta. \I(Indonesia)\i
Former Pakistani prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, goes on a two-week vacation to the USA to rest and recover from the recent upheavals in her life. \I(Pakistan)\i
Afghan Taliban militia kill 15 opposition guerrillas and capture 20 others in the eastern province of Kunar. \I(Afghanistan)\i
South Korean prosecutors uncover US$14.8 million of political funds which they allege was hidden by President Kim Young-sam's son Kim Hyun-chul. \I(South Korea)\i
Indonesia and \JMalaysia\j come to an agreement over the ownership of the islands of Sipidan and Ligitan off the coast of \JBorneo\j. \I(Indonesia, \JMalaysia\j, Borneo)\i
Over 600 people are rescued after a ferry, the King Cruiser, sinks in the Andaman Sea. \I(Thailand)\i
Hong Kong's chief executive designate, Tung Chee-hwa, rejects claims that he will restrict demonstrations and political groups once Hong Kong comes under Chinese rule. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Australian tennis player, Mark Philippoussis, beats Spanish player Alex Corretja in the final of the Munich Open tennis tournament. \I(Australia, \JSpain\j, Germany)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Independent testing of the Canadian mining company Bre-X's infamous Busang gold deposit in \JBorneo\j, believed to be the world's largest gold discovery, uncovers only minimal traces of gold and the alleged misrepresentation of many previous samples. \I(Canada, Borneo)\i
During a gun battle, police kill one of the two Texan separatists who fled after the week-long siege. \I(USA)\i
Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzook arrives in Jordan after spending 21 months in custody in the USA. \I(Jordan, USA)\i
In the trial against alleged Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, his sister testifies against him. She claimed that he used an alias and transported over 455kg of explosives. \I(USA)\i
The \JFBI\j release an announcement stating that it seems likely that a mechanical problem rather than a terrorist act led to the crash of TWA Flight 800 in July, 1996. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
During his visit to \JAustralia\j, the German Chancellor Helmut Kohl says that he would back \JAustralia\j's campaign to be included in the Asia-Europe Meetings (ASEM). \I(Australia, Germany)\i
Tony Blair, the new British Prime Minister, commences a campaign to renew relations with Europe. He appointed Doug Henderson as the new Minister for Europe as well as vowing to end 18 years of "isolationism and inward-looking chauvinism." \I(UK)\i
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, is to meet with Irish Prime Minister, John Bruton, to discuss peace talks. \I(UK, Ireland)\i
The Zairian civil war looks set to worsen as the rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, refuses to accept a conditional offer from President Mobutu. During discussions organized by South African President Mandela and held on a South African warship, President Mobutu offered to step down and hand the country over to a transitional government. The rebel leader, wanting the power for himself, vows to capture the capital, \JKinshasa\j. \(Zaire, South Africa)\i
Nearly 100 Rwandan refugees die in a stampede in a train which was transporting them from a camp to the Zairian city of \JKisangani\j. \I(Rwanda, Zaire)\i
It is announced that the Palestinian Authority will issue the death sentence to Palestinians who willingly sell their land in the West Bank or East \JJerusalem\j to Israelis. \I(Palestine, Israel, West Bank)\i
German golfer, Bernard Langer, wins the Italian Open golf championship held in Brescia. \I(Germany, Italy)\i
Twelve people are killed in a train crash at Reptowo station in northwest \JPoland\j. \I(Poland)\i
Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzook arrives in Jordan after spending 21 months in custody in the USA. \I(Jordan, USA)\i
#
"May 6, 1997",489,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Hong Kong's chief executive designate, Tung Chee-hwa, claims that it is necessary to restrict civil liberties in order to stop unrest similar to events in the United States in the 1960s. \I(Hong Kong, USA)\i
In \JMyanmar\j, it is claimed that members of ASEAN are angered by US attempts to prevent \JMyanmar\j's admission to ASEAN. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), USA)\i
The failure of representatives from North and South Korea to come to an agreement about food supplies for the North is blamed on South Korea. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
A Japanese politician visits the controversial Diaoyu islands. His visit angers China and \JTaiwan\j. \I(Japan, China, Taiwan)\i
An explosion at a New Delhi factory kills 11 people and wounds 8 others. \I(India)\i
Opposition parties in South Korea lodge a complaint against the President's son, Kim Hyun-chul, and five others, accusing them of lying before an inquiry into the Hanbo loans scandal. \I(South Korea)\i
In Melbourne, \JAustralia\j, the Crown Casino opens; it is one of the biggest casinos in Asia and \JAustralia\j. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The American Administration demands a peaceful end to the Zairian civil war, while rebels continue to advance towards the capital, \JKinshasa\j. The United Nations condemns the rebels' involvement in the massacre and violence against Rwandan refugees. \I(USA, Zaire, Rwanda)\i
The search for the \JTexas\j separatist who escaped authorities is suspended after conditions become hazardous. \I(USA)\i
American scientists discover a way to alter the surface of sensitive red blood cells that may lead to a universal blood type. \I(USA)\i
In a landmark decision, a US jury finds the \Jtobacco\j company, R. J. Reynolds \JTobacco\j Co., not liable for the death of a person who died from lung cancer. It is thought that the result will have consequences throughout the \Jtobacco\j industry. \I(USA)\i
The American actor, Charlton Heston, is nominated as the first vice president of the US National Rifle Association. \I(USA)\i
Hong Kong's chief executive designate, Tung Chee-hwa, claims that it is necessary to restrict civil liberties in order to stop unrest similar to events in the United States in the 1960s. \I(Hong Kong, USA)\i
In \JMyanmar\j, it is claimed that members of ASEAN are angered by US attempts to prevent \JMyanmar\j's admission to ASEAN. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The American Administration demands a peaceful end to the Zairian civil war, while rebels continue to advance towards the capital, \JKinshasa\j. The United Nations condemns the rebels' involvement in the massacre and violence against Rwandan refugees. \I(USA, Zaire, Rwanda)\i
Frederik de Klerk, the former South African president, announces that he will not submit an application for an amnesty from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. \I(South Africa)\i
Israeli police lay charges against 18 Jewish settlers after they tried to stop the Israelis from pulling down illegal houses built in the West Bank. \I(Israel, West Bank)\i
A diplomatic rift breaks out between Jordan and Israel in connection with shared water resources. King Hassan of Jordan cancelled high-powered talks with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. \I(Jordan, Israel)\i
The new British Foreign Minister, Robin Cook, reveals that the UK will hold a conference on Nazi gold in the near future. All nations with claims to the assets, held by the Bank of England, will be invited. \I(UK)\i
The new British Labour Government announces major reforms to the Bank of England as well as a rise in interest rates. \I(UK)\i
The battle for leadership of the British Conservative Party gains strength as more candidates enter the race. \I(UK)\i
In \JFrance\j, voters and political analysts deem the French parliamentary election campaign boring. \I(France)\i
#
"May 7, 1997",490,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Thai newspaper, the \IBangkok Post,\i criticizes Australian Prime Minister John Howard's treatment of the independent MP, Pauline Hanson. \I(Thailand, Australia)\i
The Japanese Government describes an MP's visit to the Diaoyu islands as "illegal." \I(Japan)\i
The warring premiers of \JCambodia\j, Prince Norodom Ranariddh and Hun Sen, meet for the first time in two months and agree to make peace. \I(Cambodia)\i
It is reported that four Western hostages captured by Muslim separatists in the Indian State of Kashmir over 21 months ago are dead. \I(India)\i
Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, refuses Premier Lien Chan's offer to resign over the spiraling crime rates. \I(Taiwan)\i
In an effort to deal with rising crime rates, Taiwanese authorities execute three people charged with drug smuggling. \I(Taiwan)\i
In \JSingapore\j, leading Government politicians are suing opposition candidate, Tang Liang Hong, for \Jdefamation\j, claiming a record $12 million in damages. \I(Singapore)\i
In one of Vietnam's major drug trials, three more police officers are named for their involvement in the country's largest drug cartel. \I(Vietnam)\i
In India, separatist guerrillas shoot dead a policeman and 17 paramilitary troops in an ambush in the Natunbazar region. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
During the American President's visit to Mexico two agreements are signed with Mexican President, Ernesto Zedillo. The first vows to join forces in the fight against drugs and the other promises to bring down the number of illegal migrants. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
In the trial against alleged Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, his sister claims that a few weeks before the bomb he told her that "something big is going to happen." \I(USA)\i
An American report into the assets of \JHolocaust\j victims is about to be published-it is believed to be critical of \JSwitzerland\j. It is claimed that \JGermany\j was able to use the money to extend its war efforts. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
About US$670 million is awarded to hemophiliacs who were infected with \JHIV\j through blood donations in the 1980s. \I(USA)\i
An American army sergeant is given a 25-year jail sentence for the rape of six female trainee officers. \I(USA)\i
The third chess challenge between \JIBM\j's computer Deep Blue and world champion Gary Kasparov ends in a draw. \I(USA)\i
Lt. Gen. Luis Malasquez, the Peruvian police officer blamed for the slack security measures that led to the Lima hostage crisis, flees from \JPeru\j. \I(Peru)\i
In the Whitewater inquiry, Hillary Rodham Clinton, the wife of the American President, is named as a key person. Kenneth Starr, the prosecutor, claims that her testimony has changed or differed from those of other people. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Reforms introduced by new British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, are an attempt to make the Bank of England more independent. \I(UK)\i
A British diving team is reported to have uncovered the world's oldest ship-it is thought to date back 6,431 years. \I(UK)\i
An American report into the assets of \JHolocaust\j victims is about to be published-it is believed to be critical of \JSwitzerland\j. It is claimed that \JGermany\j was able to use the money to extend its war efforts. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
Dusan "Dusko" Tadic, a Bosnian Serb police officer, is found guilty of war crimes by the United Nations war crimes tribunal. \I(Bosnia)\i
Zairian President, Mobutu Sese Seko, leaves Zaire for the \JGabon\j, apparently the purpose of his visit is a meeting with regional leaders but it is thought he may have left the country permanently. The capital of Zaire, \JKinshasa\j, prepares itself for the arrival of advancing rebel forces. \I(Zaire)\i
Pope John Paul II is due to visit \JLebanon\j. Thousands of soldiers are sent to the capital, \JBeirut\j, as security measures are tightened. \I(Lebanon)\i
The meeting between Israeli President, Ezer Weizman, and the Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, does not manage to restart the peace process but does bring about an agreement to renew security contacts. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Four leading contenders for the position of the British Conservative Party emerge; they are Michael Howard, John Redwood, Kenneth Clarke, and Peter Lilley. \I(UK)\i
#
"May 8, 1997",491,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In Sri Lanka, Tamil Tiger guerrillas are preparing to defend themselves against an anticipated attack by Government troops. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
A Tibetan monk in China is given a six-year jail sentence for helping \JTibet\j's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, in the search for the \Jreincarnation\j of a holy monk. \I(China, Tibet)\i
Norodom Sihanouk, the King of \JCambodia\j, says that he is willing to stand trial with other Khmer Rouge leaders for crimes committed during the Khmer Rouge's rule in the 1970s. \I(Cambodia)\i
The President of the \JPhilippines\j, Fidel Ramos, asks the USA to give pensions to Filipinos who served with American soldiers during the Second World War. \I(Philippines, USA)\i
A scandal over millions of dollars allegedly hidden by South Korean President's son, Kim Hyun-chul, continues to grow. The money is believed to have been left over from the presidential election campaign. A former police officer is to be questioned about the money. \I(South Korea)\i
Two fuel tanks from a Pakistani Air Force jet are dropped over \JKarachi\j in an effort to avoid crashing. Five people on the ground were killed. \I(Pakistan)\i
Despite wanting to strengthen ties with \JPakistan\j, Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, says that he will not endanger India's security to do so. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Malaysian Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohammed, quells rumors that his two-month vacation is the lead-up to his retirement or problems with his health. \I(Malaysia)\i
Twelve people die after a fire breaks out at a sewage treatment plant in the city of Chongqing in central China. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
America's special Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, attempts to bring Israel and Palestine together to recommence peace talks. American diplomats warn that if his efforts fail, violence could once again erupt in the Middle East. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
A Swiss security guard that saved historical documents pertaining to the \JHolocaust\j from the shredder at the Union Bank of \JSwitzerland\j receives a hero's welcome in the USA. \I(Switzerland, USA)\i
The President of the \JPhilippines\j, Fidel Ramos, asks the USA to give pensions to Filipinos who served with American soldiers during the Second World War. \I(Philippines, USA)\i
The American President, Bill Clinton, meets with Central American leaders in Costa Rica. \I(USA, Costa Rica)\i
The American Republican Party confesses that it received illegal donations which it was forced to return. \I(USA)\i
Boris Yeltsin, the Russian President, says that \JNATO\j's plans to expand eastwards are straining relations between \JRussia\j and the US. He made a comparison with the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The deportation of criminals from the United States to the Caribbean causes crime rates to spiral. \I(USA, Caribbean)\i
A newly published American report claims that \JSwitzerland\j did not keep to a 1946 agreement which proposed that it should return millions of dollars worth of assets belonging to \JHolocaust\j victims. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In his first address to new Labour MPs, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, warns that they must keep up their high standards and must not let voters down. He proposes to push 22 new bills through parliament in the coming months. \I(UK)\i
Robin Cook, the new British Foreign Minister, travels to \JGermany\j to meet with ministers from \JFrance\j and \JGermany\j in an effort to get Britain actively involved in the European Union. \I(UK, \JGermany\j, France)\i
The Irish Prime Minister, John Bruton, says that Labour's UK election victory increases the chances of peace in Northern Ireland. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
A Swiss security guard that saved historical documents pertaining to the \JHolocaust\j from the shredder at the Union Bank of \JSwitzerland\j receives a hero's welcome in the USA. \I(Switzerland, USA)\i
America's special Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, attempts to bring Israel and Palestine together to recommence peace talks. American diplomats warn that if his efforts fail, violence could once again erupt in the Middle East. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
German tennis player, Boris Becker, wins his first match in nearly three months at the German Open. He has been treated for a major wrist injury. \I(Germany)\i
Angolan troops are apparently gathering along the Zairian border. It is feared that they may join rebel forces in an attack on the capital, \JKinshasa\j. \I(Angola, Zaire)\i
Speculation in Zaire continues to mount that President Mobutu Sese Seko has fled the country. He is scheduled to return from a meeting in \JGabon\j with regional leaders. \I(Zaire)\i
General Magnus Malan, former South African defense minister, confesses at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that he ordered the Civil Co-operation Bureau to be set up. \I(South Africa)\i
France intends to hold a trial in absentia against Abdallah Senoussi, the brother-in-law of \JLibya\j's Colonel Gaddafi, on charges of planting a bomb on a French \Jaircraft\j that killed 171 people in 1989. \I(France, Libya)\i
Boris Yeltsin, the Russian President, says that \JNATO\j's plans to expand eastwards are straining relations between \JRussia\j and the US. He made a comparison with the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. \I(Russia, USA)\i
A newly published American report claims that \JSwitzerland\j did not keep to a 1946 agreement which proposed that it should return millions of dollars worth of assets belonging to \JHolocaust\j victims. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
#
"May 9, 1997",492,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
It is reported that thousands of Karen refugees, who fled from fighting in \JMyanmar\j, have left refugee camps in \JThailand\j. It is thought that they have either returned to \JMyanmar\j or gone to look for work in major Thai cities. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), Thailand)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, makes his first public condemnation of independent MP, Pauline Hanson. Ms Hanson is known to be anti-Asian, anti-Aboriginal, and critical of foreign investment. \I(Australia)\i
Another North Korean defector to South Korea, Kwon Young-hae, says that he believes North Korea has nuclear weapons but he is unable to provide any evidence to support his claims. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
Thirty-five people die and many others are injured in a plane crash at Huangtain Airport in the Chinese City of Shenzhen. \I(China)\i
Under the rule of the Islamic Taliban militia, it is reported that \JAfghanistan\j is producing nearly 40 per cent of the world's heroin supply for 1997. International aid workers claim that the Taliban have been portrayed as evil despite the fact they are more efficient than their mujahideen predecessors. \I(Afghanistan)\i
America's first ambassador to Vietnam since the end of the Vietnam War, Douglas "Pete" Peterson, arrives in \JHanoi\j. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
Kim Hyun-chul, the son of South Korean President Kim Young-sam, is accused of hiding thousands of dollars left over from the presidential election campaign. \I(South Korea)\i
It is announced that \JJapan\j's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will visit \JBrazil\j and Argentina at the end of May. \I(Japan, \JBrazil\j, Argentina)\i
Sonia Gandhi, the widow of Rajiv Gandhi, displays support for India's Congress party; this move is seen as her first public step towards political life. \I(India)\i
Over 70 people traveling to a wedding in the Indian State of Himachal Pradesh die when their truck is involved in a collision. \I(India)\i
The Japanese Government intends to increase the number of coast guard patrols near the Diaoyu islands-Taiwanese and Hong Kong activists are expected to try to land on the islands. \I(Japan, \JTaiwan\j, Hong Kong)\i
The American Administration is suspicious of the claims made by North Korean defector, Hwang Jang-yop, that North Korea has nuclear weapons and is getting ready for war. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
America's special envoy to the Middle East, Dennis Ross, is apparently unsuccessful in his efforts to restart the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
A scandal over Michael Kennedy's involvement with a babysitter ends when the girl's family agrees not to press charges. Michael Kennedy is the son of Robert Kennedy. \I(USA)\i
It is announced that \JJapan\j's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will visit \JBrazil\j and Argentina at the end of May. \I(Japan, \JBrazil\j, Argentina)\i
The American Administration is suspicious of the claims made by North Korean defector, Hwang Jang-yop, that North Korea has nuclear weapons and is getting ready for war. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
America's first ambassador to Vietnam since the end of the Vietnam War, Douglas "Pete" Peterson, arrives in \JHanoi\j. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
Newt Gingrich, the US House of Representatives speaker, launches the Republicans' plan for social reform, vowing to cut down the number of drug users, and improve education. \I(USA)\i
The Mexican Government's efforts to overhaul the police force fail when hundreds of graduates of a police re-education course fight with military riot forces. \I(Mexico)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
It is believed that thousands of rebel troops are gathering in the city of Kikwit in preparation for the advance on the capital of Zaire, \JKinshasa\j. President Mobutu announces that he will not make a bid for re-election. \I(Zaire)\i
America's special envoy to the Middle East, Dennis Ross, is apparently unsuccessful in his efforts to restart the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and King Hussein of Jordan meet in secret to resolve the dispute over water resources. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
In \JGermany\j, over 20 right-wing extremists are arrested after riots occurred in towns in the former East \JGermany\j. \I(Germany)\i
Eight Italian separatists are arrested in Venice. They had occupied a bell tower in St. Mark's Square in an effort to bring attention to their aim for an independent state of Venice. \I(Italy)\i
In \JFrance\j, a folder containing information on thousands of Jews who were sent to concentration camps is discovered in a garbage dump. \I(France)\i
The new British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, introduces a wave of reforms in his first days of office, including an effort to renew relations with the European Union, fill the top 90 positions in Government, and introduce reforms to the Bank of England. \I(UK)\i
Michael Heseltine, a former British deputy prime minister, undergoes major heart surgery. Mr Heseltine had been tipped as a contender for Conservative Party leader but was forced to pull out of the race due to ill health. \I(UK)\i
It is revealed that Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, is preparing to sign an agreement solidifying \JRussia\j's relationship with \JNATO\j. \I(Russia)\i
#
"May 10, 1997",493,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Vietnam's first ambassador to the USA, Le Van Bang, arrives in the US. \I(Vietnam, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Vietnam's first ambassador to the USA, Le Van Bang, arrives in the US. \I(Vietnam, USA)\i
In the trial of Timothy McVeigh, the alleged Oklahoma bomber, McVeigh is identified as the person who hired the truck that was utilized in the explosion at the Oklahoma City federal building. \I(USA)\i
It is revealed that the \JFBI\j has been monitoring the activities of members of the American Administration because it believes that someone is a spy for Israel. \I(USA, Israel)\i
In \JBarbados\j, the American President, Bill Clinton, holds a one-day conference on regional cooperation. \I(USA, Caribbean)\i
It is announced that the new British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, will meet with American President, Bill Clinton, at the end of May. \I(USA, UK)\i
Charles Bendheim, a strong promoter of Jewish causes in the USA and Israel, dies at the age of 79. \I(Israel, USA)\i
Dennis Ross, the American Middle East envoy, meets with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, in an effort to restore the peace process. \I(USA, Israel)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
It is announced that the new British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, will meet with American President, Mr Bill Clinton, at the end of May. \I(USA, UK)\i
It is revealed that the \JFBI\j has been monitoring the activities of members of the American Administration because it believes that someone is a spy for Israel. \I(USA, Israel)\i
Fighting in south \JLebanon\j continues between Hezbollah guerrillas and the South Lebanese Army. \I(Lebanon)\i
Charles Bendheim, a strong promoter of Jewish causes in the USA and Israel, dies at the age of 79. \I(Israel, USA)\i
Some of the British Labor Party's new MPs reject the Prime Minister's suggestion that formality should be dispensed with and to address each other using first names. \I(UK)\i
It is thought that contrary to rumors that he had fled the country, the Zairian President Mobutu Sese Seko will be returning to Zaire. \I(Zaire)\i
Dennis Ross, the American Middle East envoy, meets with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, in an effort to restore the peace process. \I(USA, Israel)\i
#
"May 11, 1997",494,0,0,0
In an effort to renew relations between \JPakistan\j and India, the prime ministers from both countries are due to meet for the first time. \I(Pakistan, India)\i
It is now thought that a mechanical problem caused the plane crash that killed 35 people in the Chinese city of Shenzhen. \I(China)\i
It is reported that hundreds of North Korean soldiers are starving. They have been seen demanding food supplies and money. \I(North Korea)\i
In New Zealand, scientists claim that high-tension power lines are connected to \Jasthma\j and depression in adults. \I(New Zealand)\i
Violent protests take place in \JTasmania\j against the independent Australian MP, Pauline Hanson. Ms Hanson's racist views have been causing outrage in \JAustralia\j. \I(Australia)\i
The Chinese province of Guangdong is hit by severe storms that killed over 100 people and left thousands of other people homeless. \I(China)\i
Hong Kong's Democratic Party announces it will start a legal challenge against the shadow legislature appointed by China. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Hundreds of South Korean students clash with riot police during a demonstration. They want President Kim Young-sam to resign. \I(South Korea)\i
The \JFBI\j uncovers new evidence that there was a Chinese plan to influence American politicians and policies. \I(USA, China)\i
Ten years after becoming a republic, \JFiji\j is requesting re-admission to the Commonwealth. \I(Fiji)\i
Thousands of opposition supporters from two factions demonstrate in Jakarta; such protest is against \JIndonesia\j's election laws. It is thought that the opposition groups may be considering a merger. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The \JFBI\j uncovers new evidence that there was a Chinese plan to influence American politicians and policies. \I(USA, China)\i
Whitewater prosecutor Kenneth Starr's request for Hillary Rodham Clinton to give up notes of her conversations with White House lawyers is refused by the President on the grounds of privilege. \I(USA)\i
Twenty-six Iraqis are in jail in \JCalifornia\j, accused of being double agents for \JIraq\j. They were brought to the US to help in efforts to overthrow President Saddam Hussein. They now face deportation to \JIraq\j. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
The United Nations is proposing a major structural reform of its humanitarian and development sectors in preparing for the twenty-first century. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Nearly 2,500 people are presumed dead after an \Jearthquake\j, measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale, hit Qaen, north east of Birjand in \JIran\j. Six thousand other people are reported to have been injured. \JIran\j asks for international assistance. \I(Iran)\i
Twenty-six Iraqis are in jail in \JCalifornia\j, accused of being double agents for \JIraq\j. They were brought to the US to help in efforts to overthrow President Saddam Hussein. They now face deportation to \JIraq\j. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, names a convicted IRA bomber, Siobhan O'Hanlon, to set up offices at the UK's House of Commons for the party's two MPs, Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
Almost 30,000 people took to the streets of \JBeirut\j hoping to catch a glance of Pope John Paul II during his visit to \JLebanon\j. \I(Lebanon)\i
William Hague appears to be winning the race for the leadership of the British Conservative Party. \I(UK)\i
In South Africa the deadline to apply for an amnesty from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission ends. Thousands of people make last-minute applications. \I(South Africa)\i
An Irish political faction called the Irish National Liberation Army claims responsibility for the death of an off-duty policeman. \I(UK)\i
Farid Bashiti, an Arab real estate agent, is found murdered. He is believed to have been killed by Palestinian security forces after the President last week ordered his troops to stop the sale of land to Jews. \I(Palestine)\i
Zairian President Mobutu returns to the country after discussions with regional leaders in the \JGabon\j; many people thought that he would have taken the opportunity to go into exile. President Mobutu agrees to further discussions about passing power to the rebel leader, Laurent Kabila. \I(Zaire)\i
#
"May 12, 1997",495,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A senior United Nations official reiterates that many North Korean people are starving, as \Jfamine\j slowly hits the country. \I(North Korea)\i
Atrocious storms and winds hit Mount Everest, leaving nine climbers missing. \I(Nepal)\i
In Sri Lanka, Tamil separatists attack a police station by using rocket-propelled grenades, killing 16 policemen and 5 civilians. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Australian tennis player, Jason Stoltenberg, wins the America's Red Clay Tennis Championship held in \JCoral\j Springs, \JFlorida\j. \I(Australia, USA)\i
The leader of the province of Xinjiang in China confesses that many separatist groups exist in the region. The province was the site of ethnic rioting earlier this year. \I(China)\i
A former colleague of Kim Hyun-chul, the son of South Korean President Kim Young-sam, claims that he secreted away millions of dollars for him. \I(South Korea)\i
China denies claims by the \JFBI\j that it made illegal cash contributions to American politicians in an effort to influence US foreign policy. \I(USA, China)\i
In the Indian City of Srinagar in the province of Kashmir, a strike is held to demonstrate against human rights abuses by security forces. \I(India)\i
Australian long-distance swimmer, Susie Maroney, successfully swims from \JCuba\j to the Straits of \JFlorida\j. \I(Cuba, USA, Australia)\i
In the Papua New Guinean Island of Bougainville, rebels murder four villagers. This is the first case of violence in five months. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In New York, the \JIBM\j supercomputer, Deep Blue, beats the world chess champion, Garry Kasparov. The computer won by one game. \I(USA)\i
Australian long-distance swimmer, Susie Maroney, successfully swims from \JCuba\j to the Straits of \JFlorida\j. \I(Cuba, USA, Australia)\i
The American City of Miami is hit by a \Jtornado\j that caused lots of damage but no injuries. \I(USA)\i
In the trial against alleged Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, it is said that he was set on starting a "general uprising in America." \I(USA)\i
It is said that the newly repaired and updated Hubble \Jtelescope\j is better than ever. \I(USA)\i
Madeleine Albright, the US Secretary of State, approves $US100,000 in aid for victims of the Iranian \Jearthquake\j. \I(USA, Iran)\i
China denies claims by the \JFBI\j that it made illegal cash contributions to American politicians in an effort to influence US foreign policy. \I(USA, China)\i
American actor, Katharine Hepburn, celebrates her 90th birthday. \I(USA)\i
Australian tennis player, Jason Stoltenberg, wins the America's Red Clay Tennis Championship held in \JCoral\j Springs, \JFlorida\j. \I(Australia, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British organizations Grand Metropolitan Plc and Guinness Plc announce plans to merge. The amalgamation of such large food groups would result in a $43 billion mammoth organization. \I(UK)\i
The personal guard of Yasser Arafat, the leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, is blamed for the death of the Arab real estate agent, Farid Bashiti. His murder followed the announcement that Palestinians found selling land to Jews would be given the death penalty. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Four explosions in the city of \JAlgiers\j kill six people and wound over 70 other people in the lead-up to the general elections. \I(Algeria)\i
Countries from all around the world promise to give aid to the victims of the Iranian \Jearthquake\j. It is believed that at least 4,000 people died and over 6,000 were injured in the \Jearthquake\j which hit the north-east region of the country. \I(Iran)\i
Iran is hit by another \Jearthquake\j, measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale; there were no reports of any injuries or further damage. \I(Iran)\i
The South African Government invites Northern Irish political parties to a meeting about how to resolve conflict. \I(South Africa, Northern Ireland)\i
Madeleine Albright, the US Secretary of State, approves $US100,000 in aid for victims of the Iranian \Jearthquake\j. \I(USA, Iran)\i
Michael Schumacher wins the 55th Monaco Grand Prix. \I(Monaco)\i
A bill supported by the army that proposes to close down many Islamic schools causes outrage. Thousands of people demonstrate against the bill in the streets of \JAnkara\j. \I(Turkey)\i
Thabo Mbeki, the South African Deputy President, confesses that ANC leaders plotted to kill Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi, the leader of the Zulu Nationalist Inkatha Freedom Party. \I(South Africa)\i
The prospects of a peaceful end to the Zairian civil war look remote, as rebels refuse to accept the person chosen to succeed President Mobutu. The \JArchbishop\j Laurent Monsengwo was named as parliamentary speaker at the weekend, placing him as a leading contender for the position. \I(Zaire)\i
Italian authorities claim that the Venetian separatists who occupied a tower in St. Mark's Square are part of a larger organization. \I(Italy)\i
In Moscow, the Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, and the Chechen President, Aslan Maskhadov, sign a peace agreement, signaling the end of the conflict between the two states. \I(Russia, Chechnya)\i
#
"May 13, 1997",496,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The North Korean Government rejects any plans to help the US to locate American soldiers who have been missing since the Korean War. It is a move believed to be motivated to force the US to supply food aid to North Korea. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
The high-level talks between the Indian and Pakistani prime ministers are hailed as a success. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Six climbers are presumed dead after fierce storms hit Mount Everest. \I(Nepal)\i
Despite the Indonesian Government's ban on opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri's participation in the forthcoming general elections, she continues to receive growing support from Indonesians. The Government bans any symbols or signs portraying her image. \I(Indonesia)\i
Spiraling crime rates in \JTaiwan\j continue to threaten President Lee's Government. \I(Taiwan)\i
A company manager and a surveyor at the Canadian-owned, Bre-X Busang mine are taken hostage by workers. Indonesian workers are angered by the company's decision to lay off hundreds of employees. \I(Indonesia, Canada)\i
Japan's ambassador to \JPeru\j, Morihisa Aoki, resigns. He is blamed for the lapse in security that led to the Lima hostage crisis. \I(Japan, Peru)\i
Thousands of people are expected to demonstrate on the island of \JOkinawa\j to demand the withdrawal of American military bases from the island. \I(Japan, USA)\i
The Japanese island of \JKyushu\j is hit by an \Jearthquake\j, measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale. Six people are injured. \I(Japan)\i
Top military leaders from China and the US meet and agree to renew military relations that were severed after the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident. \I(China, USA)\i
It seems likely that Hong Kong's Chief Executive in-waiting, Tung Chee-hwa, will drop his intentions to reform civil liberties in the territory after international and local protests. \I(Hong Kong)\i
At the forthcoming meeting of the World Trade Organization to be held in \JSwitzerland\j next week, China hopes to overcome barriers that are preventing its admission to the trade group. \I(China, Switzerland)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The sale of artworks owned by the Loeb family, which are being auctioned by Christie's in New York, nets $US92.7million in the first week. Proceeds will go towards establishing a charity in the family's name. \I(USA)\i
Thousands of people are expected to demonstrate on the island of \JOkinawa\j, demanding the withdrawal of American military bases from the island. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Japan's ambassador to \JPeru\j, Morihisa Aoki, resigns. He is blamed for the lapse in security that led to the Lima hostage crisis. \I(Japan, Peru)\i
The North Korean Government rejects any plans to help the US to locate American soldiers who have been missing since the Korean War. It is a move believed to be motivated to force the US to supply food aid to North Korea. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Top military leaders from China and the US meet and agree to renew military relations that were severed after the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident. \I(China, USA)\i
The person accused of murdering Ennis Cosby, the son of American actor Bill Cosby, pleads not guilty. \I(USA)\i
A company manager and a surveyor at the Canadian-owned Bre-X Busang mine are taken hostage by workers. Indonesian workers are angered by the company's decision to lay off hundreds employees. \I(Indonesia, Canada)\i
American actor Christopher Reeve, who was paralyzed in a horse accident two years ago, reveals that he has regained a little sensation in his hands, arms, and back. \I(USA)\i
Despite no success in renewing the peace process, the US special Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, extends his visit in the region and continues his efforts to bring Israel and Palestine to the discussion table. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Zairian rebels are rumored to be 100km away from the capital, \JKinshasa\j. A general strike is called as last-minute peace talks are held. \I(Zaire)\i
Forthcoming elections in Bosnia may mean that thousands of additional \JNATO\j soldiers will be sent to assist the peacekeeping force already stationed there. \I(Bosnia)\i
It is claimed that Palestinian guerrillas hatched a plan to assassinate Pope John Paul II during his recent visit to \JLebanon\j. \I(Palestine, Lebanon)\i
At the forthcoming meeting of the World Trade Organization to be held in \JSwitzerland\j next week, China hopes to overcome barriers that are preventing its admission to the trade group. \I(China, Switzerland)\i
The predicted demise of President Mobutu's rule in Zaire also signals the death knell for Western influence in that country. \I(Zaire)\i
The new British Government announces that it intends to instigate a complete ban on all handguns. \I(UK)\i
The British Labour Government reveals that it plans to rejoin the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. It left 12 years ago due to problems with mismanagement and corruption. \I(UK)\i
Despite no success in renewing the peace process, the US special Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, extends his visit in the region and continues his efforts to bring Israel and Palestine to the discussion table. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"May 14, 1997",497,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Two men held hostage by Indonesian workers at the Busang gold mine are released. The company has promised to pay employees their salaries. \I(Indonesia)\i
A large bomb that dates back to the Second World War is found in Phnom Penh. \I(Cambodia)\i
The Thai coalition Government of Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh is embroiled in sleaze scandals, worsening economic problems, and internal political disputes. \I(Thailand)\i
Clashes between Indonesian opposition and government supporters result in violence and the closure of part of Jakarta. \I(Indonesia)\i
A bomb explodes in a park near the Great Hall of the People in \JBeijing\j, killing one person. Another explosion occurs in a bus in the town of Shunde, killing five people. It is thought unemployed people may have been responsible for the explosions. \I(China)\i
The Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand, Winston Peters, is found guilty of attacking another MP in March. \I(New Zealand)\i
Sri Lankan troops continue to advance towards Tamil Tiger guerrilla territory as part of a plan to seize a major road in the north of the country. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
In Vietnam eight people are given the death sentence for their part in a drug traffic ring; the Vietnamese Government is trying to crack down on drug dealers. \I(Vietnam)\i
At a meeting of South Asian leaders in the \JMaldives\j, there is a call to end further environmental damage and to stop rising sea levels. \I(Asia, Maldives)\i
A report by the Indian Central Bureau of Investigation claims that former prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, was involved in a corruption scandal between India and the Swedish company Bofors 11 years ago. The news comes a week after the entry of his widow, Sonia Gandhi, into the political arena. \I(India, Sweden)\i
The American Administration cautions China that North Korea is endangering peace in the Asia-Pacific region. \I(USA, China, North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In an attempt to renew the Middle East peace process, the American Ambassador to Israel, Martin Indyk, organizes discussions at his home in \JJerusalem\j. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
In the trial against alleged Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, a witness gives evidence claiming that he saw a truck pull away from the building two minutes before the explosion. \I(USA)\i
The American millionaire, John du Pont, is given a jail sentence of 13 to 30 years for killing wrestler David Schultz in 1996. \I(USA)\i
The American Administration cautions China that North Korea is endangering peace in the Asia-Pacific region. \I(USA, China, North Korea)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the hope of a last-ditch effort to save the Zairian capital, \JKinshasa\j, the South African President, Nelson Mandela, organizes talks between President Mobutu and the rebel leader, Laurent Kabila. At the last minute, Mr Kabila withdraws from the talks, complaining about the location. \I(Zaire, South Africa)\i
Thousands of Rwandan refugees are preparing to leave Zaire and attempt to go to the \JCongo\j. The Congolese Government is unwilling to accept the refugees, fearing that it will bring war to the \JCongo\j. \I(Rwanda, Zaire, Congo)\i
Fears for the safety of foreigners and leading political figures mount, as it is rumored that they have been earmarked for execution when rebels arrive in the capital, \JKinshasa\j. \I(Zaire)\i
The Croatian Government repossesses thousands of homes that once belonged to ethnic Serbs and is promising them to ethnic Croats from Bosnia and \JSerbia\j. \I(Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia)\i
The speaker of the House of Commons bans two Sinn Fein MPs from using the facilities in the Commons after they do not wish to promise allegiance to the British Queen. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
It seems likely that \JRussia\j will sign an agreement with \JNATO\j that will allow \JPoland\j, the Czech Republic, and \JHungary\j to join the organization. \I(Russia, \JPoland\j, Czech Republic, Hungary)\i
The new British Government announces its proposals to radically reform the welfare state. \I(UK)\i
The British author, Laurie Lee, dies at the age of 82. I\(UK)\i
Newly published reports issue warnings about the safety of the Eurotunnel between the UK and Europe after the 1996 fire. \I(UK, Europe)\i
Albanian President Sali Berisha's Democratic Party issues its own version of electoral law avoiding any discussions on the subject. \I(Albania)\i
The Russian Parliament votes to stop the return of billions of dollars worth of artworks taken by Russian troops from \JGermany\j during the Second World War. \I(Russia, Germany)\i
In an attempt to renew the Middle East peace process, the American Ambassador to Israel, Martin Indyk, organizes discussions at his home in \JJerusalem\j. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
The career of Israeli politician Shimon Peres looks likely to end after the Israeli Labor Party rejects any plans to create an honorary post for him. \I(Israel)\i
A report by the Indian Central Bureau of Investigation claims that former prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, was involved in a corruption scandal between India and the Swedish company Bofors 11 years ago. The news comes a week after the entry of his widow, Sonia Gandhi, into the political arena. \I(India, Sweden)\i
It is reported that Turkish soldiers using heavy artillery have crossed the border into northern \JIraq\j in an attack against separatist Kurdish rebel camps. \I(Turkey, Iraq)\i
#
"May 15, 1997",498,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In Jakarta, many people are injured in a brawl between construction site workers and participants in an election rally supporting President Soeharto's Golkar Party. \I(Indonesia)\i
Tung Chee-wha, Hong Kong's Chief Executive in-waiting, revises his proposed laws to restrict civil liberties. The changes are made after widespread public opposition to proposed legislation in Hong Kong. \I(Hong Kong)\i
In South Korea, Kim Hyun-chul, son of President Kim Young-sam, faces charges of graft and influence peddling. \I(South Korea)\i
The Sri Lankan military begins firing on Tamil Tiger guerrillas, killing and injuring guerrillas and possibly some civilians. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Taiwan's President, Lee Teng-hui, apologizes to the Taiwanese public for a number of recent unsolved murders and expresses his government's intention to improve social order. \I(Taiwan)\i
Taiwan, which has set up an agreement to purchase 150 F-16 jet fighters from the US, takes delivery of five of the planes. Two were delivered in April, and the remaining planes will be delivered in groups of two or three per month. \JTaiwan\j ordered the planes to strengthen its position against China. \I(Taiwan, USA)\i
French President, Jacques Chirac, arrives in \JBeijing\j for a state visit. President Chirac and Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, hold private talks to establish a partnership between their countries. \I(France, China)\i
On the 25th anniversary of \JOkinawa\j's return to Japanese rule from US administration, thousands protest about the US military bases still there. \I(Japan, USA)\i
The inquiry into Papua New Guinea's use of mercenaries finishes after six weeks. It is possible that the report on the inquiry won't be published until after Papua New Guinea's elections in June. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
A Royal Commission, set up in 1994 to investigate corruption in the New South Wales police force, publishes its findings. Justice James Wood, who headed the royal commission, presents a report containing 174 recommendations for cleaning up the force. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US air force B-52 pilot, Lieutenant Kelly Flinn, may be allowed to resign with an honorable discharge rather than face a court-martial over her affair with a married civilian. \I(USA)\i
In the trial of Timothy McVeigh, the man suspected of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, a witness states that McVeigh's fingerprints could not be found on several crucial pieces of evidence. \I(USA)\i
Auguste Renoir's painting \IYoung Woman Bathing\i sells for $US12.4 million at an auction in New York. \I(USA)\i
Taiwan, which has set up an agreement to purchase 150 F-16 jet fighters from the US, takes delivery of five of the planes. Two were delivered in April, and the remaining planes will be delivered in groups of two or three per month. \JTaiwan\j ordered the planes to strengthen its position against China. \I(Taiwan, USA)\i
On the 25th anniversary of \JOkinawa\j's return to Japanese rule from US administration, thousands protest about the US military bases still there. \I(Japan, USA)\i
After lengthy negotiations, \JRussia\j reluctantly approves efforts by the US to admit the Czech Republic, \JPoland\j, and \JHungary\j to the \JNATO\j military alliance. \I(Russia, Czech Republic, \JPoland\j, \JHungary\j, USA)\i
British-born NASA \Jastronaut\j, Dr Michael Foale, blasts off in the shuttle Atlantis to carry out repairs on the Russian space station, Mir. \I(Russia, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The British Labour Government publishes a Referendums Bill that will let Scotland and Wales vote on the Government's proposals to establish a Scottish Parliament and a Welsh elected assembly. \I(UK)\i
Irish Prime Minister, John Bruton, announces national elections for 6 June. \I(Ireland)\i
French President, Jacques Chirac, arrives in \JBeijing\j for a state visit. President Chirac and Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, hold private talks to establish a partnership between their countries. \I(France, China)\i
British-born NASA \Jastronaut\j, Dr Michael Foale, blasts off in the shuttle Atlantis to carry out repairs on the Russian space station, Mir. \I(Russia, USA)\i
After lengthy negotiations, \JRussia\j reluctantly approves efforts by the US to admit the Czech Republic, \JPoland\j, and \JHungary\j to the \JNATO\j military alliance. \I(Russia, Czech Republic, \JPoland\j, \JHungary\j, USA)\i
Thirty villagers in \JAlgeria\j are killed in a massacre by an armed band of criminals. The attack occurs on the first day of \JAlgeria\j's election campaigns. No group claims responsibility for the attack. \I(Algeria)\i
In Zaire, rebel leader, Laurent Kabila, demands that President Mobutu accepts his peace proposal by Monday. \I(Zaire)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is pleased that justice minister, Yaacov Neeman, was acquitted of \Jperjury\j and obstructing justice. \I(Israel)\i
Shimon Peres, leader of the Israeli Labour Party, meets Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, and recommends that they not give up hope on achieving peace in the area. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"May 16, 1997",499,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Chinese authorities plan to station more than 10,000 police along the border during the Hong Kong handover period to prevent illegal immigrants leaving the mainland for Hong Kong. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Kim Hyun-chul, son of the President of South Korea, who is facing charges of graft and influence peddling, claims that prosecutors blackmailed businessmen to say that they had received favors from Kim after providing him with kickbacks. \I(South Korea)\i
Food shortages in North Korea have prompted its leader to make the military responsible for managing the country's farms. \I(North Korea)\i
US Army personnel are to visit North Korea soon in an effort to identify some of the thousands of Americans listed as missing during the Korean War. The Army team will excavate three sites and examine dog tags to help them in their search. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
The leaders of India and \JPakistan\j meet for the first time in eight years. Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, and Pakistani Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, agree to open the lines of communication between their countries. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
France's Foreign Minister, Herve de Charette, asks the Chinese Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen, to release 17 Chinese and Tibetan \Jdissidents\j being detained in Chinese prisons. \I(China, France)\i
In the north of Sri Lanka, military forces seize a town held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The Tamil Tigers are fighting to establish a separate state. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Prosecutors seek the death penalty in the case of Theodore Kaczynski, America's "Unabomber" suspect. \I(USA)\i
In \JDenver\j, the prosecution's case against alleged Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, ends. Prosecutors claim they can show that residue from explosives used in the bombing were found on McVeigh's clothes. \I(USA)\i
Space shuttle Atlantis docks safely with the Russian space station, Mir. \JAstronaut\j Dr Michael Foale will replace Jerry Linenger, the American \Jastronaut\j who has been aboard Mir for four months. Dr Foale will remain on Mir for four and a half months. \I(USA, Russia)\i
US Army personnel are to visit North Korea soon in an effort to identify some of the thousands of Americans listed as missing during the Korean War. The Army team will excavate three sites and examine dog tags to help them in their search. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
New welfare laws in the US cause debate as President Clinton proposes that people who do community work for welfare benefits be paid the minimum wage. Critics claim that people on the "workfare" scheme should not necessarily receive the minimum wage because it is unfair to those earning the minimum wage in "proper" jobs. \I(USA)\i
President Bill Clinton apologizes to eight men who were unknowingly used by the US Government in an experiment to see the effects of \Jsyphilis\j when left untreated in black men. The experiment, which began in 1932, was uncovered in a newspaper report in the early 1970s. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In an effort to encourage an IRA ceasefire and subsequently admit Sinn Fein to peace talks, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, offers Sinn Fein a chance to meet with government officials. If Sinn Fein leaders show that they want peace, and that the IRA will call a ceasefire, Prime Minister Blair will invite them to take part in multi-party peace talks early in June. If the IRA does not call a ceasefire, Sinn Fein will not be admitted to the talks. \I(UK, Ireland)\i
NATO's member nations approve the wording of a new accord that allows for \JRussia\j to be involved in consultation on \JNATO\j plans. The accord will be officially signed on 27 May at a summit in Paris. \I(Russia)\i
Space shuttle Atlantis docks safely with the Russian space station, Mir. \JAstronaut\j Dr Michael Foale will replace Jerry Linenger, the American \Jastronaut\j who has been aboard Mir for four months. Dr Foale will remain on Mir for four and a half months. \I(USA, Russia)\i
President Mobutu leaves the Zairian capital, \JKinshasa\j, effectively conceding defeat to rebel leader, Laurent Kabila. \I(Zaire)\i
A meeting between Mother Teresa and the Pope is postponed as Mother Teresa falls ill on her arrival in \JRome\j. Mother Teresa is now recovering in a convent. \I(Italy)\i
Clashes between Hezbollah guerrillas and the Israeli Army occur in \JJerusalem\j. Three soldiers are killed and seven are wounded. \I(Israel)\i
Shimon Peres is unofficially replaced as leader of the opposition Labour Party in Israel. Ehud Barak will replace Mr Peres. \I(Israel)\i
#
"May 17, 1997",500,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Fighting between Sri Lankan troops and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam continues as troops capture another town held by the rebels in northern Sri Lanka. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Kim Hyun-chul, son of South Korean President Kim Young-sam, is arrested on charges of tax evasion and influence peddling. The arrest is televised nationally. \I(South Korea)\i
In the lead-up to the 29 May Indonesian elections, supporters of opposing parties clash in the streets of Jakarta. Police use gas and rubber bullets to stop the fighting. \I(Indonesia)\i
Vietnam expresses anger at the European Parliament over a critical report on its human rights record. The Vietnamese Foreign Ministry claims that the Parliament has no right to interfere in Vietnam's affairs. \I(Vietnam)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Newt Gingrich, US congressional Speaker, pays $US50,000 of his $US300,000 ethics penalty. \I(USA)\i
It is reported that US President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary Rodham Clinton owe millions of dollars in legal fees after investigations into their business dealings. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, meets Irish officials in preparation for talks with Britain's new Labour Government. \I(UK)\i
English \Jsoccer\j team Chelsea defeats Middlesbrough in the FA Cup competition. It is only the second time that Chelsea has won the competition. \I(UK)\i
Laurent Kabila's rebel forces enter the capital city of \JKinshasa\j. Kabila declares himself leader of Zaire and changes the name of the country to the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. \I(Zaire)\i
Roelf Meyer, a prominent member of South Africa's former ruling party, the National Party, resigns and announces his intention to start a new party. \I(South Africa)\i
Fighting in south \JLebanon\j continues after a battle that began earlier in the week. Paratroopers and Hezbollah guerrillas both suffer fatalities in the encounter. \I(Lebanon)\i
Turkish forces pursue Kurdish rebel guerrillas in \JIraq\j in the largest operation of its kind in over two years. \I(Turkey, Iraq)\i
Israel and Turkey agree to work together to produce the Popeye II air-to-ground missile. \I(Israel, Turkey)\i
#
"May 18, 1997",501,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In Sri Lanka, almost three hundred troops and guerrillas are killed in a military offensive that began a week ago. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Kim Hyun-chul, son of South Korean President Kim Young-sam, remains in prison after being arrested on Saturday. Calls are now being made for the President to explain his own financial dealings with the collapsed Hanbo steel group, which contributed to his election campaign in 1995. \I(South Korea)\i
The largest opposition party in India, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), opposes Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral's decision to cooperate with \JPakistan\j and form a group to discuss Kashmir's future. Kashmir is controlled by the two countries, however the BJP wants India to regain complete control of it, rather than discuss other options with \JPakistan\j. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
In \JMongolia\j, the people go to the polls to elect a new president. \I(Mongolia)\i
On the southern coast of \JBangladesh\j, thousands of people leave their homes for storm shelters when a \Jcyclone\j threatens to strike. \I(Bangladesh)\i
In Taipei, thousands of people march to protest against rising violent crime. The protesters call for President Lee to apologize and for Premier Lien to resign. \I(Taiwan)\i
The \JBahamas\j decides to develop diplomatic relations with China, causing \JTaiwan\j to sever relations with the \JBahamas\j. \I(Taiwan, Bahamas)\i
The first round of French parliamentary elections is held in French \JPolynesia\j. \I(France, Polynesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American President, Bill Clinton, challenges researchers in the US to find an AIDS vaccine within 10 years. \I(USA)\i
Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, asks US President, Bill Clinton, to save the Middle East peace process by intervening and sending US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, for talks in the region. \I(Palestine, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In Britain, the Labour MP for Glasgow Govan is being investigated after allegations that he paid bribes to help him win the seat. \I(UK)\i
The first round of French parliamentary elections is held in French \JPolynesia\j. \I(France, Polynesia)\i
Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, asks US President, Bill Clinton, to save the Middle East peace process by intervening and sending US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, for talks in the region. \I(Palestine, USA)\i
Pope John Paul II celebrates his 77th birthday in \JRome\j. \I(Italy)\i
#
"May 19, 1997",502,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
After withholding its backing for a UN resolution that condemns China's human rights record, \JAustralia\j is to receive a visit from China's Vice-Premier, Zhu Rongji and 70 other business and political leaders. The visit will begin next Friday. \I(Australia, China)\i
Japan is being pressured by the US to buy its Theatre Missile Defense (TMD) system. \I(Japan, USA)\i
The US and \JJapan\j recognize Laurent Kabila's new regime in Zaire, which he renamed the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Indonesia's three major political parties announce that they will not hold any more street rallies before the May 29 election. The announcement comes after three weeks of violence between political demonstrators. \I(Indonesia)\i
A cyclone hits the southern coast of \JBangladesh\j as evacuation efforts continue. \I(Bangladesh)\i
In South Korea, prosecutors call for long jail terms for 11 of the politicians, bankers, and businessmen standing trial for graft in the case of the collapsed Hanbo steel group. \I(South Korea)\i
In Sri Lanka, hundreds more soldiers join the offensive against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Preliminary results in \JMongolia\j's presidential election indicate that ex-communist and member of the opposition party, Natsagiin Bagabandi, has defeated the incumbent president and member of the ruling democratic party, Punsalmaagiin Ochirbat. \I(Mongolia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Japan is being pressured by the US to buy its Theatre Missile Defense (TMD) system. \I(Japan, USA)\i
The US and \JJapan\j recognize Laurent Kabila's new regime in Zaire, which he renamed the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
The US Ambassador to Israel, Martin Indyk, says that the Middle East peace accord has broken down. Calls by Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, for President Clinton to personally intervene to save the peace process were rejected by the US National Security Adviser. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
In the trial of suspected Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, a scientist testifies that McVeigh's clothes contained traces of explosive residue. \I(USA)\i
British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, arrives in Washington for talks with US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright. The US may once again become involved in the Northern Ireland peace process and encourage the IRA to declare a cease-fire. \I(USA, UK)\i
The US Secretary of Defense, William Cohen, presents a comprehensive four-year review of US defense. The report says that the number of US troops should be reduced by almost 62,000 and the number of civilian staff reduced by 80,000. The 100,000 troops in Europe and the western Pacific will stay. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, arrives in Washington for talks with US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright. The US may once again become involved in the Northern Ireland peace process and encourage the IRA to declare a cease-fire. \I(USA, UK)\i
In \JKinshasa\j, the new rebel leaders execute soldiers of deposed President Mobutu's regime. Looting also occurs throughout the city. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
The US and \JJapan\j recognize Laurent Kabila's new regime in Zaire, which he renamed the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
The US Ambassador to Israel, Martin Indyk, says that the Middle East peace accord has broken down. Calls by Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, for President Clinton to personally intervene to save the peace process were rejected by the US National Security Adviser. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Relations between \JIran\j and Europe are strained as the Iranian Foreign Minister calls for \JGermany\j to correct a Berlin court's ruling regarding the murder of four Iranian \Jdissidents\j in 1992. The court found that the order for the murders came from senior Iranian officials. \I(Iran, Europe)\i
#
"May 20, 1997",503,0,0,0
President Bill Clinton wants the US to extend Most Favored Nation (MFN) trade status to China, however, critics of the move could hinder the proposal's progress through Congress. \I(USA, China)\i
The Islamic Taliban militia in \JAfghanistan\j claims to have captured an important pass in its efforts to penetrate the country's last remaining area controlled by an alliance of opposition forces. The opposition, led by General Dostum, denies the claim. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, announces his intention to create a coalition between his National United Front Party and the Khmer Rouge. This is likely to stir up existing tensions between the first Prime Minister and the second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, who has also been seeking an alliance with the Khmer Rouge for his own party, the Cambodian People's Party (CPP). \I(Cambodia)\i
Despite a ban on political demonstrations, riots continue in Jakarta in the lead-up to the 29 May election. \I(Indonesia)\i
Bangladeshi villagers return to assess the damage inflicted by the \Jcyclone\j that hit the country's southern coast on Monday night. Many homes are destroyed or completely swept away and 27 deaths are reported. \I(Bangladesh)\i
In Sri Lanka, troops secure the areas that they captured from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam before they move further into rebel territory. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Australian Aboriginal leaders and human rights groups are angered by the Federal Government's condemnation of a report on the removal of Aboriginal children from their families between the late 1800s and the late 1960s. The report will be tabled in parliament on Tuesday 26 May. \I(Australia)\i
The family of Yvonne Gilford, the Australian nurse murdered while working in Saudi \JArabia\j, has instructed its lawyer to ask for the death penalty for the two British nurses charged with the murder. \I(Australia, Saudi \JArabia\j, UK)\i
US President, Bill Clinton, imposes a ban on new US investment in \JMyanmar\j. \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
\BThe Americas\b
This week in \JTexas\j, four people will be executed; it is expected that the State's number of executions this year will exceed its previous high of 19 in 1995. \I(USA)\i
President Bill Clinton wants the US to extend Most Favored Nation (MFN) trade status to China, however, critics of the move could hinder the proposal's progress through Congress. \I(USA, China)\i
The prosecutors' case against alleged Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, is due to conclude tomorrow. \I(USA)\i
The Pentagon announces that in the American state of \JUtah\j, a bomb blast will re-create the Iraqi explosion that is being blamed for causing Gulf War syndrome in war veterans. \I(USA)\i
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is facing a lawsuit after its refusal to disclose details about its espionage budget. \I(USA)\i
A survey by the US Government finds that many Jewish homes in the West Bank are empty; this conflicts with claims by Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, that the building of new Jewish settlements is necessary. \I(USA, Israel)\i
Madeleine Albright, US Secretary of State, and Robin Cook, British Foreign Secretary, agree to hold an international conference later this year to investigate the theft of gold and valuables by the Nazis during World War II. \I(USA, UK)\i
US President, Bill Clinton, imposes a ban on new US investment in \JMyanmar\j. \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Britain's Labour Government announces that it wants to ban sponsorship of sporting events by \Jtobacco\j companies. \I(UK)\i
Madeleine Albright, US Secretary of State, and Robin Cook, British Foreign Secretary, agree to hold an international conference later this year to investigate the theft of gold and valuables by the Nazis during World War II. \I(USA, UK)\i
Pope John Paul II meets with Mother Teresa and Sister Nirmala, who will be taking over from Mother Teresa as head of the charity order she established. \I(Italy)\i
Laurent Kabila, self-proclaimed head of state of the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), arrives in \JKinshasa\j to take control of the capital and the country. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
A survey by the US Government finds that many Jewish homes in the West Bank are empty; this conflicts with claims by Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, that the building of new Jewish settlements is necessary. \I(USA, Israel)\i
The family of Yvonne Gilford, the Australian nurse murdered while working in Saudi \JArabia\j, has instructed its lawyer to ask for the death penalty for the two British nurses charged with the murder. \I(Australia, Saudi \JArabia\j, UK)\i
#
"May 21, 1997",504,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
With only one protest reported today, it seems that the pre-election violence in Jakarta has subsided for the moment. \I(Indonesia)\i
In \JRangoon\j, members of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) Party are arrested prior to the anniversary of the Party's victory in elections on 27 May, 1990. Despite the Party's victory, the ruling body, the State Law and Order Restoration Council, refused to recognize the result. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
A number of different groups criticize President Clinton's decision to extend Most Favored Nation (MFN) trading status to China. \I(USA, China)\i
Philippine President, Fidel Ramos, restates his country's claim to a shoal in the South China Sea, which is also claimed by China. \I(Philippines, China)\i
In \JAfghanistan\j, it appears that the Islamic Taliban militia is getting closer to defeating the opposing coalition force, which has been weakened by desertions in recent weeks. If the Taliban is successful in its campaign, it will take control of the entire country. \I(Afghanistan)\i
President of India's Congress Party, Sitaram Kesri, officially welcomes to the party Sonia Gandhi, wife of murdered Indian prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi. Mrs Gandhi joined India's oldest political party last month, six years after her husband's assassination. \I(India)\i
Australia's \JImmigration\j Minister announces a large cut in the country's \Jimmigration\j intake for 1997-98. The government feels that the cut is necessary to reduce high levels of unemployment. \I(Australia)\i
Controversy continues over a report on the "stolen generation" of Aboriginal children who were taken from their parents and placed in the care of white families. Aboriginal, church, and human rights groups are calling for the government to compensate families affected by the policy, which was active between the turn of the century and the late 1960s. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A number of different groups criticize President Clinton's decision to extend Most Favored Nation (MFN) trading status to China. \I(USA, China)\i
The prosecutors in the case against Timothy McVeigh, the man accused of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, bring their case to an end. \I(USA)\i
Congresswomen in Washington call for charges of adultery against Lieutenant Kelly Flinn to be dropped. The Air Force is currently considering her resignation and whether or not to go ahead with a court-martial. \I(USA)\i
The US shuttle Atlantis leaves the Russian space station Mir and begins its journey back to Earth. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In response to Palestine's decision to impose the death penalty on people who sell land to Jews, Israel intends to complain to the United Nations commission on human rights. The US has criticized Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat's support for the law. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), conducts talks with British civil servants. \I(UK)\i
The US shuttle Atlantis leaves the Russian space station Mir and begins its journey back to Earth. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, new leader, Laurent Kabila, works on arrangements for his first government. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
In response to Palestine's decision to impose the death penalty on people who sell land to Jews, Israel intends to complain to the United Nations commission on human rights. The US has criticized Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat's support for the law. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
In South Africa, a controlled explosion to destroy anti-personnel landmines is the first step towards ridding the country of all such devices by October. This coincides with an announcement by the British Government that all landmines held by the British Army are to be destroyed by 2005. \I(South Africa, UK)\i
#
"May 22, 1997",505,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 6 on the Richter scale hits India at dawn and kills 30 people and injures hundreds more. Thousands are left homeless. \I(India)\i
Around 750 fishermen are reported missing after a \Jcyclone\j hit \JBangladesh\j three days ago. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Myanmar accuses the US of interfering in its affairs and providing money to support anti-government organizations. The criticism comes after the US called for \JMyanmar\j to release members of the National League for Democracy (NLD), arrested earlier in the week to stop them from attending an anniversary party meeting. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), USA)\i
The US imposes more sanctions on companies in China that transfer chemicals and weapons technology to \JIran\j. \I(USA, China, Iran)\i
Chinese officials express their hope that British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, will attend the June 30 handover ceremonies in Hong Kong. \I(China, Hong Kong, UK)\i
In the case against the collapsed Hanbo steel group in South Korea, eight more politicians are indicted. The men are charged with receiving money from Hanbo in return for favors. \I(South Korea)\i
North Korean defectors describe the country's dire food shortages and the fears that there will be war against South Korea. \I(North Korea)\i
Ousted leader of \JIndonesia\j's Democratic Party (PDI), Megawati Sukarnoputri, announces that she will not vote in the 29 May general and local elections and urged her supporters to follow her lead. Ms Megawati claims that the take-over of her party was illegal and therefore people should not vote for the PDI. \I(Indonesia)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces that on her way to the handover ceremony in Hong Kong, she will visit \JCambodia\j and Vietnam. She is concerned about increasing violence in \JCambodia\j and fears that the country may again be disturbed by civil war. \I(USA, \JCambodia\j, Vietnam)\i
The Australian Government's decision to reduce \Jimmigration\j by 8 per cent in 1997-98 draws criticism from politicians, ethnic groups and the business sector. Some believe that the Government's decision was influenced by independent MP, Pauline Hanson, who has caused heated debate recently over her call to stop \Jimmigration\j. \I(Australia)\i
An illegal organization for smuggling Sri Lankan refugees into \JAustralia\j by plane is discovered by \Jimmigration\j officials. The refugees are Sri Lankan Tamils. \I(Australia, Sri Lanka)\i
In a one-day international cricket match in England, England beats \JAustralia\j. \I(UK, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Lieutenant Kelly Flinn, charged by the US Air Force with adultery, is granted a general discharge. The Air Force decided not to court-martial Lt Flinn, however it refused to grant the honorable discharge that she sought. \I(USA)\i
In the trial of Timothy McVeigh, the man suspected of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, the testimony of a British forensic scientist has supported a theory that the bomber actually died in the blast. The scientist claims that an unidentified leg found in the rubble could have been the bomber's. \I(USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces new measures to encourage the peace process in Bosnia. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
US Attorney General, Janet Reno, commends Venezuela's decision to extradite a suspected Colombian drug lord to the US. \I(USA, Venezuela)\i
Myanmar accuses the US of interfering in its affairs and providing money to support anti-government organizations. The criticism comes after the US called for \JMyanmar\j to release members of the National League for Democracy (NLD), arrested earlier in the week to stop them from attending an anniversary party meeting. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), USA)\i
The US imposes more sanctions on companies in China that transfer chemicals and weapons technology to \JIran\j. \I(USA, China, Iran)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces that on her way to the handover ceremony in Hong Kong, she will visit \JCambodia\j and Vietnam. She is concerned about increasing violence in \JCambodia\j and fears that the country may again be disturbed by civil war. \I(USA, \JCambodia\j, Vietnam)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, holds talks with former prime minister, Baroness Margaret Thatcher. Baroness Thatcher advises Mr Blair on how to approach his upcoming round of international meetings. \I(UK)\i
In a one-day international cricket match in England, England beats \JAustralia\j. \I(UK, Australia)\i
Chinese officials express their hope that British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, will attend the June 30 handover ceremonies in Hong Kong. \I(China, Hong Kong, UK)\i
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, sacks his Defense Minister and the military's Chief of Staff saying that they have neglected military reform. \I(Russia)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces new measures to encourage the peace process in Bosnia. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
A car bomb explodes in \JAlgeria\j killing 21 people and injuring 30 others. The explosion occurred in the center of the Boufarik, which is expected to be a campaign meeting place in the lead-up to the June 5 elections. \I(Algeria)\i
Supporters of former Zairian prime minister, Etienne Tshisekedi, pressure the President of the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, Laurent Kabila, to create a role for Tshisekedi in Kabila's new government. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
At the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva, Kurdish demonstrators demand that the UN helps stop Turkey from continuing its official nine-day offensive into \JIraq\j. \I(Iraq, Turkey, Switzerland)\i
The US imposes more sanctions on companies in China that transfer chemicals and weapons technology to \JIran\j. \I(USA, China, Iran)\i
#
"May 23, 1997",506,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Despite the bans on political rallies in Jakarta, riots occur as opposing supporters clash in the streets on the last day of campaigning in the lead-up to the 29 May elections. Police use tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowds. \I(Indonesia)\i
South Korea agrees to supply 40,000 tonnes of food to North Korea, which is reported to be on the brink of \Jfamine\j. \I(South Korea, North Korea)\i
South Korean President Kim Young-sam claims that he cannot reveal details of his 1992 election funds. \I(South Korea)\i
Tension escalates between China and the \JPhilippines\j as they argue about which country has the right to an island in the South China Sea, called Huangyan Island by the Chinese and the Scarborough Shoal by the \JPhilippines\j. \I(China, Philippines)\i
Taiwan cancels a visit by officials from China, claiming that the mainlanders snubbed the organizers of the visit by refusing to meet with them and by demanding changes to the itinerary. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
China condemns the sanctions imposed by the US on Chinese companies and citizens suspected of transferring chemical weapons technology to \JIran\j. \I(China, USA, Iran)\i
Malaysia announces that it will support \JTaiwan\j's admission as an official dialog partner of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). If the admission is permitted, \JTaiwan\j will become ASEAN's sixth dialog partner, taking its place alongside \JJapan\j, China, \JAustralia\j, the US, and the European Union. \I(Taiwan, Malaysia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces that US troops will not remain in Bosnia beyond the June 1998 deadline. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
China condemns the sanctions imposed by the US on Chinese companies and citizens suspected of transferring chemical weapons technology to \JIran\j. \I(China, USA, Iran)\i
President Clinton approves the action taken by the US Air Force in the case of Lieutenant Kelly Flinn who was given a general discharge from the force after an adulterous affair. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, talks to European leaders at an informal summit meeting about his approach to Europe. Mr Blair encourages his counterparts to focus on issues of importance to people everywhere in Europe. \I(UK, Europe)\i
The Presidents of \JRussia\j and \JBelarus\j, Boris Yeltsin and Alexander Lukashenko, sign a charter that contains details about the relationship between the two countries. \I(Russia, Belarus)\i
A German court finds a Bosnian-Serb guilty of war crimes committed during the war in Bosnia between 1992 and 1995. \I(Germany, Bosnia)\i
Laurent Kabila, self-declared president of the newly-named Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, appoints members of his interim government. President Kabila abolished the position of prime minister and failed to include in his new government Zaire's former prime minister, Etienne Tshisekedi. Mr Tshisekedi says that he will not recognize the new government and he is calling for the people to do the same. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Iran holds presidential elections as the current president nears the end of his eight years in office. \I(Iran)\i
China condemns the sanctions imposed by the US on Chinese companies and citizens suspected of transferring chemical weapons technology to \JIran\j. \I(China, USA, Iran)\i
#
"May 24, 1997",507,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The US Senate is presented with a bill to end subsidies to China and to increase funding for cultural exchange programs. \I(USA, China)\i
Unrest continues in \JIndonesia\j as election violence results in a fire that kills at least 130 in the city of Banjarmasin. \I(Indonesia)\i
The leader of \JMyanmar\j's National League for Democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi, plans to go ahead with a meeting on 27 May to commemorate the anniversary of her party's election win seven years ago. Despite the party's mandate of 1990, it was prevented from taking office by the ruling military junta. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Debate about the report into \JAustralia\j's "stolen generation" of Aboriginal children continues. The report, called \IBringing Them Home,\i is due to be tabled in parliament next week. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The space shuttle Atlantis returns from its mission to the Mir space station and lands at the Kennedy Space Center in \JFlorida\j. \I(USA)\i
The US Government is unsure whether or not it will back a renewal of a deal which allowed \JIraq\j to sell $US2 billion worth of oil in order to buy food and medicine for the people. The deal, organized by the United Nations, is due for renewal in June. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
The US Senate is presented with a bill to end subsidies to China and to increase funding for cultural exchange programs. \I(USA, China)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, is concerned because all of the members in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j's new cabinet, appointed by self-declared ruler, Laurent Kabila, came from Mr Kabila's own alliance. Ms Albright feels that the cabinet should be broadened to include others. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
The US grants refuge to a Swiss bank security guard who discovered and kept records that show dealings between the bank and the German Nazis. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
The American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) hold an inquiry into the alleged dumping of toxic waste by British \JPetroleum\j (BP) in northern \JAlaska\j. \I(USA, UK)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The US has granted refuge to a Swiss bank security guard who discovered and kept records that show dealings between the bank and the German Nazis. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
The American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are holding an inquiry into the alleged dumping of toxic waste by British \JPetroleum\j (BP) in northern \JAlaska\j. \I(USA, UK)\i
Laurent Kabila, self-proclaimed President of the newly-named Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, announces that his country will hold democratic elections after a two-year transition period. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, is concerned because all of the members in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j's new cabinet, appointed by self-declared ruler, Laurent Kabila, came from Mr Kabila's own alliance. Ms Albright feels that the cabinet should be broadened to include others. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
In \JIran\j's presidential election, the candidate supported by the establishment, Ali Akbar Nateq-Nouri, is defeated by former Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Mohammad Khatami. \I(Iran)\i
The US Government is unsure whether or not it will back a renewal of a deal which allowed \JIraq\j to sell $US2 billion worth of oil in order to buy food and medicine for the people. The deal, organized by the United Nations, is due for renewal in June. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
Israel announces that it will not stop building 6,500 Jewish houses in Har Homa, East \JJerusalem\j, despite calls by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) for the building to cease. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"May 25, 1997",508,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
After an offensive into the north of the country, the Islamic Taliban militia claims to control all of \JAfghanistan\j. The leader of opposition forces, General Dostum, flees to Turkey. \JPakistan\j is the first country to recognize the Taliban as the official government of \JAfghanistan\j. \I(Afghanistan, Pakistan)\i
Red Cross negotiators from North and South Korea meet to work out the details of food support to North Korea. South Korea offered to supply 40,000 tonnes of food by the end of July, delivered through the zone that separates the two countries. North Korea wants more food delivered earlier through a different route, and it doesn't want any of the packaging to show that the food is from South Korea. \I(South Korea, North Korea)\i
Sri Lankan government troops advance into territory held by Tamil rebels in the north of the country. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Leader of the indigenous peoples of Hawaii, Mililani Trask, warns that Australian independent MP, Pauline Hanson, is sometimes perceived overseas as \JAustralia\j's leader because of the amount of publicity she is receiving. \I(USA, Australia)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, seeks support from the opposition Labor Party for a motion that will look at the issues of housing, health, and education for Aboriginal Australians. \I(Australia)\i
In the Texaco Trophy one-day international cricket series, England beats \JAustralia\j. \I(UK, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
President Bill Clinton prepares for his visit to Europe this week. Mr Clinton will meet Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, then go to the Netherlands to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Marshall Plan, the plan that helped shape Europe's post World War II economy. Following this, President Clinton will fly to London to meet with British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. \I(USA, UK, Netherlands, Russia)\i
Leader of the indigenous peoples of Hawaii, Mililani Trask, warns that Australian independent MP, Pauline Hanson, is sometimes perceived overseas as \JAustralia\j's leader because of the amount of publicity she is receiving. \I(USA, Australia)\i
The Clinton administration declares that its highest foreign priority is the expansion of \JNATO\j. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Britain's Foreign Office Minister, Derek Fatchett, arrives in \JEgypt\j for a tour of the Middle East. Mr Fatchett has expressed the British Government's intention to take a more active role in the Middle East peace process. \I(UK)\i
President Bill Clinton prepares for his visit to Europe this week. Mr Clinton will meet Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, then go to the Netherlands to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Marshall Plan, the plan that helped shape Europe's post World War II economy. Following this, President Clinton will fly to London to meet with British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. \I(USA, UK, Netherlands, Russia)\i
In the Texaco Trophy one-day international cricket series, England beats \JAustralia\j. \I(UK, Australia)\i
In Saudi \JArabia\j, the two British nurses accused of murdering Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford, deny the charge and say that they signed confessions only because their clothes had been removed and they were sexually abused by police. \I(Saudi Arabia)\i
In the west African nation of Sierra Leone, soldiers stage a coup and oust the government after clashes with Nigerian troops. \I(Sierra Leone)\i
#
"May 26, 1997",509,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
North and South Korea come to an agreement regarding food supplies. South Korea will provide North Korea with 50,000 tonnes of food by July. \I(South Korea, North Korea)\i
Torrential rains and resulting floods in Manila leave at least 20 people dead. The rain affects the whole of Manila. \I(Philippines)\i
Fighting between the Sri Lankan military and rebel Tamils eases as the military fortifies its position in the areas that it has gained. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Japanese patrol boats stop protesters landing on the Senkaku islands. \JJapan\j, \JTaiwan\j, and China all claim ownership of the islands. \I(Japan, \JTaiwan\j, China)\i
In Melbourne, the three-day Australian Reconciliation Convention begins. Prime Minister, John Howard, personally apologizes for the government policy which saw Aboriginal children taken from their parents and placed in the care of white families between the 1880s and the late 1960s. Mr Howard fails to apologize on behalf of the nation, a failure that prompts 100 of the 2,000 delegates to turn their backs on Mr Howard as he speaks. \I(Australia)\i
Australia's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer, says that the government does not see China as a threat and that it wants to strengthen ties between the two countries. \I(Australia, China)\i
New Zealand Prime Minister, Jim Bolger, calls for action against illegal fishing in the Southern Ocean. \I(New Zealand)\i
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale is monitored in New Zealand, about 1,000 kilometers north-east of Auckland. The quake causes no apparent damage. \I(New Zealand)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the west African nation of Sierra Leone, Major Johnny Paul Koromah declares himself head of state after he overthrows the democratically elected government. The US State Department condemns the coup and tells its leaders to restore the government. The US Government prepares to evacuate its citizens living in Sierra Leone, and advises others to cancel any plans to travel there. \I(Sierra Leone, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, hopes to encourage \JFrance\j and \JRussia\j to continue aiming towards peace in Bosnia. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, \JRussia\j, Bosnia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) claims responsibility for a bomb explosion in Ireland. The LVF supports British rule of Northern Ireland. \I(UK, Ireland)\i
British golfer Ian Woosnam wins the British PGA title in England. \I(UK)\i
The French Open tennis championship begins. \I(France)\i
French Prime Minister, Alain Juppe, announces his resignation. \I(France)\i
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, arrives in Paris to sign an accord that gives \JRussia\j a voice in \JNATO\j affairs. \I(Russia, France)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, hopes to encourage \JFrance\j and \JRussia\j to continue aiming towards peace in Bosnia. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, \JRussia\j, Bosnia)\i
In the west African nation of Sierra Leone, Major Johnny Paul Koromah declares himself head of state after he overthrows the democratically elected government. The US State Department condemns the coup and tells its leaders to restore the government. The US Government prepares to evacuate its citizens living in Sierra Leone, and advises others to cancel any plans to travel there. \I(Sierra Leone, USA)\i
#
"May 27, 1997",510,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In \JMyanmar\j, the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) uses road blocks and security checks to stop members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) from attending a party meeting at the home of NLD leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. The meeting was intended to commemorate the NLD's 1990 election victory, which was not recognized by the SLORC. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma)\i
In Manila, people begin cleaning up following three days of torrential rain that caused severe flooding. \I(Philippines)\i
South Korean President, Kim Young-sam, agrees to address the nation about funds for his 1992 election campaign. Opposition parties claim that funds came from the collapsed Hanbo steel group and they accuse President Kim of over-spending during the campaign. \I(South Korea)\i
The United Nations' High Commissioner for Human Rights expresses concern about the detention of National League for Democracy (NLD) members in \JMyanmar\j. NLD members were detained by the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) to prevent them from attending a meeting to celebrate their 1990 election victory. The victory was not recognized by the SLORC. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
Fighting between residents and the Taliban militia occurs in the city of Mazar-e Sharif in the north of \JAfghanistan\j. \I(Afghanistan)\i
China commends the accord between \JRussia\j and \JNATO\j, with Foreign Ministry spokesman, Shen Guofang, expressing his hope that the accord will help develop security in Europe. \I(China)\i
A meeting between \JAustralia\j's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer, and China's Vice-Premier, Zhu Rongji, has resulted in the establishment of a dialog on human rights, scheduled to begin in August. \I(Australia, China)\i
Brigitte Muir becomes the first Australian woman to climb to the top of Mount Everest. \I(Australia, Nepal)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US President, Bill Clinton, will face a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by Paula Jones, who alleges that the President made unwanted sexual advances to her in 1991 when he was governor of \JArkansas\j and she was an employee of the state. The President had requested that the lawsuit be delayed until he leaves office, but the Supreme Court denied this request. \I(USA)\i
In Paris, US President, Bill Clinton, and Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, sign a pact which states that \JRussia\j and \JNATO\j are no longer adversaries and that they will work together to create a secure, stable Europe. The pact also gives \JRussia\j the right to be included in \JNATO\j discussions. After signing the pact, President Yeltsin announced that \JRussia\j would no longer target \JNATO\j states with nuclear missiles. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Tornadoes in central \JTexas\j kill at least 30 people and flatten dozens of homes. \I(USA)\i
Though the US military receives no request to evacuate US citizens in Sierra Leone, it sends 1,200 marines on the ship \IKearsarge\i to stand by should an evacuation be required. The west African nation's elected government was overthrown in a coup at the weekend. \I(USA, Sierra Leone)\i
At his first news conference, \JIran\j's president-elect, Mohammed Khatami, says that it is time for \JIran\j to pursue more democracy, without letting that pursuit weaken the Islamic government against its enemies. Mr Khatami also spoke about \JIran\j's relationship with America, calling on the US to end its hostility towards the Islamic republic and make the first move in restoring relations between the two countries. \I(Iran, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The first all-female team reaches the North Pole. The team of four British women are participating in a relay expedition with four other teams. \I(UK)\i
In Paris, US President, Bill Clinton, and Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, sign a pact which states that \JRussia\j and \JNATO\j are no longer adversaries and that they will work together to create a secure, stable Europe. The pact also gives \JRussia\j the right to be included in \JNATO\j discussions. After signing the pact, President Yeltsin announced that \JRussia\j would no longer target \JNATO\j states with nuclear missiles. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The US announces plans to send its United Nations ambassador, Bill Richardson, for talks with Laurent Kabila, self-proclaimed President of the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. The US wants Mr Kabila to broaden his government to include members who are not part of his own alliance. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
South African President, Nelson Mandela, supports Laurent Kabila's decision to ban political activities in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), South Africa)\i
Rebels from the country in Sierra Leone arrive in the capital, \JFreetown\j, to support the military's overthrow of the elected government, as troops from \JNigeria\j arrive to support the ousted President Kabbah, who sought \JNigeria\j's aid before fleeing to Guinea. \JNigeria\j issues a 24-hour ultimatum, demanding that the coup leaders restore the President. \I(Sierra Leone)\i
Though the US military receives no request to evacuate US citizens in Sierra Leone, it sends 1,200 marines on the ship \IKearsarge\i to stand by should an evacuation be required. The west African nation's elected government was overthrown in a coup at the weekend. \I(USA, Sierra Leone)\i
A summit meeting between Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, on the Middle East peace process ends with no resolutions, but both leaders claim that more talks will help resolve the problem. Israel's decision to continue building a new Jewish settlement in East \JJerusalem\j has caused the Palestinians to refuse to attend talks. \I(Egypt, Israel, Palestine)\i
At his first news conference, \JIran\j's president-elect, Mohammed Khatami, says that it is time for \JIran\j to pursue more democracy, without letting that pursuit weaken the Islamic government against its enemies. Mr Khatami also spoke about \JIran\j's relationship with America, calling on the US to end its hostility towards the Islamic republic and make the first move in restoring relations between the two countries. \I(Iran, USA)\i
#
"May 28, 1997",511,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Taliban militia is forced out of the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e Sharif by Uzbek troops and Shi'ite Muslims. \I(Afghanistan)\i
The Sri Lankan navy sinks a number of boats belonging to the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Almost 60,000 tonnes of donated food arrives in famine-threatened North Korea. The food was supplied by countries contributing to the World Food Program. \I(North Korea)\i
The car of \JCambodia\j's second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, is shot at in what is thought to be an assassination attempt. The bullet misses the car but hits one of the riders in the \Jmotorcycle\j escort. \I(Cambodia)\i
The Australian Reconciliation Convention ends in Melbourne by presenting recommendations for achieving reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians. Many want a national apology and compensation for the Aboriginal children who were affected by a government policy which saw them forcibly removed from their parents in an attempt to assimilate them into white society. On the first day of the Convention, the Prime Minister, John Howard, apologized personally for the injustices done to the Aboriginal people, but he did not apologize on behalf of the nation, and his government has since expressed its opposition to compensation. \I(Australia)\i
At a press meeting in Sydney, China's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Tang Guoqiang, says that Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, is committed to a one-China policy and will not allow any official contact with \JTaiwan\j. \I(Australia, China, Taiwan)\i
In a speech during his seven-day tour of \JAustralia\j, Chinese Vice-Premier, Zhu Rongji, declares that people would be foolish to leave Hong Kong after the July 1 handover, claiming that Hong Kong is the best place to make money. \I(Australia, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) releases documents showing that it: compiled a list of Latin American assassination targets; trained assassins to kill these targets; and backed the Guatemalan coup that ousted the elected president in 1954. \I(USA, Guatemala)\i
At a ceremony in The Hague celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Marshall Plan, President Clinton calls for eastern Europe's former Communist states to be helped so that they can become part of a united, peaceful Europe. \I(USA, the Netherlands)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, visits the war crimes tribunal at The Hague and talks about tougher measures to ensure that indicted war criminals in Bosnia are brought to justice. \I(USA, the Netherlands, Bosnia)\i
The defense attorneys in the trial of suspected Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, end their case. \I(USA)\i
The US urges the Irish Republican Army (IRA) to call a cease-fire and re-enter talks with Britain. \I(USA, UK)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
At a ceremony in The Hague celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Marshall Plan, President Clinton calls for eastern Europe's former Communist states to be helped so that they can become part of a united, peaceful Europe. \I(USA, the Netherlands)\i
Newly released Swiss \Jarchives\j show that \JSwitzerland\j exported millions of dollars worth of arms to Nazi \JGermany\j between 1940 and 1944. \I(Switzerland, Germany)\i
In \JKinshasa\j, supporters of former prime minister, Etienne Tshisekedi, march in protest of the Rwandans in Laurent Kabila's forces. Despite Kabila's ban on political activities, his soldiers let the march begin, but later break it up. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
After talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak sends an adviser to brief Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat. Mr Arafat says he will not talk with Mr Netanyahu until the expansion of Jewish settlement is stopped; Mr Netanyahu says that will not happen. \I(Egypt, Israel, Palestine)\i
In the west African nation of Sierra Leone, fighting spreads out from the capital, \JFreetown\j. \I(Sierra Leone)\i
#
"May 29, 1997",512,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
National elections are held in \JIndonesia\j after the worst pre-election violence in decades. Approximately 15 people were shot dead overnight prior to polling day. Many people, believing that the ruling Golkar Party will tamper with election results, will follow the lead of democracy leader Megawati Sukarnoputri and not vote. \I(Indonesia)\i
Singapore's Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, and members of his party are awarded $S8.08 million in libel cases against an opposition politician. It is the highest amount ever awarded in a case of this type in \JSingapore\j. \I(Singapore)\i
Fighting in Mazar-e Sharif in \JAfghanistan\j leaves hundreds of people dead. \I(Afghanistan)\i
The Chinese Foreign Ministry accuses some US politicians of applying pressure on China by expressing their opposition to President Clinton's announcement that he wants to renew China's Most Favored Nation trade status. \I(China, USA)\i
The government in Papua New Guinea announces a plan to achieve a peaceful resolution to the Bougainville conflict. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, is criticized for not giving a national apology to the "stolen generations" of Aboriginal Australians who were forcibly removed from their parents between the 1890s and the late 1960s. Mr Howard's legal advisers have told him that an apology on behalf of the nation would have legal implications. It is thought that Mr Howard will respond to the issue again after he has had time to review the 700-page report on the stolen generations by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission, called \IBringing Them Home.\i \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
On a one-day visit to England, US President, Bill Clinton, and British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, meet to fortify their relationship and discuss issues of importance to both of them. In particular, they resolved to work together to tackle unemployment. Mr Clinton also used his time in England to speak about the situation in Northern Ireland, urging the Irish Republican Army to call a cease-fire so that it can join talks aimed at creating peace there. \I(USA, UK)\i
The Chinese Foreign Ministry accuses some US politicians of applying pressure on China by expressing their opposition to President Clinton's announcement that he wants to renew China's Most Favored Nation trade status. \I(China, USA)\i
At a meeting of \JNATO\j foreign ministers in \JPortugal\j, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, says that new members must meet high standards, and that other prospective member countries must be given a chance to join the alliance at a later date. \I(USA, Portugal)\i
After a military coup in the west African nation of Sierra Leone on Sunday, the Pentagon announces that Americans in the nation's capital, \JFreetown\j, will be evacuated by US Marines on Friday. Sierra Leone's US ambassador asks if the Marines can be used to help restore unrest in the country, but the US Government rejects the request. \I(Sierra Leone, USA)\i
Lawyers of the woman accusing President Clinton of sexual harassment plan to \Jsubpoena\j the President and ten other women they suspect of having affairs with him. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
On a one-day visit to England, US President, Bill Clinton, and British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, meet to fortify their relationship and discuss issues of importance to both of them. In particular, they resolved to work together to tackle unemployment. Mr Clinton also used his time in England to speak about the situation in Northern Ireland, urging the Irish Republican Army to call a cease-fire so that it can join talks aimed at creating peace there. \I(USA, UK)\i
At a meeting of \JNATO\j foreign ministers in \JPortugal\j, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, says that new members must meet high standards, and that other prospective member countries must be given a chance to join the alliance at a later date. \I(USA, Portugal)\i
In northern \JSpain\j, a team from the National Museum of Natural Sciences says it has found human remains thought to be 800,000 years old. \I(Spain)\i
Turkey's Islamic Prime Minister, Necmettin Erbakan, announces that he will step down from office. The decision comes after accusations from the military that the Prime Minister wants to impose radical Islamic policies on the country. The premiership will be handed to former prime minister and coalition ally, Tansu Ciller, ahead of early elections. \I(Turkey)\i
Laurent Kabila, self-proclaimed President of the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, officially takes office as head of state. President Kabila promises to hold elections in April 1999. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
After a military coup in the west African nation of Sierra Leone on Sunday, the Pentagon announces that Americans in the nation's capital, \JFreetown\j, will be evacuated by US Marines on Friday. Sierra Leone's US ambassador has asks if the Marines can be used to help restore unrest in the country, but the US Government rejects the request. \I(Sierra Leone, USA)\i
#
"May 30, 1997",513,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
After three-quarters of votes in the Indonesian election are counted, the ruling Golkar Party claims its biggest victory in three decades. The Muslim opposition and the Independent Committee for Election Monitoring (KIPP) accuse the Golkar group of cheating. \I(Indonesia)\i
In the city of Mazar-e Sharif in northern \JAfghanistan\j, fighting continues between the Taliban militia and its opposition forces. Control of the city has switched back and forth from one force to the other throughout the fighting. \I(Afghanistan)\i
South Korean President, Kim Young-sam, apologizes on national \Jtelevision\j for scandals over political campaign funding, however he does not speak directly about charges concerning illegal funding of his 1992 election campaign. \I(South Korea)\i
The man who was ordered to pay $S8.08 million in \Jdefamation\j damages to \JSingapore\j's Prime Minister and other members of his party says that he will challenge the court order. \I(Singapore)\i
Parts of a plan by the Papua New Guinean Government for achieving peace in the Bougainville conflict are rejected by rebels. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
In the Australian city of Newcastle, thousands of people protest against independent MP, Pauline Hanson, as she holds a meeting to put forth the views of her newly-formed One Nation Party. Ms Hanson has caused emotional debate in \JAustralia\j because of her stance against \Jimmigration\j and special assistance for Aboriginal Australians. \I(Australia)\i
The Australian Government intends to ask Saudi authorities not to impose the death penalty on two British nurses if they are found guilty of murdering Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford. \I(Australia, Saudi Arabia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the Oklahoma City bombing trial, the seven male and five female jurors begin their second day of deliberations. \I(USA)\i
Cuba claims that moves by the US to tighten trading restrictions on it go against an agreement that the US made with the European Union to ease the embargo. \I(USA, Cuba)\i
In the case against Mikhail Markhasev, the man accused of murdering Ennis Cosby, the son of American comedian, Bill Cosby, prosecutors will not seek the death penalty. \I(USA)\i
More than 900 US citizens are evacuated from \JFreetown\j in Sierra Leone as coup leaders negotiate to avoid an attack by Nigerian soldiers who have been called into the region to restore the ousted government. \I(Sierra Leone, USA)\i
Allegations of sexual harassment continue to surface in the US forces as a Navy rear admiral is relieved of duties, a high-level Army lawyer is investigated, and an Army sergeant is sentenced to six months in a military prison. \I(USA)\i
Amnesty International expresses concern about the high rate of executions in \JTexas\j. So far this year, 16 people were executed in the state and ten more executions are expected to take place in June. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, signs a pact with \JUkraine\j that allows \JRussia\j to base its Black Sea fleet in Sevastopol, a Ukrainian city on the Crimean peninsula. \I(Russia, Ukraine)\i
When Irish President, Mary Robinson, leaves office in December, she will become the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. \I(Ireland)\i
More than 900 US citizens are evacuated from \JFreetown\j in Sierra Leone as coup leaders negotiate to avoid an attack by Nigerian soldiers who have been called into the region to restore the ousted government. \I(Sierra Leone, USA)\i
The British Government delays approval of a European Union treaty that includes a proposal to remove internal border controls. Some European Union ministers have expressed their disappointment in Prime Minister Blair's approach to the treaty. \I(UK, European Union)\i
Violence occurs when Israeli soldiers and Palestinian protesters clash outside an Israeli shrine in the West Bank. The people were protesting about a Palestinian death in police custody. \I(Palestine, Israel, West Bank)\i
#
"May 31, 1997",514,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
At a meeting in Kuala Lumpur, the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) agrees to admit \JCambodia\j, Laos, and \JMyanmar\j to the alliance in July. \I(Malaysia)\i
In \JAfghanistan\j, the coalition between the Islamic Taliban militia and its former enemies, formed only last week, disintegrates. The forces that helped the Taliban conquer cities in the north turned back against the militia and now fight for control of the city that links the country to its northern areas. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Thousands of students protesting in South Korea become violent and throw firebombs at police. The students are calling for the resignation of President Kim Young-sam after scandal over his 1992 election campaign funds. \I(South Korea)\i
In East \JTimor\j, 17 police officers are killed when separatist guerrillas throw a grenade into a police truck. \I(Indonesia)\i
A spokesman for the US State Department calls for \JIndonesia\j to change its political system and investigate allegations of corruption in the electoral procedures. \I(USA, Indonesia)\i
Alleged pedophile, Philip Bell, is extradited from South Africa and appears in court to face 170 charges relating to offences against young boys. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, accuses \JCroatia\j and \JSerbia\j of being slow to comply with the 1995 Dayton peace accord. The US and its allies want to ensure that the peace is stable before their troops leave in June 1998. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
A spokesman for the US State Department calls for \JIndonesia\j to change its political system and investigate allegations of corruption in the electoral procedures. \I(USA, Indonesia)\i
The jury in the trial of Timothy McVeigh, the man accused of the Oklahoma City bombing, fails to reach a verdict. \I(USA)\i
In a speech to West Point graduates, President Clinton outlines the advantages of expanding the \JNATO\j alliance, saying that it will benefit US security. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Pope arrives in \JPoland\j for an eleven-day visit that will see him tour twelve cities. \I(Poland)\i
The IRA attempts to plant and detonate a landmine in west \JBelfast\j but abandons the plan when something goes wrong. The discarded landmine is yet to be examined by experts. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
The day before the final round of voting in \JFrance\j's elections, leader of the National Front, Jean-Marie Le Pen is caught up in a brawl and allegedly pushes a Socialist candidate, Annette Peulvast-Bergeal, to the ground. \I(France)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, accuses \JCroatia\j and \JSerbia\j of being slow to comply with the 1995 Dayton peace accord. The US and its allies want to ensure that the peace is stable before their troops leave in June 1998. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Alleged pedophile, Philip Bell, is extradited from South Africa and appears in court to face 170 charges relating to offences against young boys. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
#
"June 1, 1997",515,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Frank Gilford, brother of Yvonne Gilford, the Australian nurse who was murdered in Saudi \JArabia\j last December, refuses to meet the parents of the two British nurses who are on trial for the murder. According to Islamic law, Mr Gilford has the authority to ask for the women to be put to death if they are found guilty. \I(Australia, Saudi \JArabia\j, UK)\i
Tensions escalate between \JCambodia\j's co-Prime Ministers, Prince Norodom Ranariddh and Mr Hun Sen, as Prince Norodom is expelled as leader of his party. Mr Hun Sen supports the faction of Prince Norodom's party that called for the expulsion. \I(Cambodia)\i
Fighting between the Taliban militia and its opposition continues in \JAfghanistan\j. The Taliban militia is reinforced with troops from eastern \JAfghanistan\j. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Soldiers in East \JTimor\j search for the separatist guerrillas responsible for yesterday's grenade attack which killed 17 officers. The rebels are part of a resistance movement that opposes \JIndonesia\j's 1975 annexation of East \JTimor\j. \I(East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A US State Department spokesman says that the Government will donate $US12.6 million towards aiding Rwandan Hutu refugees in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. The US has criticized President Kabila's indifference to the refugees. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
For the third day in a row, the jury in the trial of Timothy McVeigh, the man accused of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, fails to reach a verdict. \I(USA)\i
In Sierra Leone, more foreigners are evacuated by US military helicopters. Soldiers from other African countries such as \JNigeria\j, \JGhana\j, and Guinea are sent to help maintain order and discourage the military coup leaders. \I(Sierra Leone, \JNigeria\j, \JGhana\j, Guinea, USA)\i
In \JBolivia\j, former dictator, Hugo Banzer, is elected president. \I(Bolivia)\i
In a race to determine the fastest runner in the world, Canadian Donovan Bailey defeats American Michael Johnson. Johnson suffers a leg injury during the race. \I(USA, Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the final round of voting in the French elections, leftist parties defeat the Conservative Government. Outgoing Conservative Prime Minister, Alain Juppe, will probably be replaced by Socialist Lionel Jospin, who will then share political power with Conservative President, Jacques Chirac. \I(France)\i
Frank Gilford, brother of Yvonne Gilford, the Australian nurse who was murdered in Saudi \JArabia\j last December, refuses to meet the parents of the two British nurses who are on trial for the murder. According to Islamic law, Mr Gilford has the authority to ask for the women to be put to death if they are found guilty. \I(Australia, Saudi \JArabia\j, UK)\i
Pope John Paul II holds an outdoor mass attended by 200,000 people in \JPoland\j. It is expected that this will be his last visit to his home country. \I(Poland)\i
A US State Department spokesman says that the Government will donate $US12.6 million towards aiding Rwandan Hutu refugees in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. President Kabila's indifference to the refugees has been criticized by the US. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
In Sierra Leone, US military helicopters evacuate more foreigners. Soldiers from other African countries such as \JNigeria\j, \JGhana\j, and Guinea are sent to help maintain order and discourage the military coup leaders. \I(Sierra Leone, \JNigeria\j, \JGhana\j, Guinea, USA)\i
Ahead of elections in \JAlgeria\j, two bombs explode in the capital \JAlgiers\j, killing six people and injuring many others. \I(Algeria)\i
#
"June 2, 1997",516,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In Seoul, eleven people, including politicians and the owner of the bankrupt Hanbo steel company, are sentenced to prison. Thousands of students hold a rally to call for the resignation of President Kim Young-sam, who is accused of using money from Hanbo in his 1992 election campaign. The Conservative opposition leader also calls for the President's resignation. \I(South Korea)\i
A Federal Court judge in Sydney dismisses a case between a scientist, Professor Ian Plimer, and a creationist, Dr Allan Roberts, concerning claims about the existence of the remains of Noah's Ark in eastern Turkey. Professor Plimer claimed that Dr Roberts had breached the Fair Trading Act by making false claims in his lectures, but the judge found the Act did not apply to Dr Roberts because his lectures were not given for profit. \I(Australia)\i
Sir Julius Chan reclaims his position as Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister after an inquiry clears him of corruption allegations. Acting Prime Minister, John Giheno, challenges the inquiry's findings, but does not oppose Sir Julius's move. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman warns that the rest of Asia will be concerned if \JJapan\j extends its security alliance with the US, which is currently being reviewed. \I(China, Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Parliamentary elections are held in Canada. Liberal Prime Minister, Jean Chretien, looks likely to win the election, but with a reduced majority. \I(Canada)\i
Timothy McVeigh is found guilty on all charges in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing trial. The jury will now decide whether McVeigh should be executed or sentenced to life in prison. \I(USA)\i
Jury selection begins for a civil case brought against nine US \Jtobacco\j companies on behalf of 60,000 non-smoking flight attendants. \I(USA)\i
President Clinton informs Congress that the US forces in Sierra Leone will leave as soon as the evacuation of US citizens and other foreigners is complete and they are no longer needed there for security reasons. \I(USA, Sierra Leone)\i
The United Nations' deal that waives a ban on Iraqi oil sales is due for renewal on 7 June. The ban was enforced after \JIraq\j invaded \JKuwait\j in 1990, but was waived so that \JIraq\j could sell oil and use the money to buy food and necessities for its people. United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, recommends that the deal be renewed; it is believed that the US will back the renewal. \I(Iraq, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
After the leftist victory in yesterday's French elections, President Jacques Chirac asks new Socialist Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin, to form a government. \I(France)\i
Nigerian naval vessels open fire on Sierra Leone's capital, \JFreetown\j. \JNigeria\j wants military coup leaders to reinstate ousted President Kabbah. \I(Sierra Leone, Nigeria)\i
President Clinton informs Congress that the US forces in Sierra Leone will leave as soon as the evacuation of US citizens and other foreigners is complete and they are no longer needed there for security reasons. \I(USA, Sierra Leone)\i
Turkey's Islamist Prime Minister, Necmettin Erbakan, announces that he will step down and hold early elections. The move comes after pressure from the military. \I(Turkey)\i
The United Nations' deal that waives a ban on Iraqi oil sales is due for renewal on 7 June. The ban was enforced after \JIraq\j invaded \JKuwait\j in 1990, but was waived so that \JIraq\j could sell oil and use the money to buy food and necessities for its people. United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, recommends that the deal be renewed; it is believed that the US will back the renewal. \I(Iraq, USA)\i
#
"June 3, 1997",517,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In \JAfghanistan\j, the Islamic Taliban militia begins a new offensive against the opposition groups and advances towards the town of Jabal os-Siraj, which is held by Ahmad Shah Masood and his guerrilla force. Fighting continues in a number of cities. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Fighting between the army and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam continues in Sri Lanka with a new army attack on the rebels in the north. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The military in \JIndonesia\j continues its search for East Timorese separatist guerrillas responsible for Saturday's grenade attack that killed 17 officers. \I(East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
Electoral officials say that voting in 86 polling stations in \JIndonesia\j's Sampang regency will be re-run because the ballot boxes were destroyed by protesters. \JIndonesia\j's Muslim-backed United Development Party (PPP) wants all 1,033 stations in the region to vote again. \I(Indonesia)\i
The Secretary General of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) defends the Association's decision to admit \JMyanmar\j. The US had urged ASEAN not to admit \JMyanmar\j because of its democracy and human rights records. ASEAN responded by saying that it wants to achieve the same objectives as the US, but intends to go about it in a different way. \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Papua New Guinea's acting Prime Minister, John Giheno, says that he won't allow Sir Julius Chan to resume office as Prime Minister until he is satisfied that an inquiry into the Government's contract with a mercenary organization has answered all questions and cleared Sir Julius of all allegations of corruption. Sir Julius maintains that he is the rightful Prime Minister, and appoints a new commander of the Papua New Guinea Defense Force. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Greenpeace activists uncover barrels thought to contain toxic waste at Homebush Bay near the site of the 2000 Olympic Games. The discovery comes after a request by the International Olympic Committee for the New South Wales Government to provide a report on \Jdioxin\j levels near the site. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the Canadian election, Jean Chretien's Liberal Party maintains a slim majority by winning 155 of the 301 parliamentary seats. \I(Canada)\i
US helicopters evacuate more foreigners from Sierra Leone, bringing the total number of evacuees to almost 2,500. \I(USA, Sierra Leone)\i
British and US Defense Secretaries George Robertson and William Cohen meet in Washington. Mr Robertson urges Mr Cohen against the early withdrawal of US troops from Bosnia. \I(USA, UK, Bosnia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
British and US Defense Secretaries George Robertson and William Cohen meet in Washington. Mr Robertson urges Mr Cohen against the early withdrawal of US troops from Bosnia. \I(USA, UK, Bosnia)\i
Newly elected socialist leader, Lionel Jospin, takes office as Prime Minister of \JFrance\j. His party expresses its intention to adhere to the timetable for the introduction of the single European currency in 1999. \I(France)\i
Northern Ireland peace talks resume in \JBelfast\j. Sinn Fein, the political arm of the Irish Republican Army, is not admitted to the talks because the IRA has refused to renew its cease-fire. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
The German Government stops pursuing its plan to revalue the country's central bank gold reserves in order to qualify for European monetary union in 1999. \I(Germany)\i
US helicopters evacuate more foreigners from Sierra Leone, bringing the total number of evacuees to almost 2,500. \I(USA, Sierra Leone)\i
#
"June 4, 1997",518,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
More than 50,000 people attend a vigil in Victoria Park to remember the pro-democracy demonstrators killed at \JBeijing\j's Tiananmen Square in 1989. \I(China)\i
United Nations food organizations warn that North Korea's food rationing system will collapse and the country will face \Jfamine\j unless urgent action is taken to alleviate the problem. \I(North Korea)\i
Around 1,500 Australian \JAborigines\j from the "stolen generations" are organizing law suits against the Government to claim compensation for being taken from their parents under a previous government policy. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Jurors in the case of the Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, hear testimonies from relatives of people killed in the explosion. When the prosecution and defense testimonies are complete, the jury will decide whether McVeigh is to be executed or sentenced to life in prison. \I(USA)\i
US astronomers announce the discovery of a mini-planet at the edge of the solar system. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
French naval vessels evacuate more than 700 foreigners from \JFreetown\j in Sierra Leone. \I(France, Sierra Leone)\i
France's new Socialist Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin, forms his government. \I(France)\i
Switzerland uncovers more assets of former Zairian president Sese Seko Mobutu. The discovery comes after Swiss banks claimed to have already found all the former president's money. \I(Switzerland, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Security measures are tightened in \JAlgeria\j ahead of tomorrow's general elections. \I(Algeria)\i
Ehud Barak replaces Shimon Peres as leader of Israel's opposition Labor Party. Mr Barak was head of Israel's Army between 1991 and 1994. \I(Israel)\i
A Turkish court jails 31 members of the People's Democratic Party. The members were charged with aiding separatist rebels. \I(Turkey)\i
#
"June 5, 1997",519,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Kim Hyun-chul, the son of South Korean President Kim Young-sam, is indicted on charges of graft and tax evasion. The investigation into his funds continues. \I(South Korea)\i
Patrol boats from North and South Korea fire at each other in the Yellow Sea when North Korean trawlers drift into territory claimed by South Korea. No casualties are reported. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
A landslide in the Chinese province of Sichuan destroys four villages and leaves 150 people presumed dead. \I(China)\i
The Muslim leaders of \JIndonesia\j's United Development Party (PPP) hold a meeting to decide whether or not the party will accept the results of the recent elections. PPP leaders believe that the election was rigged. \I(Indonesia)\i
In Glasgow, the families of two British nurses accused of murdering an Australian nurse in Saudi \JArabia\j hold a press conference and issue statements which claim that the confessions of the two nurses were unreliable and were obtained under duress. \I(UK, Saudi \JArabia\j, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Former \JCIA\j agent, Harold Nicholson, is sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to charges of selling US secrets to \JRussia\j. \I(USA)\i
Prosecutors continue with the penalty phase in the trial of the 1995 Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh. \I(USA)\i
Memphis police discover the body of folk-rock singer, Jeff Buckley, in the Mississippi River. Mr Buckley went missing a week ago. \I(USA)\i
Bill Richards, the US ambassador to the United Nations, leaves for talks with the President of the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, Laurent Kabila. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, officially thanks the US for its help to rebuild Europe after World War II and reunite \JGermany\j after the Cold War. \I(Germany, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
An independent commission calls for Swiss banks to publish the names of Jewish people who opened Swiss bank accounts before 1945. The commission, headed by American Paul Volcker, is trying to locate dormant accounts belonging to Jews murdered by Hitler's regime. \I(Switzerland)\i
German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, officially thanks the US for its help to rebuild Europe after World War II and reunite \JGermany\j after the Cold War. \I(Germany, USA)\i
Conservative President, Jacques Chirac, meets with \JFrance\j's new Socialist Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin, and the members of his new cabinet. \I(France)\i
In Glasgow, the families of two British nurses accused of murdering an Australian nurse in Saudi \JArabia\j hold a press conference and issue statements which claim that the confessions of the two nurses were unreliable and were obtained under duress. \I(UK, Saudi \JArabia\j, Australia)\i
Britain's Agriculture Minister, Jack Cunningham, announces that sheep infected with the disease scrapie will be culled because it is believed that the scrapie could actually be BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) or "mad cow" disease. While there is no evidence of BSE in British sheep at this stage, precautionary measures will be taken. Mr Cunningham also announces that Britain will no longer import beef from countries that have had cases of BSE but don't follow the stringent controls that are in place in England. \I(UK)\i
The first general elections for five years are held in \JAlgeria\j. \I(Algeria)\i
Bill Richards, the US ambassador to the United Nations, leaves for talks with the President of the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, Laurent Kabila. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Sierra Leonean coup leader, Major Johnny Paul Koromah, tells politicians that he wants 18 months in power before giving the leadership to an interim government. \I(Sierra Leone)\i
#
"June 6, 1997",520,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Indonesia pulls out of a deal to buy nine F-16 planes from the US and withdraws from the US Government's Expanded International Military Education and Training program. \I(Indonesia, USA)\i
Sri Lankan troops advance further into areas held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam guerrilla forces. Many civilian casualties are reported. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Supporters of \JMyanmar\j's pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, are released after allegedly being detained to prevent them from attending a meeting at Ms Suu Kyi's home in \JRangoon\j. Authorities deny the detentions. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
In Papua New Guinea, John Giheno meets with Sir Julius Chan and later acknowledges Sir Julius as Prime Minister. Mr Giheno was acting Prime Minister while Sir Julius was being investigated on charges of corruption and refused to relinquish power earlier in the week. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Taiwan re-states its intention to dispose of nuclear waste for North Korea, despite opposition to the contract from South Korea, the US, and environmental groups. \I(Taiwan, North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
A US National Security Adviser warns Congress that if it does not renew China's most favored nation trade status the US could become a Chinese enemy. \I(USA, China)\i
Four drug smugglers from \JMyanmar\j are executed in China after being found guilty of smuggling heroin into the province of Yunnan. \I(China, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Members of the royalist Funcinpec Party negotiate with Khmer Rouge leaders to try to organize a deal in which Pol Pot and two of his aides are granted exile. \I(Cambodia)\i
The Attorney General of New South Wales calls for investigations into allegations of crimes committed against the "stolen generations" of Australian \JAborigines\j. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Indonesia pulls out of a deal to buy nine F-16 planes from the US and withdraws from the US Government's Expanded International Military Education and Training program. \I(Indonesia, USA)\i
Taiwan re-states its intention to dispose of nuclear waste for North Korea, despite opposition to the contract from South Korea, the US, and environmental groups. \I(Taiwan, North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
In \JDenver\j, \JColorado\j, defense attorneys begin the task of trying to convince jurors to spare Timothy McVeigh's life. McVeigh was found guilty of bombing a federal government building in Oklahoma City in 1995. The jury must decide whether McVeigh will serve life in prison, or be executed by lethal injection. \I(USA)\i
A US National Security Adviser warns Congress that if it does not renew China's most favored nation trade status the US could become a Chinese enemy. \I(USA, China)\i
Rebels kill four Colombian police officers and destroy a local police station. The Army is called in to help the police. \I(Colombia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Irish general election is held. \I(Ireland)\i
In parliamentary elections, Algerian President Leamine Zeroual's National Democratic Rally wins 155 of the 380 seats. Another pro-government party wins 64 seats. Opposition parties say that the election was fraudulent. \I(Algeria)\i
An opposition leader in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j demands that President Laurent Kabila holds early elections or grants the opposition places in the Government. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Military coup leaders in Sierra Leone announce their willingness to step down in 18 months after peace has been established. The coup leaders call for talks to help ease the situation with \JNigeria\j; the Nigerian Government wants to restore Sierra Leone's elected president to power. \I(Sierra Leone, Nigeria)\i
#
"June 7, 1997",521,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
South Korean police arrest three student activists who turned themselves in after beating a man to death during riots earlier in the week. \I(South Korea)\i
Rainstorms in China's Hunan province leave 30 dead and others missing. \I(China)
A team of US military experts discovers remnants of an American plane that was shot down in the north of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The team is on a mission to find remains of American soldiers still listed as missing in action. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
A fire in a Hindu temple in southern India kills at least 50 people. \I(India)\i
Fierce fighting between Sri Lankan troops and guerrilla forces leaves many dead. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Indonesian police arrest four people suspected of starting a fire in a market place in East \JTimor\j's capital Dili. One of the men arrested is also thought to have been involved in a truck bombing which killed seventeen police officers on 31 May. \I(East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
In a conference speech in Brisbane, \JAustralia\j's Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, stresses the importance of \JAustralia\j's trade relations with Asia, particularly \JJapan\j, and denounces anti-Asian comments made by Independent MP Pauline Hanson. \I(Australia, Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A team of US military experts discovers remnants of an American plane that was shot down in the north of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The team is on a mission to find remains of American soldiers still listed as missing in action. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
A report published by the National Bioethics Advisory Commission in the US states that it is morally unacceptable to clone human babies. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
On an official visit to \JGermany\j, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, meets with Chancellor Helmut Kohl for talks about Europe and relations between the two countries. \I(UK, Germany)\i
Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j President, Laurent Kabila, says the United Nations officials are free to investigate allegations that his troops killed thousands of refugees. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Croatian Iva Majoli defeats Martina Hingis in the women's final of the tennis French Open. \I(Croatia, France)\i
#
"June 8, 1997",522,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Deals for food aid are finalized between the Red Cross organizations in North Korea and South Korea. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
Sri Lankan troops fortify their positions after gaining ground in fighting against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam guerrillas. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Pakistan's former chief of police is detained in relation to the murder of Mir Murtaza Bhutto, the brother of former premier, Benazir Bhutto. \I(Pakistan)\i
Police in Papua New Guinea patrol the annual Port Moresby Show and other potentially volatile areas ahead of next weekend's elections. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Torrential rains cause landslides that kill at least 28 people in the Himalayan mountains. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The US says that it is prepared to offer military cooperation to the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j to encourage it to maintain human rights standards. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Brazilian Gustavo Kuerten defeats Sergi Brugeura in the men's final of the tennis French Open. \I(Brazil, France)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In Ireland's national election, the government of John Bruton is defeated. It appears that Bertie Ahern and his Fianna Fail party will now form alliances with other parties or independents to form a government. \I(Ireland)\i
In Krakow, the Pope is greeted by more than one million people. \I(Poland)\i
Brazilian Gustavo Kuerten defeats Sergi Brugeura in the men's final of the tennis French Open. \I(Brazil, France)\i
The US says that it is prepared to offer military cooperation to the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j to encourage it to maintain human rights standards. \I(USA, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Negotiators from Israel and Palestine meet in \JEgypt\j to plan further peace talks. \I(Egypt, Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"June 9, 1997",523,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Japan, the US, and South Korea discuss options for peace talks with North Korea and for providing food aid to the famine-threatened country. \I(Japan, USA, South Korea, North Korea)\i
Japan sends special envoys to China and North Korea to allay fears about changes to its military alliance with the US. \I(China, North Korea, USA)\i
Sri Lankan troops carry out air and artillery attacks on positions thought to be held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam guerrilla forces. More people are killed in the fighting, which intensified on Friday. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Li Shuxian, widow of China's last emperor, dies of lung cancer aged 73. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Japan, the US, and South Korea discuss options for peace talks with North Korea and for providing food aid to the famine-threatened country. \I(Japan, USA, South Korea, North Korea)\i
Japan sends special envoys to China and North Korea to allay fears about changes to its military alliance with the US. \I(China, North Korea, USA)\i
Defense attorneys for Timothy McVeigh, the man found guilty of bombing an Oklahoma City federal building and killing 168 people, try to convince the jury to sentence him to life in prison, rather than death by lethal injection. \I(USA)\i
Foreigners in the \JCongo\j flee fierce fighting between government troops and a private militia. The fighting causes the US to suspend its evacuation operation. \I(Congo, USA)\i
US Air Force General Joseph Ralston withdraws as a candidate for the position of chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff because of the controversy surrounding his disclosure that he had an adulterous affair 13 years ago. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species begins in Zimbabwe, one of three countries seeking to reduce the 1989 world-wide ban on ivory trading. \I(Zimbabwe)\i
Coup leaders in Sierra Leone express concern about the implications of foreign interference in the country's affairs. They call for the withdrawal of Nigerian troops from \JFreetown\j who were deployed to back \JNigeria\j's support for Sierra Leone's ousted president. \I(Sierra Leone, Nigeria)\i
Foreigners in the \JCongo\j flee fierce fighting between government troops and a private militia. The fighting causes the US to suspend its evacuation operation. \I(Congo, USA)\i
#
"June 10, 1997",524,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Sri Lankan Army's offensive to open a road link to the Jaffna peninsula is hampered by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam rebels. Independent journalists have been banned from the area, so reports come only from Government and rebel sources and are often conflicting. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
South Korean officials urge student groups to leave the Hanchongryon federation of student associations. Hanchongryon is accused of being violent, pro-communist, and a threat to state security. Groups that do not leave the federation by the end of July may be prosecuted under the National Security Law. \I(South Korea)\i
The Pentagon announces plans to sell $US307 million worth of anti-aircraft missiles and launchers to South Korea. \I(USA, South Korea)\i
Manila's Supreme Court rejects a petition to change the constitution so that President Fidel Ramos can run for a second six-year term in office. The constitution, rewritten in 1987, says that a president is allowed only one term. \I(Philippines)\i
The US House of Representatives approves an amendment to the Foreign Policy Reform Act. The amendment condemns Indonesian human rights abuses in East \JTimor\j. \I(USA, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
The US announces that Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, will boycott the July 1 ceremony to swear in Hong Kong's new, Chinese-appointed legislature, the Provisional Legislative Council. \I(USA, Hong Kong, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The US House of Representatives approves an amendment to the Foreign Policy Reform Act. The amendment condemns Indonesian human rights abuses in East \JTimor\j. \I(USA, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
US House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, condemns the Palestinian policy of killing \JArabs\j who sell land to Israelis. Mr Gingrich intends to block aid to the Palestinian Authority if its leaders do not publicly condemn the killings. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
The US announces that Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, will boycott the July 1 ceremony to swear in Hong Kong's new, Chinese-appointed legislature, the Provisional Legislative Council. \I(USA, Hong Kong, China)\i
The Pentagon announces plans to sell $US307 million worth of anti-aircraft missiles and launchers to South Korea. \I(USA, South Korea)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Pope returns to \JRome\j after an eleven-day visit to his homeland, \JPoland\j. \I(Italy, Poland)\i
Fighting in the \JCongo\j continues. French soldiers rescue foreigners trapped in the city. \I(France, Congo)\i
Nigerian soldiers in \JFreetown\j fire on Sierra Leonean soldiers, killing at least five. Soldiers in Sierra Leone's Revolutionary United Front are calling for vengeance for the killings. \I(Sierra Leone, Nigeria)\i
US House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, condemns the Palestinian policy of killing \JArabs\j who sell land to Israelis. Mr Gingrich intends to block aid to the Palestinian Authority if its leaders do not publicly condemn the killings. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, expresses his hope that \JEgypt\j will be able to revive peace talks between Israel and Palestine. \I(Israel, \JEgypt\j, Palestine)\i
#
"June 11, 1997",525,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Taiwan re-states its plans to hold military exercises during the lead-up to the hand-over of Hong Kong from the British back to the Chinese. The US has urged \JTaiwan\j not to hold the exercises, which are scheduled to take place in late June. \I(Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, USA)\i
China announces that President Jiang Zemin will attend Hong Kong's hand-over ceremony. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
North Korea begins talks about its missile program with the US. The US is hoping to stop North Korea from producing, deploying, and exporting missiles. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, says that he will not attend the ceremony to swear in Hong Kong's Chinese-appointed Provisional Legislative Council after the hand-over ceremony at midnight on June 30. \I(UK, Hong Kong, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Defense lawyers in the case of Timothy McVeigh, the man convicted of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, conclude their case in the penalty phase of the trial. \I(USA)\i
Congress and the Clinton administration discuss US funding for the United Nations. The US, which is two years in arrears with its UN funding, intends to repay $US819 million and reduce its future contributions from 25 per cent to 20 per cent over three years. \I(USA)\i
North Korea begins talks about its missile program with the US. The US is hoping to stop North Korea from producing, deploying, and exporting missiles. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
Taiwan re-states its plans to hold military exercises during the lead-up to the hand-over of Hong Kong from the British back to the Chinese. The US has urged \JTaiwan\j not to hold the exercises, which are scheduled to take place in late June. \I(Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, USA)\i
The Palestinian Authority denies involvement in the killing of \JArabs\j who sold land to Israelis and rejects comments made by the US, which has condemned the killings. \I(Palestine, Israel, USA)\i
Hundreds of forest fires burn out of control in Canada. The provinces of Quebec, \JOntario\j, and \JManitoba\j are worst affected. \I(Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Swiss bankers find more unclaimed accounts from the World War II era and prepare to violate the country's banking secrecy laws and publish the names of the account holders in order to comply with a Government request to do so. \I(Switzerland)\i
The British House of Commons passes the second stage of a bill designed to outlaw all handguns. The bill must pass through two more stages before it becomes law. \I(UK)\i
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, says that he will not attend the ceremony to swear in Hong Kong's Chinese-appointed Provisional Legislative Council after the hand-over ceremony at midnight on June 30. \I(UK, Hong Kong, China)\i
The Congolese President, Pascal Lissouba, orders a cease-fire in the hope of starting peace talks with former military leader, Denis Sassou Nguesso. \I(Congo)\i
The Palestinian Authority denies involvement in the killing of \JArabs\j who sold land to Israelis and rejects comments made by the US, which has condemned the killings. \I(Palestine, Israel, USA)\i
#
"June 12, 1997",526,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The first food aid from South Korea arrives in North Korea. \I(South Korea, North Korea)\i
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, sends military officials to meet with Khmer Rouge leader, Khieu Samphan, in the hope of ending the war between the Government and the rebels. \I(Cambodia)\i
The Japanese Foreign Minister, Yukihiko Ikeda, offers his resignation over the four-month hostage crisis at the Japanese embassy in \JPeru\j, which began in December last year. Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto persuades Mr Ikeda to stay on. \I(Japan)\i
The relationship between India and \JPakistan\j is strained ahead of peace talks. The Pakistani Government accuses India of increasing tension by violating Pakistani airspace and deploying ballistic missiles near their border. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
The UK rejects requests by China to admit more Chinese troops to Hong Kong before the hand-over ceremony at midnight on June 30. \I(UK, China, Hong Kong)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, says that \JAustralia\j's Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, will attend the swearing-in ceremony of Hong Kong's unelected Provisional Legislative Council after the June 30 hand-over ceremony. The Chinese-appointed body will replace Hong Kong's elected Legislative Council. \I(Australia, Hong Kong, China)\i
One hundred and forty Mandarin-speaking illegal immigrants arrive by boat at Thursday Island in the Torres Strait. The immigrants are handed to \Jimmigration\j officials and will be investigated by the Australian Government. \I(China, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The sentencing phase of the Timothy McVeigh trial continues as jurors fail to reach a decision on whether McVeigh should be sentenced to life in prison or death by lethal injection. \I(USA)\i
In Brussels, \JNATO\j defense ministers meet to discuss the expansion of the alliance. US Secretary of Defense, William Cohen, tells the meeting that the US wants to invite only the Czech Republic, \JPoland\j, and \JHungary\j to join \JNATO\j. \I(Belgium, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
United Nations Secretary General, Koffi Annan, appoints Irish President, Mary Robinson, as the UN's new High Commissioner for Human Rights. Mr Annan wants Mrs Robinson to take up the position before September, three months before her term as President is finished. \I(Ireland)\i
The UK rejects requests by China to admit more Chinese troops to Hong Kong before the hand-over ceremony at midnight on June 30. \I(UK, China, Hong Kong)\i
In Brussels, \JNATO\j defense ministers meet to discuss the expansion of the alliance. US Secretary of Defense, William Cohen, tells the meeting that the US wants to invite only the Czech Republic, \JPoland\j, and \JHungary\j to join \JNATO\j. \I(Belgium, USA)\i
In Turkey, Islamist Prime Minister, Necmettin Erbakan, talks with coalition leader, Tansu Ciller, in an effort to save the ruling coalition from collapsing after continued criticism from the secularist army. Mrs Ciller has threatened to leave the Government if Mr Erbakan doesn't resign. \I(Turkey)\i
Iraq refuses to admit United Nations weapons inspectors to two weapons sites near \JBaghdad\j. \I(Iraq)\i
#
"June 13, 1997",527,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, announces that \JJapan\j's Foreign Affairs Minister, Yukihiko Ikeda, will attend the swearing-in ceremony for Hong Kong's unelected legislature, to replace the current Legislative Council on July 1. The New Zealand Government also announces that it will attend the swearing-in. \I(Japan, Hong Kong, New Zealand)\i
Ahead of peace talks between India and \JPakistan\j scheduled for 19-23 June, \JPakistan\j urges members of the United Nations Security Council to take action over India's alleged deployment of missiles along the border between the two countries. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
A fire in an Indian movie theater kills sixty people and injures hundreds of others. \I(India)\i
US President, Bill Clinton, once again warns the House of Representatives that a decision not to renew China's most favored nation trade status would have dire consequences. \I(USA, China)\i
China and \JKazakhstan\j vow to work together to stabilize the tensions in the Xinjiang province which borders \JKazakhstan\j. \I(China, Kazakhstan)\i
The second month of a military offensive in Sri Lanka begins. Government troops are fighting separatist guerrillas, called the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, in the army's largest operation of its kind. The Tamil forces claim that \JPakistan\j helped the Sri Lankan Government to plan the offensive. \I(Sri Lanka, Pakistan)\i
It is reported that Pol Pot, \JCambodia\j's despotic ruler between 1975 and 1979, has killed his former defense minister, taken several hostages, and fled his base in the north of the country. It is believed that Pol Pot is sick and had to be carried in a sling by his men. \I(Cambodia)\i
The leader of \JAustralia\j's opposition Labor Party, Kim Beazley, urges voters to direct their preferential votes against Independent MP, Pauline Hanson, and her One Nation Party at the next election. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US President, Bill Clinton, once again warns the House of Representatives that a decision not to renew China's most favored nation trade status would have dire consequences. \I(USA, China)\i
Timothy McVeigh is sentenced to death. The 29-year-old man was convicted of bombing a federal building and killing 168 people in Oklahoma City on 19 April 1995. \I(USA)\i
At a \JNATO\j meeting in Brussels, leaders of \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, and Canada express their intention to consider bids by \JRomania\j and \JSlovenia\j to join the alliance. The announcement comes a day after the US says that it won't consider bids from countries other than the Czech Republic, \JPoland\j, and \JHungary\j. \JRomania\j and \JSlovenia\j express surprise at the US decision. \I(Belgium, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, Canada, \JRomania\j, \JSlovenia\j, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
At a \JNATO\j meeting in Brussels, leaders of \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, and Canada express their intention to consider bids by \JRomania\j and \JSlovenia\j to join the alliance. The announcement comes a day after the US says that it won't consider bids from countries other than the Czech Republic, \JPoland\j, and \JHungary\j. \JRomania\j and \JSlovenia\j express surprise at the US decision. \I(Belgium, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, Canada, \JRomania\j, \JSlovenia\j, USA)\i
French and German leaders meet to discuss a European Union stability pact. While both countries want monetary union, they differ on their approaches to achieving it. \I(France, Germany)\i
A day-old cease-fire in \JBrazzaville\j, \JCongo\j, is destroyed as fighting resumes between the army, commanded by President Pascal Lissouba, and the Cobra militia of former military leader, Denis Sassou Nguesso. French army troops continue their efforts to evacuate foreigners. \I(Congo, France)\i
The United Nations General Assembly approves a resolution that urges Israel to pay for damage caused after it shelled a United Nations base in \JLebanon\j in 1996. Israel claims that it is not bound to pay. \I(Israel)\i
#
"June 14, 1997",528,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Voting begins in Papua New Guinea's national elections. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Forces opposed to \JAfghanistan\j's Taliban militia use a jet to bomb a neighborhood near Kabul's airport. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Police arrest four movie theater managers in relation to a fire that killed 60 people and injured hundreds of others. It is thought that the deaths and injuries were caused because of lax safety provisions. \I(India)\i
A mob riot occurs on the Indonesian island of Madura. \I(Indonesia)\i
Hong Kong's new Provisional Legislative Council, appointed by \JBeijing\j to run Hong Kong after the June 30 hand-over, approves legislation to restrict demonstrations, public protests, and foreign financial support of political parties. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US Defense Secretary, William Cohen, meets with Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah to seek cooperation in an \JFBI\j investigation into a bombing that killed 19 US troops in Saudi \JArabia\j last June. \I(USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
At a speech in San Diego, US President, Bill Clinton, addresses racial problems, warning that the US must be careful not to return to the days of racial segregation. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
An electrical fire in London's Tate Gallery causes some damage but no injuries. \I(UK)\i
Demonstrators in \JAmsterdam\j march to demand action to reduce unemployment ahead of a European Union summit on monetary union. Many feel that the issue of unemployment will be overlooked in the race to achieve a single European currency. \I(the Netherlands)\i
Pope John Paul II calls for an end to fighting in Sierra Leone and \JCongo\j. \I(Italy, Sierra Leone, Congo)\i
Turkish Prime Minister, Necmettin Erbakan, agrees to step down after pressure from the secular army and his coalition partner and Deputy Prime Minister, Tansu Ciller. \I(Turkey)\i
Clashes between Israeli soldiers and Palestinians continue in \JHebron\j. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Neo-fascists, air-force officers, and family attend the funeral of Vittorio Mussolini, the second son of Italian dictator, Benito Mussolini. \I(Italy)\i
#
"June 15, 1997",529,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australian tennis player Mark Philippoussis wins the London grass-court Queen's Club title by defeating Croatian, Goran Ivanisevic. \I(Australia, \JCroatia\j, UK)\i
The brother of murdered Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford, is granted one week by Saudi judges to prove that he is a beneficiary of his sister's will and therefore entitled to insist on the death penalty if the two British women accused of the murder are found guilty. \I(Saudi \JArabia\j, \JAustralia\j, UK)\i
Rebels from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam attack police commandos, killing 18 of them. Eight rebels are killed in the fighting. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
\BThe Americas\b
South African golfer, Ernie Els, wins the US Open. \I(South Africa, USA)\i
German Michael Schumacher wins the Canadian Formula One Grand Prix. \I(Germany, Canada)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
European Union finance ministers meet to discuss differences in approaches to European monetary union ahead of tomorrow's summit meeting in \JAmsterdam\j. \I(the Netherlands)\i
Australian tennis player Mark Philippoussis wins the London grass-court Queen's Club title by defeating Croatian, Goran Ivanisevic. \I(Australia, \JCroatia\j, UK)\i
German Michael Schumacher wins the Canadian Formula One Grand Prix. \I(Germany, Canada)\i
Heavy fighting occurs at the airport of \JBrazzaville\j as French troops prepare to end their evacuations and leave. \I(Congo, France)\i
South African golfer, Ernie Els, wins the US Open. \I(South Africa, USA)\i
The Israeli High Court rejects a petition for Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to be charged with \Jfraud\j. \I(Israel)\i
Street clashes between Israelis and Palestinians continue in the West Bank town of \JHebron\j. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
The brother of murdered Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford, is granted one week by Saudi judges to prove that he is a beneficiary of his sister's will and therefore entitled to insist on the death penalty if the two British women accused of the murder are found guilty. \I(Saudi \JArabia\j, \JAustralia\j, UK)\i
#
"June 16, 1997",530,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Following Khmer Rouge defections there are reports that former Cambodian leader, Pol Pot, the man responsible for the killing of up to two million Cambodians during his despotic rule between 1974 and 1979, is on the run. \JThailand\j reinforces its borders with troops to block possible escape routes. Khmer Rouge defectors are said to have joined the government and are assisting in efforts to capture Pol Pot and the remaining rebels. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
Voting continues in Papua New Guinea's general elections. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
A South Korean foreign ministry spokesman says he expects that North Korea will agree to peace talks involving both Koreas, the US, and China. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA, China)\i
Chinese officials urge \JBeijing\j residents to stay at home during the June 30 hand-over celebrations in Hong Kong. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
A Taiwanese official says that \JTaiwan\j is prepared to accept applications for asylum from Chinese \Jdissidents\j who want to leave Hong Kong after the hand-over. \I(Taiwan, China, Hong Kong)\i
Hong Kong invites Taiwanese officials to attend the hand-over ceremony at midnight on June 30. \I(Hong Kong, Taiwan)\i
The upper house of the Japanese Parliament passes a bill that will allow doctors to transplant organs such as hearts, lungs, and livers from brain-dead people. Before now, brain death was not recognized in \JJapan\j, so transplants were allowed only after a patient's heart stopped beating. The bill is expected to pass through parliament's lower house uncontested. \I(Japan)\i
In Sri Lanka, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam attack and kill 14 police officers. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Nine \JSinhalese\j soldiers are charged with murdering four Tamil civilians. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Muslim guerrillas in the \JPhilippines\j kidnap 43 surveyors from a state oil firm, but are forced by the military to release the captives ten hours later. The surveyors are taken to a military headquarters overnight. \I(Philippines)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US President, Bill Clinton, condemns the murder of two Northern Ireland policemen by IRA guerrillas. \I(USA, UK)\i
A South Korean foreign ministry spokesman says he expects that North Korea will agree to peace talks involving both Koreas, the US, and China. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA, China)\i
Lawyers for Timothy McVeigh's co-defendant, Terry Nichols, in the Oklahoma City bombing case say that he was a victim of McVeigh and was used unwittingly in the bombing. Nichols will probably go to trial later this year. \I(USA)\i
US Defense Secretary, William Cohen, promises a thorough inquiry into Gulf War syndrome. The promise comes after a report which criticizes the Government for dismissing links between biological weapons used during the Gulf War and symptoms experienced by veterans. \I(USA)\i
On a visit to \JKuwait\j, US Defense Secretary, William Cohen, assures \JKuwait\j that the US is prepared to continue protecting it from \JIran\j and \JIraq\j. \I(USA, \JKuwait\j, \JIran\j, Iraq)\i
US President Bill Clinton's former business partner, James McDougal, begins serving a three-year sentence for \Jfraud\j and conspiracy. The sentence was reduced because McDougal provided information about the business dealings of the President and his wife. \I(USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, says that elections in \JCroatia\j were free, but not fair, claiming that opposition parties did not have equal access to the media. \I(USA, Croatia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Leaders at a European summit meeting discuss monetary union. \JFrance\j drops its objections to strict budgetary rules in return for promises that job creation will be at the top of the European Union's agenda. \I(Europe)\i
IRA gunmen fatally shoot two Northern Ireland policemen. The British government responds by cutting off all communication with Sinn Fein, the IRA's political organization. \I(UK)\i
US President, Bill Clinton, condemns the murder of two Northern Ireland policemen by IRA guerrillas. \I(USA, UK)\i
The business manager of \JRussia\j's top football club is murdered. \I(Russia)\i
Unofficial results in the Croation presidential elections show that Pesident Franjo Tudjman has retained the leadership. \I(Croatia)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, says that elections in \JCroatia\j were free, but not fair, claiming that opposition parties did not have equal access to the media. \I(USA, Croatia)\i
The French Government rejects a request from the President of \JCongo\j, Pascal Lissouba, to leave its troops in \JBrazzaville\j. The French Army begins moving out after evacuating foreigners from the capital. \I(Congo, France)\i
Clashes between Israeli soldiers and Palestinians in \JHebron\j continues; Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, accuses the Palestinian Authority of orchestrating the violence. Meanwhile, the United Nations announces the cancellation of a visit to Israel saying that conditions imposed by Israel are unacceptable. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
On a visit to \JKuwait\j, US Defense Secretary, William Cohen, assures \JKuwait\j that the US is prepared to continue protecting it from \JIran\j and \JIraq\j. \I(USA, \JKuwait\j, \JIran\j, Iraq)\i
#
"June 17, 1997",531,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Muslim guerrillas who kidnapped 43 surveyors from a state oil firm yesterday attack the military camp where they were staying overnight. Eight guerrillas and one soldier are killed in the clash. \I(Philippines)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, leaves for a sixteen-day tour of London, Washington, and New York. \I(Australia, UK, USA)\i
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, says that he wants Pol Pot captured so that he can stand trial at an international tribunal. \I(Cambodia)\i
Fierce fighting in \JCambodia\j between supporters of first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and supporters of second Prime Minister, Mr Hun Sen, is reported in the capital, Phnom Penh. \I(Cambodia)\i
Mir Aimal Kansi, the Pakistani man accused of killing two \JCIA\j employees and injuring three others in a 1993 shooting, is captured by Afghans and handed over to the US authorities. He will face murder charges in the US. \I(Pakistan, USA, Afghanistan)\i
The United Nations Committee on Decolonization hears plans for reducing violence in East \JTimor\j from the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Jose Ramos Horta. Mr Ramos Horta says that the number of Indonesian troops in East \JTimor\j should be limited to 1,000; resistance fighters should stop armed activities; and a protection zone should be established for resistance fighters and their families. \I(East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
Ahead of Australian plans to build a spaceport, Sydney businessman, David Kwon, signs a deal with a Russian-French company to bring \JRussia\j's Soyuz space rocket to \JAustralia\j. \I(Australia, \JRussia\j, France)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, leaves for a sixteen-day tour of London, Washington, and New York. \I(Australia, UK, USA)\i
A Saudi man suspected of involvement in a 1996 bomb attack which killed 19 US troops in Saudi \JArabia\j is deported from Canada to the US. US officials say that the man has struck a plea-bargain agreement with US prosecutors. \I(USA, Saudi \JArabia\j, Canada)\i
Current laws in the US entitle convicted Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, to burial with military honors. McVeigh was sentenced to die by lethal injection. \I(USA)\i
The US, \JRussia\j, \JBelarus\j, \JKazakhstan\j, and the \JUkraine\j sign accords to improve the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, \JBelarus\j, \JKazakhstan\j, Ukraine)\i
US President, Bill Clinton, announces a plan to help poor African nations and those that reform their economies. \I(USA, Africa)\i
Mir Aimal Kansi, the Pakistani man accused of killing two \JCIA\j employees and injuring three others in a 1993 shooting, is captured by Afghans and handed over to the US authorities. He will face murder charges in the US. \I(Pakistan, USA, Afghanistan)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, leaves for a sixteen-day tour of London, Washington, and New York. \I(Australia, UK, USA)\i
Ahead of Australian plans to build a spaceport, Sydney businessman, David Kwon, signs a deal with a Russian-French company to bring \JRussia\j's Soyuz space rocket to \JAustralia\j. \I(Australia, \JRussia\j, France)\i
At the European Union summit in \JAmsterdam\j, leaders fail to reach agreement on how to restructure the voting system and streamline the union in preparation for its enlargement. \I(Europe)\i
Violent storms in Normandy kill four people and flood hundreds of homes. \I(France)\i
The US, \JRussia\j, \JBelarus\j, \JKazakhstan\j, and the \JUkraine\j sign accords to improve the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, \JBelarus\j, \JKazakhstan\j, Ukraine)\i
Switzerland's upper house of parliament passes a law that requires Swiss bankers to report transactions which they suspect are related to illegal drugs and other crimes. \I(Switzerland)\i
A proposal by Zimbabwe, \JNamibia\j, and \JBotswana\j to partially lift the ban on ivory trade is rejected after a secret ballot at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. The three countries will present another proposal to sell their stockpiled ivory. \I(Zimbabwe, \JNamibia\j, Botswana)\i
US President, Bill Clinton, announces a plan to help poor African nations and those that reform their economies. \I(USA, Africa)\i
A Saudi man suspected of involvement in a 1996 bomb attack which killed 19 US troops in Saudi \JArabia\j is deported from Canada to the US. US officials say that the man has struck a plea-bargain agreement with US prosecutors. \I(USA, Saudi \JArabia\j, Canada)\i
A fourth day of fighting between Israelis and Palestinians is reported in \JHebron\j. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
#
"June 18, 1997",532,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam rebels ambush an army patrol. Officials say that twenty-seven security officers were killed in the attack. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
North Korea warns that it is prepared to battle the US and South Korea if they attack while North Korea is weak and suffering from \Jfamine\j. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA)\i
Cambodia's second Prime Minister, Mr Hun Sen, warns the first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, to stop pursuing a deal with members of the Khmer Rouge. \I(Cambodia)\i
Eleven people are killed in \JKarachi\j amid violent clashes between factions of the Mohajir National Movement, an ethnic party. \I(Pakistan)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, arrives in England for talks with British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. \I(Australia, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In Washington, a Saudi man is charged with conspiracy to commit murder and international \Jterrorism\j after his involvement in a truck bombing that killed 19 US troops in Saudi \JArabia\j in 1996. The man has agreed to plead guilty and will cooperate in an \JFBI\j investigation into the bombing. \I(USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
The US Senate passes a bill that would prevent veterans convicted of first-degree murder from receiving benefits. The move comes after it was revealed that under current law, convicted murderer, Timothy McVeigh, is entitled to a military burial with full honors. \I(USA)\i
The man convicted of killing Senator Robert Kennedy in 1968 is refused parole for the tenth time. \I(USA)\i
The US State Department warns Congress that its moves towards formal recognition of \JJerusalem\j as Israel's capital are not good for US foreign policy. \I(USA, Israel)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In \JRome\j on a visit to \JItaly\j, \JFrance\j, and Britain, \JEgypt\j's Foreign Minister urges Europe to support the Middle East peace process. \I(Italy, \JFrance\j, UK, Egypt)\i
French police arrest 600 people after two days of raids on suspected pedophiles and child pornographers. \I(France)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, arrives in England for talks with British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Opposing militias in \JCongo\j begin a 72-hour cease-fire. The leaders, President Pascal Lissouba and his rival Denis Sassou Nguesso, agree to let wounded people pass through the front line unharmed. \I(Congo)\i
Major Johnny Koromah, Sierra Leonean coup leader, is sworn in as head of state. Major Koromah pledges to restore peace and democracy to Sierra Leone. \I(Sierra Leone)\i
In Washington, a Saudi man is charged with conspiracy to commit murder and international \Jterrorism\j after his involvement in a truck bombing that killed 19 US troops in Saudi \JArabia\j in 1996. The man has agreed to plead guilty and will cooperate in an \JFBI\j investigation into the bombing. \I(USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
The US State Department warns Congress that its moves towards formal recognition of \JJerusalem\j as Israel's capital are not good for US foreign policy. \I(USA, Israel)\i
The Turkish Prime Minister, Necmettin Erbakan, presents his resignation to President Suleyman Demirel. The secularist military and Mr Erbakan's coalition partner and deputy Prime Minister, Tansu Ciller, have been pressuring him to resign for some time. \I(Turkey)\i
#
"June 19, 1997",533,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, says that Pol Pot has not yet been found. \I(Cambodia)\i
The New South Wales State Government announces a clean-up plan to remove \Jdioxin\j contamination from the bay near the 2000 Olympics site. \I(Australia)\i
Rebels on the island of Bougainville try to disrupt voting in national elections. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Thailand's Commerce Minister and Finance Minister resign, adversely affecting \JThailand\j's currency and stock market. \I(Thailand)\i
Almost 60 Chinese drug traffickers are executed in a number of Chinese cities. \I(China)\i
Hong Kong's last British Governor, Chris Patten, appears for the final time before Hong Kong's legislature. \I(UK, Hong Kong)\i
At the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, a committee recommends that Zimbabwe, \JBotswana\j, and \JNamibia\j be permitted to sell ivory to \JJapan\j in 18 months time under a system of careful monitoring. \I(Zimbabwe, \JBotswana\j, \JNamibia\j, Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
World leaders start arriving in \JDenver\j for an annual summit meeting. Leaders from Canada, \JJapan\j, the United Kingdom, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, and \JRussia\j will attend the weekend meeting hosted by the US. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Britain's opposition Conservative Party elects William Hague as its new leader. \I(UK)\i
Hong Kong's last British Governor, Chris Patten, appears for the final time before Hong Kong's legislature. \I(UK, Hong Kong)\i
Russia's parliament passes a bill that places tight restrictions on all but a few religions. The new law protects and promotes Russian Orthodoxy and tolerates \JIslam\j, \JJudaism\j, and \JBuddhism\j, but limits other religions by requiring them to complete a 15-year registration process. \I(Russia)\i
France's new Socialist Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin, delivers his first speech to the National Assembly, promising to create 700,000 jobs for young people and to achieve European monetary union on time. \I(France)\i
At the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, a committee recommends that Zimbabwe, \JBotswana\j, and \JNamibia\j be permitted to sell ivory to \JJapan\j in 18 months time under a system of careful monitoring. \I(Zimbabwe, \JBotswana\j, \JNamibia\j, Japan)\i
The Israeli Finance Minister, Dan Meridor, revokes his support of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and resigns. \I(Israel)\i
Iraq accuses United Nations weapons inspectors of trying to spy on its intelligence headquarters. \I(Iraq)\i
#
"June 20, 1997",534,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Ahead of the Earth Summit in New York next week, the United Nations General Assembly President, Razali Ismail, attacks \JAustralia\j for opposing strict greenhouse emission targets. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, claims that Pol Pot has been surrounded by his former Khmer Rouge supporters and his capture is imminent. \I(Cambodia)\i
Foreign Ministry officials from India and \JPakistan\j hold peace talks. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
The Chinese army's general chief of staff warns \JJapan\j that it should be careful when formulating plans for its military alliance with the US. \I(China, \JJapan\j, USA)\i
The Group of Seven, or G7, nations meet in \JDenver\j, \JColorado\j for their annual summit. Leaders from the USA, Canada, the UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, and \JJapan\j invited \JRussia\j to join in the talks, causing some observers to rename the meeting the "Summit of Eight." \I(USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, \JJapan\j, Russia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Ahead of the Earth Summit in New York next week, the United Nations General Assembly President, Razali Ismail, attacks \JAustralia\j for opposing strict greenhouse emission targets. \I(Australia, USA)\i
The Chinese army's general chief of staff warns \JJapan\j that it should be careful when formulating plans for its military alliance with the US. \I(China, \JJapan\j, USA)\i
At an address to the \JChicago\j Council on Foreign Relations, German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, says that Europe needs a common currency to complete its single market and bind it to a common destiny. \I(Germany, USA)\i
In the US, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, asks American supporters of Sinn Fein to stop sending them money. \I(USA, UK, Northern Ireland)\i
The Group of Seven, or G7, nations meet in \JDenver\j, \JColorado\j for their annual summit. Leaders from the USA, Canada, the UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, and \JJapan\j invited \JRussia\j to join in the talks, causing some observers to rename the meeting the "Summit of Eight." \I(USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, \JJapan\j, Russia)\i
In the US, the United Nations Security Council adopts a resolution that will impose sanctions on \JIraq\j if it does not permit international arms experts to inspect Iraqi weapon sites. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
Forty of the United States' attorneys-general reach an agreement with the American \Jtobacco\j industry after nearly three months of negotiations. If the deal is backed by President Clinton and Congress, the \Jtobacco\j industry will pay $US368 billion for anti-smoking campaigns and public health aid over the next twenty-five years. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the US, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, asks American supporters of Sinn Fein to stop sending them money. \I(USA, UK, Northern Ireland)\i
The Group of Seven, or G7, nations meet in \JDenver\j, \JColorado\j for their annual summit. Leaders from the USA, Canada, the UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, and \JJapan\j invited \JRussia\j to join in the talks, causing some observers to rename the meeting the "Summit of Eight." \I(USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, \JJapan\j, Russia)\i
At an address to the \JChicago\j Council on Foreign Relations, German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, says that Europe needs a common currency to complete its single market and bind it to a common destiny. \I(Germany, USA)\i
In the US, the United Nations Security Council adopts a resolution that will impose sanctions on \JIraq\j if it does not permit international arms experts to inspect Iraqi weapon sites. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
Turkish President, Suleyman Demirel, asks the leader of the secular Motherland Party, Mesut Yilmaz, to form a new government. The request comes after Turkey's Islamist Prime Minister resigned because of continuous pressure from the secular army. \I(Turkey)\i
#
"June 21, 1997",535,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Cambodian Government announces that Pol Pot has been captured by Khmer Rouge defectors. \JCambodia\j's prime ministers say they will ask the United Nations to back an international tribunal to put Pol Pot on trial. \I(Cambodia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
At the Group of Seven meeting in \JDenver\j, world leaders threaten to stop aid to \JCroatia\j and \JSerbia\j if the peace process in Bosnia breaks down. \I(USA, \JCroatia\j, \JSerbia\j, Bosnia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
At the Group of Seven meeting in \JDenver\j, world leaders threaten to stop aid to \JCroatia\j and \JSerbia\j if the peace process in Bosnia breaks down. \I(USA, \JCroatia\j, \JSerbia\j, Bosnia)\i
Fighting and riots spread from \JHebron\j to Nablus, another West Bank city, as Israeli soldiers clash with Palestinians protesting about construction of Jewish settlements in disputed territory. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
Three people are injured in a car-bomb explosion in south \JBelfast\j. No one claims responsibility for the attack. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
The newly appointed Prime Minister of Turkey, Mesut Yilmaz, calls for pro-secular parties to work together to defend democracy and stop the threat of a military coup. \I(Turkey)\i
#
"June 22, 1997",536,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Speculation continues to surround events in \JCambodia\j. Second Prime Minister, Mr Hun Sen, says he was told that Pol Pot was dead, while a government general says that Pol Pot is alive and being held by a group of breakaway Khmer Rouge fighters and will soon be handed over to authorities. \I(Cambodia)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, says that Pol Pot, \JCambodia\j's despotic leader between 1974 and 1979, should face an international tribunal for war crimes. Pol Pot is responsible for the deaths of almost two million Cambodians who were worked to death or killed during his reign. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
The Group of Seven (USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, and Japan) issues a final communique at the close of its annual summit meeting held in \JDenver\j over three days. The Group of Seven, which this year invited \JRussia\j to all but one of its summit talks, intends to pursue peace in the Middle East and urge China to hold democratic elections in Hong Kong. \I(USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Group of Seven (USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, and Japan) issues a final communique at the close of its annual summit meeting held in \JDenver\j over three days. The Group of Seven, which this year invited \JRussia\j to all but one of its summit talks, intends to pursue peace in the Middle East and urge China to hold democratic elections in Hong Kong. \I(USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, Japan)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, says that Pol Pot, \JCambodia\j's despotic leader between 1974 and 1979, should face an international tribunal for war crimes. Pol Pot is responsible for the deaths of almost two million Cambodians who were worked to death or killed during his reign. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
In the US, South African golfer, Ernie Els, wins the Buick Classic golf tournament, earning the rank of world number one in golf. \I(South Africa, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Group of Seven (USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, and Japan) issues a final communique at the close of its annual summit meeting held in \JDenver\j over three days. The Group of Seven, which this year invited \JRussia\j to all but one of its summit talks, intends to pursue peace in the Middle East and urge China to hold democratic elections in Hong Kong. \I(USA, Canada, UK, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, \JItaly\j, Japan)\i
In the US, South African golfer, Ernie Els, wins the Buick Classic golf tournament, earning the rank of world number one in golf. \I(South Africa, USA)\i
#
"June 23, 1997",537,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh says that Pol Pot is alive and claims that those people who have reported him dead did so because they fear what he might say if he is brought to trial. \I(Cambodia)\i
Government officials report that US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, has asked Canada to extradite Pol Pot so that he can be tried under Canada's law against genocide. \JCambodia\j's two prime ministers have appealed to the United Nations for international assistance in dealing with Pol Pot. \I(USA, Canada, Cambodia)\i
India and \JPakistan\j set an agenda for peace talks and agree to set up working groups on a number of issues that affect the two countries. Both countries also agree to release fishermen held for violating territorial waters. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Britain gives in to \JBeijing\j's demands to allow People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops to enter Hong Kong before the official hand-over at midnight on 30 June. Five hundred PLA troops will join the two hundred troops already in Hong Kong. \I(UK, China, Hong Kong)\i
A British war veteran who was held by the Japanese as a prisoner of war during World War II says that he will fight the Japanese Government in court to get an apology and compensation for 10,000 British people held as prisoners of war. \I(UK, Japan)\i
Taiwan begins two days of military exercises despite warnings from China and the US that the exercises could cause tension in the area in the lead-up to the Hong Kong hand-over. \I(Taiwan, China, USA, Hong Kong)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The second United Nations Earth Summit begins in New York. \I(USA)\i
Government officials report that US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, has asked Canada to extradite Pol Pot so that he can be tried under Canada's law against genocide. \JCambodia\j's two prime ministers have appealed to the United Nations for international assistance in dealing with Pol Pot. \I(USA, Canada, Cambodia)\i
Betty Shabazz, widow of American civil rights leader, Malcolm X, dies from burns she received in a fire at her home on June 1. It is believed that the fire was deliberately started by her 12-year-old grandson Malcolm. \I(USA)\i
Taiwan begins two days of military exercises despite warnings from China and the US that the exercises could cause tension in the area in the lead-up to the Hong Kong hand-over. \I(Taiwan, China, USA, Hong Kong)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and outgoing Irish Prime Minister, John Bruton, agree to a joint venture which will see Britain and Ireland work together to encourage the IRA to decommission its weapons. \I(UK, Ireland)\i
A British war veteran who was held by the Japanese as a prisoner of war during World War II says that he will fight the Japanese Government in court to get an apology and compensation for 10,000 British people held as prisoners of war. \I(UK, Japan)\i
Britain gives in to \JBeijing\j's demands to allow People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops to enter Hong Kong before the official hand-over at midnight on 30 June. Five hundred PLA troops will join the two hundred troops already in Hong Kong. \I(UK, China, Hong Kong)\i
The leaders of \JAlbania\j's three major political parties sign a pact that binds them to holding a free and democratic election next Sunday. \I(Albania)\i
The cease-fire in \JBrazzaville\j, \JCongo\j, is broken when rival groups fire at each other. Leaders of west African states meet and discuss the possibility of creating a peace-keeping force for \JBrazzaville\j. \I(Congo)\i
#
"June 24, 1997",538,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, announces elections for May 1998. He also says that rebels holding Pol Pot will not be granted amnesty unless they hand him over to the Government within the next few days. \I(Cambodia)\i
Sri Lankan troops renew their offensive against Tamil guerrillas and capture a rebel town in the north of the country. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The US House of Representatives votes for President Clinton's proposal to renew China's most favored nation trade status. \I(USA, China)\i
In its last week in office, Hong Kong's elected legislature passes laws to ensure that only violent political dissent can be punished, not vocal protests. \I(Hong Kong)\i
At the Earth Summit in New York, \JAustralia\j's Environment Minister, Senator Robert Hill, argues against binding reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions, saying that the targets would place an unfair burden on countries such as \JAustralia\j whose economies rely on exports of energy and raw materials. European nations, particularly Britain, support flat-rate reduction targets and believe that \JAustralia\j should not be treated as a special case. \I(USA, \JAustralia\j, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The US House of Representatives votes for President Clinton's proposal to renew China's most favored nation trade status. \I(USA, China)\i
The US Air Force issues a statement saying that the so-called Roswell Incident in 1947 was a military exercise in which dummies were used in parachute drops; some people insist that the incident was actually an alien space crash that the Government covered up. \I(USA)\i
At the Earth Summit in New York, \JAustralia\j's Environment Minister, Senator Robert Hill, argues against binding reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions, saying that the targets would place an unfair burden on countries such as \JAustralia\j whose economies rely on exports of energy and raw materials. European nations, particularly Britain, support flat-rate reduction targets and believe that \JAustralia\j should not be treated as a special case. \I(USA, \JAustralia\j, UK)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
At the Earth Summit in New York, \JAustralia\j's Environment Minister, Senator Robert Hill, argues against binding reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions, saying that the targets would place an unfair burden on countries such as \JAustralia\j whose economies rely on exports of energy and raw materials. European nations, particularly Britain, support flat-rate reduction targets and believe that \JAustralia\j should not be treated as a special case. \I(USA, \JAustralia\j, UK)\i
London auctioneers Sotheby's sell a Van Gogh watercolor painting for úUK8 million. \I(UK)\i
Thousands of people flee shelling in the Central African Republic as peacekeepers try to stamp out rebellious soldiers who have been involved in clashes over the past four days in the capital, Bangui. \I(Central African Republic)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, defeats a vote of no-confidence in parliament. \I(Israel)\i
#
"June 25, 1997",539,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In northern \JAfghanistan\j, a Taliban jet bombs the headquarters of a former president. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Britain and the United States announce that they will send officials to the swearing-in ceremony for Hong Kong's Provisional Legislative Council next Tuesday. The move comes a short time after the leaders of both countries said that they would boycott the ceremony to show their disapproval of China's decision to remove Hong Kong's elected legislature and replace it with an appointed one after the hand-over. \I(UK, USA, China, Hong Kong)\i
Sri Lanka's Defense Ministry issues a statement saying that more than 200 troops and rebels were killed in fierce fighting on Tuesday. The Sri Lankan air force deploys helicopters to attack suspected rebel areas. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
In the \JPhilippines\j, Army helicopters inflict heavy fire on a Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebel camp. \I(Philippines)\i
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, says that the United States should not become involved in the fate of Pol Pot because it is an internal affair. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
The second-in-command of East \JTimor\j's Fretilin guerrilla force, David Alex, dies after being shot by Indonesian soldiers who arrested him. \I(Indonesia, East Timor)\i
Government officials in South Korea announce that North Korea has agreed to help arrange four-nation peace talks with South Korea, China, and the United States. \I(South Korea, North Korea, China, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Britain and the United States announce that they will send officials to the swearing-in ceremony for Hong Kong's Provisional Legislative Council next Tuesday. The move comes a short time after the leaders of both countries said that they would boycott the ceremony to show their disapproval of China's decision to remove Hong Kong's elected legislature and replace it with an appointed one after the hand-over. \I(UK, USA, China, Hong Kong)\i
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, says that the United States should not become involved in the fate of Pol Pot because it is an internal affair. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
A docking exercise goes wrong when a cargo craft collides with the Russian space station Mir. Russian officials say that the American and two Russians aboard Mir are in no danger. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Government officials in South Korea announce that North Korea has agreed to help arrange four-nation peace talks with South Korea, China, and the United States. \I(South Korea, North Korea, China, USA)\i
At the second Earth Summit in New York, the World Bank and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) agree to work together to protect the world's forests. The bank will contribute funds to acquire millions of hectares of forest around the world. \I(USA)\i
In the Caribbean island of Montserrat, a British-dependent territory, part of the Soufriere Hills \Jvolcano\j collapses and sends ash, rock, and hot gas towards villages. At least ten people are dead and others are missing. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Britain and the United States announce that they will send officials to the swearing-in ceremony for Hong Kong's Provisional Legislative Council next Tuesday. The move comes a short time after the leaders of both countries said that they would boycott the ceremony to show their disapproval of China's decision to remove Hong Kong's elected legislature and replace it with an appointed one after the hand-over. \I(UK, USA, China, Hong Kong)\i
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, announces plans for Northern Ireland peace talks in September which will go ahead without Sinn Fein if the IRA does not agree to a cease-fire. If the IRA does call a cease-fire, it must last for six weeks before Britain will make a decision about Sinn Fein's inclusion in the talks. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
In the Caribbean island of Montserrat, a British-dependent territory, part of the Soufriere Hills \Jvolcano\j collapses and sends ash, rock, and hot gas towards villages. At least ten people are dead and others are missing. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
French oceanographer, Jacques Cousteau, dies at the age of 87. \I(France)\i
A docking exercise goes wrong when a cargo craft collides with the Russian space station Mir. Russian officials say that the American and two Russians aboard Mir are in no danger. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Hundreds of civilians free \JBrazzaville\j as opposing troops fight for control of the airport. \I(Congo)\i
#
"June 26, 1997",540,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A Sri Lankan military official says that attacks by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam rebel forces will not stop the army from advancing northwards into rebel territory. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, visits Vietnam to strengthen ties between the two countries. Ms Albright had planned to visit \JCambodia\j as well, but canceled the visit after tensions escalated between the rival prime ministers of the country. \I(USA, Vietnam, Cambodia)\i
In Lucknow, India, a curfew is imposed to prevent violent clashes between Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims. \I(India)\i
At the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague, India admits that it has chemical weapons. Ten years ago, India said that it had no chemical weapons and had no plans to produce them. \I(India, the Netherlands)\i
Hong Kong democrats criticize the US and Britain for now deciding to send representatives to the swearing-in of Hong Kong's Chinese-appointed legislature after the hand-over at midnight on June 30. \I(Hong Kong, USA, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United States Supreme Court rules that a law which restricts the dissemination of sexually explicit material over the Internet to people under 18 is unconstitutional. \I(USA)\i
US President, Bill Clinton, pledges to reduce US greenhouse gas emissions significantly but rejects specific targets proposed by Europe. \I(USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, visits Vietnam to strengthen ties between the two countries. Ms Albright had planned to visit \JCambodia\j as well, but canceled the visit after tensions escalated between the rival prime ministers of the country. \I(USA, Vietnam, Cambodia)\i
The American and two Russians aboard the Russian space station Mir are instructed to conserve oxygen after the station suffered damage when a cargo craft collided with it yesterday. Unless power can be restored soon, the astronauts will have to abandon the station and return to Earth in an escape craft. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The commander of the United States Central Command in the Gulf warns that \JIran\j is moving closer to developing nuclear weapons. \I(USA, Iran)\i
Hong Kong democrats criticize the US and Britain for now deciding to send representatives to the swearing-in of Hong Kong's Chinese-appointed legislature after the hand-over at midnight on June 30. \I(Hong Kong, USA, UK)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Bertie Ahern, leader of Ireland's Fianna Fail party, is elected Prime Minister. Mr Ahern heads a minority government backed by Independents. \I(Ireland)\i
Hong Kong democrats criticize the US and Britain for now deciding to send representatives to the swearing-in of Hong Kong's Chinese-appointed legislature after the hand-over at midnight on June 30. \I(Hong Kong, USA, UK)\i
At the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague, India admits that it has chemical weapons. Ten years ago, India said that it had no chemical weapons and had no plans to produce them. \I(India, the Netherlands)\i
The American and two Russians aboard the Russian space station Mir are instructed to conserve oxygen after the station suffered damage when a cargo craft collided with it yesterday. Unless power can be restored soon, the astronauts will have to abandon the station and return to Earth in an escape craft. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The last of \JBrazzaville\j's foreign aid workers leaves \JCongo\j. \I(Congo)\i
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale hits north-eastern \JIran\j and destroys 15 villages. \I(Iran)\i
The commander of the United States Central Command in the Gulf warns that \JIran\j is moving closer to developing nuclear weapons. \I(USA, Iran)\i
Two days before parliamentary elections, gunmen shoot at the motorcade of \JAlbania\j's President, Sali Berisha. The President is unhurt, but three guards are wounded.
#
"June 27, 1997",541,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
India's main opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party, demands that the Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, quit if he is unable to force the resignation of Laloo Prasad Yadav, a chief minister who has been accused of \Jembezzlement\j. \I(India)\i
Sri Lankan military officials halt their advance into rebel territory so that they can search for missing soldiers and wait for reinforcements. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Myanmar's military intelligence chief, Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt accuses the United States of funding terrorist attacks against members of \JMyanmar\j's ruling junta. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces agreements with Vietnam to protect intellectual property rights and open a consulate in Ho Chi Minh City. Ms Albright also urges the Vietnamese Government to improve its human rights record and provide greater freedom for its citizens. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
In a speech to the nation, the \JPhilippines\j' President, Fidel Ramos, defends the decision to admit \JMyanmar\j to the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) saying that the country's economy and international acceptance will benefit from the admittance. \I(Philippines, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Russia and China sign a multi-billion dollar oil and natural gas deal. The two countries also seal a deal that allows Russian trains to pass into Chinese territory. \I(Russia, China)\i
Hong Kong's future chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa, announces that 4,000 People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops will enter Hong Kong just hours after it returns to Chinese rule at midnight on 30 June. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
Cambodia's first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, accuses Khmer Rouge defectors of delaying the hand-over of Pol Pot in order to gain security for other Khmer Rouge leaders. \I(Cambodia)\i
Australia expresses concern for five East Timorese Fretilin activists captured by Indonesian security forces and warns the Indonesian Government against harming them. The leader of the Fretilin independence group, David Alex, was killed on Wednesday; the Government says that Mr Alex was killed during a clash with security troops while Fretilin supporters say that he was killed while being interrogated. \I(Australia, Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Myanmar's military intelligence chief, Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt accuses the United States of funding terrorist attacks against members of \JMyanmar\j's ruling junta. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces agreements with Vietnam to protect intellectual property rights and open a consulate in Ho Chi Minh City. Ms Albright also urges the Vietnamese Government to improve its human rights record and provide greater freedom for its citizens. \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
The second Earth Summit in New York ends with no firm targets on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Russia and China sign a multi-billion dollar oil and natural gas deal. The two countries also seal a deal that allows Russian trains to pass into Chinese territory. \I(Russia, China)\i
At a conference in Brussels, 95 countries sign a treaty that bans the use of land-mines. \I(Belgium)\i
Rival Protestants and Roman Catholics begin talks with Britain's Northern Ireland Minister, Mo Mowlem, in the lead-up to the Protestants' pro-British parade on 6 July. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Riots break out in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j when opposition leader, Etienne Tshisekedi, is detained after defying a ban on political demonstrations. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Israeli soldiers shoot at Palestinian demonstrators in the West Bank town of \JHebron\j. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Mathematicians from around the world meet in \JGermany\j to see British Professor Andew Wiles receive a prize for proving a \Jtheorem\j created in the 17th century by Pierre de Fermat, a French judge. \I(UK, Germany)\i
#
"June 28, 1997",542,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Hong Kong's elected legislature concludes its final session. It will be replaced by an unelected legislature, appointed by \JBeijing\j, when Hong Kong returns to Chinese rule on 30 June. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Typhoon Peter hits \JJapan\j and causes death, injuries, and landslides. \I(Japan)\i
Australian \Jmotorcycle\j rider, Mick Doohan, wins the Dutch Grand Prix. \I(Australia, Netherlands)\i`
\BThe Americas\b
At a boxing re-match in Las Vegas, Mike Tyson is disqualified from the title fight for biting the ears of his opponent, Evander Holyfield. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A Serbian mayor, Slavko Dokmanovic, is arrested and taken to the war crimes tribunal in The Hague. Dokmanovic is suspected of involvement in the 1991 massacre of at least 200 people in a Croatian city. \I(the Netherlands, Croatia)\i
Last week, the United Nations Security Council threatened to impose more sanctions on \JIraq\j if it refused to allow UN weapons inspectors to enter sites suspected of containing banned weapons, however, \JIraq\j's Deputy Prime Minister says that \JIraq\j will not guarantee unrestricted access to its weapons sites. \I(Iraq)\i
In Tel Aviv, around 50,000 Israelis demonstrate against Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and call for his resignation and new elections. \I(Israel)\i
#
"June 29, 1997",543,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, criticizes China's intention to move 4,000 People's Liberation Army troops into Hong Kong just hours after the territory returns from British to Chinese rule. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong, UK)\i
In Kashmir, three people are killed and two are wounded when a bomb explodes in a high-security building for Kashmiri politicians. Police suspect that the attack came from separatist Muslim guerrillas, but no-one claims responsibility for the explosion. \I(Kashmir, India)\i
Australian golfer, Graham Marsh, wins the US Senior Open in Illinois. \I(Australia, USA)\i
In the PGA St Jude Classic in \JTennessee\j, Australian golfer Greg Norman wins by one stroke. \I(USA, Australia)\i
Australia's Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, meets with Hong Kong's incoming chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa. Mr Tung assures Mr Downer that Hong Kong will have elections within a year and that civil liberties in Hong Kong will not be affected after the hand-over. \I(Australia, China, Hong Kong)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In New York, thousands of people attend a tribute to Betty Shabazz, the widow of assassinated civil rights leader Malcolm X. Ms Shabazz died on Monday from severe burns that she received in a fire at her apartment, which was allegedly started by her 12-year-old grandson Malcolm. \I(USA)\i
The crew of the Russian space station Mir appears in a \Jtelevision\j link with Earth and shows some of the damage that was caused when a cargo craft collided with the station earlier in the week. NASA officials say that the situation is improving, but the crew must still carry out repair work. \I(Russia, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, criticizes China's intention to move 4,000 People's Liberation Army troops into Hong Kong just hours after the territory returns from British to Chinese rule. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong, UK)\i
The death toll rises on the British island territory of Montserrat as rescue teams search for survivors of last week's volcanic eruption. Scientists predict another big eruption soon. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
San Francisco's annual gay pride parade draws hundreds of thousands of onlookers. The 27th parade was made up of thousands of participants. \I(USA)\i
Australian golfer, Graham Marsh, wins the US Senior Open in Illinois. \I(Australia, USA)\i
In the PGA St Jude Classic in \JTennessee\j, Australian golfer Greg Norman wins by one stroke. \I(USA, Australia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, criticizes China's intention to move 4,000 People's Liberation Army troops into Hong Kong just hours after the territory returns from British to Chinese rule. \I(USA, China, Hong Kong, UK)\i
Parliamentary elections are held in \JAlbania\j. \I(Albania)\i
The death toll rises on the British island territory of Montserrat as rescue teams search for survivors of last week's volcanic eruption. Scientists predict another big eruption soon. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
The crew of the Russian space station Mir appears in a \Jtelevision\j link with Earth and shows some of the damage that was caused when a cargo craft collided with the station earlier in the week. NASA officials say that the situation is improving, but the crew must still carry out repair work. \I(Russia, USA)\i
German Formula One driver, Michael Schumacher, wins the French Grand Prix. \I(Germany, France)\i
#
"June 30, 1997",544,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The United States and Britain call for China to maintain Hong Kong's freedom after it is handed from British to Chinese rule at midnight. \I(US, UK, China, Hong Kong)\i
At midnight, Hong Kong ends 156 years under British rule and is returned to Chinese rule. The territory will be referred to as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and will be ruled by China under the "one country, two systems" policy proposed by the late communist leader Deng Xiaoping. \I(Hong Kong, UK, China)\i
Cambodia's second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, warns that if his political rival, first Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, illegally brings troops and weapons into Phnom Penh, he is prepared to fight. \I(Cambodia)\i
Four North Korean defectors, one of whom was a government official, arrive in Seoul, South Korea; about 60 other North Koreans have defected to Seoul this year. \I(North Korea, South Korea)\i
The USA, South Korea, and North Korea set a date for four-nation talks, which will include China. The talks will take place on 5 August in New York where the delegates will determine a data, venue, and agenda for talks aimed at creating a formal peace treaty between North and South Korea. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United States and Britain call for China to maintain Hong Kong's freedom after it is handed from British to Chinese rule at midnight tonight. \I(US, UK, China, Hong Kong)\i
American boxer, Mike Tyson, apologises to his opponent, Evander Holyfield, for biting his ears in Satuday's world title fight. \I(USA)\i
The US State Department announces that it will provide training and equipment for a proposed African peacekeeping force. \I(USA, Africa)\i
The USA, South Korea, and North Korea set a date for four-nation talks, which will include China. The talks will take place on 5 August in New York where the delegates will determine a data, venue, and agenda for talks aimed at creating a formal peace treaty between North and South Korea. \I(North Korea, South Korea, USA, China)\i
In Montserrat, the Chances Peak \Jvolcano\j erupts again and produces clouds of ash. The British Government promises aid for the island. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The United States and Britain call for China to maintain Hong Kong's freedom after it is handed from British to Chinese rule at midnight tonight. \I(US, UK, China, Hong Kong)\i
At midnight, Hong Kong ends 156 years under British rule and is returned to Chinese rule. The territory will be referred to as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and will be ruled by China under the "one country, two systems" policy proposed by the late communist leader Deng Xiaoping. \I(Hong Kong, UK, China)\i
In Montserrat, the Chances Peak \Jvolcano\j erupts again and produces clouds of ash. The British Government promises aid for the island. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
Albania's ruling Democratic Party concedes defeat in parliamentary elections; the Democrats are defeated by the country's Socialist alliance. \I(Albania)\i
President of the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, Laurent Kabila, asks for help from developed nations to reconstruct his country. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
The US State Department announces that it will provide training and equipment for a proposed African peacekeeping force. \I(USA, Africa)\i
Turkey's President, Suleyman Demirel, approves Mesut Yilmaz's anti-Islamist coalition government. The President asked Mr Yilmaz to form a government after the previous Islamist prime minister, Necmettin Erbakan, resigned under pressure from Turkey's secular army. \I(Turkey)\i
Israel's Foreign Minister, David Levy, threatens to resign unless Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu changes the way he runs the Government. If Mr Levy resigns, Mr Netanyahu will be left with a parliamentary majority of only one. \I(Israel)\i
#
"July 1, 1997",545,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The new Hong Kong Government is sworn in. Speaking after the ceremony, the Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, welcomes Hong Kong's return to the "motherland", urging all patriots to strive for the return of Macau, the resolution of "the \JTaiwan\j question", and the peaceful reunification of the Chinese people in accordance with the "one country, two systems" principle. \I(China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan)\i
Hong Kong's new Chief Executive, Tung Chee-hwa, announces reforms to improve education, help the elderly, address housing shortages, and curb property speculation. Mr. Tung maintains that economic vitality and growth are Hong Kong's greatest defenses against threats posed by high \Jinflation\j, social problems, and employment dislocation. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Martin Lee, leader of Hong Kong's Democratic Party, valiantly predicts the "return" of the party and declares that campaigning for the promised elections in May next year will begin immediately. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Donald Tsang, Hong Kong's Finance Secretary, names a committee to advise on the management and investment of official funds transferred from the former British colonial government. The boost in funds will make Hong Kong the world's fourth or fifth biggest holder of foreign exchange. \I(Hong Kong, China, UK)\i
Britain's Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, says Britain would consider referring any Chinese breach of the Joint Declaration on Hong Kong to the United Nations. Mr. Cook rejects accusations of British intervention, insisting that while Britain cannot turn its back on Hong Kong, a working relationship with China is also very important. \I(Hong Kong, China, UK)\i
The Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, defends \JAustralia\j's relaxed stance on human rights in the Hong Kong region. During a speech to the Foreign Policy Association in New York, Mr. Howard argues that preservation of Hong Kong's substantial autonomy is in China's best interests. \I(Australia, Hong Kong, China, USA)\i
The Australian Electoral Commission advises Independent MP Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party that it has been entered into the official register of political parties and is now legally recognized. \I(Australia)\i
David Martin, Australian novelist, poet, and playwright, dies at the age of 81. \I(Australia)\i
North Korea agrees to a meeting of senior officials from the two Koreas, China, and the United States. The meeting is scheduled for August 5, and will set an agenda and procedural details for peace talks. South Korea and the United States are pleased, but are not expecting speedy results. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
Indonesian Foreign Minister, Ali Alatas, warns that \JIndonesia\j will simply find other suppliers of arms if Britain's Labor Government continues to link human rights and equipment sales. \I(UK, Indonesia)\i
Sir Julius Chan, Papua New Guinea's ousted Prime Minister, expresses regret and sorrow at his defeat in the recent elections. The "deepest cut", he says, is the rejection by traditionally loyal tribesmen in his home area. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Cambodian Cabinet states that co-Prime Minister, Hun Sen, will not meet an Australian special envoy when he arrives this week to discuss \JCambodia\j's worsening political climate. Cabinet says that Hun Sen will appoint his representative to receive the envoy. \I(Cambodia, Australia)\i
The \JHanoi\j Supreme People's Court upholds eight death sentences imposed for drug related offenses, including that of Vu Xuan Truong, a former captain of the Ministry of the Interior's anti-drug squad. \I(Vietnam)\i
Myanmar's State-run media accuses the United States of pursuing "geopolitical hegemonism", condemning its attacks on the human rights records of certain countries. Newspaper commentary also claims that pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, is a puppet of Washington, and has no chance of becoming a leader of the country. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), USA)\i
Tamil Tiger separatists attack a passenger ship anchored off Pesalai, abducting the nine crew members before setting the vessel alight. The ship, the \IMisen,\i had been hired by Sri Lanka's Rehabilitation Ministry to ferry refugees to the northern Jaffna peninsula. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Japan's space agency says it is abandoning efforts to recover Midori, its Earth research satellite. The satellite, which lost power due to a defective solar panel, carried $US229 million worth of NASA instruments, and its failure is a significant setback to \JJapan\j's space program. \I(Japan)\i
In women's squash, \JAustralia\j's Sarah Fitzgerald and Michelle Martin retain their world rankings of No. 1 and No. 2 respectively. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Myanmar's State-run media accuses the United States of pursuing "geopolitical hegemonism", condemning its attacks on the human rights records of certain countries. Newspaper commentary also claims that pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, is a puppet of Washington, and has no chance of becoming a leader of the country. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), USA)\i
The Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, defends \JAustralia\j's relaxed stance on human rights in the Hong Kong region. During a speech to the Foreign Policy Association in New York, Mr. Howard argues that preservation of Hong Kong's substantial autonomy is in China's best interests. \I(Australia, Hong Kong, China, USA)\i
North Korea agrees to a meeting of senior officials from the two Koreas, China, and the United States. The meeting is scheduled for August 5, and will set an agenda and procedural details for peace talks. South Korea and the United States are pleased, but are not expecting speedy results. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
The Russian-US crew aboard space station Mir is forced to shut down a new oxygen generator when a cooling loop becomes too hot. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Space shuttle Columbia, and its crew of seven, launch into space to repeat April's laboratory mission. It is the quickest return to space for any American, and the first time a NASA crew has lifted off together more than once. \I(USA)\i
In response to a petition containing more than 13,000 signatures, a grand jury in Oklahoma is to investigate allegations of a government cover-up in relation to the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building. The petition alleges that convicted bomber Timothy McVeigh was part of a larger conspiracy. \I(USA)\i
A 15-member committee selects a design for a permanent memorial to the victims, survivors, and heroes of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. The plans for the memorial were submitted by Hans-Ekkehard Butzer, Torrey Butzer, and Sven Berg, a group of German designers. \I(USA, Germany)\i
In Washington, scientists believe that photographs of asteroid Mathilde may furnish them with a glimpse into the early history of the solar system. Studies of the photograph suggest that the space rock is around 4.6 billion years old. \I(USA)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, commits the White House administration to a schedule that will allow the establishment of an Internet marketplace for US businesses by the year 2000. \I(USA)\i
Three American ambassadors are nominated by President Clinton for Senate confirmation: Gordon Giffin to Canada, Keith Smith to \JLithuania\j, and James Mack to \JGuyana\j. \I(USA, Canada, \JLithuania\j, Guyana)\i
American actor, Robert Mitchum, dies in \JCalifornia\j at the age of 79. He was suffering from emphysema and lung cancer. Mitchum is survived by Dorothy, his wife of 56 years. \I(USA)\i
As Mexico's Popocatepetl \Jvolcano\j belches another mushroom cloud, troops prepare to evacuate 30 villages and the \Jvolcano\j tracking system remains in a state of alert. \I(Mexico)\i
A wooden gunboat, identified as belonging to a fleet commanded by Benedict Arnold in the Revolutionary War, is discovered in Lake Champlain, \JVermont\j. \I(USA)\i
In a preliminary move, the Nevada State Athletic Commission temporarily suspends Mike Tyson and freezes his $US30 million purse, the first disciplinary action since Tyson's disqualification for biting opponent Evander Holyfield's ears in the third round of the World Boxing Association heavyweight championship contest last weekend. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Britain's Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, says Britain would consider referring any Chinese breach of the Joint Declaration on Hong Kong to the United Nations. Mr. Cook rejects accusations of British intervention, insisting that while Britain cannot turn its back on Hong Kong, a working relationship with China is also very important. \I(Hong Kong, China, UK)\i
Donald Tsang, Hong Kong's Finance Secretary, names a committee to advise on the management and investment of official funds transferred from the former British colonial government. The boost in funds will make Hong Kong the world's fourth or fifth biggest holder of foreign exchange. \I(Hong Kong, China, UK)\i
The Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, announces that he is considering his withdrawal from the Government. Mr. Levy's announcement follows the disclosure of a secret meeting between a senior Palestinian official and an Israeli Cabinet minister, Ariel Sharon. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Indonesian Foreign Minister, Ali Alatas, warns that \JIndonesia\j will simply find other suppliers of arms if Britain's Labor Government continues to link human rights and equipment sales. \I(UK, Indonesia)\i
The Russian-US crew aboard space station Mir is forced to shut down a new oxygen generator when the cooling loop becomes too hot. \I(Russia, USA)\i
A 15-member committee selects a design for a permanent memorial to the victims, survivors, and heroes of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. The plans for the memorial were submitted by Hans-Ekkehard Butzer, Torrey Butzer, and Sven Berg, a group of German designers. \I(USA, Germany)\i
Three American ambassadors are nominated by President Clinton for Senate confirmation: Gordon Giffin to Canada, Keith Smith to \JLithuania\j, and James Mack to \JGuyana\j. \I(USA, Canada, \JLithuania\j, Guyana)\i
In a day of violent Israeli-Palestinian clashes in \JHebron\j, two Israeli soldiers are injured in a pipe bomb explosion and one Palestinian is wounded by rubber bullets. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel claims an increase in discrimination against Israeli Arab communities since Benjamin Netanyahu was elected to the office of prime minister. \I(Israel)\i
At a two-day conference in Brussels, EU Consumer Affairs Commissioner, Emma Bonino, says the decision to ban bone and meat meal from animal feed seems to have slowed the spread of "mad cow disease". \I(Belgium, Europe)\i
President Boris Yeltsin is accused of breaking \JRussia\j's civil service law by appointing his younger daughter, Tatyana Dyachenko, to the council position of official image advisor. \I(Russia)\i
Gunfire in \JBrazzaville\j prevents negotiators from traveling to neighboring \JGabon\j to resume peace talks. President Pascal Lissouba and former dictator Denis Sassou-Nguesso both deny responsibility for violating the cease-fire agreement. \I(Congo)\i
All Russian nuclear power plants are ordered to undergo safety checks following the death of a researcher from radiation exposure. Alexander Zakharov died three days after being accidentally exposed to more than 1,000 roentgens. The accident occurred on June 17 at a research center in Nizhny \JNovgorod\j, and has been attributed to human error and faulty procedures. \I(Russia)\i
Under a new ban, British handgun owners have until the end of September to surrender their weapons at police stations. After the deadline, the penalty for possession of a handgun larger than a .22-caliber will be a maximum of 10 years imprisonment. \I(UK)\i
Albanian President, Sali Berisha, concedes defeat in the recent parliamentary elections. As some of Berisha's key aides abandon the country, Fatos Nano, the man likely to become the new president, says he expects the incoming Socialist Government to adopt legislation preventing Democratic Party officials fleeing \JAlbania\j before their corrupt five years of power can be fully investigated. \I(Albania)\i
Aspirant to the \JAlbanian\j throne, self-proclaimed King Leka, claims widespread \Jfraud\j on the part of the Socialists in a referendum on restoring the monarchy. \I(Albania)\i
Zimbabwe's President Mugabe reveals plans to appropriate over 8.2 million acres of farmland currently held by white citizens, foreigners, and foreign companies. Under the provisions of a proposed Land Bill, the farmland is to be redistributed among Zimbabwe's 11.5 million blacks. \I(Zimbabwe)\i
#
"July 2, 1997",546,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The supertanker, \IDiamond Grace,\i runs aground on a shallow reef in \JTokyo\j Bay, spilling an estimated 13,400 tonnes of crude oil. \JJapan\j's Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, orders that a disaster center be set up immediately. \I(Japan)\i
North Korea agrees to a United Nations \Jnutrition\j survey on condition that the UN increases its aid to the hunger-stricken nation. \I(North Korea)\i
New Zealand confirms its decision not to import the deadly \Jrabbit\j calicivirus disease from \JAustralia\j. The decision is based on insufficient knowledge of the virus and its effectiveness. \I(New Zealand, Australia)\i
Australia's Minister for the Olympics, Mr. Knight, attacks the Pauline Hanson political movement in a speech to the \JAustralia\j \JIndonesia\j Institute in \JIndonesia\j. Mr. Knight insists that "xenophobic rantings" of the extreme Right are unrepresentative of \JAustralia\j's culture of tolerance and equality. \I(Australia, Indonesia)\i
Peter Yates, \JAustralia\j's Environment Protection Authority overseer for the 2000 Olympics project, denies any public risk from dioxin-contaminated waste buried near the Olympic site. \I(Australia)\i
Australia's Prime Minister, John Howard, stresses the strength of the Australian economy in an address to United States bankers and investors at the City Midday Club, Manhattan. Mr. Howard says that \JAustralia\j's economic prospects are as bright as those of the United States. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Delegates at the Sydney-based 20th International Congress of \JChemotherapy\j are told that the deadly equine morbillivirus is a misnomer and is expected to be renamed. Professor Keith Murray, deputy director of the CSIRO's animal heath division in Geelong, says that research has now linked the virus to the uterine fluid of pregnant flying foxes. \I(Australia)\i
Dr. Robert Will, head of the Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit in Edinburgh, tells delegates of the Sydney-based 20th International Congress of \JChemotherapy\j that confirmed cases of the human form of "mad cow disease" in Britain have doubled in the past year. Dr. Will says that it will take another four years to establish the extent of any human epidemic. \I(Australia, UK)\i
The Sri Lankan military's defense positions near Omanthai are attacked by Tamil Tiger rebels. Military officials report that the attacks are foiled. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
In \JCambodia\j, fighting breaks out between the rival troops of Prince Norodom Ranariddh and Hun Sen, the country's co-Prime Ministers. Three soldiers are reported killed. \I(Cambodia)\i
Khmer Rouge rebels in \JCambodia\j's north confirm that they are discussing peace with an envoy of Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia)\i
Taiwan's President, Lee Teng-hui, offers to travel to \JBeijing\j to re-open talks, but stresses that the "one country, two systems" formula is unacceptable. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
Following a fact-finding mission to East \JTimor\j, \JAustralia\j's Ambassador to \JIndonesia\j, John McCarthy, reports evidence of increased arrests and continued mistreatment of prisoners. \I(Australia, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
New Zealand's Foreign Minister, Don McKinnon, confirms that peace talks aimed at ending Bougainville's war will take place at Burnham army camp, near \JChristchurch\j. Attendees will include representatives of the Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA), its political wing, the Bougainville Interim Government, and the PNG-appointed Bougainville Transitional Government. \I(New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Bougainville)\i
Tung Chee-hwa speaks at his first press conference as Hong Kong's Chief Executive.
Mr. Tung cites Hong Kong's successful transition to Chinese rule as a blueprint for settling other disputed British-controlled territories, such as the Falkland Islands and \JGibraltar\j. \I(China, Hong Kong, UK)\i
Martin Lee, Hong Kong's leading democracy campaigner, challenges \JAustralia\j's acceptance of China's promise to hold fair elections to choose a new legislature. Mr. Lee maintains that the electoral rules will significantly disadvantage his party. \I(Hong Kong, China, Australia)\i
In \JThailand\j, the baht collapses to 28.40 per US dollar, its lowest value ever. The rapid \Jdevaluation\j follows an announcement by Thanong Bidaya, the country's new Finance Minister, that the value of the baht will no longer be set against US dominated exchange rates, but will be the subject of a managed float determined by market forces. \I(Thailand, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Actor, James Stewart, dies of cardiac arrest in \JCalifornia\j at the age of 89. \I(USA)\i
Australia's Prime Minister, John Howard, stresses the strength of the Australian economy in an address to United States bankers and investors at the City Midday Club, Manhattan. Mr. Howard says that \JAustralia\j's economic prospects are as bright as those of the United States. \I(Australia, USA)\i
A New York federal judge finds the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy to be unconstitutional, saying it discriminates against gays. \I(USA)\i
In \JThailand\j, the baht collapses to 28.40 per US dollar, its lowest value ever. The rapid \Jdevaluation\j follows an announcement by Thanong Bidaya, the country's new Finance Minister, that the value of the baht will no longer be set against US dominated exchange rates, but will be the subject of a managed float determined by market forces. \I(Thailand, USA)\i
The crew of the space shuttle Columbia sets the first of 144 controlled fires in the shuttle's laboratory module. By studying the behavior of fire in space, scientists hope to improve fuel efficiency in cars, jet engines, and heating appliances. \I(USA)\i
While the Russian-US crew of the damaged space station Mir trains for the job of repairing it, a mission control spokeswoman refutes reports that Mir has potential problems with its oxygen supply. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Wall Street stocks soar in the wake of the Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Dr. Robert Will, head of the Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit in Edinburgh, tells delegates of the Sydney-based 20th International Congress of \JChemotherapy\j that confirmed cases of the human form of "mad cow disease" in Britain have doubled in the past year. Dr. Will says that it will take another four years to establish the extent of any human epidemic. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Britain is threatened with legal action by the European Commission following confirmation of illegal exports of British beef. The exports breach the worldwide ban imposed 15 months ago when it was disclosed that "mad cow disease" might have infected humans. \I(UK, Europe)\i
Tung Chee-hwa speaks at his first press conference as Hong Kong's Chief Executive.
Mr. Tung cites Hong Kong's successful transition to Chinese rule as a blueprint for settling other disputed British-controlled territories, such as the Falkland Islands and \JGibraltar\j. \I(China, Hong Kong, UK)\i
Six IRA terrorists, who were convicted of plotting to blow up London's electricity supply, each receive a prison sentence of 35 years. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
At Wimbledon, British tennis player Tim Henman, the 14th seed, defeats defending champion, Richard Krajicek, securing a place in the quarter-finals. \I(UK)\i
Outlawed Protestant extremists threaten to kill Irish Catholic civilians if Britain prohibits a traditional march of the ancient Orange Order from proceeding through the town of Portadown in Northern Ireland. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
While the Russian-US crew of the damaged space station Mir trains for the job of repairing it, a mission control spokeswoman refutes reports that Mir has potential problems with its oxygen supply. \I(USA, Russia)\i
In an almost unprecedented political move, Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, sacks his Justice Minister, Valentin Kovalyov, who had been allegedly filmed cavorting in a sauna with three naked women. \I(Russia)\i
Albanian President, Sali Berisha, confirms that he will resign when the victorious Socialists form a new government. \I(Albania)\i
A group of Russian amateur historians hold a memorial service for 9,111 unknown people whose remains were discovered in three mass graves in the Karelia region of northern \JRussia\j, the site of one of the first slave labor camps opened under Stalin. The dead are believed to be victims of the 1937 purge, and it is assumed that most were intellectuals from Moscow and St Petersburg. \I(Russia)\i
#
"July 3, 1997",547,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In Hong Kong, severe storms cause floods and multiple landslides, destroying homes, disrupting traffic, and injuring eight people. \I(Hong Kong)\i
The family of East Timorese guerrilla leader, David Alex, awaits a reply from the Indonesian military following a request to exhume a body, purported to be that of Alex, buried in Dili. \I(East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
Lein Chan, \JTaiwan\j's Premier and Vice-President, calls for the establishment of a special zone where Hong Kong, \JTaiwan\j, and China can meet on equal terms to exchange views. \I(Hong Kong, \JTaiwan\j, China)\i
As many as 40 workers are buried when a partially constructed apartment building collapses in \JKarachi\j. Six men are dug from the debris, and a giant crane is used to aid the search for the remaining men. \I(Pakistan)\i
After discovering that a tank believed to be ruptured is intact, \JJapan\j reduces its estimate to one tenth of the crude oil initially assumed to have spilled into \JTokyo\j Bay from the supertanker, \IDiamond Grace\i yesterday. \I(Japan)\i
North of Phnom Penh in \JCambodia\j, Hun Sen loyalists disarm a naval base and a royalist convoy. Troops of the rival political factions adopt an uneasy standoff, exacerbating fears about the country's stability under the coalition government. \I(Cambodia)\i
Philippine legislators demand the dismissal and prosecution of senior jail officials after a violent prison riot in Manila leaves 42 people injured, and three inmates and a three-year old girl dead. \I(The Philippines)\i
Japan's Health and Welfare Ministry reveals that since April 1991, side effects of the drug, irinotecan hydrochloride, have killed 94 cancer patients and 55 patients who received the drug during clinical tests. Health officials are now discussing methods of reducing the mortality rate to maximize the drug's potential benefit. \I(Japan)\i
As part of constitutional reforms aimed at increasing regional power, reducing expenditure, and bringing ethnic peace to Sri Lanka, the government announces plans to change the system of election and cut the number of legislators from 225 to 198. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Tang Guoqiang, denies US allegations that China has exported weapons of mass destruction and used supercomputer technology for military purposes. \I(China, USA)\i
China voices concern regarding a US underground \Jplutonium\j experiment, the first of number of tests designed to manage aging nuclear weapons. While the US Energy Department insists that the experiment did not contravene the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, China plans to monitor the situation closely. \I(China, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
An eight-year United States study concludes that there is no solid link between childhood leukemia and exposure to power lines. \I(USA)\i
US Attorney General, Janet Reno, vows to appeal the federal judge's ruling that struck down the "don't ask, don't tell" policy of restrictions on gays in the military. \I(USA)\i
An independent commission issues a damning report on Canada's 1992-93 peacekeeping mission in \JSomalia\j, charging the military with lack of leadership, discipline, and accountability. The commission slates the government for its attempts to cover up the military's acts of brutality and \Jracism\j. \I(Canada, Somalia)\i
Despite pressure from nine of the 16 \JNATO\j partners, American President, Bill Clinton, stands firm on his resolve to admit only three new members to the alliance: \JHungary\j, \JPoland\j, and the Czech Republic. \I(USA, \JHungary\j, \JPoland\j, Czech Republic)\i
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Tang Guoqiang, denies US allegations that China has exported weapons of mass destruction and used supercomputer technology for military purposes. \I(China, USA)\i
China voices concern regarding a US underground \Jplutonium\j experiment, the first of number of tests designed to manage aging nuclear weapons. While the US Energy Department insists that the experiment did not contravene the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, China plans to monitor the situation closely. \I(China, USA)\i
Space station Mir faces another problem when its alignment system breaks down, causing further loss of power. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In a reversal of tactics, American President, Bill Clinton, submits a formal 80 page denial of the sexual harassment allegations brought against him by Paula Jones, and requests a federal judge to dismiss the case. \I(USA)\i
In the wake of further recent eruptions of the Chances Peak \Jvolcano\j on the island of Montserrat, the British Foreign Office meets with MPs and Montserrat representatives to determine what additional assistance can be given to islanders fleeing to Britain. The British Government also asks Washington to allow islanders with American relations free entry into the United States. \I(Montserrat, UK, USA)\i
Newly released \JCIA\j documents reveal that in the early 1960s, the agency offered two organized crime figures a sum of $US150,000 to assassinate Cuban leader, Fidel Castro. \I(USA, Cuba)\i
As Israeli troops and Palestinians clash in \JHebron\j and Gaza, Israel seeks US and Egyptian backing for its attempts to pressure the Palestinian Authority to control the outbreaks of violence. \I(Israel, Palestine, \JEgypt\j, USA)\i
The United States informs \JBelarus\j that it will have to improve its human rights record before Washington unfreezes $US40 million pledged to assist in the destruction of Soviet-era nuclear missile launch pads. \I(USA, Belarus)\i
Authorities confirm widespread damage due to tornadoes and thunderstorms in western \JMassachusetts\j and southern New Hampshire. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Vadim Sinstov, a Russian arms export manager charged with spying for the British, has his property confiscated and is sentenced to 10 years hard labor by a Moscow military tribunal. \I(Russia, UK)\i
Preliminary findings of a comprehensive \Jcensus\j in South Africa suggest that the population is growing at 1.9 per cent a year, a rate low in comparison with the rest of the continent, and much lower than expected by officials. \I(South Africa)\i
The British Medical Association votes for a chemically pure version of cannabis to be made legally available for the treatment of certain medical conditions. \I(UK)\i
As Israeli troops and Palestinians clash in \JHebron\j and Gaza, Israel seeks US and Egyptian backing for its attempts to pressure the Palestinian Authority to control the outbreaks of violence. \I(Israel, Palestine, \JEgypt\j, USA)\i
An independent commission issues a damning report on Canada's 1992-93 peacekeeping mission in \JSomalia\j, charging the military with lack of leadership, discipline, and accountability. The commission slates the government for its attempts to cover up the military's acts of brutality and \Jracism\j. \I(Canada, Somalia)\i
The Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, orders the dissolution of parliament and sets new elections for September 1. Radovan Karadzic, covert leader of the government of Bosnia's Serb territory, dismisses the move as unconstitutional, and calls a parliamentary session to instigate the removal of Ms. Plavsic as President. \I(Bosnia)\i
Space station Mir faces another problem when its alignment system breaks down, causing further loss of power. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Despite pressure from nine of the 16 \JNATO\j partners, American President, Bill Clinton, stands firm on his resolve to admit only three new members to the alliance: \JHungary\j, \JPoland\j, and the Czech Republic. \I(USA, \JHungary\j, \JPoland\j, Czech Republic)\i
The United States informs \JBelarus\j that it will have to improve its human rights record before Washington unfreezes $US40 million pledged to assist in the destruction of Soviet-era nuclear missile launch pads. \I(USA, Belarus)\i
President Laurent Kabila's new Congolese government insists that United Nations investigators must agree to certain conditions before beginning their probe into alleged massacres of Hutu refugees. UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, says he is prepared to be flexible and pragmatic in order to achieve this end. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Gunfire breaks out during a march by \JAlbanian\j monarchists in Tirana, killing one person and injuring another. \I(Albania)\i
In the wake of further recent eruptions of the Chances Peak \Jvolcano\j on the island of Montserrat, the British Foreign Office meets with MPs and Montserrat representatives to determine what additional assistance can be given to islanders fleeing to Britain. The British Government also asks Washington to allow islanders with American relations free entry into the United States. \I(Montserrat, UK, USA)\i
#
"July 4, 1997",548,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australian gold shares plummet to the lowest price in nearly 12 years when the Reserve Bank announces the sale of 167 tonnes of its bullion reserves. \I(Australia)\i
After being scuttled by its crew 82 years ago, \JAustralia\j's World War I AE2 submarine is found lying upright in 80 meters of water in the Sea of Marmora behind \JGallipoli\j. \I(Australia, Turkey)\i
Hong Kong's \JImmigration\j Department is besieged by families seeking residency for their illegal immigrant children, a rush triggered by the pronouncement that mainland-born offspring of permanent Hong Kong residents are entitled to stay. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Cambodia's First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, leaves the country for \JFrance\j, appealing for calm and urging his supporters not to succumb to violence. \I(Cambodia, France)\i
Japan's \Jcoastguard\j confirms that its massive clean-up operation has recovered most of the oil spilled in \JTokyo\j Bay when the supertanker, \IDiamond Grace,\i ran aground two days ago. \I(Japan)\i
In the first innings of the third Ashes Test between \JAustralia\j and England, the English cricket players join the crowd in applauding Australian Steve Waugh after he is bowled for 108 by Darren Gough. \I(Australia, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The US space craft Pathfinder lands on Mars, beaming back color photographs of a landscape comprised of stones, boulders, plateaus and mountains. The landing, timed to coincide with America's 221st Independence Day, is the first in 21 years, and the second ever. \I(USA)\i
Following a request from \JSpain\j, \JSwitzerland\j agrees to freeze the assets and bank accounts of four Argentine military officers. The four officers are charged by \JSpain\j with responsibility for the disappearance and execution of Spanish citizens in Argentina during the 1970s. \I(Spain, \JSwitzerland\j, Argentina)\i
Vasily Makarov, convicted of spying against \JRussia\j for the United States, is sentenced in Moscow to seven years hard labor. \I(USA, Russia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
After being scuttled by its crew 82 years ago, \JAustralia\j's World War I AE2 submarine is found lying upright in 80 meters of water in the Sea of Marmora behind \JGallipoli\j. \I(Australia, Turkey)\i
A specialist report, based on the studies of several art scholars, claims that more than 100 of Vincent Van Gogh's paintings and drawings may be fakes. The claim is not treated seriously by Schaar van Heugten, the curator of the Van Gogh museum in \JAmsterdam\j. \I(UK, Netherlands)\i
Following a request from \JSpain\j, \JSwitzerland\j agrees to freeze the assets and bank accounts of four Argentine military officers. The four officers are charged by \JSpain\j with responsibility for the disappearance and execution of Spanish citizens in Argentina during the 1970s. \I(Spain, \JSwitzerland\j, Argentina)\i
30,000 Palestinians, outraged by a Jewish extremist's anti-Muslim leaflet depicting the \Jprophet\j Mohammed as a pig stomping on the Koran, riot in the streets of Nablus. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Cambodia's First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, leaves the country for \JFrance\j, appealing for calm and urging his supporters not to succumb to violence. \I(Cambodia, France)\i
Vasily Makarov, convicted of spying against \JRussia\j for the United States, is sentenced in Moscow to seven years hard labor. \I(USA, Russia)\i
In the first innings of the third Ashes Test between \JAustralia\j and England, the English cricket players join the crowd in applauding Australian Steve Waugh after he is bowled for 108 by Darren Gough. \I(Australia, UK)\i
1991 Wimbledon champion, Michael Stitch of \JGermany\j, announces his immediate retirement after being defeated in this year's Wimbledon semi-finals by unseeded Cedric Poline from \JFrance\j. \I(UK, Germany)\i
In one of Britain's largest divorce settlements ever, the former wife of restaurateur and designer, Sir Terence Conran, is awarded ú45 million. \I(UK)\i
#
"July 5, 1997",549,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
At least four people are killed and 29 are wounded when fighting breaks out in Phnom Penh between the rival forces of \JCambodia\j's co-leaders. First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, accuses Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, of attempting a coup. Hun Sen appears on \Jtelevision\j in camouflage fatigues, accusing Prince Ranariddh of importing weapons and preparing for civil war. \I(Cambodia)\i
In the Sri Lankan port town of Trincomalee, gunmen of the Tamil Tiger guerrillas mark the 10th anniversary of their first suicide bombing by exploding a powerful bomb and opening fire on attendees of a school ceremony. At least 15 people are seriously injured and five people are killed, including senior Tamil MP, Mr. Thangathurai. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
In the first innings of the third Ashes Test between \JAustralia\j and England, Australian leg-spinner, Shane Warne, picks up 6 wickets from 30 overs to become the third highest wicket-taker in \JAustralia\j's Test history, topping Richie Benaud's total of 248 with an updated tally of 249. \I(Australia, UK)\i
In a closely contested final in Kuala Lumpur, Argentina defeats Uruguay 2-1 to retain the World Youth \JSoccer\j title. \I(Kuala Lumpur, Argentina, Uruguay)\i
\BThe Americas\b
NASA's Sojourner, the six-wheeled, solar-powered pride of the US Pathfinder mission, descends onto freezing Martian soil via a rear ramp of the main lander, becoming the first mobile vehicle to rove and explore another planet. \I(USA)\i
Loaded with a cargo of electrical cables and crucial repair supplies, the unmanned Russian ship, Progress, lifts off to rendezvous with the Russian-US manned Mir space station. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In defiance of strong US criticism, Bosnian Serb legislators ally with suspected war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, in amending laws to facilitate President Biljana Plavsic's removal from power. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
Despite Washington's determination to allow only three Eastern European nations to join \JNATO\j, \JFrance\j continues to press for invitations to be extended to \JRomania\j and \JSlovenia\j. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, \JRomania\j, Slovenia)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, urges the states and the private business sector to assist with moving even more Americans from the welfare system and into employment. \I(USA)\i
Scientists in the United States begin testing hundreds of \Jmelanoma\j patients with the experimental gm2 vaccine. \I(USA)\i
In a closely contested final in Kuala Lumpur, Argentina defeats Uruguay 2-1 to retain the World Youth \JSoccer\j title. \I(Kuala Lumpur, Argentina, Uruguay)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Loaded with a cargo of electrical cables and crucial repair supplies, the unmanned Russian ship, Progress, lifts off to rendezvous with the Russian-US manned Mir space station. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In defiance of strong US criticism, Bosnian Serb legislators ally with suspected war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, in amending laws to facilitate President Biljana Plavsic's removal from power. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
Despite Washington's determination to allow only three Eastern European nations to join \JNATO\j, \JFrance\j continues to press for invitations to be extended to \JRomania\j and \JSlovenia\j. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, \JRomania\j, Slovenia)\i
British soldiers place an armored cordon around the Northern Ireland town of Portadown pending a Government decision to allow the annual march of the Orange Order to proceed through its Catholic neighborhood. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
Sixteen-year-old Martina Hingis of \JSwitzerland\j defeats Jana Novotona to become Wimbledon's youngest women's singles champion in 110 years. \I(UK, Switzerland)\i
In the first innings of the third Ashes Test between \JAustralia\j and England, Australian leg-spinner, Shane Warne, picks up 6 wickets from 30 overs to become the third highest wicket-taker in \JAustralia\j's Test history, topping Richie Benaud's total of 248 with an updated tally of 249. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Britain's Chris Boardman wins his 30th Tour de \JFrance\j prologue with a ride of 8min 20.90s on a flat 7.3km course through the streets of \JRouen\j. \I(UK, France)\i
The South African Springboks defeat the British Lions 35-16 in the third Rugby Test, averting the humiliation of a first ever 3-0 Test defeat on home soil. \I(South Africa, UK)\i
#
"July 6, 1997",550,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Fierce fighting between forces of \JCambodia\j's rival political factions closes Phnom Penh International Airport and blocks all roads into the city. Thousands flee as shelling continues and troops loyal to co-Prime Minister, Hun Sen, tighten their grip on the city. \I(Cambodia)\i
The government of the United States contacts both Cambodian Prime Ministers to urge restraint. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
Janata Dal, the political party of India's Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, is significantly weakened when the party's former president, Laloo Prasad Yadav, defects with 17 MPs to form the breakaway Rashtriya Janata Dal. The government's main opposition, the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, calls for a national election to end the political uncertainty. \I(India)\i
Relatives of Commander David Alex, the East Timorese rebel leader, confirm that he is dead and buried, and extend their gratitude to the Indonesian military for treating Alex's body with respect. \I(East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
In a show of support for Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, \JTokyo\j voters increase his Liberal Democratic Party's majority in the municipal legislature by 16 seats. The Communist Party also gains from the election, doubling its seats to become the second largest party in the legislative body. \I(Japan)\i
Reports indicate that severe floods caused by five days of torrential rainstorms in South China have killed at least 14 people, cut power supplies, washed out roads, and destroyed thousands of acres of farmland. \I(China)\i
In a bid to deter crime, \JTaiwan\j is considering criminal code amendments which would permit flogging as a punishment for some offenses. \I(Taiwan)\i
It is revealed that Sri Lanka's military has launched a nation-wide search and sought \JInterpol\j's help in a hunt for more than 10,000 deserters. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Australian environmental authorities move to protect the prehistoric Wollemi pine, or "Jurassic tree", which is known to exist only in an isolated pocket of Wollemi National Park near Sydney. \I(Australia)\i
In the second innings of the third Ashes Test between \JAustralia\j and England, Australian batsman, Steve Waugh, is dismissed for 116, becoming the first player from either side to score a century in both innings of an Ashes Test in 50 years, and the third Australian player ever to do so. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Australian \Jmotorcycle\j racer and triple world champion, Michael Doohan, wins the 500cc San Marino Grand Prix on a Honda, bringing his total number of grand prix wins to 41. \I(Australia, Italy)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Pathfinder's roving vehicle, Sojourner, drops a probe into a Martian rock that scientists nickname "Barnacle Bill". \I(USA)\i
The government of the United States contacts both Cambodian Prime Ministers to urge restraint. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
The White House declines to confirm or deny a report of a secret plan to capture alleged war criminal and former Bosnian Serb president, Radovan Karadzic. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
The Russian-US crew of the Mir space station spends the day exercising and resting in preparation for docking with the unmanned Russian supply ship bringing urgently needed equipment. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Iran denies a report that the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ordered the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, Scotland, in retaliation for the loss of an Iranian passenger jet shot down by the US military. \I(Iran, Scotland, USA)\i
In the first election in 69 years, Cuauhtemoc Cardenas, candidate of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), wins the Mexico City mayoral race, holding nearly a 2-1 advantage over Afredo Del Mazo of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). For the first time since it was founded in 1929, the PRI is in danger of losing its congressional majority. \I(Mexico)\i
US Drug Enforcement Administrator, Thomas Constantine, announces the death of powerful Mexican drug lord, Amado Carillo Fuentes. Carillo is reported to have died at Santa Monica \JHospital\j, Mexico City, following extensive plastic surgery. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
US tennis player, Pete Sampras, defeats Cedric Poline from \JFrance\j to win the men's Wimbledon singles championship for the fourth time in five years. \I(UK, USA)\i
Top seeds, Gigi Fernandez of the USA and Natasha Zvereva of \JBelarus\j, win their fourth Wimbledon women's doubles title. \I(UK, USA, Belarus)\i
American golfer, Tiger Woods, finishes 13 under par to win the Motorola Western Open by 3 strokes. The tournament win is his fourth this year, pushing him to a world ranking of No. 1, and bringing his career earnings for the season to a record breaking $US1,780,159. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Following further outbreaks of fierce fighting between the Israeli army and Hezbollah guerrillas in southern \JLebanon\j, seven rockets are fired on Israeli positions in the occupation zone. \I(Lebanon, Israel)\i
Iran denies a report that the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ordered the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, Scotland, in retaliation for the loss of an Iranian passenger jet shot down by the US military. \I(Iran, Scotland, USA)\i
In Portadown, Northern Ireland, the annual march of the Protestant Orange Order proceeds down Garvaghy Road amid violent protests from a crowd held back by British troops and riot police. Two civilians sustain injuries from plastic bullets, and 10 kilometers away in Lurgan, masked men set fire to a train. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
The Russian-US crew of the Mir space station spends the day exercising and resting in preparation for docking with the unmanned Russian supply ship bringing urgently needed equipment. \I(USA, Russia)\i
The White House declines to confirm or deny a report of a secret plan to capture alleged war criminal and former Bosnian Serb president, Radovan Karadzic. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
An Oslo-based group of researchers reveals that toxic chemicals are endangering wildlife in the \JArctic\j Circle. \I(Norway)\i
US tennis player, Pete Sampras, defeats Cedric Poline from \JFrance\j to win the men's Wimbledon singles championship for the fourth time in five years. \I(UK, USA)\i
Top seeds, Gigi Fernandez of the USA and Natasha Zvereva of \JBelarus\j, win their fourth Wimbledon women's doubles title. \I(UK, USA, Belarus)\i
In the second innings of the third Ashes Test between \JAustralia\j and England, Australian batsman, Steve Waugh, is dismissed for 116, becoming the first player from either side to score a century in both innings of an Ashes Test in 50 years, and the third Australian player ever to do so. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Australian motorcyle racer and triple world champion, Michael Doohan, wins the 500cc San Marino Grand Prix on a Honda, bringing his total number of grand prix wins to 41. \I(Australia, Italy)\i
PPL Therapeutics, the Edinburgh-based company which cloned "Dolly" the sheep, announces plans to produce a key component of human blood in cloned cows. The component, human serum albumin, currently derived from blood donors for use in transfusions, does not need to be matched to the individual. \I(Scotland)\i
#
"July 7, 1997",551,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In \JCambodia\j, counter-attacks are reported in the north, but fighting in Phnom Penh subsides, leaving troops loyal to Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party in control of the airport, the military headquarters of Prince Norodom Ranariddh's most senior commander, the offices of the royalist Funcinpec party, and the Prince's city residential compound. Hun Sen appears on \Jtelevision\j, denying accusations of a coup, but declaring that he will no longer work with Prince Ranariddh. The Prince, set to appeal for help from the French Government, calls on his routed troops and the people of \JCambodia\j to re-group as a resistance force. \I(Cambodia, France)\i
Thousands of Cambodian people return to their homes in the strife-torn capital of Phnom Penh to find that their property has been mercilessly looted. \I(Cambodia)\i
In \JAfghanistan\j, Kabul's combined military and civilian airport is barraged by opposition jets for the third consecutive day. Two of the bombs explode just meters from multistory apartment blocks housing hundreds of families. The fundamental Taliban rulers accuse \JIran\j and \JRussia\j of supplying the bombers. \I(Afghanistan, \JIran\j, Russia)\i
The seven-nation Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) calls for an emergency meeting of its foreign ministers to discuss the Cambodian situation. ASEAN was scheduled to admit \JCambodia\j as a member on July 24. \I(Cambodia, South East Asia)\i
Members of a three-man expedition reveal the discovery of thousands of fossilized \Jdinosaur\j footprints in the Kimberley region of Western \JAustralia\j. The footprints are claimed to be the largest, the best preserved, and the most diverse in the world. \I(Australia)\i
Rival Bougainville groups begin formal peace talks at a military camp near \JChristchurch\j in New Zealand. The talks are expected to continue for a week. \I(Bougainville, New Zealand)\i
Kim Hyun-chul, the son of South Korean President, Kim Young-sam, is brought to trial, charged by state prosecutors with accepting bribes and gifts worth 6.61 billion won, and with evading taxes estimated at 1.4 billion won. Kim admits receiving the sum of money, but denies it was in return for favors; he partially denies tax evasion, claiming a lack of intention. \I(South Korea)\i
It is alleged that a part of the financial conglomerate Lippo Group, Hip Hing Holdings Ltd., a US-based real estate holding company headed by former Commerce Department official, John Huang, was used to channel money from \JIndonesia\j into US election campaigns. \I(USA, Indonesia)\i
On the 60th anniversary of The Marco Polo Bridge incident, streams of Hong Kong
protesters march to the Japanese Consulate-General. Petitions are presented by four organizations. \I(Hong Kong, Japan)\i
Taiwan announces plans to build a fleet of fast-attack missile boats to boost its defense forces. Production is not expected to begin before 2001, however. \I(Taiwan)\i
In the second innings of the third Ashes Test between \JAustralia\j and England, Australian fast bowler, Glenn McGrath, takes 4 wickets for 15 to secure a win for \JAustralia\j, leveling the score for the six-match series at one-all. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Australian tennis players, Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde, win their fifth straight Wimbledon men's doubles title, surpassing the record set by the English Doherty brothers between 1897 and 1901. \I(Australia, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Citing 15 reasons, lawyers for convicted Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, seek a retrial for their client. \I(USA)\i
Operating under automatic pilot, the Russian-US manned Mir space station successfully docks with the Russian cargo ship bearing 400 kilograms of vital repair equipment. \I(USA, Russia)\i
With nearly 90 per cent of votes counted, Mexico's ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) seems certain to have lost majority control of the Lower House of Congress. Although his party suffered sweeping defeats in the elections, President Ernesto Zedilo welcomes the step towards democracy. \I(Mexico)\i
American President, Bill Clinton, supports the outcome of the Mexican elections, declaring that the democratic vote benefits the common future of the United States and Mexico alike. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
Independent human rights groups accuse the United Nations secretary-general, Kofi Annan, of succumbing to pressure from the United States and the new \JCongo\j President, Laurent Kabila. The accusations follow Mr. Annan's decision to drop expert UN investigator, Roberto Garreton, from the team assigned to inquire into the reported massacres of refugees by Tutsi soldiers who were allied with the drive to overthrow Mobutu Sese Seko. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), USA)\i
It is alleged that a part of the financial conglomerate Lippo Group, Hip Hing Holdings Ltd., a US-based real estate holding company headed by former Commerce Department official, John Huang, was used to channel money from \JIndonesia\j into US election campaigns. \I(USA, Indonesia)\i
David Hale, President Clinton's accuser in the Whitewater affair, is ordered to stand trial for allegedly filing false statements about the financial situation of an insurance company which was owned by him, and which later collapsed. \I(USA)\i
State Department spokesman, Nicholas Burns, expresses the United States' great concern regarding the weekend violence in Northern Ireland, urging Protestants and Catholics to calmly and constructively strive towards peace talks. \I(USA, Northern Ireland)\i
Scientific analyses of photographs from the Pathfinder landing vehicle on Mars reveal evidence of massive flooding, arousing speculation that the Red \JPlanet\j was once warmer, wetter, and able to support life. \I(USA)\i
Egyptian-born financier and chairman of Harrods, Mohammed Al Fayed, announces that the personal possessions of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor will be sold separately at a week-long auction to be held in New York in September. Mr. Al Fayed proposes to donate the proceeds of the auction to charity. \I(UK, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In \JCambodia\j, counter-attacks are reported in the north, but fighting in Phnom Penh subsides, leaving troops loyal to Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party in control of the airport, the military headquarters of Prince Norodom Ranariddh's most senior commander, the offices of the royalist Funcinpec party, and the Prince's city residential compound. Hun Sen appears on \Jtelevision\j, denying accusations of a coup, but declaring that he will no longer work with Prince Ranariddh. The Prince, set to appeal for help from the French Government, calls on his routed troops and the people of \JCambodia\j to re-group as a resistance force. \I(Cambodia, France)\i
Operating under automatic pilot, the Russian-US manned Mir space station successfully docks with the Russian cargo ship bearing 400 kilograms of vital repair equipment. \I(USA, Russia)\i
In a move to ease the Cabinet crisis, Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, bypasses hardline contender, Ariel Sharon, to appoint Yaacov Neeman as the country's new Finance Minister. \I(Israel)\i
After an acknowledged victory in the first round, \JAlbania\j's opposition Socialists claim to have won the second round of legislative elections, despite incomplete polling so far. \I(Albania)\i
An Israeli military court imposes 46 life sentences on Hassan Salameh, the Islamic Resistance Movement member convicted of planning the three suicide bombings which killed 46 people in Israel last year. \I(Israel)\i
In \JAfghanistan\j, Kabul's combined military and civilian airport is barraged by opposition jets for the third consecutive day. Two of the bombs explode just meters from multistory apartment blocks housing hundreds of families. The fundamental Taliban rulers accuse \JIran\j and \JRussia\j of supplying the bombers. \I(Afghanistan, \JIran\j, Russia)\i
The seven-member panel of \JSwitzerland\j's \JHolocaust\j memorial fund pledges to begin distribution of payments to needy \JHolocaust\j survivors and their families. \I(Switzerland, Europe)\i
Riot police break up pro-democracy demonstrations across \JKenya\j; at least seven people are killed and dozens more injured, including several prominent opposition leaders. The violence is the country's worst since 1991, and comes after weeks of tension surrounding demands for constitutional reform. \I(Kenya)\i
Independent human rights groups accuse the United Nations secretary-general, Kofi Annan, of succumbing to pressure from the United States and the new \JCongo\j President, Laurent Kabila. The accusations follow Mr. Annan's decision to drop expert UN investigator, Roberto Garreton, from the team assigned to inquire into the reported massacres of refugees by Tutsi soldiers who were allied with the drive to overthrow Mobutu Sese Seko. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), USA)\i
State Department spokesman, Nicholas Burns, expresses the United States' great concern regarding the weekend violence in Northern Ireland, urging Protestants and Catholics to calmly and constructively strive towards peace talks. \I(USA, Northern Ireland)
Germany announces its intention to proceed with the four-nation Eurofighter project. The announcement comes after months of uncertainty and fierce debates between \JGermany\j's Finance and Defense Ministries. \I(Germany, Europe)\i
France dismisses suggestions that it will fail to qualify for the European single currency, stressing the country's commitment to the project of monetary union. \I(France, Europe)\i
Egyptian-born financier and chairman of Harrods, Mohammed Al Fayed, announces that the personal possessions of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor will be sold separately at a week-long auction to be held in New York in September. Mr. Al Fayed proposes to donate the proceeds of the auction to charity. \I(UK, USA)\i
In the second innings of the third Ashes Test between \JAustralia\j and England, Australian fast bowler, Glenn McGrath, takes 4 wickets for 15 to secure a win for \JAustralia\j, leveling the score for the six-match series at one-all. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Australian tennis players, Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde, win their fifth straight Wimbledon men's doubles title, surpassing the record set by the English Doherty brothers between 1897 and 1901. \I(Australia, UK)\i
#
"July 8, 1997",552,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
As helicopters evacuate tourists and aid workers from the violence and fighting in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, officials of Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party reveal that Ho Sok, a leading opponent of Hun Sen, was yesterday executed by a bullet to the head after being arrested and accused of plotting against the country's new leadership. From Paris, meanwhile, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, \JCambodia\j's co-Prime Minister, appeals to the international community to reject the Hun Sen regime. \I(Cambodia, France)\i
The Pentagon announces that three ships carrying US marines and helicopters have been deployed to \JJapan\j in case an evacuation of the estimated 1,500 Americans in \JCambodia\j is deemed necessary. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, Cambodia)\i
Military officials reveal that a North Korean cargo vessel, employed to carry food from the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo to northern Jaffna, has been captured by Tamil Tiger rebels and taken to their north-eastern base. \I(Sri Lanka, North Korea)\i
India's Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, comes under pressure from the Communist Party and a section of his own People's Party to sack three ministers who defected to join the breakaway faction launched by former party president, Laloo Prasad Yadav. \I(India)\i
Lorenzo Kom'boa Ervin, a former Black \JPanther\j convicted in the United States for hijacking a plane to \JCuba\j in 1969, has his visa canceled by the Australian Federal Government, and is detained in a maximum security institution pending deportation. \JImmigration\j authorities maintain that Ervin concealed his conviction and used a different name to gain entry into \JAustralia\j. \I(Australia, USA, Cuba)\i
Three high-level Bougainville rebels finally arrive for peace talks at Burnham Camp, near \JChristchurch\j in New Zealand. Their first attempt to travel to the talks was foiled when a \Jhelicopter\j sent to transport them was fired on by guerrillas. \I(Bougainville, New Zealand)\i
In the northern Indian State of Punjab, at least 20 people are killed and 61 are injured when a bomb explodes on a train pulling out of Lekhar Khana station. \I(India)\i
At a memorial meeting in \JPyongyang\j, North Korean officials declare an end to a three-year period of mourning for former president, Kim Il Sung, clearing the way for his eldest son to assume absolute power of the nation. \I(North Korea)\i
Botanists claim to have discovered the world's oldest living plant in an area of \Jrainforest\j in \JTasmania\j's southwestern World Heritage Area. The \ILomatia tasmanica,\i more commonly known as King's Holly, is reputedly 43,000 years old. \I(Australia)\i
Paleontologists fear that the diverse range of fossilized \Jdinosaur\j footprints, recently found in Western \JAustralia\j, could be lost unless steps are taken to protect the area against erosion, vandalism and potential mining. \I(Australia)\i
A professor from the National \JTaiwan\j University predicts that if \JBeijing\j proves its ability and determination to ensure Hong Kong's continuing prosperity, \JTaiwan\j could consider reunification under the "one country, two systems" formula. Recent opposition to reunification, he maintains, stems from long-term distrust of the communists. Meanwhile, the country's defense ministry announces plans to stage a large-scale military exercise between April and June next year, insisting that the war games are merely routine. \I(Taiwan, Hong Kong, China)\i
China announces its decision to donate 80,000 tonnes of grain to North Korea in addition to 70,000 tonnes already pledged and shipped to the famine-stricken country this year. \I(China, North Korea)\i
A United States Senate committee begins hearings into alleged Democratic Party fund-raising irregularities. Committee chairman, Fred Thompson, accuses China of using illegal political donations to manipulate US foreign policy. However, ranking Democrat, John Glenn, questions the existence of real evidence to that effect, and suggests that the panel should investigate money donated to both parties. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Lorenzo Kom'boa Ervin, a former Black \JPanther\j convicted in the United States for hijacking a plane to \JCuba\j in 1969, has his visa canceled by the Australian Federal Government, and is detained in a maximum security institution pending deportation. \JImmigration\j authorities maintain that Ervin concealed his conviction and used a different name to gain entry into \JAustralia\j. \I(Australia, USA, Cuba)\i
The United States President, Bill Clinton, takes a firm stand on \JNATO\j membership and \JFrance\j loses its bid to recruit \JRomania\j and \JSlovenia\j. After three hours of strong debate, \JNATO\j leaders agree to extend membership invitations to \JHungary\j, \JPoland\j, and the Czech Republic. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, \JRomania\j, \JSlovenia\j, \JHungary\j, \JPoland\j, Czech Republic)\i
Actor Debbie Reynolds, and the Debbie Reynolds Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, file for Chapter 11 \Jbankruptcy\j protection, a move necessitated by the collapse of the planned purchase of the hotel by ILX, a time-share resort developer. \I(USA)\i
A Los Angeles County Court orders Susan McDougal, former Whitewater investment partner of President Clinton and Hillary Clinton, to stand trial on charges of embezzling $US150,000 from the wife of conductor, Zubin Mehta. \I(USA)\i
NASA reveals that if the damaged Mir module contains deadly chemicals and other dangers, these could enter the space station after the planned spacewalk by cosmonauts to make the repairs. \I(USA, Russia)\i
A United States Senate committee begins hearings into alleged Democratic Party fund-raising irregularities. Committee chairman, Fred Thompson, accuses China of using illegal political donations to manipulate US foreign policy. However, ranking Democrat, John Glenn, questions the existence of real evidence to that effect, and suggests that the panel should investigate money donated to both parties. \I(USA, China)\i
Scientists estimate that the photographed and analyzed rock on Mars nicknamed "Barnacle Bill" is probably one third \Jquartz\j in composition, a finding which suggests that Mars bears more similarities to Earth than the Moon does. An analysis also reveals that the rock's "chemical fingerprints" are identical to 12 meteorites found on Earth and believed to have originated on Mars billions of years ago. \I(USA)\i
The Pentagon announces that three ships carrying US marines and helicopters have been deployed to \JJapan\j in case an evacuation of the estimated 1,500 Americans in \JCambodia\j is deemed necessary. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, Cambodia)\i
In reaction to Mike Tyson biting Evander Holyfield's ears in a recent bout, the World Boxing Association strips Mike Tyson of his ranking as No. 1 challenger, assigning the position to South African heavyweight, Frans Botha. \I(USA, South Africa)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The United States President, Bill Clinton, takes a firm stand on \JNATO\j membership and \JFrance\j loses its bid to recruit \JRomania\j and \JSlovenia\j. After three hours of strong debate, \JNATO\j leaders agree to extend membership invitations to \JHungary\j, \JPoland\j, and the Czech Republic. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, \JRomania\j, \JSlovenia\j, \JHungary\j, \JPoland\j, Czech Republic)\i
In \JNairobi\j, there are further clashes between police and university students after more people die from injuries sustained during the previous day's violent demonstrations, bringing the death toll to at least 15. \I(Kenya)\i
Mo Mowlam, Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary, condemns the violence which spread throughout Irish Catholic communities following a Protestant march in the town of Portadown. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
NASA reveals that if the damaged Mir module contains deadly chemicals and other dangers, these could enter the space station after the planned spacewalk by cosmonauts to make the repairs. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Ukraine and \JNATO\j sign a charter allowing the former Soviet republic the right to seek "consultations" with the alliance in the event of external threat. \I(Ukraine, Europe)\i
Russian Foreign Minister, Yevgeny Primakov, denounces \JNATO\j's expansion into Eastern Europe, maintaining that the enlargement threatens security and creates new divisions. \I(Russia, Europe)\i
NATO leaders issue a statement in support of embattled Bosnian Serb leader, Biljana Plavsic, calling on hardliners allied to suspected war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, to resolve their differences peacefully, or face further isolation from the international community. \I(Bosnia)\i
In reaction to Mike Tyson biting Evander Holyfield's ears in a recent bout, the World Boxing Association strips Mike Tyson of his ranking as No. 1 challenger, assigning the position to South African heavyweight, Frans Botha. \I(USA, South Africa)\i
A buried treasure of Roman coins and bullion, uncovered on farmland in West Sussex, is hailed by the British Museum as one of the rarest finds ever made. \I(UK)\i
Israeli archaeologists discover an indoor swimming pool, dating back to 10 BC, on the West Bank site of what was once Herod the Great's summer palace at Herodion. \I(Israel)\i
#
"July 9, 1997",553,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Fear grips the ravaged Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh as troops and police loyal to Hun Sen mount house-to-house searches and raid hotels, hoping to locate key officials and supporters of Prince Norodom Ranariddh. At least 10 members of the Prince's family are reported to have left the country, but as many as 50 royalist officials are believed to be still in hiding. \I(Cambodia)\i
The United States declares its intention to evacuate 40 diplomats and their families from \JCambodia\j. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
Cambodia's Ambassador to the United Nations, Prince Sisowath Sirirath, calls for the freezing of international aid to \JCambodia\j and insists that ASEAN should do nothing to make Hun Sen's coup "a fait accompli". Sirirath says that supporters of Prince Ranariddh propose to amass troops in Battambang and establish an alternative regime. \I(Cambodia)\i
As Hong Kong's Beijing-appointed legislature opens, pro-democracy activists demonstrate outside the old colonial legislature building. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
The death toll in yesterday's train bombing in India rises to 34 amid growing fears of a renewed terrorist campaign in Punjab. State police suspect that Pakistani intelligence may have masterminded the bombing, but the allegations are denied by \JPakistan\j. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Beijing authorities implement restrictions on construction in the city, suspending or reducing 18 major office-building projects, and imposing a three-year ban on future commercial development. The restrictions coincide with the release of a nationwide report detailing more than 5,400 cases of corruption involving party, government, and judicial officials during the first five months of the year. \I(China)\i
Former Democrat Party finance director, Richard Sullivan, gives testimony before the Senate panel investigating campaign finance abuses, denying any knowledge of Chinese attempts to influence the US political process through campaign contributions. \I(USA, China)\i
The World Food Program launches an appeal for tens of millions of dollars in food aid to boost supplies the United Nations is already dispatching to North Korean children. \I(North Korea)\i
The upper house of the South Australian Parliament votes 13-8 in favor of \Jeuthanasia\j legislation, proceeding one step closer to introducing what would become the world's second voluntary \Jeuthanasia\j law. \I(Australia)\i
North Korea announces its intention to abandon the world calendar and introduce a calendar based on the birth of founding leader, Kim Il Sung. In response to the announcement, South Korea accuses the North of reverting to the feudal system. \I(The Koreas)\i
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, repudiates criticism of \JAustralia\j's racial tolerance record, labeling such criticism "unreasonable", "ill-founded", "uninformed", and 'unjustified". \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In their first face-to-face encounter in almost three years, the Greek Cypriot leader, Glafcos Clerides, and the Turkish Cypriot lead, Rauf Denktash, begin United Nations-sponsored talks in New York under the watchful eye of Richard Holbrooke, Washington's new envoy to Cyprus. \I(Cyprus, USA)\i
At the conclusion of \JNATO\j's two-day summit, American President, Bill Clinton, says the decision to expand into eastern Europe has "bridged a chasm in history" and "paved the way for others to follow". \I(USA, Europe)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, estimates that \JNATO\j's expansion will cost US taxpayers $200 million a year, but considers the move to be insurance against the possibility of a more costly war in Europe. \I(USA, Europe)\i
The Nevada State Athletic Commission unanimously votes to fine boxer Mike Tyson $US3 million and revoke his boxing license for a minimum of one year following his fight with Evander Holyfield where Tyson bit off parts of Holyfield's ears. \I(USA)\i
Former Democrat Party finance director, Richard Sullivan, gives testimony before the Senate panel investigating campaign finance abuses, denying any knowledge of Chinese attempts to influence the US political process through campaign contributions. \I(USA, China)\i
Sojourner, the Mars rover, edges close to another boulder scientists have nicknamed "Yogi" because of its bear-like appearance. \I(USA)\i
The United States declares its intention to evacuate 40 diplomats and their families from \JCambodia\j. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
In a bid to revive formal peace talks, Israel's defense minister and a senior Palestinian official meet under US and Egyptian auspices. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA, Egypt)\i
Apple Computer announces the resignation of chairman and chief executive, Dr. Gilbert Amelio, after only seventeen months in the position. The announcement prompts industry speculation as to whether the pioneering personal computer company can be revived. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Justice sources reveal that the leader of \JFrance\j's neo-fascist National Front, Jean-Marie Le Pen, will stand trial in November for the alleged assault of a female Socialist Party parliamentary candidate. \I(France)\i
Five Turkish prisoners are killed and five are injured when police storm \JIstanbul\j's Metris prison to quell a riot staged by prisoners to protest against the jail's poor conditions. \I(Turkey)\i
In their first face-to-face encounter in almost three years, the Greek Cypriot leader, Glafcos Clerides, and the Turkish Cypriot leader, Rauf Denktash, begin United Nations-sponsored talks in New York under the watchful eye of Richard Holbrooke, Washington's new envoy to Cyprus. \I(Cyprus, USA)\i
Rwanda's Defense Minister, Paul Kagame, acknowledges that his government planned and directed the overthrow of President Mobutu Sese Seko in the former Zaire, providing training and arms for the rebels, and providing troops and officers to lead their forces. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), Rwanda)\i
At the conclusion of \JNATO\j's two-day summit, American President, Bill Clinton, says the decision to expand into eastern Europe has "bridged a chasm in history" and "paved the way for others to follow". \I(USA, Europe)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, estimates that \JNATO\j's expansion will cost US taxpayers $200 million a year, but considers the move to be insurance against the possibility of a more costly war in Europe. \I(USA, Europe)\i
The Irish National Liberation Army, a splinter group of the IRA, threatens to kill Protestants if pro-British marches are permitted to proceed through \JBelfast\j and Derry on the weekend. Meanwhile, Britain dispatches 500 more troops to Northern Ireland to help quell the surge of nationalist violence that has erupted since last weekend's march. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Scores of students are seriously wounded as riot police move in to close the University of \JNairobi\j. The students were planning to march on State House to demonstrate in support of constitutional changes. \I(Kenya)\i
In a bid to revive formal peace talks, Israel's defense minister and a senior Palestinian official meet under US and Egyptian auspices. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA, Egypt)\i
Eight separatists, who staged an armed raid on the St Marks belltower in Venice two months ago, are given jail sentences of up to six years by an Italian judge. \I(Italy)\i
#
"July 10, 1997",554,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Australian Federal Government orders the evacuation of an estimated 400 Australians from Phnom Penh, threatening to slash its $AUD32 million aid program to \JCambodia\j if the political violence worsens. \I(Australia, Cambodia)\i
Japan, \JCambodia\j's largest donor of foreign aid, announces a freeze in this year's promised aid of $AUD120 million. \I(Japan, Cambodia)\i
At an emergency meeting, ASEAN foreign ministers agree to delay \JCambodia\j's proposed admission to the regional group until a later date. \I(Cambodia, South East Asia)\i
The United States Embassy in Phnom Penh steps up preparations to evacuate any US citizens who wish to leave \JCambodia\j. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
In his first news conference since seizing power, Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, denies staging a coup, issuing warnings against ASEAN interference in the country's internal affairs and any international moves to support plans by former co-Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, to establish a resistance government. Hun Sen says that Ranariddh can come back to his country to face legal proceedings. \I(Cambodia, South East Asia)\i
North Korean defector and former senior ideologue, Hwang Jang-yop, warns South Korea that the North's entire economy is geared towards imminent war. \I(The Koreas)\i
After four days of torrential rain, a mudslide sweeps away parts of the village of Harihara on the Japanese island of \JKyushu\j, killing at least 19 people and injuring 14 others. \I(Japan)\i
Britain comes under pressure from East \JTimor\j to cancel current agreements to supply arms to \JIndonesia\j, and to freeze further contracts for up to five years. \I(UK, East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
The Fijian Senate unanimously approves a new constitution removing racial restriction on the political power of the Indian community. \I(Fiji)\i
Two years to the day after being released from six years of house arrest, democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi declares that repression has increased in \JMyanmar\j. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
As torrential downpours continue to flood China's southern provinces, causing loss of life and widespread damage, millions of people in the north are facing the worst \Jdrought\j in 80 years. \I(China)\i
Delegates from the 16 members of the South Pacific Forum meet in \JAustralia\j to begin talks aimed at solving the island states' economic problems. \I(Australia, South Pacific)\i
China denies attempting to influence US elections through secret campaign donations, warning that such allegations risk damaging Sino-US relations. \I(China, USA)\i
US Senator Susan Collins informs the US campaign funds hearing that Democratic Party donor, Yogesh Ganhi, last year received cash transfers from a Japanese bank which may have covered his donations. \I(USA, Japan)\i
In a continuing effort to preserve the giant panda, China plans to build three new nature reserves and 17 "green passageways" to link their habitats. \I(China)\i
Australia's pioneer Olympics and America's Cup yachting skipper, Jock Sturrock, MBE, dies at his \JQueensland\j home, aged 82. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Mars rover, Sojourner, is unable to make its chemical analysis of the rock "Yogi" due to a collision which prevents the sensing mechanism from sitting properly on the rock's surface. \I(USA)\i
At least 59 people are killed and 500 families left homeless when eastern Venezuela is razed by an \Jearthquake\j measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale. \I(Venezuela)\i
US Senator Susan Collins informs the US campaign funds hearing that Democratic Party donor, Yogesh Ganhi, last year received cash transfers from a Japanese bank which may have covered his donations. \I(USA, Japan)\i
China denies attempting to influence US elections through secret campaign donations, warning that such allegations risk damaging Sino-US relations. \I(China, USA)\i
The United States Embassy in Phnom Penh steps up preparations to evacuate any US citizens who wish to leave \JCambodia\j. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
US Attorney General, Janet Reno, reveals that in response to new information, the \JFBI\j has reopened its investigation into the 1963 Ku Klux Klan bombing of a black church in Birmingham, \JAlabama\j. Klansman, Robert Edward Chambliss, who was convicted of the bombing in 1977, died eight years later in prison. \I(USA)\i
Switzerland's three-year experiment with state-distributed heroin, which experts say reduced disease, slashed crime and saved taxpayers' money, is hailed by the Lindesmith Center for drug policy research as a guide for programs in the United States and other countries. \I(Switzerland, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Northern Ireland's Protestant Orange Order decides to cancel marches scheduled to proceed through Catholic neighborhoods on the weekend. The decision is greatly welcomed by both the British Government and Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Archaeologists uncover the remains of 200 people who were burned alive in a church \Jcrypt\j at Portmahomack, north-east Scotland, during clan feuds 500 years ago. \I(Scotland)\i
In a written statement to a judicial inquiry, former Irish Prime Minister, Charles Haughey, admits receiving the equivalent of úIR1.3 million in payments from supermarket chief, Ben Dunne. \I(Republic of Ireland)\i
Israel's transport ministry announces the introduction of gender-segregated buses for ultra-Orthodox Jews. \I(Israel)\i
In the first concerted attempt to arrest suspected Bosnian Serb war criminals, NATO-led British troops shoot dead police chief, Simo Drljaca, and capture \Jhospital\j director, Milan Kovacevic. \I(Bosnia, UK)\i
While the decision is not yet finalized, the European Commission agrees in principle that the European Union should open membership talks with \JPoland\j, the Czech Republic, \JHungary\j, \JSlovenia\j, \JEstonia\j, and Cyprus. \I(Poland, Czech Republic, \JHungary\j, \JSlovenia\j, \JEstonia\j, Cyprus)\i
Amnesty International accuses Israel of unlawfully holding Lebanese nationals to use as a lever against Islamic militia groups. Israel defends the charge, insisting that the detainees are "terrorists" who threaten the state's sovereignty. \I(Israel, Lebanon)\i
A team of scientists, led by Dr. Svante Paabo of the University of Munich, conclude from genetic evidence that Neanderthals were not human ancestors, but branched off the human family tree 600,000 years ago. \I(Germany)\i
Civil defense officials in southwestern \JPoland\j report that floods have driven tens of thousands of people from their homes. At least 15 people have drowned, as well as another 17 in the neighboring Czech Republic, and dozens of people are missing. \I(Poland, Czech Republic)\i
Britain comes under pressure from East \JTimor\j to cancel current agreements to supply arms to \JIndonesia\j, and to freeze further contracts for up to five years. \I(UK, East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
Sixteen workers are killed and two are injured when an experimental bomb explodes during a test at a military airfield in southern \JRomania\j. \I(Romania)\i
Switzerland's three-year experiment with state-distributed heroin, which experts say reduced disease, slashed crime and saved taxpayers' money, is hailed by the Lindesmith Center for drug policy research as a guide for programs in the United States and other countries. \I(Switzerland, USA)\i
#
"July 11, 1997",555,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
At least 82 people die when fire and explosions rip through the Royal Jomtien Resort in the Thai coastal town of Pattaya, cutting the electricity supply and trapping guests in their rooms. \I(Thailand)\i
In \JBombay\j, 10 people are killed and 34 injured when a mob of 3,000 Hindu slum-dwellers, enraged by the desecration of a statue, clash with police. \I(India)\i
At least 54 of the 60 passengers aboard a boat are believed drowned when it capsizes in the Bagmati River, east of \JPatna\j in India. \I(India)\i
Clashes are reported between rival Cambodian forces near the town of Siem Reap, 150 miles northwest of Phnom Penh. \I(Cambodia)\i
Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, shrugs off decisions taken by the United States, \JJapan\j, and \JGermany\j to cut off aid, pointing out that his country has been subjected to economic embargo in the past. \I(Cambodia, USA, \JJapan\j, Germany)\i
During his visit to Washington, \JCambodia\j's exiled Prince Norodom Ranariddh assures the United States that if he is reinstated as leader of his country, he will not bring the Khmer Rouge into government. While welcoming the US decision to freeze aid to \JCambodia\j for 30 days, Prince Ranariddh says the freeze should continue until a legitimate government is restored. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
From \JCambodia\j, a senior member of Prince Ranariddh's Funcinpec party, Loy Sim Chheang, states that it is time for Ranariddh to be replaced as first prime minister. \I(Cambodia)\i
South Korea announces that a new agency will be established to ensure the defense capabilities of the capital region. \I(South Korea)\i
Robert Kim, a former US Navy intelligence analyst, is sentenced to nine years in prison for selling US secrets to a South Korean military official last year. \I(USA, South Korea)\i
Authorities in China are investigating two recent bus accidents which killed 46 people and injured nine others. \I(China)\i
Australian authorities recruit 24 officers to form the new Blade Joint Operations team, stepping up the fight against Asian drug trafficking. \I(Australia, Asia)\i
The death toll from floods sweeping the southern and eastern provinces of China rises to 87. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
During his visit to Washington, \JCambodia\j's exiled Prince Norodom Ranariddh assures the United States that if he is reinstated as leader of his country, he will not bring the Khmer Rouge into government. While welcoming the US decision to freeze aid to \JCambodia\j for 30 days, Prince Ranariddh says the freeze should continue until a legitimate government is restored. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, shrugs off decisions taken by the United States, \JJapan\j, and \JGermany\j to cut off aid, pointing out that his country has been subjected to economic embargo in the past. \I(Cambodia, USA, \JJapan\j, Germany)\i
Robert Kim, a former US Navy intelligence analyst, is sentenced to nine years in prison for selling US secrets to a South Korean military official last year. \I(USA, South Korea)\i
The US Senate strongly recommends that US troops are withdrawn from Bosnia by June 30, 1998. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Heavy security surrounds the burial of Mexican drug baron, Amado Carillo Fuentes, at his family compound in Sinaloa state. Meanwhile, authorities are investigating a report that Fuentes was murdered by one of his bodyguards. \I(Mexico)\i
Testimony from a ballistics expert reveals that markings on bullets recently fired from the former rifle of James Earl Ray do not match those on the bullet that killed Martin Luther King in 1968. Ray's lawyers are hoping that the evidence will win their client a retrial. \I(USA)\i
During an eight-hour stop in \JRomania\j, US President Bill Clinton urges Romanians to press ahead with reform in order to secure entry into \JNATO\j. \I(USA, Romania)\i
Hillary Clinton addresses a women's forum in Vienna, calling on all women of former Soviet nations to aspire to full participation in their developing democracies. \I(USA, Austria)\i
The Sojourner rover on Mars remains stuck on the Martian rock "Yogi" for a second day while scientists try to reposition it. \I(USA)\i
Cubana de Aviacion Flight 787 plunges into the sea approximately three minutes after taking off from Santiago de \JCuba\j. The plane, carrying 39 passengers and five crew, was en route to \JHavana\j; there is little hope for any survivors. \I(Cuba)\i
Suspected serial killer, Glen Rogers, is sentenced to the electric chair for the brutal murder of a woman in \JFlorida\j. Rogers is also accused of murder in Louisiana, \JCalifornia\j, and Mississippi. \I(USA)\i
German tennis player, Boris Becker, puts his name down for next month's US Open, putting an end to speculation that Wimbledon would be his last grand slam event. \I(Germany, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In response to opposition warnings that \JKenya\j could face further violence unless constitutional reforms are enacted before this year's elections, President Daniel arap Moi threatens to take decisive action against any opposition MPs who try to bring chaos to the country. \I(Kenya)\i
Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, shrugs off decisions taken by the United States, \JJapan\j, and \JGermany\j to cut off aid, pointing out that his country has been subjected to economic embargo in the past. \I(Cambodia, USA, \JJapan\j, Germany)\i
During an eight-hour stop in \JRomania\j, US President Bill Clinton urges Romanians to press ahead with reform in order to secure entry into \JNATO\j. \I(USA, Romania)\i
Hillary Clinton addresses a women's forum in Vienna, calling on all women of former Soviet nations to aspire to full participation in their developing democracies. \I(USA, Austria)\i
The US Senate strongly recommends that US troops are withdrawn from Bosnia by June 30, 1998. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Russia condemns the British military's role in the NATO-led raid on alleged Bosnian Serb war criminals, accusing London of jeopardizing the Dayton peace agreement. \I(UK, \JRussia\j, Bosnia)\i
In the wake of May's military coup in Sierra Leone, the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group announces the suspension of Sierra Leone from Commonwealth meetings. \I(UK, Sierra Leone)\i
Egyptian Foreign Minister, Amr Moussa, laments \JEgypt\j's failure to restart Mideast peace talks, predicting more violence unless Israel softens its position. \I(Egypt, Israel)\i
According to official results of the recent elections, \JAlbania\j's Socialist Party and the allied Social Democrats now hold a two-thirds majority in the country's parliament. \I(Albania)\i
German tennis player, Boris Becker, puts his name down for next month's US Open, putting an end to speculation that Wimbledon would be his last grand slam event. \I(Germany, USA)\i
#
"July 12, 1997",556,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
China reveals its decision to open the country's weapons industry to overseas investors, inviting foreign companies to display their equipment at the China International Defense \JElectronics\j Exhibition in \JBeijing\j next May. \I(China)\i
In response to claims by defector, Hwang Jang-yop, that North Korea is forcing its people into war, the North's Radio Minminjon adopts an angry stance, casting doubt on the future of next month's four-way peace talks, and warning of a potential catastrophe on the Korean peninsula. \I(The Koreas)\i
Thai officials are attempting to identify and locate the owners of Pattaya's Royal Jomtien Resort Hotel which was destroyed by fire yesterday, killing at least 82 people. \I(Thailand)\i
In the first Rugby match of the two-Test Cook Cup, the Australian Wallabies defeat the British Lions 25-6. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Reports suggest that the \JFBI\j is satisfied that most of the $US2 million China allegedly spent to enhance its political influence in the United States went towards legal activities. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A massive search for victims of the Cuban plane crash recovers the bodies of 17 people. Little hope is held of finding any survivors. \I(Cuba)\i
Tests conducted on the rifle believed to have been used by James Earl Ray to kill Martin Luther King are ruled inconclusive by a US criminal court judge. A date is set to discuss the possibility of new tests. \I(USA)\i
A judge orders the exhumation of the body of Dr. Sam Sheppard, the man whose case inspired the film and \Jtelevision\j versions of \IThe Fugitive.\i DNA tests are to be conducted to establish whether or not Dr. Sheppard murdered his wife in 1954. \I(USA)\i
While the search for victims continues, the death toll from the Venezuelan \Jearthquake\j is estimated at 67, with another 469 people reported injured. \I(Venezuela)\i
Neurosurgeons at the University of \JFlorida\j Brain Institute at Shands \JHospital\j perform a first-ever US transplant of human embryonic spinal cord cells into a cavity of a paralyzed man's spine. \I(USA)\i
Reports suggest that the \JFBI\j is satisfied that most of the $US2 million China allegedly spent to enhance its political influence in the United States went towards legal activities. \I(USA, China)\i
US President Clinton visits Denmark, becoming the first American President in office to do so. \I(USA, Denmark)\i
In the Cuban capital of \JHavana\j, explosions shatter windows in two leading tourist hotels: the Capri and the Nacional. \JCuba\j's Interior Ministry claims to have uncovered evidence that the people responsible for the bombings came from the United States. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
After being jammed up against the Martian rock "Yogi" for two days, the Sojourner rover is moving again. \I(USA)\i
The remains of Ernesto "Che" Guevara, unearthed from a secret grave in \JBolivia\j, arrive in \JCuba\j nearly 30 years after he was captured and shot. \I(Cuba, Bolivia)\i
US military and intelligence officials are unavailable for comment regarding German newspaper allegations that wartime bandleader, Glen Miller, died in a Paris brothel, and not in a plane crash, as officially reported. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, France)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
US President Clinton visits Denmark, becoming the first American President in office to do so. \I(USA, Denmark)\i
US military and intelligence officials are unavailable for comment regarding German newspaper allegations that wartime bandleader, Glen Miller, died in a Paris brothel, and not in a plane crash, as officially reported. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, France)\i
Miguel Angel Blanco, a Basque politician kidnapped by the ETA separatist group, is found with two bullets in his head less than an hour after the deadline for his threatened execution. The group was demanding the transfer of 450 ETA prisoners to Basque in return for Mr. Blanco's life. \I(Spain)\i
In the first Rugby match of the two-Test Cook Cup, the Australian Wallabies defeat the British Lions 25-6. \I(Australia, UK)\i
#
"July 13, 1997",557,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Speaking in \JBeijing\j, \JCambodia\j's ailing King Norodom Sihanouk declines to endorse Prince Ranariddh's accusations of a coup, merely calling on Hun Sen to observe the Constitution and all laws passed by the coalition government since the 1993 elections. The king says that although he will not personally sign documents legitimizing Hun Sen's takeover, he will not oppose any decrees signed by acting head of state, Chea Sim. \I(Cambodia, China)\i
Reports from Seoul indicate that prosecutors have seized millions of dollars believed to be part of the concealed slush fund of jailed ex-president, Chun Doo-hwan. \I(South Korea)\i
Pending further checks and permits, \JTaiwan\j's nuclear authority initially approves a plan to ship radioactive waste to North Korea for storage. The plan faces strong opposition from China, South Korea, and the international environmental group, Greenpeace. \I(Taiwan, China, The Koreas)\i
A split emerges in \JAustralia\j's Uniting Church congregations following a revelation by the Church's second highest office bearer that she is a lesbian. \I(Australia)\i
In the Australian national capital, a young girl is killed and nine people are injured when two detonations, intended to implode the Royal \JCanberra\j \JHospital\j, shower debris on spectators positioned 300 meters from the demolition site. \I(Australia)\i
At least 77 passengers drown when a heavily overloaded Indonesian boat sinks in Lake Toba, one of the world's deepest lakes. \I(Indonesia)\i
Following the release of incriminating documents, Brigadier-General Jerry Singirok, former Defense Force commander and leader of a protest movement against corruption in the Papua New Guinean administration, admits accepting secret payments worth ú30,000 from British arms dealer, Franklins. \I(New Guinea, UK)\i
Sir Garfield Barwick, Australian politician, judge, and clandestine figure in the controversial 1975 sacking of the Whitlam Government, dies in Sydney at the age of 94. \I(Australia)\i
In the final of the Superball tournament in Georgia, the Australian women's softball team defeats the United States. It is the first time in 14 years that the 1996 Olympic gold medalists have failed to win a tournament. \I(Australia, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
For the third consecutive year, \IForbes\i magazine's tally of billionaires names Bill Gates, Microsoft co-founder and Chairman, as the richest businessman in the world. Gates' net worth is assessed at $US36.4 billion, the highest ever recorded in the tally. \I(USA)\i
In a special political category created by \IForbes\i magazine, \JCuba\j's President Castro and \JIraq\j's Saddam Hussein are for the first time listed among the world's richest people. Castro's wealth is estimated at $US1.4 billion; Hussein's wealth at $US5 billion. \I(USA, \JCuba\j, Iraq)\i
A flotilla of 15 boats cruises from \JFlorida\j to within 12 miles of \JCuba\j's coast to commemorate the deaths of 41 Cubans who died at sea while attempting to flee the island in 1994. \I(USA, Cuba)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, assures \JEstonia\j, \JLatvia\j, and \JLithuania\j that Washington supports their ultimate membership of \JNATO\j. \I(USA, \JEstonia\j, \JLatvia\j, Lithuania)\i
Bulgarian officials inform US Defense Secretary, William Cohen, that their country is undertaking the necessary military reforms to qualify for future \JNATO\j membership. \I(USA, Bulgaria)\i
The US State Department requests the Cuban Government to supply them with evidence to support the claim that Americans were responsible for the bombing of two \JHavana\j hotels this week. \I(USA, Cuba)\i
Christopher Meyer, the current British envoy in \JBonn\j, emerges as the front-running candidate to succeed Sir John Kerr as British Ambassador to Washington later this year. \I(UK, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
Britain's Alison Nicholas narrowly wins the $US1.3 million US Women's Open Golf Tournament. \I(UK, USA)\i
Canadian Jacques Villeneuve wins the British Grand Prix in a Williams-Renault, bringing his overall points to 43, and closing the gap on two-time Formula One world champion, Michael Schumacher of \JGermany\j, who leads the drivers' standings on 47 points. \I(UK, Canada, Germany)\i
In the final of the Superball tournament in Georgia, the Australian women's softball team defeats the United States. It is the first time in 14 years that the 1996 Olympic gold medalists have failed to win a tournament. \I(Australia, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Miguel Angel Blanco, the 29-year-old Basque town councilor held to ransom by ETA separatists, dies in \Jhospital\j from gunshot wounds to the head. His death outrages the Spanish people, triggering mass protests around the country. \I(Spain)\i
According to reports, 21 people have been killed by suspected Islamic extremists in two separate massacres on the Algerian coast. \I(Algeria)\i
Anglican \JArchbishop\j David Gitari, speaking to a packed congregation from the pulpit of \JNairobi\j's All Saints Cathedral, finds President Moi "wanting", and insists that constitutional reforms must be set in motion by the Government. \I(Kenya)\i
Officials reveal that the Israeli soldier who engaged in a shooting rampage in \JHebron\j on New Year's Day has been discharged from the army and will not face trial. \I(Israel)\i
At the state funeral of Simo Drljaca, the alleged war criminal shot dead in a NATO-led raid, Bosnian Serb officials honor the former police chief as a martyr. \I(Bosnia)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, assures \JEstonia\j, \JLatvia\j, and \JLithuania\j that Washington supports their ultimate membership of \JNATO\j. \I(USA, \JEstonia\j, \JLatvia\j, Lithuania)\i
Bulgarian officials inform US Defense Secretary, William Cohen, that their country is undertaking the necessary military reforms to qualify for future \JNATO\j membership. \I(USA, Bulgaria)\i
Christopher Meyer, the current British envoy in \JBonn\j, emerges as the front-running candidate to succeed Sir John Kerr as British Ambassador to Washington later this year. \I(UK, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
In a special political category created by \IForbes\i magazine, \JCuba\j's President Castro and \JIraq\j's Saddam Hussein are for the first time listed among the world's richest people. Castro's wealth is estimated at $US1.4 billion; Hussein's wealth at $US5 billion. \I(USA, \JCuba\j, Iraq)\i
Following the release of incriminating documents, Brigadier-General Jerry Singirok, former Defense Force commander and leader of a protest movement against corruption in the Papua New Guinean administration, admits accepting secret payments worth ú30,000 from British arms dealer, Franklins. \I(New Guinea, UK)\i
After 57 years, a Cubist masterpiece looted by the Nazis is returned to the family of its rightful owner by the French Government. The painting, \ILandscape of Meudon,\i by the French artist Albert Gleizes, was the property of Jewish collector, Alphonse Kann. \I(France)\i
Britain's Alison Nicholas narrowly wins the $US1.3 million US Women's Open Golf Tournament. \I(UK, USA)\i
Canadian Jacques Villeneuve wins the British Grand Prix in a Williams-Renault, bringing his overall points to 43, and closing the gap on two-time Formula One world champion, Michael Schumacher of \JGermany\j, who leads the drivers' standings on 47 points. \I(UK, Canada, Germany)\i
#
"July 14, 1997",558,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, warns the international community against harboring the ousted Prince Norodom Ranariddh, accusing the prince of \Jterrorism\j, and demanding his arrest and \Jextradition\j to \JCambodia\j to face trial. \I(Cambodia)\i
Taiwanese military officials refute accusations by Cambodian leader Hun Sen that \JTaiwan\j supplied arms to Prince Ranariddh's Funcinpec forces. \I(Taiwan, Cambodia)\i
In response to an appeal by the UN World Food Program, the United States doubles its food aid to North Korea, bringing its contribution for the year to $US52 million. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
An independent inquiry is to be conducted into the bungled demolition of the Royal \JCanberra\j \JHospital\j which killed one girl and left nine people injured. In the meantime, officials of the Australian Capital Territory Government are calling for a total ban on implosions. \I(Australia)\i
The minority ruling coalition of India's Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, is confronted by another crisis when the allied Dravidian Progressive Party defects, taking four cabinet ministers with it. \I(India)\i
Ninety-two Chinese boat people are flown back to China after exhausting all avenues of appeal to stay in \JAustralia\j. The five boat-loads of people had illegally entered the country in 1992, 1994, and 1996. \I(Australia, China)\i
Tasmanian officials warn people not to handle any of the thousands of dead fish that have washed up on the east coast of the island state. \I(Australia)\i
The death toll from the floods in eastern and southern China rises to at least 101. An estimated 340,000 hectares of farmland have been affected by the flooding, and 26,000 houses have been destroyed. \I(China)\i
Floods hit 21 districts of \JBangladesh\j, causing 83 deaths, and displacing approximately 2 million people. Rice paddy crops are destroyed, as well as roads, bridges, and railway tracks, leaving army helicopters to drop food packages to stranded villagers. \I(Bangladesh)\i
President of the Bougainville Interim Government, Francis Ona, condemns a new border treaty between Papua New Guinea and the Solomons, saying it will cut off his blockaded island's access to humanitarian aid. \I(Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US health officials report that the number of Americans dying from AIDS is continuing to decline, attributing the trend to new treatments which extend the lives of sufferers. \I(USA)\i
In response to an appeal by the UN World Food Program, the United States doubles its food aid to North Korea, bringing its contribution for the year to $US52 million. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Hawthorn Savings and Loan, mortgagee of O.J. Simpson's Los Angeles mansion, purchases the property at auction for $US2.6 million. The proceeds will not contribute to the $US33.5 million in damages Simpson was ordered to pay for the deaths of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. \I(USA)\i
A home loan of up to 125 per cent of a property's market value is launched by US lenders. \I(USA)\i
In the first of a series of experiments planned for the week, investigators test fly a Boeing 747, attempting to replicate conditions on board the TWA flight which exploded off Long Island a year ago. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Minutes before the opening ceremony of the Maccabiah Games in Tel Aviv, a wooden bridge bearing a contingent of Australian competitors collapses into the Yarkon River, killing two people, critically injuring seven, and leaving scores of others with minor injuries. \I(Australia, Israel)\i
Officials at mission control in \JRussia\j reveal that space station Mir's commander, Vasily Tsibliyev, is suffering from cardiovascular problems. Scheduled repairs to the damaged space station will be delayed while doctors determine how to treat his condition. \I(Russia)\i
Bosnian Serb, Dusan Tadic, who was convicted in May for taking part in an "ethnic cleansing" campaign against Muslim civilians, is sentenced to 20 years in prison by the UN war crimes tribunal. \I(Bosnia)\i
More than 2 million people take to the streets in cities across \JSpain\j, mourning for slain Basque politician, Miguel Angel Blanco. In Madrid, a procession of hundreds of political leaders is led by Spanish Prime Minister, Jose Maria Aznar. \I(Spain)\i
In continued defiance of President Daniel arap Moi, thousands of students clash with riot police in \JNairobi\j. The \JKenya\j \JPolytechnic\j students take control of a major highway for hours, voicing their demands for constitutional reforms before being driven back to campus by police firing teargas and rubber bullets. \I(Kenya)\i
Britain's Minister for the Armed Forces announces a decision to double government funding to assist sufferers and medical researchers of Gulf War Syndrome. \I(UK)\i
#
"July 15, 1997",559,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Diplomats and human rights workers believe that at least 35 royalist officials and military personnel have been killed in custody since Hun Sen's military takeover in \JCambodia\j last week. Meanwhile, Cambodian opposition leader, Sam Rainsy, urges his supporters to join with Funcinpec in resisting Hun Sen's tyranny. \I(Cambodia)\i
Australian Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, announces that the Government has decided to suspend its $AUD2 million military aid to \JCambodia\j. At this stage, however, the $AUD32 million civil aid program is to remain untouched. \I(Australia, Cambodia)\i
The government of Papua New Guinea declines to accept an English High Court writ for nearly $AUD30 million brought by Sandline International in the wake of its abortive mercenary contract. \I(UK, Papua New Guinea)\i
A team of 10 US experts arrives in Unsan County, North Korea, to start joint search and recovery operations for the remains of several hundred Americans missing in action from the 1950-53 Korean War. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
In the face of tumbling stock market prices and fresh fears of political instability, India's Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, denies any threat to his minority ruling coalition following yesterday's defection of the DMK. \I(India)\i
China calls upon Washington to block a transit visa request from Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, stressing that failure to do so could damage Sino-US ties. Despite China's intervention, however, \JTaiwan\j's foreign ministry remains confident that a transit visa for the President's proposed September visit will be granted. \I(China, \JTaiwan\j, USA)\i
The US Senate committee probing campaign finance abuses receives direct evidence that at the request of John Huang, the Indonesian Lippo Group reimbursed an American subsidiary for a $US50,000 donation to the Democratic National Committee (DNC). In view of the evidence, the DNC says it will return the money. The Senate committee also receives evidence that Eric Hotung pledged $US100,000 to the Democrats in return for a meeting with national security aides to promote \JTaiwan\j's interests. The White House special counsel admits that a five minute meeting took place, but denies it was in exchange for a campaign contribution. \I(USA, \JIndonesia\j, Taiwan)\i
Thailand's Cabinet orders local governments to carry out mass fire safety inspections, and to evaluate firefighter response and emergency communications equipment. The order comes four days after a hotel fire in the beach resort of Pattaya killed 90 people and injured 60 others. Police have now traced the hotel's owners who are banned from leaving the country. \I(Thailand)\i
As the death toll reaches 75, Indonesian rescue officials believe as many as 100 people may have died when an overloaded ferry sank in Lake Toba on Sunday. The ferry had a maximum legal capacity of 50 to 60 passengers, but is thought to have been carrying more than 150 people at the time. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Celebrated international fashion designer, Gianni Versace, dies outside his Miami Beach home after being shot twice in the back of the head. The \JFBI\j's prime suspect is one of its ten most-wanted fugitives, Andrew Phillip Cunanan, an alleged homosexual serial killer. \I(USA)\i
China calls upon Washington to block a transit visa request from Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, stressing that failure to do so could damage Sino-US ties. Despite China's intervention, however, \JTaiwan\j's foreign ministry remains confident that a transit visa for the President's proposed September visit will be granted. \I(China, \JTaiwan\j, USA)\i
The US Senate committee probing campaign finance abuses receives direct evidence that at the request of John Huang, the Indonesian Lippo Group reimbursed an American subsidiary for a $US50,000 donation to the Democratic National Committee (DNC). In view of the evidence, the DNC says it will return the money. The Senate committee also receives evidence that Eric Hotung pledged $US100,000 to the Democrats in return for a meeting with national security aides to promote \JTaiwan\j's interests. The White House special counsel admits that a five minute meeting took place, but denies it was in exchange for a campaign contribution. \I(USA, \JIndonesia\j, Taiwan)\i
Russian and US space officials debate whether American \Jcosmonaut\j, Michael Foale, should perform vital electrical repairs outside space station Mir, replacing ailing Russian commander, Vasily Tsibliyev. \I(USA, Russia)\i
A team of 10 US experts arrives in Unsan County, North Korea, to start joint search and recovery operations for the remains of several hundred Americans missing in action from the 1950-53 Korean War. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Despite Russian criticism of \JNATO\j's recent arrest operation in Bosnia, the United States and other Western governments stand firmly behind a tougher international approach to war criminals, warning Bosnian Serbs against taking retaliatory action. \I(USA, Bosnia, Russia)\i
After a fresh investigation into the 1993 death of former Deputy White House Counsel, Vince Foster, Whitewater prosecutor, Kenneth Starr, concludes that Foster committed suicide by gunshot. \I(USA)\i
According to scientists, Sojourner's analysis of the Martian rock "Yogi" reveals it to be more like an Earth rock than the previously analyzed "Barnacle Bill". \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The government of Papua New Guinea declines to accept an English High Court writ for nearly $AUD30 million brought by Sandline International in the wake of its abortive mercenary contract. \I(UK, Papua New Guinea)\i
Serbian leader, Slobodan Milosevic, is elected President of Yugoslavia by the country's two-house Parliament in \JBelgrade\j. General elections for Milosevic's replacement as Serbian President will be held within two months. \I(Yugoslavia, Serbia)\i
Russian and US space officials debate whether American \Jcosmonaut\j, Michael Foale, should perform vital electrical repairs outside space station Mir, replacing ailing Russian commander, Vasily Tsibliyev. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Following ETA separatist threats against another Basque town councilor, a matter of days after Miguel Angel Blanco was kidnapped and killed, \JSpain\j's ruling party tightens security and vows not to give in. \I(Spain)\i
Despite Russian criticism of \JNATO\j's recent arrest operation in Bosnia, the United States and other Western governments stand firmly behind their tougher international approach to war criminals, warning Bosnian Serbs against taking retaliatory action. \I(USA, Bosnia, Russia)\i
In a meeting with \JKenya\j's religious leaders, President Daniel arap Moi agrees to review the constitution with regard to the needs of modern \JKenya\j. Moi's concession comes after a week of bloody clashes between riot police and demonstrators. \I(Kenya)\i
Gerda Christian, Adolf Hitler's loyal private secretary until his 1945 suicide, dies of cancer in a \JDusseldorf\j \Jhospital\j. \I(Germany)\i
Protestant Unionists are angered when Northern Ireland Secretary, Mo Mowlam, admits to renewed contact with Sinn Fein leaders, contravening assurances that all contact would be suspended after the deaths of two policemen in an IRA ambush last month. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
In the wake of threatened legal action, Britain promises the European Union to crack down hard on illegal exports of beef, warning, however, that imports will also be subjected to rigorous checks to ensure that British standards are met. \I(UK, Europe)\i
#
"July 16, 1997",560,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The two Koreas accuse each other of provocation after troops exchange heavy fire across the Demilitarized Zone separating North and South. A number of North Korean soldiers are wounded in the clash, which is considered the most serious in recent years. \I(The Koreas)\i
Cambodia's Foreign Minister, Ung Huot, is nominated to succeed Prince Norodom Ranariddh as First Prime Minister and leader of the royalist Funcipec party. Ung Huot, who holds dual Cambodian and Australian nationality, agrees to accept the position in the interests of his country, and on condition that he retains his original post in the foreign ministry. \I(Cambodia, Australia)\i
Further to recent peace talks held in New Zealand, Gerard Sinato, head of the Bougainville Transitional Government, says both sides of the island's 10-year conflict are almost ready to meet representatives from the central Papua New Guinean Government to negotiate a peace accord. Premier Sinato denies any push for Bougainvillean independence at this stage. \I(Bougainville, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea)\i
The Sri Lankan Defense Ministry reports an outbreak of fierce fighting between government troops and Tamil rebels in the country's north-east. According to the report, 17 soldiers are killed and 17 rebel bodies recovered, with total rebel deaths estimated at 60. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Two-weeks after his re-election, Papua New Guinean politician and former health minister, Yaip Avini, receives an eight-year jail sentence for misappropriating almost $A100,000 of public funds. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
At least 83 people are now reported to have died when a ferry sank in \JIndonesia\j's Lake Toba three days ago. According to water transport officials, the ferry capsized after passengers surged to the vessel's shore side in a rush for a waiting bus. \I(Indonesia)\i
Armed with a motion signed by nine diplomatic allies, \JTaiwan\j begins its fifth annual bid to rejoin the United Nations, not as a new \JTaiwan\j entity, but as the Republic of China. \JBeijing\j, however, denies the existence of the Republic of China, vigorously opposing \JTaiwan\j's efforts to gain international recognition. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
The US Senate committee investigating political campaign funding abuses is told that Democratic Party fundraiser, John Huang, received secret briefings about China and visited the Chinese Embassy while employed by the Commerce Department. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
On Wall Street, the blue-chip Dow Jones index closes above the 8,000-point mark for the first time, gaining 63.17 points to settle at 8038.88. \I(USA)\i
The gala closing of the \JRome\j high fashion shows, scheduled to take place on \JRome\j's Spanish Steps, is canceled as a mark of respect for Italian fashion designer, Gianni Versace, who was gunned down outside his Miami Beach home this week. \I(USA, Italy)\i
Researchers at New York University's Howard Hughes Medical Institute reveal the discovery of two new \Jreceptors\j used by the \JHIV\j virus to enter and infect cells, a discovery they say sheds more light on the way \JHIV\j adapts and evolves. \I(USA)\i
The US Environmental Protection Agency announces new air \Jpollution\j control rules. The new rules are welcomed by health groups, but are criticized as too costly by sections of industry and local government. \I(USA)\i
Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, releases a 90-page document proposing massive reforms within the world body. The proposals are applauded by US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright. \I(USA)\i
Amid Bosnian Serb anger over \JNATO\j's recent moves against war criminals, an outburst of violence is reported in the territory. Four explosions rock a British military base in Banja Luka, a grenade explodes near the house of a United Nations employee in Prijedor, and in Vlasenica, an American soldier suffers minor injuries when he is stabbed in the shoulder with a sickle. \I(Bosnia, UK, USA)\i
The US Senate committee investigating political campaign funding abuses is told that Democratic Party fund-raiser, John Huang, received secret briefings about China and visited the Chinese Embassy while employed by the Commerce Department. \I(USA, China)\i
President Clinton decides to once more waive a controversial provision of the 1996 Helms-Burton Act. The provision, which allows US citizens to sue foreign companies reaping profits from property confiscated after the 1959 Cuban communist revolution, has drawn continuing criticism from Canada, the European Union, and \JCuba\j. \I(USA, \JCuba\j, Canada, Europe)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The gala closing of the \JRome\j high fashion shows, scheduled to take place on \JRome\j's Spanish Steps, is canceled as a mark of respect for Italian fashion designer, Gianni Versace, who was gunned down outside his Miami Beach home this week. \I(USA, Italy)\i
The Polish Government introduces 22 new laws in order to assist hundreds of communities devastated by floods this month. At least 46 people have died in the floods, and the damage to homes and livelihoods is said to be incalculable. \I(Poland)\i
Spain's King Juan Carlos denounces the actions of ETA Basque guerrillas, branding them "contemptible terrorists" for their recent execution of young Spanish politician, Miguel Angel Blanco. Meanwhile, widespread outrage continues to be expressed in cities across \JSpain\j as hundred of thousands of people demonstrate against ETA \Jterrorism\j. \I(Spain)\i
The signing of a non-aggression pact between \JGreece\j and Turkey is hailed in \JAthens\j and \JAnkara\j as the first attempt to sensibly settle the two nations' outstanding differences. \I(Greece, Turkey)\i
In a document entitled "Agenda 2000", the European Commission officially unveils plans to begin membership talks with \JPoland\j, \JHungary\j, the Czech Republic, \JEstonia\j, \JSlovenia\j, and at a later date, Cyprus, urging these nations to make greater economic efforts before crossing the threshold. \I(Poland, \JHungary\j, Czech Republic, \JEstonia\j, \JSlovenia\j, Cyprus)\i
President Clinton decides to once more waive a controversial provision of the 1996 Helms-Burton Act. The provision, which allows US citizens to sue foreign companies reaping profits from property confiscated after the 1959 Cuban communist revolution, has drawn continuing criticism from Canada, the European Union, and \JCuba\j. \I(USA, \JCuba\j, Canada, Europe)\i
After prolonged talks which culminate in the sacking of the country's defense minister, President Boris Yeltsin signs decrees to reform the Russian army, cutting back its size and scope, refining its reporting structure, and reducing its spending. \I(Russia)\i
Amid Bosnian Serb anger over \JNATO\j's recent moves against war criminals, an outburst of violence is reported in the territory. Four explosions rock a British military base in Banja Luka, a grenade explodes near the house of a United Nations employee in Prijedor, and in Vlasenica, an American soldier suffers minor injuries when he is stabbed in the shoulder with a sickle. \I(Bosnia, UK, USA)\i
#
"July 17, 1997",561,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Two partners in the Ben-Ezra Construction company are placed under house arrest following the deaths of two Australians in the collapse of a pedestrian bridge at the Maccabiah Games in Tel Aviv earlier this week. The detained building contractors are denying criminal negligence, blaming the project's authorizing engineer, and also the police who, they claim, drove police vehicles across the bridge in the lead-up to the games. \I(Israel, Australia)\i
Ten minutes after take-off from \JBandung\j's airport, a Sempati Air commuter plane crash-lands in a field near a housing complex, bursting into flames on impact. Of the 50 passengers and crew aboard the Jakarta-bound flight, only 17 survive, but most of the survivors are seriously injured. \I(Indonesia)\i
Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, shrugs off US rejection of his newly nominated co-Prime Minister, Ung Huot, insisting that it is more important to please his own people than the Americans. Meanwhile, the country's ailing King Norodom Sihanouk endorses ASEAN efforts to mediate a solution to \JCambodia\j's internal strife. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
An Election Commission spokesman confirms that Kocheril Raman Narayanan has been elected as India's 10th President, becoming the first member of a low Hindu caste to fill the post. \I(India)\i
The State Department announces US support for a proposal to expand the United Nations Security Council's permanent members from five to ten. In addition to seats for \JGermany\j and \JJapan\j, the proposal includes three seats for developing countries from Asia, Africa, and Latin America. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, \JJapan\j, Africa, Asia, Latin America)\i
A landslide in Sichuan demolishes a new building, killing at least 48 people taking shelter from a torrential rainstorm, and seriously injuring 29 others. \I(China)\i
In a tough crackdown on child abuse, Sri Lankan authorities unveil a draft Child Rights Bill which is likely to be incorporated in the Constitution by the end of the year. As well as granting children the right to \Jnutrition\j, shelter, health care, and education, the bill aims to protect them from neglect, degradation, exploitive labor practices, and physical and moral hazards. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The US-led United Nations Command in South Korea reprimands the North in relation to Wednesday's border clash, accusing them of violating the armistice accord that ended the 1950-53 Korean War. Meanwhile, the US Senate unanimously votes to cut additional funding for a landmark nuclear project in North Korea if further violations occur. \I(The Koreas, USA)\i
Branding President Clinton's China policy as "one of appeasement", US Republican leaders release an 11-point legislative package targeting China's military, arms sales, and human rights violations. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Mir space station is plunged into darkness when a vital computer cable is mistakenly unplugged, causing a further drop in power. The Russian-US crew is forced to retreat to the Soyuz space capsule to communicate with Earth. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, shrugs off US rejection of his newly nominated co-Prime Minister, Ung Huot, insisting that it is more important to please his own people than the Americans. Meanwhile, the country's ailing King Norodom Sihanouk endorses ASEAN efforts to mediate a solution to \JCambodia\j's internal strife. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
Subject to US Senate approval, President Clinton names Army General, Henry Shelton, as chairman of the military Joint Chiefs of Staff. General Shelton currently heads the US Special Operations Command. \I(USA)\i
White House special counsel, Lanny Davis, launches an angry attack on Senate hearings probing US campaign fundraising scandals, accusing the Republican majority of adopting a "partisan slashing approach". \I(USA)\i
High tides whipped up by tropical storm Danny force the evacuation of 1,500 residents of Grande Isle, approximately 60 miles south of New Orleans. \I(USA)\i
Branding President Clinton's China policy as "one of appeasement", US Republican leaders release an 11-point legislative package targeting China's military, arms sales, and human rights violations. \I(USA, China)\i
The State Department pledges US support for a proposal to expand the United Nations Security Council's permanent members from five to ten. In addition to seats for \JGermany\j and \JJapan\j, the proposal includes three seats for developing countries from Asia, Africa, and Latin America. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, \JJapan\j, Africa, Asia, Latin America)\i
The US-led United Nations Command in South Korea reprimands the North in relation to Wednesday's border clash, accusing them of violating the armistice accord that ended the 1950-53 Korean War. Meanwhile, the US Senate unanimously votes to cut additional funding for a landmark nuclear project in North Korea if further violations occur. \I(The Koreas, USA)\i
Reversing the declining trend over the past decade, the US Senate announces a $US1 billion boost in foreign aid for fiscal 1998, at the same time issuing a general warning to recipients that US assistance is not an automatic entitlement. \I(USA)\i
While not anticipating a trade war, President Bill Clinton says the United States may approach the World Trade Organization if the European Commission carries out its intention to block the proposed Boeing-McDonnell Douglas merger. \I(USA, Europe)\i
The United States and \JCuba\j begin two days of talks to review the progress of migration agreements signed in 1994 and 1995. \I(USA, Cuba)\i
Peruvian Defense Minister, General Tomas Castillo Meza, and Justice Minister, Carlos Hermoza, resign in outrage over a government scandal involving wiretapping and repression of media freedom. The resignations come one day after that of Foreign Minister, Francisco Tudela. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Two partners in the Ben-Ezra Construction company are placed under house arrest following the deaths of two Australians in the collapse of a pedestrian bridge at the Maccabiah Games in Tel Aviv earlier this week. The detained building contractors are denying criminal negligence, blaming the project's authorizing engineer, and also the police who, they claim, drove police vehicles across the bridge in the lead-up to the games. \I(Israel, Australia)\i
In the Basque town of \JDurango\j, police investigating an explosion in an apartment discover an ETA guerrilla hideout stashed with weapons. \I(Spain)\i
The Mir space station is plunged into darkness when a vital computer cable is mistakenly unplugged, causing a further drop in power. The Russian-US crew is forced to retreat to the Soyuz space capsule to communicate with Earth. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Eight people are killed and dozens injured when the roof of a three-story dormitory collapses at the Tomsk Military Communications in western \JSiberia\j. \I(Russia)\i
In a shock announcement, President Daniel arap Moi's ruling \JKenya\j African National Union party agrees to enact constitutional reforms before the next presidential and parliamentary polls. \I(Kenya)\i
British scientists conclude that bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease, can cross species and infect humans, saying their findings may also have implications for lamb infected with scrapie. They add, however, that the efficiency of transmission is greatly hindered by the species barrier. \I(UK)\i
The State Department announces US support for a proposal to expand the United Nations Security Council's permanent members from five to ten. In addition to seats for \JGermany\j and \JJapan\j, the proposal includes three seats for developing countries from Asia, Africa, and Latin America. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, \JJapan\j, Africa, Asia, Latin America)\i
During a televised address to the nation, President Saddam Hussein warns that relations between \JIraq\j and United Nations weapons inspectors could reach a deadlock unless the Security Council lifts all sanctions imposed after the invasion of \JKuwait\j seven years ago. \I(Iraq, Kuwait)\i
Ulster Unionist leader, David Trimble, angered by Anglo-Irish ploys to win a cease-fire and secure republican admission to peace talks, accuses the British Government of weakening its stance on disarming IRA terrorists. \I(UK, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland)\i
While not anticipating a trade war, President Bill Clinton says the United States may approach the World Trade Organization if the European Commission carries out its intention to block the proposed Boeing-McDonnell Douglas merger. \I(USA, Europe)\i
#
"July 18, 1997",562,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The families of the victims of \JTasmania\j's 1996 Port Arthur massacre are given government authorization to seek compensation from the $A1.3 million assets seized under legislation from convicted mass murderer, Martin Bryant. \I(Australia)\i
Pro-democracy activists are outraged when Hong Kong's newly appointed legislature suspends four laws passed by the pre-handover government. The suspension of the laws now gives police the power to ban protests or political groups on "national security" grounds, deprives workers' unions of collective bargaining rights, and removes anti-discrimination protection for union members. \I(China, Hong Kong)\i
In an effort to resolve his country's political crisis, \JCambodia\j's ousted co-Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, meets with royalist party members and ASEAN foreign ministers to map out compromise plans for an interim caretaker government. \I(Cambodia, Southeast Asia)\i
Thailand's Interior Ministry releases the confession of 25-year-old Mom Chalasai Ukol, who has admitted murdering her aging husband, Prince Thitipan Ukol, by lacing his \Jcoffee\j with liquid \Jflea\j killer. \I(Thailand)\i
Leading delegates of Bougainville's warring factions sign the Burnham Declaration, committing themselves to peace talks with the Papua New Guinean Government, and to the introduction of a United Nations peacekeeping force on the island. The declaration also urges all parties to agree to a cease-fire, but leaves open the question of a referendum on independence demanded by Francis Ona, the leader of the rebel Bougainville Interim Government. \I(Bougainville, Papua New Guinea)\i
Official figures released in China anticipate a swell in urban unemployment to 5.9 million by the end of the year and an unprecedented swell in the labor force in the next two decades. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
While the Miami Beach fashion industry pays homage to murdered designer, Gianni Versace, his ashes are laid to rest by his family in a cemetery overlooking Lake \JComo\j in the Italian village of Moltrasio. \I(USA, Italy)\i
Hurricane Danny lashes the US coastline from Mississippi to the \JFlorida\j Panhandle with winds of 75mph and a storm surge up to 5 feet above normal. \I(USA)\i
A Jacksonville judge dismisses a constitutional challenge to \JFlorida\j's electric chair, ruling that the execution device does not violate prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. \I(USA)\i
NASA scientists report that \JGalileo\j, the space probe exploring Jupiter and its moons, has discovered that the moon Europa has an \Jionosphere\j, a strong indicator that it may also have an atmosphere. \I(USA)\i
During a visit to \JSarajevo\j, \JNATO\j Supreme Commander, US General Wesley Clark, declares that the alliance-led peace force in Bosnia will not be intimidated by the wave of retaliatory violence which has rocked Serb territory since \JNATO\j's recent raid on suspected war criminals. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
President Bill Clinton names Felix Rohatyn, a retired New York investment banker, as US Ambassador to \JFrance\j. \I(USA, France)\i
Following a mishap which left the crew in darkness, power is restored to the main block of space station Mir, but officials say planned repairs to the stricken vessel will probably be delayed until a new crew arrives. \I(Russia, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
While the Miami Beach fashion industry pays homage to murdered designer, Gianni Versace, his ashes are laid to rest by his family in a cemetery overlooking Lake \JComo\j in the Italian village of Moltrasio. \I(USA, Italy)\i
The United Nations tribunal on Rwandan genocide announces the arrest of seven suspects, including former prime minister, Jean Kambanda, and top military commander, Gratien Kabiligi. \I(Rwanda)\i
In a bid to gain entry to multi-party peace talks, Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, calls on the Irish Republican Army to renew a cease-fire in its war against British rule in Northern Ireland. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
Adding to the national outcry, three jailed ETA guerrillas denounce the movement's killing of Basque politician, Miguel Angel Blanco, saying the act accumulated more hate than 38 years of \Jterrorism\j. \I(Spain)\i
During a visit to \JSarajevo\j, \JNATO\j Supreme Commander, US General Wesley Clark, declares that the alliance-led peace force in Bosnia will not be intimidated by the wave of retaliatory violence which has rocked Serb territory since \JNATO\j's recent raid on suspected war criminals. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
After some of the worst violence in the country's recent history, \JKenya\j's pro-reform movement reacts warily to President Moi's statement promising constitutional review, pointing out potential loopholes which could amount to delaying tactics. \I(Kenya)\i
The first session of \JNATO\j's Permanent Joint Council is held, launching a new arrangement with \JRussia\j to ease its concerns about the Eastern expansion of the alliance. \I(Russia, Europe)\i
After a two-hour closed meeting, the German, Austrian, and Italian heads of state announce that all border controls will be lifted by April 1, 1998. \I(Germany, \JAustria\j, Italy)\i
Official data released by the Romanian Government reveal that nearly 100,000 children have been abandoned across the country, a tragedy that has assumed the proportions of a national disaster. \I(Romania)\i
President Bill Clinton names Felix Rohatyn, a retired New York investment banker, as
US Ambassador to \JFrance\j. \I(USA, France)\i
Britain's Prince Charles throws a lavish party for 80 guests at his Highgrove estate in \JGloucestershire\j to celebrate the 50th birthday of Camilla Parker Bowles. \I(UK)\i
Russia's Prime Minister, Viktor Chernomyrdin, says full membership of the European Union is the ultimate aim of his country's reforms, stressing, however, that his country is nowhere near ready for such a step. \I(Russia)\i
Following a mishap which left the crew in darkness, power is restored to the main block of space station Mir, but officials say planned repairs to the stricken vessel will probably be delayed until a new crew arrives. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Britain's Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, appeals to business and industry to heed the impact of equipment and weapon sales on human rights abroad, an appeal foreshadowing the Labor Government's determination to introduce tougher licensing of arms exports. \I(UK)\i
Poland holds a national day of mourning for the 48 people who recently lost their lives in the country's worst flood disaster in centuries. \I(Poland)\i
In the Czech Republic, the death toll from floods ravaging the country stands at 46. River authorities are emptying dams on the Vltava to accommodate the next downpour. \I(Czech Republic)\i
German authorities prepare for possible mass evacuations in the eastern state of Brandenburg, where flood waters have already exceeded the highest levels this century. Hundreds of bridges and crossings along the German/Polish border are closed, diverting traffic to crossings further south in \JBavaria\j. \I(Germany, \JPoland\j, Bavaria)\i
#
"July 19, 1997",563,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
ASEAN foreign ministers abandon attempts to negotiate a political compromise when Cambodian coup leader, Hun Sen, flatly rejects their proposal for a caretaker administration prior to elections next May. Meanwhile, US envoy, Stephen Solarz, is touring Asian capitals, urging governments not to grant recognition to the Hun Sen regime. \I(Cambodia, USA, Southeast Asia)\i
In the opening rugby match of the Tri Nations Test played in \JJohannesburg\j, the New Zealand All Blacks score a 35-32 victory over the South African Springboks. \I(New Zealand, South Africa)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The weary crew aboard space station Mir is informed by Mission Control that a fresh crew will make the vital repairs required to keep the damaged vessel functioning. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Canada accuses the United States of breaching the 1985 Pacific salmon treaty, claiming that Alaskan fishermen have already exceeded this season's agreed catch level of sockeye salmon. \I(Canada, USA)\i
A White House spokesman announces that civil rights leader, Jesse Jackson, and Transportation Secretary, Rodney Slater, will lead a delegation of black Americans to the Fourth African/African-American Summit to be held in the Zimbabwean capital of \JHarare\j this month. \I(USA, Zimbabwe, Africa)\i
The Irish Republic Army declares a new cease-fire, opening the way for Sinn Fein representatives to participate in multi-party talks aimed at securing peace in Northern Ireland. The cease-fire is hailed as a breakthrough by British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and American President, Bill Clinton. \I(Northern Ireland, UK, USA)\i
The US Senate cautions Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, saying US aid will be frozen if he signs a bill revoking the legal status of religious groups which are currently challenging the popularity of the powerful Russian Orthodox Church. \I(USA, Russia)\i
ASEAN foreign ministers abandon attempts to negotiate a political compromise when Cambodian coup leader, Hun Sen, flatly rejects their proposal for a caretaker administration prior to elections next May. Meanwhile, US envoy, Stephen Solarz, is touring Asian capitals, urging governments not to grant recognition to the Hun Sen regime. \I(Cambodia, USA, Southeast Asia)\i
New York City police arrest a 37-year-old man following claims by four deaf-mute Mexicans that dozens of deaf Mexicans are being held captive and forced to work for slave wages. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The weary crew aboard space station Mir is informed by Mission Control that a fresh crew will make the vital repairs required to keep the damaged vessel functioning. \I(Russia, USA)\i
A White House spokesman announces that civil rights leader, Jesse Jackson, and Transportation Secretary, Rodney Slater, will lead a delegation of black Americans to the Fourth African/African-American Summit to be held in the Zimbabwean capital of \JHarare\j this month. \I(USA, Zimbabwe, Africa)\i
The Irish Republic Army declares a new cease-fire, opening the way for Sinn Fein representatives to participate in multi-party talks aimed at securing peace in Northern Ireland. The cease-fire is hailed as a breakthrough by British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and American President, Bill Clinton. \I(Northern Ireland, UK, USA)\i
The US Senate cautions Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, saying US aid will be frozen if he signs a bill revoking the legal status of religious groups which are currently challenging the popularity of the powerful Russian Orthodox Church. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Corporal Ahmed Daqamsa, a Jordanian soldier convicted of shooting down seven Israeli schoolgirls in March because they mocked him at prayer, is sentenced to life in prison by an Israeli military court. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
NATO troops stage a show of military force near the Pale home of leading war crimes suspect and former Bosnian Serb president, Radovan Karadzic. \I(Bosnia)\i
Throughout the Czech Republic, flood-swollen rivers force hundreds of people to abandon their homes, many for the second time in 10 days. \I(Czech Republic)\i
Sir James Goldsmith, Anglo-French billionaire financier and member of the European Parliament, dies of a heart attack at the age of 64 after a long battle with cancer. \I(UK, France)\i
In the opening rugby match of the Tri Nations Test played in \JJohannesburg\j, the New Zealand All Blacks score a 35-32 victory over the South African Springboks. \I(New Zealand, South Africa)\i
#
"July 20, 1997",564,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Fighting flares near the town of Samrong in northern \JCambodia\j, an area occupied by royalist forces loyal to ousted co-Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. Thai border officials are anticipating an influx of refugees if the fighting worsens. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
Vietnamese authorities take to the streets with megaphones, urging voters to participate in the upcoming national assembly elections. \I(Vietnam)\i
Near the Moslem-dominated town of Trincomalee, gunmen attack the vehicle of Sri Lankan parliamentary deputy, Mohammed Moharoof, killing Mr. Moharoof and five others. Police blame the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam for the attack, the second against a parliamentary deputy in the area this month. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The Australian Federal Government moves to quell a diplomatic furor provoked by the release of a confidential briefing paper deriding both the policies and the politicians of a number of South Pacific nations. \I(Australia, South Pacific)\i
Northern-based forces allied against the Taliban capture the city of Charikar, 65 kilometers north of \JAfghanistan\j's capital of Kabul, before moving on to seize control of Bagram air base. Allied sources say some 500 Taliban soldiers are killed in the conflict. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Philippine Defense Secretary, Renato de Villa, announces his candidacy for the presidential elections in May, 1998. \I(The Philippines)\i
US Treasury Secretary, Robert Rubin, defends President Clinton's hotly criticized policy of Chinese "appeasement", saying, however, that policy changes could result if \JBeijing\j is found to have illegally sought to influence US elections. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
From Washington, it is disclosed that the Clinton Administration is preparing a "package deal" to revive peace talks between Israel and Palestine. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Seven people are arrested and three arraigned on state charges in connection with the alleged slave labor of more than 60 Mexicans, most of whom are deaf and mute. New York City Mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, has reason to believe that the Mexicans were kidnapped and smuggled into the United States. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
US Treasury Secretary, Robert Rubin, defends President Clinton's hotly criticized policy of Chinese "appeasement", saying, however, that policy changes could result if \JBeijing\j is found to have illegally sought to influence US elections. \I(USA, China)\i
Texan golfer, Justin Leonard, finishes 12-under par to win the British Open by three strokes. \I(UK, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Across Northern Ireland, the newly promised IRA cease-fire takes effect. Prayers for peace are held in Roman Catholic and Protestant churches throughout the province. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Britain's Prime Minister, Tony Blair, announces plans for a select decommissioning body, an announcement timed to allay Unionist fears over the decision to admit Sinn Fein to all-party peace talks prior to the surrender of IRA arms. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
The ultra-nationalist Serb Democratic Party expels Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, demanding that she step down from office. \I(Bosnia)\i
In talks between Morocco and the Algerian-backed Polisario Front, progress is made when agreement is reached on bridging proposals to settle the region's future. The Polisario Front is seeking an independent state. \I(Morocco, Algeria)\i
The findings of a 13-year study by the Oxford-based Imperial Cancer Research Fund suggest that women with high levels of oestradiol may be five times more susceptible to breast cancer. Researchers are now investigating factors which control the level of the hormone. \I(UK)\i
More than 1,000 Jordanian university students march in a show of support for Ahmed Daqamsa, the Jordanian soldier sentenced to life imprisonment for killing seven Israeli girls in March. \I(Jordan, Israel)\i
From Washington, it is disclosed that the Clinton Administration is preparing a "package deal" to revive peace talks between Israel and Palestine. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Texan golfer, Justin Leonard, finishes 12-under par to win the British Open by three strokes. \I(UK, USA)\i
#
"July 21, 1997",565,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The United States urges Cambodian coup leader, Hun Sen, to reconsider his outright refusal of ASEAN efforts to mediate in his political dispute with ousted First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(USA, \JCambodia\j, Southeast Asia)\i
Kim Hyun-chul, the second son of South Korean President, Kim Young-sam, promises to hand over 7 billion won in alleged bribes before his trial on corruption charges reaches a conclusion. \I(South Korea)\i
Results of a recent World Vision survey reveal that the \Jdrought\j in North Korea has affected crops over hundreds of thousands of hectares, seriously aggravating the country's chronic food shortage. Aid workers say a third of North Korean children under the age of six are now malnourished. \I(North Korea)\i
Indonesian Democracy Party parliamentarian, Aberson Sihaloho, is sentenced to nine months jail for insulting President Soeharto and various government organizations at a free speech forum last year. \I(Indonesia)\i
On the eve of \JMyanmar\j's admission to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Amnesty International pressures the regional group to forgo its policy of non-interference in \JMyanmar\j's affairs, also urging the government of \JMyanmar\j to end its repression of ethnic minorities and pro-democracy groups. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), Southeast Asia)\i
ASEAN spokesman, Malaysian Foreign Minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, says the association will not hastily implement moves to cut off aid to \JCambodia\j, adding that \JCambodia\j's delayed admission to ASEAN is a temporary measure pending resolution of the country's political crisis. \I(Malaysia, \JCambodia\j, Southeast Asia)\i
Beijing reports the conclusion of the Chinese navy's biggest war games in over 30 years. The 10-day exercises in the East China Sea north of \JTaiwan\j involved a fleet of 100 warships testing missiles and other advanced weapons. \I(China, Taiwan)\i
Nine people die when monsoon rains lash \JKarachi\j, destroying a number of poorly constructed slum dwellings. \I(Pakistan)\i
New Zealand yachtsman, Sir Peter Blake, accepts an offer from the Jacques Cousteau Foundation to become the new skipper of its marine research vessel, \ICalypso II.\i The foundation's choice is criticized by Jean-Michel Cousteau, the late explorer's estranged eldest son. \I(New Zealand, France)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Four people arrested for holding dozens of deaf-mute Mexicans in servitude in New York are arraigned on federal charges. Authorities say they are still trying to track down the leader of the alleged smuggling ring. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
The United States urges Cambodian coup leader, Hun Sen, to reconsider his outright refusal of ASEAN efforts to mediate in his political dispute with ousted First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(USA, \JCambodia\j, Southeast Asia)\i
In defiance of a court order, Canadian fisherman, angered by alleged American overfishing of Pacific Ocean salmon, blockade an Alaskan state ferry in the harbor at Prince Rupert, British Columbia. \I(USA, Canada)\i
An Earth-induced two-day communications blackout with the Pathfinder mission's Mars rover is rectified. The Sojourner rover is now taking samples of a large white Martian rock scientists have dubbed Scooby Doo. \I(USA)\i
The 200-year-old USS \IConstitution,\i nicknamed "Old Ironsides" after its victory over a British warship in 1812, sails through \JMassachusetts\j Bay under its own power for the first time in more than a century. \I(USA, UK)\i
A high-level commission is due to begin investigations into human rights violations during the 36-year civil war between leftist rebels and \JGuatemala\j's military regimes. An estimated 140,000 people were killed or "disappeared" throughout the conflict. \I(Guatemala)\i
The US Ambassador to the United Nations, Bill Richardson, declares Bosnian Serb retaliatory violence to be intolerable and dangerous, warning that Serb authorities risk forfeiting reconstruction aid if they fail to uphold their obligations to the UN war crimes tribunal. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Despite strong Senate opposition, the White House says President Clinton intends to nominate \JMassachusetts\j Governor, William Weld, for the post of US Ambassador to Mexico. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
While giving testimony in a passive smoking lawsuit being heard in Miami, Liggett chief executive, Bennett LeBow, becomes the first US \Jtobacco\j chief to publicly acknowledge that smoking is addictive and causes cancer. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, meets with Ulster Unionist Party leader, David Trimble, to discuss the surrender of IRA arms. Trimble is demanding a firm timetable for IRA disarmament prior to September's multi-party peace talks, but Sinn Fein is arguing for a handover of weapons as part of a final settlement to the conflict, an argument currently regarded by Britain as the only realistic way of achieving the desired result. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
Violence erupts in San Sebastian when supporters of ETA separatists, protesting against the suicide of an ETA prisoner, are attacked by opponents angered by the recent slaying of a Basque politician. Elsewhere, three ETA guerrillas, found guilty of plotting to kill King Juan Carlos, are sentenced to a total of 109 years imprisonment. \I(Spain)\i
As a result of international pressure to locate assets left by \JHolocaust\j victims, Swiss banks agree to release a detailed list of dormant pre-1945 accounts. The information will appear on the Internet and in newspapers across the world. \I(Switzerland)\i
With one-third of potential votes counted in \JLiberia\j's elections, former warlord, Charles Taylor, leads with a tally of just under 66 per cent. \I(Liberia)\i
The US Ambassador to the United Nations, Bill Richardson, declares Bosnian Serb retaliatory violence to be intolerable and dangerous, warning that Serb authorities risk forfeiting reconstruction aid if they fail to uphold their obligations to the UN war crimes tribunal. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Five hundred guerrilla veterans of the war to overthrow white rule storm the office of Zimbabwean President Mugabe, demanding resumption of disability benefits which were frozen in March following reports of bogus claims. President Mugabe responds by announcing the appointment of a commission of inquiry to examine the abuse of the system and make recommendations. \I(Zimbabwe)\i
Palestinian police disclose details of a huge stash of Hamas explosives and equipment found in an apartment building near \JBethlehem\j. Included in the stash are nine explosive devices ready for use, and various items of Israeli-style disguise. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
The 200-year-old USS \IConstitution,\i nicknamed "Old Ironsides" after its victory over a British warship in 1812, sails through \JMassachusetts\j Bay under its own power for the first time in more than a century. \I(USA, UK)\i
Experts speaking at a conference in \JHelsinki\j predict that diabetes will become a global epidemic, with much of the growth occurring in developing countries. \I(Finland)\i
New Zealand yachtsman, Sir Peter Blake, accepts an offer from the Jacques Cousteau Foundation to become the new skipper of its marine research vessel, \ICalypso II.\i The foundation's choice is criticized by Jean-Michel Cousteau, the late explorer's estranged eldest son. \I(New Zealand, France)\i
#
"July 22, 1997",566,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodia's Hun Sen regime orders the closure of \JTaiwan\j's representative office in Phnom Penh, accusing Taiwanese businessmen of providing money and military aid to ousted co-Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia, Taiwan)\i
Port Moresby Mayor, Bill Skate, is elected Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, defeating favored candidate, Sir Michael Somare, by 71 votes to 35. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Bougainville Revolutionary Army announces it will release five Papua New Guinea Defense Force hostages to a representative of the New Zealand Government on board HMNZS \ICanterbury.\i The goodwill gesture comes almost a year after the hostages were taken captive, and is regarded as a boost for the peace process. \I(Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand)\i
The Speaker of the Kashmir legislature, Ali Mohammed Naik, narrowly escapes an assassination attempt when Muslim separatists blow up his convoy near Srinagar, killing three of his bodyguards. \I(India)\i
Returning from a visit to \JPyongyang\j, former US ambassador to Seoul, James Laney, says North Korea admits to wanting more international food aid, but is resisting external pressure to make changes to its crippled socialist economic system. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
South African officials confirm that President Nelson Mandela met with jailed East Timorese rebel leader, Xanana Gusmao, while on a visit to \JIndonesia\j last week. The meeting took place at the official residence of President Soeharto. \I(South Africa, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
A United Nations report reveals that India has 40 per cent of the world's malnourished children. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
President Clinton formally nominates Philip Lader, former White House deputy chief of staff, as the next American Ambassador to Britain. \I(USA, UK)\i
The United States pressures \JOttawa\j to enforce a court order to end a Canadian fishermen's blockade of the Alaskan ferry \IMalaspine,\i accusing Canada of creating tension by scuttling proposed talks on a deal to divide the year's catch. \I(USA, Canada)\i
Returning from a visit to \JPyongyang\j, former US ambassador to Seoul, James Laney, says North Korea admits to wanting more international food aid, but is resisting external pressure to make changes to its crippled socialist economic system. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Red Cross and local officials reveal that a right-wing death squad recently massacred about 30 people and tortured others in the remote village of Mapiripan, Eastern \JColombia\j. \I(Colombia)\i
President Clinton endorses a racially sensitive proposal to narrow the wide disparities in federal prison sentences for the use of crack and powder \Jcocaine\j. Crack \Jcocaine\j carries a much tougher sentence and is more often used by blacks. \I(USA)\i
Nicaraguan officials announce that eleven leaders of the anti-Government North Front 3-80 guerrilla group have surrendered their weapons to President Arnoldo Aleman. Since the President took office in January, approximately 600 guerrillas have given up their weapons and returned to civilian life. \I(Nicaragua)\i
Army troops are deployed to combat lawlessness in several Brazilian cites when more than 40,000 police join a strike in support of pay rises. \I(Brazil)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Swiss banks publish a list of some 2,000 dormant pre-1945 account holders who may have died in the \JHolocaust\j, inviting heirs to come forward. \I(Switzerland)\i
An Italian military court convicts former Nazi SS Captain, Erich Priebke, and former Major Karl Hass, for their part in the 1944 Ardeatine Caves massacre, in which 335 men and boys were rounded up and shot by SS soldiers. Priebke's 15-year jail sentence is reduced to 5 years; Hass is sentenced to 10 years and 8 months, but will not spend any time in jail because of his age. \I(Italy, Germany)\i
A meeting monitored by the European Union in Brussels is hailed as a positive and productive step towards building mutual trust by Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, and Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy. \I(Belgium, Palestine, Israel)\i
Britain acknowledges that Protestant Unionist politicians in Northern Ireland, angered by the terms of a new cease-fire, plan to block a controversial British Government proposal for decommissioning IRA weapons. A further threat to the peace process comes from Protestant politician and pastor, Ian Paisley, who announces his party's withdrawal from September's multi-party peace talks on the future of the province. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
South African officials confirm that President Nelson Mandela met with jailed East Timorese rebel leader, Xanana Gusmao, while on a visit to \JIndonesia\j last week. The meeting took place at the official residence of President Soeharto. \I(South Africa, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
In Tel Aviv, eleven young overseas tourists are hurt when an Israeli Arab fundamentalist rams his car into their tour group and attacks them with a knife. \I(Israel)\i
An inquiry into corruption ordered by Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, finds "serious shortcomings", and recommends that several senior officials of his administration be brought to trial. \I(Palestine)\i
President Clinton formally nominates Philip Lader, former White House deputy chief of staff, as the next American Ambassador to Britain. \I(USA, UK)\i
A solar-powered British catamaran crosses the English Channel from Dover to \JCalais\j, becoming the first vessel of its type to do so. \I(UK, France)\i
More than 100 Santas from 10 nations congregate in \JCopenhagen\j for Denmark's 34th Annual Father Christmas World Congress, which is scheduled to last four days. \I(Denmark)\i
#
"July 23, 1997",567,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In an effort to address the city's escalating drug problem, \JBeijing\j authorities open a drug rehabilitation center capable of treating as many as 2,000 addicts at one time. \I(China)\i
Excavations in central Vietnam uncover the remains of 65 Vietnamese soldiers killed when US troops detonated a tunnel during a mop-up operation on August 19, 1965. \I(Vietnam, USA)\i
After a day of intense artillery and rocket exchanges, forces allied against the Taliban militia claim to have advanced into Hossein Kot, 25 kilometers north of \JAfghanistan\j's capital of Kabul. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Former Western Australian Premier, Brian Burke, is released after five months in jail when his conviction for the theft of $A122,585 in Labor Party donations is quashed by the WA Court of Criminal Appeal. \I(Australia)\i
Cambodian co-Prime Minister, Hun Sen, appeals to the international community to recognize his leadership. Meanwhile, troops loyal to Hun Sen claim to have taken control of the royalist bastion of Samrong in the country's north. Control of the town is reported to have switched between the opposing sides three times in as many days. \I(Cambodia)\i
In a letter to United Nations Secretary, Kofi Annan, China moves to block \JTaiwan\j's fifth consecutive appeal for membership, reiterating that \JTaiwan\j is a renegade province of China and thereby unqualified to join the body. \I(China, Taiwan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
President Boris Yeltsin's rejection of a draft law curbing religious freedom in \JRussia\j is hailed by Washington as a victory for Russian democracy. Yeltsin's Communist opponents, however, are determined to fight the veto. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Excavations in central Vietnam uncover the remains of 65 Vietnamese soldiers killed when US troops detonated a tunnel during a mop-up operation on August 19, 1965. \I(Vietnam, USA)\i
The Pentagon acknowledges that tens of thousands more than the estimated 20,000 American troops were exposed to fallout from exploded Iraqi chemical weapons during the Gulf War, but doubts that the mysterious illnesses reported by some veterans are related to the low-level exposures. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
Canada and the United States agree to appoint troubleshooters to investigate the recent dispute over Pacific salmon catches and re-open talks on fishing rights. \I(Canada USA)\i
A memorial service is held in Milan's Roman Catholic cathedral for murdered Miami-based fashion designer, Gianni Versace. The congregation includes Princess Diana, supermodel Naomi Campbell, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, designers Giorgio Armani, Karl Lagerfeld, and Valentino, and singers, Elton John and Sting. \I(Italy, USA)\i
Andrew Cunanan, prime suspect in the murder of fashion designer, Gianni Versace, is found shot dead on a Miami Beach houseboat after a police siege. Cunanan, who was also wanted in connection with the murders of four other men, had apparently committed suicide. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A memorial service is held in Milan's Roman Catholic cathedral for murdered Miami-based fashion designer, Gianni Versace. The congregation includes Princess Diana, supermodel Naomi Campbell, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, designers Giorgio Armani, Karl Lagerfeld, and Valentino, and singers, Elton John and Sting. \I(Italy, USA)\i
A contentious Anglo-Irish proposal for IRA disarmament is voted down by all three Unionist parties on the grounds that it contains no cast-iron guarantee. Despite the decommissioning impasse, the Ulster Unionist Party confirms it will stay in the talks scheduled for September 15, but the Democratic Unionist Party and the UK Unionist party decide to quit the peace process. \I(UK, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland)\i
Sali Berisha resigns as \JAlbanian\j president, joining the opposition in the new parliament which meets for the first time. \I(Albania)\i
President Boris Yeltsin's rejection of a draft law curbing religious freedom in \JRussia\j is hailed by Washington as a victory for Russian democracy. Yeltsin's Communist opponents, however, are determined to fight the veto. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The British Government tables a white paper detailing plans to hand back local power to the people of Wales. The leader of the Welsh nationalist party, Dafydd Wigley, criticizes the scheme for not going far enough, but believes it will be accepted at the referendum on September 18. \I(UK, Wales)\i
Slobodan Milosevic is sworn in as President of Yugoslavia amid rowdy protests from more than 3,000 demonstrators. \I(Yugoslavia)\i
The Pentagon acknowledges that tens of thousands more than the estimated 20,000 American troops were exposed to fallout from exploded Iraqi chemical weapons during the Gulf War, but doubts that the mysterious illnesses reported by some veterans are related to the low-level exposures. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
More than 2,300 people evacuate their homes when the Oder River in eastern \JGermany\j bursts through one of the dikes holding the torrential flood at bay. \I(Germany)\i
Museum officials report very little damage to valuable cinematic and architectural collections after a fire sweeps across the roof of the Chaillot Palace in Paris. \I(France)\i
#
"July 24, 1997",568,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) confirms, that in the interests of effective coalition government in Phnom Penh, it will accept Ung Huot as co-Prime Minister of \JCambodia\j in place of Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia, Southeast Asia)\i
As five Papua New Guinean hostages are released to the New Zealand navy, Bougainville Revolutionary Army leader, Francis Ona, criticizes the move, saying he was not consulted, and declaring that the rebel's unified stand has now been violated. \I(Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand)\i
The Sri Lankan navy engages in an eight-hour battle with a flotilla of 25 Tamil Tiger rebel boats off the island's east coast. Several rebel boats and two naval boats are reported to be damaged in the engagement. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The United States Defense Department announces a proposed $US479 million deal to sell 21 Super Cobra attack helicopters to \JTaiwan\j. Defense officials say they are not anticipating any objections from Congress. \I(USA, Taiwan)\i
In what he terms as "a new spirit of co-operation", newly appointed United Nations arms inspector, Australian Richard Butler, advises that UN and Iraqi officials have agreed on how to verify the dismantling of long-range missiles, and of chemical and biological weapons. \I(Iraq, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the light of concessions offered by Boeing, the European Commission recommends approval of the planned Boeing-McDonnell Douglas merger. American President, Bill Clinton, is pleased with the outcome. \I(Europe, USA)\i
The United States Defense Department announces a proposed $US479 million deal to sell 21 Super Cobra attack helicopters to \JTaiwan\j. Defense officials say they are not anticipating any objections from Congress. \I(USA, Taiwan)\i
In the largest damages and compensation case of its kind, the Roman Catholic Diocese of \JDallas\j is ordered to pay out nearly $US120 million for continually ignoring evidence that a priest was molesting altar boys, and then conspiring to cover it up. \I(USA)\i
The Edinburgh-based scientists who cloned "Dolly" the sheep announce the creation of five new sheep containing human genetic material. An expert on animal \Jcloning\j from the University of Missouri, Randall Prather, applauds the technological step in terms of its future practical applications, saying the large amounts of proteins produced by the animals could be used to treat cystic fibrosis and hemophilia in humans. \I(Scotland, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the light of concessions offered by Boeing, the European Commission recommends approval of the planned Boeing-McDonnell Douglas merger. American President, Bill Clinton, is pleased with the outcome. \I(Europe, USA)\i
The British Government announces its intention to abolish free university tuition for all students. Formal proposals will be presented later in the year. \I(UK)\i
The IRA's political wing, Sinn Fein, warns of a potential end to the current cease-fire after Unionists reject controversial Anglo-Irish proposals for IRA disarmament. \I(Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, UK)\i
Amid accusations of police involvement, investigations continue into the execution-style murders of five African National Congress members in the small South African town of Richmond this week. \I(South Africa)\i
In the face of mounting opposition, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, agrees to amend legislation aimed at tightening Israel's grip on the Golan Heights. The amendment will reduce the required parliamentary majority for any territorial concessions to \JSyria\j from 80 to 61. \I(Israel, Syria)\i
The \JAlbanian\j parliament elects Socialist, Rexhep Mejdani, as the country's new President. Socialist Party chairman, Fatos Nano, is asked to form a Cabinet. \I(Albania)\i
Charles Taylor, former rebel chief and initiator of \JLiberia\j's seven-year civil war, is officially declared the winner of the country's presidential elections with 75 per cent of the vote. \I(Liberia)\i
Algerian security forces claim to have killed Antar Zouabri, the leader of the Armed Islamic Group which has been waging a five-year insurgency against the government. \I(Algeria)\i
In what he terms as "a new spirit of co-operation", newly appointed United Nations arms inspector, Australian Richard Butler, advises that UN and Iraqi officials have agreed on how to verify the dismantling of long-range missiles, and of chemical and biological weapons. \I(Iraq, Australia)\i
Following the Swiss banks' recent world-wide publication of dormant pre-1945 bank accounts, Jewish groups claim to have identified key Nazi figures among the account-holders, and urge that the proceeds of these accounts go to "people who deserve help", rather than the heirs of Nazi criminals. \I(Switzerland)\i
The Edinburgh-based scientists who cloned "Dolly" the sheep announce the creation of five new sheep containing human genetic material. An expert on animal \Jcloning\j from the University of Missouri, Randall Prather, applauds the technological step in terms of its future practical applications, saying the large amounts of proteins produced by the animals could be used to treat cystic fibrosis and hemophilia in humans. \I(Scotland, USA)\i
#
"July 25, 1997",569,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In \JJohannesburg\j, South African President, Nelson Mandela, meets with East Timorese independence activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Jose Ramos Horta. After the meeting, Mr. Mandela says South Africa will not try to prescribe what \JIndonesia\j should do, but indicates his country's desire to play a facilitating role in bringing an end to the prolonged violence in East \JTimor\j. \I(South Africa, East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
Taiwan denies Cambodian accusations of aiding the forces of ousted co-Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and threatens to retaliate if the order to shut down its representative office in Phnom Penh is not withdrawn, accusing China of \Jengineering\j the rift in Cambodian-Taiwanese relations. \I(Taiwan, \JCambodia\j, China)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, reiterates Washington's objections to Prince Ranariddh's forced removal from power, but says it seeks to work with coup leader Hun Sen rather than against him, stressing that Washington's goal is to return \JCambodia\j to "normalcy" and a democratic path. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, denies reports that he has softened his negative stance on ASEAN mediation in his country's political affairs, saying he welcomes ASEAN's role in contributing to stability and peace, but insisting that the international community must allow \JCambodia\j to solve its own internal problems. \I(Cambodia, Southeast Asia)\i
Post-election violence sweeps the Papua New Guinea highlands, leaving up to 20 people dead and a number of villages ravaged. The violence is reportedly due to anger over tribal candidates who failed to win office. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Pakistan announces the successful testing of its indigenously produced Anza surface-to-air missile, sparking international concern that the country's arms race with India is escalating. \I(Pakistan, India)\i
On the eve of his 58th birthday, Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, is admitted to Sydney's Mater \JHospital\j suffering from \Jpneumonia\j. Mr. Howard is expected to be hospitalized for at least a week. \I(Australia)\i
In the face of pending corruption charges, Chief Minister of India's Bihar State, Laloo Prasad Yadav, resigns and immediately appoints his wife as his successor. \I(India)\i
The British Foreign Office expresses concern over primeval conditions at a Saudi Arabian jail where two British nurses are being held while facing trial for the murder of Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford. A spokesman for the Foreign Office says new efforts are under way to have defendants Deborah Parry and Lucille McLauchlan moved from Dammam central prison. \I(Saudi \JArabia\j, \JAustralia\j, UK)\i
In the first innings of the fourth Ashes cricket Test between \JAustralia\j and England at Headingley, \JAustralia\j's Jason Gillespie takes 7-37 to leave England all out for 172. \I(Australia, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
American golfing legend, Ben Hogan, dies aged 84 in a Fort Worth \Jhospital\j. \I(USA)\i
Reputed New York mob boss, Vincent "Chin" Gigante, is convicted by a trial jury of murder, conspiracy, and racketeering, but is acquitted on seven other counts of murder. \I(USA)\i
A New York federal jury finds Autumn Jackson guilty of attempting to extort $US53 million from comedian Bill Cosby. Jackson, who claims to be Cosby's illegitimate daughter, was threatening to sell her story to the \IGlobe\i supermarket tabloid. \I(USA)\i
Plans to help Africa further develop its transportation system are announced by US Transportation Secretary, Rodney Slater. \I(Africa, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, reiterates Washington's objections to Prince Ranariddh's forced removal from power, but says it seeks to work with coup leader Hun Sen rather than against him, stressing that Washington's goal is to return \JCambodia\j to "normalcy" and a democratic path. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
Following the recent Pentagon report on the bombing of an Iraqi chemical weapons plant by American \Jaircraft\j, Britain's Ministry of Defense is expected to re-assess the possible impact of nerve gas on 50,000 British Gulf War veterans. \I(UK, USA)\i
In the wake of five ministerial resignations and scandals involving government corruption, documents published in a Peruvian magazine suggest President Alberto Fujimori was not born in \JPeru\j and is therefore ineligible to hold office. \I(Peru)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In \JJohannesburg\j, South African President, Nelson Mandela, meets with East Timorese independence activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Jose Ramos Horta. After the meeting, Mr. Mandela says South Africa will not try to prescribe what \JIndonesia\j should do, but indicates his country's desire to play a facilitating role in bringing an end to the prolonged violence in East \JTimor\j. \I(South Africa, East \JTimor\j, Indonesia)\i
Plans to help Africa further develop its transportation system are announced by US Transportation Secretary, Rodney Slater. \I(Africa, USA)\i
Palestinian and Israeli leaders react angrily to a plan by \JJerusalem\j city officials to build a new housing project in an Arab neighborhood. Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, intends to fight the project, saying it was approved without his knowledge. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
Following the recent Pentagon report on the bombing of an Iraqi chemical weapons plant by American \Jaircraft\j, Britain's Ministry of Defense is expected to re-assess the possible impact of nerve gas on 50,000 British Gulf War veterans. \I(UK, USA)\i
At least six people are killed and an undetermined number injured when soldiers of the new Congolese Government open fire on some 1,000 demonstrators demanding political freedom and democratic elections. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
In the latest move to bring peace to Northern Ireland, Irish Prime Minister, Bertie Ahern, meets with Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams and moderate nationalist leader, John Hume, ending a 17-month freeze on direct ministerial contact. \I(Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland)\i
The British Foreign Office expresses concern over primeval conditions at a Saudi Arabian jail where two British nurses are being held while facing trial for the murder of Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford. A spokesman for the Foreign Office says new efforts are under way to have defendants Deborah Parry and Lucille McLauchlan moved from Dammam central prison. \I(Saudi \JArabia\j, \JAustralia\j, UK)\i
Embattled Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, rejects \JNATO\j's demands for the \Jextradition\j of war crime suspects, insisting that \Jextradition\j is forbidden by the country's Constitution. \I(Bosnia)\i
Ireland's Roman Catholic Church sets up a \Jtelephone\j help line for victims of child abuse by the \Jclergy\j. The move coincides with the sentencing of Roman Catholic Priest, Brendan Smythe, who is given 12 years imprisonment for child-molesting offenses committed over a period of 36 years. \I(Republic of Ireland)\i
In the first innings of the fourth Ashes cricket Test between \JAustralia\j and England at Headingley, \JAustralia\j's Jason Gillespie takes 7-37 to leave England all out for 172. \I(Australia, UK)\i
#
"July 26, 1997",570,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In a bid to resolve tension in the disputed state of Kashmir, India's Prime Minister, Inder Gujral, offers direct negotiations with Kashmiri Muslim guerrillas who are fighting to break away from New Delhi. At the same time, Mr. Gujral urges \JPakistan\j to cease its infiltration of militants to back the separatist rebellion. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and China's Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen, hold their fourth meeting this year, widening their discussion to include topics such as environmental protection and \JNATO\j's eastern expansion. \I(USA, China)\i
Aid workers are allowed their first access to more than 13,000 \JCambodia\j civilians who have fled the fighting in the country's north to take refuge on the Thai border. The desperate refugees say they have no rice and no clean water. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
In the Tri Nations Rugby Test played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, the New Zealand All Blacks score a 33-18 victory over the Australian Wallabies. \I(Australia, New Zealand)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and China's Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen, hold their fourth meeting this year, widening their discussion to include topics such as environmental protection and \JNATO\j's eastern expansion. \I(USA, China)\i
Reiterating charges of American involvement in the recent bombing of two \JHavana\j hotels, \JCuba\j accuses Washington of being too soft on "anti-Cuban terrorists" living in the United States. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
Aides of Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, assure Washington that Israel will not permit another Jewish settler enclave to be built in Arab East \JJerusalem\j at this point in time. The assurance comes after the revelation of plans by \JJerusalem\j city officials to build a new housing project. \I(Israel, USA)\i
Reports indicate that the Clinton Administration will not oppose the installation of a billion dollar pipeline to carry huge quantities of Central Asian natural gas across \JIran\j. Although the administration is reported not to endorse the pipeline, it "does not technically violate" the 1996 Iran-Libya Sanctions Act. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Libya)\i
The Pentagon discloses that the United Arab Emirates hopes to purchase 72 RIM-7M Seasparrow missiles and 24 RGM-84g-4 Harpoon missiles from the United States. \I(USA, The United Arab Emirates)\i
In response to requests from Mexico, and other countries which fish for \Jtuna\j in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, the US Senate agrees on legislation to lift the embargo on \Jtuna\j caught in nets capable of snaring dolphins, with the proviso that fish caught in such nets are banned from being labeled "dolphin safe". \I(USA, Mexico)\i
Despite the current impasse on the surrender of IRA weapons, Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, is informed he will be allowed to enter the United States to raise funds, some of which will contribute to the cost of legal advice in preparation for the September 15 all-party talks on Northern Ireland's future. \I(Northern Ireland, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
At an air show in the Belgian coastal town of \JOstend\j, at least eight people die and dozens are injured when a Jordanian air force plane, participating in an aerobatics display, appears to lose power and then plummets into a Red Cross tent. \I(Belgium, Jordan)\i
Aides of Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, assure Washington that Israel will not permit another Jewish settler enclave to be built in Arab East \JJerusalem\j at this point in time. The assurance comes after the revelation of plans by \JJerusalem\j city officials to build a new housing project. \I(Israel, USA)\i
Reports indicate that the Clinton Administration will not oppose the installation of a billion dollar pipeline to carry huge quantities of Central Asian natural gas across \JIran\j. Although the administration is reported not to endorse the pipeline, it "does not technically violate" the 1996 Iran-Libya Sanctions Act. \I(USA, \JIran\j, Libya)\i
The Pentagon discloses that the United Arab Emirates hopes to purchase 72 RIM-7M Seasparrow missiles and 24 RGM-84g-4 Harpoon missiles from the United States. \I(USA, The United Arab Emirates)\i
Despite the current impasse on the surrender of IRA weapons, Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, is informed he will be allowed to enter the United States to raise funds, some of which will contribute to the cost of legal advice in preparation for the September 15 all-party talks on Northern Ireland's future. \I(Northern Ireland, USA)\i
#
"July 27, 1997",571,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In defiance of \JBangladesh\j officials, thousands of Muslim refugees from \JMyanmar\j fortify their camps and repel attempts to repatriate them, insisting they will only return to \JMyanmar\j if the \JRangoon\j Government gives them formal documents of nationality, guarantees human rights, ensures economic equity, and puts an end to Muslim persecution. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), Bangladesh)\i
The United States modifies its conditions for accepting the Hun Sen regime in \JCambodia\j, droppings its demands for the reinstatement of ousted First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and postponing further action while ASEAN ministers seek a political solution to the crisis. \I(USA, \JCambodia\j, Southeast Asia)\i
American journalist, Nate Thayer, claims to have seen the notoriously elusive Khmer Rouge leader, Pol Pot, in northern \JCambodia\j, but Thayer is declining to reveal details until his story is published in the Hong-Kong based, \IFar Eastern Economic Review.\i Adding weight to Thayer's claim, the clandestine Khmer Rouge radio announces that Pol Pot was convicted of \Jtreason\j at a trial last Friday and sentenced to life imprisonment. \I(Cambodia, Hong Kong, USA)\i
After a weekend of heavy fighting, official reports from \JAfghanistan\j say the Islamic Taliban militia has successfully repulsed rival faction infantry attacks on two fronts around the capital of Kabul. Meanwhile, as the battle for possession of Kabul intensifies, frightened residents of the city believe up to 2,500 people have been taken into custody by Taliban police. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Following rumors that \JThailand\j's military is unhappy with the recent constitution drafting process, top military chiefs move to dispel speculation of a possible coup to resolve the country's political and economic problems, insisting that force will not be necessary. \I(Thailand)\i
Disregarding an official ban, supporters of ousted democracy leader, Megawati Sukarnoputri, march through Jakarta to mark the first anniversary of a police-backed raid on the headquarters of the Indonesian Democratic Party, a raid which sparked riots at the time and left five people dead and scores of buildings on fire. As a consequence of this year's illegal march, 55 people are arrested. \I(Indonesia)\i
Despite renewed efforts by Australian Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, \JAustralia\j fails to win Malaysian endorsement for membership of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), an important new forum linking the nations of East Asia and the European Union. \I(Australia, \JMalaysia\j, East Asia, Europe)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, is to visit India and \JPakistan\j later this year, the first official visit of its kind in more than a decade. \I(USA, India, Pakistan)\i
Typhoon Rosie hits southwestern \JJapan\j with winds of up to 144 kph, killing four people and injuring dozens. \I(Japan)\i
At the end of the first innings in the fourth Ashes cricket Test between \JAustralia\j and England, \JAustralia\j holds a lead of 329 after declaring 9 for 501. Prior to the lunch-time declaration, \JAustralia\j's Matthew Elliot is bowled by Darren Gough for 199. \I(Australia, England)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United States modifies its conditions for accepting the Hun Sen regime in \JCambodia\j, droppings its demands for the reinstatement of ousted First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and postponing further action while ASEAN ministers seek a political solution to the crisis. \I(USA, \JCambodia\j, Southeast Asia)\i
American journalist, Nate Thayer, claims to have seen the notoriously elusive Khmer Rouge leader, Pol Pot, in northern \JCambodia\j, but Thayer is declining to reveal details until his story is published in the Hong-Kong based, \IFar Eastern Economic Review.\i Adding weight to Thayer's claim, the clandestine Khmer Rouge radio announces that Pol Pot was convicted of \Jtreason\j at a trial last Friday and sentenced to life imprisonment. \I(Cambodia, Hong Kong, USA)\i
In the face of mounting Israeli and international protests, Miami-based property developer, Irving Moscowitz, agrees to suspend city council-approved plans to build a Jewish settler enclave in an Arab neighborhood of \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, is to visit India and \JPakistan\j later this year, the first official visit of its kind in more than a decade. \I(USA, India, Pakistan)\i
Top seed Martina Hingis of \JSwitzerland\j wins her eighth WTA Tour title this year, defeating \JSpain\j's Conchita Martinez in the final of the Bank of the West Classic hardcourt tennis event in Stanford, \JCalifornia\j. \I(Switzerland, \JSpain\j, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the face of mounting Israeli and international protests, Miami-based property developer, Irving Moscowitz, agrees to suspend city council-approved plans to build a Jewish settler enclave in an Arab neighborhood of \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel, USA)\i
More than 20,000 pro-ETA demonstrators march through the streets of San Sebastian in the largest show of political support since the killing of a Basque politician by ETA separatist rebels earlier this month. After the march, which proceeds peacefully, violence erupts when hooded people clash with police. \I(Spain)\i
Sinn Fein's vice-president, Pat Doherty, and other senior party representatives hold their first talks with British officials since the new cease-fire was declared by the IRA. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Despite renewed efforts by Australian Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, \JAustralia\j fails to win Malaysian endorsement for membership of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), an important new forum linking the nations of East Asia and the European Union. \I(Australia, \JMalaysia\j, East Asia, Europe)\i
In the wake of recent bloody demonstrations, new Congolese President, Laurent Kabila, warns opposition leaders to halt their public protests or be held responsible for those "who fall under fire", declaring that demonstrations against the ban on political activity are illegal during the country's period of "political transition." \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
After a battle lasting nearly 48 hours, firefighters manage to contain huge forest fires threatening property outside Marseilles. The fires are the worst in the area for five years. \I(France)\i
A third dike reinforcing the raging Oder River between \JGermany\j and \JPoland\j bursts, flooding the area around the German villages of Brieskow-Finkenheerd and Wiesenau, and necessitating the evacuation of 67 people. Officials say up to 2,700 people have already been evacuated from the lowlands south of Frankfurt, while to the north-east of Berlin, about 5,000 have been evacuated as a precautionary measure. In \JPoland\j, some 40,000 people are still homeless as a result of the floods. \I(Germany, Poland)\i
Jan Ullrich wins the Tour de \JFrance\j, becoming the first German cyclist to do so, and posting the largest margin of victory in 13 years, finishing nine minutes and nine seconds ahead of Frenchman, Richard Virenque. \I(Germany, France)\i
Top seed Martina Hingis of \JSwitzerland\j wins her eighth WTA Tour title this year, defeating \JSpain\j's Conchita Martinez in the final of the Bank of the West Classic hardcourt tennis event in Stanford, \JCalifornia\j. \I(Switzerland, \JSpain\j, USA)\i
Austria's Gerhard Berger, the oldest driver on the Formula One circuit, wins the German Grand Prix, giving Benetton-Renault its first victory since 1995. \I(Austria, Germany)\i
At the end of the first innings in the fourth Ashes cricket Test between \JAustralia\j and England, \JAustralia\j holds a lead of 329 after declaring 9 for 501. Prior to the lunch-time declaration, \JAustralia\j's Matthew Elliot is bowled by Darren Gough for 199. \I(Australia, England)\i
#
"July 28, 1997",572,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
After a six-month recess, \JCambodia\j's National Assembly is opened by acting head of state, Chea Sim, who praises the government's success in purging the Khmer Rouge terrorists and First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia)\i
Video footage of Pol Pot's trial in the northern Cambodian Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng goes to air on American \Jtelevision\j. Journalistic source, Nate Thayer, whose eye-witness account of the trial is yet to be published, remains convinced it is not "a hoax", that Pol Pot is indeed "finished". Cambodian coup leader, Hun Sen, on the other hand, scoffs at the show trial of the shadowy Khmer Rouge leader, calling it a "political game", and insisting that Pol Pot is still controlling guerrilla forces in the country's north. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
On the order of the Hun Sen regime, \JTaiwan\j withdraws its representatives and closes its office in Phnom Penh, denying accusations of complicity in \JCambodia\j's political strife, and blaming \JBeijing\j for \Jengineering\j the rift in relations. The Chinese Foreign Ministry, meanwhile, applauds the order, saying \JCambodia\j has made the correct decision. \I(Taiwan, \JCambodia\j, China)\i
Speaking at an ASEAN conference in Kuala Lumpur, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, condemns \JMyanmar\j's drug trade, pointing out that traffickers are infiltrating the country's market economy and political order, thereby posing a threat to the region as a whole. \I(USA, \JMalaysia\j, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), Southeast Asia)\i
Philippine President, Fidel Ramos, reiterates his 1994 call to demilitarize strategic lanes in the South China Sea, pointing to China's expanding economy which, he says, will inevitably press politically and militarily on East Asia. \I(The \JPhilippines\j, China, East Asia)\i
The newly elected Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Bill Skate, orders a stay on all charges against soldiers and civil rights activists involved in an uprising against the Government during the Sandline mercenaries crisis in March. The order comes after armed soldiers storm police cells to release Major Walter Enuma, and announce that Defense Force Commander, Brigadier General Leo Niua, is being placed under house arrest. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Following reports of standover Korean loan sharking operations at the Sydney Harbour Casino, \JAustralia\j's Ambassador in Seoul, Mack Williams, says Korean authorities have offered to co-operate with Australian police agencies to stem the tide of Korean gang members entering the country. \I(Australia, The Koreas)\i
In an address to ASEAN members and major partners, Canada's Foreign Minister, Lloyd Axworthy, tries to gain added support for his country's push for a global ban on anti-personnel mines. \I(Canada, Southeast Asia)\i
Ten miners, trapped inside a flooded coal mine in China's Guangdong province, are now feared dead by rescue workers who have been struggling since Saturday to reach them. The disaster is the latest in a series which has prompted the coal ministry to hold mine officials liable for accidents resulting in the deaths of 10 or more people. \I(China)\i
Under the terms of a landmark agreement reached three years ago between Washington and \JPyongyang\j, two South Korean barges carrying 9,000 tons of equipment leave for the North to begin construction of light water nuclear reactors. \I(USA, The Koreas)\i
Reports reveal that China has purchased two Project 636 Kilo-class diesel-powered submarines from \JRussia\j at a cost of $US200 million. \I(China, Russia)\i
Seni Pramoj, leader of the Seri Thai anti-Japanese movement during World War II and three times Prime Minister of \JThailand\j, dies in \JBangkok\j General \JHospital\j at the age of 92. \I(Thailand)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Video footage of Pol Pot's trial in the northern Cambodian Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng goes to air on American \Jtelevision\j. Journalistic source, Nate Thayer, whose eye-witness account of the trial is yet to be published, remains convinced it is not "a hoax", that Pol Pot is indeed "finished". Cambodian coup leader, Hun Sen, on the other hand, scoffs at the show trial of the shadowy Khmer Rouge leader, calling it a "political game", and insisting that Pol Pot is still controlling guerrilla forces in the country's north. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
Speaking at an ASEAN conference in Kuala Lumpur, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, condemns \JMyanmar\j's drug trade, pointing out that traffickers are infiltrating the country's market economy and political order, thereby posing a threat to the region as a whole. \I(USA, \JMalaysia\j, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), Southeast Asia)\i
In an address to ASEAN members and major partners, Canada's Foreign Minister, Lloyd Axworthy, tries to gain added support for his country's push for a global ban on anti-personnel mines. \I(Canada, Southeast Asia)\i
Under the terms of a landmark agreement reached three years ago between Washington and \JPyongyang\j, two South Korean barges carrying 9,000 tons of equipment leave for the North to begin construction of light water nuclear reactors. \I(USA, The Koreas)\i
General Motors signs a deal worth approximately $US1 billion to sponsor the next six Olympic Games, a deal far surpassing any previous sports package created for an advertiser. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Algerian troops claim to have killed more than 300 Muslim rebels in a two-week offensive, with scores more trapped in mountains to the northeast. Army officials are now warning villagers to be on the alert for retaliatory bomb attacks and massacres. \I(Algeria)\i
After a four-month freeze in negotiations, Israel and Palestine agree to resume peace talks on a limited range of issues. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
In flood-threatened eastern \JGermany\j, dikes resist overnight pressure from the swollen Oder River, but residents, warned against complacency, remain ready for possible evacuation. \I(Germany)\i
Reports reveal that China has purchased two Project 636 Kilo-class diesel-powered submarines from \JRussia\j at a cost of $US200 million. \I(China, Russia)\i
#
"July 29, 1997",573,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Following abortive efforts to encourage democratic reforms in \JMyanmar\j, Canada is considering joining the United States in imposing sanctions on trade and investment, determined not to allow \JMyanmar\j to profit from its new status as a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). \I(Canada, USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), Southeast Asia)\i
In a reversal of his recent stand against ASEAN mediation in \JCambodia\j's internal politics, coup leader Hun Sen says he ready to welcome another delegation from the regional group. Meanwhile, ASEAN's foreign ministers are seeking clarification on what role the group would play in attempts to bring stability to the strife-torn country. \I(Cambodia)\i
Crowds of Cambodians gather round ABC \Jtelevision\j monitors in Phnom Penh to watch footage of the recent show trial of despised Khmer Rouge leader, Pol Pot. \I(Cambodia)\i
Cambodia's ministry of defense announces the safe release of four airforce \Jhelicopter\j pilots captured by the Khmer Rouge while transporting Prince Norodom Ranariddh's negotiators to the rebel group's northern jungle base for peace talks. \I(Cambodia)\i
Papua New Guinea's Defense Force Commander, Brigadier General Leo Nuia, who was yesterday placed under armed house arrest by mutinous soldiers, adamantly rejects a controversial decision by the Prime Minister, Bill Skate, to grant temporary amnesty to the soldiers and other military and civilian personnel involved in demonstrations over the Sandline mercenaries affair in March this year. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
A Hong Kong appeals court unanimously crushes a challenge to the legal and constitutional arrangements which took effect when the territory reverted to Chinese sovereignty four weeks ago, ruling that Hong Kong's legal system continued after the transfer, and that the Beijing-installed Provisional Legislative Council is legally entitled to administer the territory. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
A recent offer of talks by Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, is spurned by Kashmiri separatist guerrillas who are fighting to break away from New Delhi. \I(India)\i
Despite uneasy relations with China, \JTaiwan\j affirms its intention of proceeding with plans to streamline military personnel while building up its reserves of sophisticated weaponry. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
The United States and the European Union strongly reject a push by \JMalaysia\j for a review of the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights. \JMalaysia\j argues that the declaration, drawn up by the superpowers after World War II, disregards the needs of poor countries, an argument firmly supported by \JIndonesia\j, The \JPhilippines\j, and China. \I(Malaysia, \JIndonesia\j, The \JPhilippines\j, China, USA, Europe)\i
Echoing recent concerns voiced by the United Nations World Food Program, the president of Food for the Hungry International, Ted Yamamori, says at least 5 million North Koreans are suffering from starvation in a national food crisis that is reaching the proportions of the Somalian and Ethiopian famines. \I(North Korea, \JSomalia\j, Ethiopia)\i
In central Vietnam's Thua-Thien \JHue\j province, an official hunt is underway for two drunken border soldiers who shot dead seven people and injured four others before seizing ammunition and escaping. \I(Vietnam)\i
The Senate panel investigating US campaign fundraising scandals is told that former restaurant owner, Charlie Trie, who donated $US220,000 to the Democratic National Committee, set up a network of shell companies which laundered money from an Asian business associate. \I(USA, Asia)\i
A report released by the World Wide Fund For Nature predicts the imminent commercial \Jextinction\j of the southern bluefin \Jtuna\j, a fish caught primarily for the Japanese sashimi trade, and sold for prices exceeding $US60,000 each. Stricter catch restrictions, affecting \JJapan\j, \JAustralia\j, and New Zealand, are expected to be imposed. \I(Japan, \JAustralia\j, New Zealand)\i
Australia posts a $A153 million trade surplus for the month of June, the biggest in its history, bringing the trade surplus for the 1996-97 financial year to $A2.8 billion, and decisively reversing the 1994-95 trend which recorded a deficit of $A8.6 billion. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Five people are confirmed dead and twenty people are missing after a freak \Jthunderstorm\j causes massive flash flooding in Fort Collins, \JColorado\j. \I(USA)\i
President Clinton delivers a moving eulogy at the funeral of former US Supreme Court Justice, William Brennan, the man whose rulings were responsible for the country's landmark civil rights laws. Brennan died at the age of 91 last week after a long illness. \I(USA)\i
A Greenpeace report claims that the Alaskan Bering \JGlacier\j, the largest in North America, has shrunk by up to 71/2 miles over the past century as a result of global warming. \I(USA)\i
Following abortive efforts to encourage democratic reforms in \JMyanmar\j, Canada is considering joining the United States in imposing sanctions on trade and investment, determined not to allow \JMyanmar\j to profit from its new status as a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). \I(Canada, USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), Southeast Asia)\i
The Pentagon says it is withdrawing anti-drug ground patrols of the Mexican border pending the outcome of a review. According to a spokesman, the chief focus of the review is to determine whether troops have adequate protection from civil or criminal liability for their actions, a focus prompted by the May shooting of an 18 year old student by a US marine. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
Miami's City Commissioner, Humberto Hernandez, is one of 13 people indicted in an alleged $US8 million mortgage \Jfraud\j and money-laundering scheme involving luxury condominiums in prime neighborhoods. \I(USA)\i
The Senate panel investigating US campaign fundraising scandals is told that former restaurant owner, Charlie Trie, who donated $US220,000 to the Democratic National Committee, set up a network of shell companies which laundered money from an Asian business associate. \I(USA, Asia)\i
After the recent revival of diplomatic activity in the Middle East, United States envoy, Dennis Ross, is to meet with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders and present new proposals to help boost the peace process. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
The United States and the European Union strongly reject a push by \JMalaysia\j for a review of the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights. \JMalaysia\j argues that the declaration, drawn up by the superpowers after World War II, disregards the needs of poor countries, an argument firmly supported by \JIndonesia\j, The \JPhilippines\j, and China. \I(Malaysia, \JIndonesia\j, The \JPhilippines\j, China, USA, Europe)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The United Nations war crimes tribunal discloses that forensic specialists are excavating a suspected mass grave on the site of the former Serb-run Luka prison camp in the north Bosnian town of Brcko. The excavation is being carried out in connection with the alleged 1992 massacre of hundreds of Muslim and Croat men, and the subsequent charges of genocide against two Serb men who still remain at large. \I(Bosnia)\i
Algerian newspapers report that armed Muslim guerrillas have killed more than 70 villagers in the past 48 hours, attacks believed to be in retaliation for the recent two-week military offensive during which some 300 fundamentalist rebels died. \I(Algeria)\i
Eleven people are hospitalized when police use batons, dogs, and water cannons to disperse thousands of Islamists protesting against attempts by Turkish Prime Minister, Mesut Yilmaz, to curtail religious education. \I(Turkey)\i
After the recent revival of diplomatic activity in the Middle East, United States envoy, Dennis Ross, is to meet with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders and present new proposals to help boost the peace process. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Echoing recent concerns voiced by the United Nations World Food Program, the president of Food for the Hungry International, Ted Yamamori, says at least 5 million North Koreans are suffering from starvation in a national food crisis that is reaching the proportions of the Somalian and Ethiopian famines. \I(North Korea, \JSomalia\j, Ethiopia)\i
Despite an unresolved dispute over the terms of IRA disarmament, Britain and Ireland vow to proceed with September's Northern Ireland multi-party peace talks, expressing hopes that pro-British unionists will forgo their reservations and join the negotiations. \I(UK, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland)\i
The United States and the European Union strongly reject a push by \JMalaysia\j for a review of the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights. \JMalaysia\j argues that the declaration, drawn up by the superpowers after World War II, disregards the needs of poor countries, an argument firmly supported by \JIndonesia\j, The \JPhilippines\j, and China. \I(Malaysia, \JIndonesia\j, The \JPhilippines\j, China, USA, Europe)\i
Germany launches a new offensive against child abuse, child \Jpornography\j, and sex tourism, combining plans for harsher punishment with schemes for preventative education, and lobbying law enforcement authorities in other countries to similarly address the problem. \I(Germany)\i
In a report to the Palestinian Legislative Council, President Yasser Arafat is urged by an appointed panel of nine lawmakers to sack his entire cabinet, and put at least two of his ministers on trial for alleged corruption and misuse of power. \I(Palestine)\i
#
"July 30, 1997",574,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The \Jhelicopter\j pilots who transported an 11-member negotiating team to Khmer Rouge headquarters in northern \JCambodia\j last February reveal that the team was executed by the guerrillas. Meanwhile, having staged a jungle trial to publicly denounce reviled leader, Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge broadcasts its intention to keep fighting the Hun Sen regime, claiming their movement to be stronger than ever. \I(Cambodia)\i
At least 20 people are buried beneath hundreds of tons of rubble when a landslide demolishes two ski lodges at Thredbo in the Australian state of New South Wales. Most of those trapped are employees of the Thredbo Village Resort. \I(Australia)\i
A South Korean resident of \JJapan\j, 40-year-old travel agent Yoo Yoong Bum, is arrested by South Korea's domestic intelligence agency on charges of spying for North Korea. \I(The Koreas, Japan)\i
A Washington spokesman confirms that Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, has applied for a transit visa. Despite likely protests from China, the visa is expected to be issued. \I(USA, \JTaiwan\j, China)\i
Having split India's ruling party and installed his wife as his political successor, former chief minister of Bihar State, Laloo Prasad Yadav, surrenders himself to face corruption charges. Yadav is accused on seven counts of conspiring to defraud the state treasury of money meant to pay for fodder subsidies, a scam estimated to have cost the state some hundreds of millions of pounds. \I(India)\i
Gang violence erupts in Portuguese-ruled \JMacao\j with three people injured by \Jmachine-gun\j fire, cars set alight, and an explosion in the grounds of the Governor's palace. The violence occurs a week after the introduction of tough new anti-Triad regulations to crack down on casino-related rackets. \I(Portugal, Macao)\i
After a meeting with Portuguese President, Jorge Sampaio, South African President, Nelson Mandela, says he has written to \JIndonesia\j's President Soeharto, recommending the release of jailed East \JTimor\j independence leader, Xanana Gusmao. Mr. Mandela adds that all current efforts on behalf of East \JTimor\j are within the framework of resolutions passed by the United Nations. \I(Portugal, South Africa, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
Speaking before the United Nations Working Group for Indigenous Peoples in Geneva, \JAustralia\j's Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, Senator Herron, apologizes for the stolen generation of Aboriginal children, and adds that the Government is now seeking to free indigenous Australians by promoting greater economic independence. \I(Australia, Switzerland)\i
Nicaragua denounces China for threatening to make it "pay the price" if it continues to support \JTaiwan\j's bid for United Nations membership. The denunciation comes after general distribution of China's letter of protest to the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. \I(Nicaragua, China, Taiwan)\i
Following a mass gathering to denounce drugs, 14 drug traffickers are executed as sentenced by the \JGuangzhou\j Intermediary Court. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
While continuing to emphasize the danger, the United States lifts a 12-year ban on US citizens visiting \JLebanon\j, an action prompted by \JLebanon\j's pledge to step up the fight against \Jterrorism\j. The ban was originally imposed after Muslim extremists hijacked a TWA airliner and killed an American passenger. \I(USA, Lebanon)\i
A Washington spokesman confirms that Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, has applied for a transit visa. Despite likely protests from China, the visa is expected to be issued. \I(USA, \JTaiwan\j, China)\i
Nicaragua denounces China for threatening to make it "pay the price" if it continues to support \JTaiwan\j's bid for United Nations membership. The denunciation comes after general distribution of China's letter of protest to the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. \I(Nicaragua, China, Taiwan)\i
A rush on Wall Street sends the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 80.36 points to a record-breaking 8254.89. The Dow has already risen 28 per cent this year, more than it rose in all of last year. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Fifteen Israelis are killed and more than 100 injured when two suicide bombers detonate themselves in \JJerusalem\j's crowded central market. The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, claims responsibility for the attack and issues a Sunday 2 p.m. EDT deadline for the release of all Palestinian prisoners. As a result of the violence, Israel calls off peace talks with Palestine, slating President Yasser Arafat for failing to co-operate against the terrorists. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
While continuing to emphasize the danger, the United States lifts a 12-year ban on US citizens visiting \JLebanon\j, an action prompted by \JLebanon\j's pledge to step up the fight against \Jterrorism\j. The ban was originally imposed after Muslim extremists hijacked a TWA airliner and killed an American passenger. \I(USA, Lebanon)\i
Gang violence erupts in Portuguese-ruled \JMacao\j with three people injured by \Jmachine-gun\j fire, cars set alight, and an explosion in the grounds of the Governor's palace. The violence occurs a week after the introduction of tough new anti-Triad regulations to crack down on casino-related rackets. \I(Portugal, Macao)\i
A key dike holding back the flooded Oder River breaks, threatening the homes and livelihoods of some 1,000 villagers on the German-Polish border. \I(Germany, Poland)\i
After a meeting with Portuguese President, Jorge Sampaio, South African President, Nelson Mandela, says he has written to \JIndonesia\j's President Soeharto, recommending the release of jailed East \JTimor\j independence leader, Xanana Gusmao. Mr. Mandela adds that all current efforts on behalf of East \JTimor\j are within the framework of resolutions passed by the United Nations. \I(Portugal, South Africa, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
Milan Kovacevic, the Bosnian Serb doctor seized in a NATO-led raid three weeks ago, pleads not guilty to charges of genocide when he appears before the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague. \I(Bosnia, Netherlands)\i
Speaking before the United Nations Working Group for Indigenous Peoples in Geneva, \JAustralia\j's Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, Senator Herron, apologizes for the stolen generation of Aboriginal children, and adds that the Government is now seeking to free indigenous Australians by promoting greater economic independence. \I(Australia, Switzerland)\i
#
"July 31, 1997",575,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Hong Kong-based magazine, \IFar Eastern Economic Review,\i publishes the report of American journalist Nate Thayer, the first Westerner in 18 years to sight notorious Khmer Rouge leader, Pol Pot. Detailed in Thayer's report is an interview with General Im Nguon, who stresses the guerrilla movement's break with Pol Pot, while reiterating its allegiance to ousted co-Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. As the instigator of Pol Pot's show trial, Im Nguon now claims to be the movement's military chief and deputy political leader, but concedes that Ta Mok, otherwise known as "the butcher", effectively remains in control of the rebel forces. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
United Nations human rights workers in \JCambodia\j believe more than 35 people have been victims of extra-judicial killings during and after the July 5 and 6 coup by forces loyal to Hun Sen. Acting on information from sources, UN workers have already unearthed a body they suspect to be that of a bodyguard of Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia)\i
A massive round-the-clock search and rescue operation to recover 20 people buried by a landslide in the Australian ski resort of Thredbo is severely hampered by sub-zero temperatures and the precarious instability of the site. With one body already discovered beneath tons of twisted debris, hopes of finding anyone alive are fading. \I(Australia)\i
At a rally to mark the 70th anniversary of the formation of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, calls on the military to back the Communist Party and obey its absolute command, saying the PLA should become a strong, modernized army equipped to guard national security and achieve reunification. \I(China)\i
Despite strong international opposition, the Indian Government decides to renew work on its Agni ballistic missile, a long-range weapon capable of striking targets deep inside China or \JPakistan\j. \I(India, China, Pakistan)\i
At least 27 people are killed and hundreds injured when a false fire alarm triggers a stampede of workers in a \JDhaka\j garment factory. The factory was operating despite a general strike, and police are not ruling out union involvement. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Hong Kong leader, Tung Chee-hwa, celebrates the territory's first month as part of China, declaring that nothing has changed, and Hong Kong still remains a free market economy with its people free to express their political views. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
At a meeting of the Ministerial Council on Drugs Trafficking, approval is granted for a controversial heroin trial to proceed in the Australian Capital Territory. The trial will treat 40 addicts using pharmaceutical heroin (diacetylmorphine). \I(Australia)\i
In defiance of directions from Prime Minister, Bill Skate, Papua New Guinea police re-issue an arrest warrant for Major Walter Enuma, the officer earlier freed from jail in a raid by mutinous soldiers. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee investigating US campaign fundraising abuses hears that a Buddhist sect, led by a Vietnamese woman now living in \JTaiwan\j, was the source of almost $US800,000 in contributions to President Clinton's legal defense fund. Meanwhile, the first Korean-American elected to congress, Republican Rep. Jay Kim, agrees to plead guilty to charges of accepting illegal campaign contributions from corporations and from a foreigner. Kim's wife June is also charged with campaign finance violations. \I(USA, Vietnam, \JTaiwan\j, The Koreas)\i
The United Nations World Food Program launches another appeal to Western countries for more aid to North Korea, saying the entire North Korean population is threatened by \Jfamine\j. \I(North Korea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In a dawn raid on a Brooklyn apartment, police arrest three men of Middle Eastern origin and seize five bombs apparently intended to blow up the New York City subway. \I(USA)\i
The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee investigating US campaign fundraising abuses hears that a Buddhist sect, led by a Vietnamese woman now living in \JTaiwan\j, was the source of almost $US800,000 in contributions to President Clinton's legal defense fund. Meanwhile, the first Korean-American elected to congress, Republican Rep. Jay Kim, agrees to plead guilty to charges of accepting illegal campaign contributions from corporations and from a foreigner. Kim's wife June is also charged with campaign finance violations. \I(USA, Vietnam, \JTaiwan\j, The Koreas)\i
The Hong Kong-based magazine, \IFar Eastern Economic Review,\i publishes the report of American journalist Nate Thayer, the first Westerner in 18 years to sight notorious Khmer Rouge leader, Pol Pot. Detailed in Thayer's report is an interview with General Im Nguon, who stresses the guerrilla movement's break with Pol Pot, while reiterating its allegiance to ousted co-Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. As the instigator of Pol Pot's show trial, Im Nguon now claims to be the movement's military chief and deputy political leader, but concedes that Ta Mok, otherwise known as "the butcher", effectively remains in control of the rebel forces. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
In the wake of \JUNESCO\j's threats to drop the Galapagos Islands from its list of world heritage sites, \JEcuador\j moves to restrict tourism and \Jimmigration\j in a bid to protect the islands from further environmental damage. \I(Ecuador)\i
The French Government says it will assert legal title to a 17th-century shipwreck salvaged by the state of \JTexas\j in 1995, claiming that \ILa Belle\i was the property of Louis XIV when it sank in Matagorda Bay, off \JTexas\j, in 1686. \I(France, USA)\i
Based on data sent back from the Pathfinder craft, space officials issue a weather forecast for Mars: cloudy, with winds light from the west, and a daytime temperature of 8║ Fahrenheit. \I(USA)\i
Dr. Robert Ballard, the American marine archaeologist who discovered the wrecks of the \ITitanic\i and the \IBismarck,\i discloses details of the recent deep-water sonar detection of a cluster of eight shipwrecks in the Mediterranean trading route that once linked ancient \JRome\j with \JCarthage\j. Five of the ships date from between 100BC to AD400, and some well-preserved artifacts, recovered by a remote-controlled robot vessel, include a range of bronze and clay cookware, and a cargo of granite building stones and monolithic columns. \I(USA, The Mediterranean)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Following this week's double suicide bombing in \JJerusalem\j, Israel closes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, rounds up suspected Muslim militants, and issues an arrest warrant against Palestinian police chief, Ghazi Jabali, for allegedly encouraging attacks on Jewish settlers. Israel also warns that it is prepared to enter Palestinian territory to pursue terrorists if President Yasser Arafat's forces fail to do the job. Arafat's aides, meanwhile, regard Israel's moves as "a declaration of war". \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
In an attack bearing the hallmarks of Muslim militants, a car bomb explodes in front of a bar in \JAlgiers\j, killing five people and wounding at least 36. \I(Algeria)\i
The Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF), a Northern Ireland Protestant extremist group, refuses to call a cease-fire, scorning the July 20 truce called by its foes in the Irish Republic Army (IRA). \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Near Hohenwutzen, thousands of German soldiers, aid workers, and villagers fight to prevent a damaged dike on the Oder River from bursting completely and unleashing a potentially catastrophic flood. Elsewhere in Europe, flooding starts to ease, but the governments of \JPoland\j and the Czech Republic both fear that the cost of flood damage could seriously retard economic growth in their countries. \I(Germany, \JPoland\j, Czech Republic)\i
Spain's Prime Minister, JosΘ Marφa Aznar, promises new and more efficient laws after \JBarcelona\j police arrest 12 people in connection with a child \Jpornography\j and prostitution ring. The ring, which exported material throughout Europe and is suspected of operating for nearly a decade, used official medical and social services records to procure vulnerable children as young as five. \I(Spain)\i
The French Government says it will assert legal title to a 17th-century shipwreck salvaged by the state of \JTexas\j in 1995, claiming that \ILa Belle\i was the property of Louis XIV when it sank in Matagorda Bay, off \JTexas\j, in 1686. \I(France, USA)\i
In a landmark breakthrough, the leaders of the estranged Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities agree to simultaneously exchange information on the location of graves of people listed as missing in past hostilities between the two sides. \I(Cyprus)\i
Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, promises to take all the necessary measures after the Legislative Council gives him one month to dissolve his cabinet and appoint another. The council's ultimatum is in response to a scathing report on widespread official corruption. \I(Palestine)\i
Dr. Robert Ballard, the American marine archaeologist who discovered the wrecks of the \ITitanic\i and the \IBismarck,\i discloses details of the recent deep-water sonar detection of a cluster of eight shipwrecks in the Mediterranean trading route that once linked ancient \JRome\j with \JCarthage\j. Five of the ships date from between 100BC to AD400, and some well-preserved artifacts, recovered by a remote-controlled robot vessel, include a range of bronze and clay cookware, and a cargo of granite building stones and monolithic columns. \I(USA, The Mediterranean)\i
#
"August 1, 1997",576,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, threatens to launch a military attack to capture Pol Pot if the Khmer Rouge refuses to surrender the former guerrilla leader to face an international court. Hun Sen says he will also appeal to the Thai Government to close the border north of the Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng. Meanwhile, some 2,000 civilian refugees continue to pour into the eastern Thai province of Sa Kaew, fleeing renewed fighting north of the Cambodian border town of Poipet, one of the last strongholds of the country's royalist forces. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
Violence erupts across the Indian state of Bihar as workers stage a general strike over the arrest of Laloo Prasad Yadav, the state's former chief minister who is charged with embezzling millions in government funds; thousands of paramilitary troops and police are deployed to combat widespread looting and violence. \I(India)\i
Fighting flares in northern Sri Lanka as government troops clash with a large group of Tamil Tiger rebels, killing at least 50. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Hundreds of pro-Communist South Korean students face arrest for defying a government order to withdraw from the outlawed Hanchongryon federation of student councils. The order to quit the radical pro-North Korean group came in June, after four days of student rioting claimed the lives of three people. \I(The Koreas)\i
In the Jakarta High Court, Megawati Sukarnoputri is granted a district court hearing, her first victory in a prolonged legal battle against a government-backed faction which unilaterally deposed her as head of the Indonesian Democracy Party in June 1996. \I(Indonesia)\i
The London-based \JTibet\j Information Network says Chinese re-education teams are forcing Tibetan monks and nuns to denounce the Dalai Lama as a serpent's head and a threat to \JBuddhism\j. \I(China, \JTibet\j, UK)\i
Under the terms of a new partnership agenda, \JJapan\j and \JAustralia\j agree to increase military and intelligence exchanges to help bolster defense ties. \I(Japan, Australia)\i
In a campaign to become a smoke-free nation, \JSingapore\j bans smoking in colleges, schools, private clubs, and air-conditioned shops, adding to earlier bans imposed on smoking in air-conditioned workplaces and residential buildings. \I(Singapore)\i
A NASA astrophysicist finds what he believes to be the fossilized remains of extraterrestrial microorganisms in the Murchison \Jmeteorite\j that fell on \JAustralia\j in 1969. If validated, the find will provide the scientific community with more evidence that life may exist beyond Earth. \I(USA, Australia)\i
Japanese twins, Kin Narita and Gin Kanie, celebrate their 105th birthday, suggesting that their daily two-hour exercise walks could be the secret to their longevity. \I(Japan)\i
After living exiled in \JFrance\j for four decades, the last Vietnamese Emperor, Bao Dai, dies aged 83 at a military \Jhospital\j in Paris. \I(France, Vietnam)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Law enforcement sources claim that three men arrested in connection with an alleged New York subway suicide bombing plot are linked to the radical Palestinian group, Hamas. President Clinton, however, says it is too soon to reach conclusions without ironclad evidence. \I(USA, Palestine)\i
President Clinton ends a 20-year ban on the sale of high-tech US warplanes and weapons to Latin America, a move keenly sought by the Pentagon, arms dealers, and Latin American governments. \I(USA, Latin America)\i
In his first visit to the White House, Azeri President, Haydar Aliyev, signs an investment treaty which forges stronger commercial links between the United States and oil-rich \JAzerbaijan\j. \I(USA, Azerbaijan)\i
A NASA astrophysicist finds what he believes to be the fossilized remains of extraterrestrial microorganisms in the Murchison \Jmeteorite\j that fell on \JAustralia\j in 1969. If validated, the find will provide the scientific community with more evidence that life may exist beyond Earth. \I(USA, Australia)\i
Four hours after abandoning a Panamanian-flagged bulk carrier sinking in the Indian Ocean, all 21 crew members are picked up by a British tanker. \I(Panama, UK)\i
Prompted by official reports of more volcanic eruptions on the Caribbean island of Montserrat, Britain considers evacuating the island's remaining 5,000 residents. \I(UK, Montserrat)\i
After performing neuropsychological tests on 46 Gulf War veterans, researchers at the University of \JTexas\j Southwestern Medical Center say some of the veterans suffering from "Gulf War syndrome" have a form of brain damage found in victims of toxic poisoning. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
The National Cancer Institute warns that as a result of atomic bomb tests carried out during the 1950s and '60s, 10,000 to 75,000 Americans who were then younger than 15 could develop thyroid cancers. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Law enforcement sources claim that three men arrested in connection with an alleged New York subway suicide bombing plot are linked to the radical Palestinian group, Hamas. President Clinton, however, says it is too soon to reach conclusions without ironclad evidence. \I(USA, Palestine)\i
As Israel tightens security in the wake of the \JJerusalem\j market double suicide bombing, Palestine officials hit back at Israeli accusations, insisting the PLO has acted to prevent violence, and denouncing Israel's right-wing government for doing its best to jettison the peace process. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
On the eve of peace talks between ethnic Hutu rebel groups and \JBurundi\j's Tutsi-controlled government, six men are hanged after being convicted by a criminal court of taking part in ethnic massacres during the country's four-year civil war. \I(Burundi)\i
Following pressure from Palestinian legislators over alleged corruption and abuse of power, 16 of President Yasser Arafat's 18 cabinet ministers offer to resign. \I(Palestine)\i
At Lisbellaw, 100 miles west of \JBelfast\j, the British Army carries out a controlled explosion on a bomb, the first found since the Irish Republican Army called a truce 11 days ago. Although no immediate claim of responsibility is made, authorities believe the device was planted by a breakaway republican group. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
In his first visit to the White House, Azeri President, Haydar Aliyev, signs an investment treaty which forges stronger commercial ties between the United States and oil-rich \JAzerbaijan\j. \I(USA, Azerbaijan)\i
After performing neuropsychological tests on 46 Gulf War veterans, researchers at the University of \JTexas\j Southwestern Medical Center say some of the veterans suffering from "Gulf War syndrome" have a form of brain damage found in victims of toxic poisoning. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
As soldiers battle to support weakened dikes on the swollen Oder River, the European Commission pledges speedy aid for flood victims in \JGermany\j, \JPoland\j, and the Czech Republic. \I(Germany, \JPoland\j, Czech Republic)\i
Prompted by official reports of more volcanic eruptions on the Caribbean island of Montserrat, Britain considers evacuating the island's remaining 5,000 residents. \I(UK, Montserrat)\i
The London-based \JTibet\j Information Network says Chinese re-education teams are forcing Tibetan monks and nuns to denounce the Dalai Lama as a serpent's head and a threat to \JBuddhism\j. \I(China, \JTibet\j, UK)\i
Four hours after abandoning a Panamanian-flagged bulk carrier sinking in the Indian Ocean, all 21 crew members are picked up by a British tanker. \I(Panama, UK)\i
Celebrated Russian pianist, Svyatoslav Richter, dies of a heart attack in Moscow at the age of 82. \I(Russia)\i
After living exiled in \JFrance\j for four decades, the last Vietnamese Emperor, Bao Dai, dies aged 83 at a military \Jhospital\j in Paris. \I(France, Vietnam)\i
#
"August 2, 1997",577,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australian ski instructor, Stuart Diver, is rescued after surviving over 61 hours buried beneath the rubble of two Thredbo ski lodges engulfed by a landslide. The rescue workers also find the bodies of six more of the landslide's suspected 19 victims. \I(Australia)\i
One person is killed and 55 are injured when Typhoon Victor hits Hong Kong, lashing the territory with torrential rain and wind gusts of up to 127 kilometers per hour. \I(Hong Kong)\i
After applauding the heroism of a Japanese man who led an attack on an Israeli airport 17 years ago, a \JBeirut\j judge sentences the man, and four other members of the Japanese Red Army, to three years in jail for entering \JLebanon\j illegally. Both \JJapan\j and \JLebanon\j say they will appeal the verdict. \I(Japan, \JLebanon\j, Israel)\i
In the Tri Nations Rugby Test at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium, the Australian Wallabies score a 32-20 victory over the South African Springboks. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the wake of the double suicide bombing in Israel this week, the United States amends the fiscal 1998 appropriations bill, suspending up to $US20 million of the $US100 million pledged in administration aid to the Palestinian Authority. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Washington condemns the execution of six people in \JBurundi\j this week, calling on the Burundian Government to halt all executions and suspend all trials in the interests of ethnic peace. \I(USA, Burundi)\i
The United States signs an end-use agreement with \JColombia\j, allowing the resumption of US anti-drug assistance previously suspended by human rights concerns. Under the terms of the new agreement, US officials will carry out inventories to ensure that supplies of weapons and money are not utilized by military units to fight rebel groups. \I(USA, Colombia)\i
Plans by Sierra Leone's military junta to stave off elections until 2001 are bitterly criticized by the United States. Spokesman, James Foley, says the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council has reneged on its commitment to negotiate restoration of the elected government of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, who was toppled in a May coup. \I(USA, Sierra Leone)\i
Vasily Tsibliyev, commander of the crippled Mir space station, gives his first news conference since the vessel's June 25 collision with a cargo ship. Tsibliyev defends his actions at that time, saying he averted a disaster that might have killed the Russian-American crew. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Beat Generation writer, William S. Burroughs, dies of a heart attack in a Kansas \Jhospital\j at the age of 83. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Israeli Army is now holding 79 Palestinians suspected of terrorist activity, a security move triggered by this week's suicide bombing of \JJerusalem\j's Mahane Yehuda market. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
In the wake of the double suicide bombing in Israel this week, the United States amends the fiscal 1998 appropriations bill, suspending up to $US20 million of the $US100 million pledged in administration aid to the Palestinian Authority. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Washington condemns the execution of six people in \JBurundi\j this week, calling on the Burundian Government to halt all executions and suspend all trials in the interests of ethnic peace. \I(USA, Burundi)\i
Plans by Sierra Leone's military junta to stave off elections until 2001 are bitterly criticized by the United States. Spokesman, James Foley, says the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council has reneged on its commitment to negotiate restoration of the elected government of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, who was toppled in a May coup. \I(USA, Sierra Leone)\i
After applauding the heroism of a Japanese man who led an attack on an Israeli airport 17 years ago, a \JBeirut\j judge sentences the man, and four other members of the Japanese Red Army, to three years in jail for entering \JLebanon\j illegally. Both \JJapan\j and \JLebanon\j say they will appeal the verdict. \I(Japan, \JLebanon\j, Israel)\i
Vasily Tsibliyev, commander of the crippled Mir space station, gives his first news conference since the vessel's June 25 collision with a cargo ship. Tsibliyev defends his actions at that time, saying he averted a disaster that might have killed the Russian-American crew. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In the Tri Nations Rugby Test at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium, the Australian Wallabies score a 32-20 victory over the South African Springboks. \I(Australia, South Africa)\i
#
"August 3, 1997",578,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Australia begins a clinical trial of a potential gene therapy for \JHIV\j. Based on "gene shears" technology devised by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), the trial will test the use of ribozyme on \JHIV\j's genetic material, using six patients and their healthy identical twins as subjects. \I(Australia)\i
Sri Lankan military officials reveal that the death toll from the latest outburst of fighting between government forces and Tamil Tiger separatists in the country's north has risen to 243, with rebel losses totaling about 193. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
A member of the Bougainville Transitional Government, Thomas Batakai, is shot dead in the garden of his home. Mr. Batakai had only recently returned from the Burnham peace talks in New Zealand. \I(Bougainville, New Zealand)\i
Officials in \JBangladesh\j report that nearly 100,000 people have now been stranded or left homeless by floods sweeping the country's south-eastern region. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Thousands of New Zealanders turn out to watch the official fireworks opening of Auckland's 328-meter Sky Tower, the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere. \I(New Zealand)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, voices support for any military action Israel decides to take against Palestinian militants, even if the action involves raids into Palestinian territory. Gingrich says Israel has the right to take whatever measures deemed necessary to protect its citizens from atrocities like the recent suicide bomb attack. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
An official Syrian newspaper attacks the Middle East policy of US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, calling it "ineffective and confused", and accusing US foreign policy of leading the Middle East to "explosion". \I(USA, \JSyria\j, Middle East)\i
Top seed, Martina Hingis of \JSwitzerland\j, claims her ninth tennis title this year, defeating Monica Seles in the final of the Toshiba Tennis Classic at Carlsbad, \JCalifornia\j. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, Americans dominate the 100 meter track events, with Maurice Greene winning the men's final, and Marion Jones winning the women's final. \I(Greece, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
US House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, voices support for any military action Israel decides to take against Palestinian militants, even if the action involves raids into Palestinian territory. Gingrich says Israel has the right to take whatever measures deemed necessary to protect its citizens from atrocities like the recent suicide bomb attack. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
An official Syrian newspaper attacks the Middle East policy of US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, calling it "ineffective and confused", and accusing US foreign policy of leading the Middle East to "explosion". \I(USA, \JSyria\j, Middle East)\i
Despite Israel's heightened security, a Palestinian man is shot dead near a Jewish settlement in the West Bank. Meanwhile, retaliatory sanctions imposed by Israel, which include closure of the territories' borders, jamming of Palestinian airwaves, and halting the transfer of tax revenue, are strongly criticized by Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, who charges Israel with increasing tension and wrecking what is left of the peace process. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Officials report that hundreds of Muslim families who recently returned to their pre-war homes in Jajce, a Croat-controlled area about 60 miles northwest of \JSarajevo\j, have been forced to flee again by drunken Croat mobs. The international community's High Representative office in Bosnia is demanding that conditions be established to fully guarantee the safe return of the families. \I(Bosnia)\i
British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, orders an investigation into the recent death of Labor MP, Gordon McMaster. The order comes after the recovery of a suicide note in which McMaster blames two senior party colleagues for perpetuating a campaign of malicious rumors against him. \I(UK)\i
The National Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit in Edinburgh confirms that Sue Carey, a 36 year-old English woman who died in March, is the twenty-first victim of the new strain of the brain disease scientists have linked with eating beef. \I(Scotland, UK)\i
In southern Turkey, a road accident involving 7 trucks, a van, and a car leaves 18 people dead and 33 injured. \I(Turkey)\i
Mohammad Khatami, a 54 year-old clergyman, wins a landslide victory on a platform of social and economic change, and is confirmed as \JIran\j's fifth president since the 1979 Islamic revolution. \I(Iran)\i
Speaking to mourners in KwaZulu/Natal's Richmond area, South African President, Nelson Mandela, blames "third force" agents from the military and the police for the recent execution-style murders of five African National Congress members. \I(South Africa)\i
A study funded by Britain's Department of Health finds radioactive \Jplutonium\j deposits in children's teeth, a contamination linked by the study to discharges from the \JSellafield\j \Jplutonium\j reprocessing facility in northern England. Although authorities say the levels represent an insignificant risk to health, Greenpeace scientists insist that any level is too high, and call for the immediate closure of \JSellafield\j. \I(UK)\i
Top seed, Martina Hingis of \JSwitzerland\j, claims her ninth tennis title this year, defeating Monica Seles in the final of the Toshiba Tennis Classic at Carlsbad, \JCalifornia\j. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, Americans dominate the 100 meter track events, with Maurice Greene winning the men's final, and Marion Jones winning the women's final. \I(Greece, USA)\i
#
"August 4, 1997",579,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The public \Jtelephone\j lines between North and South Korea are connected for the first time since the Korean peninsula was divided after World War II. \I(The Koreas)\i
An explosion, apparently caused by a bomb, rips apart a train in the southern Indian State of \JKarnataka\j, injuring at least 15 people. \I(India)\i
A Karachi police superintendent is shot dead as he leaves an armored personnel carrier in the eastern district of Malir, becoming the 7th person to die in two days of strife between authorities and militant political activists. \I(Pakistan)\i
Reports indicate that China's satellite launching pad in Sichuan province has been hit by a landslide, burying its railway system and warehouses. \I(China)\i
North Korea officially hands over the remains of four US soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War. The remains were found by US experts who arrived in the North in July to search for those still listed as missing in action. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
During a public lecture on Australian-Asian relations, \JAustralia\j's Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, assures the Asian region that MP Pauline Hanson's prescriptive anti-immigration views are out of step with \JAustralia\j's contemporary reality, and would never be put into practice. \I(Australia, Asia)\i
After more than a week of fierce battles between the Taliban militia and opposition forces, the militia claims to have regained control of Hossein Kot, 20 kilometers north of the capital of Kabul, and to have captured Guldara and the surrounding hilltops. \I(Afghanistan)\i
A report from London confirms that the former governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, is being investigated over allegations that he breached Britain's Official Secrets Act by leaking intelligence material to British journalist, Jonathan Dimbleby. The leaked material allegedly contained details of Britain's negotiations with China in relation to the handover of Hong Kong. \I(UK, Hong Kong, China)\i
President Clinton asks chief executives from key utilities, manufacturing, and financial service companies to enter the contentious debate on how to cut \Jpollution\j to stem global warning, inviting them to express their views on what position the US should adopt in international talks for a climate treaty due to be signed in December in \JJapan\j. \JJapan\j, meanwhile, says it will not support any new international agreement on emission targets to reduce global warming unless the United States is a signatory. \I(USA, Japan)\i
Archaeologists unearth more life-size terra-cotta warriors at the tomb of China's first emperor, Qin Shihuangdi, who died in 206 BC. This new excavation yields 86 warriors, 44 horses, and chariots. \I(China)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, Cathy Freeman wins the women's 400 meters final, becoming the first Australian woman and the first Aboriginal competitor to take a world track title. Freeman celebrates her double victory by parading the Aboriginal and Australian flags around the Olympic stadium. \I(Australia, Greece)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The US Supreme Court blocks the execution of convicted killer, Thomas Thompson, just hours before he is scheduled to die by lethal injection at San Quentin State Prison, \JCalifornia\j. \I(USA)\i
The US Food and Drug Administration approves the market release of the Activa system, an implanted electronic device that controls muscle tremor caused by disorders of the nervous system. \I(USA)\i
Fiery \Jlava\j from Montserrat's \Jvolcano\j flows into the center of the abandoned capital city for the first time, torching the British colony's customs offices, two stores, a church, and a dozen houses. A government spokesman confirms that no one is hurt. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
North Korea officially hands over the remains of four US soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War. The remains were found by US experts who arrived in the North in July to search for those still listed as missing in action. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
The United States sharply rebukes Carlos Westendorp, the international community's representative in Bosnia, accusing him of not spending enough time in the region. \I(USA, Bosnia, Europe)\i
Antonio Maya, a member of \JColombia\j's ruling Liberal Party and former state governor of Choco, is shot dead in his Bogota office by two gunmen. \I(Colombia)\i
The US Central Intelligence Agency admits that most sightings of unidentified flying objects throughout the Cold War period of the 1950s and '60s were sightings of the newly developed \Jsupersonic\j spy planes, U-2 and SR-71 Blackbird, and that rather than betray the existence of these \Jaircraft\j, the \JCIA\j systematically fabricated false explanations and cover stories. \I(USA)\i
President Clinton asks chief executives from key utilities, manufacturing, and financial service companies to enter the contentious debate on how to cut \Jpollution\j to stem global warning, inviting them to express their views on what position the US should adopt in international talks for a climate treaty due to be signed in December in \JJapan\j. \JJapan\j, meanwhile, says it will not support any new international agreement on emission targets to reduce global warming unless the United States is a signatory. \I(USA, Japan)\i
The American fast-food chain, McDonalds, is banned from \JBermuda\j when the Prohibited Restaurants Bill is finally signed after 18 months of heated debate in the island's House of Assembly. \I(Bermuda, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, refuses to ease punitive measures imposed on Palestinians after the recent suicide bombings in \JJerusalem\j, insisting that the future of the Middle East peace process depends on whether the Palestinian Authority makes an immediate all-out effort to round up terrorists and their leaders. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
The French Foreign Ministry rejects requests from Anjouan separatists to return to French rule, saying any solution to Anjouan's social and economic problems must fully respect the territorial integrity of the \JComoros\j Islamic Federal Republic. Meanwhile, the Organization of African Unity (OAU) announces it will send a special envoy to the \JComoros\j to help resolve the dispute. \I(France, \JComoros\j, Anjouan Island, Africa)\i
The United States sharply rebukes Carlos Westendorp, the international community's representative in Bosnia, accusing him of not spending enough time in the region. \I(USA, Bosnia, Europe)\i
About 3,000 well-wishers bearing cards and flowers crowd six-deep outside the London home of Britain's Queen Mother to celebrate the occasion of her 97th birthday. \I(UK)\i
Fiery \Jlava\j from Montserrat's \Jvolcano\j flows into the center of the abandoned capital city for the first time, torching the British colony's customs offices, two stores, a church, and a dozen houses. A government spokesman confirms that no one is hurt. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
As soldiers and volunteers work around the clock to bolster dikes on the swollen Oder River, \JGermany\j's biggest industrial group, Daimler-Benz, pledges 1 million German marks in relief for flood victims. \I(Germany)\i
A report from London confirms that the former governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, is being investigated over allegations that he breached Britain's Official Secrets Act by leaking intelligence material to British journalist, Jonathan Dimbleby. The leaked material allegedly contained details of Britain's negotiations with China in relation to the handover of Hong Kong. \I(UK, Hong Kong, China)\i
Frenchwoman, Jeanne Calment, dies at the age of 122 years and 164 days, the highest age ever documented for a human being. Although blind and almost deaf, Mrs. Calment remained mentally sharp until the end, and in defiance of medical advice, still enjoyed wine, chocolate, and the occasional \Jcigarette\j. \I(France)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, \JGermany\j's Sabine Bruan dominates from the start to win the women's \Jheptathlon\j event with 6,739 points.
Cathy Freeman wins the women's 400 meters final, becoming the first Australian woman and the first Aboriginal competitor to take a world track title. Freeman celebrates her double victory by parading the Aboriginal and Australian flags around the Olympic stadium. \I(Greece, \JGermany\j, Australia)\i
#
"August 5, 1997",580,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Indonesian Government announces its decision to buy 12 Russian-made Sukhoi-30K jet fighters and eight Mi-17-IV helicopters. Under the terms of the deal, which will be signed in Moscow later this month, \JRussia\j is to accept shipments of Indonesian palm oil, \Jcoffee\j, and rubber as payment. \I(Indonesia, Russia)\i
Chinese researchers reveal their success in \Jcloning\j a gene of the endangered giant panda. The gene, known as Brain Derived Neutrotrophic Factor, is linked to nervous disorders. \I(China)\i
Thousands of Muslim refugees enter the 14th day of a hunger strike as part of a protest against alleged attempts by the \JBangladesh\j Government to send them back home to \JMyanmar\j. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), Bangladesh)\i
India and China conclude two days of talks on issues relating to the India-China border, pledging to continue dialog on a mutually acceptable frontier. \I(India, China)\i
The first round of four-party talks between the Koreas, China, and the United States takes place at Columbia University. The goal of the talks is to set a date and agenda for launching substantive negotiations on the future peace of the Korean peninsula. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
Chris Patten, the former governor of Hong Kong, denies reports that he leaked classified documents relating to the region's handover to China, saying the charges are totally without foundation. Elsewhere, Jonathan Dimbleby, alleged recipient of the documents, and author of \IThe Last Governor,\i describes the reports as "astonishing". \I(UK, Hong Kong, China)\i
Thailand suspends 42 finance companies as part of a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to salvage the country's economy. Finance Minister, Thanong Bidaya, confirms that the Thai Government is seeking to borrow around 500 billion baht from the IMF, \JJapan\j, and other sources. \I(Thailand, Japan)\i
Sri Lankan batsmen, Sanath Jayasuriya and Roshan Mahanama, record the world's highest partnership in Test cricket, scoring an unbeaten 548 against India. \I(Sri Lanka, India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In a Manhattan federal court, testimony begins in the second World Trade Center bombing case, with prosecutors alleging that defendant, Ramzi Yousef, was the mastermind behind the 1993 attack that killed six people and injured 1,000 others. \I(USA)\i
Commander Anatoli Solovyov, and flight engineer Pavel Vinogradov, lift off from \JRussia\j's Baikonur cosmodrome on a mission to relieve the weary Russian-US crew of the damaged Mir space station. The two cosmonauts are expected to rendezvous with Mir on Thursday. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The first round of four-party talks between the Koreas, China, and the United States takes place at Columbia University. The goal of the talks is to set a date and agenda for launching substantive negotiations on the future peace of the Korean peninsula. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
The Mars Pathfinder lander and its Sojourner rover are back in action after a 24-hour battery recharging procedure which, according to mission commander, Carl Steiner, worked perfectly. \I(USA)\i
US Navy researchers reveal they may have found a way to block bodily rejection of "mismatched" organ transplants, a potential breakthrough that could help tens of thousands of people waiting for compatible organ donors. \I(USA)\i
Bosnia's government comes under further pressure to comply with the Dayton peace accords when more European Union states suspend diplomatic relations. Britain, \JFrance\j, Sweden, \JAustria\j, \JItaly\j, \JGermany\j, \JSpain\j, Denmark, \JFinland\j, the Netherlands, and the United States have now joined in freezing contact with Bosnian ambassadors. \I(Bosnia, UK, Europe, USA)\i
The White House indicates that President Clinton is not likely to consider offering a formal national apology to black Americans for enslaving their ancestors. \I(USA)\i
Mexican President, Ernesto Zedillo, declares war on the crime wave that has soared in the country since 1995, sending heavily armed police into dangerous neighborhoods to round up hundreds of suspected criminals. \I(Mexico)\i
Six Mexicans drown when they are trapped in a flooded irrigation ditch while trying to illegally cross the border into the United States. Border officials are searching for a seventh body, believed to be that of a very young child. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
A bomb explodes in the lobby of \JHavana\j's Melia-Cohiba hotel, the third blast in a leading Cuban hotel in less than a month. The Interior Ministry blames all three attacks on anti-Castro Cubans residing in the United States. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, America's Michael Johnson wins his third successive 400 meters title. \I(USA, Greece)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Middle East crisis deepens when two militant Islamist groups vow to carry out fresh suicide bomb attacks inside Israel. Elsewhere, Israel's decision to freeze $US70 million owed to the Palestinian Authority is criticized as counter-productive to the trust and confidence required to restart peace negotiations. For the third time this year, Jordan's King Hussein makes a bid to prevent any further deterioration in relations by directly mediating between the two sides. \I(Israel, Palestine, Jordan)\i
Bosnia's government comes under further pressure to comply with the Dayton peace accords when more European Union states suspend diplomatic relations. Britain, \JFrance\j, Sweden, \JAustria\j, \JItaly\j, \JGermany\j, \JSpain\j, Denmark, \JFinland\j, the Netherlands, and the United States have now joined in freezing contact with Bosnian ambassadors. \I(Bosnia, UK, Europe, USA)\i
Reports from \JAlgeria\j reveal that Muslim rebels launched a series of savage raids across two provinces in the last two days, slaughtering between 75 and 110 civilians. \I(Algeria)\i
The Indonesian Government announces its decision to buy 12 Russian-made Sukhoi-30K jet fighters and eight Mi-17-IV helicopters. Under the terms of the deal, which will be signed in Moscow later this month, \JRussia\j will accept shipments of Indonesian palm oil, \Jcoffee\j, and rubber as payment. \I(Indonesia, Russia)\i
Chris Patten, the former governor of Hong Kong, denies reports that he leaked classified documents relating to the region's handover to China, saying the charges are totally without foundation. Elsewhere, Jonathan Dimbleby, alleged recipient of the documents, and author of \IThe Last Governor,\i describes the reports as "astonishing". \I(UK, Hong Kong, China)\i
Commander Anatoli Solovyov, and flight engineer Pavel Vinogradov, lift off from \JRussia\j's Baikonur cosmodrome on a mission to relieve the weary Russian-US crew of the damaged Mir space station. The two cosmonauts are expected to rendezvous with Mir on Thursday. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Croatian President, Franjo Tudjman, is sworn in for a second five-year term, pledging his commitment to peace in Bosnia, and to rebuilding his country's economy. \I(Croatian Democratic Union, Bosnia)\i
British researchers report that air \Jpollution\j may be the cause of up to one in fifty heart attacks treated at London Hospitals. \I(UK)\i
The \JArchbishop\j of Canterbury, Dr. George Carey, says the Church of England would be plunged into crisis if the Prince of Wales remarries, adding that the Church could face disestablishment over the issue. \I(UK)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, America's Michael Johnson wins his third successive men's 400m title, and South African, Marius Corbett, wins the men's javelin with a mighty 88.40m throw. In women's events, Carla Sacramento of \JPortugal\j takes the 1500m title, and Sally Barsosio takes the 10,000m, becoming the first Kenyan woman to win either an Olympic or world championship gold medal. \I(Greece, USA, South Africa, \JPortugal\j, Kenya)\i
#
"August 6, 1997",581,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A Korean Air Lines Boeing 747 crashes in rugged jungle as it prepares to land at \JGuam\j airport, killing at least 200 passengers, most of whom are South Korean tourists and honeymooners. Early reports of survivors are conflicting, with numbers ranging between 33 and 50. Bad weather and a fault in the airport's GSS (glide slope signal) system are being blamed for the disaster. \I(South Korea, Guam)\i
Cambodia's National Assembly votes to remove Prince Norodom Ranariddh as First Prime Minister and to install Foreign Minister, Ung Huot, in Ranariddh's place. In a separate vote, Ranariddh is stripped of his parliamentary immunity, clearing the way for him to be put on trial should he return to Phnom Penh. Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, says the decisive parliamentary votes are an endorsement of his decision to take military action against Prince Ranariddh's forces, and evidence that the coalition of the Cambodian People's Party and Funcinpec is still intact. \I(Cambodia)\i
The White House says President Clinton's national security adviser, Sandy Berger, will meet Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, in \JBeijing\j next week to discuss preparations for Jiang's state visit to Washington in October. \I(USA, China)\i
President Clinton urges India and \JPakistan\j to work out their differences in relation to Kashmir, saying the economies of both countries would reap the benefits. The President adds that the United States will remain heavily engaged in the region. \I(USA, India, Pakistan)\i
As \JJapan\j marks the 52nd anniversary of the atomic bombing of \JHiroshima\j, Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, vows to press nations to ratify a treaty banning nuclear weapons tests. \I(Japan)\i
The Karen National Union (KNU), the last major ethnic insurgency fighting the military regime in \JRangoon\j, accuses the military of burning 178 villages and killing 83 civilians in a drive to cut off support for the KNU. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
On the second day of four-party talks between The Koreas, China, and the United States, North Korea agrees to honor the 44-year truce on the divided Korean peninsula, but demands that US troops be withdrawn from the South. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
In a signed editorial in the official \IChina Daily,\i plans by the United States to appoint a special co-ordinator for Tibetan affairs are bitterly attacked as uninvited interference, and as an arrogant desire to assert control. The editorial staunchly defends Chinese rule of \JTibet\j, crediting China with boosting \JTibet\j's economy and eliminating a system of serfdom that existed until the 1960s. \I(China, \JTibet\j, USA)\i
Chairman of the \JTibet\j regional government, Gyaincain Norbu, claims that Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has been involved in terrorist attacks, including explosions and attempted assassinations. Mr. Norbu adds that \JBeijing\j would nevertheless welcome the Dalai Lama's return if he abandoned separatist activities and contributed towards \JTibet\j's development. \I(Tibet, China)\i
Typhoon Victor creates havoc as it sweeps through the Meizhou area of Guangdon province in southern China, claiming the lives of 49 people. \I(China)\i
In the Australian state of New South Wales, concerns are raised by the Council for Civil Liberties when three self-confessed killers are acquitted of murder by three Supreme Court juries within the space of a week. However, the Law Society of NSW denies that a dangerous precedent is being set, pointing to the highly unusual nature of each case, and arguing that the verdicts should thereby not have been unexpected. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
President Clinton announces that the US budget deficit will drop to $US37 billion for the current fiscal year, and that with the help of newly signed budget legislation, the nation will have a surplus of $US20 billion by the year 2002. The president also expects that his new line-veto authority will eliminate wasteful spending from the budget. \I(USA)\i
The architect of the Dayton peace agreement, Richard Holbrooke, returns to the Balkans to pressure leaders to abide by its terms. Accompanied by Robert Gelbard, the US envoy to Bosnia, Holbrooke meets with Croatian President, Franjo Tudjman, and the Muslim chairman of the Bosnian presidency, Alija Izetbegovic, in the Adriatic port of Split. \I(USA, Croatian Democratic Union, Bosnia)\i
President Clinton urges India and \JPakistan\j to work out their differences in relation to Kashmir, saying the economies of both countries would reap the benefits. The President adds that the United States will remain heavily engaged in the region. \I(USA, India, Pakistan)\i
On the second day of four-party talks between The Koreas, China, and the United States, North Korea agrees to honor the 44-year truce on the divided Korean peninsula, but demands that US troops be withdrawn from the South. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
In a signed editorial in the official \IChina Daily,\i plans by the United States to appoint a special co-ordinator for Tibetan affairs are bitterly attacked as uninvited interference, and as an arrogant desire to assert control. The editorial staunchly defends Chinese rule of \JTibet\j, crediting China with boosting \JTibet\j's economy and eliminating a system of serfdom that existed until the 1960s. \I(China, \JTibet\j, USA)\i
The White House says President Clinton's national security adviser, Sandy Berger, will meet Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, in \JBeijing\j next week to discuss preparations for Jiang's state visit to Washington in October. \I(USA, China)\i
Apple Computer announces that Microsoft chairman, Bill Gates, has decided to buy $US150 million of the struggling computer company's stock, a move which will boost Apple and end the long-standing rivalry between the two industry giants. \I(USA)\i
Following a raid by German and Guatemalan authorities, Nestle's top executive in \JGuatemala\j, Andreas Hanggi Widler, is arrested on charges of alleged ties to a drug ring. \I(Guatemala, Germany)\i
Venezuela grinds to a virtual standstill as about 90 per cent of the workforce joins a 12-hour government-endorsed strike in protest against the private sector's failure to grant promised wage rises. \I(Venezuela)\i
Cuba's Javier Sotomayor wins the men's high jump at the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j. \I(Cuba, Greece)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Britain's Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, announces that an international conference will be held in London in December to solve the issue of gold stolen by the Nazis during World War II. \I(UK, Europe)\i
Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, meets with Britain's Northern Ireland Minister, Mo Mowlam, to begin talks aimed at paving the way for Sinn Fein's entry into September's multi-party peace negotiations. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
The architect of the Dayton peace agreement, Richard Holbrooke, returns to the Balkans to pressure leaders to abide by its terms. Accompanied by Robert Gelbard, the US envoy to Bosnia, Holbrooke meets with Croatian President, Franjo Tudjman, and the Muslim chairman of the Bosnian presidency, Alija Izetbegovic, in the Adriatic port of Split. \I(USA, Croatian Democratic Union, Bosnia)\i
Following a raid by German and Guatemalan authorities, Nestle's top executive in \JGuatemala\j, Andreas Hanggi Widler, is arrested on charges of alleged ties to a drug ring. \I(Guatemala, Germany)\i
Archaeologists in \JAthens\j believe that charred bones they recovered from mass graves are the remains of Athenian soldiers who died fighting Sparta in the opening years of the 5th Century BC Peloponnesian War. The site of the graves, less than a mile from the Acropolis, corresponds closely to the Demosian Sema, where \JPericles\j delivered his 430 BC funeral oration for those killed in the first year of the 27-year war. \I(Greece)\i
In men's events at the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, Morocco's Hicham el Guerrouj wins gold in the 1500m final, \JEthiopia\j's Haile Gebrselassie wins the 10,000m final, Tomas Dvorak of the Czech Republic wins the \Jdecathlon\j, and \JCuba\j's Javier Sotomayor wins the high jump. \I(Greece, Morocco, \JEthiopia\j, Czech Republic, Cuba)\i
#
"August 7, 1997",582,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The "black box" flight recorders of the crashed Korean Air Lines 747 arrive at the United States National Transportation Safety Board for deciphering. At the crash site in \JGuam\j, meanwhile, the search for bodies is interrupted to allow experts to examine the wreckage for clues. Of the 254 people on board the plane, 69 are confirmed dead, 155 are still missing, and 30 survive. \I(South Korea, \JGuam\j, USA)\i
After an exhausting week-long effort by rescue workers in the tiny New South Wales ski town of Thredbo, the last body is retrieved from the rubble of two ski lodges buried by a landslide. Eighteen people are now confirmed to have died in the disaster, the sole survivor being Australian ski instructor, Stuart Diver. Plans are announced to turn the area into a park with a memorial to the victims. \I(Australia)\i
Cambodian Foreign Minister, Ung Huot, is formally appointed First Prime Minister after King Norodom Sihanouk authorizes acting head of state, Chea Sim, to issue the decree. Ung Huot replaces the king's son, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia)\i
A Sri Lankan military spokesman says about 20,000 government troops have resumed their advance on a key northern highway after being stalled for some days by a fierce counterattack mounted by Tamil Tiger rebels. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Punjab police announce the arrest of two Sunni Muslim militants who admitted killing 37 Shi'ite Muslims and planning to kill six notable Shi'ite politicians. \I(India)\i
New research data from \JAustralia\j and Britain strongly suggests that the debilitating condition known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), is caused by a genetic predisposition in either the immune or the central nervous system, which is in turn triggered by any one of a number of factors. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Papua New Guinean Prime Minister, Bill Skate, is to meet with New Zealand Foreign Minister, Don McKinnon, to discuss details of the Burnham declaration, a peace treaty recently signed by the parties involved in the nine-year conflict over the island of Bougainville. Mr. Skate supports the declaration, but fears it may be jeopardized by this week's assassination of key Bougainvillean negotiator, Thomas Batakai. \I(Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, Bougainville)\i
Talks between the United States, China, and the two Koreas are recessed until September, when the four parties will meet again to prepare details and logistics for replacing the 1950-53 Korean War armistice with a more durable peace agreement. \I(USA, China, The Koreas)\i
Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, says his government wants to pursue the policy of befriending \JPakistan\j, but cannot ignore the backing given by Pakistani intelligence to terrorist activities in Jammu, Kashmir, and elsewhere. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
China is introducing a reserve labor system to help ease the problem of unemployment. Under a new Labor Ministry regulation being tried out in 36 cities, all new high school graduates will have to undergo one to two years' vocational training before they are allowed to work. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The "black box" flight recorders of the crashed Korean Air Lines 747 arrive at the United States National Transportation Safety Board for deciphering. At the crash site in \JGuam\j, meanwhile, the search for bodies is interrupted to allow experts to examine the wreckage for clues. Of the 254 people on board the plane, 69 are confirmed dead, 155 are still missing, and 30 survive. \I(South Korea, \JGuam\j, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, voices her concerns about a "crisis of confidence" in the Middle East, criticizing Israeli and Palestinian leaders for publicly slating each other. Albright's criticism comes after Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, angered by Israeli sanctions against the Palestinians, calls on his supporters to prepare for the next big battle with Israel. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
A two-man Russian relief team reaches the Mir space station but is forced to dock manually when automatic systems develop a fault. The most urgent task awaiting the team is the repair of the vessel's oxygen system. \I(Russia, USA)\i
US Attorney General, Janet Reno, orders an investigation into reports that Gazi Ibrahim Abu Mezer, one of the three men arrested in connection with an alleged New York bombing plot, had declared in a US \Jimmigration\j application that he had been detained for \Jterrorism\j in Israel. \I(USA, Israel)\i
Talks between the United States, China, and the two Koreas are recessed until September, when the four parties will meet again to prepare details and logistics for replacing the 1950-53 Korean War armistice with a more durable peace agreement. \I(USA, China, The Koreas)\i
Seconds after takeoff from Miami International Airport, a DC-8-61F cargo jet plummets to the ground and skids across a six-lane road before crashing into the parking lot of a shopping mall. Four crew members are killed and at least two people on the ground are injured. \I(USA)\i
US District Judge, Susan Webber Wright, announces that a trial date in Paula Jones' sexual harassment case against President Clinton will be set during a hearing scheduled for August 22 in Little Rock. \I(USA)\i
A team of New York researchers reports the discovery of a protein on the surface of \Jmalaria\j cells that allows the parasites to invade human liver cells, saying if a method of blocking the protein can be found, it could lead to the development of a \Jmalaria\j vaccine. \I(USA)\i
In Madison, \JWisconsin\j, ABS Global Inc. announces the creation of a cloned calf named "Gene", a breakthrough researchers say has production line possibilities. \I(USA)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, American Allen Johnson takes gold in the men's 110m hurdles. In the men's shotput, American John Godina is declared the winner after \JUkraine\j's Aleksandr Bagach tests positive for the stimulant ephedrine and is stripped of his gold medal. \I(USA, \JUkraine\j, Greece)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
New research data from \JAustralia\j and Britain strongly suggests that the debilitating condition known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is caused by a genetic predisposition in either the immune or the central nervous system, which is in turn triggered by any one of a number of factors. \I(Australia, UK)\i
A two-man Russian relief team reaches the Mir space station but is forced to dock manually when automatic systems develop a fault. The most urgent task awaiting the team is the repair of the vessel's oxygen system. \I(Russia, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, voices her concerns about a "crisis of confidence" in the Middle East, criticizing Israeli and Palestinian leaders for publicly slating each other. Albright's criticism comes after Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, angered by Israeli sanctions against the Palestinians, calls on his supporters to prepare for the next big battle with Israel. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
US Attorney General, Janet Reno, orders an investigation into reports that Gazi Ibrahim Abu Mezer, one of the three men arrested in connection with an alleged New York bombing plot, had declared in a US \Jimmigration\j application that he had been detained for \Jterrorism\j in Israel. \I(USA, Israel)\i
The official Sudanese News Agency reports that 400 members of the \JSudan\j People's Liberation Army (SPLA) were killed during an attack on their camp by government forces. The government and the SPLA rebels have been warring for the past 14 years. \I(Sudan)\i
Algerian authorities say about 40 people, mostly civilians, have been killed by Muslim fundamentalist rebels in the past few days, raising the death toll from the 11-day string of rebel raids to at least 290. \I(Algeria)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, American Allen Johnson takes gold in the men's 110m hurdles. In the men's shot put, American John Godina is declared the winner after \JUkraine\j's Aleksandr Bagach tests positive for the stimulant ephedrine and is stripped of his gold medal. \I(USA, \JUkraine\j, Greece)\i
#
"August 8, 1997",583,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Eight survivors of the Korean Air Lines 747 that crashed in \JGuam\j are airlifted to Seoul by a United States medical evacuation plane. Elsewhere, investigators rule out mechanical failure as the cause of the crash, and the National Transportation Safety Board also dismisses earlier reports that pilot error was to blame. \I(South Korea, \JGuam\j, USA)\i
The South Australian Supreme Court issues a temporary restraining order barring the brother of murdered Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford, from calling for the death penalty should two British nurses on trial for her murder in Saudi \JArabia\j be found guilty. Meanwhile, a leading member of the Saudi Royal Family declares that the two women do not deserve execution, which traditionally takes the form of a public beheading by the sword. \I(Australia, UK, Saudi Arabia)\i
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) marks the official start of its 30th anniversary celebrations by hoisting the flags of the nine member states at the regional group's Jakarta headquarters. \I(Indonesia, Southeast Asia)\i
Australia agrees to allow four modified US Terrier ground-to-air missiles to be test-fired from the Western Australian coast between Broome and Port Hedland. The joint Australian-US Project Dundee (Downunder Early-warning Experiment) will contribute to research into defense against ballistic missiles such as the Scud. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Thailand's worst economic crisis in a decade sparks demands for the resignation of Prime Minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh. The government's chief economic adviser, Chatichai Choonhaven, warns that a major political shake-up is inevitable when King Bhumibol Adulyadej summons Mr. Chavalit and senior ministers to a two-and-a-half-hour emergency meeting. \I(Thailand)\i
The United States says its suspension of aid to the Cambodian Government will be extended indefinitely, but direct help for the Cambodian people will continue. Aid was suspended last month following the coup in which Hun Sen ousted his co-prime minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
Penny Wensley, head of the North Asia Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, is appointed Australian Ambassador to the United Nations in New York, the highest position ever given to an Australian woman career diplomat. \I(Australia, USA)\i
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average falls 156.78 points to 8031.22, the biggest decline since June 23. Analysts attribute the decline to a bond sell-off, and to a reaction to a 3 per cent fall in the US dollar against the Japanese yen. Despite the sharp drop, the Dow is still up 24.55 per cent for the year. \I(USA, Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Eight survivors of the Korean Air Lines 747 that crashed in \JGuam\j are airlifted to Seoul by a United States medical evacuation plane. Elsewhere, investigators rule out mechanical failure as the cause of the crash, and the National Transportation Safety Board also dismisses earlier speculation that pilot error was to blame. \I(South Korea,
Guam, USA)\i
As investigators sift through the wreckage of the cargo jet which slammed into a Miami shopping center carpark yesterday, the death toll rises to at least five, with one victim found in a car beneath the charred remains of the \Jaircraft\j. \I(USA)\i
The US space shuttle Discovery soars into orbit, releasing a German-built satellite, known as CHRISTA-SPAS, which will monitor depletion of the Earth's protective ozone layer for a period of nine days. \I(USA, Germany)\i
United States negotiator, Richard Holbrooke, wins agreement from Bosnian leaders on equal division of ambassadorships before heading off to \JBelgrade\j to pressure Yugoslav President, Slobodan Milosevic, to fulfill his Dayton peace accords commitments. \I(USA, Bosnia, Yugoslavia)\i
Australia agrees to allow four modified US Terrier ground-to-air missiles to be test-fired from the Western Australian coast between Broome and Port Hedland. The joint Australian-US Project Dundee (Downunder Early-warning Experiment) will contribute to research into defense against ballistic missiles such as the Scud. \I(Australia, USA)\i
The United States says its suspension of aid to the Cambodian Government will be extended indefinitely, but direct help for the Cambodian people will continue. Aid was suspended last month following the coup in which Hun Sen ousted his co-prime minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
Fire crews battle to control a wildfire threatening an oilfield 50 miles northwest of Los Angeles. The blaze, which started Tuesday, has already consumed 14,000 acres of trees and shrub. \I(USA)\i
Penny Wensley, head of the North Asia Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, is appointed Australian Ambassador to the United Nations in New York, the highest position ever given to an Australian woman career diplomat. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Reed Brody, an American human rights expert, is named as the third member of a United Nations team to probe alleged massacres of Rwandan refugees in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. Brody joins two African experts in a team formed after President Laurent Kabila refused entry to an earlier team because of a critical report from leader, Roberto Garreton. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), USA, \JRwanda\j, Africa)\i
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average falls 156.78 points to 8031.22, the biggest decline since June 23. Analysts attribute the decline to a bond sell-off, and to a reaction to a 3 per cent fall in the US dollar against the Japanese yen. Despite the sharp drop, the Dow is still up 24.55 per cent for the year. \I(USA, Japan)\i
In a $US2.4 billion war against the seventh-leading killer in the United States, President Clinton announces expanded benefits for diabetics and an intensified federal government effort to find a cure for the disease. \I(USA)\i
A US National Institute of Health report suggests further studies should be made into the medical value of marijuana, citing a number of cases in which the drug may provide benefits, including \Jglaucoma\j, nausea during cancer treatment, pain, poor appetite, and neurological disorders. \I(USA)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, Trinidad's Ato Boldon takes gold in the men's 200m. \I(Trinidad, Greece)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Israel launches air, sea, and artillery strikes on targets south of \JBeirut\j after rockets from southern \JLebanon\j hit a residential area of northern Israel. Since Monday, escalating violence along the Israel-Lebanon border has killed 13 people. \I(Israel, Lebanon)\i
The South Australian Supreme Court issues a temporary restraining order barring the brother of murdered Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford, from calling for the death penalty should two British nurses on trial for her murder in Saudi \JArabia\j be found guilty. Meanwhile, a leading member of the Saudi Royal Family declares that the two women do not deserve execution, which traditionally takes the form of a public beheading by the sword. \I(Australia, UK, Saudi Arabia)\i
The US space shuttle Discovery soars into orbit, releasing a German-built satellite, known as CHRISTA-SPAS, which will monitor depletion of the Earth's protective ozone layer for a period of nine days. \I(USA, Germany)\i
In an escalating conflict over Turkey's state education plans, about 200 riot police clash with several hundred Islamist protesters who regard the plans as a threat to the future of religious schools. \I(Turkey)\i
As \JKenya\j braces itself for an unlawful national strike in support of constitutional reforms, a man suspected of being a police spy is beaten to death at a rally attended by 1,000 activists. \I(Kenya)\i
United States negotiator, Richard Holbrooke, wins agreement from Bosnian leaders on equal division of ambassadorships before heading off to \JBelgrade\j to pressure Yugoslav President, Slobodan Milosevic, to fulfill his Dayton peace accords commitments. \I(USA, Bosnia, Yugoslavia)\i
Reed Brody, an American human rights expert, is named as the third member of a United Nations team to probe alleged massacres of Rwandan refugees in the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j. Brody joins two African experts in a team formed after President Laurent Kabila refused entry to an earlier team because of a critical report from leader, Roberto Garreton. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), USA, \JRwanda\j, Africa)\i
At Ireland's government-owned Teagasc dairy production center in Cork, a four-year-old cow is diagnosed with BSE. As a result, the center's specially bred herd of more than 300 cows will be destroyed. \I(Republic of Ireland)\i
Management announces the closure of South Crofty, the last working tin mine in Cornwall, southwest England, signaling the end of a regional industry dating back 2,500 years. At its commercial height in the last century, the industry operated 400 mines employing 30,000 people from the area. \I(UK)\i
Archaeologists unearth a roasted \Jcoffee\j bean in the tiny Gulf state of Ras al-Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates, a find suggesting that the birth of \Jcoffee\j drinking may date back to the 10th or 11th century AD. \I(United Arab Emirates)\i
Freak weather divides Britain, with central London experiencing the hottest day of the year, and torrential rain continuing to fall in Devon and Cornwall, where flash floods
force the evacuation of 1,000 people and the Environment Agency issues alerts on seven rivers. \I(UK)\i
At the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, Trinidad's Ato Boldon takes gold in the men's 200m and in the men's 800m, Denmark's Wilson Kipketer retains his title but fails to set a new world record as expected. \I(Greece, Trinidad, Denmark)\i
#
"August 9, 1997",584,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A Formosa Airlines plane carrying 16 passengers and crew members crashes en route from Taipei to the offshore Matsu islands. No survivors are yet reported. \I(Taiwan)\i
United States officials rule out negotiating a withdrawal of troops from South Korea in response to demands made by the North, but say they are still optimistic about prospects for launching four-party Korean peace talks. \I(USA, The Koreas, China)\i
In Rugby's Tri Nations Test, the New Zealand All Blacks score a 55-35 win over the South African Springboks at Auckland's Eden Park. \I(New Zealand, South Africa)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In northwestern \JArizona\j, a 16-car Amtrack passenger train bound for \JChicago\j from Los Angeles derails as it crosses a bridge undermined by flash flooding. At least half of the 301 passengers on board the train are injured. \I(USA)\i
Speaking after more than eight hours of meetings with Yugoslav President, Slobodan Milosevic, US special envoy, Richard Holbrooke, says he has received renewed promises that indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, will withdraw from Bosnian
Serb politics. Holbrooke acknowledges, however, that the results of his Balkan peace mission are limited. \I(USA, Yugoslavia, Bosnia)\i
United States officials rule out negotiating a withdrawal of troops from South Korea in response to demands made by the North, but say they are still optimistic about prospects for launching four-party Korean peace talks. \I(USA, The Koreas, China)\i
The crew of the US space shuttle Discovery catches brief glimpses of the Hale-Bopp \Jcomet\j through an ultraviolet \Jtelescope\j. Hale-Bopp is currently 270 million miles from Earth, approaching the asteroid belt. \I(USA)\i
In the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, \JCuba\j's Ana Fidelia Quirot wins the women's 800m final. \I(Greece, Cuba)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Speaking after more than eight hours of meetings with Yugoslav President, Slobodan Milosevic, US special envoy, Richard Holbrooke, says he has received renewed promises that indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, will withdraw from Bosnian
Serb politics. Holbrooke acknowledges, however, that the results of his Balkan peace mission are limited. \I(USA, Yugoslavia, Bosnia)\i
Following recent links made between top Basque terrorist, Emilio Arrizabalaga, and business operations in areas of \JSpain\j bordering \JGibraltar\j, Spanish detectives are to begin investigating accusations that \JGibraltar\j has been used for money-laundering by the ETA terrorist organization. \I(Spain, Gibraltar)\i
Diana, Princess of Wales visits landmine victims in Bosnia, hoping to raise awareness of the landmine issue leading up to a global meeting in \JNorway\j next month where many of the world's governments will discuss banning landmines. \I(UK, Bosnia)\i
An Anjouan separatist spokesman says the \JComoros\j Government has landed troops on the Indian Ocean island in a bid to quell secessionist protests in favor of a return to French rule. \I(Anjouan Island, \JComoros\j, France)\i
Many of Normandy's beaches are closed after a spill from an oil tanker creates a slick affecting more than 40 kilometers of French coastline. Firemen, servicemen, and volunteers working to clean up the beaches rescue more than 100 birds coated in the thick black oil, but the birds' chances of survival are said to be slim. \I(France)\i
Two British archaeologists, Nigel Appleby and Adam Child, believe they have found the site of the Hall of Records, a secret chamber alluded to in the \JBible\j and other ancient texts, and reputed to contain artifacts and documents on the history of mankind. The archaeologists have already been granted permission by Egyptian authorities to survey an area about eight miles north of the Sphinx. \I(UK, Egypt)\i
In women's events at the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, \JCuba\j's Ana Fidelia Quirot wins the 800m final, \JRomania\j's Gabriela Szabo wins the 5,000m final, and \JNorway\j's Trine Hattestad wins the javelin. \I(Greece, \JCuba\j, \JRomania\j, Norway)\i
In Rugby's Tri Nations Test, the New Zealand All Blacks score a 55-35 win over the South African Springboks at Auckland's Eden Park. \I(New Zealand, South Africa)\i
#
"August 10, 1997",585,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Reports from \JAfghanistan\j say the Taliban militia has launched an air-raid-backed offensive against opposition forces near the village of Kalakan, 16 miles north of the capital of Kabul. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Following the death of the fourth Australian victim of a bridge collapse at Israel's Maccabiah games last month, Australian Government laboratories are to test polluted soil and water samples from the site. Australian authorities say two of the deaths were unquestionably caused by toxins in the Yarkon River, and doctors urgently need information from the tests to treat those still suffering from the effects of the disaster. \I(Australia, Israel)\i
US special envoy, Desaix Anderson, fails to secure an interview with \JCambodia\j's Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, but meets with newly appointed First Prime Minister, Ung Huot, engaging in talks that cover human rights and next year's promised elections. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
Tajik President, Imomali Rakhmonov, seeks support from \JRussia\j and Central Asian neighbors after three days of fighting between presidential troops and the army's Rapid Reaction Brigade. The factional dispute has shattered the unity of the military, and dislodged President Rakhmonov's control of all pro-government forces. \I(Tajikistan, \JRussia\j, Central Asia)\i
In \JNepal\j, fourteen hydroelectric workers are buried and six people are swept from their homes when monsoon rains trigger landslides. \I(Nepal)\i
Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister, Bill Skate, orders a second inquiry into the Sandline mercenaries affair, a controversy which sparked a civil and military revolt in March. The new wide-ranging inquiry will look into the legality of the contract, the beneficiaries of the first $US18 million payment to Sandline, possible illegal share trading, and whether government or defense force personnel received bribes from arms dealers. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
The United States envoy to the United Nations, Bill Richardson, is to spend two weeks visiting 10 nations across Asia and Europe. Richardson says the main issues of discussion will be UN concerns, such as Washington's debt to the world body, and reform of the Security Council. \I(USA, Asia, Europe)\i
Australia defeats England in the fifth cricket Test to win the Ashes for a fifth successive time. \I(Australia, UK)\i
In the final played at Melbourne Park Stadium, \JAustralia\j defeats Puerto Rico 88-73 to win the men's under-23 world \Jbasketball\j championships. \I(Australia, Puerto Rico)\i
Twenty-four-year-old Lee Troop from Geelong wins Sydney's 27th annual City to Surf marathon, finishing ahead of a record 47,444 starters in a time of 40m 55s. The winner of the women's 20,000-strong division is 33-year-old Sydneysider, Liz Miller, who finishes in a time of 47m 30s. \I(Australia)\i
In women's events at swimming's Pan Pacific Championships in \JJapan\j, \JAustralia\j's Shelley Taylor-Smith wins the 25km open water race, Cost Rica's Claudia Poll wins the 200m freestyle final, \JAustralia\j's Susan O'Neill wins the 200m butterfly final, and Brooke Bennett of the United States wins the 1,500m freestyle final. In men's events, \JAustralia\j's Grant Robinson wins the 25km open water race, \JAustralia\j's Michael Klim wins the 200m freestyle final, Lenny Krayzelburg of the United States wins the 100m backstroke final, and Grant Hackett of \JAustralia\j wins the 800m freestyle final. \I(Japan, \JAustralia\j, Costa Rica, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In a bid to salvage the battered Middle East peace process, US envoy, Dennis Ross, meets in Ramallah with Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, Israeli negotiator, Yitzhak Molho, and Shin Bet chief, Ami Ayalon. According to officials, the meeting focuses primarily on security issues. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
US special envoy, Desaix Anderson, fails to secure an interview with \JCambodia\j's Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, but meets with newly appointed First Prime Minister, Ung Huot, engaging in talks that cover human rights and next year's promised elections. \I(USA, Cambodia)\i
After being expelled from the Dominican Republic, three members of the ETA Basque separatists guerrilla group are jailed in Madrid on charges of murder, kidnapping, and planting explosives. \I(Dominican Republic, Spain)\i
The world's first offshore Internet bank goes into receivership. The two Russian-born owners of the collapsed European Union Bank, which is based in Antigua, are believed to have fled with depositors' money. \I(Russia, Antigua)\i
President Clinton issues an order requiring buildings owned or leased by the US federal government to be smoke-free within one year, saying \Jcigarette\j smoking is the single most significant public health problem in the country. \I(USA)\i
The United States envoy to the United Nations, Bill Richardson, is to spend two weeks visiting 10 nations across Asia and Europe. Richardson says the main issues of discussion will be UN concerns, such as Washington's debt to the world body, and reform of the Security Council. \I(USA, Asia, Europe)\i
Helicopters are employed to evacuate up to 400 tourists and residents after flash floods sweep through the Havasupai Indian Reservation in a remote \Jcanyon\j of northwestern \JArizona\j. \I(USA)\i
In the final played at the Melbourne Park Stadium, \JAustralia\j defeats Puerto Rico 88-73 to win the men's under-23 world \Jbasketball\j championships. \I(Australia, Puerto Rico)\i
Williams team driver, Canadian Jacques Villeneuve, snatches the lead on the last lap to win the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix. \I(Canada, Hungary)\i
America's Peter Sampras defeats \JAustria\j's Thomas Muster to win the $US2.05 million ATP Championship in \JCincinnati\j, his fifth tennis title this year. \I(USA, Austria)\i
In women's tennis, Monica Seles survives a match point to beat Lindsay Davenport in the final of the $US450,000 Acura Classic tournament in Manhattan Beach, \JCalifornia\j. \I(USA)\i
In the 4x100m relay finals at the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, Canada takes gold in the men's event, and the United States takes gold in the women's event. \I(Greece, Canada, USA)\i
In women's events at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in \JJapan\j, Brooke Bennett of the United States wins the 1,500m freestyle final and Cost Rica's Claudia Poll wins the 200m women's freestyle final. In men's events, Lenny Krayzelburg of the United States wins the 100m backstroke final. \I(Costa Rica, \JJapan\j, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Following the death of the fourth Australian victim of a bridge collapse at Israel's Maccabiah games last month, Australian Government laboratories are to test polluted soil and water samples from the site. Australian authorities say two of the deaths were unquestionably caused by toxins in the Yarkon River, and doctors urgently need information from the tests to treat those still suffering from the effects of the disaster. \I(Australia, Israel)\i
Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary, Mo Mowlam, hints that if the three-week-old IRA cease-fire holds, Britain might consider demands by IRA and British loyalist guerrillas to free prisoners. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
In a bid to salvage the battered Middle East peace process, US envoy, Dennis Ross, meets in Ramallah with Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, Israeli negotiator, Yitzhak Molho, and Shin Bet chief, Ami Ayalon. According to officials, the meeting focuses primarily on security issues. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
Tajik President, Imomali Rakhmonov, seeks support from \JRussia\j and Central Asian neighbors after three days of fighting between presidential troops and the army's Rapid Reaction Brigade. The factional dispute has shattered the unity of the military, and dislodged President Rakhmonov's control of all pro-government forces. \I(Tajikistan, \JRussia\j, Central Asia)\i
After being expelled from the Dominican Republic, three members of the ETA Basque separatists guerrilla group are jailed in Madrid on charges of murder, kidnapping, and planting explosives. \I(Dominican Republic, Spain)\i
The world's first offshore Internet bank goes into receivership. The two Russian-born owners of the collapsed European Union Bank, which is based in Antigua, are believed to have fled with depositors' money. \I(Russia, Antigua)\i
The United States envoy to the United Nations, Bill Richardson, is to spend two weeks visiting 10 nations across Asia and Europe. Richardson says the main issues of discussion will be UN concerns, such as Washington's debt to the world body, and reform of the Security Council. \I(USA, Asia, Europe)\i
Williams team driver, Canadian Jacques Villeneuve, snatches the lead on the last lap to win the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix. \I(Canada, Hungary)\i
America's Peter Sampras defeats \JAustria\j's Thomas Muster to win the $US2.05 million ATP Championship in \JCincinnati\j, his fifth tennis title this year. \I(USA, Austria)\i
Australia defeats England in the fifth cricket Test to win the Ashes for a fifth successive time. \I(Australia, UK)\i
In the 4x100m relay finals at the World Track and Field Championships in \JAthens\j, Canada takes gold in the men's event, and the United States takes gold in the women's event. \I(Greece, Canada, USA)\i
#
"August 11, 1997",586,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A bomb derails the New Delhi-bound Rajdhani Express train near Sarupeta in northeastern India. Seven coaches are thrown off the rails, but only a few of the 700 passengers receive injuries, mostly minor. Authorities believe the Bodoland Liberation Tiger Front to be responsible for the attack. \I(India)\i
Several people are injured when police clash with about 100 \JPakistan\j People's Party activists protesting in support of the opposition leader's political secretary, who has been placed on the Exit Control List, preventing her from leaving the country. \I(Pakistan)\i
An alliance official reveals that leaders of all three anti-Taliban factions are holding a summit aimed at finalizing a strategy to seize the Afghan capital of Kabul. The official says the summit is also discussing the formation of a viable political structure for ruling the capital once the hard-line Taliban militia has been ousted as planned. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Cambodia's King Norodom Sihanouk reveals plans to abdicate as soon as possible, describing recent events in Phnom Penh as "a comedy" and newly elected First Prime Minister, Ung Huot, as a "puppet" of the Hun Sen regime. The King's comments come as Hun Sen flies to \JBeijing\j to seek the king's support for \JCambodia\j's new leadership. \I(Cambodia, China)\i
A total of 108 Chinese plaintiffs begin legal action against the Japanese Government, seeking compensation for germ warfare experiments conducted by the Imperial Army's Unit 731 during World War II. \I(China, Japan)\i
A ten-member Australian Government delegation begins formal talks on human rights with Chinese Government counterparts in \JBeijing\j, a diplomatic breakthrough \JAustralia\j hopes to develop into an annual dialog. \I(Australia, China)\i
Thailand is granted some relief from its economic crisis when the international community pledges a total of $US16 billion in loans from the International Monetary Fund and Asian donors led by \JJapan\j. \I(Thailand, \JJapan\j, Asia)\i
South Korea reveals that Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is to visit Seoul in late August. During his visit, Mr. Netanyahu will hold talks with President Kim Young Sam and other government officials, and is expected to sign agreements calling for co-operation in agriculture, and postal and telecommunications development. \I(Israel, South Korea)\i
Anti-whaling groups accuse \JJapan\j of illegal whale hunting when a New Zealand analysis of whale meat purchased in \JJapan\j detects DNA evidence of protected humpback and finback whales. \I(New Zealand, Japan)\i
Australian scientists claim to have discovered a fossilized skeleton of the world's largest bird, the \IAlcoota dromornis,\i a flightless bird that lived about eight million years ago. The discovery was made outside Alice Springs, in \JAustralia\j's Northern Territory. \I(Australia)\i
In the men's finals at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in \JJapan\j, \JAustralia\j's Michael Klim wins the 100m freestyle, America's Kurt Grote wins the 100m breaststroke, and \JAustralia\j's Matthew Dunn wins the 400m individual medley. In the women's finals, America's Jenny Thompson wins the 100m freestyle, \JAustralia\j's Samantha Riley wins the 100m breaststroke, and America's M. Crippen wins the 400m individual medley. \I(Japan, \JAustralia\j, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
For the first time ever, President Clinton utilizes his power of line-item veto to cancel three provisions from the balanced-budget legislation, an historic exercise of the authority sought by generations of United States presidents. \I(USA)\i
Following a severe snowstorm, Peruvian army helicopters fly food, blankets, and medical supplies to thousands of people trapped in their cars on the snow-bound highway in the \JAndes\j mountain range. Six people are reported frozen to death, and others who are seriously ill are airlifted to Abancay, 380 miles southeast of Lima. \I(Peru)\i
On the second day of his mission to resolve the crisis sparked by the recent suicide bombing of \JJerusalem\j's central market, United States envoy, Dennis Ross, says Israel and Palestine have come a step closer to reviving security ties, but concedes that success must be measured by results. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Convicted Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, will be formally sentenced this week following Judge Richard Matsch's denial of McVeigh's request for a new trial. The request cited 13 grounds, including pre-trial publicity, and emotional testimony from survivors and victims' relatives. A total of 168 people died as a result of the 1995 bombing. \I(USA)\i
California Republican, Jay Kim, the first Korean-American elected to the US Congress, pleads guilty to accepting illegal campaign contributions totaling $US145,000, including $US50,000 from a Taiwanese businessman. Kim's wife June pleads guilty to accepting $US38,000, and Kim's campaign committee pleads guilty to concealing the illegal funds. Sentencing is set for October 23 by the judge. \I(USA)\i
According to reports, Yoko Ono, widow of John Lennon, is to sign a contract with Columbia Pictures for a film about her relationship with the ex-Beatle. As part of the multi-million-dollar deal, she is apparently prepared to cede the rights to some of Lennon's songs. \I(UK, USA)\i
A spokesman for the Environmental Working Group says that over the last twelve months, 4.3 million Americans drank water containing concentrations of pesticides exceeding new federal standards of acceptable risk, but adds that efforts to improve water quality in a number of cities are producing results. \I(USA)\i
After a plan to re-power a back-up system fails, Russian space officials believe new parts from Earth may be needed to repair the main oxygen system on the damaged Mir Space Station. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In the finals at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in \JJapan\j, America's Kurt Grote wins the men's 100m breaststroke, America's Jenny Thompson wins the women's 100m freestyle, and America's M. Crippen wins the women's 400m individual medley. \I(Japan, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
On the second day of his mission to resolve the crisis sparked by the recent suicide bombing of \JJerusalem\j's central market, United States envoy, Dennis Ross, says Israel and Palestine have come a step closer to reviving security ties, but concedes that success must be measured by results. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Tajik presidential forces recapture the key aluminum-producing area of Gissar Valley, an area seized three days ago in an attack launched by a mutinous military faction under the command of Makhmud Khudoyberdyev. The government of the former Soviet republic says it now hopes to resolve the conflict through peaceful means. \I(Tajikistan)\i
Northern Ireland's loyalist politicians react angrily to hints from Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary, Mo Mowlam, that jail terms of terrorist prisoners could be relaxed if the IRA cease-fire holds. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
Kenyan President, Daniel arap Moi, condemns the violence that killed four people during the recent national strike called by pro-reform activist, accusing his opponents of creating chaos. \I(Kenya)\i
Following the failure of a plan to re-power a back-up system, Russian space officials believe new parts from Earth may be needed to repair the main oxygen system on the damaged Mir Space station. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Berlin archivists, artists, and politicians call for a concerted move to protect the last remaining fragments of the historic Berlin Wall. The Wall is being eroded by property developers, trophy hunters, and the weather, with little more than a half mile of the original 26-mile structure still standing. \I(Germany)\i
South Korea reveals that Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is to visit Seoul in late August. During his visit, Mr. Netanyahu will hold talks with President Kim Young Sam and other government officials, and is expected to sign agreements calling for co-operation in agriculture, and postal and telecommunications development. \I(Israel, South Korea)\i
Britain's Home Office announces that 6,000 names will be put on the national sex offenders' register when the Sex Offenders Act comes into force on September 1. Under the provisions of the act, persons convicted or cautioned for a range of sex offenses must keep police informed of where they live, or face a six-month jail sentence and/or a fine of five thousand pounds. In exceptional circumstances, police will have the authority to advise relevant local groups if an offender moves into the area. \I(UK)\i
Twenty-seven tourists suffer minor injuries when a boat cruising the Seine River in Paris hits a \Jbuttress\j of the historic Pont Neuf bridge. Police are investigating the cause of the accident. \I(France)\i
Sergei Shoigu, head of \JRussia\j's Emergencies Ministry, flies to the southern republic of Dagestan to help combat an outbreak of typhoid which has swept through several villages near the Caspian Sea, hospitalizing 168 victims, most of whom are children. \I(Russia)\i
According to reports, Yoko Ono, widow of John Lennon, is to sign a contract with Columbia Pictures for a film about her relationship with the ex-Beatle. As part of the multi-million-dollar deal, she is apparently prepared to cede the rights to some of Lennon's songs. \I(UK, USA)\i
#
"August 12, 1997",587,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
About 300 Khmer Rouge guerrillas are reported to have joined forces loyal to ousted Cambodian Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, in a battle to defend two royalist strongholds in the country's north against troops of the Hun Sen regime. In Phnom Penh, meanwhile, a military prosecutor issues a warrant for the prince's arrest on charges of weapons smuggling, and in \JBeijing\j, Hun Sen meets with the prince's father, King Norodom Sihanouk, seeking the monarch's endorsement for the new political situation in \JCambodia\j. \I(Cambodia, China)\i
In Himachal Pradesh State, northern India, some 40 people are feared drowned when a flash flood, triggered by a monsoon downpour, bursts the banks of the Andhra River and inundates the Himalayan village of Chirgaon. \I(India)\i
Returning from a visit to North Korea, a United States congressional delegation expresses dissatisfaction with the secrecy surrounding the famine-stricken country's distribution of emergency food aid, saying \JPyongyang\j needs to make food distribution to the civilian population fully transparent and verifiable before the US considers additional assistance. The delegation also reports that despite considerable pressure, North Korea will not contemplate any changes to its centralized political and economic systems. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
In the wake of the fatal crash of a Korean Air Lines 747 in \JGuam\j, South Korea's Ministry of National Defense says it will begin overall inspections of 12 airports around the country to ensure flight safety standards. \I(South Korea, Guam)\i
Sir Julius Chan, former Papua New Guinean Prime Minister, denounces the new Sandline mercenaries inquiry as vindictive and highly personal. Sir Julius will be one of the main targets of the inquiry recently announced by the new Prime Minister, Bill Skate. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
Taiwan restores diplomatic relations with the central African nation of Chad, pledging co-operation in medical, agricultural, technical training, and other areas. Diplomatic ties were first established in 1962, but Chad switched recognition to \JBeijing\j in 1972. \JBeijing\j is now expected to cut its ties with Chad, which has become the 31st country to recognize \JTaiwan\j. \I(Taiwan, Chad, China)\i
Hong Kong's Executive Council meets to establish firm guidelines for the 1998 polls which will elect a 60-member Legislative Council to replace the Beijing-appointed Provisional Legislature. The guidelines for the polls have already aroused strong protests from pro-democracy groups who were ousted when the territory returned to China on July 1. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
In the men's finals of the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in \JJapan\j, Grant Hackett of \JAustralia\j wins the 400m freestyle, Neil Walker of the United States wins the 100m butterfly, Lenny Krayzelburg of the United States wins the 200m backstroke, and the United States team wins the 4x100m relay. In the women's finals, Claudia Poll of Costa Rica wins the 400m freestyle, Jenny Thompson of the United States wins the 100m butterfly, M. Nakamura of \JJapan\j wins the 200m backstroke, and the United States team wins the 4x100 relay. \I(Japan, \JAustralia\j, USA, Costa Rica)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Returning from a visit to North Korea, a United States congressional delegation expresses dissatisfaction with the secrecy surrounding the famine-stricken country's distribution of emergency food aid, saying \JPyongyang\j needs to make food distribution to the civilian population fully transparent and verifiable before the US considers additional assistance. The delegation also reports that despite considerable pressure, North Korea will not contemplate any changes to its centralized political and economic systems. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
After lengthy talks with the two sides, United States envoy, Dennis Ross, says Israel and Palestine have begun to restore security co-operation, fixing on a means of sharing information and acting together to combat \Jterrorism\j. Palestine, however, insists that security ties must be accompanied by political progress, and demands that Israel rescind stringent sanctions imposed after last month's double suicide bombing in \JJerusalem\j. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Lawyers defending Terry Nichols in the second Oklahoma City bombing trial request that the proceedings be moved to San Francisco, arguing that potential jurors in \JColorado\j are too emotionally involved with the victims of the blast. Nichols is accused of conspiring with, and helping, Timothy McVeigh, who was convicted in June and sentenced to death for the 1995 bombing. \I(USA)\i
Bernard Parks is sworn in as Los Angeles' new police chief, becoming the city's first black officer to rise through the ranks to the top of the force. \I(USA)\i
In response to complaints from \JColombia\j, Mexico agrees to send a top-level anti-drugs envoy to co-ordinate with Colombians in the war on drugs. \JColombia\j is the world's largest producer of \Jcocaine\j, much of which passes through Mexico en route to the United States. \I(Colombia, Mexico, USA)\i
United States swimmers score gold at the Pan Pacific Championships in \JJapan\j, with Neil Walker winning the men's 100m butterfly, Lenny Krayzelburg winning the men's 200m backstroke, Jenny Thompson winning the women's 100m butterfly, and the US teams winning both the men's and women's 4x100m relay. \I(USA, Japan)\i
Claudia Poll of Costa Rica wins the 400m freestyle final at the Pan Pacific Championships in \JJapan\j. \I(Costa Rica, Japan)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Taiwan restores diplomatic relations with the central African nation of Chad, pledging co-operation in medical, agricultural, technical training, and other areas. Diplomatic ties were first established in 1962, but Chad switched recognition to \JBeijing\j in 1972. \JBeijing\j is now expected to cut its ties with Chad, which has become the 31st country to recognize \JTaiwan\j. \I(Taiwan, Chad, China)\i
After lengthy talks with the two sides, United States envoy, Dennis Ross, says Israel and Palestine have begun to restore security co-operation, fixing on a means of sharing information and acting together to combat \Jterrorism\j. Palestine, however, insists that security ties must be accompanied by political progress, and demands that Israel rescind stringent sanctions imposed after last month's double suicide bombing in \JJerusalem\j. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission hears appeals for amnesty from the two men convicted of the 1993 murder of popular Communist Party leader, Chris Hani. Polish-born anti-Communist, Janusz Walus, who shot Hani four times outside his \JJohannesburg\j home, and former member of the right-wing Conservative Party, Clive Derby-Lewis, who supplied the gun, speak publicly about the assassination for the first time, saying it was designed to trigger chaos, spark a right-wing coup, and end President de Klerk's "betrayal" of his Afrikaner nation. The commission, set up by President Mandela to expose and heal apartheid-era crimes, has the power to grant amnesty to applicants who can prove their crimes had political motives. \I(South Africa, Poland)\i
Chancellor Helmut Kohl marks the 36th anniversary of the building of the Berlin Wall, which for 28 years, blocked the border between the city's East and West sectors. Chancellor Kohl refers to the Wall as a symbol of repression, and calls on Germans to remain vigilant in the fight against extremism. \I(Germany)\i
A constitutional court convenes outside \JSarajevo\j to debate President Biljana Plavsic's decision to dissolve the parliament and call a general election, a decision strongly opposed by government hard-liners loyal to ex-president and indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic. \I(Bosnia)\i
Opposing Northern Ireland politicians engage in a televised debate for the first time, an event regarded in an optimistic light by Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary, Mo Mowlam. The debate, screened on BBC2's \INewsnight,\i is between Ulster Unionist MP, Ken Maginnis, and Sinn Fein MP, Martin McGuinness. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Newly elected President Mohammad Khatami submits his cabinet choices to the Iranian parliament. Despite widespread speculation, the list does not include any women. \I(Iran)\i
#
"August 13, 1997",588,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodia's King Norodom Sihanouk says his offer to abdicate has been rejected by Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen. The king also says he will return to his country in the near future, and calls on Hun Sen to bring peace to the nation. \I(Cambodia)\i
In \JBangkok\j, a grenade is thrown into the residential compound of newspaper publisher and opposition politician, Prasong Soonsiri. Mr. Prasong, an outspoken critic of the Thai Government's handling of the country's current economic crisis, claims that the attack is politically motivated. \I(Thailand)\i
Officials in the remote Himalayan region of Himachal Pradesh in northern India now believe that at least 110 people have been killed in flash floods which swept through the area yesterday, saying that twelve villages are under water, and when reports come from cut-off areas, the toll could rise significantly. \I(India)\i
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale damages buildings in the county of Rongchang in China's Sichuan province, but officials say there are no reports of casualties. \I(China)\i
Members of the US delegation returning from a visit to North Korea express further concerns about the distribution of food aid, saying they will seek steps to ensure that future US aid goes directly to the starving people of the famine-stricken country. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
The mayor of Seoul, Cho Soon, announces his candidacy in December's presidential elections, making the outcome of the four-cornered race less predictable. \I(South Korea)\i
Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, indicates that the United States is considering granting Argentina "symbolic" status as a major non-NATO ally, a move which would place Argentina in the same category as Israel, \JEgypt\j, \JJapan\j, South Korea, and Jordan. \I(USA, Argentina, Israel, \JEgypt\j, \JJapan\j, South Korea, Jordan)\i
In the men's finals at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in \JJapan\j, Matthew Dunn of \JAustralia\j wins the 200m individual medley, William Pilczuk of the United States wins the 50m freestyle, Kurt Grote of the United States wins the 200m breaststroke, Grant Hackett of \JAustralia\j wins the 500m freestyle, and the United States team wins the 4x100m medley relay. In the women's finals, Brooke Bennett of the United States wins the 800m freestyle, Kristine Quance of the United States wins the 200m individual medley, Le Jingyi of China wins the 50m freestyle, Samantha Riley of \JAustralia\j wins the 200m breaststroke, and the United States team wins the 4x100m medley relay. \I(Japan, \JAustralia\j, USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, reacts strongly to reports that indicted Bosnian Serb war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, has turned down a US offer of refuge in a third country, denying that such an offer was made, and insisting that the United States wants Karadzic tried for war crimes by an international tribunal. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Members of the US delegation returning from a visit to North Korea express further concerns about the distribution of food aid, saying they will seek steps to ensure that future US aid goes directly to the starving people of the famine-stricken country. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
One hiker is found dead and 10 others are feared drowned after a flash flood sends an 11-foot wall of water tearing through the normally dry \JAntelope\j \JCanyon\j, about 50 miles northeast of the Grand \JCanyon\j in \JArizona\j. Seven of the hikers come from \JFrance\j, two from the United States, and one each from Britain and Sweden. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, Britain)\i
A new study conducted by the US National Center on Addition and Substance Abuse finds that drug and alcohol abuse among adolescents is rising, with 2.4 per cent of eighth graders using heroin, and more using marijuana during seventh grade or earlier. \I(USA)\i
The US Southern Baptist Convention says it will ask each of its 15 million members to withhold at least $US100 on Disney products or services during the next 12 months. Leaders of Southern Baptist are accusing Disney of shifting to a "Christian-bashing, family-bashing, pro-homosexual agenda" over the past decade. \I(USA)\i
In \JCuba\j, President Fidel Castro's 71st birthday is marked with traditional official discretion. In the United States, meanwhile, the Cuban exile group says it will support any action to oust Castro from his 38 years of power. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, indicates that the United States is considering granting Argentina "symbolic" status as a major non-NATO ally, a move which would place Argentina in the same category as Israel, \JEgypt\j, \JJapan\j, South Korea, and Jordan. \I(USA, Argentina, Israel, \JEgypt\j, \JJapan\j, South Korea, Jordan)\i
Reports indicate that Ronald Biggs, one of the masterminds behind Britain's 1963 Great Train Robbery, will remain in \JBrazil\j despite its new \Jextradition\j agreement with the UK. According to the reports, \JBrazil\j's Supreme Court has accepted Biggs' argument that the 15-year statute of limitations for his crime has expired. \I(Brazil, UK)\i
United States swimmers take out a further six events at the Pan Pacific Championships in \JJapan\j, when William Pilczuk wins the men's 50m freestyle, Kurt Grote wins the men's 200m breaststroke, and the United States team wins the men's 4x100m medley relay. In the women's finals, Brooke Bennett wins the 800m freestyle, Kristine Quance wins the 200m individual medley, and the United States team wins the 4x100m medley relay. \I(Japan, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, reacts strongly to reports that indicted Bosnian Serb war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, has turned down a US offer of refuge in a third country, denying that such an offer was made, and insisting that the United States wants Karadzic tried for war crimes by an international tribunal. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
During talks with Tajik President, Imomali Rakhmonov, maverick army colonel, Makhmud Khudoyberdyev, agrees to withdraw his forces to barracks. The agreement comes after four days of fighting between Khudoyberdyev's Rapid Reaction Brigade and troops loyal to the president. \I(Tajikistan)\i
Zambian police use tear gas and batons when rioting traders, angered by a mysterious overnight fire which gutted their sprawling market, vandalize property in the capital's central business district. Fifty-six people are arrested, and armed police then patrol the deserted streets, ordering anyone remaining to leave or face arrest. \I(Zambia)\i
An Iranian serial killer is lashed by his victims' male relatives before being hanged from a mobile crane in front of a crowd of some 20,000 people. Gholamreza Khoshrou Kouran Kordieh, dubbed the "Tehran Vampire", was sentenced to public execution after confessing on \Jtelevision\j to the kidnap, rape, and murder of nine girls and women aged 10 to 47 over a period of four months this year. \I(Iran)\i
Speaking just 24 hours after his \Jtelevision\j debate with Ulster MP, Ken Maginnis, Sinn Fein MP, Martin McGuinness, acknowledges the suffering for which the IRA has been responsible, at the same time noting that neither the British Government nor Unionist leaders have yet acknowledged their responsibility for Northern Ireland's long history of killings and injustice. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Chechnya's parliament declares Russian a foreign language and votes to make Chechen the official language of the breakaway southern region, which considers itself a sovereign state, despite \JRussia\j's statements to the contrary. \I(Russia)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, indicates that the United States is considering granting Argentina "symbolic" status as a major non-NATO ally, a move which would place Argentina in the same category as Israel, \JEgypt\j, \JJapan\j, South Korea, and Jordan. \I(USA, Argentina, Israel, \JEgypt\j, \JJapan\j, South Korea, Jordan)\i
One hiker is found dead and 10 others are feared drowned after a flash flood sends an 11-foot wall of water tearing through the normally dry \JAntelope\j \JCanyon\j, about 50 miles northeast of the Grand \JCanyon\j in \JArizona\j. Seven of the hikers come from \JFrance\j, two from the United States, and one each from Britain and Sweden. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, Britain)\i
Reports indicate that Ronald Biggs, one of the masterminds behind Britain's 1963 Great Train Robbery, will remain in \JBrazil\j despite its new \Jextradition\j agreement with the UK. According to the reports, \JBrazil\j's Supreme Court has accepted Biggs' argument that the 15-year statute of limitations for his crime has expired. \I(Brazil, UK)\i
Britain's Chris and Rosalynde Lee become the world's first heart transplant couple to have a baby. Little Joseph Lee weighs in at 5lb 15oz and spends several hours on a ventilator after being delivered by cesarean section, but a \Jhospital\j spokesman later confirms that mother and baby are doing well. \I(UK)\i
#
"August 14, 1997",589,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A bomb explodes on a crowded train in the far eastern Indian State of Assam, killing at least seven people. Militants of the Bodo community are believed to be responsible for the blast. \I(India)\i
Pakistan officially celebrates its 50th anniversary of independence from British rule. To mark the occasion, Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, announces a remission in sentences for prisoners in \JPakistan\j's jails, and urges neighboring India to join in resolving the lingering Kashmir problem, which still presents a barrier to bilateral ties. Later in the day, however, the celebrations are seriously marred when at least two people are killed after police open fire on a crowd outside the \Jmausoleum\j of \JPakistan\j's founding father. \I(Pakistan, UK)\i
Returning from a crucial meeting with \JCambodia\j's ailing King Norodom Sihanouk in \JBeijing\j, Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, declares that he has ordered his army chief of staff to quickly capture the northern border village of O'Smach, the last main stronghold of troops loyal to the king's son, former First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. Meanwhile, the prince's recently elected replacement as First Prime Minster, Ung Huot, claims that the king has given his "blessing" to the new political line-up in Phnom Penh, a claim vehemently disputed by staunch royalist supporters elsewhere. \I(Cambodia, China)\i
Amnesty International says continuing human rights abuses on the island of Bougainville should be the central focus of a Papua New Guinean Human Rights Commission to be established by the end of the year, adding that an offshoot of the commission should also be set up on Bougainville to hear widespread allegations of human rights violations during the nine-year civil war. \I(Papua New Guinea, Bougainville)\i
The Portuguese Foreign Ministry announces that UN ambassadorial-level talks between \JPortugal\j and \JIndonesia\j will be held in October to discuss the disputed territory of East \JTimor\j. Officials in \JPretoria\j later confirm that \JIndonesia\j's President Soeharto will fly to South Africa in November for talks with President Nelson Mandela, who has been actively seeking to broker peace in East \JTimor\j. \I(Portugal, \JIndonesia\j, East \JTimor\j, South Africa)\i
Despite recent concerns about North Korea's food distribution system, South Korea begins shipping 50,000 tons of promised food aid to the famine-stricken nation. It is the South's second huge shipment of food to the North in two months. \I(The Koreas)\i
In response to mounting pressure for his resignation, Taiwanese Premier, Lien Chan, announces that he will resign the premiership on August 21, stepping down with his entire cabinet. \I(Taiwan)\i
According to reports, Hong Kong's new leader, Tung Chee-hwa, is to make his first official visit to the United States in early September, when he will fly to Washington and New York to meet with President Clinton and members of Congress. \I(Hong Kong, USA)\i
.
\BThe Americas\b
In a federal court in \JDenver\j, convicted Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, is formally sentenced to death by lethal injection. \I(USA)\i
According to reports, Hong Kong's new leader, Tung Chee-hwa, is to make his first official visit to the United States in early September, when he will fly to Washington and New York to meet with President Clinton and members of Congress. \I(Hong Kong, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, approves a three-month visa for Northern Ireland Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, saying there will be no restrictions on Adams raising funds in the United States. The approval comes in response to the latest cease-fire called by the Sinn Fein affiliated Irish Republican Army. \I(USA, Northern Ireland)\i
Honduran authorities disclose that two prisoners were shot dead during a jail riot in Santa Rosa de Copan, the third riot in a week provoked by severe overcrowding in the country's penitentiaries. With 205 fugitives still at large following a mass jailbreak on Monday, Honduran politicians are now clamoring for a crackdown, and the military is preparing to send in troops to impose order in the nation's 24 prisons. \I(Honduras)\i
A grand jury in \JTexas\j decides not to indict a US Marine on charges of shooting dead a teenager while on an anti-narcotics surveillance mission near the Mexican border in May. Earlier, the Pentagon had spoken out in the Marine's defense, claiming he was doing his job at the time. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
New York City Mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, announces the reassignment of the commanding and executive officers of the 70th police precinct following allegations that a Haitian immigrant was beaten and sodomized with a toilet plunger while in custody. The immigrant, Abner Louima, remains in a critical condition in \Jhospital\j after undergoing surgery for a pierced \Jrectum\j and a torn bladder. Mr. Louima, who also suffered a fractured jaw, is facing more surgery. \I(USA)\i
Near \JSpokane\j in the State of Washington, dozens of people are forced from their homes by two fast-moving wildfires fueled by searing temperatures of up to 94 degrees, and fanned by winds gusting up to 30 miles per hour. \I(USA)\i
Researchers reveal the discovery of a second common genetic \Jmutation\j which delays the onset of AIDS by an average of 2 to 3 years in some \JHIV\j positive people, adding that if scientists are able to mimic the \Jmutation\j, they might be able to stall the onset of AIDS in all people who have been exposed to the virus. \I(USA)\i
The Guinness Book of Records confirms that 116-year-old Canadian woman, Marie Louise Febronie Meilleur, is the world's oldest living person, a status she assumed following the recent death of 122-year-old Frenchwoman, Jeanne Calment. The world's oldest man, according to Guinness records, is 114-year-old Christian Mortensen of San Raphael, \JCalifornia\j. \I(Canada, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Mir cosmonauts, Alexander Lazutkin and Vasily Tsibliyev, return to Earth, landing their Soyuz capsule in the barren steppeland of \JKazakhstan\j. \I(Russia)\i
Pakistan officially celebrates its 50th anniversary of independence from British rule. To mark the occasion, Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, announces a remission in sentences for prisoners in \JPakistan\j's jails, and urges neighboring India to join in resolving the lingering Kashmir problem, which still presents a barrier to bilateral ties. Later in the day, however, the celebrations are seriously marred when at least two people are killed after police open fire on a crowd outside the \Jmausoleum\j of \JPakistan\j's founding father. \I(Pakistan, UK)\i
Following a scandal over the privatization of \JRussia\j's telecommunications giant, Svyazinvest, President Boris Yeltsin accepts the resignation of privatization boss, Alfred Kokh. At the center of the scandal was Kokh's "loans-for-shares" scheme, a process which enabled powerful friends of the government to buy blue-chip assets at minimal cost. \I(Russia)\i
The Portuguese Foreign Ministry announces that UN ambassadorial-level talks between \JPortugal\j and \JIndonesia\j will be held in October to discuss the disputed territory of East \JTimor\j. Officials in \JPretoria\j later confirm that \JIndonesia\j's President Soeharto will fly to South Africa in November for talks with President Nelson Mandela, who has been actively seeking to broker peace in East \JTimor\j. \I(Portugal, \JIndonesia\j, East \JTimor\j, South Africa)\i
Kenyan police reveal that six officers and seven civilians were killed in an overnight attack on a police station in Mombassa. According to witnesses, dozens of men armed with machetes released prisoners and stole \Jfirearms\j before torching the station. \I(Kenya)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, approves a three-month visa for Northern Ireland Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, saying there will be no restrictions on Adams raising funds in the United States. The approval comes in response to the latest cease-fire called by the Sinn Fein affiliated Irish Republican Army. \I(USA, Northern Ireland)\i
Paleoanthropologists announce the discovery of three fossilized human footprints dating back 117,000 years, the oldest known footprints of an anatomically modern human being. The prints, which were discovered in rock along Langebaan Lagoon, 60 miles north of Cape Town, are believed to be those of a lone woman, possibly the "genetic Eve", a hypothetical figure who carried the DNA potential of modern women, and who lived in Africa between 100,000 and 300,000 years ago. \I(South Africa)\i
#
"August 15, 1997",590,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In a midnight ceremony, the recorded voices of Gandhi and Nehru herald the anniversary of India's half-century of independence from British rule. Later however, in a speech by Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, patriotic pageantry is sobered by calls for a national crusade against corruption, and by a candid acknowledgment of the poverty, ignorance, and disease that continue to plague India's people. The majority of the country's newspapers echo Mr. Gujral's line, many laying the blame for the nation's problems on its "scam-ridden" politics. \I(India)\i
Japan commemorates the 52nd anniversary of the end of World War II, with Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto expressing deep regret for the suffering and sorrow the war brought to the people of \JJapan\j and other Asian countries. \I(Japan, Asia)\i
The Hong Kong Government's disclosure of its new draft election law provokes condemnation from the territory's pro-democracy activists. Under the new arrangements, only one-third of the 60-seat legislature is to be returned by geographical constituencies in next May's promised polls, with the remaining 40 seats to be filled by representatives from business and professional bodies, and by an election committee comprised of pro-China politicians, businessmen and professionals. As a consequence, more than 2 million previously eligible Hong Kong voters will be disenfranchised. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Despite calls for sweeping changes to end economic mismanagement and corruption, \JThailand\j's Prime Minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, makes only minor adjustments to his cabinet, the most significant being the appointments of Virabongsa Ramangkura and Thaksin Shinawatra as deputy prime ministers. \I(Thailand)\i
In the \JPhilippines\j, two passenger boats capsize in rough weather, killing 16 people and leaving dozens missing. A number of the victims are Hong Kong tourists. \I(The \JPhilippines\j, Hong Kong)\i
\BThe Americas\b
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average closes at 7,694.66 after posting a loss of 247.37 points, its second-biggest one-day point loss ever. The drop contributes to a loss of 336.56 points for the week, the largest weekly fall in the history of the average. \I(USA)\i
United States forces begin a redeployment aimed at boosting the US contingent with the international peacekeeping force in Bosnia by 50 per cent. Between 11,000 and 12,000 US troops will remain in the region for several weeks to help ensure security during the mid-September municipal elections. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
The Russian-US crew of Mir circles the space station in a Soyuz escape capsule for 45 minutes, filming the exterior in preparation for repairs to damage caused by the June 25 collision with a cargo ship. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The United States expresses disappointment at Israel's delay in releasing tax money and customs duties owed to the Palestinian Authority, a tactic Palestinian leaders condemn as a form of collective punishment for the July double suicide bombing of a central market in \JJerusalem\j. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
A Denver judge rejects defense counsels' requests to relocate the trial of Terry Nichols, the accused Oklahoma City bombing co-conspirator. The trial is expected to begin on September 29. \I(USA)\i
President Clinton appoints his wife, Hillary, to direct the United States millennium project, which will consist of a series of programs designed to showcase the nation's cultural, academic, and scientific achievements. \I(USA)\i
Citing possible contamination with a deadly strain of the \IE. Coli\i bacteria, the United States Agriculture Department announces the recall of at least 1.2 million pounds of frozen hamburger, the largest recall of US ground beef products in history. \I(USA)\i
In the face of widespread media criticism, New York Mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, defends the successful crime-fighting record of the city's police department. Giuliani's defense comes after an assault against a black Haitian immigrant in a Brooklyn precinct led to criminal charges against one policeman, and disciplinary action against at least 10 others. \I(USA)\i
The United States Government says its computers will not be plagued by the "millennium bug", a flaw whereby some systems will mistakenly calculate the year 2000 as 1900. According to government officials, the problem can be corrected for less than $US3 billion. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Bosnian Serb Constitutional Court backs hard-liners allied to indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, ruling against a decision by President Biljana Plavsic to dissolve the parliament and call early elections. Ms. Plavsic later announces the formation of her own party, the Serb Popular Alliance. \I(Bosnia)\i
United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, recommends a delay of at least six weeks in further withdrawals of UN peacekeepers from \JAngola\j, raising the prospect of sanctions against the rebel UNITA movement for violating the 1994 \JLusaka\j peace accords. UNITA is charged with failing to return about half the country under its military control to government administration, and failing to demobilize a secret army estimated to be 35,000 strong. \I(Angola)\i
The Russian-US crew of Mir circles the space station in a Soyuz escape capsule for 45 minutes, filming the exterior in preparation for repairs to damage caused by the June 25 collision with a cargo ship. \I(Russia, USA)\i
United States forces begin a redeployment aimed at boosting the US contingent with the international peacekeeping force in Bosnia by 50 per cent. Between 11,000 and 12,000 US troops will remain in the region for several weeks to help ensure security during the mid-September municipal elections. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
In a joint statement, the leaders of Georgia and its rebel province of Abkhazia pledge to rule out force as a means of resolving the differences dividing them, and agree on the need to maintain permanent contact to settle disagreements through peaceful, political means. The breakthrough in the lengthy conflict comes after the two sides meet for peace talks mediated by Russian Foreign Minister, Yevgeny Primakov. \I(Georgia, Russia)\i
The United States expresses disappointment at Israel's delay in releasing tax money and customs duties owed to the Palestinian Authority, a tactic Palestinian leaders condemn as a form of collective punishment for the July double suicide bombing of a central market in \JJerusalem\j. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
A French appeals court rules in favor of voluntary DNA testing of all young men in the town of Pleine Fougeres, near Rennes. The ruling comes in response to an appeal lodged by the parents of a British schoolgirl who was raped and murdered in the town's youth hostel on July 18, 1996. \I(France, UK)\i
#
"August 16, 1997",591,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Hundreds of Cambodian refugees converge on the Thai border, fleeing heavy fighting as the forces of Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, close in on the town of O'Smach, the last major stronghold of royalist forces loyal to deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
The apparent defection to the North of a prominent member of South Korea's opposition party sparks a political row in Seoul. According to reports from the North, Oh Ik-jae, a former religious affairs adviser to the South's National Congress for New Politics, arrived in \JPyongyang\j on Friday. \I(The Koreas)\i
Pakistan mourns the death of 49-year-old Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, a composer and classical singer who popularized the region's traditional mystic and semi-classical music by mixing it with modern fast beats. \I(Pakistan)\i
In Rugby's Tri Nations Test series, the New Zealand All Blacks score a 36-24 victory against the Australian Wallabies. \I(New Zealand, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In a vocal show of outrage, thousands of demonstrators, many brandishing toilet plungers and Haitian flags, take to Brooklyn's streets to protest against the alleged torture of a Haitian immigrant at a local police precinct. Two officers have now been arrested in connection with the assault, and Police Commissioner, Howard Safir, says up to five more officers are implicated. \I(USA)\i
The 60-foot-long robot arm of the space shuttle Discovery picks up the free-flying satellite released last week to probe the Earth's ozone layer. During its nine-day orbit, the satellite found evidence that the upper atmosphere contains much more water vapor than scientists expected. \I(USA)\i
After more than a year of painstaking DNA analysis, forensic scientists identify the last two victims of the crash of TWA Flight 800, which killed all 230 people on board when it exploded off Long Island shortly after takeoff. \I(USA)\i
At the University of Memphis, a three-hour memorial service is held to mark the 20th anniversary of the death of Elvis Presley. Fans and friends offer tributes, and an estimated 30,000 people visit Presley's grave. \I(USA)\i
Alejandro Ortiz Martinez, the brother of Mexico's Finance Minister, is shot dead by two gunmen as he steps from his car in the Lomas de Chapultepec neighborhood of Mexico City. The Attorney-General's office considers the crime to be robbery with violence, but observers suspect it is more than a simple robbery attempt. \I(Mexico)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Kenyan authorities warn tourists in the Indian Ocean resort of \JMombasa\j to stay in their hotels. The warning comes as security forces hunt a gang of unidentified attackers who have launched raids and killed up to 17 people since Wednesday night. \I(Kenya)\i
Two recently returned cosmonauts from the Mir space station hit back at critics who have blamed them for the mission's spate of calamities, laying the blame on earthbound sources, namely \JRussia\j's poor economy. \I(Russia)\i
#
"August 17, 1997",592,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Sri Lankan military officials estimate that both sides lost at least 11 people during weekend clashes between government forces and separatist Tamil Tiger rebels. The clashes occurred as the government continued its offensive to clear a land route through rebel-held territory to the Northern Jaffna peninsula. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Myanmar's military regime announces that three cousins of democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, have been jailed for ten years after being convicted of smuggling political videotapes abroad, and receiving political funding from the United States. Cho Aung Than, his sister, Nge Ma Ma Than, and her husband Myint Swe, were found guilty and sentenced under national security laws. \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
Reports indicate that forces of Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, have pushed to within 7 kilometers of the northern border enclave of O'Smach, the country's last stronghold of royalist resistance. Barbed wire has been strung along the nearby frontier to prevent a stampede of refugees, but \JThailand\j confirms it will grant temporary asylum to unarmed Cambodians whose lives are in danger. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
Indonesia marks its 52nd anniversary of independence from the Netherlands. In a speech to Parliament, Indonesian President Soeharto acknowledges the positive impetus provided by the information explosion, but warns of the negative influences whereby constant dissatisfaction could pose a threat to national unity and cohesion. \I(Indonesia, The Netherlands)\i
A number of deaths and injuries are reported when Typhoon Winnie lashes \JOkinawa\j and other Japanese islands with torrential rain and winds of up to 160 kilometers per hour. \I(Japan)\i
As part of a nationwide campaign, thousands march and gather around \JBangkok\j's Democracy Monument in a show of support for a controversial draft constitution which seeks to enhance civil liberties and curb corruption. Conservative members of \JThailand\j's ruling coalition are opposed to many aspects of the draft, but it goes before parliament at a time of economic crisis and widespread dissatisfaction with the Government of Prime Minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh. \I(Thailand)\i
A spokesman for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies reports visible evidence of widespread \Jmalnutrition\j in North Korea, especially in industrial cities. The spokesman also says 60 days without rain has ruined almost 70 per cent of this summer's \Jmaize\j crop, and farmers are now battling to save the rice crop which is due for harvest in September. \I(North Korea)\i
Beijing urges the United States to eliminate sanctions on sales of nuclear equipment and high-technology to China, pointing to bilateral trade as a solution to the US trade deficit. Washington says it is considering the issue, but is not yet ready to implement it. \I(China, USA)\i
A senior United States Treasury official says this week's World Trade Organization talks between American and Asian officials will lay down broad objectives on liberalizing financial markets rather than cementing specific deals. \I(USA, Asia)\i
Australian golfer, Karrie Webb, claims her second victory this season, finishing with a 19-under-par total of 269 to take out the Women's British Open by 8 strokes. \I(Australia, UK)\i
At the Pilot Pen International Tennis Tournament in New Haven, \JRussia\j's Yevgeny Kafelnikov holds off \JAustralia\j's Patrick Rafter to win his second singles title for the year. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Australia)\i
Australian Michael Doohan retains his four-year hold on the 500cc motorcycling world championship after winning the British Grand Prix. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Five days and 20 hours after setting off on a rugged 538 kilometer course in \JAustralia\j's Far North \JQueensland\j, New Zealand's Eco-Internet team wins the world's fourth Eco-Challenge race, an event in which teams trek, canoe, climb, whitewater-raft, mountain-bike, horse-ride, and sea-kayak. \I(Australia, New Zealand)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Beijing urges the United States to eliminate sanctions on sales of nuclear equipment and high-technology to China, pointing to bilateral trade as a solution to the US trade deficit. Washington says it is considering the issue, but is not yet ready to implement it. \I(China, USA)\i
Myanmar's military regime announces that three cousins of democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, have been jailed for ten years after being convicted of smuggling political videotapes abroad, and receiving political funding from the United States. Cho Aung Than, his sister, Nge Ma Ma Than, and her husband Myint Swe, were found guilty and sentenced under national security laws. \I(USA, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma))\i
A senior United States Treasury official says this week's World Trade Organization talks between American and Asian officials will lay down broad objectives on liberalizing financial markets rather than cementing specific deals. \I(USA, Asia)\i
A docking procedure to link an unmanned cargo ship with the Mir space station is delayed for one day due to an undisclosed "extraordinary situation". Mission Control suggests, however, that Mir's Russian-US crew is in no immediate danger. \I(Russia, USA)\i
American golfer, David Love III, finishes with an 11-under-par total of 269 to take out the PGA Championship by 5 strokes, his first ever major championship victory. \I(USA)\i
In the Senior PGA Tour, Gil Morgan birdies the 17th hole for a one-stroke win at the First of America Classic in Ada, \JMichigan\j. \I(USA)\i
At the Pilot Pen International Tennis Tournament in New Haven, \JRussia\j's Yevgeny Kafelnikov holds off \JAustralia\j's Patrick Rafter to win his second singles title for the year. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Australia)\i
Sweden's Jonas Bjorkman defeats \JSpain\j's Carlos Moya in the final of the RCA Tennis Championships in \JIndianapolis\j, Bjorkman's first victory over Moya in three meetings. \I(Sweden, \JSpain\j, USA)\i
In women's tennis, Monica Seles of the United States defeats Anke Huber of \JGermany\j to capture her third consecutive Canadian Open title. It is Seles' second WTA Tour title in 2 weeks, and her 40th career title. \I(USA, Canada, Germany)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Palestinian Authority reveals its intention to boycott Israeli products, a retaliatory move provoked by Israel's refusal to lift travel bans and economic sanctions imposed after the \JJerusalem\j market suicide bombing in July. Since July, Israel's tough stance has cut off 100,000 Palestinians from their jobs, and President Yasser Arafat is now threatening to abandon the peace process rather than bow to Israeli pressure. \I(Palestine, Israel)\i
Kenyan authorities send in the army to reinforce police and paramilitary units battling five days of violent raids by armed assailants in \JMombasa\j. Twenty-eight people have now been killed, and dozens have been wounded in a series of attacks which are believed to be politically motivated. \I(Kenya)\i
As a power struggle intensifies between supporters of Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, and loyalists of ex-president and indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, \JNATO\j sends in British troops to prevent a possible clash. \I(Bosnia, UK)\i
A docking procedure to link an unmanned cargo ship with the Mir space station is delayed for one day due to an undisclosed "extraordinary situation". Mission Control suggests, however, that Mir's Russian-US crew is in no immediate danger. \I(Russia, USA)\i
United Nations-mediated talks aimed at reuniting Cyprus under a federation of two zones, end with Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders trading accusations. Neither Mr. Clerides nor Mr. Denktash agree to a compromise statement on the future of the island. \I(Cyprus)\i
Indonesia marks its 52nd anniversary of independence from the Netherlands. In a speech to Parliament, Indonesian President Soeharto acknowledges the positive impetus provided by the information explosion, but warns of the negative influences whereby constant dissatisfaction could pose a threat to national unity and cohesion. \I(Indonesia, The Netherlands)\i
Australian golfer, Karrie Webb, claims her second victory this season, finishing with a 19-under-par total of 269 to take out the Women's British Open by 8 strokes. \I(Australia, UK)\i
At the Pilot Pen International Tennis Tournament in New Haven, \JRussia\j's Yevgeny Kafelnikov holds off \JAustralia\j's Patrick Rafter to win his second singles title for the year. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Australia)\i
Sweden's Jonas Bjorkman defeats \JSpain\j's Carlos Moya in the final of the RCA Tennis Championships in \JIndianapolis\j, Bjorkman's first victory over Moya in three meetings. \I(Sweden, \JSpain\j, USA)\i
In women's tennis, Monica Seles of the United States defeats Anke Huber of \JGermany\j to capture her third consecutive Canadian Open title. It is Seles' second WTA Tour title in 2 weeks, and her 40th career title. \I(USA, Canada, Germany)\i
Australian Michael Doohan retains his four-year hold on the 500cc motorcycling world championship after winning the British Grand Prix. \I(Australia, UK)\i
#
"August 18, 1997",593,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Typhoon Winnie creates havoc as it lashes northern \JTaiwan\j, causing floods, landslides, and power breakdowns, and killing at least 12 people. \I(Taiwan)\i
The United States agrees to join a Canadian bid to forge a global treaty banning landmines by the end of the year. Meanwhile, South Korea endorses the bid in principle, but argues that its own landmines must be kept in place until the threat of a North Korean invasion is extinguished. \I(USA, Canada, The Koreas)\i
Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister, Bill Skate, announces his intention of personally attending the next round of Bougainville peace talks. Mr. Skate's announcement is welcomed by Bougainville Revolutionary Army spokesman, Moses Havini, who hopes that it will inspire the attendance of rebel political leader, Francis Ona, who has avoided previous talks. \I(Papua New Guinea, Bougainville)\i
The United States and South Korea launch joint military exercises which feature computer-simulated war games, and involve tens of thousands of South Korean troops, as well as 16,500 US soldiers. According to South Korean officials, the exercises have long been planned, and are unrelated to proposed peace talks between the two Koreas, the United States, and China. \I(The Koreas, USA, China)\i
Amnesty International expresses concern over reports that the Government of \JSingapore\j is using civil \Jdefamation\j suits to silence political opponents. The expression of concern comes as \JSingapore\j's leaders continue their \Jdefamation\j case against Joshua Jeyaretnam, the second case against a Workers' Party member this year. \I(Singapore)\i
A top Sri Lankan Air Force official reveals plans to recruit women pilots this year, a move aimed at rectifying a shortfall in combat personnel caused by heavy losses during the 14-year conflict with Tamil Tiger separatists in the country's north and east. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Controversy surrounds Queen Elizabeth's proposed visit to India in October, with Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, attempting to head off a royal visit to the city of \JAmritsar\j amid growing demands that the Queen publicly apologize for the 1919 \JAmritsar\j massacre, in which British troops opened fire on a political rally, killing nearly 400 people. \I(India, UK)\i
Australia pays tribute to Aboriginal activist, author, and actor, Burnum Burnum, who dies of a heart attack in Sydney at the age of 61. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
As Wall Street investors race for bargains in blue-chip stocks, the Dow Jones industrial average rises 108.70 points to 7,803.36, regaining almost half of Friday's 247-point drop. \I(USA)\i
The United States and South Korea launch joint military exercises which feature computer-simulated war games, and involve tens of thousands of South Korean troops, as well as 16,500 US soldiers. According to South Korean officials, the exercises have long been planned, and are unrelated to proposed peace talks between the two Koreas, the United States, and China. \I(The Koreas, USA, China)\i
Two more police officers from the 70th Precinct in Brooklyn are charged with assaulting Haitian immigrant, Abner Louima, bringing the number of officers charged in the case to four. One other officer has been suspended, 13 have been taken off active duty, and two top commanders have been transferred. All charges against Abner Louima have been dropped, and the US Justice Department has now begun a federal civil rights investigation. \I(USA)\i
A New Orleans district court jury rules that Dow Chemical Company was negligent and intentionally withheld information about the danger of silicone breast implants. The ruling is a victory for the thousands of women suing Dow Chemical for its role in testing silicone for use in human implants. \I(USA)\i
The United States agrees to join a Canadian bid to forge a global treaty banning landmines by the end of the year. Meanwhile, South Korea endorses the bid in principle, but argues that its own landmines must be kept in place until the threat of a North Korean invasion is extinguished. \I(USA, Canada, The Koreas)\i
Following the release of recently declassified federal documents, Washington is accused of violating the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty by trying to increase the power of its nuclear weapons, an accusation strongly denied by US Government officials who insist that the work outlined in the documents complies with the international accord. \I(USA)\i
Mission Control reveals that a computer failure triggered during a docking operation has sent space station Mir spinning chaotically in orbit, losing its orientation toward the sun. Engineers have been forced to shut down all energy-consuming systems, leaving only vital life-support systems operational while the crew works to recharge the batteries. Mission Control also advises that planned repairs to the ailing vessel will now be postponed. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Earthquakes shake the ground beneath Montserrat's troublesome Soufriere Hills \Jvolcano\j, and scientists fear the tremors could build to a massive new eruption. Britain says it will evacuate residents who want to leave the island. \I(UK, Montserrat)\i
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves market release of the Freehand System, a new surgical implant that will give some adult quadriplegics sufficient use of their hands to pour \Jcoffee\j, hold a pen, or feed themselves. \I(USA)\i
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issues new rules to cut \Jpollution\j from \Jhospital\j waste incinerators. Under the new rules, air emissions of mercury and \Jdioxin\j will be slashed by about 95 per cent, and other dangerous emissions will be also be reduced, but environmental advocates complain that the EPA has backed down from a tougher proposal. \I(USA)\i
After losing a six-year legal battle to preclude women, The Virginia Military Institute enrolls co-ed cadets for the first time in its 158 years. \I(USA)\i
The Carter Center announces that former United States President, Jimmy Carter, will visit \JEthiopia\j, Mali, and \JMozambique\j this month to discuss agricultural and economic development in African nations. \I(USA, \JEthiopia\j, Mali, \JMozambique\j, Africa)\i
In Rio de Janeiro, environment officials voice concern as their famed beaches are soiled by up to 4,000 liters of oil spilled from a tanker owned by the Brazilian \Jpetroleum\j company, Petrobras. \I(Brazil)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The death toll from six days of violence in the area around the Kenyan port of \JMombasa\j rises to at least 35, with the identities and motives of those responsible for the trouble still uncertain. At the height of the coastal resort's vital tourist season, holiday-makers are forced to remain confined to their hotels for safety. \I(Kenya)\i
At least six people are killed and 34 wounded when shells fired from the Israeli-occupied security zone in southern \JLebanon\j strike the Lebanese port city of Sidon. The Israeli Army denies responsibility for the attack, blaming forces of the South \JLebanon\j Army under the command of Antoine Lahd. \I(Israel, Lebanon)\i
Israel decides to relax its freeze on Palestinian Authority funds, releasing about 30 per cent of the transfers in taxes and customs duties it has withheld since the July suicide bombing of a \JJerusalem\j market. Israel's decision comes in response to "partial cooperation" from the Palestinians in probing the bombing. Sources say data had been provided on explosives Palestinian officials discovered in early July at a West Bank apartment suspected of being a Hamas movement bomb laboratory. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Mission Control reveals that a computer failure triggered during a docking operation has sent space station Mir spinning chaotically in orbit, losing its orientation toward the sun. Engineers have been forced to shut down all energy-consuming systems, leaving only vital life-support systems operational while the crew works to recharge the batteries. Mission Control also advises that planned repairs to the ailing vessel will now be postponed. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The head of St. Petersburg's privatization committee, Mikhail Manevich, is killed en route to his office when his car is riddled with bullets. The crime is linked to the murder of another of the city's privatization officials two months ago. \I(Russia)\i
A United Nations raid on police headquarters in Banja Luka uncovers substantial evidence that the telephones and offices of Bosnian Serb President Biljana Plavsic are being bugged. The search also produces evidence that the police were involved in a campaign to intimidate two judges of the Constitutional Court which ruled against Ms. Plavsic's decision to dissolve parliament and call new elections. \I(Bosnia)\i
Earthquakes shake the ground beneath Montserrat's troublesome Soufriere Hills \Jvolcano\j, and scientists fear the tremors could build to a massive new eruption. Britain says it will evacuate residents who want to leave the island. \I(UK, Montserrat)\i
Controversy surrounds Queen Elizabeth's proposed visit to India in October, with Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, attempting to head off a royal visit to the city of \JAmritsar\j amid growing demands that the Queen publicly apologize for the 1919 \JAmritsar\j massacre, in which British troops opened fire on a political rally, killing nearly 400 people. \I(India, UK)\i
The \JBordeaux\j wine harvest begins more than a month earlier than usual, a once-in-a-century event growers say could produce 1997 vintage wines of exceptionally good quality. \I(France)\i
#
"August 19, 1997",594,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Military forces of \JCambodia\j's Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, claim to have captured the town of O'Smach, the last remaining bastion of deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. During an interview in Manila, however, Prince Ranariddh disputes the claim, saying his general has held the town, a statement supported by loyal royalist soldiers awaiting Khmer Rouge reinforcements near the Thai border. \I(Cambodia, The \JPhilippines\j, Thailand)\i
Seven soldiers and more than 50 rebels are killed when Sri Lankan Government troops advance their northward campaign to capture a vital highway in territory held by Tamil Tiger separatists. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
After leaving at least 20 people dead, 16 missing, and 83 injured in \JTaiwan\j, Typhoon Winnie ravages the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang. Local authorities describe the storm as the biggest disaster in the history of the region, with 37 people reported dead, and some 790,000 people forced to evacuate their homes. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
Officials from 10 countries attend a groundbreaking ceremony to launch the construction of two 1,000-megawatt light-water nuclear reactors in North Korea. \I(North Korea)\i
The Australian Federal Government decides to block a controversial heroin trial which received strong support from health and police ministers earlier this month. Prime Minister John Howard acknowledges the difficulty of the issue, but defends the decision, saying approval of the trial would send an adverse signal to the community. \I(Australia)\i
China reacts angrily to a suggestion by Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary, Seiroku Kajiyama, that the security treaty between \JJapan\j and the United States could extend to cover \JTaiwan\j. China says Mr. Kajiyama's remarks are dangerous and destructive, and a violation of good Sino-Japanese relations. \I(China, \JJapan\j, \JTaiwan\j, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Mir space station computer system is restarted, arresting a spin through space triggered by a technical failure during the docking of a cargo ship. Mission Control confirms that the crew will now be able to restore the craft's stable alignment with the sun. In the United States, meanwhile, three separate inquiries into safety aboard Mir are proceeding, and space officials are debating whether relief \Jastronaut\j, David Wolf, scheduled to lift off in the space shuttle Atlantis on September 25, will embark on the station as planned. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In the wake of the United States Federal Reserve's decision to keep interest rates steady, Wall Street's Dow Jones industrial average continues to recover from last week's plunge, closing 114.74 points higher at 7,918.10. \I(USA)\i
The \JFBI\j begins a civil rights investigation into the Brazoria County Detention Center in \JTexas\j following the release of a "training video" showing prisoners being brutalized by guards. Meanwhile, nearly 700 prisoners are being transferred out of the institution. \I(USA)\i
A National Transportation Safety Board hearing on last year's ValuJet crash points to failures up and down the line, and concludes that the crash might have been averted had the plane been fitted with fire detection and suppression gear. The ValuJet DC-9 plunged into the \JFlorida\j \JEverglades\j in May 1996, killing 110 people on board. \I(USA)\i
British officials meet to draw up hasty plans for a voluntary evacuation of the Caribbean island of Montserrat, areas of which are being threatened by further eruptions of the Soufriere Hills \Jvolcano\j. A British Navy destroyer is already anchored off the island's coast to assist those who wish to leave. \I(UK, Montserrat)\i
United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, applauds Washington's decision to join the "Ottawa Process" negotiations on a treaty to ban anti-personnel landmines. The United States had earlier rejected the Canadian initiative because it failed to accommodate exceptions sought by US military commanders. \I(USA, Canada)\i
China reacts angrily to a suggestion by Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary, Seiroku Kajiyama, that the security treaty between \JJapan\j and the United States could extend to cover \JTaiwan\j. China says Mr. Kajiyama's remarks are dangerous and destructive, and a violation of good Sino-Japanese relations. \I(China, \JJapan\j, \JTaiwan\j, USA)\i
President Clinton celebrates his 51st birthday at a star-studded clam-bake dinner held at the Martha's Vineyard home of actors, Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen. After the traditional clam-bake, the 75 guests are treated to a raspberry- and blueberry-filled vanilla bean sponge birthday cake baked in the shape of the resort island's lighthouse. \I(USA)\i
The seedings are announced for the upcoming US Open Tennis Championships, with 16-year-old Martina Hingis of \JSwitzerland\j becoming the event's youngest ever top seed. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
At least one civilian is injured when northern Israel is pounded by Katusha rockets fired from southern \JLebanon\j. Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Islamic militant group, claims responsibility for the attack, which comes in response to the previous day's shelling of the Lebanese city of Sidon. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the immediate task is to end the cycle of escalation, at the same time warning of severe retaliation should the attacks continue. \I(Israel, \JLebanon\j, Iran)\i
After days of continuing violence in the Kenyan port city of \JMombasa\j, the trouble spreads 75 miles north to Malindi, where two people are killed and fire destroys more than 300 curio stalls on municipal beachfront land. At least 37 people have now been killed in gang raids since last Wednesday. \I(Kenya)\i
The Mir space station computer system is restarted, arresting a spin through space triggered by a technical failure during the docking of a cargo ship. Mission Control confirms that the crew will now be able to restore the craft's stable alignment with the sun. In the United States, meanwhile, three separate inquiries into safety aboard Mir are proceeding, and space officials are debating whether relief \Jastronaut\j, David Wolf, scheduled to lift off in the space shuttle Atlantis on September 25, will embark on the station as planned. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Following talks with Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov, Russian President Boris Yeltsin says he expects the rebel region to be given greater autonomy as part of a long-term settlement, but stresses that \JChechnya\j will remain an integral part of \JRussia\j. Mr. Maskhadov, however, reiterates \JChechnya\j's desire to become an independent, sovereign State. \I(Russia)\i
British officials meet to draw up hasty plans for a voluntary evacuation of the Caribbean island of Montserrat, areas of which are being threatened by further eruptions of the Soufriere Hills \Jvolcano\j. A British Navy destroyer is already anchored off the island's coast to assist those who wish to leave. \I(UK, Montserrat)\i
A massive explosion in a grain silo complex at Blaye, 50 kilometers southwest of \JBordeaux\j, claims the lives of at least 13 people. The blast is thought to have occurred when gas from fermenting grain was ignited by static electricity. \I(France)\i
St. Petersburg's Church of the Savior of Spilt Blood opens its doors to worshippers for the first time in 60 years. The church, which stands on the site of the 1881 assassination of Tsar Alexander II, has been undergoing extensive restoration. \I(Russia)\i
More than 200,000 young Roman Catholics congregate near the Eiffel Tower in Paris for the opening Mass of the 12th World Youth Festival, a six-day event which will culminate with Mass celebrated by Pope John Paul II. \I(France)\i
Iraqi President Saddam Hussein decides to allow Iranians to visit \JIraq\j's Shi'ite Moslem shrines, a decision which lifts the ban imposed at the start of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war. \I(Iraq, Iran)\i
The seedings are announced for the upcoming US Open Tennis Championships, with 16-year-old Martina Hingis of \JSwitzerland\j becoming the event's youngest ever top seed. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
#
"August 20, 1997",595,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Thai army is put on full alert as fighting intensifies between \JCambodia\j's warring factions around the border town of O'Smach, the last stronghold of deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. Thai officials report that about 7,000 troops of Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, are slowly encircling the town, which is currently held by between 2,000 and 5,000 royalist troops reinforced by Khmer Rouge rebels. Since the fighting started, more than 20,000 Cambodian civilians have fled the area to take temporary refuge in \JThailand\j. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
Twenty-nine soldiers and more than 130 rebels are killed in a day of fierce fighting between Sri Lankan troops and Tamil Tiger separatists. In their push to capture a vital highway, Government troops use planes, tanks, and artillery to take control of four rebel-held locations on the east and west side of Puliyankulam, a town over 220 kilometers north of the capital Colombo. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
In a text published by the \IKorean Central News Agency,\i North Korean leader, Kim Jong II, calls for a peace treaty with the United States to eliminate the danger of war on the divided peninsula, and proposes that the two Koreas should then join their efforts to promote the great cause of the country's reunification. \I(The Koreas, USA)\i
The \JPhilippines\j begins a massive mop-up operation after being hammered by the fringes of Typhoon Winnie. Torrential rains caused severe flooding to Manila and surrounding provinces, leaving 12 people dead and about 69,000 in evacuation centers. \I(The Philippines)\i
Traditional Aboriginal owners sign an agreement guaranteeing diamond miner, Striker Resources, the right to explore and mine a 27,000 square kilometer native title claim area in the north-east Kimberley region of Western \JAustralia\j. The company and the \JAborigines\j urge \JAustralia\j's State and Federal Governments to use the new agreement as an example for other companies, which in the past, have failed to win Aboriginal consent for mining exploration in the region. \I(Australia)\i
Indonesia's President Soeharto approves a plan to build what would become the world's longest bridge. The proposed bridge would span the Straits of Malacca between the Malaysian coast and the Indonesian island of \JSumatra\j. \I(Indonesia, Malaysia)\i
Following a rise in its \Jautomobile\j trade deficit with \JJapan\j, the United States urges \JJapan\j to honor a 1995 agreement and increase efforts to deregulate its car and car parts markets, opening up the markets to more US imports. \I(USA, Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In a text published by the \IKorean Central News Agency,\i North Korean leader, Kim Jong II, calls for a peace treaty with the United States to eliminate the danger of war on the divided peninsula, and proposes that the two Koreas should then join their efforts to promote the great cause of the country's reunification. \I(The Koreas, USA)\i
The Israeli air force launches three strikes into \JLebanon\j, targeting Hezbollah guerrilla bases west of the border with \JSyria\j. It is Israel's biggest attack into \JLebanon\j in 16 months, and comes in retaliation for yesterday's Hezbollah rocket barrage. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, appeals to \JSyria\j to assist in halting the conflict, voicing concerns that it could spiral out of control. \I(Israel, \JLebanon\j, \JSyria\j, USA)\i
After a computer failure which caused a loss of orientation toward the sun, the Russian-US crew of the Mir space station successfully realigns the solar panels, clearing the way for the commencement of vital repairs to the craft's damaged Spektr module. \I(Russia, USA)\i
A previously classified Allied interrogation of Adolf Hitler's henchman, Hermann Goring, which was recently discovered in the United States National \JArchives\j, reveals that in the last days of World War II, Hitler wanted to exterminate hundreds of thousands of Allied prisoners of war, despite opposition from the majority of senior Nazis. \I(USA, Germany)\i
In response to \JRussia\j's recently voiced concerns regarding increased United States influence in the Caucasus, the State Department denies any attempts to create a sphere of influence, saying Washington is working closely with \JRussia\j to resolve conflict in the former Soviet republics. \I(Russia, USA)\i
A federal grand jury indicts 20 alleged leaders of a nationwide ring responsible for luring 62 deaf-mute Mexicans to the United States to sell trinkets. Included in the \Jindictment\j is a new charge of placing the Mexicans in involuntary servitude, a situation exposed in July when two of the Mexicans walked into a New York police station with a note outlining the conditions under which they were living. \I(USA)\i
The 3rd United States Circuit Court of Appeals upholds New Jersey's pioneering Megan's Law, which requires local authorities to inform residents when convicted sex offenders are considered a risk to the community. The law is named after Megan Kanka, a 7-year-old who was raped and murdered by a twice-convicted sex offender in 1994. \I(USA)\i
Despite a measure of success in fighting the \Jcocaine\j and heroin trades, a United States Government anti-drug panel reports a new threat from multi-national suppliers of methamphetamine, a powerful stimulant which is overtaking \Jcocaine\j as the illegal drug of choice in some parts of the country. \I(USA)\i
In the Bosnian Serb town of Banja Luka, \JNATO\j forces support President Biljana Plavsic's bid to assert authority over her hardline rivals. Heavily armed British and Czech soldiers, backed by United States Apache \Jhelicopter\j gunships, surround four police stations and a police academy, while officers loyal to indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, are persuaded to allow newly appointed police chiefs to take control. \I(Bosnia, UK, Czech Republic, USA)\i
Following a rise in its \Jautomobile\j trade deficit with \JJapan\j, the United States urges \JJapan\j to honor a 1995 agreement and increase efforts to deregulate its car and car parts markets, opening up the markets to more US imports. \I(USA, Japan)\i
John Kornblum, the new United States Ambassador to \JGermany\j, arrives in \JBonn\j, filling a post that has been vacant for more than a year. Mr. Kornblum says he is looking forward to strengthening German-US ties. \I(USA, Germany)\i
German tennis star, Boris Becker, withdraws from next week's US Open following the death of his close friend and adviser, Axel Meyer-Woelden. Becker, who had been expected to make his final Grand Slam appearance at the Open, says he will play in just a few tournaments next year, and possibly the Davis Cup. \I(Germany, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The Israeli air force launches three strikes into \JLebanon\j, targeting Hezbollah guerrilla bases west of the border with \JSyria\j. It is Israel's biggest attack into \JLebanon\j in 16 months, and comes in retaliation for yesterday's Hezbollah rocket barrage. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, appeals to \JSyria\j to assist in halting the conflict, voicing concerns that it could spiral out of control. \I(Israel, \JLebanon\j, \JSyria\j, USA)\i
Two men are lynched by villagers in Nt'ombeni, south of \JMombasa\j, raising the death toll from a week of savage gang raids in the coastal resort area to 39. Kenyan President, Daniel arap Moi, blames the unrest on opposition leaders fanning tribal hatred before the presidential and parliamentary polls, but the opposition accuses Mr. Moi's advisers of stoking the violence. \I(Kenya)\i
In the Bosnian Serb town of Banja Luka, \JNATO\j forces support President Biljana Plavsic's bid to assert authority over her hardline rivals. Heavily armed British and Czech soldiers, backed by United States Apache \Jhelicopter\j gunships, surround four police stations and a police academy, while officers loyal to indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, are persuaded to allow newly appointed police chiefs to take control. \I(Bosnia, UK, Czech Republic, USA)\i
Germany's Technology Minister, Juergen Ruettgers, calls on security authorities to crack down harder on neo-Nazis using the Internet to organize illegal rallies such as last weekend's rally to mark the anniversary of the death of Hitler's deputy, Rudolf Hess. \I(Germany)\i
After 15 hours of heated debate, \JIran\j's parliament approves all 22 members of the proposed cabinet of newly elected President Mohammad Khatami. \I(Iran)\i
John Kornblum, the new United States Ambassador to \JGermany\j, arrives in \JBonn\j, filling a post that has been vacant for more than a year. Mr. Kornblum says he is looking forward to strengthening German-US ties. \I(USA, Germany)\i
In response to \JRussia\j's recently voiced concerns regarding increased United States influence in the Caucasus, the State Department denies any attempts to create a sphere of influence, saying Washington is working closely with \JRussia\j to resolve conflict in the former Soviet republics. \I(Russia, USA)\i
After a computer failure which caused a loss of orientation toward the sun, the Russian-US crew of the Mir space station successfully realigns the solar panels, clearing the way for the commencement of vital repairs to the craft's damaged Spektr module. \I(Russia, USA)\i
German tennis star, Boris Becker, withdraws from next week's US Open following the death of his close friend and advisor, Axel Meyer-Woelden. Becker, who had been expected to make his final Grand Slam appearance at the Open, says he will play in just a few tournaments next year, and possibly the Davis Cup. \I(Germany, USA)\i
#
"August 21, 1997",596,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Despite heavy shelling attacks from troops of Cambodian leader, Hun Sen, forces loyal to deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, withhold return fire to conserve ammunition, determined to retain their grip on the last royalist bastion of O'Smach in the country's north. \I(Cambodia)\i
The death toll from Typhoon Winnie rises to almost 200 as reports of injury and damage continue to come in. Thirty-seven people have died in \JTaiwan\j, 16 in the \JPhilippines\j, and at least 140 in China, with another 3,000 people injured. \I(Taiwan, The \JPhilippines\j, China)\i
Abdul Rahim Ghaforzai, the newly appointed premier of \JAfghanistan\j's anti-Taliban alliance, is killed in a plane crash, dealing a crushing blow to the alliance's hopes of taking control of the capital of Kabul. According to a spokesman, last week's appointment of Mr. Ghaforzai was a key part of the political process to enter the capital, and his death will force a revision of the alliance's overall strategy. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Delegations from North Korea and \JJapan\j meet at the North Korean embassy in \JBeijing\j to begin talks aimed at establishing diplomatic relations. Previous talks between the two nations have ended in failure, the most recent attempt being in 1992. \I(North Korea, \JJapan\j, China)\i
Papua New Guinea's Health Minister, Ludger Mond, announces plans to develop a national HIV/AIDS strategy. The announcement comes after the release of World Health Organization statistics which warn of a Papua New Guinean AIDS epidemic rivaling African countries such as \JUganda\j. \I(Papua New Guinea, Uganda)\i
New Zealand's \JImmigration\j Minister, Max Bradford, says strict English-language requirements imposed in 1995 have thwarted the government's attempts to meet \Jimmigration\j targets. Mr. Bradford acknowledges that the 45 per cent drop in \Jimmigration\j over the past twelve months has had an adverse effect on the nation's economy, and that some relaxation of the rules might be needed. \I(New Zealand)\i
Chinese biologists disclose plans for one last effort to save the white flag dolphin, or \Ibaiqituan,\i which is the rarest dolphin in the world. Over the coming winter, scientists hope to capture about 20 of the estimated 100 dolphins remaining in the middle reaches of the Yangtze, and transfer them to a secluded channel reserve in Hubei Province to allow them to breed in safety. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
As Montserrat residents prepare to be evacuated from the volcano-troubled island, protests break out over the amount of emergency relief offered by Britain, an amount which falls far short of that requested. Confronted by harsh criticism over his handling of the crisis, the British colony's senior elected official, Chief Minister Bertrand Osborne, abruptly resigns. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
The United States Agriculture Department forces the closure of a Hudson Foods plant and recalls 25 million pounds of beef suspected of being contaminated with the \IE. Coli\i bacterium. \IE. Coli\i is being blamed for 18 illnesses connected to meat processed at Hudson's Columbus, \JNebraska\j plant, and investigators are continuing to probe records to determine which of six slaughterhouses supplied the bad beef to Hudson. \I(USA)\i
Israel reacts angrily when Palestinian President Yasser Arafat holds national unity talks with Hamas, the fundamentalist Islamic movement believed to be responsible for the \JJerusalem\j market suicide bombing in July. Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, insists that the Palestinians must choose between embracing Hamas or embracing peace. The United States, meanwhile, expresses regret at the Palestinian leader's openly voiced defiance of Israel during the talks, saying it was counter-productive to the restoration of confidence and trust between the two nations. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
A helicopter crashes in \JPeru\j's Amazon jungle, 750 miles northeast of Lima, killing three of the six people on board. Two of those killed are United States seismologists from Houston-based Energy Innovations. \I(Peru, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A Kenyan court charges 62 suspects in connection with last week's raid on a police station, a raid which has triggered a string of attacks around the port of \JMombasa\j. As the violence in the area continues, 40 people are now reported to have died. \I(Kenya)\i
NATO troops scale down their presence in Banja Luka now that their heavily armed backing has succeeded in installing a police force loyal to Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. Ms Plavsic's hardline nationalist opponents, however, are accusing her of staging a coup. \I(Bosnia)\i
Israel reacts angrily when Palestinian President Yasser Arafat holds national unity talks with Hamas, the fundamentalist Islamic movement believed to be responsible for the \JJerusalem\j market suicide bombing in July. Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, insists that the Palestinians must choose between embracing Hamas or embracing peace. The United States, meanwhile, expresses regret at the Palestinian leader's openly voiced defiance of Israel during the talks, saying it was counter-productive to the restoration of confidence and trust between the two nations. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
As Montserrat residents prepare to be evacuated from the volcano-troubled island, protests break out over the amount of emergency relief offered by Britain, an amount which falls far short of that requested. Confronted by harsh criticism over his handling of the crisis, the British colony's senior elected official, Chief Minister Bertrand Osborne, abruptly resigns. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
Papua New Guinea's Health Minister, Ludger Mond, announces plans to develop a national HIV/AIDS strategy. The announcement comes after the release of World Health Organization statistics which warn of a Papua New Guinean AIDS epidemic rivaling African countries such as \JUganda\j. \I(Papua New Guinea, Uganda)\i
A young British woman who has been a vegetarian since 1985 is diagnosed with the new variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (nvCJD) which is linked to beef contaminated with "mad cow" disease, a disease not diagnosed in \Jcattle\j until 1986. The CJD Surveillance Unit in Edinburgh believes the woman may have eaten meat from a cow incubating the disease before that time. \I(UK, Scotland)\i
Iran's artistic community welcomes the appointment of controversial new Culture Minister, Ataollah Mohajerani, a university professor and historian who has provoked conservative criticism by promising to ease current restrictions on cultural life in the Islamic republic. \I(Iran)\i
The arrival of Pope John Paul II in Paris is enthusiastically received by some 500,000 attendees of the 12th World Youth Festival, who cheer his every word and wave flags of dozens of nations at a colorful ceremony under the Eiffel Tower. \I(France, Italy)\i
At the European Swimming Championships in Seville, Russian Alexander Popov successfully defends his Olympic and European 100m freestyle titles, winning the final in the season's fastest time of 49.09s. In other finals, \JRussia\j's Vladmir Selkov wins the men's 200m backstroke, \JGermany\j's Antje Buschschulte wins the women's 100m backstroke, \JGermany\j wins the women's 4x100m relay, and \JGermany\j's Dagmar Hase wins the women's 400m freestyle ahead of Ireland's triple Olympic gold medallist Michelle de Bruin, who had earlier won the 200m freestyle and the 400m individual medley. \I(Spain, \JRussia\j, \JGermany\j, Republic of Ireland)\i
#
"August 22, 1997",597,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban fundamentalist group claims to have outlawed the growing and exporting of opium, the base for heroin, but officials admit needing help from the international community to ensure the effectiveness of the ban. \I(Afghanistan)\i
In the wake of a drugs scandal implicating police and border guards earlier this year, Vietnamese authorities announce that a total of nine people will now face the firing squad for their involvement in a syndicate believed to have flooded the country with hundreds of kilograms of heroin. \I(Vietnam)\i
The Portuguese Government says it is giving serious consideration to an East Timorese proposal citing the relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States as an acceptable model for future relations between East \JTimor\j and \JIndonesia\j. \I(Portugal, East \JTimor\j, \JIndonesia\j, Puerto Rico, USA)\i
At talks continue between North Korea and \JJapan\j in \JBeijing\j, North Korea pledges to lift a ban on home visits by Japanese women married to North Koreans. As a result, \JTokyo\j indicates that food aid to the \JPyongyang\j could be forthcoming. \I(North Korea, \JJapan\j, China)\i
Bombay receives about 250 millimeters of rain in just six hours. The downpour disrupts \Jtelephone\j and electricity services, floods roads and train tracks, destroys buildings, and claims at least 22 lives. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Two Kenyans are shot dead by gunmen in a raid on a church south of the port of \JMombasa\j, raising the death toll from a ten-day series of attacks in the area to 42. United States Ambassador, Prudence Bushnell, condemns the violence and corruption, warning the Kenyan Government that multilateral donors might decline to resume aid on the basis of former promises. \I(Kenya, USA)\i
Despite problems created by a leaking spacesuit, the Russian-US crew aboard space station Mir completes the risky task of reconnecting all power cables in the station's damaged Spektr module. Russian officials say it will take several days to ascertain if former power levels are restored to Mir, which has been operating on 60 per cent power since the June 25 collision with a cargo ship. \I(Russia, USA)\i
A United States federal appeals court stands by its ruling that a controversial \JCalifornia\j law, known as Proposition 209, is constitutional. Proposition 209, the first law of its kind passed by any State, outlaws preferential treatment based on race or gender in public employment, education, and contracting. \I(USA)\i
Lawyer and legislator, David Brandt, is sworn in as Montserrat's new chief minister following the abrupt resignation of Bertrand Osborne yesterday. Meanwhile, authorities confirm that the evacuation of up to half of the remaining residents from the volcano-troubled British colony will begin tomorrow. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
Jamaican Commissioner of Corrections, John Prescod, agrees to hand over his duties to a deputy after a strike by prison guards leads to three days of prison riots and the death of six inmates. The guards were protesting against a government proposal to distribute condoms to inmates and guards. \I(Jamaica)\i
The Portuguese Government says it is giving serious consideration to an East Timorese proposal citing the relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States as an acceptable model for future relations between East \JTimor\j and \JIndonesia\j. \I(Portugal, East \JTimor\j, \JIndonesia\j, Puerto Rico, USA)\i
A federal judge in Little Rock sets May 27, 1998 as the date for jury selection in Paula Jones' sexual harassment lawsuit again President Clinton. Some elements of Jones' complaint have been dismissed by the judge, but the central claim of sexual harassment and emotional distress remains intact, despite White House attempts to have the case thrown out. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Two Kenyans are shot dead by gunmen in a raid on a church south of the port of \JMombasa\j, raising the death toll from a ten-day series of attacks in the area to 42. United States Ambassador, Prudence Bushnell, condemns the violence and corruption, warning the Kenyan Government that multilateral donors might decline to resume aid on the basis of former promises. \I(Kenya, USA)\i
Bosnian Serb hardliners come under international pressure to end inflammatory media broadcasts accusing President Biljana Plavsic of acting unconstitutionally, and asserting her own will in the area of law and order. \I(Bosnia)\i
At least 107 ethnic Tutsi Congolese refugees are massacred when Hutu militiamen raid a camp in northwestern \JRwanda\j. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), Rwanda)\i
Speaking at a hearing of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, right-wing assassin, Janusz Walus, gives a detailed account of how he stalked and executed Communist Party hero, Chris Hani, on April 10, 1993. Walus and co-conspirator, Conservative Party politician Chris Derby-Lewis, are seeking amnesty for the assassination, which almost provoked a race war at the time, and is currently rekindling anger among members of the South African Communist Party, and its ally, the armed wing of the African National Congress. \I(South Africa)\i
Despite problems created by a leaking spacesuit, the Russian-US crew aboard space station Mir completes the risky task of reconnecting all power cables in the station's damaged Spektr module. Russian officials say it will take several days to ascertain if former power levels are restored to Mir, which has been operating on 60 per cent power since the June 25 collision with a cargo ship. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Lawyer and legislator, David Brandt is sworn in as Montserrat's new chief minister following the abrupt resignation of Bertrand Osborne yesterday. Meanwhile, authorities confirm that the evacuation of up to half of the remaining residents from the volcano-troubled British colony will begin tomorrow. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
The Portuguese Government says it is giving serious consideration to an East Timorese proposal citing the relationship between Puerto Rico and the United States as an acceptable model for future relations between East \JTimor\j and \JIndonesia\j. \I(Portugal, East \JTimor\j, \JIndonesia\j, Puerto Rico, USA)\i
In defiance of protests from French \Jabortion\j rights supporters, Pope John Paul II flies to Chalo-Saint-Mars, south of Paris, to visit the grave of his friend, Jerome Lejeune, who was a genetic scientist and staunch anti-abortion campaigner. \I(France, Italy)\i
More than 50 years of communal secrecy and shame is exposed when a French newspaper reports on recently uncovered evidence concerning the deportation of 16 Jewish orphans from the French \Jalpine\j town of Voiron. According to the report, 16 children and two adults were betrayed to the \JGestapo\j by an informant in 1944 and taken away to Nazi death camps. The town is now planning a memorial to the slain children. \I(France, Germany)\i
The head of \JRussia\j's Federal Security Service, Nikolai Kovalyov, says the special spy hotline announced in June has drawn 550 calls, many yielding concrete results. The purpose of the line is to flush out foreign agents by offering them full confidentiality and immunity from prosecution. \I(Russia)\i
#
"August 23, 1997",598,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Forces loyal to \JCambodia\j's deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, continue to hold the besieged border town of O'Smach, exchanging only minor artillery fire with troops of Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen. \I(Cambodia)\i
As the peace process gains momentum, Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister, Bill Skate, visits Bana in Bougainville's south, the first visit to the island by a PNG Prime Minister since the failed Arawa talks in 1994. \I(Papua New Guinea, Bougainville)\i
Experts from the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in \JAtlanta\j join the investigation into the death of a 3-year-old Hong Kong boy from the virus known as H5N1, which commonly infects birds, but has never before been known to infect humans. \I(Hong Kong, USA)\i
In the sixth and final Test cricket match in the 1997 Ashes series, the English side recovers to score a 19-run victory over the series-winning Australian line-up. \I(Australia, UK)\i
The season's final Tri Nations Rugby Test is played at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in \JPretoria\j, with the South African Springboks defeating the Australian Wallabies 61-22. \I(South Africa, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Following the successful reconnection of power cables in the Mir space station's Spektr module, a NASA spokesman indicates that plans to replace \Jastronaut\j Michael Foale with fellow American David Wolf are now likely to proceed. \I(Russia, USA)\i
President Clinton appeals to Congress for "fast-track authority" to negotiate new trade deals with emerging markets. Under the authority, Congress would relinquish the right to amend trade agreements, thereby speeding up the process of approval. \I(USA)\i
Experts from the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in \JAtlanta\j join the investigation into the death of a 3-year-old Hong Kong boy from the virus known as H5N1, which commonly infects birds, but has never before been known to infect humans. \I(Hong Kong, USA)\i
Island officials report that only about 17 people leave volcano-stricken Montserrat on the first day of a British-sponsored evacuation, despite registration figures of between 600 and 800. Meanwhile, Washington reiterates that existing regulations will apply to Montserrat islanders wishing to come to the United States, but pledges to speed up the process for eligible applicants. \I(Montserrat, UK, USA)\i
Scientists express concern over news that a \JMichigan\j man is infected with a strain of Staph bacteria resistant to last-resort antibiotic, vancomycin, a situation that is now spurring them to develop a new class of \Jantibiotics\j. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the fourth air strike this week, Israeli warplanes attack suspected Hezbollah guerrilla bases in south \JLebanon\j. The attack comes in response to the detonation of a roadside bomb which killed an Israeli-allied militiaman in the Israeli-occupied southern enclave yesterday. Twenty-six people, mostly civilians, have now been killed in this latest escalation of fighting between the two sides. \I(Israel, Lebanon)\i
A United Nations official joins Rwandan and Congolese Government authorities to assess the scope of yesterday's massacre at a Rwandan camp for Tutsi Congolese. The death toll has risen to 131, and plans are now under discussion to move the camp to a safer location, and possibly repatriate some of the refugees. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), Rwanda)\i
Former Zambian President, Kenneth Kaunda, is shot when police fire at his car while breaking up a rally. Mr. Kaunda's wound is not life-threatening, but Roger Chongwe, another opposition leader traveling in the car, receives a serious gunshot wound to the neck. \I(Zambia)\i
In a statement released from the Pale headquarters of indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, the Bosnian Serb military warns President Biljana Plavsic that it will move against her with all available means in order to prevent the Serb republic from splitting politically and geographically. \I(Bosnia)\i
For the first time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the Iranian Government appoints a woman as vice-president, a move not unexpected from President Mohammad Khatami, who owes a large part of his recent landslide election victory to the support of women seeking social and economic reform. The newly appointed vice-president in charge of environmental protection, Dr. Masumeh Ebtekar, holds a doctorate in \Jimmunology\j, is a former journalist, and has held posts including acting head of the central committee of \JIran\j's non-governmental women's organization. \I(Iran)\i
Following the successful reconnection of power cables in the Mir space station's Spektr module, a NASA spokesman indicates that plans to replace \Jastronaut\j Michael Foale with fellow American David Wolf are now likely to proceed. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Island officials report that only about 17 people leave volcano-stricken Montserrat on the first day of a British-sponsored evacuation, despite registration figures of between 600 and 800. Meanwhile, Washington reiterates that existing regulations will apply to Montserrat islanders wishing to come to the United States, but pledges to speed up the process for eligible applicants. \I(Montserrat, UK, USA)\i
In the sixth and final Test cricket match in the 1997 Ashes series, the English side recovers to score a 19-run victory over the series-winning Australian line-up. \I(Australia, UK)\i
The season's final Tri Nations Rugby Test is played at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in \JPretoria\j, with the South African Springboks defeating the Australian Wallabies 61-22. \I(South Africa, Australia)\i
At the European Swimming Championships in Seville, \JRussia\j's Oxana Verevka wins the women's 200m individual medley, \JGermany\j's Kerstin Kielgass wins the women's 800m freestyle, \JSpain\j's Martin Lopez Zubero wins his fourth European men's 100m backstroke title, and \JRussia\j's Alexander Popov wins the men's 50m freestyle, having already led \JRussia\j to victory in the men's 4x100m freestyle relay. \I(Spain, \JRussia\j, Germany)\i
#
"August 24, 1997",599,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Several soldiers and civilians are killed when Indian and Pakistani forces exchange heavy artillery and mortar fire along the line of control dividing Kashmir. \JPakistan\j later accuses India of an unprovoked attack. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
As the Sri Lankan Government intensifies its bid to forge a land route through rebel-held territory to the Northern Jaffna peninsula, the Tamil Tiger rebels lose ground, with government soldiers consolidating a newly captured area and dominating the area ahead of the defenses. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
In the \JBangladesh\j capital of \JDhaka\j, at least 50 people are injured when riot police and anti-strike supporters clash with opposition activists enforcing a general strike in protest against sharp increases in fuel prices. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Typhoon Zita ravages the Chinese province of Guangdong with strong winds and heavy rain, stranding four million people and flooding out 54,000 others. The state-run China News Service says no deaths are reported. \I(China)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says he has received assurances that \JBeijing\j will not sell a nuclear reactor to \JIran\j. Mr. Netanyahu welcomes China's decision, adding that he hopes it will set an example for other countries in their relations with \JIran\j. \I(Israel, China, Iran)\i
In Washington, the National Federation of Filipino American Associations is created, with Alex Esclamado named as chairman. The new body aims to bolster the economic and political influence of Americans of Philippine descent, encouraging them to move from an "employee mentality" toward business ownership. \I(USA, The Philippines)\i
Australia's Greg Norman finishes with a 72-hole total of 7-under 273 to take out his second victory in three years at the World Series of Golf in Akron, Ohio. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Spain's Carlos Moya captures his first ATP Tour title of the year when he defeats \JAustralia\j's Patrick Rafter in the final of the Hamlet Cup Tennis Tournament in Commack, New York. \I(Spain, \JAustralia\j, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
NASA is forced to postpone the launch of the Advanced Composition Explorer \Jspacecraft\j when two shrimp boats are discovered in an area off the \JFlorida\j coast where the solid rocket boosters are expected to fall. The purpose of the \Jspacecraft\j, which will now be launched on Monday, is to provide a 30 to 60 minute warning before potentially dangerous solar storms hit Earth. \I(USA)\i
In Washington, the National Federation of Filipino American Associations is created, with Alex Esclamado named as chairman. The new body aims to bolster the economic and political influence of Americans of Philippine descent, encouraging them to move from an "employee mentality" toward business ownership. \I(USA, The Philippines)\i
Stephen Jones, lead attorney for convicted Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, says he believes at least four others involved in the 1995 explosion are still at large. McVeigh was found guilty in June and is now appealing a death sentence. \I(USA)\i
Spain's Carlos Moya captures his first ATP Tour title of the year when he defeats \JAustralia\j's Patrick Rafter in the final of the Hamlet Cup Tennis Tournament in Commack, New York. \I(Spain, \JAustralia\j, USA)\i
Australia's Greg Norman finishes with a 72-hole total of 7-under 273 to take out his second victory in three years at the World Series of Golf in Akron, Ohio. \I(Australia, USA)\i
In Surrey, British Columbia, American golfer Mark Calcavecchia plays a final round 5-under par 66 to capture the Greater Vancouver Open by one stroke. \I(USA, Canada)\i
At the Country Club of the North in Beavercreek, Ohio, Colleen Walker cards a 54-hole total of 13-under 203 to win the Star Bank LPGA Classic by two shots. \I(USA)\i
On the Senior PGA Tour, Bruce Summerhays pars the second hole of a playoff with South Africa's Hugh Baiocchi to win the St. Luke's Senior Classic in Belton, Missouri. \I(USA, South Africa)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
As the Bosnian Serb power struggle escalates, \Jtelevision\j employees loyal to President Biljana Plavsic air their own nightly news broadcast, cutting links with studios run by hardliners allied to indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, and deepening the split between Ms. Plavsic's Banja Luka base and the hardline stronghold of Pale. \I(Bosnia)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says he has received assurances that \JBeijing\j will not sell a nuclear reactor to \JIran\j. Mr. Netanyahu welcomes China's decision, adding that he hopes it will set an example for other countries in their relations with \JIran\j. \I(Israel, China, Iran)\i
Former Zambian President, Dr. Kenneth Kaunda, accuses his successor of an assassination attempt after being wounded yesterday when police opened fire at an opposition rally. \I(Zambia)\i
Iraq's most influential newspaper calls for a renewal of diplomatic ties with \JSyria\j to counter the growing military alliance between Israel and Turkey. \I(Iraq, \JSyria\j, Israel, Turkey)\i
More than one million people pack the Longchamp racecourse on the western fringes of Paris for an open-air papal Mass, the climax of Pope John Paul II's visit to the 12th World Youth Festival. Elsewhere, the Pope draws heavy criticism for scheduling the Mass on the anniversary of a massacre of French Protestants by Roman Catholics in 1572. \I(France, Italy)\i
Germany's Michael Schumacher wins his 4th Belgian Grand Prix, his 4th Formula One victory this season. \I(Germany, Belgium)\i
Spain's Carlos Moya captures his first ATP Tour title of the year when he defeats \JAustralia\j's Patrick Rafter in the final of the Hamlet Cup Tennis Tournament in Commack, New York. \I(Spain, \JAustralia\j, USA)\i
At Dublin, Ireland, Sweden's Per-Ulruk Johansson takes out the European Open Golf Championship by six strokes. \I(Republic of Ireland, Sweden)\i
On the Senior PGA Tour, Bruce Summerhays pars the second hole of a playoff with South Africa's Hugh Baiocchi to win the St. Luke's Senior Classic Golf Tournament in Belton, Missouri. \I(USA, South Africa)\i
At Osterakers, Sweden, Sweden's Annika Sorenstam finishes with a 6-stroke lead to win the Women's Compaq Open Golf Tournament. \I(Sweden)\i
#
"August 25, 1997",600,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Heavy shelling erupts near the Cambodian border with \JThailand\j as royalist forces of deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, cling fiercely to their last outpost of O'Smach in the face of a sustained onslaught by troops of the Hun Sen regime. Across the border, Thai Red Cross officials voice concerns about sanitary conditions in the 4.8-hectare makeshift camp where more than 21,000 war-weary Cambodian civilians are taking refuge from the fighting. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
Indian and Pakistani troops continue to exchange intermittent artillery fire along the Kashmir border. India reports two soldiers and three civilians killed in hostilities over the past 48 hours; \JPakistan\j says Indian troops have killed four people and wounded several others. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
South Korean officials say North Korea's Ambassador to \JEgypt\j has defected to the West, and that Washington has granted a request for asylum. In \JCairo\j, however, North Korean embassy officials vehemently deny that Ambassador Jang Seung-il has left \JEgypt\j. \I(The Koreas, \JEgypt\j, USA)\i
At the opening of \JTaiwan\j's ruling Nationalist Party's 15th congress, Vice-President Lien Chan calls for an end to years of hostility between Taipei and \JBeijing\j, suggesting that talks should be opened to resolve differences and create a "win-win" situation. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
Australian Defense Minister, Ian McLachlan, says studies are continuing into the potential purchase of long-range cruise missiles, a purchase defense analysts suggest could spark an arms race in Southeast Asia, and significantly reduce \JAustralia\j's security. \I(Australia, Southeast Asia)\i
While visiting \JJapan\j, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, admits that \JJapan\j has reservations about Israel's closure of the West Bank and Gaza strip following the suicide bombing of a \JJerusalem\j market in July, but says Israeli-Japanese economic ties remain unaffected. Mr. Netanyahu is currently touring the region to assure investors that Israel-Palestine tensions should not deter them from doing business with his country. \I(Israel, Palestine, Japan)\i
Amnesty International reports that Chinese courts imposed the death penalty more than 6,100 times and carried out 4,367 executions during 1996, more than all other countries combined. Amnesty says it is the highest number of State-sanctioned killings in China since 1983, and attributes the surge to the government's well-publicized "strike hard" anti-crime campaign. \I(China)\i
Following high-level talks in Port Moresby, \JAustralia\j's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer, announces that over the next five years, \JAustralia\j will divert $A100 million from its general aid program to Papua New Guinea for a reconstruction program on war-torn Bougainville. The amount will be in addition to $A31 million already earmarked for reconstruction on the island. \I(Australia, Papua New Guinea, Bougainville)\i
New Zealand's \JMaori\j Affairs Minister is to lead a delegation to Britain to recover approximately 200 preserved heads of \JMaori\j warriors. The first tattooed heads were brought back by Captain James Cook, and many were acquired by museums late last century. \I(New Zealand, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Wielding incriminating photographs at a meeting of the United Nations Biological Weapons Convention in Geneva, \JCuba\j charges the United States with carrying out an air operation to plague the island with a crop-eating pest, and calls for an international investigation. Washington admits that a plane flew over western \JCuba\j last October, but insists that the plane's emission of smoke was to identify its position to a Cuban commercial airliner. \I(Cuba, USA, Geneva)\i
South Korean officials say North Korea's Ambassador to \JEgypt\j has defected to the West, and that Washington has granted a request for asylum. In \JCairo\j, however, North Korean embassy officials vehemently deny that Ambassador Jang Seung-il has left \JEgypt\j. \I(The Koreas, \JEgypt\j, USA)\i
Russia reacts angrily when United States Navy warships join vessels from Turkey, \JRomania\j, \JBulgaria\j, and Georgia for naval exercises in the Black Sea, condemning the maneuvers as provocative and insensitive. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Turkey, \JRomania\j, \JBulgaria\j, Georgia)\i
NASA reports that \JRussia\j's Mir space station has temporarily lost its means of generating oxygen, but adds that crew members are in no immediate danger. In Moscow, however, a Mission Control spokesperson denies that the craft has an oxygen problem. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Although the \Jvolcano\j on the Caribbean island of Montserrat continues to spew ash and rock, government officials report that only about 800 of the 5,000 remaining residents have signed up for Britain's voluntary evacuation program, and most are in no hurry to leave. The officials add that they are currently urging London to do more for those who want to stay on the tiny British colony. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
As part of a revised \Jbankruptcy\j reorganization plan, Dow Corning increases its settlement offer to women with breast implants, and also agrees to pay women who allege a variety of autoimmune disorders as a result of implants. A sum of $US2.4 billion is to be set aside to resolve claims from 15,000 women in the United States and 50,000 women elsewhere. \I(USA)\i
Researchers at John Hopkins University say a seemingly harmless genetic \Jmutation\j can actually cause one type of inherited colorectal cancer, and has now become the most common cancer-related \Jmutation\j known. \I(USA)\i
Despite expressions of concern from the Mexican Government, United States officials step up border patrols in a campaign to slow illegal \Jimmigration\j across the Rio Grande, a continuation of similar tough border enforcements in San Diego and El Paso. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
The United States Food and Drug Administration licenses Carticel, a newly developed process which helps some younger patients with injured knees grow back their own cartilage. \I(USA)\i
The State of \JFlorida\j declares victory in its legal battle against the United States \Jtobacco\j industry, announcing a $US11.3 billion settlement to recover costs of treating sick smokers. The settlement also includes strict provisions on the marketing of cigarettes, and is the second of its kind this year, with Mississippi receiving $US3.36 billion from the \Jtobacco\j industry in July. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Fierce fighting breaks out between Israeli forces and pro-Iranian Hezbollah guerrillas in \JLebanon\j's western Bekaa Valley, continuing a recent wave of violence that has killed 10 civilians, three Hezbollah fighters, and an Israeli-backed militiaman. In \JBethlehem\j, seven Palestinian youths are injured during a clash with Israeli troops, and Palestinian President Yasser Arafat calls for an urgent Arab summit on the troubled Middle East peace process. \I(Israel, \JIran\j, \JLebanon\j, Palestine)\i
Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, takes steps to assert control over the army, accusing hardliners of meddling in army affairs, and insisting that elections are the only way to resolve the crisis that has erupted from her power struggle with opponents loyal to indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic. \I(Bosnia)\i
A Berlin court sentences Egon Krenz, the last leader of former East \JGermany\j, to 61/2 years in prison on charges of \Jmanslaughter\j, ruling that Krenz was responsible for the shoot-to-kill orders given to East German border guards in the late 1980s. Two other members of the former East's ruling \JPolitburo\j are also convicted on counts of \Jmanslaughter\j and are each sentenced to three years in prison. \I(Germany)\i
NASA reports that \JRussia\j's Mir space station has temporarily lost its means of generating oxygen, but adds that crew members are in no immediate danger. In Moscow, however, a Mission Control spokesperson denies that the craft has an oxygen problem. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Wielding incriminating photographs at a meeting of the United Nations Biological Weapons Convention in Geneva, \JCuba\j charges the United States with carrying out an air operation to plague the island with a crop-eating pest, and calls for an international investigation. Washington admits that a plane flew over western \JCuba\j last October, but insists that the plane's emission of smoke was to identify its position to a Cuban commercial airliner. \I(Cuba, USA, Geneva)\i
South Korean officials say North Korea's Ambassador to \JEgypt\j has defected to the West, and that Washington has granted a request for asylum. In \JCairo\j, however, North Korean embassy officials vehemently deny that Ambassador Jang Seung-il has left \JEgypt\j. \I(The Koreas, \JEgypt\j, USA)\i
Russia reacts angrily when United States Navy warships join vessels from Turkey, \JRomania\j, \JBulgaria\j, and Georgia for naval exercises in the Black Sea, condemning the maneuvers as provocative and insensitive. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Turkey, \JRomania\j, \JBulgaria\j, Georgia)\i
Although the \Jvolcano\j on the Caribbean island of Montserrat continues to spew ash and rock, government officials report that only about 800 of the 5,000 remaining residents have signed up for Britain's voluntary evacuation program, and most are in no hurry to leave. The officials add that they are currently urging London to do more for those who want to stay on the tiny British colony. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
While visiting \JJapan\j, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, admits that \JJapan\j has reservations about Israel's closure of the West Bank and Gaza strip following the suicide bombing of a \JJerusalem\j market in July, but says Israeli-Japanese economic ties remain unaffected. Mr. Netanyahu is currently touring the region to assure investors that Israel-Palestine tensions should not deter them from doing business with his country. \I(Israel, Palestine, Japan)\i
British investigators voice fresh concerns that the domestic water supply could be the possible route of infection for cases of the new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (nvCJD), which is linked to "mad cow" disease. The concerns are raised only days after a vegetarian is diagnosed as the 22nd victim of nvCJD, and echo previously denied allegations that liquid waste from slaughtered \Jcattle\j at Canterbury Mills was poured down a well. \I(UK)\i
Organizers say that the papal visit to the World Youth Days festival in Paris has left the Church with a deficit of up to Fr30 million. It was hoped that contributions from pilgrims and sales of souvenirs would cover the costs, but according to Bishop Michel Dubost, many of the pilgrims left without paying for their food and lodging, and 80 per cent of those who attended the Pope's final Mass dodged the admission fee. \I(France, Italy)\i
New Zealand's \JMaori\j Affairs Minister is to lead a delegation to Britain to recover approximately 200 preserved heads of \JMaori\j warriors. The first tattooed heads were brought back by Captain James Cook, and many were acquired by museums late last century. \I(New Zealand, UK)\i
British Museum archaeologists discover the remains of the first British Museum buried beneath their own forecourt. The first museum was demolished more than 150 years ago, and details of its precise position and layout had been lost. \I(UK)\i
#
"August 26, 1997",601,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Washington confirms that the United States has granted political asylum to two North Korean defectors. The two defectors are identified as North Korea's Ambassador to \JEgypt\j, Jang Seung-il, and his brother Jang Seung-ho, a diplomat in Paris. \I(USA, North Korea, \JEgypt\j, France)\i
Japan's Science and Technology Agency says it will launch an immediate investigation into reports that a radioactive waste storage facility at a State-run nuclear reprocessing plant leaked low-level radiation over a period of approximately 30 years. The storage facility in question is located at Tokaimura, on the Pacific coast about 65 miles from \JTokyo\j. \I(Japan)\i
The office of \JCambodia\j's King Norodom Sihanouk announces that he will return to his homeland on Friday. The king has been undergoing medical treatment in \JBeijing\j, and his visit to \JCambodia\j will be the first since his son, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, was overthrown last month by Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen. \I(Cambodia, China)\i
Taiwan's President, Lee Teng-hui, wins a third term as chairman of the 2.5 million-member Kuomintang (KMT). \JBeijing\j comments that Mr. Lee's re-election is a local issue and does not alter \JTaiwan\j's status as part of China. \JBeijing\j also spurns \JTaiwan\j's recently offered overtures of peace, insisting that strained ties can only be improved if \JTaiwan\j ceases all efforts toward independence. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
In a continuation of his bid to help resolve the political crisis in East \JTimor\j, South African President, Nelson Mandela, offers to host talks in his country between the Indonesian Government and exiled East \JTimor\j activists. \I(South Africa, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
Sri Lanka's President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, announces a nationwide referendum for a constitution aimed at bringing an end to the country's ethnic conflict, which has killed more than 50,000 people. Under the proposed constitution, Sri Lanka would become a union of regions, with new regional councils assuming some of the administrative powers of central government, thereby giving greater autonomy to the minority Tamil community. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Philippine President Fidel Ramos renews calls for communist leader, Jose Maria Sison, and other rebels living in exile in the Netherlands, to come back to the \JPhilippines\j and take part in elections, offering a guarantee of safety should they do so. Mr. Sison, who founded the local communist party in 1968, has previously spurned all similar entreaties from Manila. \I(The \JPhilippines\j, The Netherlands)\i
A separatist spokesman says Francis Ona, leader of the Bougainville Revolutionary Army, has decided to attend peace talks with the Papua New Guinean Government in October. Mr. Ona has not attended any peace negotiations since the secessionist conflict started on the island nine years ago. \I(Bougainville, Papua New Guinea)\i
Australia's Defense Minister, Ian McLachlan, announces an official inquiry into the mysterious loss of the \Jbattleship\j HMAS \ISydney,\i which on November 19, 1941, vanished with all hands off the Western Australian coast after a short battle with the German raider HSK \IKormoran.\i The inquiry comes as a result of sustained public interest, and widespread skepticism about the official version of events at the time. \I(Australia, Germany)\i
A frail Mother Teresa quietly celebrates her 87th birthday at the headquarters of her Roman Catholic order, the Missionaries of Charity in \JCalcutta\j. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Washington confirms that the United States has granted political asylum to two North Korean defectors. The two defectors are identified as North Korea's Ambassador to \JEgypt\j, Jang Seung-il, and his brother Jang Seung-ho, a diplomat in Paris. \I(USA, North Korea, \JEgypt\j, France)\i
NASA reports that an Earth-observing satellite launched last week is spinning out of control in orbit, causing a loss of orientation toward the sun and draining the craft's batteries. The "Lewis" satellite was to have monitored the Earth's \Jpollution\j, endangered species habitats, and forest and agricultural productivity. \I(USA)\i
Leaders of the Caribbean Community meet in Antigua to discuss the fate of the volcano-stricken island of Montserrat. The new chief minister of the British colony says he hopes to persuade Britain to release about $US66 million of frozen funds for the development of Montserrat's northern zone, which is considered relatively safe. Britain has offered relocation aid, but the package has fallen far short of expectations and few islanders have accepted it. \I(Montserrat, Antigua, UK)\i
The Pentagon reveals that about 20 United States Air Force jet fighters will be deployed to \JBahrain\j next month to boost air power in the Gulf region. \I(USA, Bahrain)\i
In the lead-up to September's multi-party talks on the future of Northern Ireland, the British and Irish Governments sign an agreement to establish an international commission on disarmament. The governments of the United States, Canada, and \JFinland\j have already been asked to propose suitable candidates for membership of the commission. \I(UK, Republic of Ireland, USA, Canada, Finland)\i
A United States judge rules that the Sultan of \JBrunei\j is protected by immunity from a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against him by a former Miss USA, Shannon Marketic, who claims to have been held a virtual prisoner for 32 days in the sultan's palace. \I(USA, Brunei)\i
A United States federal appeals court upholds an 1837 treaty giving Chippewa Indians the right to hunt and fish on land beyond their reservation, finding that President Zachary Taylor erred in 1850 when he unilaterally revoked the harvesting privileges. The state of \JMinnesota\j says it intends to appeal the decision. \I(USA)\i
Kansas University researchers suggest that donating blood can help reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes in male non-smokers. The researchers attribute this to the so-called "iron hypothesis", whereby women are protected from heart disease due to loss of iron during \Jmenstruation\j. \I(USA)\i
Researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health warn that health risks could be posed by dexfenfluramine and fenfluramine, two appetite suppressants frequently used in weight-loss drugs. In the United States, dexfenfluramine is available under the brand "Redux", and fenfluramine under the brand "Pondimin". \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Washington confirms that the United States has granted political asylum to two North Korean diplomats. The two defectors are identified as North Korea's Ambassador to \JEgypt\j, Jang Seung-il, and his brother Jang Seung-ho, a diplomat in Paris. \I(USA, North Korea, \JEgypt\j, France)\i
Former South African President, F.W. de Klerk, announces his intention to step down as leader of the opposition National Party and resign from active political life. De Klerk, who won the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize for his role in dismantling \Japartheid\j, plans to write his memoirs. Co-winner of the Nobel Prize, President Nelson Mandela, praises the role de Klerk played in effecting a smooth transition from the painful past to the dispensation South Africa enjoys today. \I(South Africa)\i
The Zambian Government says it will investigate the apparent police shooting of former President and opposition leader, Kenneth Kaunda, and fellow opposition politician, Roger Chongwe, but vigorously rejects Dr. Kaunda's accusation of an assassination attempt. Meanwhile, 53 opposition supporters detained at the time remain in custody, and paramilitary police are now patrolling the capital and provincial towns because of continuing protests over the shooting. \I(Zambia)\i
Algerian newspapers report that at least 100 people, mostly women and children, have been slaughtered in village massacres in the last two days. Muslim fundamentalist extremists at war with the military-backed government are blamed for the attacks. \I(Algeria)\i
Despite President Biljana Plavsic's successful dissolution of parliament, defiant Bosnian Serb hardline politicians hold a parliamentary session, voting to cancel foreign monitoring of municipal polls scheduled for September 13, and proposing that presidential and parliamentary polls be held at the same time. Although the parliament's decisions are rejected as illegal by the international community, they exacerbate tensions in the politically split region. \I(Bosnia)\i
Egon Krenz, the former East \JGermany\j's last communist leader, lodges an appeal against his \Jmanslaughter\j conviction for the deaths of people trying to escape over the Berlin Wall in the 1980s. A sentence of 61/2 years imprisonment was imposed by a Berlin court yesterday. \I(Germany)\i
Leaders of the Caribbean Community meet in Antigua to discuss the fate of the volcano-stricken island of Montserrat. The new chief minister of the British colony says he hopes to persuade Britain to release about $US66 million of frozen funds for the development of Montserrat's northern zone, which is considered relatively safe. Britain has offered relocation aid, but the package has fallen far short of expectations and few islanders have accepted it. \I(Montserrat, Antigua, UK)\i
In the lead-up to September's multi-party talks on the future of Northern Ireland, the British and Irish Governments sign an agreement to establish an international commission on disarmament. The governments of the United States, Canada, and \JFinland\j have already been asked to propose suitable candidates for membership of the commission. \I(UK, Republic of Ireland, USA, Canada, Finland)\i
The Pentagon reveals that about 20 United States Air Force jet fighters will be deployed to \JBahrain\j next month to boost air power in the Gulf region. \I(USA, Bahrain)\i
In a continuation of his bid to help resolve the political crisis in East \JTimor\j, South African President, Nelson Mandela, offers to host talks in his country between the Indonesian Government and exiled East \JTimor\j activists. \I(South Africa, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
A furor breaks out in Sweden over reports that 60,000 Swedes, mostly women, were forcibly sterilized under an Institute for Racial \JBiology\j program between 1935 and 1976. The government is now reviewing laws which would allow victims of the program to seek compensation from the State. \I(Sweden)\i
Australia's Defense Minister, Ian McLachlan, announces an official inquiry into the mysterious loss of the \Jbattleship\j HMAS \ISydney,\i which on November 19, 1941, vanished with all hands off the Western Australian coast after a short battle with the German raider HSK \IKormoran.\i The inquiry comes as a result of sustained public interest, and widespread skepticism about the official version of events at the time. \I(Australia, Germany)\i
In an interview with the French newspaper, \ILe Monde,\i Diana, Princess of Wales condemns the British press as ferocious, labels the previous Conservative Government "hopeless", and declares that only her sons keep her from leaving Britain. However, the Princess has nothing but praise for the current Labor Government's determined stance on the campaign to ban anti-personnel landmines, saying she regards her own work in this and other humanitarian areas as her destiny. \I(UK, France)\i
President Fidel Ramos renews calls for communist leader, Jose Maria Sison, and other rebels living in exile in the Netherlands, to come back to the \JPhilippines\j and take part in elections, offering a guarantee of safety should they do so. Mr. Sison, who founded the local communist party in 1968, has previously spurned all similar entreaties from Manila. \I(The \JPhilippines\j, The Netherlands)\i
A United States judge rules that the Sultan of \JBrunei\j is protected by immunity from a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against him by a former Miss USA, Shannon Marketic, who claims to have been held a virtual prisoner for 32 days in the sultan's palace. \I(USA, Brunei)\i
#
"August 27, 1997",602,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Responding to the United States decision to grant asylum to two defecting diplomats, North Korea withdraws from talks on missile proliferation scheduled to begin in New York, branding the US role in the diplomatic affair "a grave insult and hostility". \I(North Korea, USA)\i
Fierce battles rage in northern Sri Lanka as government troops deepen their advance into territory held by Tamil Tiger guerrillas, continuing a three-month offensive to open the 75-kilometer stretch of road to Jaffna. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Fighting between the warring Cambodian factions around the northern enclave of O'Smach extends across the nearby border when several shells land inside Thai territory, killing a Thai paratrooper and injuring at least one other. \JThailand\j responds with five artillery rounds, and warns that it will to everything to protect Thai lives and property. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
India rejects a United States offer to mediate an end to Kashmir border clashes with \JPakistan\j, saying the problems must be resolved in bilateral talks. \JPakistan\j, meanwhile, proposes that United Nations observers visit the area to verify their claims of Indian provocations. \I(India, \JPakistan\j, USA)\i
Former Solomon Islands Finance Minister, Bartholomew Ulufa'alu, is elected to the office of Prime Minister, with his new coalition government expected to hold a two-seat majority. \I(Solomon Islands)\i
Twenty-four people are reported drowned after several days of heavy tropical storms cause massive flooding in southern \JThailand\j. \I(Thailand)\i
Tidal waves strike the western coast of North Korea, submerging more than 107,600 hectares of arable land, flooding over 10,000 houses and public buildings, and leaving almost 30,000 people homeless. \I(North Korea)\i
The United Nations World \JMeteorology\j Organization warns that El Ni±o, an abnormal tropical Pacific Ocean weather pattern which causes far-reaching droughts and floods, could become the "climate event of the century", with the current El Ni±o surpassing the 1982-83 event as the worst on record. \I(Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Responding to the United States decision to grant asylum to two defecting diplomats, North Korea withdraws from talks on missile proliferation scheduled to begin in New York, branding the US role in the diplomatic affair "a grave insult and hostility". \I(North Korea, USA)\i
Italian police announce the arrest of Musbah Abulgasem Eter, a 40-year-old Libyan wanted in connection with the 1986 bombing of a Berlin discotheque, which killed a Turkish woman, two United States soldiers, and wounded 200 others, most of whom were US military personnel. At the time, the United States blamed \JLibya\j for the blast and retaliated by bombing the Arab state. \I(Italy, \JLibya\j, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
Arriving in \JSarajevo\j to take up his post as United States Ambassador to Bosnia, Richard Kauzlarich says his mission is to fully implement the Dayton accord, and to lay the foundation of a prosperous democratic Bosnia and Herzegovina. \I(USA, Bosnia, Herzegovina)\i
NATO says Yugoslav President, Slobodan Milosevic, has sought permission to fly to the Bosnian town of Banja Luka, the power base of Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. Milosevic has been under increasing Western pressure to throw his support behind Ms. Plavsic, who is locked in a bitter struggle with hardliners loyal to war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic. The United States, however, is unable to confirm \JNATO\j's statement concerning Milosevic's future movements. \I(Yugoslavia, Bosnia, USA)\i
In a progress report on the Mars Pathfinder mission, NASA says the Sojourner rover is continuing to probe rock samples in the "Rock Garden" area, and has already identified two distinct types of rock: some rich in \Jsilica\j and others full of sulfur. NASA adds that the mission is now moving into a second phase which will focus on the planet's atmospheric changes. \I(USA)\i
Russian space officials acknowledge that last week's risky repairs to Mir space station's Spektr module have brought only partial success, restoring less than half of the anticipated power to the craft. \I(Russia, USA)\i
A Pentagon report reveals that the United States Defense Department carried out some 2,400 secret experiments or studies involving human subjects over a 50-year period. The main focus of the experiments, which began in 1944, was to determine the effects of fallout from a nuclear war. \I(USA)\i
The United Nations World \JMeteorology\j Organization warns that El Ni±o, an abnormal tropical Pacific Ocean weather pattern which causes far-reaching droughts and floods, could become the "climate event of the century", with the current El Ni±o surpassing the 1982-83 event as the worst on record. \I(Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
After an independent investigation lasting nearly three years, Mike Espy, President Clinton's first agriculture secretary, is indicted by a federal grand jury on 39 counts, including accepting $US35,000 in illegal gifts from cronies and firms regulated by the USDA. \I(USA)\i
Brandon Tartikoff, who became the youngest entertainment president in network history when he took over NBC's programming in 1980 at the age of 30, dies aged 48 from Hodgkins disease, a cancer of the \Jlymph\j nodes. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
As peace returns to the West Bank town of \JBethlehem\j after two days of skirmishes between Palestinians and Israeli troops, the Israeli Army lifts the closure imposed a month ago following the double suicide bombing of \JJerusalem\j's Mahane Yehuda market. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Italian police announce the arrest of Musbah Abulgasem Eter, a 40-year-old Libyan wanted in connection with the 1986 bombing of a Berlin discotheque, which killed a Turkish woman, two United States soldiers, and wounded 200 others, most of whom were US military personnel. At the time, the United States blamed \JLibya\j for the blast and retaliated by bombing the Arab state. \I(Italy, \JLibya\j, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
An armed group slaughters about 60 people, 30 of whom are women, in an Algerian mountain village south of the capital \JAlgiers\j, raising the death toll from the spate of murderous attacks since Sunday to at least 160. \I(Algeria)\i
Arriving in \JSarajevo\j to take up his post as United States Ambassador to Bosnia, Richard Kauzlarich says his mission is to fully implement the Dayton accord, and to lay the foundation of a prosperous democratic Bosnia and Herzegovina. \I(USA, Bosnia, Herzegovina)\i
NATO says Yugoslav President, Slobodan Milosevic, has sought permission to fly to the Bosnian town of Banja Luka, the power base of Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. Milosevic has been under increasing Western pressure to throw his support behind Ms. Plavsic, who is locked in a bitter struggle with hardliners loyal to war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic. The United States, however, is unable to confirm \JNATO\j's statement concerning Milosevic's future movements. \I(Yugoslavia, Bosnia, USA)\i
Russian space officials acknowledge that last week's risky repairs to Mir space station's Spektr module have brought only partial success, restoring less than half of the anticipated power to the craft. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The United Nations World \JMeteorology\j Organization warns that El Ni±o, an abnormal tropical Pacific Ocean weather pattern which causes far-reaching droughts and floods, could become the "climate event of the century", with the current El Ni±o surpassing the 1982-83 event as the worst on record. \I(Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
#
"August 28, 1997",603,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, announces his candidacy for a second two-year term as head of \JJapan\j's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, a post which for the first time since the party's founding in 1955, is apparently uncontested. \I(Japan)\i
United States diplomats meet with their North Korean counterparts to urge them to reconsider their withdrawal from missile talks, a withdrawal prompted by Washington's decision to give asylum to two defectors from the communist state. Meanwhile, despite the rift in relations, South Korea says it is still optimistic about the North's attendance at the planned mid-September four-nation talks aimed at bringing a more durable peace to the divided Korean peninsula. \I(The Koreas, USA)\i
Cambodia's newly appointed First Prime Minister, Ung Huot, formally apologizes to \JThailand\j for the accidental killing of a Thai paratrooper during heavy fighting between Phnom Penh troops and resistance forces near the Thai-Cambodian border yesterday. Ung Huot also offers his condolences to the victim's family. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
In response to an invitation from Washington, Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, says he will meet with President Clinton in New York next month only if Indo-Pakistani ties are excluded from the agenda. \I(India, \JPakistan\j, USA)\i
The Australian Federal Government passes legislation to establish a Constitutional convention, the purpose of which will be to discuss the country's options concerning its potential status as a republic. \I(Australia)\i
Australia's Northern Territory Government dismisses media reports that the powerful eldest daughter of \JIndonesia\j's President Soeharto is seeking to invest in a proposed $A1 billion project to build a 1,400-kilometer rail link between Alice Springs and Darwin. \I(Australia, Indonesia)\i
Japan declares it is ready to join the \JOttawa\j Process, a Canadian-led bid to establish a global ban on the production, use, export, and stockpiling of anti-personnel landmines. \I(Japan, Canada)\i
\BThe Americas\b
United States diplomats meet with their North Korean counterparts to urge them to reconsider their withdrawal from missile talks, a withdrawal prompted by Washington's decision to give asylum to two defectors from the communist state. Meanwhile, despite the rift in relations, South Korea says it is still optimistic about the North's attendance at the planned mid-September four-nation talks aimed at bringing a more durable peace to the divided Korean peninsula. \I(The Koreas, USA)\i
In response to an invitation from Washington, Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, says he will meet with President Clinton in New York next month only if Indo-Pakistani ties are excluded from the agenda. \I(India, \JPakistan\j, USA)\i
The United States seeks clarification from Moscow concerning a "seismic event", which is suspected to have occurred 12 days ago at or near the \JArctic\j site of Novaya Zemlya. \JRussia\j denies carrying out a test explosion, insisting that it has observed its self-imposed moratorium on nuclear test blasts. \I(USA, Russia)\i
American troops assigned to the NATO-led Stabilization Force in Bosnia are attacked by angry hardline supporters wielding metal bars, rocks, and wood. The attack comes as soldiers attempt to replace police loyal to war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic, with officers of Western-back Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. \JNATO\j says it will now step up security patrols in the area. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
Japan declares it is ready to join the \JOttawa\j Process, a Canadian-led bid to establish a global ban on the production, use, export, and stockpiling of anti-personnel landmines. \I(Japan, Canada)\i
Thousands of people march peacefully across San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge to protest against Proposition 209, an anti-affirmative-action state law banning the consideration of race or gender in awarding jobs, contracts, and university places. \I(USA)\i
As part of \JFlorida\j's fight to stem an outbreak of deadly mosquito-borne \Jencephalitis\j, a crop duster sprays about 8,000 acres of mosquito-infested land around Orlando's theme parks and tourist attractions. There have been no reported cases of the disease so far. \I(USA)\i
Venezuelan Justice Ministry officials reveal that 29 inmates of a remote maximum security jail in the \Jrainforest\j region were hacked and stabbed to death in a battle for power between rival gangs. Thirteen other prisoners were injured by the attackers, who used machetes and primitive knives, and set fire to mattresses. \I(Venezuela)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
American troops assigned to the NATO-led Stabilization Force in Bosnia are attacked by angry hardline supporters wielding metal bars, rocks, and wood. The attack comes as soldiers attempt to replace police loyal to war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic, with officers of Western-back Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. \JNATO\j says it will now step up security patrols in the area. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
In the latest wave of fighting around Israel's occupation zone in south \JLebanon\j, two Israeli troops are killed and four are wounded when a border patrol is attacked by Shi'ite Muslim guerrillas. Later, the pro-Iranian Hezbollah claims to have attacked an Israeli position at Qantara in the western sector of the zone, but there are no reports of casualties. \I(Israel, \JLebanon\j, Iran)\i
A powerful bomb kills at least eight people and wounds about 50 others when it explodes in the Casbah, the ancient heart of the Algerian capital. Elsewhere in the city, a bomb is defused after suspicious traders call security services to investigate a package, and in the country's west and south-west, suspected Islamic extremists kill 21 villagers, five of whom are children, and kidnap 12 others. \I(Algeria)\i
The United Nations Security Council imposes air and travel sanctions on \JAngola\j's UNITA movement and orders the closure of its offices abroad. The sanctions, a unanimous UN response to UNITA's refusal to observe accords aimed at ending two decades of civil war, will go into effect at 12:01 a.m. EDT on September 30. \I(Angola)\i
South Africa's former foreign minister, Pik Botha, accepts nomination for the National Party leadership, a position opened up by the forthcoming retirement of F.W. de Klerk. Mr. Botha's nomination acceptance, however, is on condition that the party resumes its place in the Government of National Unity. \I(South Africa)\i
The United States seeks clarification from Moscow concerning a "seismic event", which is suspected to have occurred 12 days ago at or near the \JArctic\j site of Novaya Zemlya. \JRussia\j denies carrying out a test explosion, insisting that it has observed its self-imposed moratorium on nuclear test blasts. \I(USA, Russia)\i
#
"August 29, 1997",604,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
As royalist supporters continue to clash with government troops in the country's north, \JCambodia\j's King Norodom Sihanouk arrives in Siem Reap, where he is greeted by government leaders, including Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, and newly appointed First Prime Minister, Ung Huot, who replaced the king's ousted son, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia)\i
Veteran Chinese activist, Ren Wanding, urges the Nobel Peace prize committee not to give the coveted award to his nation's best know political dissident, Wei Jingsheng. Ren argues that while Wei has made a contribution to China's democracy campaign, any prize should be shared by the people of China for their role in the struggle for greater freedom. Ren has spent 11 years in jail for his own role in the struggle; Wei is currently serving a 14-year jail term for his efforts. \I(China)\i
In \JTokyo\j, the Supreme Court rules that the government acted illegally when it removed from a textbook, written by historian Saburo Ienaga, a reference to \JJapan\j's biological experiments on 3,000 people in northern China during World War II. However, the court rejects Mr. Ienaga's claims concerning the illegal censoring of seven other portions in his textbook, including the rape of Chinese women by Japanese soldiers. \I(Japan, China)\i
Australia's Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, lashes out at foreign correspondents for giving coverage to the racist views expressed by maverick Independent MP Pauline Hanson. Mr. Downer points out that Ms. Hanson has neither a voice in government nor a vast following among the people, and accuses the foreign media of projecting an image of \JAustralia\j as a "narrow-minded, inward looking" nation led by Ms. Hanson. \I(Australia)\i
Britain's Labor Government announces its support for human rights and non-government pro-democracy organizations inside \JIndonesia\j. British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, says the government will also be active in seeking a solution to the conflict in East \JTimor\j, adding that Britain has already proposed to lead a senior European Union fact-finding mission to the disputed territory. \I(UK, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
Three Australian warships arrive at the eastern Chinese port of Qingdao for a six-day visit aimed at promoting a closer military relationship between the two countries. The visit was arranged by Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, and Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, during a summit in April. \I(Australia, China)\i
Typhoon Amber sweeps across \JTaiwan\j, killing one person, and leaving a trail of damage on the island which is still recovering from the devastating effects of Typhoon Winnie. \I(Taiwan)\i
At least 35 people are buried alive in a landslide in Shinkiari town, raising the death toll from torrential rains creating havoc in \JPakistan\j this week to 121. Off the coast of \JBangladesh\j, at least 100 fishermen are reported missing after their boats sink in heavy seas whipped up by a depression bringing rainstorms and winds of up to 60 kilometers per hour. \I(Pakistan, Bangladesh)\i
\BThe Americas\b
One person is killed and two are seriously injured when a bomb explodes in the town of Banja Luka, the power base of Western-backed Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. In Brcko, meanwhile, international troops and police successfully complete an operation to rescue 257 United Nations police officers besieged by angry Serb mobs loyal to indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic. United States envoy to Bosnia, Robert Gelbard, warns that the West will act forcefully to stop hardliners whipping up violence against peacekeepers. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
Following the launch of Operation Rio Grande, a United States crackdown against illegal \Jimmigration\j in south \JTexas\j, the Mexican Government says it will increase its diplomatic staff along the US-Mexico border to help protect illegal immigrants against human rights abuses, and simultaneously expand its internal campaign to warn Mexican citizens about the dangers of illegal \Jimmigration\j. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
Thousands of demonstrators march across Brooklyn Bridge to City Hall in Manhattan, where community leaders make speeches condemning Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and the police department's attitude towards minorities. The protests come in support of hospitalized Haitian immigrant, Abner Louima, who was assaulted by officers at a Brooklyn station earlier this month, and whose condition has changed from stable to critical. \I(USA)\i
Along with other civil rights groups, the American Civil Liberties Union says it has requested the Supreme Court to issue an emergency stay to block implementation of Proposition 209, the controversial anti-affirmative-action law which was passed by \JCalifornia\j voters last November. \I(USA)\i
A federal judge agrees to limit the scope of a ruling that permitted a University of Illinois professor to publish a version of his encryption software over the Internet, giving the Clinton administration a partial victory in its court battle to maintain strict United States export limits on computer encoding technology. \I(USA)\i
In the largest banking acquisition in United States history, NationsBank agrees to buy Barnett Banks for $US15.5 billion. The takeover will make NationsBank the country's third largest commercial bank, and the second largest in terms of stock market value. \I(USA)\i
The United States subsidiary of the Swiss-based company, Novartis, announces the market withdrawal of laxative products containing phenolphthalein, a chemical the US Food and Drug Administration is proposing to ban because of its cancer-causing potential. The company says its best-selling Ex-Lax laxatives will be reformulated with senna, a plant-based ingredient. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In an historic move, the British Government invites Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), to participate in talks on Northern Ireland's future. The invitation comes after a six-week IRA cease-fire, and is hailed by Sinn Fein leaders as the most wonderful opportunity for peace. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
One person is killed and two are seriously injured when a bomb explodes in the town of Banja Luka, the power base of Western-backed Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. In Brcko, meanwhile, international troops and police successfully complete an operation to rescue 257 United Nations police officers besieged by angry Serb mobs loyal to indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic. United States envoy to Bosnia, Robert Gelbard, warns that the West will act forcefully to stop hardliners whipping up violence against peacekeepers. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
Four Israeli soldiers are burned to death and six others injured when a brush fire is ignited as a result of a gun battle with a squad of Amal Shi'ites in southern \JLebanon\j, during which four Amal soldiers were killed. \I(Israel, Lebanon)\i
The Algerian Government says Muslim fundamentalist rebels slaughtered at least 98 people and wounded 120 in villages south of the capital overnight. Residents of nearby Blida, however, say the number of dead totals at least 200, and that many were women and children, including tiny babies. \I(Algeria)\i
Britain's Labor Government announces its support for human rights and non-government pro-democracy organizations inside \JIndonesia\j. British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, says the government will also be active in seeking a solution to the conflict in East \JTimor\j, adding that Britain has already proposed to lead a senior European Union fact-finding mission to the disputed territory. \I(UK, \JIndonesia\j, East Timor)\i
Despite government assurances, thousands of residents flee their homes south of the Kenyan port city of \JMombasa\j, fearful of being attacked or caught up in a sweep by security forces who have now arrested more than 450 people in connection with the area's recent wave of violence. \I(Kenya)\i
The United States subsidiary of the Swiss-based company, Novartis, announces the market withdrawal of laxative products containing phenolphthalein, a chemical the US Food and Drug Administration is proposing to ban because of its cancer-causing potential. The company says its best-selling Ex-Lax laxatives will be reformulated with senna, a plant-based ingredient. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
#
"August 30, 1997",605,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Despite growing concern that North Korea may postpone September's scheduled peace talks as a further protest against the United States' decision to give asylum to two North Korean diplomats, the State Department confirms that it has not received notification of any intention to that effect. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
Japan welcomes the nomination of Thomas Foley as the new United States Ambassador to \JJapan\j, saying the nomination is a clear sign that the Clinton administration continues to attach importance to its relations with \JJapan\j. \I(Japan, USA)\i
In Liverpool, England, the head of 19th-century Aboriginal warrior, Yagan, is handed over to Australian High Commission representatives and a delegation of Aboriginal elders. In accordance with Aboriginal belief, Yagan's head will return to Western \JAustralia\j to be reunited with his body in order to allow Yagan's spirit to pass into the Dreamtime. \I(Australia, UK)\i
Following \JAustralia\j's fifth successive triumph over England in the Ashes Test cricket series, Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, supports the Australian Cricket Board's call for the Ashes to be taken from Lord's to Melbourne. \I(Australia, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
After meeting with Bosnian Serb hardliners at their Pale stronghold, the United States envoy to Bosnia, Robert Gelbard, denounces their attempts to derail the Dayton peace agreement, and vows that the NATO-led Stabilization Force will put a stop to them. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Despite growing concern that North Korea may postpone September's scheduled peace talks as a further protest against the United States' decision to give asylum to two North Korean diplomats, the State Department confirms that it has not received notification of any intention to that effect. \I(North Korea, USA)\i
Japan welcomes the nomination of Thomas Foley as the new United States Ambassador to \JJapan\j, saying the nomination is a clear sign that the Clinton administration continues to attach importance to its relations with \JJapan\j. \I(Japan, USA)\i
A Florida appeals court upholds a program by Marion County Sheriff to charge prison inmates for meals and any medical care. The sheriff hails the court ruling as "a great victory for taxpayers". \I(USA)\i
In a one-day sale conducted simultaneously in London and Berlin, a collection of Elvis Presley memorabilia, including stage suits, record collections, and jewelry, fetches $US324,000. One of the biggest money-makers is Presley's 1960s Gretsch \Jguitar\j, which sells for $US66,240. \I(USA, UK, Germany)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
About 100 people attack a police station in Roman Catholic west \JBelfast\j and officers are forced to fire plastic bullets to quell the disturbance. Fears that the incident may represent a breach of the six-week IRA cease-fire, and thereby hinder current moves to resolve the conflict in Northern Ireland, are dispelled by security analysts, who characterize the flare-up as spontaneous. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
Traumatized survivors of the recent village massacre in Sidi Rais, south of the \JAlgiers\j, arrive in the capital to identify the bodies of their loved ones. According to the government, 98 people were slaughtered in the massacre, which they maintain was perpetrated by fundamentalist Muslim rebels. \I(Algeria)\i
In Liverpool, England, the head of 19th-century Aboriginal warrior, Yagan, is handed over to Australian High Commission representatives and a delegation of Aboriginal elders. In accordance with Aboriginal belief, Yagan's head will return to Western \JAustralia\j to be reunited with his body in order to allow Yagan's spirit to pass into the Dreamtime. \I(Australia, UK)\i
In a one-day sale conducted simultaneously in London and Berlin, a collection of Elvis Presley memorabilia, including stage suits, record collections, and jewelry, fetches $US324,000. One of the biggest money-makers is Presley's 1960s Gretsch \Jguitar\j, which sells for $US66,240. \I(USA, UK, Germany)\i
Following \JAustralia\j's fifth successive triumph over England in the Ashes Test cricket series, Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, supports the Australian Cricket Board's call for the Ashes to be taken from Lord's to Melbourne. \I(Australia, UK)\i
#
"August 31, 1997",606,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Malaysians commemorate their country's 40th anniversary of independence from British rule. Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, appeals to the people to preserve and safeguard their independence against a return of colonial domination, at the same time assailing foreign investors for deliberately lowering the value of the currency and the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange. \I(Malaysia, UK)\i
Cambodia's ailing King Norodom Sihanouk offers to mediate talks between his ousted son, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, maintaining that free and fair elections cannot proceed unless there is peace between the former co-leaders of the country. \I(Cambodia)\i
Taiwan announces it will double its $US100 million contribution to a fund for five Central American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, \JGuatemala\j, \JHonduras\j, and \JNicaragua\j. The announcement comes after St. Lucia switches diplomatic recognition from \JTaiwan\j to China amid reports that the Caribbean nation had received donations from \JBeijing\j. \I(Taiwan, China, Costa Rica, \JGuatemala\j, \JHonduras\j, \JNicaragua\j, St. Lucia)\i
Philippine President Fidel Ramos swears he will never be a dictator, and urges Manila \JArchbishop\j, Cardinal Jaime Sin, to call off a mass rally opposing a campaign to allow Ramos to run for re-election as President next year. Cardinal Sin has accused Ramos of orchestrating the campaign to change the constitution; Ramos, on the other hand, has repeatedly declared his intention of stepping down next year when his six-year term expires. \I(The Philippines)\i
India's Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, announces that he will hold peace talks with his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, while visiting New York this month. Mr. Gujral says he is hopeful that aspirations for improved bilateral relations will be fulfilled. \I(India, \JPakistan\j, USA)\i
Following the lead set by \JAustralia\j and \JJapan\j, Britain agrees to adopt new measures to crack down on sex tourism in the \JPhilippines\j. The measures include legislation allowing prosecution of paedophiles in Britain for crimes committed abroad, and a co-operative agreement with the Philippine police whereby intelligence on paedophiles will be shared. \I(UK, The \JPhilippines\j, \JAustralia\j, Japan)\i
Australia's Michael Doohan scores another victory on his Repsol Honda in the Czech Grand Prix at Brno. It is Doohan's 11th 500cc \Jmotorcycle\j championship win this season. \I(Australia, Czech Republic)\i
In women's events at the 1997 World Track \JCycling\j Championships in Perth, Western \JAustralia\j, Felicia Ballanger of \JFrance\j wins the 500m time trial, and \JGermany\j's Judith Arndt wins the 3000m individual pursuit. In men's events, \JAustralia\j's Shane Kelly wins the 1km time trial; Frenchman Frederic Magne wins the keirin; Frenchman Philippe Ermeneault wins the individual pursuit; Frenchman Florian Rousseau wins the sprint; \JItaly\j's Silvio Martinello wins the 40km points race; and \JItaly\j wins the teams pursuit. \I(Australia, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, Italy)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, claims that infiltrators from Yugoslavia played a role in the recent riot by hardline Serbs against peacekeeping troops in the town of Brcko. Two United States soldiers were injured in the flare-up, and dozens of United Nations vehicles were damaged. \I(Bosnia, Yugoslavia, USA)\i
India's Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, announces that he will hold peace talks with his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, while visiting New York this month. Mr. Gujral says he is hopeful that aspirations for improved bilateral relations will be fulfilled. \I(India, \JPakistan\j, USA)\i
Taiwan announces it will double its $US100 million contribution to a fund for five Central American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, \JGuatemala\j, \JHonduras\j, and \JNicaragua\j. The announcement comes after St. Lucia switches diplomatic recognition from \JTaiwan\j to China amid reports that the Caribbean nation had received donations from \JBeijing\j. \I(Taiwan, China, Costa Rica, \JGuatemala\j, \JHonduras\j, \JNicaragua\j, St. Lucia)\i
American golfer Scott Hoch earns his first victory of the year when he eagles on the 18th hole to win the Greater \JMilwaukee\j Open by one stroke. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Diana, Princess of Wales, dies at 4 am in a Paris \Jhospital\j from internal injuries suffered in a car crash shortly after midnight. Despite closure of a wound to the left ventricle, and prolonged external and internal cardiac massage, surgeons at PitiΘ SaltpiΦtre \JHospital\j are unable to re-establish circulation. Later in the day, Diana's body is escorted back to Britain by her former husband, Prince Charles. The Princess was 36, and is survived by her two children, Prince William, 15, and Prince Harry, 12. \I(UK, France)\i
Thousands of grieving Britons lay flowers and cards outside Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace, the London home of the Princess of Wales, holding candle-light vigils well into the night. Meanwhile, as the rest of the world mourns Diana's untimely passing, tributes pour in from friends and acquaintances, charity workers, heads of state, and prominent figures from all areas and avenues of life. \I(UK)\i
Dodi Al Fayed, 41-year-old son of Egyptian-born billionaire, Mohamed Al Fayed, is buried in Britain less than 24 hours after he was killed instantly in the Paris car crash which also claimed the life of the Princess of Wales. The Princess and Dodi al Fayed had been constant companions over the past month, and earlier that evening, the couple had dined together at the Ritz Hotel, which is owned by the Al Fayed family. \I(UK, \JEgypt\j, France)\i
The French Interior Minister, Jean-Pierre Chevenement, releases details of the car crash in which the Princess of Wales, her companion, Dodi Al Fayed, and the driver of the Mercedes Benz were killed. According to Mr. Chevenement, the driver is thought to have lost control of the vehicle, which was traveling at high speed through a tunnel near the Alma Bridge while being pursued by paparazzi photographers on motorcycles. Mr. Chevenement says Paris police have detained seven photographers for questioning, and have seized a motor-scooter and two motorcycles, one of which is badly damaged. Mr. Chevenement also confirms that the sole survivor of the crash was bodyguard, Trevor Rhys-Jones. \I(UK, France)\i
Anti-landmine campaigners lament the loss of Britain's Princess of Wales as a loss also to the initiative for a global ban on anti-personnel landmines. The Princess, who championed the worldwide humanitarian cause, had been credited with giving it a more human face and raising international awareness, and her tragic death comes on the eve of a 19-day conference in Oslo, the aim of which will be to draft a text for a convention banning the use, export, production, and stockpiling of landmines. \I(UK, Norway)\i
Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, claims that infiltrators from Yugoslavia played a role in the recent riot by hardline Serbs against peacekeeping troops in the town of Brcko. Two United States soldiers were injured in the flare-up, and dozens of United Nations vehicles were damaged. \I(Bosnia, Yugoslavia, USA)\i
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, condemns the recent bloody massacre in \JAlgeria\j which is now reported to have killed at least 230 people. Mr. Annan indicates his support for international intervention in what has formerly been regarded as an internal problem, saying the world cannot continue to ignore the scope of the violence in \JAlgeria\j. \I(Algeria)\i
Egyptian-Israeli relations become tense when an Egyptian court sentences an Israeli man to 15 years imprisonment with hard labor. Azam Azam was convicted of working for Mossad, the Israeli intelligence agency, but Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, insists that Azam is innocent, and attacks the sentence as an outrage. \I(Israel, Egypt)\i
Italian authorities toughen their stance against the Camorra, the Naples Mafia, after a man is shot dead in front of his young family during an attack on a coachload of Roman Catholic pilgrims. The attack is the most recent in a spate of robberies and murders by the Camorra which has led to a deployment of troops on the streets of Naples. \I(Italy)\i
Malaysians commemorate their country's 40th anniversary of independence from British rule. Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, appeals to the people to preserve and safeguard their independence against a return of colonial domination, at the same time assailing foreign investors for deliberately lowering the value of the currency and the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange. \I(Malaysia, UK)\i
Following the lead set by \JAustralia\j and \JJapan\j, Britain agrees to adopt new measures to crack down on sex tourism in the \JPhilippines\j. The measures include legislation allowing prosecution of paedophiles in Britain for crimes committed abroad, and a co-operative agreement with the Philippine police whereby intelligence on paedophiles will be shared. \I(UK, The \JPhilippines\j, \JAustralia\j, Japan)\i
Australia's Michael Doohan scores another victory on his Repsol Honda in the Czech Grand Prix at Brno. It is Doohan's 11th 500cc \Jmotorcycle\j championship win this season. \I(Australia, Czech Republic)\i
In women's events at the 1997 World Track \JCycling\j Championships in Perth, Western \JAustralia\j, Felicia Ballanger of \JFrance\j wins the 500m time trial, and \JGermany\j's Judith Arndt wins the 3000m individual pursuit. In men's events, \JAustralia\j's Shane Kelly wins the 1km time trial; Frenchman Frederic Magne wins the keirin; Frenchman Philippe Ermeneault wins the individual pursuit; Frenchman Florian Rousseau wins the sprint; \JItaly\j's Silvio Martinello wins the 40km points race; and \JItaly\j wins the teams pursuit. \I(Australia, \JFrance\j, \JGermany\j, Italy)\i
#
"September 1, 1997",607,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
As sporadic shelling continues around \JCambodia\j's contested northwestern border town of O'Smach, King Norodom Sihanouk prays for peace at a two-hour traditional Buddhist ceremony held at the royal chapel near his residence in Siem Reap. The king's previous calls for a cease-fire have been ignored by the Hun Sen Government, which insists that royalist forces entrenched in O'Smach must either surrender or fight until they are defeated. \I(Cambodia)\i
The shadowy leader of Bougainville's secessionist rebels, Francis Ona, attacks as a mockery Papua New Guinea's invitation to negotiate at the second round of New Zealand-mediated peace talks, insisting that his side has won the nine-year conflict, and that the only outcome now must be a referendum on independence. \I(Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand)\i
British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, denounces the \JRangoon\j Government for failing to act against the drug barons, adding that Europe's recent decision to deny visas to \JMyanmar\j's senior officials will exclude the country from next April's Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in London. \I(UK, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), Europe, Asia)\i
Red Cross officials say the tidal wave which smashed dikes and flooded fields in North Korea last month had destroyed an estimated 700,000 tonnes of corn, exacerbating the starving nation's food crisis. The tidal wave, reported to be more than eight meters high, carried \Jseaweed\j and debris as far inland as 10 kilometers, and was caused by Typhoon Winnie, which lashed eastern China at the same time. In large areas of northern China, however, emergency steps are now being taken to minimize crop losses due to one of the worst droughts in decades. \I(North Korea, China)\i
An estimated 8 million Japanese people participate in a national \Jearthquake\j drill. The drill is conducted each year on the anniversary of the Great Kanto \JEarthquake\j, a natural disaster which claimed more than 140,00 lives in the \JTokyo\j area in 1923. \I(Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
United States officials and arms experts say foreign ministers from the US and four ex-Soviet republics hope to sign a package of five accords on missile defense systems during September's United Nations General Assembly session in New York. \I(USA, Russia)\i
IBM announces improvements to Deep Blue, the chess-playing computer that defeated world champion, Garry Kasparov, in May. The improvements will apparently make Deep Blue 58 per cent faster. \I(USA)\i
As the world continues to mourn the passing of Diana, Princess of Wales, thousands of people queue for hours to sign books of condolences at St. James Palace in London, where the Princess's body is laid. Buckingham Palace announces that her funeral, to be held at London's historic Westminster Abbey on Saturday, will be a public service, but not a state occasion. Britain will nevertheless come to a halt on the day. Sporting events have been postponed, and banks and shops will close. For the second Saturday this century, renowned Knightsbridge department store, Harrods, will also close its doors to the public, and will be left in darkness throughout the weekend, with flags flying at half mast. Harrods is owned by Mohamed Al Fayed, whose son Dodi Al Fayed was killed in the Paris car crash with the Princess. \I(UK)\i
The Paris prosecutor's office discloses that a post-mortem examination on the driver of the Mercedes-Benz that crashed at high speed, killing the Princess of Wales and her companion Dodi Al Fayed, revealed the driver's blood alcohol level to be more than three times the legal limit. The driver, Henri Paul, who was deputy security chief at the Al Fayed family's Ritz Hotel where the couple had dined that evening, was apparently a last-minute substitute for Mr. Fayed's regular chauffeur, who was deployed to divert a crowd of waiting photographers. Meanwhile, the seven photographers detained by police have not yet been released, and the sole survivor of the crash, bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones, remains in \Jhospital\j suffering head and lung injuries, and is still unfit to be interviewed by authorities. \I(Paris, UK)\i
An international conference seeking a global ban on landmines opens in Oslo, with delegates observing a one-minute tribute of silence to the late Princess of Wales. Norwegian Foreign Minister, Bjoern Tore Godal, vows to spare no efforts to achieve the goal for which Diana had strenuously campaigned during the last months of her life. \I(Norway, UK)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
At Udrigovo, in northeast Bosnian Serb territory, troops of the NATO-led Stabilization Force are pelted with rocks by a 300-strong crowd directed by people with walkie-talkies. The attack comes in an attempt to take control of a \Jtelevision\j transmitter, but \JNATO\j troops stand their ground and there are no reports of casualties. \I(Bosnia)\i
The Algerian Foreign Ministry accuses United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, of interfering in \JAlgeria\j's internal affairs. The accusation comes in response to Mr. Annan's remarks that the world could no longer ignore terrorist atrocities such as the recent bloody massacre at Sidi Rais, near \JAlgiers\j, which reportedly killed some 200 people. Meanwhile, in a warning to those believed responsible for the carnage, the Algerian Interior Ministry announces the house arrest of Islamic leader, Abassi Madani, who was released from prison just six weeks ago. \I(Algeria)\i
Israel rejects Palestinian demands and refuses to implement a partial withdrawal of troops from West Bank territory in compliance with the Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. Instead, Israel accuses the Palestinians of failing to honor the peace accords, and insists that the Palestinians must first take vigorous action against Islamic militants. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, denounces the \JRangoon\j Government for failing to act against the drug barons, adding that Europe's recent decision to deny visas to \JMyanmar\j's senior officials will exclude the country from next April's Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in London. \I(UK, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), Europe, Asia)\i
In an effort to avert United Nations sanctions scheduled to take effect on September 30, \JAngola\j's UNITA movement declares it will fulfill its obligations to the 1994 peace treaty which ended the country's two-decade civil war. \I(Angola)\i
The Czech Government announces that under a new bill currently being drafted, prison inmates will be required to pay, in part or in whole, for their time behind bars. The announcement comes in the wake of a May public spending shake-up in which the prison service budget was cut by 50 per cent. \I(Czech Republic)\i
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, reveals that he will not seek a third term in office, despite changes to the constitution which would allow him to do so. The President's current term ends in 2000. \I(Russia)\i
A five-member gang foils a series of security procedures to perpetrate one of the world's biggest ever armed robberies, stealing more than 53 million Swiss francs from a Zurich post office. \I(Switzerland)\i
#
"September 2, 1997",608,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Cambodian Government reiterates that fighting in the country's northwest will only cease when royalist forces surrender. In a statement signed by co-Prime Ministers, Hun Sen and Ung Huot, the Government offers amnesty to all opposition soldiers and officials, with the exception of former First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and two of his top military men, General Nhiek Bun Chhay and General Serey Kosal. \I(Cambodia)\i
On the second day of an Oslo-based conference to produce a text for a global treaty banning landmines, a United States proposal to exclude the Korean peninsula from the ban encounters stiff opposition. The US proposal calls for an open-ended arrangement which would allow the continued use of landmines in the peninsula's demilitarized zone separating North and South. \I(Norway, USA, The Koreas)\i
Malaysian Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, hits back at a statement made by British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, concerning the exclusion of \JMyanmar\j from next year's Asia-Europe summit in London. Dr. Mahathir warns that discrimination against \JMyanmar\j is discrimination against the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and points out that \JMyanmar\j's alleged links to international drug trafficking are a direct result of Britain's colonial strategy in the mid-19th century. \I(Malaysia, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), UK)\i
At a meeting in \JSingapore\j, the InterAction Council, a 29-member group of elder world statesmen, completes a draft of a 19-point Universal Declaration of Human Obligations designed to balance the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, urging the United Nations and individual governments to adopt the document. The council is chaired by former Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser, and its members include former German Chancellor, Helmut Schmidt, and former United States President, Jimmy Carter. \I(Singapore, \JAustralia\j, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The White House announces that first lady, Hillary Rodham Clinton, accompanied by the United States Ambassador to Britain, William Crowe, will attend the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, in London on Saturday. The White House adds that because the funeral will not be a state occasion, President Clinton will not attend, nor will there be an official US delegation. \I(USA, UK)\i
Following a day of fiery confrontation with Serb hardliners near the northeast Bosnian town of Udrigovo, United States \JNATO\j troops hand back a disputed \Jtelevision\j transmission tower, at the same time demanding assurances that the propaganda media war against the Bosnian peace agreement will be moderated. Meanwhile, the Pentagon reveals it has dispatched a shipment of non-lethal hand grenades to US peacekeeping troops in the troubled region. Included in the shipment are so-called "sponge" grenades designed to knock people to the ground, and grenade-like devices containing dye which marks agitators and allows easier apprehension. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
The United States Defense Department says it is reviewing an Army request to test fire Miracel, the military's most powerful laser weapon, at an Air Force satellite circling Earth. If approved, the test would be the first of its kind, and a major step towards developing a weapon capable of destroying satellites or other space vehicles in time of war. \I(USA)\i
On the second day of an Oslo-based conference to produce a text for a global treaty banning landmines, a United States proposal to exclude the Korean peninsula from the ban encounters stiff opposition. The US proposal calls for an open-ended arrangement which would allow the continued use of landmines in the peninsula's demilitarized zone separating North and South. \I(Norway, USA, The Koreas)\i
At a meeting in \JSingapore\j, the InterAction Council, a 29-member group of elder world statesmen, completes a draft of a 19-point Universal Declaration of Human Obligations designed to balance the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, urging the United Nations and individual governments to adopt the document. The council is chaired by former Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser, and its members include former German Chancellor, Helmut Schmidt, and former United States President, Jimmy Carter. \I(Singapore, \JAustralia\j, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
Northern Ireland Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, arrives in the United States on a five-day visit, vowing that his party will make its very best effort during forthcoming all-party talks in \JBelfast\j to resolve the future of Northern Ireland. \I(Northern Ireland, USA)\i
In an annual address, Mexico's President Zedillo pledges to work with the country's newly elected Congress, the first in seven decades not controlled by his Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). The President's pledge comes after PRI members threaten to boycott the opening of Congress, in which they are now outnumbered by the Opposition's combined 261 deputies. \I(Mexico)\i
Wall Street's Dow Jones industrial average records its biggest point gain ever, with the market surging 257.36 points to finish at 7,879.98. Last week, the Dow fell 265 points following concern that the market was overvalued. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A French magistrate puts seven paparazzi photographers under formal investigation for suspected \Jmanslaughter\j in connection with the Paris car crash that killed Britain's Princess of Wales, her companion Dodi Al Fayed, and the driver of the Mercedes-Benz. The investigation will also cover counts of causing bodily harm, and failing to assist victims of an accident. Meanwhile, Mohamed Al Fayed files civil suits against the photographers who pursued the car in which the Princess of Wales and his son Dodi were traveling, despite revelations that the driver of the car, an employee of the Al Fayed family, had a blood alcohol level three times the legal limit. \I(UK, France)\i
As grieving Britons react with outrage to the news that the welfare of the Princess of Wales had been entrusted to a driver affected by alcohol, the country's security experts lament the Princess's decision to dispense with the services of the Royal Protection Squad following her divorce from Prince Charles, pointing out that for members of the squad, reporting for any kind of duty under the influence of alcohol is a strict disciplinary offense. \I(UK, France)\i
The White House announces that first lady, Hillary Rodham Clinton, accompanied by the United States Ambassador to Britain, William Crowe, will attend the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, in London on Saturday. The White House adds that because the funeral will not be a state occasion, President Clinton will not attend, nor will there be an official US delegation. \I(USA, UK)\i
Following a day of fiery confrontation with Serb hardliners near the northeast Bosnian town of Udrigovo, United States \JNATO\j troops hand back a disputed \Jtelevision\j transmission tower, at the same time demanding assurances that the propaganda media war against the Bosnian peace agreement will be moderated. Meanwhile, the Pentagon reveals it has dispatched a shipment of non-lethal hand grenades to US peacekeeping troops in the troubled region. Included in the shipment are so-called "sponge" grenades designed to knock people to the ground, and grenade-like devices containing dye which marks agitators and allows easier apprehension. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Fears of an imminent invasion of the secessionist island of Anjouan are sparked when about 300 Comoran Government soldiers leave the main island of Grande Comore. Despite assurances that the troops are merely on maneuvers at sea, the Organization of African Unity special envoy to \JComoros\j, Pierre Yere, urgently calls on the entire Comoran political establishment to exercise restraint. \I(Anjouan Island, \JComoros\j, Africa)\i
On the second day of an Oslo-based conference to produce a text for a global treaty banning landmines, a United States proposal to exclude the Korean peninsula from the ban encounters stiff opposition. The US proposal calls for an open-ended arrangement which would allow the continued use of landmines in the peninsula's demilitarized zone separating North and South. \I(Norway, USA, The Koreas)\i
At a meeting in \JSingapore\j, the InterAction Council, a 29-member group of elder world statesmen, completes a draft of a 19-point Universal Declaration of Human Obligations designed to balance the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, urging the United Nations and individual governments to adopt the document. The council is chaired by former Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser, and its members include former German Chancellor, Helmut Schmidt, and former United States President, Jimmy Carter. \I(Singapore, \JAustralia\j, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
Malaysian Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, hits back at a statement made by British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, concerning the exclusion of \JMyanmar\j from next year's Asia-Europe summit in London. Dr. Mahathir warns that discrimination against \JMyanmar\j is discrimination against the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and points out that \JMyanmar\j's alleged links to international drug trafficking are a direct result of Britain's colonial strategy in the mid-19th century. \I(Malaysia, \JMyanmar\j (formerly Burma), UK)\i
Northern Ireland Sinn Fein leader, Gerry Adams, arrives in the United States on a five-day visit, vowing that his party will make its very best effort during forthcoming all-party talks in \JBelfast\j to resolve the future of Northern Ireland. \I(Northern Ireland, USA)\i
Dutch Health Minister, Els Borst, goes before Parliament with a controversial plan to provide free heroin for 750 addicts, the aim of the plan being to integrate users back into society. If approved, Dr. Borst's scheme would run for two years. \I(Holland)\i
#
"September 3, 1997",609,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A Vietnam Airlines Tupolev Tu-134 crashes on approach to Phnom Penh's Pochentong Airport, exploding on impact, and killing 64 of the 66 people aboard. The two survivors of the crash are small children, but both are in a serious condition. \I(Vietnam, Cambodia)\i
Pakistan denies Indian allegations of provoking a fresh round of firing on the Kashmir border. The skirmish resulted in the deaths of four Indian defense personnel, but despite the renewal of tensions, India reiterates its willingness to meet with \JPakistan\j for high-level peace talks this month. \I(Pakistan, India)\i
In the first opposition initiative for some days, Afghan forces loyal to ousted Government leader, Ahmad Shah Masood, attempt to capture two key hilltops north of the capital of Kabul, but are finally beaten back by a Taliban counterattack. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Two people die and 49 are hurt when a grenade explodes outside a Manila bus terminal. Only moments later, another grenade explodes inside a bus leaving the terminal, killing three more people and injuring 17. The Philippine military blames a splinter group of the Communist Party for the blasts. \I(The Philippines)\i
Indonesia's Environment Minister, Sarwono Kusumaatmadja, accuses logging and plantation companies of starting forest fires to clear land on the islands of \JBorneo\j and \JSumatra\j. The minister says at least 100,000 hectares of forest have been destroyed, and smoke from the fires has polluted the skies, forcing some airports to close. The smoke also causes respiratory problems for 20 million people. \I(Indonesia)\i
An Australian Federal Government decision to build a new $A300 million nuclear reactor at Sydney's Lucas Heights provokes strong protests from environmentalists, opposition politicians, and residents' groups, who insist that the reactor should not be located in an urban area because of radiation concerns. The government, however, defends the location, pointing to its 1.6-kilometer buffer zone, and the 40-year safety record of the existing reactor. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United States Senate votes unanimously to declare Saturday a national day of recognition for the humanitarian efforts of the late Princess of Wales, citing Diana's work on breast cancer, AIDS, homelessness, and more recently, her campaign for a global ban on antipersonnel landmines. \I(USA, UK)\i
As United States Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, prepares for a debut visit to the Middle East aimed at bringing peace talks "back from the abyss", the Palestinians
voice their doubts about her ability to make much headway in a single visit, blaming damage inflicted on the peace process by the stringent measures of Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and by the Jewish settlement expansion in \JJerusalem\j. Israel, on the other hand, rules out a freeze in settlement building, and says Albright's trip will only be productive if she can effect a change in the Palestinian Authority's attitude towards the security issue. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
While on a lobbying and fundraising tour of the United States, Irish Republican leader, Gerry Adams, promises that Sinn Fein will enter upcoming all-party talks on the future of Northern Ireland in a spirit of generosity, accommodation, and compromise. \I(USA, Northern Ireland)\i
Working under United Nations monitoring, excavators remove ten corpses from one of the largest mass graves yet detected in Bosnia. Up to 300 bodies, mostly Muslim war victims, are believed to be buried in the recently discovered labyrinthine cave near the northwestern village of Hrgar. Meanwhile, at a Pentagon news briefing, the Supreme Allied Commander of \JNATO\j forces in Europe, Army Gen. Wesley Clark, calls on Bosnian Serb hardliner, Radovan Karadzic, to surrender for trial on war crimes charges, adding that moves to disarm Karadzic's bodyguards are being considered. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
Seven groups organized under the umbrella of the American Civil Liberties Union refuse to comply with subpoenas issued by the Senate committee investigating political fundraising abuses, insisting that the \Jsubpoena\j demands for their records are too broad and intrusive. \I(USA)\i
Arizona Governor, Fife Symington, announces his resignation from office after being convicted by a federal jury on seven counts of \Jfraud\j committed while attempting to save his real estate empire from collapse. \I(USA)\i
In a reversal of a July decision, the United States Senate votes to fully fund the new Food and Drug Administration anti-youth smoking initiative, allocating $US34 million for anti-smoking education and enforcement of rules in relation to the purchase of cigarettes. Meanwhile, wholesale prices of cigarettes rise by an average of 7.6 per cent, the largest single increase in US history, as \Jtobacco\j companies are hit by compensation payouts in civil actions brought by the individual states. \I(USA)\i
Arizona authorities arrest two fugitive bounty hunters who broke into the wrong house in pursuit of a bail jumper, and allegedly shot and killed an innocent young couple. With three men already in custody and charged with two counts each of second-degree murder, police believe they have now apprehended all those suspected of being involved in the raid. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Britain's royal family acknowledges the massive outpouring of public grief since the death of the Princess of Wales in a Paris car crash last Sunday, and takes steps to allow more people to pay a final tribute to Diana, extending the route her coffin will travel from her home at Kensington Palace to her funeral at Westminster Abbey on Saturday. Buckingham Palace also releases details of the route Diana's funeral cortege will later take from Westminster Abbey to the private burial service at the Spencer family's ancestral estate in Great Brington, \JNorthamptonshire\j. \I(UK, France)\i
The United States Senate votes unanimously to declare Saturday a national day of recognition for the humanitarian efforts of the late Princess of Wales, citing Diana's work on breast cancer, AIDS, homelessness, and more recently, her campaign for a global ban on antipersonnel landmines. \I(USA, UK)\i
Working under United Nations monitoring, excavators remove ten corpses from one of the largest mass graves yet detected in Bosnia. Up to 300 bodies, mostly Muslim war victims, are believed to be buried in the recently discovered labyrinthine cave near the northwestern village of Hrgar. Meanwhile, at a Pentagon news briefing, the Supreme Allied Commander of \JNATO\j forces in Europe, Army Gen. Wesley Clark, calls on Bosnian Serb hardliner, Radovan Karadzic, to surrender for trial on war crimes charges, adding that moves to disarm Karadzic's bodyguards are being considered. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
The \JComoros\j Government confirms that its troops have landed on the secessionist island of Anjouan and quelled the breakaway rebellion. Organization of African Unity envoy, Pierre Yere, says the Comoran army has also imposed an air and sea blockade, and suspended \Jtelephone\j links on Anjouan and Moheli, cutting off both islands from the outside world and stranding a four-member United Nations team. \I(Comoros, Anjouan Island, Moheli Island, Africa)\i
As United States Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, prepares for a debut visit to the Middle East aimed at bringing peace talks "back from the abyss", the Palestinians
voice their doubts about her ability to make much headway in a single visit, blaming damage inflicted on the peace process by the stringent measures of Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and by the Jewish settlement expansion in \JJerusalem\j. Israel, on the other hand, rules out a freeze in settlement building, and says Albright's trip will only be productive if she can effect a change in the Palestinian Authority's attitude towards the security issue. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
Ferdi Barnard, a former member of South Africa's defunct Civil Co-operation Bureau, appears in court on 24 charges, including the 1989 murder of university lecturer and anti-apartheid campaigner, Dr. David Webster, the 1989 attempted murder of Dullah Omar, a prominent pro-democracy politician who is now the Minister of Justice in President Nelson Mandela's Cabinet, and the attempted murder about the same time of Bruce White, a student activist. \I(South Africa)\i
While on a lobbying and fundraising tour of the United States, Irish Republican leader, Gerry Adams, promises that Sinn Fein will enter upcoming all-party talks on the future of Northern Ireland in a spirit of generosity, accommodation, and compromise. \I(USA, Northern Ireland)\i
Deputy Director of the Russian Space Agency, Boris Ostroumov, announces that activities on the ill-fated Mir space station will be shut down when the new Alpha international space station begins operating in early 1999. Meanwhile, a commission investigating Mir's June collision with a cargo ship concludes that recently returned cosmonauts, Vasily Tsibliyev and Alexander Lazutkin, were to blame for the mishap. \I(Russia)\i
Swiss scientists studying the human form of "mad cow" disease report discovering how the fatal illness travels through the body before attacking the brain. The disease is usually not diagnosed until an advanced stage, but in the light of their discovery, Adriano Aguzzi and fellow members of the Neuropathology Institute at Zurich University say they are now hopeful that an effective treatment for the new variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (nvCJD) will be found. \I(Switzerland)\i
#
"September 4, 1997",610,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Preliminary findings of an inquiry into yesterday's crash of a Vietnam Airlines Tupolev Tu-134 reveal that the pilot was off course when he made his approach to Phnom Penh's Pochentong Airport, but was too low to regain altitude and correct his flight path. Airport officials say they have recovered one of the plane's vital "black box" flight recorders from the wreckage, but the second recorder has already been stolen by looters. \I(Vietnam, Cambodia)\i
Vice-president of the World Vision relief group, Andrew Natsios, warns that the North Korean \Jfamine\j will worsen in the next two months, with child \Jmalnutrition\j already threatening to permanently stunt the nation's next generation. Last year, 120,000 people starved to death, but Mr. Natsios believes that many more are dying now, and predicts even graver danger for next year given the failure of this year's crops. \I(North Korea)\i
After a successful South Korean Government crackdown on membership of the outlawed Federation of University Student Councils, known as Hanchongryon, two former student leaders are arrested when it is discovered they have rejoined the group through the Internet. However, the government is still confident of wiping out Hanchongryon, which has been responsible for most of Korea's student rioting. \I(South Korea)\i
The Philippine's Cardinal Jaime Sin calls for churches to ring their bells and drivers to blow their horns every evening for the next two weeks. The Cardinal's call comes as part of escalating protests against moves to change the Constitution to allow President Fidel Ramos to run for a second term. \I(The Philippines)\i
Tabled amendments to \JAustralia\j's Native Title Act provoke strong condemnation from \JAborigines\j and farmers alike, with both sides warning of years of legal battles. However, Prime Minister John Howard argues that by guaranteeing farmers the right to the land they have leased since European settlement, and by continuing to allow \JAborigines\j access for traditional purposes, his 10-point plan brings the balance back to the middle after the Wik decision. \I(Australia)\i
Papua New Guinean Prime Minister, Bill Skate, authorizes the release of $A4 million to help ease the \Jdrought\j crisis in the country's Central Highlands. Mr. Skate says up to 300,000 people are facing starvation, schools and mines are being forced to close due to lack of water, and there is a real danger of a serious breakdown in health. \JAustralia\j is already providing airforce transport for food and other emergency relief supplies, and is offering further assistance through its official aid agency, Ausaid. \I(Papua New Guinea, Australia)\i
The United States Food and Drug Administration debates giving a New Jersey-based company approval to market the drug thalidomide for the treatment of a painful side-effect of leprosy. Thalidomide was prescribed in the 1960s to treat morning sickness in pregnant women until Australian Dr. William McBride discovered that it caused severe birth defects. \I(USA, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Australian-born media baron, Rupert Murdoch, reaches an agreement to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers, a sports franchise which includes the \Jbaseball\j team, Dodger stadium, the spring training facility in \JFlorida\j, and a sports academy in the Dominican Republic. \I(USA, Dominican Republic, Australia)\i
Three suicide bombers strike a crowded pedestrian mall in the heart of Jewish West \JJerusalem\j, killing themselves, four others, and injuring a further 192. The attack occurs only a short stroll from the market where 17 people were killed in a suicide bombing five weeks ago. Once again, the Islamic movement Hamas claims responsibility, and demands that Israel release all its militants by September 14 or face more attacks. In the United States, President Clinton calls on Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, to co-operate with Israel to create a secure environment in the region, adding that the perpetrators of these attacks aim to kill both innocent people and the peace process itself. President Clinton also confirms that Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, will still travel to the Middle East next week as planned. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
Bomb explosions shake the lobbies of the Copacabana, \JChateau\j, and Triton hotels in the Cuban capital of \JHavana\j. An Italian visitor, Fabio di Celmo, is killed when he is hit in the throat by flying debris in the lobby of the Copacabana Hotel. \I(Cuba, Italy)\i
A Colombian army spokesman discloses that one of the country's largest hydroelectric power stations has been raided and at least 23 hostages seized. Those responsible for the raid are thought to belong to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of \JColombia\j, Latin America's oldest and largest rebel army. \I(Colombia, Latin America)\i
Following a 10-day inspection by the United States Federal \JAviation\j Administration (FAA), Fine Air Services, the company whose DC-8 cargo jet crashed on takeoff from Miami airport last month, killing five people, agrees to stop flying pending further negotiations with the FAA. The inspection found that the carrier has inadequate control over its cargo operation. \I(USA)\i
United States Supreme Court justices reject a request by the city of San Francisco and a coalition of civil rights group for an emergency stay on the enforcement of Proposition 209, a newly approved \JCalifornia\j law eliminating affirmative action programs in the areas of education and employment. \I(USA)\i
Testifying under a grant of immunity, two Buddhist nuns tell the United States Senate committee investigating campaign fundraising abuses how they destroyed documents and altered checks after a visit to their temple by Vice President Al Gore, an event which raised $US100,000 in political donations at the time. \I(USA)\i
The United States Food and Drug Administration debates giving a New Jersey-based company approval to market the drug thalidomide for the treatment of a painful side-effect of leprosy. Thalidomide was prescribed in the 1960s to treat morning sickness in pregnant women until Australian Dr. William McBride discovered that it caused severe birth defects. \I(USA, Australia)\i
Two separate medical studies are published which together reveal possibilities for the treatment and prevention of cancer. One study finds that cancer cells grow and spread at a much faster rate once a tumor has formed; the other study finds a "checkpoint" gene that can delay the growth and spread of cancer cells until the damage is repaired. \I(USA)\i
United States astronomers report that new images made by the Hubble Space \JTelescope\j of the mini-planet Vesta show a huge crater 459 kilometers wide, a find which leads them to believe that Vesta is the source of the thousands of \Jasteroids\j which orbit the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. \I(USA)\i
Australian-born media baron, Rupert Murdoch, reaches an agreement to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers, a sports franchise which includes the \Jbaseball\j team, Dodger stadium, the spring training facility in \JFlorida\j, and a sports academy in the Dominican Republic. \I(USA, Dominican Republic, Australia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
French police investigating the car crash in which Britain's Princess of Wales, her companion Dodi Al Fayed, and the driver were killed, detain three more photographers on possible charges of \Jmanslaughter\j and failure to assist at the scene of an accident. The seven members of the paparazzi already under investigation have denied the charges against them. Police are also looking into events at the Ritz Hotel prior to the crash, saying hotel staff could face charges over the fitness of chauffeur, Henri Paul, to drive the hired Mercedes. \I(France, UK)\i
Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles, and the young Princes William and Harry appear in public for the first time since the death of the Princess of Wales when they inspect masses of floral tributes to Diana outside the royal castle at Balmoral, Scotland. The royal family is reportedly hurt by criticism of their aloofness since Diana's death, and it is announced that the Queen will finally broadcast a statement to the nation expressing the family's feelings about the tragedy. \I(UK, Scotland)\i
Buckingham Palace releases details of the funeral of the Princess of Wales, which in keeping with the lifestyle of the Princess, will be an innovative mix of the traditional and the topical. Palace officials say the 2000-name invitation list has limited the number of royals and politicians to accommodate Diana's many friends, as well as her fellow charity workers. Protocol will be eased to allow the Union Jack to fly at half-mast over Buckingham Palace on the day, while in a complete break with precedent during the Westminster Abbey ceremony, Diana's friend, rock star Elton John, will sing a specially re-written version of "Candle in the Wind", his 1970s tribute to Marilyn Monroe who also died at the age of 36. The song will now begin with the words, "Good-bye England's rose". \I(UK)\i
Three suicide bombers strike a crowded pedestrian mall in the heart of Jewish West \JJerusalem\j, killing themselves, four others, and injuring a further 192. The attack occurs only a short stroll from the market where 17 people were killed in a suicide bombing five weeks ago. Once again, the Islamic movement Hamas claims responsibility, and demands that Israel release all its militants by September 14 or face more attacks. In the United States, President Clinton calls on Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, to co-operate with Israel to create a secure environment in the region, adding that the perpetrators of these attacks aim to kill both innocent people and the peace process itself. President Clinton also confirms that Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, will still travel to the Middle East next week as planned. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
Bomb explosions shake the lobbies of the Copacabana, \JChateau\j, and Triton hotels in the Cuban capital of \JHavana\j. An Italian visitor, Fabio di Celmo, is killed when he is hit in the throat by flying debris in the lobby of the Copacabana Hotel. \I(Cuba, Italy)\i
#
"September 5, 1997",611,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Mother Teresa, winner of the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize for her selfless devotion to the destitute, dies of cardiac arrest at the \JCalcutta\j headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity, the order the 87-year-old Roman Catholic nun founded in 1950. \I(India)\i
Cambodian \Javiation\j officials report that villagers have handed in a vital "black box" flight recorder looted from the wreckage of a Vietnam Airlines Tupolev Tu-134 which crashed on Wednesday on approach to Phnom Penh airport. The villagers have been given a $US200 reward. Meanwhile, relatives of the 64 crash victims arrive from South Korea, Vietnam, \JTaiwan\j, Hong Kong, and China to identify their loved ones at Phnom Penh's Calmette \JHospital\j. \I(Cambodia, Vietnam, South Korea, \JTaiwan\j, Hong Kong, China)\i
Sri Lanka's National Integration Minister, Lakshman Peiris, meets with Tamil and Muslim political leaders to discuss a proposal aimed at ending the separatist insurrection which has caused more than 50,000 deaths in the past decade. The proposal would allow the nation's eight regions, including the Tamil stronghold in the northeast, powers over everything except the military, foreign affairs, \Javiation\j, and currency. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The arrival of the United States \Jaircraft\j carrier Independence at the civilian port of Otaru, in northern \JJapan\j, sparks strong protests from around 2,300 Japanese pacifists, who are already angered by the expansion of bilateral defense ties which \JTokyo\j and Washington plan to announce this month. \I(Japan, USA)\i
For the first time, \JPhilippines\j President Fidel Ramos admits to keeping his options open on a second term in office. The admission exacerbates fears that Mr. Ramos will become another Ferdinand Marcos, the late dictator who presided over a military-backed regime for 20 years. \I(The Philippines)\i
Israeli commandos land by \Jhelicopter\j south of the Lebanese port city of Sidon, engaging in heavy clashes with Lebanese army troops and Muslim guerrillas. Twelve Israelis are killed and four are wounded in the clashes. One Hezbollah fighter and three Amal guerrillas are also wounded, along with two Lebanese soldiers injured by Israeli \Jhelicopter\j rocket fire. The United States quickly calls for maximum restrain by all parties, stressing the extreme fragility of the Middle East situation at the moment. \I(Israel, \JLebanon\j, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The arrival of the United States \Jaircraft\j carrier Independence at the civilian port of Otaru, in northern \JJapan\j, sparks strong protests from around 2,300 Japanese pacifists, who are already angered by the expansion of bilateral defense ties which \JTokyo\j and Washington plan to announce this month. \I(Japan, USA)\i
A storm causes the collapse of a stadium in the Paraguayan town of Ciudad del Este, killing at least 38 people and injuring more than 100. About 3,000 had gathered in the stadium for an electoral rally of the ruling \JColorado\j Party. \I(Paraguay)\i
The Cuban Government condemns the bomb attacks on three \JHavana\j hotels which killed an Italian visitor yesterday, accusing terrorists organized and supplied from the United States of attempting to damage \JCuba\j's international tourism industry. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
A United States federal appeals court rejects challenges to the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy on homosexuals, ruling that the military was within its rights to discharge two officers who acknowledged they were gay. \I(USA)\i
The United States Food and Drug Administration advises licensing of all versions of thalidomide, but recommends severely restricted access to the dangerous drug. Thalidomide, which became notorious for causing birth defects, has now been found to offer relief for sufferers of diseases ranging from leprosy to AIDS. \I(USA)\i
A jubilant \JAthens\j becomes the host city for the 2004 Olympic Games after defeating \JRome\j 66-41 in the fourth round of voting by the International Olympic Committee. The other short-listed cities seeking to stage the event were Stockholm, Cape Town, and Buenos Aires. \I(Greece, \JItaly\j, Sweden, South Africa, Argentina)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In a televised broadcast from Buckingham Palace, Britain's Queen Elizabeth II pays tribute to her former daughter-in law, the late Princess of Wales, describing Diana as "an exceptional and gifted human being", and praising her energetic commitment to others and her devotion to her two sons, Princes William and Harry. The Queen's address to the nation comes amid mounting public criticism over the royal family's perceived failure to recognize and mirror Britain's overwhelming sense of grief since the death of Diana, who was widely regarded as the "People's Princess". \I(UK)\i
Earl Spencer, brother of the late Princess of Wales, announces that his sister's final resting place will be on an island in a lake on the Spencer family's ancestral estate, Althrop Park, in the \JNorthamptonshire\j hamlet of Great Brington, central England. Diana's grave will be located in the midst of a grove of trees, some of which were planted by her two sons, and will be open to the public a number of weeks a year. For the rest of the year, however, Diana's grave will only be available for privately arranged visits. \I(UK)\i
French judicial sources confirm that the Spencer family has filed a civil suit against the photographers currently under investigation for suspected \Jmanslaughter\j in connection with the deaths of the Princess of Wales, Dodi Al Fayed, and Henri Paul in a Paris car crash early last Sunday morning. A total of 10 photographers are now being investigated. \I(France, UK)\i
Elton John reveals that after singing his specially re-written version of "Candle in the Wind" at Westminster Abbey tomorrow, he will record the song as a single and donate all profits from the sales to The Diana, Princess of Wales, Memorial Fund. Profits from the British rock star's singles currently go to the Elton John Aids Foundation. \I(UK)\i
In a savage three-hour onslaught, about 50 attackers armed with knives and hatchets massacre at least 87 people and injure at least 100 others in a village near \JAlgiers\j. The victims of this latest atrocity in \JAlgeria\j are mostly women. \I(Algeria)\i
Israeli commandos land by \Jhelicopter\j south of the Lebanese port city of Sidon, engaging in heavy clashes with Lebanese army troops and Muslim guerrillas. Twelve Israelis are killed and four are wounded in the clashes. One Hezbollah fighter and three Amal guerrillas are also wounded, along with two Lebanese soldiers injured by Israeli \Jhelicopter\j rocket fire. The United States quickly calls for maximum restrain by all parties, stressing the extreme fragility of the Middle East situation at the moment. \I(Israel, \JLebanon\j, USA)\i
In the wake of the latest suicide bombing in \JJerusalem\j, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says Israel will not hand over any more land to the Palestinians until President Yasser Arafat cracks down on Muslim militants. An Arafat spokesman later condemns Israel's decision as "an official declaration of destroying the peace process." \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Red Cross officials maintaining radio contact from the blockaded Comoran island of Anjouan say scores of people are being killed and wounded as separatists put up fierce resistance to the government troops who invaded the breakaway island on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Organization of African Unity envoy, Piere Yere, urges the Government of the \JComoros\j to give up the military option as a means of resolving the conflict. \I(Comoros, Anjouan Island, Africa)\i
A jubilant \JAthens\j becomes the host city for the 2004 Olympic Games after defeating \JRome\j 66-41 in the fourth round of voting by the International Olympic Committee. The other short-listed cities seeking to stage the event were Stockholm, Cape Town, and Buenos Aires. \I(Greece, \JItaly\j, Sweden, South Africa, Argentina)\i
In a solemn ceremony at the Olympic village, Munich marks the 25th anniversary of the massacre of Israeli athletes by Palestinian guerrillas at the 1972 Olympic Games. \I(Germany, Israel, Palestine)\i
Sir Georg Solti, former principal conductor and artistic director of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, dies aged 84 while holidaying in Antibes in the south of \JFrance\j. Throughout his illustrious career, the Hungarian-born conductor won 31 \JGrammy\j awards for his music. Sir Georg is survived by his wife Valerie, and his daughters, Gabrielle and Claudia. \I(UK, \JFrance\j, Hungary)\i
#
"September 6, 1997",612,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Thousands of grief-stricken followers stage an all-night vigil at the headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity in \JCalcutta\j, where Mother Teresa died of heart failure at 9:30 p.m. Friday. Some 1,000 mourners file past her body, kissing Mother Teresa's feet as they pass. Later, it is later announced that there will be no further viewing until Mother Teresa's body is moved to Saint Thomas Catholic Church in central \JCalcutta\j, where she will lie until her funeral on September 13. In a complete break with tradition, the Indian Government says its has decided to honor Mother Teresa with a state funeral, an honor usually reserved for serving heads of state. \I(India)\i
The death of Mother Teresa on Friday inspires an outpouring of tributes from Government and Church leaders across the globe. Pope John Paul II, United States President Bill Clinton, and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, join with other prominent world figures in praising \JCalcutta\j's revered "saint of the gutters" as an inspiration, and one of the giants of our time for her untiring devotion to the poor and suffering of all nationalities and religions. \I(India, Asia/Pacific, Europe, The Americas)\i
Inside London's Westminster Abbey, people from all walks of life join with family members to celebrate the life and mourn the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Included in the congregation are celebrities such as Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, Diana Ross, George Michael, Sting, and Pavarotti; members of Europe's royal families; representatives of world governments; and prominent British politicians. During the service, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, reads from Corinthians, and Elton John sings his specially revised eulogy, "Candle in the Wind". The Princess's two sisters give short readings, and her brother Earl Spencer delivers an emotional, applause-drawing tribute to her life, at the same time denouncing the media who hunted Diana, and pledging to protect her two sons from a similar fate. \I(UK, Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
A television broadcast of the funeral of the Princess of Wales is beamed live to 60 countries around the world, reaching a record audience estimated at 2.5 billion, with radio reports of the procession and ceremony translated into at least 44 languages. City landmarks become floral shrines, and memorial church services for the Princess are held across the globe. Others choose to remember Diana in their own way, from candlelight vigils in the United States, to a traditional wake on the Pacific island kingdom of \JTonga\j. On the French Riviera, yachts lower their flags to half mast, while in Paris, hundreds of mourners leave flowers and candles at the tunnel near the Alma Bridge, the site of the car crash in which the Princess of Wales was killed. \I(Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, arrives in Panama City to attend a conference on the Panama Canal, and to lobby support for \JTaiwan\j in Latin America. \I(Taiwan, Panama)\i
At the 1997 Venice film festival, the coveted Golden Lion award for best picture goes to \IHana-Bi,\i a Japanese film by Takeshi Kitano about life, death, and violence. \I(Italy, Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Inside London's Westminster Abbey, people from all walks of life join with family members to celebrate the life and mourn the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Included in the congregation are celebrities such as Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, Diana Ross, George Michael, Sting, and Pavarotti; members of Europe's royal families; representatives of world governments; and prominent British politicians. During the service, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, reads from Corinthians, and Elton John sings his specially revised eulogy, "Candle in the Wind". The Princess's two sisters give short readings, and her brother Earl Spencer delivers an emotional, applause-drawing tribute to her life, at the same time denouncing the media who hunted Diana, and pledging to protect her two sons from a similar fate. \I(UK, Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
A television broadcast of the funeral of the Princess of Wales is beamed live to 60 countries around the world, reaching a record audience estimated at 2.5 billion, with radio reports of the procession and ceremony translated into at least 44 languages. City landmarks become floral shrines, and memorial church services for the Princess are held across the globe. Others choose to remember Diana in their own way, from candlelight vigils in the United States, to a traditional wake on the Pacific island kingdom of \JTonga\j. On the French Riviera, yachts lower their flags to half mast, while in Paris, hundreds of mourners leave flowers and candles at the tunnel near the Alma Bridge, the site of the car crash in which the Princess of Wales was killed. \I(Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
The death of Mother Teresa on Friday inspires an outpouring of tributes from Government and Church leaders across the globe. Pope John Paul II, United States President Bill Clinton, and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, join with other prominent world figures in praising \JCalcutta\j's revered "saint of the gutters" as an inspiration, and one of the giants of our time for her untiring devotion to the poor and suffering of all nationalities and religions. \I(India, Asia/Pacific, Europe, The Americas)\i
The United States offers to investigate the series of explosions that have recently rocked hotels in \JHavana\j, but insists that Cuban authorities must first provide evidence to back up their claims that American groups are involved in the attacks. \I(USA, Cuba)\i
Mir commander, Anatoly Solovyov, and NASA \Jastronaut\j, Michael Foale, engage in a six-hour spacewalk to repair damage to the station caused by the June collision with a supply ship. Although the two men successfully reposition a solar panel, they are unable to locate a puncture in the Spektr module. \I(Russia, USA)\i
US State Department spokesman, James Foley, accuses hardline Bosnian Serbs of failing to comply fully with a deal whereby control of a disputed \Jtelevision\j transmitter was exchanged for moderation of a propaganda war against the Bosnian peace agreement. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Taiwanese President, Lee Teng-hui, arrives in Panama City to attend a conference on the Panama Canal, and to lobby support for \JTaiwan\j in Latin America. \I(Taiwan, Panama)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Millions of mourners, many of whom have camped out overnight, line London's streets to bid farewell to Diana, Princess of Wales, as her flag-draped, lily-covered coffin, escorted by 12 Welsh Guards, is drawn on a gun carriage towards Westminster Abbey. In an unprecedented break with protocol, Queen Elizabeth and her family stand with bowed heads outside the gates of Buckingham Palace as the funeral procession passes. On the last leg of the slow 31/2 mile journey, Diana's cortege is also escorted by her two sons, Princes William and Harry, her brother Earl Spencer, her former husband, Prince Charles, and her sons' grandfather, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. \I(UK)\i
Inside London's Westminster Abbey, people from all walks of life join with family members to celebrate the life and mourn the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Included in the congregation are celebrities such as Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, Diana Ross, George Michael, Sting, and Pavarotti; members of Europe's royal families; representatives of world governments; and prominent British politicians. During the service, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, reads from Corinthians, and Elton John sings his specially revised eulogy, "Candle in the Wind". The Princess's two sisters give short readings, and her brother Earl Spencer delivers an emotional, applause-drawing tribute to her life, at the same time denouncing the media who hunted Diana, and pledging to protect her two sons from a similar fate. \I(UK, Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
A television broadcast of the funeral of the Princess of Wales is beamed live to 60 countries around the world, reaching a record audience estimated at 2.5 billion, with radio reports of the procession and ceremony translated into at least 44 languages. City landmarks become floral shrines, and memorial church services for the Princess are held across the globe. Others choose to remember Diana in their own way, from candlelight vigils in the United States, to a traditional wake on the Pacific island kingdom of \JTonga\j. On the French Riviera, yachts lower their flags to half mast, while in Paris, hundreds of mourners leave flowers and candles at the tunnel near the Alma Bridge, the site of the car crash in which the Princess of Wales was killed. \I(Europe, Asia/Pacific, The Americas)\i
The death of Mother Teresa on Friday inspires an outpouring of tributes from Government and Church leaders across the globe. Pope John Paul II, United States President Bill Clinton, and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, join with other prominent world figures in praising \JCalcutta\j's revered "saint of the gutters" as an inspiration, and one of the giants of our time for her untiring devotion to the poor and suffering of all nationalities and religions. \I(India, Asia/Pacific, Europe, The Americas)\i
South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission summons Winnie Mandela, former wife of President Nelson Mandela, to answer questions in connection with the 1989 killing of Soweto doctor, Abu-Baker Asvat. One of the two men convicted of the crime is now seeking amnesty, claiming he was contracted by Mrs. Mandela to kill the doctor in order to cover up an assault on 14-year-old activist, Stompie Moeketsi, who was later found with his throat cut. In 1991, Mrs. Mandela was convicted of kidnapping Stompie, but her five-year jail sentence was commuted to a fine following an appeal. \I(South Africa)\i
After suffering heavy casualties in three days of fighting, the government of the \JComoros\j archipelago withdraws troops dispatched to end a separatist rebellion on the breakaway island of Anjouan. The Comoran Government urges \JFrance\j, its former colonial master, to intervene, but the French Government insists that negotiations will be used to resolve the problem. Anjouan, which declared its secession in early August, is seeking independence or a return to French rule. \I(Comoros, Anjouan Island, France)\i
US State Department spokesman, James Foley, accuses hardline Bosnian Serbs of failing to comply fully with a deal whereby control of a disputed \Jtelevision\j transmitter was exchanged for moderation of a propaganda war against the Bosnian peace agreement. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
Albania's President Rexhep Meidani signs a decree dismissing 17 military generals from their commands, an act which the defeated Democratic Party insists is the start of a political purge by the new Socialist-led Coalition Government. \I(Albania)\i
A German newspaper reports that ailing Nazi war criminal, 84-year-old Heinz Barth, was released from prison by the Brandenburg State Supreme Court on July 10. Barth was convicted 15 years ago for his role in the 1944 slaughter of all but 10 of the 652 inhabitants of the French village of Oradour. \I(Germany, France)\i
Mir commander, Anatoly Solovyov, and NASA \Jastronaut\j, Michael Foale, engage in a six-hour spacewalk to repair damage to the station caused by the June collision with a supply ship. Although the two men successfully reposition a solar panel, they are unable to locate a puncture in the Spektr module. \I(Russia, USA)\i
At the 1997 Venice film festival, the coveted Golden Lion award for best picture goes to \IHana-Bi,\i a Japanese film by Takeshi Kitano about life, death, and violence. \I(Italy, Japan)\i
#
"September 7, 1997",613,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
An open wooden coffin bearing the body of Mother Teresa is moved to Saint Thomas Catholic Church in central \JCalcutta\j, where the body is removed and placed under a glass case on a four-foot platform draped in white and blue cloth, the colors of her Missionaries of Charity order. Indian Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral leads the many VIPs paying personal tribute to the legendary missionary, and thousands of other mourners file past her body in the first hour it is on view. Mother Teresa will lie in state until her funeral on Saturday. \I(India)\i
Vietnam Airlines announces that it will ground its Tupolev \Jaircraft\j pending an investigation into the recent crash of one of its Tu-134s in \JCambodia\j. \I(Vietnam, Cambodia)\i
Reports in local newspapers reveal that the Dalai Lama and his Tibetan opposition group have been granted permission to establish offices in \JTaiwan\j. \I(Tibet, Taiwan)\i
After playing five finals without a victory this year, \JAustralia\j's Patrick Rafter claims his first major title when he beats unseeded Briton, Greg Rusedski, in the final of the men's 1997 US Open Tennis Tournament. The former 13th-seed, now ranked 3rd, is the first Australian to take the title since John Newcombe won at Forest Hills in 1973. \I(Australia, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Watched by hundreds of people outside the Dobbins Air Reserve Base north of \JAtlanta\j, the new F-22 Raptor stealth fighter takes its first, long-awaited test flight. The F-22 Raptor is to replace the United States Air Force's aging fleet of F-15 Eagle fighters. \I(USA)\i
Former Russian National Security Advisor, Alexander Lebed, tells an American \Jtelevision\j audience that the Russian military has lost track of more than 100 suitcase-sized nuclear bombs, one of which could kill 100,000 people. The US State Department later calls for calm, saying Mr. Lebed's claims are staunchly denied by Russian officials, who insist that all of \JRussia\j's nuclear weapons are safely accounted for. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Switzerland's Martina Hingis defeats unseeded American, Venus Williams, to win the 1997 US Open women's singles tennis title in New York. It is the 16-year-old top-seed's third Grand Slam title this year. \I(Switzerland, USA)\i
After playing five finals without a victory this year, \JAustralia\j's Patrick Rafter claims his first major title when he beats unseeded Briton, Greg Rusedski, in the final of the men's 1997 US Open Tennis Tournament. The former 13th-seed, now ranked 3rd, is the first Australian to take the title since John Newcombe won at Forest Hills in 1973. \I(Australia, USA)\i
At the Royal Montreal Golf Club, American Steve Jones cards a 72-hole total of 5-under 275 to take out the Canadian Open by one stroke. \I(USA, Canada)\i
In the Bank One Seniors Classic golf tournament played at the Kearney Hill Links in \JLexington\j, Kentucky, Vincente Fernandez finishes with a total of 13-under 203 to win the event by one stroke. \I(USA)\i
America's Chris Johnson finishes one stroke ahead of the field with 206 to win the LPGA Safeway Golf Championship at Portland, Oregon. \I(USA)\i
Former Italian Formula One driver, Alex Zanardi, wraps up the 1997 CART IndyCar World Series when he finishes third in the final race at Laguna Seca, in \JCalifornia\j. The final race is won by defending series champion, American Jimmy Vasser, also driving a Reynard Honda. \I(Italy, USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Donations pour in to The Diana, Princess of Wales, Memorial Fund, which was set up by Kensington Palace to support the late Princess's favorite charities. A single anonymous donation of ú3 million is understood to have boosted the fund to more than ú100 million in just four days. \I(UK)\i
As Britain's Prince Charles appeals to the media to give his two sons private time and space to come to terms with the loss of their mother, British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, defends the royal family's perceived aloofness throughout the past week, saying the family felt very deeply about the death of the Princess of Wales, but was concerned to do the best thing for her children. Deflecting further criticism of the royals, Mr. Blair also points out that in the week since the Princess's death, the royal family has demonstrated it is prepared to change and move with the times. \I(UK)\i
Guerrillas stage an attack on an Israeli-occupied zone in southern \JLebanon\j, killing an Israeli lieutenant, and provoking retaliatory artillery barrages. The Iranian-backed Hezbollah claims responsibility for the attack. \I(Israel, \JLebanon\j, Iran)\i
Kenyan police and paramilitary units seal off the center of the western city of Kisumu, detain five opposition legislators, and use tear gas to break up an anti-government rally calling for legal and constitutional reforms. \I(Kenya)\i
Former Russian National Security Advisor, Alexander Lebed, tells an American \Jtelevision\j audience that the Russian military has lost track of more than 100 suitcase-sized nuclear bombs, one of which could kill 100,000 people. The US State Department later calls for calm, saying Mr. Lebed's claims are staunchly denied by Russian officials, who insist that all of \JRussia\j's nuclear weapons are safely accounted for. \I(Russia, USA)
The former Zaire's ousted president Mobutu Sese Seko dies from prostate cancer at a military \Jhospital\j in the Moroccan capital of Rabat. Mobutu was 66. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), Morocco)\i
Moscow concludes three days of festivities to celebrate its 850th anniversary. Over the weekend, the festivities drew crowds of millions, and included pageants and concerts in Red Square, a laser light show in the Lenin Hills, and a parade down Tverskaya Street. \I(Russia)\i
From Vienna, the International Atomic Energy Agency reports that for the first time, there will be an international attempt to regulate used nuclear fuel and radioactive waste. The agency says an agreement will be signed by 62 nations at its annual general conference on September 29. \I(Austria)\i
Switzerland's Martina Hingis defeats unseeded American, Venus Williams, to win the 1997 US Open women's singles tennis title in New York. It is the 16-year-old top-seed's third Grand Slam title this year. \I(Switzerland, USA)\i
In the European Masters golf tournament played at Crans Sur Sierre in \JSwitzerland\j, Italian Costantino Rocca finishes with a total of 266 to win the event by one stroke. \I(Switzerland, Italy)\i
Driving a McLaren-Mercedes, Britain's David Coulthard sweeps to the lead to win the Italian Formula One Grand Prix. Afterwards, Coulthard dedicates his victory, the third of his 54-race career, to the late Princess of Wales. \I(UK, Italy)\i
Former Italian Formula One driver, Alex Zanardi, wraps up the 1997 CART IndyCar World Series when he finishes third in the final race of the circuit at Laguna Seca, in \JCalifornia\j. The final race is won by defending series champion, American Jimmy Vasser, also driving a Reynard Honda. \I(Italy, USA)\i
#
"September 8, 1997",614,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
An estimated 10,000 mourners bearing flowers line up at Saint Thomas Catholic Church in \JCalcutta\j to view the body of Mother Teresa, who died of heart failure on Friday night. It is announced that Mother Teresa's state funeral next Saturday will be held at the Netaji Indoor Stadium, which seats about 12,000, and allows standing room for several thousand more. Speeches will be made by a number of dignitaries, including Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral. An hour-and-a-half-long Mass will then be led by Lourde Swami, an Indian cardinal, and joined by more than 20 cardinals and bishops from all over the world. After the public Mass, Mother Teresa will be buried in a private ceremony at the headquarters of her Missionaries of Charity order. \I(India)\i
The White House announces that first lady, Hillary Rodham Clinton, will lead the United States delegation to the funeral of Mother Teresa in \JCalcutta\j on Saturday. \I(USA, India)\i
Philippine President, Fidel Ramos, makes a special nationwide broadcast, emphatically denying accusations that he plans to cancel next year's presidential election or declare martial law. Mr. Ramos makes no mention of moves by his supporters to change the Constitution to allow him to stand for re-election. \I(The Philippines)\i
Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, is re-elected as head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). It is the first time a president of the party has been re-elected unopposed, and the first time in 13 years that a president has won a second term. \I(Japan)\i
About 600 police raid 81 underworld dens in western Japanese cities. The police raids come in an effort to stop an outbreak of violence from escalating into all-out gangland war following the assassination of 61-year-old Masaru Takumi, deputy-head of Yamaguchi-gumi, the country's largest crime syndicate. \I(Japan)\i
Malaysia embarks on an eight-day cloud-seeding exercise aimed at relieving the suffocating haze caused by forest fires on the neighboring Indonesian island of \JSumatra\j. Smoke from the fires has pushed the air-quality index well beyond safe levels in much of \JIndonesia\j, \JSingapore\j, and \JMalaysia\j, causing air-traffic chaos and respiratory problems for residents. \I(Malaysia, \JIndonesia\j, Singapore)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The White House announces that first lady, Hillary Rodham Clinton, will lead the United States delegation to the funeral of Mother Teresa in \JCalcutta\j on Saturday. \I(USA, India)\i
As many as 400 people are feared drowned when a packed ferry capsizes off \JHaiti\j. United Nations personnel from the \JHaiti\j peacekeeping force lead the rescue effort, backed by the United States Coast Guard. \I(Haiti, USA)\i
In the first crackdown since last week's triple suicide bombing of a \JJerusalem\j shopping mall, Palestinian security forces arrest 35 suspected Muslim militants in the West Bank. Meanwhile, Israel puts security forces on high alert ahead of the Middle East peace mission of US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, this week. As a result of the violence that has recently erupted in the region, however, Washington's expectations for progress on Middle East peace are low. \I(Palestine, Israel, USA)\i
The United States Justice Department announces that it is dropping criminal charges against Hani al-Sayegh, and is seeking to extradite him to Saudi \JArabia\j to face charges of complicity in the 1996 Khobar Towers truck bombing that killed 19 US servicemen. The Justice Department had originally sought Sayegh's co-operation in investigating the Saudi Arabian bombing, but now says Sayegh has reneged on a plea agreement. \I(USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
Russian Mission Control reports that the crew of the Mir space station has repaired the main on-board computer following a failure earlier in the day which cut energy supplies aboard the craft. Mission Control adds that the computer has yet to be restarted. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Army, police, and civilian groups battle a huge brush fire threatening the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, a World Heritage site and \JPeru\j's most popular tourist attraction. \I(Peru)\i
Steven Spielberg tops \IForbes\i magazine's list of the world's highest paid entertainers, with an estimated income of $US313 million in 1996-7. Second on the list is George Lucas, and third is Oprah Winfrey, the only black, and one of only two women in the top 20 spots. Fourth on the list is author Michael Crichton, whose \Jdinosaur\j books have been turned into hit Spielberg films. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the first crackdown since last week's triple suicide bombing of a \JJerusalem\j shopping mall, Palestinian security forces arrest 35 suspected Muslim militants in the West Bank. Meanwhile, Israel puts security forces on high alert ahead of the Middle East peace mission of US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, this week. As a result of the violence that has recently erupted in the region, however, Washington's expectations for progress on Middle East peace are low. \I(Palestine, Israel, USA)\i
French police confirm that the Princess of Wales was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the car crash which claimed her life, but deny that a preliminary report has blamed the driver of the car, Henri Paul, and not the paparazzi, for the crash. Police have yet to interview the sole survivor, Trevor Rees-Jones, who is reported to be recovering, but will be unable to speak with investigators for some time. \I(France, UK)\i
In defiance of a police ban, about 200 supporters of war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic, some of them armed, stage a protest rally against Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, in her northern stronghold of Banja Luka. Earlier intervention by the NATO-led Stabilization Force had prevented another 50 busloads of hardliners from joining the protest rally. \I(Bosnia)\i
The United States Justice Department announces that it is dropping criminal charges against Hani al-Sayegh, and is seeking to extradite him to Saudi \JArabia\j to face charges of complicity in the 1996 Khobar Towers truck bombing that killed 19 US servicemen. The Justice Department had originally sought Sayegh's co-operation in investigating the Saudi Arabian bombing, but now says Sayegh has reneged on a plea agreement. \I(USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
A newly formed United Nations team, authorized to investigate alleged massacres of Rwandans in the former Zaire, is delayed when further constraints, imposed by President Laurent Kabila, threaten to alter the mandate of the mission. The first UN team assigned to the investigation was disbanded following objections from President Kabila. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire))\i
Some 200,000 refugees fleeing escalating violence in Sierre Leone pour into Liberian border towns, posing a risk to the fragile peace process that ended the country's civil war. Rebel forces from both countries have held sway over the volatile Liberia-Sierra Leone border region throughout the past six years. \I(Sierre Leone, Liberia)\i
Russian Mission Control reports that the crew of the Mir space station has repaired the main on-board computer following a failure earlier in the day which cut energy supplies aboard the craft. Mission Control adds that the computer has yet to be restarted. \I(Russia, USA)\i
At least 12 people are killed and more than 30 injured when an express passenger train, traveling from \JBordeaux\j to Bergerac in the Dordogne, strikes a petrol tanker on a railway crossing near the village of Saint-Antoine-de-Breuilh, southwest \JFrance\j. Police believe the tanker bypassed barriers to cross onto the track. \I(France)\i
A Moroccan official says that former Zaire's ousted president Mobutu Sese Seko will be privately buried in exile in the Moroccan capital of Rabat. Mobutu died in Rabat yesterday following a long battle with cancer. \I(Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), Morocco)\i
#
"September 9, 1997",615,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Mourners carrying flowers continue to queue for miles in torrential rain to view Mother Teresa's embalmed body, which lies in state beneath a raised glass cover in \JCalcutta\j's Saint Thomas Church. Indian authorities announce that at Saturday's state funeral for the world-renowned missionary, her flag-draped coffin will proceed through the streets atop a horse-drawn gun carriage, and a military salute of three rifle shots, rather than a traditional 21-gun salute, will mark the end of the proceedings. \I(India)\i
The United States Senate unanimously votes to make Saturday a National Day of Recognition honoring the life and work of Nobel Peace laureate, Mother Teresa, who died aged 87 at the \JCalcutta\j headquarters of her Missionaries of Charity order last Friday. \I(USA, India)\i
North Korea marks the 49th anniversary of its founding by launching the use of the Juche era, a new dynastic calendar which starts at 1912, the birth year of founder, Kim Il Sung. Juche, or self-reliance, is North Korea's state \Jideology\j. \I(North Korea)\i
In a bid to reduce dangerous levels of smoke \Jpollution\j across wide areas of Southeast Asia, \JIndonesia\j's President Soeharto orders a ban on all land clearing fires on \JSumatra\j and \JKalimantan\j. In the meantime, \JMalaysia\j plans to continue cloud-seeding activities in the hope that further rain with clear the pall of smog choking Kuala Lumpur. \I(Indonesia, Malaysia)\i
China cautions \JAustralia\j about possible damage to ties after \JCanberra\j announces that Resources and Energy Minister, Warwick Parr, will visit \JTaiwan\j this week. \JCanberra\j insists that the visit is private and unofficial, and does not violate \JAustralia\j's one-China policy which recognizes \JBeijing\j as the sole legitimate Government of all China. \I(China, \JAustralia\j, Taiwan)\i
In his first address to Parliament, \JTaiwan\j's new Premier, Vincent Siew, reiterates the island's status as a sovereign, independent state, and calls on \JBeijing\j to acknowledge the split across the \JTaiwan\j Strait. \I(Taiwan, China)\i
The former Mayor of \JBeijing\j, Chen Xitong, is charged with corruption, and is also expelled from the Communist Party ahead of Friday's 15th Party Congress. Chen will become the most senior Chinese communist to stand trial since the infamous Gang of Four. \I(China)\i
As part of improved bilateral relations, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands announce a united approach to resolving the nine-year Bougainville secessionist crisis, with the Solomons to attend the next round of peace talks in New Zealand. \I(Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Bougainville, New Zealand)\i
Following indications that India will support \JFiji\j's bid to return to the Commonwealth, Fijian Prime Minister, Sitiveni Rabuka, says his country will invite India to resume full diplomatic ties. \I(India, Fiji)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United States Senate unanimously votes to make Saturday a National Day of Recognition honoring the life and work of Nobel Peace laureate, Mother Teresa, who died at the \JCalcutta\j headquarters of her Missionaries of Charity order last Friday. \I(USA, India)\i
Divers begin recovering the bodies of those trapped in a heavily overloaded Haitian ferry which sunk in 120 feet of water 50 yards from shore on Monday, claiming more than 200 lives. \JHaiti\j's President visits the disaster scene at Montrouis, but is confronted by angry villagers demanding to know why the government has not taken steps to prevent such accidents. \I(Haiti)\i
An illegal protest rally staged by Bosnia Serb hardliners ends in disarray, with about 40 protesters forced by an angry crowd to seek refuge in Banja Luka's central Bosna Hotel. Armored personnel carriers of \JNATO\j's peacekeeping force are brought in to escort leader, Momcilo Krajisnik, and the rest of the stranded hardliners to safety. The US State Department later accuses the protesters, all of whom are supporters of war crimes suspect Radovan Karadzic, of trying to mount a second coup attempt against Western-backed Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, leaves for her first trip to the Middle East, vowing to focus on Israel's security, as well as the need to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
NASA announces that an unmanned \Jspacecraft\j, launched from Earth 10 months ago, is closing in on Mars, and is expected to go into orbit Thursday. The Mars Global Surveyor will offer scientists a view of the planet's climate and weather patterns unavailable to the Mars Pathfinder rover, Sojourner. \I(USA)\i
Russia's Mir space station is reoriented toward the sun when the three-man crew restarts the main computer after a failure yesterday. Mission Control says all systems now seem to be working normally. \I(Russia, USA)\i
A female cadet is suspended for two semesters from the Virginia Military Institute after striking an upperclassman. The cadet is one of the 30 women who enrolled in the formerly all-male college at the beginning of this semester. \I(USA)\i
The judge in the Paula Jones sexual harassment lawsuit against President Clinton grants a request from her lawyers to withdraw from the case. The request for withdrawal comes after Jones refuses a settlement offer of $US700,000. \I(USA)\i
The Chrysler Corporation announces that it has discovered a way to make a low-cost car body largely from plastic and as easy to assemble as a toy. Chrysler believes its discovery will enable car-makers in developing countries to sell vehicles for as little as $US6,000. \I(USA)\i
Colorful character-actor, Burgess Meredith, dies aged 88 at his home in Malibu, \JCalifornia\j. \I(USA)\i
Richie Ashburn, one of the great center fielders in United States \Jbaseball\j history, and member of the Hall of Fame, dies in New York of an apparent heart attack at age 70. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
"Candle in the Wind", Elton John's farewell tribute to the late Princess of Wales, is transmitted by satellite to radio broadcasters in 50 countries around the world, hitting the airwaves days before the compact disc will be released for sale. John recorded the song just hours after singing it at the Princess's funeral last Saturday. \I(UK)\i
Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, formally signs a declaration renouncing violence, a move required to gain a place in this month's all-party peace talks, and one that is hailed as a crucial step towards stability in Northern Ireland. \I(Northern Ireland)\i
French newspapers report that Algerian security forces have located and destroyed the main hideout of an elite force of the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) about 70 kilometers southwest of \JAlgiers\j. The security operation killed 70 of the 100 members of the underground GIA force, which is believed to be responsible for most of the massacres in the area. \I(Algeria, France)\i
An illegal protest rally staged by Bosnia Serb hardliners ends in disarray, with about 40 protesters forced by an angry crowd to seek refuge in Banja Luka's central Bosna Hotel. Armored personnel carriers of \JNATO\j's peacekeeping force are brought in to escort leader, Momcilo Krajisnik, and the rest of the stranded hardliners to safety. The US State Department later accuses the protesters, all of whom are supporters of war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic, of trying to mount a second coup attempt against Western-backed Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. \I(Bosnia, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, leaves for her first trip to the Middle East, vowing to focus on Israel's security, as well as the need to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Marthinus van Schalkwyk, a 37-year-old former university lecturer, is elected as leader of South Africa's National Party, filling the position vacated by F.W. de Klerk, who, last month, announced his retirement from 25 years of active political life. \I(South Africa)\i
Russia's Mir space station is reoriented toward the sun when the three-man crew restarts the main computer after a failure yesterday. Mission Control says all systems now seem to be working normally. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In the wake of a failed military attempt to quash the secessionist movement on the island of Anjouan, Comoran President, Mohamed Taki, sacks Prime Minister, Ahmed Abdou, and announces the formation of a transitional government. \I(Comoros, Anjouan Island)\i
Iraq petitions the United Nations to request Britain to release details of the alleged killing of Iraqi prisoners by British troops during the 1991 Gulf War, and to prosecute those responsible for the killings. \I(Iraq, UK)\i
Using evidence based on fingerprints, Swiss police detain 13 suspects in connection with the recent robbery at a Zurich post office. The robbery was one of the largest in world history, yielding the thieves more than 53 million Swiss francs. \I(Switzerland)\i
Plans are announced to release some 40,000 convicts under an amnesty aimed at relieving severe overcrowding in \JRussia\j's prisons. \I(Russia)\i
Israeli archaeologists disclose details of a Roman complex uncovered in the Mediterranean coastal village of Caesarea. The complex includes a palace, offices, a boathouse, and courtyards, and served as the seat of Roman Government from the beginning of the 1st century AD until the middle of the 3rd century. Part of the compound, still to be excavated, is believed to be the room in which the hearing of St. Paul took place before he was taken to \JRome\j and eventually killed during Nero's persecution of the Christians. \I(Israel)\i
#
"September 10, 1997",616,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
As viewing hours are extended to allow thousands of waiting mourners to place flowers around the body of Mother Teresa in \JCalcutta\j's Saint Thomas Church, her followers hold a special Mass to mark the 51st anniversary of "Inspiration Day", the day Mother Teresa was inspired to found her Missionaries of Charity order, which now spans over 100 nations. \I(India)\i
Six soldiers are killed when Tamil Tiger rebels attack an army defense line in Sri Lanka's northwestern district of Mannar. The deaths add to the toll of the previous day, when 12 rebels and a soldier were killed during an attack on troops operating ahead of the defense lines in the northern district of Vavuniya. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Japan indicates that it is ready to resume donations of food aid to North Korea after the two countries sign an historic agreement which, for the first time, will allow an estimated 1,800 Japanese wives of North Korean men to visit their homeland. \I(Japan, North Korea)\i
The United States Ambassador to Vietnam, former fighter pilot Pete Peterson, visits the village of An Doai, meeting the villager who captured him when he parachuted from his burning plane exactly 31 years ago during the Vietnam War. After sharing tea with the villager, Peterson says "reconciliation with a former adversary is not only possible, but absolutely the way to reach out." \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
Authorities in New York announce the arrest of a 60-year-old Japanese man, Masatsugu Koga, on charges of possessing and selling $US10 million worth of stolen artwork, part of a collection which was lost from the Bremen Museum in \JGermany\j in 1943. Mr. Koga allegedly purchased the 12 paintings, including works by Rembrandt and Albrecht Durer, from employees of the National Museum of \JAzerbaijan\j, in \JBaku\j. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, \JGermany\j, Azerbaijan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
On the first day of a peace mission to the Middle East, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, holds three hours of talks with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, endorsing Israel's demands for a crackdown on terrorist \Jinfrastructure\j, but insisting that the Palestinians must have a peace payoff once a sustained clampdown on militants is assured. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
The United States Ambassador to Vietnam, former fighter pilot Pete Peterson, visits the village of An Doai, meeting the villager who captured him when he parachuted from his burning plane exactly 31 years ago during the Vietnam War. After sharing tea with the villager, Peterson says "reconciliation with a former adversary is not only possible, but absolutely the way to reach out." \I(USA, Vietnam)\i
Pending the arrival of United States Navy divers, United Nations peacekeepers in \JHaiti\j suspend operations to recover the bodies of some 150 passengers entombed in a sunken ferry off Montrouis. Meanwhile, flags fly at half-mast at the National Palace and Government buildings as a three-day national mourning period begins for the estimated 200 victims of the disaster. \I(Haiti, USA)\i
The Cuban Government announces the arrest of a mercenary agent who has allegedly confessed to the recent bomb attacks on \JHavana\j hotels. The Government also accuses a Cuban exile group in Miami of masterminding the bombings, saying the motive of the man in custody, Raul Ernesto Cruz Leon, was solely financial. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
Forest fires continue to threaten the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu in the Peruvian \JAndes\j. The area is now sealed off to tourists, hundreds of villagers have been evacuated, and helicopters are dousing the mountainsides with water in a determined bid to keep the fires from reaching the World Heritage site. \I(Peru)\i
Appearing at a brief arraignment in Washington, former United States Agricultural Secretary, Mike Espy, pleads not guilty to charges of accepting $US35,000 in gifts and favors from companies he regulated while in office. Espy also pleads not guilty to charges of trying to cover up the alleged scheme. \I(USA)\i
Following a European Union decision to ban imports of Iranian pistachios, a decision prompted by concerns about aflatoxin B1 contamination, \JIran\j accuses the United States of instigating the ban in order to capture the world \Jpistachio\j market. \I(Europe, \JIran\j, USA)\i
Authorities in New York announce the arrest of a 60-year-old Japanese man, Masatsugu Koga, on charges of possessing and selling $US10 million worth of stolen artwork, part of a collection which was lost from the Bremen Museum in \JGermany\j in 1943. Mr. Koga allegedly purchased the 12 paintings, including works by Rembrandt and Albrecht Durer, from employees of the National Museum of \JAzerbaijan\j, in \JBaku\j. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, \JGermany\j, Azerbaijan)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
On the first day of a peace mission to the Middle East, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, holds three hours of talks with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, endorsing Israel's demands for a crackdown on terrorist \Jinfrastructure\j, but insisting that the Palestinians must have a peace payoff once a sustained clampdown on militants is assured. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
As a result of a new analysis, Paris prosecutors announce that driver, Henri Paul, had a mixture of drugs and alcohol in his blood at the time of the car crash which killed the Princess of Wales. Prosecutors say the analysis confirms levels of alcohol more than three times the legal limit, together with therapeutic levels of fluoxetine, the active ingredient in the antidepressant drug Prozac, and lesser levels of tiapride, a drug prescribed as a treatment for agitation and aggression. \I(UK, France)\i
The British Government declares it will waive its claim to tax sales of "Candle in the Wind", the specially revised song Elton John recorded to raise money for The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. The Government says the tax, which is expected to exceed ú1 million, will be donated to the fund. \I(UK)\i
Speaking before South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Harold Snyman, one of five white policeman seeking amnesty for the 1977 beating death of black activist Steve Biko, admits misleading the inquest concerning the date and time of the fatal assault, but claims he did so to protect the National Party Government and the police from international condemnation. The Biko family lawyer opposes amnesty for the five policemen, insisting that they still have not provided a full disclosure of the facts. \I(South Africa)\i
Bosnian Serb hardliners loyal to indicted war criminal and ex-president, Radovan Karadzic, withdraw a threat to boycott upcoming municipal elections. The threatened boycott was planned as a protest against Western support for Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic. \I(Bosnia)\i
Russia and \JChechnya\j sign a major commercial contract regarding the transit of Caspian oil through \JChechnya\j's oil pipeline. \JRussia\j agrees to finance repair and protection of the pipeline, parts of which were damaged during the 22-month Chechen war, which ended just over a year ago. \I(Russia, Chechnya)\i
Following a European Union decision to ban imports of Iranian pistachios, a decision prompted by concerns about aflatoxin B1 contamination, \JIran\j accuses the United States of instigating the ban in order to capture the world \Jpistachio\j market. \I(Europe, \JIran\j, USA)\i
Norwegian anthropologist, Ivar Bjoerklund, reveals his discovery of a forgotten tribe of about 200 nomadic \Jreindeer\j herders in the Siberian \Jtundra\j. According to Mr. Bjoerklund, the nomads have had no contact with authorities for generations, have gone without education and health care, and the Russian Government, having had no official record of them, was quite unaware of their existence until now. \I(Norway, Russia)\i
Authorities in New York announce the arrest of a 60-year-old Japanese man, Masatsugu Koga, on charges of possessing and selling $US10 million worth of stolen artwork, part of a collection which was lost from the Bremen Museum in \JGermany\j in 1943. Mr. Koga allegedly purchased the 12 paintings, including works by Rembrandt and Albrecht Durer, from employees of the National Museum of \JAzerbaijan\j, in \JBaku\j. \I(USA, \JJapan\j, \JGermany\j, Azerbaijan)\i
British legal history is made when a woman wins damages from her husband for rape. The woman took civil action after prosecutors decided not to bring criminal charges against her husband. \I(UK)\i
#
"September 11, 1997",617,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In a solemn ceremony at Saint Thomas Catholic Church, four high-ranking army officers drape the body of Mother Teresa with the Indian flag, marking the start of military honors that will culminate with a state funeral and national day of mourning on Saturday. Until then, while nuns from Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity order keep holy vigil inside the \JCalcutta\j church, military officers will keep a 24-hour vigil outside the building. \I(India)\i
At a meeting in \JBeijing\j between US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Charles Kartman, and North Korean Vice Foreign Minister, Kim Gye Gwan, the United States and North Korea agree to resume preliminary talks next week aimed at securing a more lasting peace on the divided Korean peninsula. \I(China, USA, The Koreas)\i
The United Nations calls for a truce as fighting rages in \JAfghanistan\j. Opposition forces fire at least five rockets at the capital Kabul, which is held by the Taliban militia, while the northern opposition stronghold of Mazar-e-Sharif comes under siege for a third day. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Before leaving on a ten-day foreign trip, the embattled Philippine President, Fidel Ramos, makes an emotional appeal for national support. Just hours after Mr. Ramos leaves, at least eight buildings around the capital receive bomb threats, tactics the opposition claims to be reminiscent of those used in 1972 by the late former president Marcos to justify imposition of martial law. Meanwhile, growing anxiety over Mr. Ramos's political intentions is causing a marked slide in the country's stock and currency markets. \I(The Philippines)\i
Thailand's influential Chamber of Commerce issues a statement calling for the resignation of Prime Minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, a move many in the private sector regard as essential to prevent the country from plunging into further political and economic turmoil. \I(Thailand)\i
Officials report that an international prostitution ring has been smashed by Canadian and United States police, who have arrested a total of 22 people. The ring, which sold kidnapped Southeast Asian women to brothel owners, is estimated to have collected between $US1.4 million and $US2.2 million in Canada alone. \I(Canada, USA, Southeast Asia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
During a televised speech in Israel, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, argues that a freeze on Jewish settlement in occupied land would create a better climate for achieving a lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. Later, Israel openly refutes Albright's argument, likening a freeze on settlement expansion to a freeze on life. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
In a bid to ensure the smooth progress of key municipal elections in Bosnia over the weekend, the Pentagon reveals plans to deploy three \Jaircraft\j capable of disrupting hardline Serb radio and \Jtelevision\j broadcasts that have been challenging the Dayton peace accords. The three \Jaircraft\j are also capable of broadcasting information to Bosnia in favor of the accords. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
At a meeting in \JBeijing\j between US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Charles Kartman, and North Korean Vice Foreign Minister, Kim Gye Gwan, the United States and North Korea agree to resume preliminary talks next week aimed at securing a more lasting peace on the divided Korean peninsula. \I(China, USA, The Koreas)\i
Speaking at a conference in Oslo, Canadian Foreign Minister, Lloyd Axworthy, one of the leaders in formulating a draft treaty for a global ban on landmines, declares that Canada will destroy its remaining anti-personnel mines before the scheduled treaty signing in early December. Canada destroyed two-thirds of its stockpile last year. \I(Norway, Canada)\i
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor blasts into orbit around Mars after spending 10 months traveling 435 million miles to the red planet. Surveyor will now spend two years mapping Mars for a future manned mission, as well as providing scientists with an understanding of the planet's climate and weather patterns. \I(USA)\i
Rain extinguishes huge flames surrounding \JPeru\j's Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, bringing a sweeping five-day forest fire almost to an end, and saving the homes of about 1,000 people. \I(Peru)\i
A spokeswoman for the Miami-based Cuban American National Foundation (CANF) denies Cuban Government accusations of hiring a mercenary to plant bombs in \JHavana\j hotels. Spokeswoman Ninoska Perez says the goal of CANF is to oust President Fidel Castro, a goal it has always pursued through lawful means. \I(USA, Cuba)\i
As a result of a nine-month investigation of sexual misconduct in the United States Army, the Army concedes that sexual harassment is a problem, and says it will tighten the selection process for drill sergeants and other instructors who come into contact with female recruits. The investigation was triggered by charges of rape and sexual abuse brought against male enlisted personnel at a Maryland training camp. The camp has now undergone a major shake-up, with several drill sergeants court-martialed, and the former commander and several deputies reprimanded and discharged. \I(USA)\i
A United States District Judge rules that the pilots of a plane which crashed in 1995 near \JCali\j, \JColombia\j, were negligent, and that American Airlines should be liable for compensatory damages. The crash killed 159 passengers and crew members. \I(USA, Colombia)\i
Officials report that an international prostitution ring has been smashed by Canadian and United States police, who have arrested a total of 22 people. The ring, which sold kidnapped Southeast Asian women to brothel owners, is estimated to have collected between $US1.4 million and $US2.2 million in Canada alone. \I(Canada, USA, Southeast Asia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The people of Scotland vote in a referendum which could result in the return of a parliament to Edinburgh for the first time in nearly three centuries. Scots are being asked two questions: whether they want their own parliament, and whether they want it to have limited power to set taxes. The "Yes" campaign is endorsed by British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. \I(Scotland, UK)\i
During a televised speech in Israel, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, argues that a freeze on Jewish settlement in occupied land would create a better climate for achieving a lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. Later, Israel openly refutes Albright's argument, likening a freeze on settlement expansion to a freeze on life. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
In a bid to ensure the smooth progress of key municipal elections in Bosnia over the weekend, the Pentagon reveals plans to deploy three \Jaircraft\j capable of disrupting hardline Serb radio and \Jtelevision\j broadcasts that have been challenging the Dayton peace accords. The three \Jaircraft\j are also capable of broadcasting information to Bosnia in favor of the accords. \I(USA, Bosnia)\i
London and Dublin react angrily when the Irish Republican Army (IRA) refuses to discard its weapons until there is agreement on a lasting political solution in Northern Ireland. The IRA also disavows the so-called Mitchell principles of democracy and non-violence, a stance contrasting with that of its political wing, Sinn Fein, whose participation in this month's all-party Northern Ireland peace talks may now be jeopardized. \I(UK, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland)\i
Speaking at a conference in Oslo, Canadian Foreign Minister, Lloyd Axworthy, one of the leaders in formulating a draft treaty for a global ban on landmines, declares that Canada will destroy its remaining anti-personnel mines before the scheduled treaty signing in early December. Canada destroyed two-thirds of its stockpile last year. \I(Norway, Canada)\i
Authorities and volunteers begin the mammoth task of removing millions of flowers left outside London's royal palaces in honor of the late Princess of Wales. Organizers say flowers that are still fresh will be sent to retirement homes and hopsitals. \I(UK)\i
The P & O liner \ICanberra\i leaves \JSouthampton\j on a 20-night Mediterranean cruise, the vessel's final cruise before it retires at the end of the month. \I(UK, Europe)\i
#
"September 12, 1997",618,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Police in \JCalcutta\j use riot batons to restore order when thousands of mourners, still waiting to pay their last respects to Mother Teresa, protest after soldiers finally close the doors to Saint Thomas Church, where the missionary's body has been lying in state all week. Up to a million people are expected to watch Mother Teresa's funeral procession tomorrow, when her open casket will be pulled on the same gun carriage used to carry Mahatma Gandhi's body to his \Jcremation\j site almost 50 years ago. \I(India)\i
Fighting enters a fourth day around the besieged northern opposition stronghold of Mazar-e-Sharif, as \JAfghanistan\j's Taliban militia continues its offensive to take control of the city. Taliban warplanes pound Mazar-e-Sharif with bombs, while a large-scale counterattack mounted by opposition forces on Taliban positions outside the city is reportedly beaten back. \I(Afghanistan)\i
A draft treaty banning the use, production, sale, and storing of landmines is released for review by governments of the countries participating in a conference in Oslo. The United States, which has failed to win support for the exemption of the Korean peninsula, as well as three anti-tank weapons with anti-personnel devices, says it will be unable to sign the treaty in its current form. \I(Norway, USA, The Koreas)\i
As armed troops begin arriving in \JBangkok\j, the Thai army calls for calm, assuring residents that the military show of force is not a coup, but a mobilization to prepare for a farewell parade in honor of retired officers. The mobilization occurs amid mounting criticism of the country's leadership and rumors of a possible military coup, an outcome not unprecedented in \JThailand\j. Since the country became a democracy in 1932, there have been 17 military coups, the most recent being in February 1991. \I(Thailand)\i
In a 21/2 hour speech, Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, opens the ruling Communist Party's 15th Congress, outlining sweeping reforms which include opening big state-owned companies to public shareholding, and relaxing controls over smaller companies to allow sales and mergers. \I(China)\i
Cambodia's co-Prime Ministers, Hun Sen and Ung Huot, propose changes to cabinet which will eliminate royalist members loyal to deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and replace them with \Jdissidents\j of the royalist Funcinpec party who broke with Prince Ranariddh in April. \I(Cambodia)\i
The New Delhi High Court rules that former Indian Prime Minister, P.V. Narasimha Rao, and 18 others, will stand trial on charges of bribing deputies of a regional party in July 1993. \I(India)\i
Fire fueled by harsh \Jdrought\j conditions rages on Mount Wilhelm, Papua New Guinea's highest mountain. The fire is an added calamity for the 200,000 people of Chimbu province, who are already facing severe food shortages because of the \Jdrought\j. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, arrives in \JSyria\j to discuss a revival of Israeli-Syrian talks with \JSyria\j's President Hafez al-Assad. Earlier, Albright announced that senior Israeli and Palestinian officials will meet in Washington later this month in a bid to get the stalled peace process back on track. \I(USA, \JSyria\j, Israel, Palestine)\i
A United States Navy operation to recover up to 150 bodies from a sunken Haitian ferry is halted when it is feared the vessel might slip into deeper water. Crowds of people desperate to retrieve their relatives are forced to wait even longer while salvage experts work to stabilize the ferry. \I(Haiti, USA)\i
A draft treaty banning the use, production, sale, and storing of landmines is released for review by governments of the countries participating in a conference in Oslo. The United States, which has failed to win support for the exemption of the Korean peninsula, as well as three anti-tank weapons with anti-personnel devices, says it will be unable to sign the treaty in its current form. \I(Norway, USA, The Koreas)\i
A United States Air Force report says pilot error was the cause of a May crash in which a female pilot was killed. The pilot, 29-year-old Amy Svoboda, was the first female Air Force pilot to die in a flying accident. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Results of yesterday's referendum in Scotland show that 74.3 per cent of voters are in favor of a Scottish parliament, and that 63.5 per cent want the parliament to have tax-varying powers. Although it is a victory for Scottish home rule campaigners, and for British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, who spearheaded the final days of the campaign, the legislation required to transfer Westminster's powers over Scotland to a regional body still has to be passed by the British Parliament. \I(Scotland, UK)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, arrives in \JSyria\j to discuss a revival of Israeli-Syrian talks with \JSyria\j's President Hafez al-Assad. Earlier, Albright announced that senior Israeli and Palestinian officials will meet in Washington later this month in a bid to get the stalled peace process back on track. \I(USA, \JSyria\j, Israel, Palestine)\i
The Lebanese Army reports that up to seven of its soldiers plus a female civilian have been killed in overnight raids by Israeli helicopters. Seven other soldiers were reportedly wounded in the attacks, which occurred near the town of Nabatiyeh. \I(Lebanon, Israel)\i
In a ceremony watched by a crowd of thousands, South African President, Nelson Mandela, unveils a life-size statue of Steve Biko, paying national tribute to the anti-apartheid activist on the 20th anniversary of his death while in police custody. \I(South Africa)\i
Two civilians are killed in crossfire when Kenyan paramilitary police shoot and kill eight men suspected of belonging to a gang that attacked a police station and burned shops in the coastal resort of Diani yesterday, killing five people. The attack was the latest in a series targeting tribes opposing President Daniel arap Moi and his ruling party. \I(Kenya)\i
A draft treaty banning the use, production, sale, and storing of landmines is released for review by governments of the countries participating in a conference in Oslo. The United States, which has failed to win support for the exemption of the Korean peninsula, as well as three anti-tank weapons with anti-personnel devices, says it will be unable to sign the treaty in its current form. \I(Norway, USA, The Koreas)\i
The body of driver Henri Paul is released for burial by the French magistrate heading the inquiry into the car crash which killed Britain's Princess of Wales in Paris nearly two weeks ago. \I(France, UK)\i
The French Social Affairs Ministry launches an investigation into allegations that 15,000 French women, under the age of 45, have been sterilized by state-run psychiatric institutions responsible for their care. \I(France)\i
After seven years in office, Irish President, Mary Robinson, steps down to take up a new Geneva-based post as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. \I(Republic of Ireland, Switzerland)\i
A French publisher announces that 78-year-old Swiss-born writer, Robert Pinget, died on August 26 in Tours, where he lived for a number of years. Pinget was a prolific author and a leading figure in \JFrance\j's Nouveau Roman movement. \I(France, Switzerland)\i
#
"September 13, 1997",619,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Calcutta bids farewell to Mother Teresa as her open casket, escorted by resplendent military guards and accompanied in song by 400 white-robed nuns, is drawn on a gun carriage through streets lined with tens of thousands of mourners. After a funeral Mass attended by about 12,000 people, including scores of foreign dignitaries, Mother Teresa is privately buried in the courtyard of Mother House, the headquarters of her Missionaries of Charities order in \JCalcutta\j. \I(India)\i
President Clinton nominates Stephen Bosworth as United States Ambassador to South Korea, and Lindy Boggs as United States Ambassador to the Vatican in \JRome\j. Bosworth is a former US Ambassador to \JTunisia\j and to the \JPhilippines\j; Boggs is a former Democratic House Representative of Louisiana's 2nd District. \I(USA, South Korea, \JItaly\j, \JTunisia\j, The Philippines)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Two military \Jaircraft\j, a German Tupolev and a United States C-141, are reported missing off the coast of Africa, sparking fears that they have collided and plunged into the Atlantic. The South African Air Force says a signal received from a life jacket emergency beacon indicates that some of the 33 people on board the planes may have survived. \I(Germany, USA, South Africa)\i
After holding talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, arrives in Saudi \JArabia\j for a meeting with King Fahd and other Saudi leaders. One of Albright's main goals is to persuade \JEgypt\j and Saudi \JArabia\j to attend the Middle East economic summit scheduled for November. \I(USA, \JEgypt\j, Saudi \JArabia\j, Middle East)\i
President Clinton nominates Stephen Bosworth as United States Ambassador to South Korea, and Lindy Boggs as United States Ambassador to the Vatican in \JRome\j. Bosworth is a former US Ambassador to \JTunisia\j and to the \JPhilippines\j; Boggs is a former Democratic House Representative of Louisiana's 2nd District. \I(USA, South Korea, \JItaly\j, \JTunisia\j, The Philippines)\i
Dr. David Satcher, director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, is nominated by President Clinton as the next United States Surgeon General, a post which has been vacant for three years after controversy forced the resignation of former Surgeon General, Joycelyn Elders. \I(USA)\i
The Mexican Government announces that it has requested the freezing of a New York Citibank account, which is held in the name of a wealthy Chilean businessman, and contains $US26 million. The request comes after an investigation reveals that money was laundered through the bank by Amado Carillo Fuentes, a notorious Mexican drug lord who died in July. \I(Mexico, USA)\i
Hurricane Linda, one of the most powerful Pacific hurricanes in history, causes flooding along Mexico's west coast, forcing the closure of five ports. \I(Mexico)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Two military \Jaircraft\j, a German Tupolev and a United States C-141, are reported missing off the coast of Africa, sparking fears that they have collided and plunged into the Atlantic. The South African Air Force says a signal received from a life jacket emergency beacon indicates that some of the 33 people on board the planes may have survived. \I(Germany, USA, South Africa)\i
After holding talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, arrives in Saudi \JArabia\j for a meeting with King Fahd and other Saudi leaders. One of Albright's main goals is to persuade \JEgypt\j and Saudi \JArabia\j to attend the Middle East economic summit scheduled for November. \I(USA, \JEgypt\j, Saudi \JArabia\j, Middle East)\i
Clashes break out in the Israeli-occupied area of southern \JLebanon\j, with Israeli soldiers killing four Hezbollah fighters, one of whom is Hadi Nasrallah, the 18-year-old eldest son of Hezbollah's leader, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah. \I(Lebanon, Israel)\i
Under the watchful eye of \JNATO\j peacekeeping troops, thousands of Bosnians turn out to vote in municipal elections. The elections could restore local political power to ethnic communities expelled from their homes during Bosnia's 31/2-year civil war, and are regarded as a crucial step toward future peace in the troubled region. \I(Bosnia)\i
"Candle in the Wind", the specially revised tribute sung by Elton John at the funeral of the Princess of Wales, becomes the fastest-selling record in history, with the first 250,000 copies on sale in Britain being snapped up in just four hours. Sales from the compact disc and cassette are expected to raise up to ú20 million for The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. \I(UK)\i
President Clinton nominates Stephen Bosworth as United States Ambassador to South Korea, and Lindy Boggs as United States Ambassador to the Vatican in \JRome\j. Bosworth is a former US Ambassador to \JTunisia\j and to the \JPhilippines\j; Boggs is a former Democratic House Representative of Louisiana's 2nd District. \I(USA, South Korea, \JItaly\j, \JTunisia\j, The Philippines)\i
#
"September 14, 1997",620,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The Vatican comes under increasing pressure to make Mother Teresa a saint through "popular acclamation", a procedure that would hasten canonization, and one that has not been used since medieval times. The 87-year-old Nobel Peace laureate, who devoted her life to the destitute and downtrodden, died on September 5, and was buried after a state funeral yesterday in the grounds of her Missionaries of Charity order in \JCalcutta\j. Mother Teresa's successor as Superior-General of the worldwide order is Sister Nirmala Joshi. \I(Italy, India)\i
Scores of people are feared dead when a passenger train plunges into the Hansdev River near Champa village in the state of Madhya Pradesh, 950 kilometers southeast of New Delhi. The train was en route from Ahmedabad in western India to \JCalcutta\j in the east. \I(India)\i
A leaking pipeline triggers a massive explosion at the state-run Hindustan \JPetroleum\j Corporation refinery in the southeast Indian port city of Visakhapatam. At least 20 people are killed, and 100 others are injured. \I(India)\i
Aid workers report that villagers near the Afghan opposition stronghold of Mazar-e-Sharif have buried up to 70 people allegedly massacred by the Taliban militia after an unsuccessful offensive to capture the northern stronghold. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Japan's Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, creates a national storm over his appointment of convicted criminal, Koko Sato, as head of the Management and Co-ordination Agency. Mr. Sato, who was convicted 21 years ago off accepting bribes, is already under pressure to resign. \I(Japan)\i
Taiwan pledges $US290 million in development aid to Latin America after the region's leaders guarantee their continued support for \JTaiwan\j's bid to win a United Nations seat. \I(Taiwan, Latin America)\i
Under the Treaty of Waitangi, the Onewhero forest is returned to the \JMaori\j Tainui tribe by the New Zealand Government. The 1,150-hectare forest is in Waikato, in the North Island, and is valued at $AUD1.3 million. \I(New Zealand)\i
Australian golfer Karrie Webb finishes with a 16-under 272 to successfully defend her title in the LPGA Safeco Classic, and secure her third victory of the year. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Australian Michael Doohan claims his 12th victory of the year when he wins the Spanish 500cc \JMotorcycle\j Grand Prix at Montmelo. \I(Australia, Spain)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A United States Navy F/A 18 Hornet jet crashes about 75 miles northeast of the southern Omani port of Raysut, killing the pilot. The jet was on a routine training exercise operating from the \Jaircraft\j carrier USS John F. Kennedy. \I(USA, Oman)\i
A United States Air Force F-117A stealth fighter crashes during an air show near Baltimore in Maryland, exploding on impact, and destroying a house, a garage and two motor vehicles. The pilot, who ejected before the crash, suffers minor injuries, and four other people on the ground also receive minor injuries. \I(USA)\i
In return for recent Palestinian moves to tackle \Jterrorism\j, Israel announces plans to release half of the Palestinian tax revenue it has withheld since the \JJerusalem\j suicide bombing by Hamas extremists in July. From Saudi \JArabia\j, meanwhile, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, appeals to Arab countries to deny financial aid to Hamas and other radical Islamic groups. \I(Palestine, Israel, USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
Premiers of Canada's English-speaking provinces begin a two-day meeting to draft a proposal aimed at appeasing separatists in the French-speaking province of Quebec. Quebec's separatist Premier, Lucien Bouchard, boycotts the meeting, declaring he will reject any proposal that is generated. \I(Canada, France)\i
Taiwan pledges $US290 million in development aid to Latin America after the region's leaders guarantee their continued support for \JTaiwan\j's bid to win a United Nations seat. \I(Taiwan, Latin America)\i
Australian golfer Karrie Webb finishes with a 16-under 272 to successfully defend her title in the LPGA Safeco Classic, and secure her third victory of the year. \I(Australia, USA)\i
Golfer Mark O'Meara of the United States shoots to a one-stroke lead in the final round to win the Lancome Trophy at St. Nom La Breteche, \JFrance\j. \I(USA, France)\i
In seniors golf, the Boone Valley Classic at Augusta, Missouri, is won by Hale Irwin of the United States, who finishes two strokes ahead of the field. \I(USA)\i
United States golfer, Loren Roberts, cards a final round of 64 to take out the CVS Charity Classic at Sutton, \JMassachusetts\j. \I(USA)\i
At \Jtelevision\j's annual Emmy Awards in \JCalifornia\j, the winners in the comedy category are \IFrasier\i for best series, Helen Hunt of \IMad About You\i for best actress, and John Lithgow of \I3rd Rock From The Sun\i for best actor. In the drama category, the winners are \ILaw and Order\i for the best series, Gillian Anderson of \IThe X-Files\i for best actress, and Dennis Franz of \INYPD Blue\i for best actor. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A United States Navy F/A 18 Hornet jet crashes about 75 miles northeast of the southern Omani port of Raysut, killing the pilot. The jet was on a routine training exercise operating from the \Jaircraft\j carrier USS John F. Kennedy. \I(USA, Oman)\i
In return for recent Palestinian moves to tackle \Jterrorism\j, Israel announces plans to release half of the Palestinian tax revenue it has withheld since the \JJerusalem\j suicide bombing by Hamas extremists in July. From Saudi \JArabia\j, meanwhile, US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, appeals to Arab countries to deny financial aid to Hamas and other radical Islamic groups. \I(Palestine, Israel, USA, Saudi Arabia)\i
Two Israeli soldiers are killed when a remote-controlled Hezbollah bomb is detonated in the Israeli-occupied zone of southern \JLebanon\j. Israeli artillery responds by bombing a Hezbollah stronghold adjoining the zone for more than six hours. \I(Israel, Lebanon)\i
The Governments of Britain and Ireland release a joint statement assuring Northern Ireland's pro-British Protestant leaders that any political settlement emerging from this week's all-party peace talks will be anchored by the principle of consent. Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionist and Bob McCartney's United Kingdom Unionists have vowed not to take part in negotiations with the IRA-allied Sinn Fein Party, but the main Protestant Party, David Trimble's Ulster Unionists, is still divided on the issue. \I(UK, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland)\i
Despite efforts by hardline nationalists to derail the polls, international mediators hail Bosnia's first post-war municipal elections as a success, with figures from the first day of the two-day elections indicating that Bosnians have turned out to vote in large numbers. \I(Bosnia)\i
Premiers of Canada's English-speaking provinces begin a two-day meeting to draft a proposal aimed at appeasing separatists in the French-speaking province of Quebec. Quebec's separatist Premier, Lucien Bouchard, boycotts the meeting, declaring he will reject any proposal that is generated. \I(Canada, France)\i
After decades of official secrecy, the French Government agrees to grant historians access to its wartime state \Jarchives\j, which include sensitive records of the police and the diplomatic service under the Nazi-collaborationist \JVichy\j regime between 1940 and 1944. \I(France, Germany)\i
Rescue workers use helicopters to evacuate 18 climbers after an avalanche in the French Alps kills four climbers and injures five others. More than 60 people have now been killed in climbing accidents in the Alps since mid-July. \I(France)\i
The Vatican comes under increasing pressure to make Mother Teresa a saint through "popular acclamation", a procedure that would hasten canonization, and one that has not been used since medieval times. The 87-year-old Nobel Peace laureate, who devoted her life to the destitute and downtrodden, died on September 5, and was buried after a state funeral yesterday in the grounds of her Missionaries of Charity order in \JCalcutta\j. Mother Teresa's successor as Superior-General of the worldwide order is Sister Nirmala Joshi. \I(Italy, India)\i
A new study, presented at a conference in Vienna, says most psychiatrists agree that by the year 2020, depression will be the leading cause of disability in the developing world, and will be a huge economic burden unless better methods are developed to treat it. \I(Austria)\i
In Britain, "Candle in the Wind", Elton John's tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, reaches \Jplatinum\j sales of 600,000 and tops the charts a day after its release. One thousand staff at Mercury Records pressing plant work a special shift to re-stock shops which all sold out of the compact disc and cassette within a few hours. \I(UK)\i
Australian Michael Doohan claims his 12th victory of the year when he wins the Spanish 500cc \JMotorcycle\j Grand Prix at Montmelo. \I(Australia, Spain)\i
Golfer Mark O'Meara of the United States shoots to a one-stroke lead in the final round to win the Lancome Trophy at St. Nom La Breteche, \JFrance\j. \I(USA, France)\i
#
"September 15, 1997",621,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
As rescue efforts continue at the site, Indian railway officials estimate that 76 people died and 234 were injured yesterday when five carriages of a passenger train plunged off a bridge into the Handsdev River near the village of Champa, in central Madhya Pradesh state. \I(India)\i
The death toll from an oil refinery explosion in the southeast Indian port city of Visakhapatam rises to 40 after rescuers retrieve more bodies from the burning complex. Meanwhile, the Government orders an inquiry into the disaster amid growing suspicions of sabotage. \I(India)\i
China's official news agency announces that \JBeijing\j is implementing a licensing system to tighten control of nuclear-related exports. The licenses will be introduced under a package of regulations on nuclear exports issued by the State Council on September 10. \I(China)\i
At the request of the Government of \JPakistan\j, Swiss authorities impose a three-month freeze on bank accounts allegedly held by the former Pakistani Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, and her husband and mother. According to the Pakistani Government, the money in the Swiss accounts was siphoned out of the country. \I(Pakistan, Switzerland)\i
Air and marine traffic is disrupted, electricity is cut, and one man is killed as Typhoon Oliwa lashes \JKyushu\j island in southern \JJapan\j with torrential rain and winds of 144 kilometers an hour. Oliwa is the 19th typhoon to hit \JJapan\j this year. \I(Japan)\i
In east Jakarta, 36 people die when an inter-city bus collides head on with a dump truck. The driver of the truck is among the dead. \I(Indonesia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
United States and German military authorities say it appears likely that a US Air Force C-141 cargo plane and a German Tupolev transport plane collided some 100 miles off Moewe Bay in northern \JNamibia\j on Saturday. Wreckage has been picked up by a Namibian patrol boat, and there are reports that a fuel slick has also been detected. The 33 people aboard the two \Jaircraft\j are now feared dead. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, Namibia)\i
Following the crash of one of its F-117A stealth fighters during an airshow near Baltimore yesterday, the United States Air Force announces that it is temporarily grounding the entire fleet. \I(USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, winds up her peace mission to the Middle East with an unannounced stopover in \JLebanon\j. Earlier, Albright wins praise from Jordan's King Hussein for her hard-hitting statements denouncing guerrilla attacks on Israel and Israel's settlement expansion. \I(USA, \JLebanon\j, Jordan, Middle East)\i
The United States offers to sign a global treaty banning anti-personnel landmines if US forces are permitted to use the weapons on the Korean peninsula for nine more years. The US also insists that countries be permitted to withdraw from the pact, after a waiting period of six months, should they become the victims of aggression. \I(USA)\i
In the face of unrelenting opposition from Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman, Jesse Helms, former \JMassachusetts\j Governor, William Weld, withdraws his nomination to serve as United States Ambassador to Mexico. Despite President Clinton's support for Weld, Helms has insisted that Weld is too soft on drugs to serve in the post. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
Dana, the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest winner, secures the backing of four county councils to become the first person officially nominated to succeed Mary Robinson as Irish President. The 44-year-old singer, who lives in the United States, is standing for office under her real name, Rosemary Scallon. \I(Republic of Ireland, USA)\i
United States researchers report that broccoli sprouts provide even more cancer-fighting power than the mature broccoli plant, saying the baby vegetables contain 20 to 50 times the amount of sulforaphane, a compound which helps mobilize the body's own defenses. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
United States and German military authorities say it appears likely that a US Air Force C-141 cargo plane and a German Tupolev transport plane collided some 100 miles off Moewe Bay in northern \JNamibia\j on Saturday. Wreckage has been picked up by a Namibian patrol boat, and there are reports that a fuel slick has also been detected. The 33 people aboard the two \Jaircraft\j are now feared dead. \I(USA, \JGermany\j, Namibia)\i
The first day of Northern Ireland peace talks are adjourned after all five pro-British Unionist parties boycott the session to protest against the participation of the IRA's political wing, Sinn Fein. Despite the setback, it is the first time Sinn Fein has held direct talks with the British Government since 1921. \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, winds up her peace mission to the Middle East with an unannounced stopover in \JLebanon\j. Earlier, Albright wins praise from Jordan's King Hussein for her hard-hitting statements denouncing guerrilla attacks on Israel and Israel's settlement expansion in \JJerusalem\j. \I(USA, \JLebanon\j, Jordan, Middle East)\i
Palestinians are enraged after Jewish settlers take over two homes in annexed East \JJerusalem\j. Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, condemns the settlers' moves, but nevertheless argues that Israeli property rights must be respected. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
The former wife of South Africa's President Mandela, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, who is facing hearings over her alleged complicity in the murders of child activist, Stompie Moeketsi Seipei, and Soweto doctor, Abu-Baker Asvat, is accused of complicity in a third murder, that of a teenage girl, Kuki Zwane, in 1989. \I(South Africa)\i
At the request of the Government of \JPakistan\j, Swiss authorities impose a three-month freeze on bank accounts allegedly held by the former Pakistani Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, and her husband and mother. According to the Pakistani Government, the money in the Swiss accounts was siphoned out of the country. \I(Pakistan, Switzerland)\i
Following a wave of speculation about rifts in Britain's royal family since the death of the Princess of Wales, Buckingham Palace issues a rare and outspoken point-by-point rebuttal of the rumors, saying they are inaccurate and untrue, and need to be corrected. \I(UK)\i
Norway's Labor Prime Minister, Thorbjoern Jagland, announces that he and his Government will step down on October 13. Mr. Jagland's announcement comes as a result of national elections, in which his party received 35.1 per cent of the vote, less than the 36.9 per cent show of support Mr. Jagland had wanted to continue in office. \I(Norway)\i
Dana, the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest winner, secures the backing of four county councils to become the first person officially nominated to succeed Mary Robinson as Irish President. The 44-year-old singer, who lives in the United States, is standing for office under her real name, Rosemary Scallon. \I(Republic of Ireland, USA)\i
#
"September 16, 1997",622,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In \JBombay\j, the rear wing of a 10-story mid-city office block caves in, destroying dozens of offices, and killing at least seven people. Another 26 people are taken to hospitals suffering mostly minor injuries or shock, but eight people remain missing, and rescue workers are forced to proceed cautiously for fear of crushing possible survivors in the rubble. \I(India)\i
World Vision Vice President, Andrew Natsios, conservatively estimates that one in seven North Koreans has starved to death in some northern areas, and suggests that the death rate in the south of the country may be even higher. Natsios urgently calls on nations throughout the world to recognize North Korea's food shortage as a full-scale \Jfamine\j. \I(North Korea)\i
For the third time this year, senior diplomats from India and \JPakistan\j embark upon talks aimed at implementing mechanisms to tackle issues of division between the neighboring countries, one of the most contentious issues being the Himalayan region of Kashmir. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Cambodia's Hun Sen Government suffers a parliamentary defeat when the National Assembly rejects proposals for a Cabinet reshuffle. The proposals sought to remove four ministers loyal to ousted First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh, and replace them with a renegade faction of Prince Ranariddh's royalist Funcinpec party. \I(Cambodia)\i
Justice Minister, Xiao Yang, declares that China will never reverse its condemnation of the 1989 Tiananmen Square democracy demonstrations. Mr. Xiao's declaration comes in response to an open appeal by former Communist Party chief, Zhao Ziyang, who was stripped of his posts in June 1989 on charges of attempting to split the party. \I(China)\i
Japan's Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, comes under intense pressure when the Social Democratic Party, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's biggest electoral ally, demands that he sack convicted criminal, Koko Sato, from his newly appointed position as head of the Management and Co-ordination Agency. \I(Japan)\i
Prime Minister Bill Skate announces that the Papua New Guinean Government will allocate another 30 million kina to assist victims of the country's \Jdrought\j. Hardest hit is the country's Highlands region, where four months of \Jdrought\j and frosts caused by the El Ni±o climate changes have completely destroyed crops, leaving up to a million people facing starvation. \I(Papua New Guinea)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United States Air Force reports the collision of two F-16 fighter jets off the coast of New Jersey, southeast of Atlantic City. The Coast Guard says the two crew members of the F16D have been picked up, but the fate of the pilot of the F-16C is as yet unknown. \I(USA)\i
A piece of wreckage with United States markings is recovered from the south Atlantic off \JNamibia\j, providing the hardest evidence to date that two missing \Jaircraft\j, a US C-141 cargo jet and a German Tupolev transport plane, were involved in a mid-air collision. In Washington, meanwhile, the Defense Department reports that a US satellite detected a bright flash off the Atlantic coast of Africa about an hour after the US \Jaircraft\j took off from \JWindhoek\j last Saturday. \I(USA, \JNamibia\j, Germany)\i
In a final bid to persuade an Oslo conference of more than 100 countries to accept a proposed compromise, the United States requests that the vote on a draft global treaty to outlaw anti-personnel landmines be delayed by 24 hours. The United States says it would like to be a signatory to the pact, but reiterates that the terms of the agreement must meet US demands for exceptions. \I(USA, Norway)\i
Russian space officials report that a United States satellite passed within 500 yards of space station Mir yesterday, forcing Mir's crew to prepare for a possible emergency return to Earth in the Soyez escape capsule. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In New York, the 185-member United Nations General Assembly opens its 52nd annual session. A major pre-occupation this year will be the reforms to the world body proposed by Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. \I(USA)\i
United States President, Bill Clinton, marks the 50th anniversary of the founding of the nation's Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with a visit to the agency's headquarters in Langley, Vancouver. \I(USA, Canada)\i
The United States Senate votes in favor of President Clinton's nomination of Army General Henry Shelton as chairman of the US Military Joint Chiefs of Staff. Shelton will replace General John Shalikashvili. \I(USA)\i
California Governor, Pete Wilson, announces that the Pentagon is providing 600 US Army surplus M16 assault rifles for use by the Los Angeles Police Department, a move designed to ensure that police officers can equal the firepower of the criminals they encounter. \I(USA)\i
Federal health officials in the United States report that many more women are being diagnosed with AIDS, with numbers from 1991-95 surging by 63 per cent. The officials state that the greatest increases are among young women who were infected by older, rather than same-age heterosexual partners. \I(USA)\i
Researchers from the United States National Cancer Institute say there is little evidence to suggest that silicone breast implants cause breast cancer. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A piece of wreckage with United States markings is recovered from the south Atlantic off \JNamibia\j, providing the hardest evidence to date that two missing \Jaircraft\j, a US C-141 cargo jet and a German Tupolev transport plane, have been involved in a mid-air collision. In Washington, meanwhile, the Defense Department reports that a US satellite detected a bright flash off the Atlantic coast of Africa about an hour after the US \Jaircraft\j took off from \JWindhoek\j last Saturday. \I(USA, \JNamibia\j, Germany)\i
The Northern Ireland peace talks are thrown into turmoil after a bomb explodes in the heart of the County Armagh town of Markethill. The pro-British Ulster Unionist party (UUP), which was close to joining the peace process, accuses the Irish Republic Army (IRA) of responsibility, and demands that its political wing, Sinn Fein, be expelled from the talks. The IRA swiftly denies responsibility, and Sinn Fein then accuses the UUP of using the incident to avoid negotiations. Meanwhile, other political leaders, including Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary, Mo Mowlam, regard the bombing as a blatant attempt by terrorists to sabotage the peace process. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, cancels a trip to \JRomania\j in an effort to defuse the crisis caused by a Jewish settler takeover of buildings in the East \JJerusalem\j suburb of Ras al-Amoud. The incident has provoked outrage among Palestinians, and both the Palestinian Authority and Israeli left-wingers are demanding the immediate eviction of the settlers. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Russian space officials report that a United States satellite passed within 500 yards of space station Mir yesterday, forcing Mir's crew to prepare for a possible emergency return to Earth in the Soyez escape capsule. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In a final bid to persuade an Oslo conference of more than 100 countries to accept a proposed compromise, the United States requests that the vote on a draft global treaty to outlaw anti-personnel landmines be delayed by 24 hours. The United States says it would like to be a signatory to the pact, but reiterates that the terms of the agreement must meet US demands for exceptions. \I(USA, Norway)\i
Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, former wife of South Africa's President Mandela, is nominated for the post of Deputy President of the African National Congress (ANC), the country's ruling party. The nomination comes amid accusations that Ms. Mandela played a role in the deaths of three people in the late 1980s. \I(South Africa)\i
Norway's Kjell Magne Bondevil, leader of a three-party coalition that won 42 of the parliament's 165 seats in the national election this week, says he will seek the support of the 23-seat Conservative Party before forming a coalition Government. Labor Prime Minister, Thorbjoern Jagland, has already announced that he will step down after voters declined to give him the 36.9 per cent support he was seeking. \I(Norway)\i
A Paris \Jhospital\j official announces that bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones, the sole survivor of the car crash which killed the Princess of Wales, is now fully conscious and able to speak a little. Authorities are hopeful that Rees-Jones can give them a coherent, first-hand account of the accident. \I(France)\i
Egypt's Tourism Ministry releases a statement revealing the recent discovery of an ancient complex of 150 burial chambers beneath the port city of Alexandria. The statement says the earliest tombs are from 300BC, but adds that inscriptions on the walls indicate that the cemetery may have also been used during the Byzantine era, between AD500 and AD600. \I(Egypt)\i
#
"September 17, 1997",623,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
For the fifth successive year, \JTaiwan\j loses its bid for United Nations membership after a lack of consensus among the Assembly's 28-member general committee prevents the issue from being placed on the agenda. \I(Taiwan)\i
The Indonesian city of Ujung Pandang enters a third day of anti-Chinese rioting, with shops and schools closed, and police and troops patrolling the streets. At least three people have died in the riots, which erupted on Monday after a nine-year-old girl was hacked to death by an ethnic Chinese man believed to be mentally disturbed. \I(Indonesia, China)\i
Indonesia's Environment Ministry warns that evacuations must begin immediately from the island of \JSumatra\j, where choking \Jpollution\j from uncontrolled forest fires has exceeded hazardous levels, reducing visibility to almost zero, and shrouding much of Southeast Asia in a blanket of smog. \JMalaysia\j, meanwhile, stands ready to evacuate Kuala Lumpur if the air \Jpollution\j index reaches the emergency level of 500. \I(Indonesia, \JMalaysia\j, Southeast Asia)\i
Amid calls for his resignation, \JThailand\j's embattled Prime Minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, urges the rural poor to rise up and protect the country from wealthy foreigners and the \Jmaterialism\j of the urban middle class. \I(Thailand)\i
The Japanese Health and Welfare Ministry admits that a total of 16,520 handicapped women were involuntarily sterilized between 1949 and 1995. The admission comes after disclosures of involuntary sterilizations in Sweden and \JFrance\j drew attention to similar claims made by Japanese women. \I(Japan, Sweden, France)\i
Britain says it will strongly support \JFiji\j's application to be readmitted to the 53-member Commonwealth. Britain's pledge of support comes in response to \JFiji\j's adoption of a new Constitution, which removes discrimination against ethnic Indians who account for almost half the country's population of 800,000. \I(UK, Fiji)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Twelve international officials are killed when a United Nations \Jhelicopter\j crashes into a fog-shrouded hill in central Bosnia. Among those killed are German diplomat Gerd Wanger, who was deputy to the International High Representative to Bosnia, and United States official David Kriskovic, who was working as the deputy commissioner of the United Nations International Police Task Force. \I(Bosnia, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
Violence erupts in the East \JJerusalem\j suburb of Ras al-Amoud after Miami-based property-owner, Irving Moscovitz, takes legal steps to prevent the eviction of Jewish settlers from two of his buildings in the densely populated Arab area. The growing crisis caused by the takeover has polarized the governing coalition of Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and has provoked hostile criticism from Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, who regards it as a violation of the Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. The takeover also defies an appeal by US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, who counseled against further Israeli settlement expansion during her recent peace mission to the Middle East. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
At an international conference in Oslo, close to 100 countries endorse a draft treaty to ban anti-personnel landmines. The text of the treaty prohibits the use, production, and development of landmines, and requires a country to destroy its stockpiles, and remove all landmines it has laid. It is the first international treaty to ban a widely used weapon system since the end of World War I, and will be signed by participating countries in the Canadian capital, \JOttawa\j, in December. \I(Norway, Canada)\i
Having failed to win support for special exemptions, United States President, Bill Clinton, decides not to endorse the draft of a global treaty banning anti-personnel landmines. President Clinton says he has now ordered the Pentagon to develop alternatives that would make US landmines obsolete by 2006. \I(USA)\i
In the wake of a cluster of air accidents this week, United States Defense Secretary, William Cohen, orders all services within the military to hold independent 24-hour training stand-downs to study safety. \I(USA)\i
Despite pleas for clemency from the Mexican Government, the state of Virginia executes a Mexican man convicted in 1991 of the murder-for-hire killing of a Navy cook. Mexico does not have a death penalty, and officials were seeking to have 25-year-old Mario Benjamin Murphy's sentence commuted to life imprisonment, offering to keep Murphy in a Mexican jail. \I(Mexico, USA)\i
In his first detailed statement on a June 20 proposed national settlement with the \Jtobacco\j industry, United States President, Bill Clinton, declines to give unequivocal support to the $US368.5 billion accord, saying he now wants Congress to build on the historic moment by introducing tougher measures to reduce the number of young smokers. \I(USA)\i
United States space officials report that the Mars Global Surveyor, a small robotic craft in orbit since last week, has detected a magnetic field around Mars which could help scientists determine whether life ever existed on the red planet. \I(USA)\i
Anthony Abbott is sworn in as the new British Governor of the volcano-troubled island of Montserrat. Mr. Abbott, who replaces Frank Savage, reiterates Britain's commitment to those who wish to stay on the island, which has seen thousands of residents leave since the SoufriΦre Hills \Jvolcano\j erupted two years ago. \I(UK, Montserrat)\i
American comedian, Red Skelton, dies at the age of 84 after a long illness. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Twelve international officials are killed when a United Nations \Jhelicopter\j crashes into a fog-shrouded hill in central Bosnia. Among those killed are German diplomat Gerd Wanger, who was deputy to the International High Representative to Bosnia, and United States official David Kriskovic, who was working as the deputy commissioner of the United Nations International Police Task Force. \I(Bosnia, \JGermany\j, USA)\i
Violence erupts in the East \JJerusalem\j suburb of Ras al-Amoud after Miami-based property-owner, Irving Moscovitz, takes legal steps to prevent the eviction of Jewish settlers from two of his buildings in the densely populated Arab area. The growing crisis caused by the takeover has polarized the governing coalition of Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and has provoked hostile criticism from Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, who regards it as a violation of the Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. The takeover also defies an appeal by US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, who counseled against further Israeli settlement expansion during her recent peace mission to the Middle East. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
At an international conference in Oslo, close to 100 countries endorse a draft treaty to ban anti-personnel landmines. The text of the treaty prohibits the use, production, and development of landmines, and requires a country to destroy its stockpiles, and remove all landmines it has laid. It is the first international treaty to ban a widely used weapon system since the end of World War I, and will be signed by participating countries in the Canadian capital, \JOttawa\j, in December. \I(Norway, Canada)\i
After a series of setbacks to the peace process, including yesterday's bomb blast in the County Armagh town of Markethill, pro-British Ulster Unionists join the third day of Northern Ireland all-party peace talks. The Unionists, however, rule out any immediate face-to-face discussions with representatives of the Irish Republican Army's political wing, Sinn Fein, who entered the talks for the first time on Monday. \I( UK, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland)\i
Anthony Abbott is sworn in as the new British Governor of the volcano-troubled island of Montserrat. Mr. Abbott, who replaces Frank Savage, reiterates Britain's commitment to those who wish to stay on the island, which has seen thousands of residents leave since the SoufriΦre Hills \Jvolcano\j erupted two years ago. \I(UK, Montserrat)\i
French Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin, announces his intention to cancel plans for a new nuclear power plant at Carnet in the Loire Valley. The announcement comes after Environment Minister, Dominique Voynet, backs Greenpeace claims that the Cogema
nuclear reprocessing plant near \JCherbourg\j has violated safety rules, leaving the surrounding seabed highly polluted with nuclear waste as a result. \I(France)\i
Britain says it will strongly support \JFiji\j's application to be readmitted to the 53-member Commonwealth. Britain's pledge of support comes in response to \JFiji\j's adoption of a new Constitution, which removes discrimination against ethnic Indians who form almost half the 800,000 population. \I(UK, Fiji)\i
French police investigating the Paris car crash in which the Princess of Wales was killed reveal that fragments from a Fiat Uno brake light were found within a hundred yards of the crash site near pieces of headlamp and wing mirror from the Princess's car. Officials nevertheless believe that the chances of another vehicle being involved in the accident are very slim. \I(France, UK)\i
The editors of 12 British newspapers meet with the chairman of the Press Complaints Commission to discuss tight reforms to their self-regulatory code. The move for reform comes amid charges that paparazzi photographers contributed to the Paris car crash which killed the Princess of Wales. \I(UK, France)\i
The Japanese Health and Welfare Ministry admits that a total of 16,520 handicapped women were involuntarily sterilized between 1949 and 1995. The admission comes after disclosures of involuntary sterilizations in Sweden and \JFrance\j drew attention to similar claims made by Japanese women. \I(Japan, Sweden, France)\i
European veterinary scientists approve British proposals for a partial easing of the worldwide ban on beef exports, accepting a scheme which would permit the export of beef from herds certified free of "mad cow" disease for eight years, provided they are subject to a strict computerized tracing system. \I(UK, Europe)\i
#
"September 18, 1997",624,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In \JBeijing\j, delegates to the 15th Communist Party Congress elect a new 193-member Central Committee, dropping the National People's Congress chairman, 72-year-old Qiao Shi, who is regarded as one of the main rivals to President Jiang Zemin. Also dropped as a result of the election are the senior Vice-Chairman of the Central Military Commission, General Liu Huaqing, and another former influential military leader, General Yang Baibing. \I(China)\i
Afghanistan's Taliban militia claims to have taken control of the key port town of Hairatan, which lies on the strategic \JSalang\j Highway linking the capital Kabul with Moscow. International aid workers confirm the militia's claim, reporting fierce exchanges of artillery and rocket fire between Taliban forces and their northern-based opponents. \I(Afghanistan, Russia)\i
In \JRangoon\j, \JMyanmar\j's military junta celebrates the ninth anniversary of the coup that brought it to power. Elsewhere, refugee ethnic groups and exiled pro-Democracy activists denounce the anniversary as a black day in the nation's history. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
India and \JPakistan\j conclude three days of peace talks, with negotiators issuing a joint statement agreeing to continue dialogue in an attempt to normalize relations between the two countries. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Japan and \JRussia\j join the United States in criticizing the newly approved draft of a treaty to ban landmines. \JJapan\j expresses strong reservations, and \JRussia\j maintains the treaty has caused a world division between those countries who support it and those who are not yet ready for a total ban, such as China, India, \JPakistan\j, and Israel, all of whom have refused to sign in December. The United States has refused to sign because the treaty compromises Washington's security interests, but despite the US withdrawal, Oslo conference officials are hailing the outcome as a victory, and as a major stride towards ridding the world of the deadly weapons. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Israel, \JNorway\j, \JJapan\j, China, India, Pakistan)\i
In \JAustralia\j, microsurgeons at Melbourne's St. Vincents \Jhospital\j complete a 25-hour operation to re-attach a woman's face and scalp, which were torn off in one piece like a mask when her hair became caught in milking machinery. It is the first massive reconstruction of its kind to be performed in \JAustralia\j, and is believed to be only the second of its kind performed in the world. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
After days of violent protests, three Jewish settler families are moved out of premises in the Arab neighborhood of Ras al-Amoud in East \JJerusalem\j. However, the Palestinian Authority rejects a deal, arranged between Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Miami-based owner of the properties, Irving Moscovitz, to replace the settler families with Jewish seminary students. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
Japan and \JRussia\j join the United States in criticizing the newly approved draft of a treaty to ban landmines. \JJapan\j expresses strong reservations, and \JRussia\j maintains the treaty has caused a world division between those countries who support it and those who are not yet ready for a total ban, such as China, India, \JPakistan\j, and Israel, all of whom have refused to sign in December. The United States has refused to sign because the treaty compromises Washington's security interests, but despite the US withdrawal, Oslo conference officials are hailing the outcome as a victory, and as a major stride towards ridding the world of the deadly weapons. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Israel, \JNorway\j, \JJapan\j, China, India, Pakistan)\i
The United States Government is accused of funding unethical medical research in Third World countries. Critics say pregnant HIV-infected volunteers in studies designed to find cheaper alternatives to the AIDS drug AZT are being denied effective treatment, thereby condemning the unborn babies to an AIDS-related death. In the United States, treatment with AZT has already been found to have a significant success rate in preventing the AIDS virus from being passed from a mother to her unborn child. \I(USA)\i
Canada names Lieutenant-General Maurice Baril, the chief of a former international mission, to what is now the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, as head of its defense staff. The top military post has been vacant since last October, when General Jean Boyle was sacked over his alleged role in a cover-up of human rights abuses by Canadian peacekeepers in \JSomalia\j in 1993. \I(Canada, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), Somalia)\i
The United States Air Force, which evolved from the Army Air Force after World War II, celebrates its 50th birthday with jet fly-overs and a visit by President Clinton, who later slices a birthday cake with a saber. \I(USA)\i
Vice Chairman of Time Warner Incorporated, Ted Turner, announces in a speech in New York that he will donate a total of $US1 billion to the United Nations over the next ten years, with the money to be earmarked for United Nations Programs. \I(USA)\i
Chelsea Clinton, 17-year-old daughter of President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, leaves the White House to continue her education at Stanford University in Palo Alto, \JCalifornia\j. Mrs. Clinton praises the American media for allowing Chelsea to grow up in peace, and appeals for Chelsea's continued privacy while she is away at college. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Nine tourists, seven of them German, are killed when terrorists armed with machine guns and petrol bombs attack a crowded tour bus parked outside \JCairo\j's Egyptian Museum. Three other parked buses are riddled with bullets as police on the scene respond with more gunfire. Police later said they arrested three gunmen. \I(Egypt, Germany)\i
After days of violent protests, three Jewish settler families are moved out of premises in the Arab neighborhood of Ras al-Amoud in East \JJerusalem\j. However, the Palestinian Authority rejects a deal, arranged between Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Miami-based owner of the properties, Irving Moscovitz, to replace the settler families with Jewish seminary students. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
Israel's Shin Bet security service arrests six members of the militant Muslim group, Hamas, on charges of planning to kidnap \JJerusalem\j's Mayor, Ehud Olmert, and planning to attack \JJerusalem\j's Malha Mall, the city's largest shopping center. \I(Israel)\i
At least 50 people are injured, 25 of them seriously, when a bomb explodes outside a police station in the Croat area of the divided Bosnian city of Mostar. Some 30 cars are destroyed or damaged by the blast, with buildings in the vicinity also badly hit. \I(Bosnia)\i
In \JSarajevo\j, 12 international officials who died in a United Nations \Jhelicopter\j crash yesterday are honored by \JNATO\j and local officials. Meanwhile, the crash site is cordoned off while authorities sift through the wreckage, searching for the cause of the accident. \I(Bosnia)\i
A senior member of \JAlbania\j's main opposition Democratic Party, Azem Hajdari, is shot four times inside the parliament building in Tirana by Gafur Mazreku, a member of \JAlbania\j's ruling Socialist Party. Mr. Hajdari is rushed to \Jhospital\j in a critical condition, while Prime Minister, Fatos Nano, appears on \Jtelevision\j in a bid to prevent political repercussions, announcing that Mr. Mazreku will be relieved of his parliamentary seat and charged with attempted murder. \I(Albania)\i
Afghanistan's Taliban militia claims to have taken control of the key port town of Hairatan, which lies on the strategic \JSalang\j Highway linking the capital Kabul with Moscow. International aid workers confirm the militia's claim, reporting fierce exchanges of artillery and rocket fire between Taliban forces and their northern-based opponents. \I(Afghanistan, Russia)\i
Japan and \JRussia\j join the United States in criticizing the newly approved draft of a treaty to ban landmines. \JJapan\j expresses strong reservations, and \JRussia\j maintains the treaty has caused a world division between those countries who support it and those who are not yet ready for a total ban, such as China, India, \JPakistan\j, and Israel, all of whom have refused to sign in December. The United States has refused to sign because the treaty compromises Washington's security interests, but despite the US withdrawal, Oslo conference officials are hailing the outcome as a victory, and as a major stride towards ridding the world of the deadly weapons. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, Israel, \JNorway\j, \JJapan\j, China, India, Pakistan)\i
The people of Wales go to the polls to vote in a referendum on British Government proposals to establish a Welsh home-rule parliament in \JCardiff\j for the first time in 600 years. Unlike the parliament proposed for Scotland, however, the Welsh assembly will not have the power to make laws or raise taxes. \I(Wales, Scotland, UK)\i
Canada names Lieutenant-General Maurice Baril, the chief of a former international mission to what is now the Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j, as head of its defense staff. The top military post has been vacant since last October, when General Jean Boyle was sacked over his alleged role in a cover-up of human rights abuses by Canadian peacekeepers in \JSomalia\j in 1993. \I(Canada, Democratic Republic of \JCongo\j (formerly Zaire), Somalia)\i
In defiance of Russian demands to outlaw capital punishment, a Chechen firing squad publicly executes two men convicted of murdering a mother and two of her children. The executions, which \JChechnya\j claims are in accordance with Islamic law, are immediately denounced by \JRussia\j as a violation of international law. \I(Russia, Chechnya)\i
An explosion rips through a Russian operated coalmine in Barentsburg, in \JArctic\j \JNorway\j, killing at least 26 miners, all of whom are Russians and Ukrainians. \I(Russia, \JUkraine\j, Norway)\i
#
"September 19, 1997",625,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Crucial four-nation talks in New York between the two Koreas, China, and the United States break down, with no plans made for further talks. Washington blames North Korea for the failure of the discussions, saying North Korea linked food aid to the talks and also demanded US troop withdrawals from South Korea. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
A helicopter transporting a royal entourage crashes in thick jungle in southern \JThailand\j during a storm. Of the 21 passengers aboard the twin-engine craft, 14 are killed, including Queen Sirikit's private secretary and the two pilots. It is believed that \Jlightning\j may have struck the craft, but Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh orders a full investigation into the crash. \I(Thailand)\i
After a week of widespread protests, \JJapan\j's Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, is forced to dismiss convicted criminal, Koko Sato, from his newly appointed position as head of the Management and Co-ordination Agency. \I(Japan)\i
Malaysia declares a state of emergency in eastern \JSarawak\j as the air \Jpollution\j index rises to 635 in the capital of Kuching. Schools and offices are closed, and all flights to Kuching canceled due to the choking smog, which is blamed on forest fires burning out of control in \JIndonesia\j. \I(Malaysia, Indonesia)\i
Japanese Foreign Minister, Keizo Obuchi, indicates that \JTokyo\j will accept the newly drafted treaty for a global ban on anti-personnel landmines. Until now, \JJapan\j has supported the United States stance which called for special exemptions. \I(Japan, USA)\i
The Papua New Guinean Government sets up a special disaster relief committee to tackle the country's \Jdrought\j and frost crisis caused by the El Ni±o weather pattern. Meanwhile, \JAustralia\j dispatches a disaster management team to assist the committee to assess the situation and develop strategies to help replace devastated crops. \I(Papua New Guinea, Australia)\i
The head of Vanuatu's \Jimmigration\j department, Jean-Marc Bell, is ordered not to leave the country while police investigate allegations that he is involved in a scheme to sell Vanuatu passports to Asians from \JMacao\j, Hong Kong and \JTaiwan\j. \I(Vanuatu, \JMacao\j, Hong Kong, Taiwan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A United States Air Force B-1 bomber on a training mission out of South Dakota's Ellsworth Air Force Base crashes in Montana, killing all four crew members aboard. The crash is the sixth US military air disaster in a week, and prompts the Air Force to move-up a 24-hour stand-down of training flights to study safety, a procedure earlier ordered by Defense Secretary William Cohen. \I(USA)\i
Crucial four-nation talks in New York between the two Koreas, China, and the United States break down, with no plans made for further talks. Washington blames North Korea for the failure of the discussions, saying North Korea linked food aid to the talks and also demanded US troop withdrawals from South Korea. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
Japanese Foreign Minister, Keizo Obuchi, indicates that \JTokyo\j will accept the newly drafted treaty for a global ban on anti-personnel landmines. Until now, \JJapan\j has supported the United States stance which called for special exemptions. \I(Japan, USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, advises other members of the United Nations to accept the reform and arrears package offered by Washington, or risk a proposal with more requirements for reform and less money. Albright says the United States owes the United Nations and its agencies about $US1 billion. \I(USA)\i
Russian space officials assert that there is no danger to the cosmonauts on board the Mir space station. The assertion comes in response to concerns voiced by United States legislators, who are arguing against NASA's plans to send a replacement \Jastronaut\j to the station next week. \I(Russia, USA)\i
United States Vice-President, Al Gore, hires two private attorneys amid mounting allegations about his 1996 fundraising practices. Attorney-General, Janet Reno, is currently considering the appointment of an independent counsel to investigate the charges against Mr. Gore, which include making dozens of fundraising phone calls from the White House. \I(USA)\i
A purported transcript of pager messages sent to President Clinton's Secret Service detail is posted on the Internet by Pamela Finkel, a New York-based computer consultant, who says her purpose is to show the ease with which private communications can be intercepted. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
At least five people are killed and 150 injured when an express passenger train smashes into the side of a goods train at Southall station, in London's west. Emergency services respond quickly to extinguish fire caused by an explosion, and to cut victims free from the tangled wreckage. The driver of the goods train is later detained by police for questioning. \I(UK)\i
Egyptian authorities say yesterday's \Jmachine-gun\j and petrol-bomb attack on four tourist buses in \JCairo\j was the act of a deranged man who escaped from a mental \Jhospital\j on Monday. The Egyptian bus driver and nine tourists, mostly German, were killed in the attack, and the German Government is calling for a full investigation, suspecting Muslim fundamentalists to be responsible. \I(Egypt, Germany)\i
Israel increases security around two buildings in the East \JJerusalem\j neighborhood of Ras al-Amoud following the removal of three settler families, whose presence in the heavily populated Arab area has provoked days of violent Palestinian protests and deepened the Middle East crisis. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Welsh voters narrowly endorse a British Government proposal for a separate parliament in \JCardiff\j. Unlike the enthusiastic three-to-one vote for \Jdevolution\j in Scotland last week, only 50.3 per cent of Welsh people vote in favor of the change. \I(Wales, Scotland, UK)\i
Russian space officials assert that there is no danger to the cosmonauts on board the Mir space station. The assertion comes in response to concerns voiced by United States legislators, who are arguing against NASA's plans to send a replacement \Jastronaut\j to the station next week. \I(Russia, USA)\i
In his first public appearance since the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, the Prince of Wales offers thanks on behalf of himself and his sons for the overwhelming public response to the Princess's death, saying how moved and comforted they were by the enormous numbers of letters of condolence from the people of Britain and all over the world. Prince Charles also praises his sons, Princes William and Harry, for the courage and dignity with which they have handled the tragedy of their mother's death. \I(UK)\i
In Paris, bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones, the sole survivor of the car crash which killed the Princess of Wales, Dodi Al Fayed, and driver Henri Paul, is interviewed by authorities for the first time. Later, police sources say Mr. Rees-Jones is suffering from partial \Jamnesia\j, and is unable to recall anything about the circumstances of the crash. \I(France, UK)\i
British actor, Jack May, dies aged 75 after a long illness. For the last 45 years, Mr. May has played the character of Nelson Gabriel in \IThe Archers,\i which began in 1950, and is reputed to be the world's longest-running soap opera on radio or \Jtelevision\j. \I(UK)\i
#
"September 20, 1997",626,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Officials in central Vietnam say 33 people were killed and 20 injured yesterday after a packed bus swerved off the road during a storm and plunged down a mountain slope into the sea. \I(Vietnam)\i
Despite strong pressure from attendees of the 16-nation South Pacific Forum in the Cook Islands, Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, refuses to endorse a mandatory target for cutting greenhouse gas emissions to reduce global warming. Mr. Howard contends that targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions should be differentiated, based on each country's circumstances. \I(Australia, Cook Islands, South Pacific)\i
The United States pressures \JJapan\j to curb its growing trade surplus and foster domestic demand in order to boost growth rates, as well as preventing undue fluctuations on the world's foreign exchange markets. \I(USA, Japan)\i
The Indonesian Government approves immediate air drops of rice aid to remote mountain villages of Irian Jaya, where at least 154 people have already died as a result of the severe \Jdrought\j gripping the region. Concerns that the planes could be hampered by smoke haze from \JIndonesia\j's forest fires are exacerbating fears that the death toll could rise. \I(Indonesia)\i
Two human rights organizations in Hong Kong say four subcontractors making shoes for Nike and Reebok in China's southern Pearl River Delta are using workers as young as 13, and paying them as little as 10 cents an hour for 17 hours labor a day. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United States Justice Department says it is reviewing allegations that President Clinton made illegal fundraising \Jtelephone\j calls from the White House in 1996. The focus of the department's review will be whether Mr. Clinton made the calls, and whether he is covered by a 1971 law prohibiting campaign fundraising on federal property. A similar review into \Jtelephone\j solicitations by Vice-President, Al Gore, is also underway. \I(USA)\i
Arab foreign ministers meeting in \JCairo\j blame Israel for the stalled Middle East peace process, and cast doubts on the future of a controversial economic conference with the Jewish state. Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, accuses Israel of resorting to "the lowest means" in its attempt to assert control over East \JJerusalem\j, describing the outcome of a recent Jewish settler takeover in the Arab district of Ras al-Amoud as a \Jfarce\j. The Palestinian leader also calls on the United States to do more to salvage the peace process, including offering support for the creation of a Palestinian state. \I(Egypt, Israel, Palestine, Middle East, USA)\i
The United States pressures \JJapan\j to curb its growing trade surplus and foster domestic demand in order to boost growth rates, as well as preventing undue fluctuations on the world's foreign exchange markets. \I(USA, Japan)\i
Officials at Ellsworth Air Force Base say they are still searching for clues to explain why one of their B-1 bombers crashed in southeast Montana yesterday, killing all four crew members. Since September 13, a total of 16 Americans have died in random military plane crashes. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
The driver of a British express passenger train which yesterday collided with a freight train, killing seven people and seriously injuring another eight, is released on bail after being arrested on suspicion of \Jmanslaughter\j. Meanwhile, as police pick their way through piles of twisted metal, searching for a clue to the cause of the crash, it is confirmed that the Automatic Train Protection (ATP), a computerized system which overrides the driver and halts the train, was switched off because it was considered to be too unreliable. \I(UK)\i
Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak issues a decree for the military trial of two men charged with killing 10 people during last Thursday's attack on four tourists buses in \JCairo\j. The trial is expected to begin in a few weeks. \I(Egypt)\i
Arab foreign ministers meeting in \JCairo\j blame Israel for the stalled Middle East peace process, and cast doubts on the future of a controversial economic conference with the Jewish state. Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, accuses Israel of resorting to "the lowest means" in its attempt to assert control over East \JJerusalem\j, describing the outcome of a recent Jewish settler takeover in the Arab district of Ras al-Amoud as a \Jfarce\j. The Palestinian leader also calls on the United States to do more to salvage the peace process, including offering support for the creation of a Palestinian state. \I(Egypt, Israel, Palestine, Middle East, USA)\i
In Lorient, western \JFrance\j, some 300 people attend a funeral service for Henri Paul, the driver in the fatal car crash which also claimed the lives of the Princess of Wales and Dodi Al Fayed last month. \I(France, UK)\i
#
"September 21, 1997",627,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Tens of thousands of Filipinos rally in Manila and in other cities across the country to protest against proposed constitutional changes which would allow President Fidel Ramos to seek a second term in office. Mr. Ramos acknowledges the widespread national protest, declaring he will not run for election in 1998, but denying that he is abandoning his support for a review of the Constitution. \I(The Philippines)\i
Fire engulfs a shoe-making factory in China's southeast Fujian province, killing 32 people and injuring four, while the other 54 workers safely escape the inferno with the help of neighbors. The high death toll is blamed on the lack of emergency exits and fire-fighting facilities in the three-story building. \I(China)\i
Newly appointed First Prime Minister, Ung Huot, lashes out at a United Nations decision to leave \JCambodia\j's seat vacant at this week's General Assembly in New York, calling it an insult to the country and to King Norodom Sihanouk, who had endorsed credentials for Ung Huot and Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, to represent \JCambodia\j. Following divided opinion last week, the UN General Assembly's credentials committee postponed indefinitely a decision on whether to accept the Phnom Penh Government delegation, or a delegation endorsed by \JCambodia\j's deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
Long-standing foes, India and \JPakistan\j, are to begin a new round of diplomacy on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York this week. Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, and his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, will meet on Tuesday after separate meetings on Monday with United States President, Bill Clinton. \I(India, \JPakistan\j, USA)\i
Following the collapse of last week's four-nation talks in New York, North Korea counters United States allegations of blame, accusing the US of using food aid as a weapon to get political concessions. North Korea says its participation in future talks for a lasting peace on the Korean peninsula will depend on how Washington rectifies its policy towards \JPyongyang\j. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
In a fierce attack on the international financial system, Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, blames currency speculators for destabilizing Southeast Asian currency and stockmarkets in recent months, and calls for a ban on currency trading, saying Kuala Lumpur will now limit foreign exchange dealing to the financing of trade. \I(Malaysia, Southeast Asia)\i
Indonesian police report that nearly 600 people have been arrested following last week's ethnic riots in the South Sulawesi provincial capital of Ujung Pandang. At least six people were killed, and hundreds of houses belonging to ethnic Chinese attacked during the riots, which were sparked when a mentally ill man of Chinese descent killed a local nine-year-old girl. \I(Indonesia)\i
Anti-nuclear protesters aboard about 100 fishing boats and pleasure craft rehearse a blockade of possible sea deliveries of equipment to the construction site of \JTaiwan\j's fourth nuclear power plant, located in the coastal township of Kungliao. The protesters are accusing \JJapan\j and the United States of foisting nuclear technology on \JTaiwan\j. \I(Taiwan, \JJapan\j, USA)\i
In women's tennis, Monica Seles of the United States defeats Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario of \JSpain\j in the final of the Princess Cup in \JTokyo\j. \I(USA, \JSpain\j, Japan)\i
At Forest of Arden, England, New Zealander Greg Turner wins the British Masters golf tournament by one stroke. \I(UK, New Zealand)\i
On the senior tour, the Comfort Classic at \JIndianapolis\j is won by Australian golfer, David Graham, who finishes with a 16-under 200 and a lead of one stroke. \I(USA, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Montserrat's troublesome Soufriere Hills \Jvolcano\j erupts, sending an avalanche of searing ash and rock down its eastern flank, and then on a 31/2 mile course to the airport, where it completely destroys the terminal and buries parts of the runway. Anthony Abbott, Montserrat's new British Governor, is now insisting that the western area of the island's exclusion zone be evacuated by next Saturday. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
Following the collapse of last week's four-nation talks in New York, North Korea counters United States allegations of blame, accusing the US of using food aid as a weapon to get political concessions. North Korea says its participation in future talks for a lasting peace on the Korean peninsula will depend on how Washington rectifies its policy towards \JPyongyang\j. \I(The Koreas, China, USA)\i
As part of a tighter crackdown on Islamic militants, Israeli security forces arrest about 40 Palestinian suspects. The arrests come just hours before Cabinet Secretary, Dan Naveh, flies to Washington to pave the way for meetings later this week between Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, and top Palestinian official, Mahmoud \JAbbas\j. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
At a meeting in \JCairo\j, the Arab League condemns Israel's settlement program and calls on the Jewish state to accept the principle of land for peace, a principle endorsed by US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, in her efforts to restart deadlocked Middle East peace talks. \I(Egypt, Israel, Middle East, USA)\i
United States Vice-President, Al Gore, arrives in \JRussia\j with a high-level US delegation to participate in meetings aimed at boosting trade and economic co-operation between the two countries. The talks are also expected to include co-operation on space and nuclear non-proliferation. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Newly appointed First Prime Minister, Ung Huot, lashes out at a United Nations decision to leave \JCambodia\j's seat vacant at the General Assembly in New York, calling it an insult to the country and to King Norodom Sihanouk, who had endorsed credentials for Ung Huot and Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, to represent \JCambodia\j. Following divided opinion last week, the UN General Assembly's credentials committee postponed indefinitely a decision on whether to accept the Phnom Penh Government delegation, or a delegation endorsed by \JCambodia\j's deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. \I(Cambodia, USA)\i
Long-standing foes, India and \JPakistan\j, are to begin a new round of diplomacy on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York this week. Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, and his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, will meet on Tuesday after separate meetings on Monday with United States President, Bill Clinton. \I(India, \JPakistan\j, USA)\i
Anti-nuclear protesters aboard about 100 fishing boats and pleasure craft rehearse a blockade of possible sea deliveries of equipment to the construction site of \JTaiwan\j's fourth nuclear power plant, located in the coastal township of Kungliao. The protesters are accusing \JJapan\j and the United States of foisting nuclear technology on \JTaiwan\j. \I(Taiwan, \JJapan\j, USA)\i
Canadian Jacques Villeneuve wins the Austrian Formula One Grand Prix at Zeltweg. The win puts Villeneuve just one point behind \JGermany\j's Michael Schumacher, who is leading the 1997 drivers' championship. \I(Canada, \JGermany\j, Austria)\i
In women's tennis, Monica Seles of the United States defeats Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario of \JSpain\j in the final of the Princess Cup in \JTokyo\j. \I(USA, \JSpain\j, Japan)\i
Swedish golfer Liselotte Neumann finishes three strokes ahead of the field to win the LPGA Welch's Championship at Canton, \JMassachusetts\j. It is Neumann's first tour victory of the year. \I(Sweden, USA)\i
After surviving a shaky final round, American golfer, Tim Herron, takes out the \JTexas\j Open at San Antonio by two strokes. \I(USA)\i
On the senior tour, the Comfort Classic at \JIndianapolis\j is won by Australian golfer, David Graham, who finishes with a 16-under 200 and a lead of one stroke. \I(USA, Australia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In the village of Beni-Slimane, about 40 miles south of the Algerian capital of \JAlgiers\j, an armed group kills 53 civilians then mutilates and burns the bodies. The bloody massacre follows two days of clashes between Algerian security forces and armed Islamic militants, in which 19 militants are reported to have died. \I(Algeria)\i
Egyptian security officials arrest four mental health officials for allegedly taking bribes and aiding the escape from the Khanqa Asylum of Saber Abu el-Ulla, one of the men who attacked a tour bus at \JCairo\j's Egyptian Museum last Thursday. Meanwhile, a private service, attended by relatives and German government officials, is held at the city's airport before the bodies of the nine German tourists killed in the attack are flown to Frankfurt. \I(Egypt, Germany)\i
Montserrat's troublesome Soufriere Hills \Jvolcano\j erupts, sending an avalanche of searing ash and rock down its eastern flank and then on a 31/2 mile course to the airport, where it completely destroys the terminal and buries parts of the runway. Anthony Abbott, Montserrat's new British Governor, is now insisting that the western area of the island's exclusion zone be evacuated by next Saturday. \I(Montserrat, UK)\i
As part of a tighter crackdown on Islamic militants, Israeli security forces arrest about 40 Palestinian suspects. The arrests come just hours before Cabinet Secretary, Dan Naveh, flies to Washington to pave the way for meetings later this week between Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, and top Palestinian official, Mahmoud \JAbbas\j. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
At a meeting in \JCairo\j, the Arab League condemns Israel's settlement program and calls on the Jewish state to accept the principle of land for peace, a principle endorsed by US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, in her efforts to restart deadlocked Middle East peace talks. \I(Egypt, Israel, Middle East, USA)\i
Speculation about the declining health of Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, intensifies after news emerges that the 68-year-old leader collapsed last Friday during a heated meeting with Arab foreign ministers in \JCairo\j. \I(Palestine, \JEgypt\j, Middle East)\i
In an unprecedented clampdown on Islamic militants, the Lebanese Army kills two members of the northern al-Tawheed movement and wounds two others during a battle to close their unlicensed \Jtelevision\j station. Another 60 members of the movement are arrested, including two sons of its leader, Sheik Saced Shaaban. \I(Lebanon)\i
Serbia goes to the polls to vote in presidential and parliamentary elections, despite opposition calls for a boycott. It is widely expected that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's ruling Socialist Party coalition will again dominate parliament, with Socialist Party candidate and former Yugoslav president, Zoran Lilic, expected to become the new Serbian president. \I(Serbia, Yugoslavia)\i
United States Vice-President, Al Gore, arrives in \JRussia\j with a high-level US delegation to participate in meetings aimed at boosting trade and economic co-operation between the two countries. The talks are also expected to include co-operation on space and nuclear non-proliferation. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Leaders of \JPoland\j's Solidarity Party claim victory over the governing Democratic Leftist Alliance after winning at least 33 per cent of the vote in the parliamentary elections. The final results of the polls are not expected until Wednesday. \I(Poland)\i
British researchers report that a \Jtapeworm\j living in fish has an impact on the reproductive system, and say that the significance for controlling reproduction in higher vertebrates, including humans, is clear. The researchers are now hoping to isolate the substance in the worm, which could offer the key to an effective male contraceptive pill. \I(UK)\i
Canadian Jacques Villeneuve wins the Austrian Formula One Grand Prix at Zeltweg. The win puts Villeneuve just one point behind \JGermany\j's Michael Schumacher, who is leading the 1997 drivers' championship. \I(Canada, \JGermany\j, Austria)\i
In women's tennis, Monica Seles of the United States defeats Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario of \JSpain\j in the final of the Princess Cup in \JTokyo\j. \I(USA, \JSpain\j, Japan)\i
At Forest of Arden, England, New Zealander Greg Turner wins the British Masters golf tournament by one stroke. \I(UK, New Zealand)\i
Swedish golfer Liselotte Neumann finishes three strokes ahead of the field to win the LPGA Welch's Championship at Canton, \JMassachusetts\j. It is Neumann's first tour victory of the year. \I(Sweden, USA)\i
Laura Davies of Britain finishes with a one-stroke lead to claim golf's Hennessy Cup at Cologne, \JGermany\j. \I(UK, Germany)\i
#
"September 22, 1997",628,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
At least six people are killed and 141 are injured when two packed Manila-bound commuter trains collide. A spokesman for Philippine National Railways says a coupler on the first trained failed, sending three carriages rolling back into the path of the second train. \I(The Philippines)\i
In a bid to end a protracted dispute over Kashmir, \JPakistan\j offers to open negotiations on a non-aggression pact with India. \JPakistan\j is advocating self-determination for the predominantly Muslim people of Kashmir, a region two-thirds controlled by India, and one that has triggered two wars since 1947. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
North Korea's Central News Agency reports that Kim Jong Il has been nominated as general secretary of the ruling Worker's Party, a post that has been vacant for more than three years since the death of Mr. Kim's father, revered leader, Kim Il Sung. South Korea welcomes the prospective appointment of Mr. Kim, saying the occasion will serve to enhance peace and stability on the Korean peninsula. \I(The Koreas)\i
As air \Jpollution\j in most parts of \JMalaysia\j worsens, the government offers to send 1,200 firefighters to help \JIndonesia\j battle forest fires in \JSumatra\j and \JKalimantan\j, which are generating the choking haze currently shrouding much of Southeast Asia. \I(Malaysia, Indonesia)\i
In drought-stricken Irian Jaya, the official death toll climbs to 251 after smoke from forest fires forces the cancellation of an emergency air drop of food and medical supplies to a number of isolated mountain villages, where subsistence crops have failed, and outbreaks of \Jcholera\j have occurred due to contamination of dwindling water supplies. \I(Indonesia)\i
Taiwan confirms that it is preparing to give part of its aging fleet of F-5 jet fighters to \JParaguay\j, with whom it maintains diplomatic links. \JTaiwan\j is gradually upgrading its air force with F-16s and Mirage 2000-5s. \I(Taiwan, Paraguay)\i
The United States says it is abandoning plans for further high-level talks on a Korean peace conference until North Korea indicates it is ready to agree on the agenda. In the meantime, lower-level US officials are prepared to meet with officials from the \JPyongyang\j Government to try to resolve the deadlock which terminated the four-nation talks in New York last Friday. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Kuala Lumpur's stockmarket suffers its biggest one-day decline and the Malaysian currency, the ringgit, falls to a record low of 3.10 per US dollar. The plunge follows threats by Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, to outlaw currency speculation by curbing foreign exchange dealing apart from trade financing. \I(Malaysia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In New York, the United Nations General Assembly opens with a speech by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who calls for the adoption of his UN reforms package, while urging delinquent members to pay their dues. It is the first time in the 52-year history of the Assembly that a secretary-general has spoken before the beginning of the annual debate. \I(USA)\i
United States President, Bill Clinton, makes his first extended comments in relation to the Justice Department's preliminary probe of his 1996 fundraising practices. Mr. Clinton claims that his own actions, and those of Vice-President Al Gore, were legal, but says he will co-operate with the probe in order to clarify the facts. \I(USA)\i
As NASA begins the count down for the shuttle Atlantis' mission to space station Mir, the 11-year-old Russian station suffers its fifth computer breakdown since the June collision with a cargo ship. Despite fresh concerns about the safety of Mir, NASA says there are no plans to delay the Atlantis mission, which will replace \Jastronaut\j Michael Foale with David Wolf. \I(USA, Russia)\i
The United States says it is abandoning plans for further high-level talks on a Korean peace conference until North Korea indicates it is ready to agree on the agenda. In the meantime, lower-level US officials are prepared to meet with officials from the \JPyongyang\j Government to try to resolve the deadlock which terminated the four-nation talks in New York last Friday. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Taiwan confirms that it is preparing to give part of its aging fleet of F-5 jet fighters to \JParaguay\j, with whom it maintains diplomatic links. \JTaiwan\j is gradually upgrading its air force with F-16s and Mirage 2000-5s. \I(Taiwan, Paraguay)\i
Backing claims made earlier this month on American \Jtelevision\j, President Boris Yeltsin's former environmental safety adviser, Alexei Yablokov, says some of \JRussia\j's portable nuclear bombs might indeed be missing. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Dozens of American doctors, nurses, and public health activists volunteer to become the first humans injected with a live AIDS vaccine. The call for volunteers comes from the Chicago-based International Association of Physicians in AIDS Care, which is seeking to test a vaccine developed from a weakened strain of the \JHIV\j virus by Dr. Ronald Desrosiers of the Harvard Medical School. \I(USA)\i
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves a new drug for treating the symptoms of Parkinson's disease. SmithKline Beecham's Requip (ropinirole hydrochloride) will allow physicians to delay the use of the standard levodopa drug, thereby extending the period of effective treatment for sufferers of the disease. Meanwhile, the FDA issues an "approvable letter" recognizing that the potential benefits of thalidomide in treating symptoms of leprosy outweigh the risks, but says it still has reservations about releasing the drug on prescription. In the late 1950s and 1960s, thalidomide was prescribed to treat morning sickness in pregnant women, resulting in severe birth defects for at least 10,000 babies. \I(USA)\i
A team of British drivers seeking to break the world land speed record across Nevada's Black Rock desert clock an average of 650 miles per hour in two separate runs, 80 minutes apart. Although the attempt exceeds the current record average of 633 miles per hour, official rules allow only a 20-minute gap between runs. The team, and its Thrust \JSuperSonic\j Car, are set to try again. \I(UK, USA)\i
Hurricane Nora pounds Mexico's Pacific coast, with raging seas whipped up by winds of at least 128 miles per hour destroying local businesses and coastal homes in Guerrero and Jalisco states. \I(Mexico)\i
Conflict erupts in the northern Bosnian town of Prnjavor when officers loyal to war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic, attempt to regain control of the police station. The station was taken over the previous day by officers loyal to Western-backed President, Biljana Plavsic. \I(Bosnia)\i
Polish President, Aleksander Kwasniewski, concedes defeat after fresh projections indicate that the Solidarity Election Action (AWS) has captured the majority vote in last Sunday's parliamentary polls. Solidarity leader, Marian Krzaklewski, hints at forming a coalition with the Freedom Union, which polled third with 13.4 per cent of the vote. \I(Poland)\i
Backing claims made earlier this month on American \Jtelevision\j, President Boris Yeltsin's former environmental safety adviser, Alexei Yablokov, says some of \JRussia\j's portable nuclear bombs might indeed be missing. \I(Russia, USA)\i
As NASA begins the count down for the shuttle Atlantis' mission to space station Mir, the 11-year-old Russian station suffers its fifth computer breakdown since the June collision with a cargo ship. Despite fresh concerns about the safety of Mir, NASA says there are no plans to delay the Atlantis mission, which will replace \Jastronaut\j Michael Foale with David Wolf. \I(USA, Russia)\i
A team of British drivers seeking to break the world land speed record across Nevada's Black Rock desert clock an average of 650 miles per hour in two separate runs, 80 minutes apart. Although the attempt exceeds the current record average of 633 miles per hour, official rules allow only a 20-minute gap between runs. The team, and its Thrust \JSuperSonic\j Car, are set to try again. \I(UK, USA)\i
#
"September 23, 1997",629,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The United States and \JJapan\j announce changes in their regional security co-operation arrangements. Under the revised arrangements, \JJapan\j will maintain its ban on the use of offensive military power, but will give key military support to US forces in an Asian crisis, including access to bases, minesweeping of sea lanes, and joint evacuation of civilians. \I(USA, Japan)\i
As forest fires continue to rage across much of \JIndonesia\j, air \Jpollution\j levels in \JMalaysia\j's \JBorneo\j state of \JSarawak\j exceed life-threatening levels for the fifth consecutive day, reaching an all-time high of 835. \I(Indonesia, Malaysia)\i
In \JDhaka\j, at least 75 people are injured and 100 arrested after riot police use tear gas and batons to prevent demonstrations in protest against police repression. The demonstrations, organized by the \JBangladesh\j Nationalist Party, occur during a nationwide general strike. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Sri Lankan police attack dozens of houses and kill at least six Tamil civilians after a constable is shot dead by a Tamil Tiger gunmen in a village in the country's eastern district of Ampara. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
British libel lawyer, Charles Gray, QC, accuses \JSingapore\j leaders of publishing complaints to the police against them in order to frame political opponent, Tang Liang Hong. Mr. Tang is currently appealing against \Jdefamation\j awards totaling $S8.08 million to Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, and ten other leaders of the ruling People's Action Party. \I(Singapore, UK)\i
Myanmar's former dictator, 86-year-old General Ne Win, leaves \JRangoon\j with an 11-member entourage to visit \JIndonesia\j at the invitation of President Soeharto. General Ne Win, who stepped down in 1988 after ruling for 26 years, has not been seen in public since 1989. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma), Indonesia)\i
The New Zealand Government and the Ngai Tahu \JMaori\j tribe announce settlement of what is believed to be the world's most protracted land claim by an indigenous people. Under the terms of the settlement, the 30,000-strong tribe will regain land and traditional food-gathering rights, as well as the right to rename almost 90 places of spiritual significance, including Mount Cook, the country's highest mountain. \I(New Zealand)\i
The sportswear company, Nike International, disputes a recent Hong Kong-based report detailing deplorable working conditions in its Chinese shoe factories, claiming the report is riddled with inaccuracies, and stressing Nike's commitment to improving workplace conditions. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
British nurse, 31-year-old Lucille McLauchlan, is sentenced by a Saudi court to 500 lashes and eight years imprisonment for being an accessory to the murder of Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford. British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, condemns flogging as totally unacceptable in a modern world, and says his government will pressure Saudi \JArabia\j not to carry it out. \I(UK, Saudi \JArabia\j, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Four of the 24 crew members are injured when a United States E-P3 electronic warfare plane veers off the runway while landing at Souda Bay airbase in \JCrete\j. It is the seventh US military \Javiation\j accident in less than two weeks. \I(USA, Greece)\i
The United States and \JJapan\j announce changes in their regional security co-operation arrangements. Under the revised arrangements, \JJapan\j will maintain its ban on the use of offensive military power, but will give key military support to US forces in an Asian crisis, including access to bases, minesweeping of sea lanes, and joint evacuation of civilians. \I(USA, Japan)\i
Russia assures the United States that it will not try to block elections called by Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, to replace a regional parliament dominated by allies of war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic. \JRussia\j's assurance removes the final obstacle to electoral supervision by the Organization on Security and Co-operation in Europe, a move considered necessary to give the ballot international legitimacy. \I(Russia, USA, Bosnia)\i
United States Vice-President, Al Gore, signs an agreement that will help convert \JRussia\j's three plutonium-producing nuclear plants to civilian use by the year 2000. The agreement also puts a cap on US and Russian stockpiles of nuclear weapons-grade \Jplutonium\j. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Amid mounting political and public pressure not to put another American aboard the ailing Mir space station, NASA delays final clearance of \Jastronaut\j David Wolf's mission to the Russian station pending the outcome of a review. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Addressing a huge rally of troops in Tehran's Azadi Square, Iranian President, Mohammad Khatami, condemns the United States presence in the Gulf as illegitimate, and as a threat to regional stability and \JIran\j's Islamic republic. \I(Iran, USA)\i
Televised images of burnt out houses and floors awash with blood reach viewers around the world, as traumatized survivors speak of a four-hour overnight slaughter in the \JAlgiers\j suburb of Baraki, during which unidentified armed assailants systematically killed an estimated 200 men, women, and children. \I(Algeria)\i
Northern Ireland's pro-British Ulster Unionists make history by sitting at the same conference table as leaders of the IRA-allied Sinn Fein party for the first time since 1921. However, after reading out a seven-page \Jindictment\j calling for the expulsion of Sinn Fein from the peace talks, the Unionists abruptly walk out. Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary, Mo Mowlam, nevertheless regards the face-to-face encounter as a step forward. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Following DNA testing of suspected relatives in the West Bank village of Asira Shamaliya, Israeli security officials believe they have identified four of the five Islamic militants responsible for the deaths of 20 Israeli's in two separate \JJerusalem\j suicide bombings. Officials say all four men were on a wanted list handed to the Palestinian Authority by Israel's secret police. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
United States Vice-President, Al Gore, signs an agreement that will help convert \JRussia\j's three plutonium-producing nuclear plants to civilian use by the year 2000. The agreement also puts a cap on US and Russian stockpiles of nuclear weapons-grade \Jplutonium\j. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Russia assures the United States that it will not try to block elections called by Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, to replace a regional parliament dominated by allies of war crimes suspect, Radovan Karadzic. \JRussia\j's assurance removes the final obstacle to electoral supervision by the Organization on Security and Co-operation in Europe, a move considered necessary to give the ballot international legitimacy. \I(Russia, USA, Bosnia)\i
Interim results of Serbian parliamentary and presidential elections held on the weekend indicate that voter disenchantment with the ruling Socialist alliance, together with an opposition boycott of the polls, have allowed a resurgence of ultra nationalists, thereby denying the Socialist alliance an outright win. \I(Serbia)\i
During a street gun-battle in the Basque city of \JBilbao\j, a Civil Guard officer is wounded and two suspected members of the ETA guerrilla group are killed. It is later confirmed that one of those killed is Salvador Gaztelumendi Gil, the chief of the deadliest hit team of the Basque separatist group. \I(Spain)\i
Amid mounting political and public pressure not to put another American aboard the ailing Mir space station, NASA delays final clearance of \Jastronaut\j David Wolf's mission to the Russian station pending the outcome of a review. \I(USA, Russia)\i
British libel lawyer, Charles Gray, QC, accuses \JSingapore\j leaders of publishing complaints to the police against them in order to frame political opponent, Tang Liang Hong. Mr. Tang is currently appealing against \Jdefamation\j awards totaling $S8.08 million to Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, and ten other leaders of the ruling People's Action Party. \I(Singapore, UK)\i
Addressing a huge rally of troops in Tehran's Azadi Square, Iranian President, Mohammad Khatami, condemns the United States presence in the Gulf as illegitimate, and as a threat to regional stability and \JIran\j's Islamic republic. \I(Iran, USA)\i
Four of the 24 crew members are injured when a United States E-P3 electronic warfare plane veers off the runway while landing at Souda Bay airbase in \JCrete\j. It is the seventh US military \Javiation\j accident in less than two weeks. \I(USA, Greece)\i
British nurse, 31-year-old Lucille McLauchlan, is sentenced by a Saudi court to 500 lashes and eight years imprisonment for being an accessory to the murder of Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford. British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, condemns flogging as totally unacceptable in a modern world, and says his government will pressure Saudi \JArabia\j not to carry it out. \I(UK, Saudi \JArabia\j, Australia)\i
About 50,000 fans pack a stadium in \JSarajevo\j for a concert by the Irish rock group, U2, the first major rock group to play in Bosnia since the civil war ended in 1995. \I(Bosnia, Republic of Ireland)\i
#
"September 24, 1997",630,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Vietnam's National Assembly elects 60-year-old Tran Duc Luong as the country's president. Mr. Luong's appointment follows a decision by President Le Duc Anh to retire. \I(Vietnam)\i
South Korean President, Kim Young Sam, resigns as head of the ruling New Korea Party, clearing the way for presidential candidate, Lee Hoi Chang, to assume the party's leadership. \I(South Korea)\i
Following the United Nations' decision to leave \JCambodia\j's seat vacant at the General Assembly session, the country's Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, threatens to suspend co-operation with the world body. \I(Cambodia)\i
Two senior Australian ministers are forced to resign in a scandal over parliamentary travel allowances. Transport Minister, John Sharp, admits that he over-claimed almost $AUD9,000 and secretly repaid it; Administrative Services Minister, David Jull, admits that he failed to report the transactions. \I(Australia)\i
Thailand's opposition leaders prepare to table evidence that business associates of Prime Minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, received advance information about the government's decision to float the baht in early July, enabling them to make huge profits from currency trading. \I(Thailand)\i
China reacts strongly to the newly revised military guidelines between the United States and \JJapan\j, insisting that any act which directly or indirectly includes the \JTaiwan\j Straits will be regarded as a violation against China's sovereignty. \I(China, USA, \JJapan\j, Taiwan)\i
Health officials in \JIndonesia\j announce that two people have died from respiratory complications, attributing the deaths to the blanket of thick smoke generated by the country's forest fires. \I(Indonesia)\i
An explosion destroys a three-story fireworks storehouse in Wu'ai Village, in China's Zhejiang province, killing 18 people and seriously injuring two others. The cause of the blast is under investigation, but lax safety standards are believed to have contributed. Explosions in fireworks factories throughout China cause scores of deaths each year. \I(China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says his government intends to build 300 more homes in the West Bank settlement of Efrat and other areas occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East War. Mr. Netanyahu's statement disregards a recent appeal for restraint by US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and defies violent Palestinian objections to Israeli settlement expansion in Arab East \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
The United States pressures \JCroatia\j to turn over Bosnian Croat war criminals to the International Court of Justice in the Hague, warning that action may soon be taken by the international community to apprehend them for prosecution. \I(USA, \JCroatia\j, Bosnia, The Netherlands)\i
China reacts strongly to the newly revised military guidelines between the United States and \JJapan\j, insisting that any act which directly or indirectly includes the \JTaiwan\j Straits will be regarded as a violation against China's sovereignty. \I(China, USA, \JJapan\j, Taiwan)\i
In what is hailed as a landmark decision, Northern Ireland's pro-British Ulster Unionists accept a formula they consider far from ideal, but one that will allow full-scale peace negotiations to proceed. The formula hands over the contentious issue of IRA disarmament to an international body which will be chaired by Canadian, John de Chastelain. \I(Northern Ireland, UK, Canada)\i
A policeman and a soldier are killed, and at least 12 civilians are injured when Marxist rebels from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of \JColombia\j launch simultaneous dawn raids on police stations in the towns of Castillo and La Uribe. \I(Colombia)\i
The \JFBI\j offers a reward of more than $US2 million for information leading to the arrest of Ramon Arellano Felix, who is the head of one of Mexico's most ruthless and powerful drug cartels, and has been charged in \JCalifornia\j with conspiring to import \Jcocaine\j and marijuana. \I(USA, Mexico)\i
The Recording Industry Association of America confirms that "Candle in the Wind", Elton John's tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, sold out within hours of its release, achieving a record-breaking eight times \Jplatinum\j. \I(USA, UK)\i
Algeria's Islamic Salvation Army rebels declare a cease-fire aimed at exposing the Armed Islamic Group, a rival guerrilla faction the Islamic Salvation Army is blaming for the country's recent string of civilian massacres. \I(Algeria)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says his government intends to build 300 more homes in the West Bank settlement of Efrat and other areas occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East War. Mr. Netanyahu's statement disregards a recent appeal for restraint by US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and defies Palestinian objections to Israeli settlement expansion in Arab East \JJerusalem\j. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
In what is hailed as a landmark decision, Northern Ireland's pro-British Ulster Unionists accept a formula they consider far from ideal, but one that will allow full-scale peace negotiations to proceed. The formula hands over the contentious issue of IRA disarmament to an international body which will be chaired by Canadian, John de Chastelain. \I(Northern Ireland, UK, Canada)\i
The United States pressures \JCroatia\j to turn over Bosnian Croat war criminals to the International Court of Justice in the Hague, warning that action may soon be taken by the international community to apprehend them for prosecution. \I(USA, \JCroatia\j, Bosnia, The Netherlands)\i
After a convincing win in the parliamentary polls last Sunday, \JPoland\j's Solidarity Election Action Party meets with the Freedom Union to discuss the formation of a coalition Cabinet. \I(Poland)\i
In a bid to rectify past errors, the Swiss city of Basle offers an apology and $US34,000 in compensation to a Jewish \JHolocaust\j survivor deported from the city to \JGermany\j in 1939. The Nazi concentration camp survivor, 81-year-old Eli Carmel, is now an Israeli citizen. \I(Switzerland, \JGermany\j, Israel)\i
The Cologne-based Information and Advice Association for Nazi victims accuses the German Government of deliberately delaying a five-year civil suit brought by 21 elderly Jewish women. The women are claiming compensation for their unpaid work in Adolf Hitler's army of World War II slaves, and it is believed that a final ruling on the case could trigger a flood of similar claims. \I(Germany)\i
The Recording Industry Association of America confirms that "Candle in the Wind", Elton John's tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, sold out within hours of its release, achieving a record-breaking eight times \Jplatinum\j. \I(USA, UK)\i
In Britain, two ten-year-old boys appear in court, becoming the youngest in the country's legal history to be charged with rape. The two boys are accused of assaulting a nine-year-old girl in their school's toilets. \I(UK)\i
#
"September 25, 1997",631,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Cambodian Government officials say troops have retaken territory in the remote Samlaut region occupied until now by renegade Khmer Rouge guerrillas loyal to deposed First Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. The fighting is reported to have sent another wave of civilian refugees flooding across the border into \JThailand\j. \I(Cambodia, Thailand)\i
As more than 1,000 Malaysian fire-fighters swing into action, \JIndonesia\j's President Soeharto orders a full mobilization of central and regional government officials to help the battle against the country's forest fires. An estimated 1.5 million acres have already been affected by the flames, causing a regional health-threatening haze that the World Wide Fund for Nature regards as an international catastrophe. \I(Malaysia, Indonesia)\i
Following an official investigation, the pilots of a Kazakh Ilyushin-76 are blamed for a November 1996 collision with a Saudi Boeing 747, which was the worst mid-air disaster in \Javiation\j history, killing all 349 passengers and crew aboard both \Jaircraft\j. The investigation concluded that the incoming Ilyushin-76 began its descent to New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International airport without authorization. \I(Kazakhstan, Saudi \JArabia\j, India)\i
Vietnam's National Assembly appoints 63-year-old Phan Van Khai, a popular southern reformer, as the country's Prime Minister. Mr. Khai replaces Vo Van Kiet, who has decided to retire. \I(Vietnam)\i
Heavy battles rage about 40 kilometers northeast of Mazar-e-Sharif, as \JAfghanistan\j's Taliban militia continues its advance against forces of the opposition alliance led by former military chief, Ahmed Shah Massood. \I(Afghanistan)\i
Two days of torrential rainstorms leave thousands homeless and at least 19 people dead in India's south-eastern Andhra Pradesh State. \I(India)\i
Senior \JPakistan\j official, Senator Saifur Rehman, claims to have evidence that former Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, has $US1.5 billion of improperly obtained wealth invested in overseas bank accounts and property. According to Senator Rehman, some of Ms. Bhutto's wealth is drug-related. \I(Pakistan)\i
Members of \JMyanmar\j's National League for Democracy (NLD) begin arriving in \JRangoon\j for a congress to mark the ninth anniversary of the party's founding. Previous meetings of the party, which is headed by democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, have resulted in mass arrests by the military-backed government. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
An Indian court begins the trial of former Prime Minister, P.V. Narasimha Rao, on charges of bribery. Mr. Rao has also been indicted in a separate criminal \Jfraud\j case. \I(India)\i
After a 10-year absence, \JFiji\j is readmitted to the Commonwealth with the approval of all 53 members. \JFiji\j, now a republic, will reclaim its membership on October 1, and will be represented at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Edinburgh next month. \I(Fiji, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Israel dismisses United States' censure of its plan to build 300 more settler homes in the West Bank, accusing Washington of misconstruing its policy, and denying that it will further aggravate the fragile Middle East peace process. The Palestinian Authority, meanwhile, describes Israel's policy as bordering on insanity, insisting that it will plunge the Middle East into violence and conflict. \I(Israel, USA, Palestine, Middle East)\i
Despite widespread opposition, the space shuttle Atlantis blasts off on a controversial mission to drop off American \Jastronaut\j, David Wolf, for a four-month tour of duty aboard \JRussia\j's Mir space station. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Fifty-one-year-old Robert Lip, a former United States Army clerical officer at the Nation Security Agency, is sentenced to 18 years imprisonment after being found guilty of selling military secrets 30 years ago to the former Soviet Union. \I(USA, Russia)\i
European Trade Commissioner, Sir Leon Britain, calls for an end to the damaging dispute between Europe and the United States over the Helms-Button law. The US law is designed to curb foreign investment in the confiscated property of Cubans who fled their country's communist regime. \I(Europe, USA, Cuba)\i
The Cuban Government announces that 52-year-old Walter Van der Veer will stand trial on charges of attempting to stage an uprising against Fidel Castro in 1996, and could face the death penalty if found guilty. Prosecutors are contending that Van Der Veer belongs to a United States-based group called the Cuban Liberation Front. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
In a symbolic gesture, President Clinton marks the 40th anniversary of the Army-enforced desegregation of Little Rock's Central High School, holding open the door as the nine black students, who braved jeering white mobs 40 years ago, triumphantly re-enter the building. President Clinton uses the occasion to issue a national appeal for racial harmony. \I(USA)\i
Microsoft co-founder and chairman, Bill Gates, donates ú12 million to Cambridge University to meet half the cost of a new, state-of-the-art computer department to be built on the western outskirts of the city. The donation comes three months after Microsoft's decision to make the university the site for a ú50 million research center to develop a new generation of computers. \I(USA, UK)\i
Researchers publish a study of the experimental drug zanamivir, which if taken within 30 hours after the onset of symptoms, is claimed to shorten the duration of the influenza virus by up to 3 days. \I(USA)\i
The British Thrust \JSuperSonic\j Car, driven by Royal Air Force fighter pilot, Andy Green, clocks an average speed of 714.1 miles per hour across Nevada's Black Rock Desert, breaking Richard Noble's 14-year-old land speed record of 633 miles per hour. \I(UK, USA)\i
Airline chief and former racing driver, Niki Lauda, takes delivery of a Boeing 777 equipped with \Jroulette\j tables and electronic gambling machines. According to Mr. Lauda, the \Jaircraft\j is the world's first flying casino. \I(USA)\i
Following an official investigation, the pilots of a Kazakh Ilyushin-76 are blamed for a November 1996 collision with a Saudi Boeing 747, which was the worst mid-air disaster in \Javiation\j history, killing all 349 passengers and crew. The investigation found that the incoming Ilyushin-76 began its descent to New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International airport without authorization. \I(Kazakhstan, Saudi \JArabia\j, India)\i
Israel dismisses United States' censure of its plan to build 300 more settler homes in the West Bank, accusing Washington of misconstruing its policy, and denying that it will further aggravate the fragile Middle East peace process. The Palestinian Authority, meanwhile, describes Israel's policy as bordering on insanity, insisting that it will plunge the Middle East into violence and conflict. \I(Israel, USA, Palestine, Middle East)\i
Official results of last weekend's Serbian parliamentary elections leave Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's leftist alliance without a majority in the assembly, and thereby the choice of either forming a minority government, or forming a coalition with one or both of its main political rivals. \I(Serbia, Yugoslavia)\i
Despite widespread opposition, the space shuttle Atlantis blasts off on a controversial mission to drop off American \Jastronaut\j, David Wolf, for a four-month tour of duty aboard \JRussia\j's Mir space station. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Fifty-one-year-old Robert Lip, a former United States Army clerical officer at the Nation Security Agency, is sentenced to 18 years imprisonment after being found guilty of selling military secrets 30 years ago to the former Soviet Union. \I(USA, Russia)\i
European Trade Commissioner, Sir Leon Britain, calls for an end to the damaging dispute between Europe and the United States over the Helms-Button law. The US law is designed to curb foreign investment in the confiscated property of Cubans who fled their country's communist regime. \I(Europe, USA, Cuba)\i
The British Thrust \JSuperSonic\j Car, driven by Royal Air Force fighter pilot, Andy Green, clocks an average speed of 714.1 miles per hour across Nevada's Black Rock Desert, breaking Richard Noble's 14-year-old land speed record of 633 miles per hour. \I(UK, USA)\i
Lord Wakeham, chairman of Britain's Press Complaints Commission, reveals proposals to clamp down on intrusive media practices. The proposals, drawn up after consultation with newspaper editors, include a ban on pictures obtained by stalking or hounding, more protection for children, and a wider definition of private property. \I(UK)\i
Microsoft co-founder and chairman, Bill Gates, donates ú12 million to Cambridge University to meet half the cost of a new, state-of-the-art computer department to be built on the western outskirts of the city. The donation comes three months after Microsoft's decision to make the university the site for a ú50 million research center to develop a new generation of computers. \I(USA, UK)\i
After a 10-year absence, \JFiji\j is readmitted to the Commonwealth with the approval of all 53 members. \JFiji\j, now a republic, will reclaim its membership on October 1, and will be represented at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Edinburgh next month. \I(Fiji, UK)\i
#
"September 26, 1997",632,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
All 234 people on board a Garuda \JIndonesia\j Airbus are killed when it crashes into a hill just 30 miles south of Medan, in North \JSumatra\j. Blinding haze from forest fires burning out of control on the island is suspected to have contributed to the crash of the plane, which was on a scheduled flight from Jakarta to Medan. \I(Indonesia)\i
An Indian cargo ship sinks after colliding with another freighter in the smog-shrouded Straits of Malacca off the Malaysian coast. Five survivors, including a woman, are plucked from the sea, and a search and rescue operation is launched for the remaining 28 crew members. \I(India, Malaysia)\i
Officials in \JIndonesia\j say a huge area of burning forest peat, too thick and too hot to be extinguished without the added assistance of rain, is now the major cause of the dangerous \Jpollution\j enveloping much of Southeast Asia. \I(Indonesia, Southeast Asia)\i
The British Government blocks two lucrative arms contracts with \JIndonesia\j, the first test of its commitment to a new ethical foreign policy prohibiting weapons exports to oppressive regimes. \I(UK, Indonesia)\i
Myanmar's Government grants permission for the opposition National League for Democracy Party to hold a two-day anniversary meeting at the residence of its leader, Nobel Peace laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi, on condition that the participants are limited to 300, and that the meeting is conducted in an orderly manner. The government's decision quells fears that the military would disrupt the special meeting. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
In an escalating scandal over travel rorts, Australian Prime Minister sacks his principal political adviser, Grahame Morris, and his office manager Fiona McKenna. Mr. Howard also accepts the third ministerial resignation this week, that of the Minister for Science and Technology, Peter McGauran, who admits to having made false claims for travel allowances and charter flight fees. \I(Australia)\i
Vietnam's newly elected Prime Minister, Phan Van Khai, presents a cabinet line-up that includes five deputy premiers to be in charge of economy, foreign affairs, agriculture, industry and science, and technology and environment. Mr. Khai's move is regarded as a bid to decentralize executive power over key policy areas. \I(Vietnam)\i
Frank Gilford, brother of murdered Australian nurse Yvonne Gilford, says secret legal negotiations are continuing in a "blood money" deal to save British nurse, Deborah Parry, from the executioner's sword in Saudi \JArabia\j. Under Saudi law, the victim's family can demand the death penalty for the convicted murderer, or ask for clemency, usually in exchange for money. Mr. Gilford says he is also willing to plead for a lesser punishment for British nurse, Lucille McLauchlan, who has been sentenced to eight years imprisonment and 500 lashes for her part in the killing. \I(Australia, Saudi \JArabia\j, UK)\i
\BThe Americas\b
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, Russian Foreign Minister, Yevgeny Primakov, and counterparts from \JUkraine\j, Kazahkstan, and \JBelarus\j, together sign arms agreements aimed at paving the way for even deeper cuts in nuclear arsenals. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, \JUkraine\j, Kazahkstan, Belarus)\i
Responding to demands from Israel and the United States, the Palestinian Authority launches its biggest ever crackdown on the \Jinfrastructure\j of the radical Islamic group Hamas, closing down 16 Hamas-affiliated offices in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and arresting about 100 suspected militants, including some of the group's political leaders. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
After an 80-year presence in Panama, the last of the United States military's 980-strong Southern Command contingent leaves for a new headquarters in Miami. The US military withdrawal is in accordance with bilateral canal treaties signed in 1977, which require the removal of all troops from the canal zone by the end of 1999. \I(USA, Panama)\i
Despite objections from world church leaders and a last-minute appeal by United States Vice-President, Al Gore, Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, signs a controversial law which will clamp down on minority religious groups posing a challenge to the country's Orthodox Church. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Two powerful earthquakes, respectively measuring 5.5 and 5.7 on the Richter scale, kill at least ten people and bring down part of the \Jbasilica\j of St. Francis of Assisi, damaging 13th and 14th-century frescoes by Giotto and Cimabue. An estimated 5,000 people across central \JItaly\j are made homeless as a result of the two earthquakes. \I(Italy)\i
Responding to demands from Israel and the United States, the Palestinian Authority launches its biggest ever crackdown on the \Jinfrastructure\j of the radical Islamic group Hamas, closing down 16 Hamas-affiliated offices in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and arresting about 100 suspected militants, including some of the group's political leaders. \I(Israel, Palestine, USA)\i
After a nine-month trial, a German court finds Bosnian Serb, Nikola Jorgic, 51, guilty of war crimes, and sentences him to life imprisonment on 11 counts of genocide, 30 counts of murder, and a number of lesser crimes committed against Muslims during the Bosnian war. It is the first time a non-German has been found guilty of genocide in \JGermany\j. \I(Germany, Bosnia)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, Russian Foreign Minister, Yevgeny Primakov, and counterparts from \JUkraine\j, Kazahkstan, and \JBelarus\j, together sign arms agreements aimed at paving the way for even deeper cuts in nuclear arsenals. \I(USA, \JRussia\j, \JUkraine\j, Kazahkstan, Belarus)\i
The Irish Government releases five Irish Republican Army prisoners, a move that angers Northern Ireland's pro-British Unionists, who complain of yet another concession to the republicans. \I(Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, UK)\i
A Sicilian court hands down life jail sentences to Mafia "Boss of Bosses", Salvatore "Toto" Riina, and 23 of his closest associates for the 1992 murder of anti-Mafia prosecutor, Giovanni Falcone, who was killed with his wife and three of his bodyguards in a bomb blast. \I(Italy)\i
The British Government blocks two lucrative arms contracts with \JIndonesia\j, the first test of its commitment to a new ethical foreign policy prohibiting weapons exports to oppressive regimes. \I(UK, Indonesia)\i
Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, former wife of President Nelson Mandela, appears before South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission to answer questions in relation to 18 cases of human rights violations, including eight murders, during the late 1980s. After considering arguments for a full public hearing from Mrs. Mandela's lawyers, the commission rules to proceed with an in-camera hearing, announcing that a public hearing will be held in November. \I(South Africa)\i
Despite objections from world church leaders and a last-minute appeal by United States Vice-President, Al Gore, Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, signs a controversial law which will clamp down on minority religious groups posing a challenge to the country's Orthodox Church. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Frank Gilford, brother of murdered Australian nurse Yvonne Gilford, says secret legal negotiations are continuing in a "blood money" deal to save British nurse, Deborah Parry, from the executioner's sword in Saudi \JArabia\j. Under Saudi law, the victim's family can demand the death penalty for the convicted murderer, or ask for clemency, usually in exchange for money. Mr. Gilford says he is also willing to plead for a lesser punishment for British nurse, Lucille McLauchlan, who has been sentenced to eight years imprisonment and 500 lashes for her part in the killing. \I(Australia, Saudi \JArabia\j, UK)\i
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II agrees to abandon plans to refit the Royal Yacht \IBritannia.\i After a farewell voyage around Britain in November, the 43-year-old vessel will be scrapped unless a private buyer is found. \I(UK)\i
#
"September 27, 1997",633,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
A cyclone spawning torrential rain and winds of up to 150 kilometers per hour lashes the \JBangladesh\j coast, flooding farms and leveling tens of thousands of houses. At least 22 people die in the onslaught, and many more are reported missing. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Hundreds of grieving relatives of the victims of yesterday's Garuda \JIndonesia\j air disaster in \JSumatra\j are stranded in Jakarta when thick haze forces the closure of Medan airport. For many of the relatives of the 216 Indonesians killed in the crash, the delay means that their loved ones will not be honored with a proper Muslim funeral, which requires burial before sunset the day after death. \I(Indonesia)\i
Thailand's embattled Prime Minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, survives a parliamentary censure vote when his party's senior coalition partner, the Chart Pattana party, pledges its support. Immediately after the censure vote, the parliament ratifies a much-debated constitutional reform charter targeting the country's corrupt electoral system. \I(Thailand)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The United States space shuttle Atlantis docks with \JRussia\j's Mir space station for a controversial replacement of \Jastronaut\j Michael Foale with David Wolf. Atlantis also delivers a new computer for the station, as well as batteries, plugs, food, water, and other vital supplies. \I(USA, Russia)\i
The United States applauds the Palestinian Authority's recent crackdown on Islamic militants, saying the Palestinians have now taken tangible steps to support repeated assurances that they would dismantle the terrorist \Jinfrastructure\j responsible for suicide bombings in Israel. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
A scientific study, led by Dr. Moira Bruce at the government-funded Neuropathogenesis Unit in Edinburgh, proves that bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or "mad cow" disease, has caused the outbreak of new-variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans. Dr. Bruce's conclusions are supported by a separate series of experiments performed by Professor John Collinge at Imperial College School of Medicine at St. Mary's \JHospital\j in London. \I(Scotland, UK)\i
Having earlier declared a cease-fire, \JAlgeria\j's outlawed Islamic Salvation Front calls for a general amnesty and a national reconciliation conference involving all forces in society. There is no immediate response to the call from President Liamine Zeroual's military-backed government, which has repeatedly blamed the rebel group for \JAlgeria\j's spate of violent civilian massacres. \I(Algeria)\i
The United States applauds the Palestinian Authority's recent crackdown on Islamic militants, saying the Palestinians have now taken tangible steps to support repeated assurances that they would dismantle the terrorist \Jinfrastructure\j responsible for suicide bombings in Israel. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel)\i
In the wake of twin tremors which rocked central \JItaly\j yesterday, art experts sift through the fallen rubble inside the \Jbasilica\j of St. Francis of Assisi, trying to piece together two sections of vaulted ceiling frescoes. Meanwhile, thousands of Italians, afraid to return to their houses, prepare to camp out in tent cities for a second night. \I(Italy)\i
In a televised interview, Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, accuses political rival and indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic, of having transferred at least 49 million German marks from Bosnian bank accounts into foreign bank accounts. \I(Bosnia)\i
Former South African political opponents, Bantu Holomisa and Roelf Meyer, weld black and white when they launch their new political party, the United Democratic Movement. Mr. Holomisa is a former member of President Nelson Mandela's African National Congress; Mr. Meyer is a white Afrikaner and a former chief negotiator in the National Party. \I(South Africa)\i
The United States space shuttle Atlantis docks with \JRussia\j's Mir space station for a controversial replacement of \Jastronaut\j Michael Foale with David Wolf. Atlantis also delivers a new computer for the station, as well as batteries, plugs, food, water, and other vital supplies. \I(USA, Russia)\i
At an outdoor pop concert organized by \JBologna\j's Catholic archdiocese, Pope John Paul II draws cheers from a 200,000-strong crowd by rising to shake hands with singer Bob Dylan following Dylan's rendition of "Knocking on Heaven's Door". The nationally televised outdoor concert capped a week-long nationwide spiritual revival meeting in \JBologna\j. \I(Italy)\i
#
"September 28, 1997",634,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
An \Jearthquake\j measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale rocks the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, killing at least 12 people and hospitalizing another 30. Hundreds of buildings are damaged in the tremor, with about 30 houses completely flattened. \I(Indonesia)\i
After being delayed by smog for almost two days, some 300 mourners fly into \JSumatra\j to identify the bodies of their relatives from among the 234 passengers killed in Friday's Garuda Airlines A300B4 Airbus crash. Most of the victims of the disaster were Indonesians, with only about 20 foreigners, including six Taiwanese, four Americans, four Germans, two Britons, and one Australian. \I(Indonesia, \JTaiwan\j, USA, \JGermany\j, UK, Australia)\i
The death toll from the powerful \Jcyclone\j which ravaged \JBangladesh\j yesterday rises to 39 after more deaths are confirmed in the worst-hit coastal island district of Bhola. Officials in the area say 41 people are still listed as missing. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Hong Kong's Provisional Legislative Council approves the second stage of controversial new laws which will govern the May 1998 legislative elections, the first elections since the territory's return to Chinese sovereignty. As a result of the new laws, only 20 of the 60 seats in the Legislative Council will be directly elected by universal suffrage. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Myanmar's opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) concludes its first successful party congress in years, denouncing past repression of political activities by the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), and calling for face-to-face dialogue with SLORC to resolve the nation's problems. \I(Myanmar (formerly Burma))\i
World No. 1 tennis champion, American Pete Sampras, defeats Australian Patrick Rafter in the final of the Grand Slam Cup in \JGermany\j. \I(USA, \JAustralia\j, Germany)\i
On the Senior Tour of Tennis Champions played in \JJohannesburg\j, South Africa, John McEnroe of the United States wins the singles final, and Australians Pat Cash and John Fitzgerald win the doubles final. \I(South Africa, USA, Australia)\i
On the Senior PGA Tour, Japanese golfer Isao Aoki wins a playoff with America's Gil Morgan to take out the Emerald Coast Classic in Milton, \JFlorida\j. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Japan's Tadayuki Okada wins the Indonesian 500cc \JMotorcycle\j Grand Prix at Sentul, putting an end to the 10-race winning streak of Repsol Honda teammate, Australian Michael Doohan. \I(Japan, \JIndonesia\j, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
After being delayed by smog for almost two days, some 300 mourners fly into \JSumatra\j to identify the bodies of their relatives from among the 234 passengers killed in Friday's Garuda Airlines A300B4 Airbus crash. Most of the victims of the disaster were Indonesians, with only about 20 foreigners, including six Taiwanese, four Americans, four Germans, two Britons, and one Australian. \I(Indonesia, \JTaiwan\j, USA, \JGermany\j, UK, Australia)\i
The Lewis \Jspacecraft\j, a NASA Earth observation satellite which spun out of control four days after being launched in August, re-enters the atmosphere at 17,000 miles per hour and burns up over the southern Atlantic Ocean off the coast of \JAntarctica\j. \I(USA)\i
The Zapatista National Liberation Army declares an autonomous county in Mexico's southern Chiapas, a move unlikely to be recognized by the country's Zedillo Government. Since the 1994 Zapatista rebellion, demands for autonomy for the region's Indians have been the greatest stumbling block to the renewal of stalled peace talks. \I(Mexico)\i
Following exhumation from an English cemetery on Thursday, the remains of 19th century Sioux Indian chief, Long Wolf, are buried in ancestral lands in South Dakota. Long Wolf died of \Jpneumonia\j a century ago while performing in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in London. \I(USA, UK)\i
Microsoft co-founder, Bill Gates, tops \IForbes\i magazine's list of the 400 richest Americans for the fourth consecutive year, with his 1997 net worth estimated at $US39.8 billion, more than double that of 1996. Runner-up, Warren Buffet, is the only non-computer magnate in the list's top six. \I(USA)\i
World No. 1 tennis champion, American Pete Sampras, defeats Australian Patrick Rafter in the final of the Grand Slam Cup in \JGermany\j. \I(USA, \JAustralia\j, Germany)\i
German Nicolas Kiefer beats Australian Mark Philippoussis in the final of the Open Tennis Tournament at \JToulouse\j, in \JFrance\j. \I(Germany, \JAustralia\j, France)\i
On the Senior Tour of Tennis Champions played in \JJohannesburg\j, South Africa, John McEnroe of the United States wins the singles final, and Australians Pat Cash and John Fitzgerald win the doubles final. \I(South Africa, USA, Australia)\i
At the Valderrama course in \JSpain\j, Europe retains golf's Ryder Cup despite a valiant fightback by the American team. \I(Spain, Europe, USA)\i
American golfer, Wendy Ward, claims her first LPGA victory at the Fieldcrest Cannon Classic in Charlotte, North Carolina, shattering the all-time LPGA scoring record with a four-round total of 23-under-par 265. \I(USA)\i
On the Senior PGA Tour, Japanese golfer Isao Aoki wins a playoff with America's Gil Morgan to take out the Emerald Coast Classic in Milton, \JFlorida\j. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Canadian Jacques Villeneuve captures the Luxembourg Grand Prix, a win that also takes him to the lead in the Formula One drivers' standings. \I(Canada, Luxembourg)\i
In a nationwide referendum, Swiss voters overwhelmingly endorse their government's liberal drug policies, which include state distribution of heroin to hardened addicts. \JSwitzerland\j has an estimated 30,000 addicts, one of the highest rates in Europe, and until now, the legal supply of heroin has been experimental and limited to 1,100 addicts. \I(Switzerland, Europe)\i
Following exhumation from an English cemetery on Thursday, the remains of 19th century Sioux Indian chief, Long Wolf, are buried in ancestral lands in South Dakota. Long Wolf died of \Jpneumonia\j a century ago while performing in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in London. \I(USA, UK)\i
After being delayed by smog for almost two days, some 300 mourners fly into \JSumatra\j to identify the bodies of relatives from among the 234 passengers killed in Friday's Garuda Airlines A300B4 Airbus crash. Most of the victims of the disaster were Indonesians, with only about 20 foreigners, including six Taiwanese, four Americans, four Germans, two Britons, and one Australian. \I(Indonesia, \JTaiwan\j, USA, \JGermany\j, UK, Australia)\i
World No. 1 tennis champion, American Pete Sampras, defeats Australian Patrick Rafter in the final of the Grand Slam Cup in \JGermany\j. \I(USA, \JAustralia\j, Germany)\i
German Nicolas Kiefer beats Australian Mark Philippoussis in the final of the Open Tennis Tournament at \JToulouse\j, in \JFrance\j. \I(Germany, \JAustralia\j, France)\i
On the Senior Tour of Tennis Champions played in \JJohannesburg\j, South Africa, John McEnroe of the United States wins the singles final, and Australians Pat Cash and John Fitzgerald win the doubles final. \I(South Africa, USA, Australia)\i
At the Valderrama course in \JSpain\j, Europe retains golf's Ryder Cup despite a valiant fightback by the American team. \I(Spain, Europe, USA)\i
Canadian Jacques Villeneuve captures the Luxembourg Grand Prix, a win that also takes him to the lead in the Formula One drivers' standings. \I(Canada, Luxembourg)\i
#
"September 29, 1997",635,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
The smoke haze lifts from parts of Southeast Asia following weekend rains in \JMalaysia\j and \JIndonesia\j. However, United Nations climatologists predict that monsoon rains desperately needed to extinguish the forest fires generating the dangerous haze will be delayed this year due to the El Ni±o weather pattern in the Pacific. \I(Malaysia, Indonesia)\i
The remains of 48 unidentified victims of Friday's Garuda \JIndonesia\j Airbus crash are buried in a mass grave near Medan's Polonia Airport. Meanwhile, the search continues for the \Jaircraft\j's black box recorders which authorities hope will shed more light on the cause of the crash, which killed all 234 people aboard. \I(Indonesia)\i
The death toll from the strong \Jearthquake\j which shook \JIndonesia\j's South Sulawesi yesterday rises to at least 17, with reports of another 331 people injured. An official from the Jakarta office of the Meteorological and Geophysical Agency says the quake was centered about 20 kilometers north of the town of Parepare. \I(Indonesia)\i
European Union Commissioner, Emma Bonino, and 18 other people, are arrested and held for 31/2 hours by armed Taliban police in the Afghan capital of Kabul. Ms. Bonino, and journalists accompanying her, are accused of photographing women, an offense under Taliban Islamic law. \I(Afghanistan, Europe)\i
A Singapore court awards Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, damages of $S20,000 in a libel suit he brought against Workers' Party leader, Joshua Jeyaretnam, who is now facing further suits brought by another 10 leaders of the ruling People's Action Party (PAP). Earlier this year, the PAP leaders were awarded damages total $S8.08 million in libel suits brought against Workers' Party politician, Tang Liang Hong. Mr. Tang is currently appealing the ruling. \I(Singapore)\i
The Congress, India's ruling political party for almost four decades after independence, launches a campaign to redress its corruption-tainted reputation, setting up an ethics committee, and ordering its members to report details of personal assets and income each year. The party, which has been led by prime ministers such as Nehru, Indira Ghandi, and Rajiv Ghandi, has been in decline since the mid 1980s, and was voted out of office last year. \I(India)\i
China marks the 25th anniversary of \JTokyo\j's diplomatic switch from Taipei to \JBeijing\j, using the occasion to remind \JJapan\j of its commitment not to encourage \JTaiwan\j to break away from the mainland. \I(China, \JJapan\j, Taiwan)\i
Papua New Guinean Prime Minister, Bill Skate, drops Finance Minister, Roy Yaki, after only three months in the Cabinet post, claiming that Mr. Yaki has damaged the country's bilateral relations with China. \I(Papua New Guinea, China)\i
On Sriharikota Island, north of Madras, India launches its first fully operational satellite aboard a locally developed 468-tonne rocket. \I(India)\i
Tonga's King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, ranked in 1976 as the world's heaviest monarch at 209.5 kilograms, is reportedly a "trim" 130 kilograms now. The report surfaces during the kingdom's latest weight-loss competition, which has attracted 1,313 entrants. \I(Tonga)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In \JDenver\j, jury selection begins for the second Oklahoma City bombing trial, that of alleged co-conspirator, Terry Nichols. Nichols goes on trial almost four months after Timothy McVeigh was convicted and sentenced to death for his role in the bombing, which killed 168 people. \I(USA)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces that agreement has been reached between Israel and the Palestinian Authority to resume formal peace talks next week. Mrs. Albright defines the agreement as a "medium step" forward in the Middle East peace process. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Despite warnings from \JFrance\j, the United States vows to enforce its tough \JIran\j sanctions law over a $US2 billion contract between Tehran and the French oil company, Total. Total's contract to develop a giant offshore natural gas field invokes the 1996 Iran-Libya Sanctions Act, which requires US President Clinton to penalize any foreign company investing more than $20 million a year in the two countries' energy industries. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, \JIran\j, Libya)\i
The Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies says \JRussia\j is becoming an increasingly unreliable partner on international issues due to the corruption of its officials and businessmen, and its high rate of organized crime. \I(USA, Russia)\i
A leak in an underwater pipeline results in a spill of between 200 and 1,000 barrels of heavy crude oil across an estimated eight square miles of Pacific Ocean off the \JCalifornia\j coast near Santa Barbara. Clean up crews say they are confident of recovering the oil within 72 hours. \I(USA)\i
A new University of \JCalifornia\j study of the celebrated AIDS drugs known as protease inhibitors finds that the drugs failed to significantly reduce the presence of the \JHIV\j virus in more than half of the 136 patients who were treated, a conclusion that radically differs from other clinical trials to date. \I(USA)\i
A fire sparked by an electrical problem in the roof at a Chilean home for the mentally handicapped kills 31 people, most of them children. Three residents of the home are also hospitalized with severe injuries. \I(Chile)\i
Painter Roy Lichtenstein dies in New York of complications from \Jpneumonia\j at the age of 73. Lichtenstein was best known for his cartoon-like Pop Art which borrowed heavily from the imagery of mass culture and mass media. \I(USA)\i
Britain's Labour Party begins its first conference for 19 years as the party of government, with a poll returning a 93 per cent approval rating for Prime Minister Tony Blair, a rating believed to be a record for any democratic politician. \I(UK)\i
US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, announces that agreement has been reached between Israel and the Palestinian Authority to resume formal peace talks next week. Mrs. Albright defines the agreement as a "medium step" forward in the Middle East peace process. \I(USA, Israel, Palestine)\i
Reports from \JAlgeria\j reveal that 95 civilians have been slaughtered in six separate attacks over the weekend. The dead includes 52 members of the one family, and eleven female primary school teachers, who were brutally slain in front of their students. \I(Algeria)\i
European Union Commissioner, Emma Bonino, and 18 other people, are arrested and held for 31/2 hours by armed Taliban police in the Afghan capital of Kabul. Ms. Bonino, and journalists accompanying her, are accused of photographing women, an offense under Taliban Islamic law. \I(Afghanistan, Europe)\i
The first full-scale political talks between Northern Ireland republicans and the Ulster Unionist Party begin, with British Northern Ireland Secretary, Mo Mowlam, optimistically predicting that the Reverend Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionists and Robert McCartney's UK Unionists will soon join the negotiations. \I(Northern Ireland, UK)\i
Baghdad reports that eight Iranian warplanes have bombed targets inside \JIraq\j. An Iraqi-based Iranian opposition group, which advocates the armed overthrow of the Tehran Government, claims that two of its camps were attacked in the raids. \I(Iraq, Iran)\i
After a three-month recess, the United Nations Rwandan war crimes tribunal resumes the trial of Georges Rutaganda, a former vice-president of the country's Interahamwe militia, who is accused of genocide and crimes against humanity during 1994, a year in which an estimated 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and politically moderate Hutus were killed by Hutu extremists. \I(Rwanda)\i
Despite warnings from \JFrance\j, the United States vows to enforce its tough \JIran\j sanctions law over a $US2 billion contract between Tehran and the French oil company, Total. Total's contract to develop a giant offshore natural gas field invokes the 1996 Iran-Libya Sanctions Act, which requires US President Clinton to penalize any foreign company investing more than $20 million a year in the two countries' energy industries. \I(USA, \JFrance\j, \JIran\j, Libya)\i
The Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies says \JRussia\j is becoming an increasingly unreliable partner on international issues due to the corruption of its officials and businessmen, and its high rate of organized crime. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Following the announcement of a confirmed link between bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or "mad cow" disease, and new-variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans, families of victims of the disease call for British Government compensation and a full judicial inquiry. \I(UK)\i
The tunnel under the Place de l'Alma is closed to all but French officials for nearly five hours after police tow the wrecked Mercedes limousine back to the site of the crash in which Diana, Princess of Wales, Dodi Al Fayed, and driver Henri Paul were killed on August 31. Investigators say they have not yet ruled out the possibility that a second car played a role in the accident. \I(France, UK)\i
Masquerading as potential buyers, Greek undercover police seize a collection of gold jewelry consisting of 54 delicately hand-wrought gold-leaf pendants and amulets, which date from between 4000 and 5000 BC, and are suspected to have been looted from tombs in the \JCyclades\j islands. Ecstatic archaeologists say the collection surpasses everything unearthed thus far from the Greek \JNeolithic\j era. \I(Greece)\i
#
"September 30, 1997",636,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Indonesian officials release a transcript of the final radio conversation between the pilot of the Garuda Airbus and the air traffic controller in Medan, which reveals repeated confusion regarding turning instructions just seconds before the plane crashed last Friday, killing all 234 people on board. \I(Indonesia)\i
Speaking in Jakarta, the chief representative of the United Nations, Ravi Rajan, predicts that the environmental emergency triggered by \JIndonesia\j's forest fires will have long-term negative effects on the Asian region's health, \Jecology\j, and economy. \JIndonesia\j's neighbors, particularly \JMalaysia\j, have born the brunt of the pall of smog generated by the fires, and are now demanding that \JIndonesia\j acts urgently and decisively. \I(Indonesia, \JMalaysia\j, Asia)\i
The Taliban Minister of Information and Culture blames European Union Commissioner, Emma Bonino, and her entourage, for their arrest in the Afghan capital of Kabul yesterday, dismissing Ms. Bonino's complaint of being threatened with a rifle as a minor issue, and accusing the European Union delegation of disrespectfully flouting Afghan laws by breaking the ban on filming and photography. \I(Afghanistan, Europe)\i
Two Swiss banks say they will appeal United States injunctions freezing nearly $US13 million allegedly belonging to the estate of the late \JPhilippines\j leader, Ferdinand Marcos. Both banks insist that they have never handled Marcos' money, and reject as forgeries the documents supporting the allegations, which were brought by an attorney representing victims of the Marcos regime. \I(Switzerland, USA, The Philippines)\i
United States officials say they are assuming that North Korea is stalling on peace talks until Kim Jong Il is formally vested as the nation's leader, an event expected to be held in October. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
In a move aimed at promoting economic recovery and national harmony, the South Korean Government announces an amnesty for seven corporate executives, including the chairmen of the Samsung and Daewoo groups, who were convicted last year of bribing disgraced former president, Roh Tae Woo. \I(South Korea)\i
Sithiporn Kham-art, a \JBangkok\j MP for the main opposition Democrat Party, turns himself into police after a warrant is issued for his arrest. Mr. Sithiporn is charged with the car-bomb killing of a fellow MP's mother on September 6, but vehemently protests his innocence, claiming the allegations were concocted to create a rift in the Democrat Party. \I(Thailand)\i
Nubuo Fujita, the only Japanese pilot to drop a bomb on the American mainland during World War II, dies of lung cancer at age 85 in Tusuchiura, northeast of \JTokyo\j. Mr. Fujita dropped the bomb outside Bookings, Oregon, while flying a reconnaissance plane from a submarine off the west coast of America in September 1942. \I(Japan, USA)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In the highest-level meeting between officials of the two estranged countries for some years, Cuban Foreign Minister, Roberto Robaina, engages in brief talks with the United States representative to the United Nations, Bill Richardson, who is acting in his capacity as president of the world body's Security Council at the time. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
United States officials say they are assuming that North Korea is stalling on peace talks until Kim Jong-Il is formally vested as the nation's leader, an event expected to take place in October. \I(USA, North Korea)\i
Two Swiss banks say they will appeal United States injunctions freezing nearly $US13 million allegedly belonging to the estate of the late \JPhilippines\j leader, Ferdinand Marcos. Both banks insist that they have never handled Marcos' money, and reject as forgeries the documents supporting the allegations, which were brought by an attorney representing victims of the Marcos regime. \I(Switzerland, USA, The Philippines)\i
Firefighters contain a 5,743-acre wildfire that has destroyed or damaged 83 homes, 65 outbuildings, two businesses, and 16 vehicles since breaking out last Saturday in the Sierra Nevada foothills northeast of San Francisco. Authorities say the blaze was started by a short in a motor home's generator. \I(USA)\i
Nubuo Fujita, the only Japanese pilot to drop a bomb on the American mainland during World War II, dies of lung cancer at age 85 in Tusuchiura, northeast of \JTokyo\j. Mr. Fujita dropped the bomb outside Bookings, Oregon, while flying a reconnaissance plane from a submarine off the west coast of America in September 1942. \I(Japan, USA)\i
A 31/2-year study conducted by the University of Miami's School of Medicine indicates that HIV-infected patients with a deficiency of the mineral, \Jselenium\j, are nearly 20 times more like to die of causes related to \JHIV\j. The team is now embarking on a study to determine whether \Jselenium\j treatment can improve the survival chances of infected patients. \I(USA)\i
At an American Society of Microbiology meeting in Toronto, Ronald Turner, of the Medical University of South Carolina, reports on a new drug administered in the form of a nasal spray, which can block entry of common cold viruses into the body and thereby dramatically reduce the cold's symptoms. According to Mr. Turner, the spray has only been tested on 177 people, and it will be several years before it is commercially available. \I(USA, Canada)\i
Preliminary results of experiments conducted by researchers from the National Institute of Health Sciences show that frog eggs nurtured in water taken from two wetland sites in northwest \JMinnesota\j produced malformed frog embryos. The experiments were instigated by discoveries of a number of grossly deformed frogs in the area in recent years, and the researchers say they must now determine whether people in the area are also at risk. \I(USA)\i
South Africa's former president, P.W. Botha, is subpoenaed to appear before a special session of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to answer questions about the role played by the State Security Council during the \Japartheid\j era. Lawyers for Mr. Botha request a withdrawal of the \Jsubpoena\j on the grounds of their client's ill health, but commission chairman, \JArchbishop\j Desmond Tutu, refuses the request, saying they will explore an alternative date for Mr. Botha's appearance. \I(South Africa)\i
Amid reports of further bloody civilian massacres in \JAlgeria\j, it is announced that Saudi \JArabia\j will host talks between Algerian President, General Liamine Zeroual, and the country's opposition Muslim rebel leaders. \I(Algeria, Saudi Arabia)\i
Zoran Djindjic, \JBelgrade\j's first non-socialist Mayor since World War II, is ousted from office at a meeting of 67 city council deputies, who also replace the management board of the city's Studio B \Jtelevision\j channel, which functioned under Mr. Djindjic as a platform in opposition to the state media. Later, riot police charge more than 10,000 demonstrators attempting to march in protest against the toppling of Mr. Djindjic, which was largely engineered by his former ally, Vuk Draskovic, whose Serbian Renewal Movement has now joined with the Socialist Party and the nationalists of the Radical Party. \I(Serbia/Yugoslavia)\i
Within a day of agreeing to resume formal peace talk with the Palestinian Authority, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, reiterates his government's policy of allowing more Jewish settlement construction in Arab areas, a policy vehemently contested by the Palestinians. \I(Israel, Palestine)\i
Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary, Mo Mowlam, announces that new anti-terrorist legislation, to be introduced next year, will no longer include the power to intern suspected paramilitaries without trial. The announcement, which comes as one of the British Government's most significant rewards to the Irish Republican Army (IRA) for its latest cease-fire, is regarded by Ulster Unionists as "another capitulation". \I(UK, Northern Ireland)\i
Salman Raduyev, the hardline Islamic leader of \JChechnya\j's "Lone Wolf" guerrillas, is seriously wounded in a car bomb attack in the capital of Grozny, the fourth attempt on his life this year. The maverick leader, who has survived horrific injuries in the past, disputes the authority of elected Chechen President, Aslan Maskhadov, refuses to recognize the Chechen peace deal with \JRussia\j, and has regularly threatened to mount a bombing campaign against Russian cities. \I(Russia, Chechnya)\i
Two Swiss banks say they will appeal United States injunctions freezing nearly $US13 million allegedly belonging to the estate of the late \JPhilippines\j leader, Ferdinand Marcos. Both banks insist that they have never handled Marcos' money, and reject as forgeries the documents supporting the allegations, which were brought by an attorney representing victims of the Marcos regime. \I(Switzerland, USA, The Philippines)\i
The Taliban Minister of Information and Culture blames European Union Commissioner, Emma Bonino, and her entourage, for their arrest in the Afghan capital of Kabul yesterday, dismissing Ms. Bonino's complaint of being threatened with a rifle as a minor issue, and accusing the European Union delegation of disrespectfully flouting Afghan laws by breaking the ban on filming and photography. \I(Afghanistan, Europe)\i
In a ceremony at Drancy outside Paris, an \Jarchbishop\j of \JFrance\j's Roman Catholic Church reads the "Declaration of Repentance", a document acknowledging error and seeking forgiveness for the silence of Church elders when 76,000 Jews were deported from \JFrance\j to Nazi death camps during World War II. The ceremonial confession comes a week before the trial of former senior \JVichy\j Government official, Maurice Papon, who is accused of ordering the deportation of 1,560 Jews to death camps between 1942 and 1944. \I(France, Germany)\i
Britain loses its latest bid for a partial relaxation of a European ban on its beef exports. The ban was imposed in March 1996 to prevent the spread of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as "mad cow" disease. \I(UK, Europe)\i
At an international conference in Moscow, experts attribute the rise in mortality among Russian men to excessive alcohol consumption, the underlying cause of which is identified as social and economic stress. The conference hears that in 1994, the average life expectancy for a Russian man fell to 57, while average daily alcohol consumption rose to the equivalent of six glasses of vodka. \I(Russia)\i
A leading monitoring service says the death of Diana, Princess of Wales has been the biggest British news story this century, with newspapers devoting an average of 35 per cent of space to the tragedy and its aftermath, compared with an average of 26 per cent of space devoted to the biggest events of World War II, including VE Day. \I(UK)\i
#
"October 1, 1997",637,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In the Indian capital of New Delhi, at least 27 people are injured when two bombs explode within minutes of each other in a crowded market. A Sikh group claims responsibility, but offers no motive for the blasts. Later, at least two people die and about 20 people are injured when three bombs rip through a passenger train approaching Ghaziabad town in Uttar Pradesh state. Authorities are unsure whether the two incidents are connected. \I(India)\i
A two-day outbreak of heavy artillery exchanges between Indian and Pakistani soldiers across the disputed Kashmir border leaves at least 38 civilians dead, and poses a threat to recent diplomatic attempts to resolve differences and reduce tensions between the neighboring countries. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
Sri Lankan officials report fresh fighting between Government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels near the rebel-held town of Puliyankulam. Officials say at least 50 rebels and 19 soldiers have been killed in the clashes, with large numbers of wounded on both sides. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Indonesia's Forestry Minister, Djamaludin Suryohadikusumo offers to resign when new fires break out in Java and also Lombok, which is located across a narrow strait from the major Indonesian tourist resort of Bali. Meteorologists predict that westerly winds will spread smoke from the fires across both Bali and the Indonesian capital of Jakarta. Meanwhile, officials are appealing to villagers not to shoot tigers, monkeys, and other rare wildlife fleeing fires in Java's national parks. \I(Indonesia)\i
Following a decision by the United Nations credentials committee to leave Cambodia's contested seat in the General Assembly unfilled, the country's Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, threatens to reconsider permitting any UN role in next May's national elections if his Government is not awarded the seat. \I(Cambodia)\i
Australian Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, strikes back at Amnesty International's attack on Australia's attitude to human rights in East Timor, insisting that Australia accepts more refugees per head of population than almost any other country in the world, and that the Australian Government constantly raises the issue of East Timor with Indonesia. \I(Australia, East Timor, Indonesia)\i
A former Japanese military police officer becomes the first Japanese to admit in civil court that he committed atrocities against Chinese during World War II. The admission of 83-year-old Yutaka Mio comes during a compensation lawsuit against the Japanese Government brought by families of Chinese victims believed to have been killed by the infamous Unit 731, which allegedly conducted germ warfare and other experiments on live prisoners. \I(Japan, China)\i
The European Commission publishes a feasibility study for a planned 15 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2010, challenging the United States, Japan, and other industrialized nations to develop a similar constructive program to combat global warming. In Washington, meanwhile, the threat of global warming is the focus of the agenda when more than 100 television weather forecasters attend a one-day White House conference hosted by President Clinton. \I(Europe, USA, Japan)\i
Indian Gul Mohammed, who in 1992 entered the \IGuinness Book of World Records\i as the world's shortest man, dies aged 36. Mohammed measured 22.1 inches, and was a chronic smoker who had been treated by doctors for 10 years. \I(India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Despite United States condemnation of a $US2 billion natural gas contract signed between Iran and the French oil firm, Total, France vows to continue dialogue with Iran, saying it desires good relation with Washington, but insisting that US law prohibiting investment in Iran does not apply outside the United States. France's strong stance is seconded by Russia, which also has a stake in the deal with Iran. \I(USA, France, Iran, Russia)\i
Cosmonaut Vladimir Titov becomes the first Russian to walk in space from an American shuttle when he engages in a five-hour spacewalk with astronaut Scott Parazynski outside the shuttle Atlantis, which is moored at the Mir space station. As part of the walk, the two men scale Mir's docking module to retrieve four US science experiments placed there in 1995. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The European Commission publishes a feasibility study for a planned 15 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2010, challenging the United States, Japan, and other industrialized nations to develop a similar constructive program to combat global warming. In Washington, meanwhile, the threat of global warming is the focus of the agenda when more than 100 television weather forecasters attend a one-day White House conference hosted by President Clinton. \I(Europe, USA, Japan)\i
At a meeting of NATO defense ministers, France outlines its position in terms of the organization, declining to rejoin NATO's military structure, but agreeing to participate in allied activities such as peacekeeping. France has specifically linked its military reintegration with a demand for European leadership of NATO's southern command, but the United States has refused to surrender the post. \I(France, USA)\i
The United States Senate Finance committee votes its support for a compromise bill to give President Clinton special powers to negotiate international trade deals. The bill is consistent with Clinton's objectives for "fast-track" trade negotiation authority, which would allow him to negotiate trade agreements that cannot be altered by Congress. \I(USA)\i
The United States Senate passes legislation banning imports of goods produced by forced child labor, at the same time extending a 1930 tariff law that bans goods made with indentured or convict labor to ensure that the legislation covers children in bonded work. Child labor activists have estimated that up to $US100 million worth of goods that are the product of forced child labor, such as rugs and carpets, enter the United States each year. \I(USA)\i
Speaking before a Senate subcommittee, cancer experts accuse the United States Government and the National Cancer Institute of minimizing the health risk to millions of Americans exposed to radioactive fallout from Nevada desert nuclear tests in the 1950s. Citing studies conducted in 1990 and 1993, the experts show an eight-fold risk of children under 19 dying from leukemia, and a three-fold risk of thyroid cancer for those exposed to radioactive iodine. \I(USA)\i
Two major studies conclude that radiation therapy dramatically reduces the risk of death from breast cancer when combined with conventional chemotherapy. A Canadian study finds that radiation therapy cuts the death rate by 29 per cent; a Danish study finds that 54 per cent of women who received radiation therapy were still alive after 10 years, compared with only 45 per cent of women who did not receive the treatment. \I(Canada, Denmark)\i
Paula Jones announces that she has hired the Dallas law firm of Rader, Campbell, Fisher, and Pyke to take over her sexual harassment lawsuit against President Bill Clinton. The original lawyers withdrew from the case after Jones reportedly rejected a settlement offer of $US700,000. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Israel releases ailing 61-year-old Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the founder and spiritual leader of the militant Islamic group, Hamas, who was jailed eight years ago for plotting attacks against the Jewish state. Israel's surprise decision sparks outrage among Palestinian officials, who have repeatedly called for Sheikh Yassin's release, but now regard his secret transfer to Jordan as deportation, and thereby another assault against the Palestinian nation. \I(Israel, Palestine, Jordan)\i
In a dawn raid, hundreds of NATO-led peacekeeping troops seize four television transmitters used in a propaganda offensive against the Dayton peace accords by Bosnian Serb hardliners loyal to Pale-based indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic. \I(Bosnia)\i
Four members of a United Nations team investigating alleged massacres of refugees in the former Zaire are recalled after their attempts to begin work are frustrated. The UN team has been requesting to go to Mbandaka, where the refugees crossed the river to Brazzaville in neighboring Congo, but the request has been repeatedly denied. \I(Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire), Congo)\i
Despite United States condemnation of a $US2 billion natural gas contract signed between Iran and the French oil firm, Total, France vows to continue dialogue with Iran, saying it desires good relation with Washington, but insisting that US law prohibiting investment in Iran does not apply outside the United States. France's strong stance is seconded by Russia, which also has a stake in the deal with Iran. \I(USA, France, Iran, Russia)\i
In the wake of recent air strikes by Iranian warplanes, exiled Iranian opposition groups meeting in Baghdad vow to escalate their struggle to overthrow the Tehran Government. \I(Iran, Iraq)\i
At a meeting of NATO defense ministers, France outlines its position in terms of the organization, declining to rejoin NATO's military structure, but agreeing to participate in allied activities such as peacekeeping. France has specifically linked its military reintegration with a demand for European leadership of NATO's southern command, but the United States has refused to surrender the post. \I(France, USA)\i
Relations between Russia and the breakaway republic of Chechnya suffer a major setback when Moscow's representatives to the region are expelled after the expiry of a deadline set by Chechen Vice-President, Vakha Arsanov, who was demanding flight clearance for an aircraft carrying a Chechen delegation to Azerbaijan. Moscow refused to yield to the demand, having accused the Chechens of using such flights for the purpose of smuggling. \I(Russia, Chechnya, Azerbaijan)\i
In a bid to reduce extremely high air pollution levels, the French Government imposes unprecedented emergency restrictions on Paris traffic, allowing only vehicles with odd-numbered license plates on the roads, while offering commuters free public transport, and providing extra train and bus services to cope with the added demand. \I(France)\i
Cosmonaut Vladimir Titov becomes the first Russian to walk in space from an American shuttle when he engages in a five-hour spacewalk with astronaut Scott Parazynski outside the shuttle Atlantis, which is moored at the Mir space station. As part of the walk, the two men scale Mir's docking module to retrieve four US science experiments placed there in 1995. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The European Commission publishes a feasibility study for a planned 15 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2010, challenging the United States, Japan, and other industrialized nations to develop a similar constructive program to combat global warming. In Washington, meanwhile, the threat of global warming is the focus of the agenda when more than 100 television weather forecasters attend a one-day White House conference hosted by President Clinton. \I(Europe, USA, Japan)\i
Two major studies conclude that radiation therapy dramatically reduces the risk of death from breast cancer when combined with conventional chemotherapy. A Canadian study finds that radiation therapy cuts the death rate by 29 per cent; a Danish study finds that 54 per cent of women who received radiation therapy were still alive after 10 years, compared with only 45 per cent of women who did not receive the treatment. \I(Canada, Denmark)\i
#
"October 2, 1997",638,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Indian Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Dujral, and his Pakistani counterpart, Nawar Sharif, use a recently activated telephone hotline to discuss this week's upsurge of artillery fire across the disputed Kashmir border, which has resulted in the deaths of more than 40 people from both sides. The two leaders express their concern about the sudden escalation of hostilities, and vow to try to put an end to such incidents. \I(India, Pakistan)\i
A wind shift saves the Indonesian capital of Jakarta from the choking smoke from forest fires that has been blanketing much of Southeast Asia, with heavy rains also cleansing the skies over some other parts of the region. In Singapore, however, the smog overhead thickens, and the Government warns the ailing and the elderly to curtail outdoor activities. \I(Indonesia, Singapore, Southeast Asia)\i
The Geneva-based International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) accuses the Singapore judiciary of being improperly compliant to the interests of the country's ruling People's Action Party (PAP). The accusation follows the Singapore High Court's ruling against Workers' Party leader, Joshua Jeyeretnam, in a libel suit brought by Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong. Mr. Jeyeretnam was ordered to pay damages of $S20,000, which the ICJ regards as unduly harsh, given that he is still to face suits brought by 10 other PAP litigants. \I(Switzerland, Singapore)\i
Philippine President, Fidel Ramos, holds a five-hour meeting with the country's Roman Catholic bishops in a bid to resolve differences and prevent problems worsening. The church leaders have been instrumental in organizing recent protests against plans to extend the president's term in office. \I(The Philippines)\i
Australia announces that it is currently completing an agreement with the Philippines to combat sexual abuse of Filipino children. The agreement will require both countries to seek ways of combating the trafficking of Filipino minors to Australia. \I(Australia, The Philippines)\i
Lawyers for British nurse, Lucille McLauchlan, confirm that they have lodged an appeal on her behalf with the Islamic court in the eastern Saudi city of Khobar. Ms. McLauchlan was recently sentenced by the court to 500 lashes and eight years imprisonment for her role in the murder of Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford. The lawyers also confirm that the case of the other accused, Deborah Parry, has been referred to a higher Saudi court without any information on a verdict. \I(UK, Saudi Arabia, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
A United States Navy F-14 Tomcat fighter crashes into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Virginia. The radar intercept officer, who safely ejected before the crash, is picked up by a Navy helicopter, but a search for the pilot of the fighter continues. \I(USA)\i
Israel provokes international criticism over reports that Hamas leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, was released in exchange for two Mossad agents captured in Jordan last week after a failed attempt to assassinate senior Hamas official, Khaled Meshaal. Canada, in particular, is outraged over reports that the two Israeli secret service agents were using Canadian passports to pose as Canadian tourists, a situation denounced by Canada's Prime Minister, Jean Chretien, as completely unacceptable. \I(Israel, Jordan, Canada)\i
After replacing the craft's main computer and receiving an overnight transmission of software from ground controllers, the Russian-US crew of the Mir space station begins restarting the orientation system that keeps the ship's solar panels facing the sun. It is hoped that the system will be fully operational before the US shuttle Atlantis undocks from Mir tomorrow to return to Earth. \I(USA, Russia)\i
American scientists reveal that the Global Surveyor spacecraft has detected a giant chasm deeper than the Grand Canyon on Mars, along with evidence that an ocean bigger than the Pacific may once have existed on the red planet. \I(USA)\i
Thousands line the streets of Rio de Janeiro to welcome Pope John Paul II, who is on a four-day visit to Brazil, the world's biggest Catholic country. In his arrival statement, the Pope expresses hope that Brazil's religious heritage will help it resolve the plight of urban street children and the vast gap between the country's rich and the poor. \I(Brazil, Italy)\i
In a massive sweep of 18 northern California sites, United States law enforcement agents arrest ten members of the Luis Garcia-Fidel Carvajal organization, a Mexican ring believed responsible for smuggling hundreds of pounds of cocaine into the San Francisco Bay area. Prosecutors confirm that both Garcia and Carvajal are among those taken into custody. \I(USA)\i
The Cuban Government announces that the trial of American Walter Van der Veer will be closed to the media. Mr. Van der Veer is charged with crimes against state security, and faces the death penalty if convicted. \I(Cuba, USA)\i
In the Caribbean port of Santa Marta, a bomb intended for the armor-plated staff car carrying Colombia's chief of the armed forces, General Manuel Jose Bonett, kills Santa Marta mayoral candidate, Rafael Zuniga, who is traveling in a separate vehicle. \I(Colombia)\i
The Washington-based Death Penalty Information Center says Texas has accounted for more than half the executions carried out in the United States this year, with nationwide executions currently numbering 57, a figure exceeding the previous high of 56 in 1995. The center also says that since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976, United States authorities have executed 235 whites, 152 blacks, 24 Hispanics, and four others. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, visits the ailing leader of the Islamic group Hamas in a Jordanian hospital. Mr. Arafat welcomes yesterday's release of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin from an Israeli jail, but says that the Sheikh's exile in Jordan is unacceptable, and insists that he must be allowed to return to his home in the Gaza Strip. \I(Palestine, Jordan, Israel)\i
Israel provokes international criticism over reports that Hamas leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, was released in exchange for two Mossad agents captured in Jordan last week after a failed attempt to assassinate senior Hamas official, Khaled Meshaal. Canada, in particular, is outraged over reports that the two Israeli secret service agents were using Canadian passports to pose as Canadian tourists, a situation denounced by Canada's Prime Minister, Jean Chretien, as completely unacceptable. \I(Israel, Jordan, Canada)\i
Winnie Madikilzela Mandela, former wife of South Africa's President Nelson Mandela, tells a news conference that there is no credible evidence to support recent allegations against her, citing five witnesses she claims can vouch for her innocence. Ms. Mandela has been subpoenaed by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to answer questions in connection with a number of murders, beatings, and kidnappings during the 1980s. \I(South Africa)\i
Serbian riot police use batons and tear gas to break up a demonstration by some 20,000 ethnic Albanian students in Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. Later faced with international criticism over the use of force against peaceful protesters, the Serbian Government says the students were demanding a separate university system within an independent republic. Albanian schools and university courses have been closed since 1989, and an agreement last year to reopen them has not yet been implemented. \I(Serbia)\i
Congo's civil war threatens to involve the former Zaire after gunners in Kinshasa shell neighboring Brazzaville in retaliation for the deaths of 21 people, who were killed when artillery fire crossed the Congo River separating the two capitals. The militia of Congo's ex-president, Denis Sassou Nguesso, has been battling President Pascal Lissouba's army in Brazzaville since June. \I(Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire), Congo)\i
In southern France, a bus en route to Italy topples off an overpass and onto a road 50 feet below, killing at least 12 people and seriously injuring another 30. Officials say most of the passengers were from Morocco. \I(France, Italy, Morocco)\i
After replacing the craft's main computer and receiving an overnight transmission of software from ground controllers, the Russian-US crew of the Mir space station begins restarting the orientation system that keeps the ship's solar panels facing the sun. It is hoped that the system will be fully operational before the US shuttle Atlantis undocks from Mir tomorrow to return to Earth. \I(USA, Russia)\i
United Nations officials report that Iraq has blocked UN weapons inspectors from three sites over the past few days, a lack of compliance which could result in additional sanctions against Baghdad. \I(Iraq)\i
Thousands line the streets of Rio de Janeiro to welcome Pope John Paul II, who is on a four-day visit to Brazil, the world's biggest Catholic country. In his arrival statement, the Pope expresses hope that Brazil's religious heritage will help it resolve the plight of urban street children and the vast gap between the country's rich and the poor. \I(Brazil, Italy)\i
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, deflects media questions about his political intentions, triggering speculation that he may be planning to run for a third term in the year 2000. The 1993 Russian Constitution limits presidents to two terms, and Yeltsin has previously denied that he would seek re-election. \I(Russia)\i
Facing a year-end deadline for signing membership treaties with Poland, the Czech Republic, and Hungary, NATO confirms that the three former communist countries will have to bear most of the cost of improving their forces and infrastructure to join the alliance operations. \I(Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary)\i
The Geneva-based International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) accuses the Singapore judiciary of being improperly compliant to the interests of the country's ruling People's Action Party (PAP). The accusation follows the Singapore High Court's ruling against Workers' Party leader, Joshua Jeyeretnam, in a libel suit brought by Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong. Mr. Jeyeretnam was ordered to pay damages of $S20,000, which the ICJ regards as unduly harsh, given that he is still to face suits brought by 10 other PAP litigants. \I(Switzerland, Singapore)\i
Russian prosecutors launch a criminal investigation to determine whether a payment of $US100,000 received by the country's former privatization chief, Alfred Kokh, played a role in the success of Uneximbank, a large financial and industrial group, in gaining a stake in the State-owned telecommunications company, Svyazinvest. \I(Russia)\i
French investigators say it has been established that paint scrapes on the wreckage of the car in which Diana, Princess of Wales, and two others died came from a Fiat Uno, adding weight to their theory that the Mercedes struck another vehicle before striking a concrete pillar in the tunnel beneath the Pont de l'Alma. Earlier, investigators had identified remnants of a Fiat Uno rear brake light among fragments of the Mercedes' headlamp about 30 yards from the fatal crash site. \I(France, UK)\i
Lawyers for British nurse, Lucille McLauchlan, confirm that they have lodged an appeal on her behalf with the Islamic court in the eastern Saudi city of Khobar. Ms. McLauchlan was recently sentenced by the court to 500 lashes and eight years imprisonment for her role in the murder of Australian nurse, Yvonne Gilford. The lawyers also confirm that the case of the other accused, Deborah Parry, has been referred to a higher Saudi court without any information on a verdict. \I(UK, Saudi Arabia, Australia)\i
#
"October 3, 1997",639,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Indonesia revokes logging licenses of 29 timber companies implicated in starting the forest fires responsible for the dangerous pall of smog enveloping much of Southeast Asia. Indonesia's move follows an ultimatum to 176 companies to account for their actions after satellite pictures located fire hotspots on land licensed to the companies. \I(Indonesia)\i
Sri Lankan Tamil parties reject a Government plan to hold a series of referendums to determine geographical devolution of the country's north and east, saying enactment of such a plan will only aggravate the ethnic divide. The referendums are planned to follow proposed constitutional changes aimed at appeasing minority Tamil separatists by giving more powers to regional administrative units. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Senior Australian opposition politician, Senator Nick Sherry, attempts to commit suicide after being targeted in the escalating parliamentary travel expenses scandal, which has thus far resulted in the resignations of three Government ministers, and the dismissal of four members of Prime Minister John Howard's staff. \I(Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
In response to this week's Iranian attacks on targets in Iraq, the United States orders the aircraft carrier \INimitz\i and six other warships to speed to the Gulf to back efforts to enforce the ban on flights over southern Iraq. \I(USA, Iran, Iraq)\i
Israel expresses regret when Canada recalls its Ambassador to Israel, David Berger, in protest against the use of forged Canadian passports by two Mossad agents detained in Jordan after an alleged attempt to assassinate Hamas chief, Khaled Meshaal. \I(Israel, Canada)\i
The United States space shuttle Atlantis undocks from Russia's Mir space station, circling at a distance of 240 feet to capture pictures that may pinpoint the elusive leak in the station's damaged Spektr module. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Federal agents in the Texas border city of El Paso reveal that they have rounded up and deported 43 people over a two-week period. The agents say they are abiding by a new immigration law which allows deportation of resident aliens, who are not US citizens, if they have been convicted of a felony at any time. \I(USA)\i
In the second major beef recall in the United States in less than two months, the Department of Agriculture requests that Omaha-based BeefAmerica recalls 443,656 pounds of hamburger due to suspected contamination with a strain of E.coli bacteria. \I(USA)\i
On the first full day of his Brazilian trip, Pope John Paul II holds a private meeting with President Fernando Henrique Cardoso. Although no official comment is made on the nature of the talks, a controversial abortion bill currently in Congress was expected to be on the agenda. \I(Italy, Brazil)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
A powerful earthquake, measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale, hits central Italy, causing further damage to the basilica of St. Francis in Assisi. No deaths are reported from the tremor, which was centered on the town of Colfiorito in Umbria, six miles from the epicenter of last week's twin quakes, which resulted in the deaths of 11 people. \I(Italy)\i
Israel expresses regret when Canada recalls its Ambassador to Israel, David Berger, in protest against the use of forged Canadian passports by two Mossad agents detained in Jordan after an alleged attempt to assassinate Hamas chief, Khaled Meshaal. \I(Israel, Canada)\i
In response to this week's Iranian attacks on targets in Iraq, the United States orders the aircraft carrier \INimitz\i and six other warships to speed to the Gulf to back efforts to enforce the ban on flights over southern Iraq. \I(USA, Iran, Iraq)\i
Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, engages in battle with the opposition-dominated Duma over important economic reform laws, issuing a veiled threat to consider dissolving the parliament if the laws are not passed. \I(Russia)\i
The United States space shuttle Atlantis undocks from Russia's Mir space station, circling at a distance of 240 feet to capture pictures that may pinpoint the elusive leak in the station's damaged Spektr module. \I(USA, Russia)\i
On the first full day of his Brazilian trip, Pope John Paul II holds a private meeting with President Fernando Henrique Cardoso. Although no official comment is made on the nature of the talks, a controversial abortion bill currently in Congress was expected to be on the agenda. \I(Italy, Brazil)\i
Trevor Rees-Jones, the sole survivor of the Paris car crash which killed Diana, Princess of Wales, returns to Britain aboard a helicopter owned by his employer, Mohammed Al Fayed, whose son Dodi was also killed in the crash along with the driver, Henri Paul. Before leaving France, where he has been hospitalized for more than a month, Mr. Rees-Jones was still unable to give investigators any details of the August 31 crash. \I(France, UK)\i
#
"October 4, 1997",640,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In the third change of Government since elections in 1994, Nepal's coalition of communists and monarchists collapses when Prime Minister, Lokendra Bahadur Chand, loses a no-confidence motion proposed by the main opposition Nepali Congress Party. \I(Nepal)\i
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who have been waging a long-running separatist war against the Sri Lankan Government, deny any knowledge of a missing shipment of mortar-bombs bound for the Sri Lankan military from Zimbabwe. The consignment went missing in July, and the Government has suggested that the ship was hijacked by the Tamil rebels. \I(Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe)\i
\BThe Americas\b
United States Defense Secretary, William Cohen, arrives in France after a brief stop-over in Bosnia. Despite recent political differences over NATO leadership and France's natural gas deal with Iran, Mr. Cohen says the US and French militaries would like to forge closer ties. \I(USA, France, Bosnia)\i
A Pentagon decision to test-fire America's most powerful military laser against an aging Air Force satellite is approved by the State Department, which maintains that the experiment is for defense purposes only, and will not complicate the nation's arms control goals. \I(USA)\i
Twenty-seven people are arrested at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Station during a 1,200-strong demonstration against NASA's recently approved plan to launch the Cassini space probe on an 11-year mission to Saturn and its moons. The bus-sized Cassini carries a little over 72 pounds of plutonium and will be launched on October 13 aboard a United States Air Force Titan 4B rocket. \I(USA)\i
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) releases its final crime figures for 1996. The figures show that serious crime in the United States has dropped for the fifth consecutive year, with an overall drop of 3 per cent from the previous year, and a 9 per cent drop in the number of killings. \I(USA)\i
In Mexico City, a police officer is charged with homicide and 19 other officers are charged with abuse of authority following a September 8 shootout between police and alleged thieves in a poor neighborhood of Buenos Aires. At the end of the shootout, relatives say three young men were pushed into a police van and were never seen again. \I(Mexico)\i
Hundreds of thousands of men hold hands and pray at a six-hour revival meeting held on Washington's historic Mall by the male-only evangelical group, Promise Keepers. Promise Keepers has been America's fastest growing Christian evangelical movement in recent years, and its stated commitment to strengthening family bonds has been heartily endorsed by President Bill Clinton. \I(USA)\i
In a speech to the Brazilian people on the third day of his visit, Pope John Paul II uses some of his strongest words ever to condemn abortion, urging Roman Catholics to oppose what he describes as an abominable crime and the shame of humanity. \I(Brazil, Italy)\i
The world's most complete fossilized skeleton of Tyrannosaurus Rex, the carnivorous king of the dinosaurs, is auctioned at Sotheby's in New York. Following heated bidding, the Tyrannosaurus, dubbed "Sue" after discoverer Susan Hendrickson, is sold to The Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago for $US7.6 million. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Despite the truce called by the Islamic Salvation Army, Algeria's brutal insurgency continues, with witnesses reporting at least 105 people killed in 48 hours of random massacres and bombings. In one incident, sixteen schoolchildren and the driver were killed when armed assailants attacked a school bus. \I(Algeria)\i
Helicopters and lifeboats ferry more than 670 people to safety after the cruise ship \IRomantica\i catches fire 65 miles off the southern coast of Cyprus. The Cypriot ship was on a voyage to Port Said, Egypt, when fire broke out in the engine room and quickly began to spread to the rest of the vessel. \I(Cyprus, Egypt)\i
Israeli media reports link Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, with the failed attempt to assassinate Hamas chief, Khaled Meshaal, in the Jordanian capital of Amman. It is alleged that Mr. Netanyahu ordered the Israeli secret service organization, Mossad, to draw up a target list of Hamas leaders abroad. Israeli opposition legislator, Yossi Sarid, demands that parliament investigates what he derides as an "infantile decision" on the part of the prime minister. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
A spokesman for United Nations overseer, Carlos Westendorp, states that Bosnian Serb hardliners will have to sack their anti-Western propagandists if they want to get back on the air in Bosnia. The statement comes after NATO-led troops seized four transmitters in Pale because of biased and inflammatory television broadcasts. \I(Bosnia)\i
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who have been waging a long-running separatist war against the Sri Lankan Government, deny any knowledge of a missing shipment of mortar-bombs bound for the Sri Lankan military from Zimbabwe. The consignment went missing in July, and the Government has suggested that the ship was hijacked by the Tamil rebels. \I(Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe)\i
United States Defense Secretary, William Cohen, arrives in France after a brief stop-over in Bosnia. Despite recent political differences over NATO leadership and France's natural gas deal with Iran, Mr. Cohen says the US and French militaries would like to forge closer ties. \I(USA, France, Bosnia)\i
In a speech to the Brazilian people on the third day of his visit, Pope John Paul II uses some of his strongest words ever to condemn abortion, urging Roman Catholics to oppose what he describes as an abominable crime and the shame of humanity. \I(Brazil, Italy)\i
Spain's Princess Cristina, the 32-year-old daughter of King Juan Carlos, marries 29-year-old Olympic handball player, Inaki Urdangarin. The glittering wedding ceremony in Barcelona's 700-year-old cathedral is attended by 1,400 guests, including Britain's Prince Edward, Monaco's Prince Rainier, and Queen Noor, wife of Jordan's King Hussein. \I(Spain, UK, Monaco, Jordan)\i
Researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine find that \IAnopheles plumbeus,\i a species of mosquito found throughout Britain, is capable of carrying and transmitting the tropical falciparum strain of malaria. Until now, it has been thought that all British mosquito species were unable to harbor the deadly tropical parasite, which kills more than 2 million people worldwide each year. \I(UK)\i
Controversial British historian and Elizabethan scholar, A.L. Rowse, dies aged 93 at his home in Cornwell. During his lifetime, Rowse published almost 100 books of scholarship, and achieved worldwide notoriety in 1987 when he claimed that the elusive Dark Lady of William Shakespeare's sonnets was the Elizabethan lord chamberlain's mistress, Emilia Lanier, a theory that continues to be challenged by academics. \I(UK)\i
#
"October 5, 1997",641,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
More than 180 people are killed and hundreds more are injured in a major three-hour battle between Sir Lankan troops and Tamil Tiger rebels at Obbusudan, in the Mullaitivu district, 260 kilometers north of the capital of Colombo. The battle began when the rebels attacked a camp of soldiers supporting the Government's five-month offensive to capture a highway leading north toward the city of Jaffna. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The joint construction of two nuclear reactors on North Korea's east coast is disrupted after South Korean workers throw a newspaper containing a photograph of the North's leader into a rubbish bin. North Korean authorities confine the South's workers to their quarters, and angrily demand an official apology for the insult, a stance which prompts the South to postpone the departure of a survey team to the site. \I(The Koreas)\i
Supporters of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) stage a nationwide train and road blockade in a protest aimed at bringing down the 15-month-old Awami League Government of Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina. As a consequence of the protesters' dawn-to-afternoon action, the capital of Dhaka is cut off from the rest of the country and millions of people are stranded. \I(Bangladesh)\i
Malaysian Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, denies speculation that he will resign over the country's deepening economic crisis, accusing the Western media of trying to oust him, and declaring that he will not be silenced in his attack on foreign financiers, who he blames for undermining the economies of all of Southeast Asia. \I(Malaysia, Southeast Asia)\i
Indonesia's President Soeharto again apologizes to other regional nations for the choking smoke drifting across Southeast Asia from forest fires in Sumatra and Borneo. A force of about 50,000 soldiers, rangers, and volunteers is currently engaged in an attempt to combat the fires. \I(Indonesia, Southeast Asia)\i
Following the resignation of three ministers over the travel expenses scandal, Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, announces an overhaul of his ministry, which critics say draws too heavily on the conservative side of the Coalition, shifting the political balance further to the Right. \I(Australia)\i
Britain's Greg Rusedski defeats Australia's Mark Philippoussis in the final of the Swiss Indoor Tennis Championships at Basle, a victory that advances Rusedski to No. 4 in the world rankings. \I(UK, Australia, Switzerland)\i
Spain's Alex Criville wins the Australian 500cc Motorcycle Grand Prix at Philip Island. \I(Spain, Australia)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The White House gives Justice Department investigators previously undisclosed videotapes of 44 coffee meetings with campaign donors hosted by President Clinton in 1995 and 1996. White House Counsel, Lanny Davis, insists that the tapes do not reveal any illegal activity on the part of Mr. Clinton, but simply augment information already provided to the investigators. \I(USA)\i
Astronaut Michael Foale spends another day in space when thick cloud prevents the nighttime landing of the United States space shuttle Atlantis, which is bringing Foale back to Earth after his 41/2 month tour of duty on Russia's Mir space station. \I(USA, Russia)\i
Colombia's President Ernesto Samper summons the country's top military personnel to a "war council" after 28 policemen, soldiers, and judicial officials are killed in separate attacks within a space of 24 hours. Either right-wing paramilitaries or Marxist rebels are believed to be responsible for the attacks. \I(Colombia)\i
In Rio de Janeiro, more than a million people attend the final Mass of Pope John Paul's Brazilian visit. The 77-year-old pontiff focuses on defending the family, an institution he describes as "the fundamental community of love and life". \I(Brazil, Italy)\i
Swedish golfer Annika Sorenstam retains her LPGA Betsy King Classic title at Kutztown, Pennsylvania, finishing with a 14-under 274 total. \I(Sweden, USA)\i
Hale Irwin wins the Vantage Champion at Clemmons, North Carolina, his eighth victory on the Senior PGA Tour this year, pushing his earnings for one season to a golfing record of $US2,023,864. \I(USA)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Amid opposition calls for an official inquiry and the resignation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Government defends its right to fight terrorism without compromise, but stops short of confirming that Israeli secret agents were responsible for the attempted assassination of Hamas leader, Khaled Meshaal. Mr. Meshaal's ear was injected with poison by two men as he entered his office in the Jordanian capital of Amman on September 25, and his death was only averted when Israel was allegedly forced to supply the antidote. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
The World Health Organization headquarters in Iraq, which houses an office for United Nations officials monitoring the oil-for-food program, is attacked by gunmen firing bullets and throwing grenades. The attack takes place after office hours, and United Nations officials react with outrage, pointing out that the property should have been protected by the Iraqi Government. \I(Iraq)\i
In Rio de Janeiro, more than a million people attend the final Mass of Pope John Paul's Brazilian visit. The 77-year-old pontiff focuses on defending the family, an institution he describes as "the fundamental community of love and life". \I(Brazil, Italy)\i
Italian and Polish Catholic bishops consecrate St. Joseph's Church, a new church constructed near the site of the former World War II Auschwitz concentration camp in memory of the victims of the Nazis. \I(Italy, Poland, Germany)\i
Astronaut Michael Foale spends another day in space when thick cloud prevents the nighttime landing of the United States space shuttle Atlantis, which is bringing Foale back to Earth after his tour of duty on Russia's Mir space station. \I(USA, Russia)\i
A study co-ordinated by the Imperial Cancer Research Fund in Oxford concludes that the risk of contracting breast cancer is 2.3 times higher among women who are receiving hormone replacement therapy (HRT), with the overall risk 35 per cent higher for women who receive HRT, on average, for 11 years. The four-year study, which pooled data from more than 40 previous research projects involving more than 60,000 women, was specifically designed to resolve the debate about HRT's links to breast cancer. \I(UK)\i
A revised edition of \IDiana, Her True Story,\i the controversial 1992 biography of the late Princess of Wales, is withdrawn from sale at Harrods department store on the order of owner, Mohammed Al Fayed, whose son Dodi was killed in the August 31 Paris car crash with Diana. Author Andrew Morton's recent revelation that Diana herself was the primary source of information for his book has also distressed and angered Buckingham Palace and members of the Spencer family, who are considering taking legal action. The British Red Cross, meanwhile, says it will not accept an offered donation from the profits of the revised book, which now contains an 18,000-word transcript of tape recordings made by the Princess. \I(UK, France)\i
Swedish golfer Annika Sorenstam retains her LPGA Betsy King Classic title at Kutztown, Pennsylvania, finishing with a 14-under 274 total. \I(Sweden, USA)\i
Britain's Greg Rusedski defeats Australia's Mark Philippoussis in the final of the Swiss Indoor Tennis Championships at Basle, a victory that advances Rusedski to No. 4 in the world rankings. \I(UK, Australia, Switzerland)\i
Spain's Alex Criville win the Australian 500cc Motorcycle Grand Prix at Philip Island. \I(Spain, Australia)\i
#
"October 6, 1997",642,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Preparing the ground for the Sino-US summit later this month, China's Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Development, Wu Yi, calls on the United States to end the annual review of China's Most Favored Nation (MFN) trading status, adding that economic ties between the two nations will only improve when trade is divorced from other political issues. \I(China, USA)\i
Indonesia's Soeharto Government comes under increasing criticism, both regional and internal, over its handling of the forest fire emergency. The country's biggest Islamic organizations call on the Government to act more decisively, and to deal with the problems of corruption and collusion behind the crisis. \I(Indonesia)\i
President Clinton hosts a conference of scientists, economists, and business leaders at Georgetown University to discuss the issue of global warming, due to be debated in December at an international climate conference in Kyoto, Japan. President Clinton says the United States will be asking for meaningful but equitable commitments from all nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. \I(USA, Japan)\i
Street children gather in the Sri Lankan capital to demand the right to go to school.
The organizer of the demonstration, World Vision Lanka, says there is no state program to assist the estimated 20,000 street children who live in Colombo and other major towns. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The latest data released by China's State Statistical Bureau indicates that the urban population has reached more than 500 million, or 43 per cent of its total population, a marked contrast to the early 1980s, when peasants accounted for around 85 per cent of the nation. \I(China)\i
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and her husband the Duke of Edinburgh arrive in Islamabad for a two-week state visit to Pakistan and India, the first the Queen has undertaken to the sub-continent since 1983. \I(UK, Pakistan, India)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Professor Stanley Prusiner, a biochemist at the University of California in San Francisco, wins the 1997 Nobel Prize for Medicine for his pioneering work on deadly proteins known as prions, which are thought to be the cause of brain-wasting illnesses such as Alzheimer's disease and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. \I(USA)\i
The International Court of Justice in the Hague announces that it will hear a dispute among Libya, Britain, and the United States over the December 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, which killed 270 people. London and Washington are demanding the extradition of two Libyans suspected of planting a bomb on the plane, but Libya is asking the court to rule against the demand. \I(The Netherlands, Libya, UK, USA)\i
Preparing the ground for the Sino-US summit later this month, China's Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Development, Wu Yi, calls on the United States to end the annual review of China's Most Favored Nation (MFN) trading status, adding that economic ties between the two nations will only improve when trade is divorced from other political issues. \I(China, USA)\i
At a joint news conference, United States Defense Secretary, William Cohen, and French Defense Minister, Alain Richard, confirm their resolve to cement close security ties between Paris and Washington, despite their disagreement over the French company Total's $US2 billion natural gas deal with Iran. \I(USA, France, Iran)\i
Three United States citizens appear in a federal court in northern Virginia on charges of spying for East Germany in the years before the end of the Cold War. It is alleged that the three were ideologically motivated, and were recruited by East Germany during their student days at the University of Wisconsin. \I(USA, Germany)\i
After a one-day delay because of unfavorable weather, the United States space shuttle Atlantis lands at Cape Canaveral, returning NASA astronaut, Michael Foale, from his 41/2 month mission on board Russia's Mir space station. Back on Mir, meanwhile, a cargo craft fails to undock from the station, forcing a delay in the arrival of another craft bringing fresh supplies. \I(USA, Russia)\i
President Clinton hosts a conference of scientists, economists, and business leaders at Georgetown University to discuss the issue of global warming, due to be debated in December at an international climate conference in Kyoto, Japan. President Clinton says the United States will be asking for meaningful but equitable commitments from all nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. \I(USA, Japan)\i
A political storm brews over the release of videotapes showing campaign contributors attending informal coffee meetings at the White House between August 1995 and 1996, with Republicans accusing the White House of obstruction because of the delay in handing over the tapes to the Justice Department, and President Clinton insisting that the tapes' belated discovery was an unintentional oversight. \I(USA)\i
President Clinton wields his line-item veto to rule out 38 United States military construction projects worth $US286.7 million. It is the second time that Mr. Clinton has used his veto power, which has been sought by US presidents for decades. \I(USA)\i
Emerging from a three-hour "war council" with President Ernesto Samper and senior military commanders, Colombia's military chief, General Manuel Jose Bonett, confirms that he is anticipating a surge in urban terrorism as leftist rebels attempt to sabotage upcoming elections, but will boost intelligence operations in the cities in a bid to avert the attacks. A total of 28 security officials have already been killed in separate attacks over a period of 24 hours. \I(Colombia)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Jordan releases two Israeli secret service agents held since the attempted assassination of Hamas Chief, Khaled Meshaal, after Israel allows freed Hamas spiritual leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, to return to his home in Gaza. As part of the exchange for the two Mossad agents, Israel also frees 20 Palestinian and Jordanian prisoners, and announces that a further 50 prisoners will be released in the next two weeks. \I(Jordan, Israel, Palestine)\i
Ten Bosnian Croat war crimes suspects voluntarily surrender and are taken into custody by the Yugoslavia war crimes tribunal in the Hague. Among the ten is leading Bosnian Croat politician, Dario Kordic, one of the tribunal's most wanted men. \I(Bosnia, Yugoslavia, The Netherlands)\i
The International Court of Justice in the Hague announces that it will hear a dispute among Libya, Britain, and the United States over the December 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, which killed 270 people. London and Washington are demanding the extradition of two Libyans suspected of planting a bomb on the plane, but Libya is asking the court to rule against the demand. \I(The Netherlands, Libya, UK, USA)\i
Iraqi officials announce the arrest of an Iranian intelligence agent who allegedly took part in yesterday's armed attack on the Baghdad office of the World Health Organization. \I(Iraq, Iran)\i
The electoral turnout for Serbia's presidential run-off between Socialist Party candidate, Zoran Lilic, and Radical Party candidate, Vojislav Seselj, fails to reach the required 50 per cent threshold, thereby invalidating the results. New elections will now have to be called. \I(Serbia)\i
Three United States citizens appear in a federal court in northern Virginia on charges of spying for East Germany in the years before the end of the Cold War. It is alleged that the three were ideologically motivated, and were recruited by East Germany during their student days at the University of Wisconsin. \I(USA, Germany)\i
After a one-day delay because of unfavorable weather, the United States space shuttle Atlantis lands at Cape Canaveral, returning NASA astronaut, Michael Foale, from his 41/2 month mission on board Russia's Mir space station. Back on Mir, meanwhile, a cargo craft fails to undock from the station, forcing a delay in the arrival of another craft bringing fresh supplies. \I(USA, Russia)\i
At a joint news conference, United States Defense Secretary, William Cohen, and French Defense Minister, Alain Richard, confirm their resolve to cement close security ties between Paris and Washington, despite their disagreement over the French company Total's $US2 billion natural gas deal with Iran. \I(USA, France, Iran)\i
After more than three years of negotiations, Russia agrees to release a dossier of personal and official documents relating to British prisoners of war, which was compiled by the Germans over 50 years ago, and taken to Moscow by the Soviet Army after the capture of Berlin. The documents include diaries and letters, as well as administrative records, and will be of great emotional and historical significance to Britain. \I(Russia, UK, Germany)\i
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and her husband the Duke of Edinburgh arrive in Islamabad for a two-week state visit to Pakistan and India, the first the Queen has undertaken to the sub-continent since 1983. \I(UK, Pakistan, India)\i
#
"October 7, 1997",643,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
Surya Bahadur Thapa, the 69-year-old leader of a small royalist party, is sworn in as Nepal's fourth prime minister in three years after playing an instrumental role in bringing down a 6-month-old coalition government dominated by the Communist Party and the National Democratic party. \I(Nepal)\i
The Indonesian Government says it is gathering evidence for legal action against 29 forestry companies accused of illegal burning to clear land in Sumatra and Borneo. Meanwhile, Australian aerial water bombing teams begin their assault on Indonesia's forest fires from the southern Sumatran province of Lampung, where visibility through smoke clouds is adequate for the aircraft to operate. \I(Indonesia, Australia)\i
Sri Lanka's Defense Ministry says further heavy battles between security forces and Tamil Tiger rebels have raised the total death toll to at least 532 since the Government began its offensive to clear a land route to the north. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
Reports from Afghanistan confirm that the anti-Taliban alliance has captured the strategic town of Hairaton, which is located on the border of Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. \I(Afghanistan, Uzbekistan)\i
The Philippines Supreme Court is forced to issue a temporary restraining order against further gasoline price increases after protesting bus drivers stage a strike that strands hundreds of thousands of commuters. The oil companies say they have been forced to raise prices because of the depreciation of the Philippine peso, which has lost 34 per cent of its value since July. \I(The Philippines)\i
The secretary-general of South Korea's ruling New Korea Party, Kang Sam-jae, accuses leading opposition presidential candidate, Kim Dae-jung, of having accumulated millions of dollars in secret slush funds under false or borrowed names. The opposition National Congress for New Politics angrily rejects the accusation as a desperate smear campaign against its popular party leader, and threatens Mr. Kang with legal action. \I(South Korea)\i
Officials from the United States and South Korea begin meetings to investigate claims by South Korean inspectors that some of September's shipments of US beef to South Korea were contaminated with a potentially lethal strain of E.coli bacteria. \I(South Korea, USA)\i
The Australian Government calls for a review of Athletics Australia's appointment of Berlin-based Ekkart Arbeit as Australia's new head athletics coach. The appointment of the former East German coach is the subject of widespread controversy because of doubts over Mr. Arbeit's role in the systematic administering of performance-enhancing drugs to East German athletes during the 1980s. \I(Australia, Germany)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The Russian-US crew of the troubled Mir space station locates an unremoved locking device which prevented the uncoupling of an unmanned cargo ship yesterday, and caused the postponement of an incoming cargo vessel. \I(Russia, USA)\i
Officials from the United States and South Korea begin meetings to investigate claims by South Korean inspectors that some of September's shipments of US beef to South Korea were contaminated with a potentially lethal strain of E.coli bacteria. \I(South Korea, USA)\i
Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope identify a celestial body they dub the "Pistol Star", which is 10 million times more powerful than the sun, and possibly the biggest and brightest star in the known universe. The astronomers explain that it cannot be seen with the naked eye because of interstellar dust between the Earth and the center of the Milky Way, where the huge star is located. \I(USA)\i
Los Angeles-based Martin Poll Films announces that it has acquired the film rights to the controversial revised edition of Andrew Morton's book, \IDiana, Her True Story,\i and plans to start production next year. Mr. Poll's company made the 1993 four-hour television mini-series based on the original edition of the book. \I(USA, UK)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Central Italy is struck by an earthquake measuring 4.9 on the Richter scale, the fourth powerful quake in less than two weeks, with the epicenter again in Umbria, and the 13th century basilica of St. Francis in Assisi suffering further damage. The tremor is also felt 60 miles away in Rome, and experts fear that the capital's ancient monuments and art treasures will likewise be at risk if the epicenter moves closer. \I(Italy)\i
In Belfast, Northern Ireland's rival factions begin the first round of talks dealing with structures to ease tensions in the British-ruled province. It is the first time since Ireland was partitioned in 1921 that the pro-British and pro-Irish parties have engaged in a constructive business-like meeting. \I(Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, UK)\i
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, announces that an inquiry will be held into the bungled assassination attempt of senior Hamas official, Khaled Meshaal, in Amman, Jordan, which is understood to have been carried out by two Israeli secret service agents. The inquiry is immediately denounced by the opposition as a fraud, and an attempt to whitewash one of the most serious foul-ups ever made. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
Former French Vichy Government official, Maurice Papon, 87, formally surrenders on the eve of his trial for crimes against humanity during World War II. Mr. Papon is accused of ordering the handover of more than 1,500 Bordeaux Jews to the Nazis between 1942 and 1944. Most were later gassed at Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland. \I(France, Germany, Poland)\i
Despite a powerful appeal by Italian Prime Minister, Romano Prodi, the allied Communist Refoundation party rejects the Government's controversial deficit-cutting budget proposals, leaving Mr. Prodi's center-left coalition without a majority in the lower house of parliament. \I(Italy)\i
Russia's Communist-led State Duma, the lower house of parliament, heads for a showdown with President Boris Yeltsin by announcing that it will seek a no-confidence vote in the Government over its unsatisfactory economic reform program. The announcement comes after President Yeltsin covertly threatened to dissolve the opposition-dominated Duma unless it stopped blocking economic privatization. \I(Russia)\i
Richard Butler, head of the United Nations Special Commission to rid Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, reports progress in the country's ballistic and chemical weapons programs, but says Baghdad is restricting his inspection teams and concealing vital data pertaining to biological arms. \I(Iraq)\i
The Russian-US crew of the troubled Mir space station locates an unremoved locking device which prevented the uncoupling of an unmanned cargo ship yesterday, and caused the postponement of an incoming cargo vessel. \I(Russia, USA)\i
The Australian Government calls for a review of Athletics Australia's appointment of Berlin-based Ekkart Arbeit as Australia's new head athletics coach. The appointment of the former East German coach is the subject of widespread controversy because of doubts over Mr. Arbeit's role in the systematic administering of performance-enhancing drugs to East German athletes during the 1980s. \I(Australia, Germany)\i
Los Angeles-based Martin Poll Films announces that it has acquired the film rights to the controversial revised edition of Andrew Morton's book, \IDiana, Her True Story,\i and plans to start production next year. Mr. Poll's company made the 1993 four-hour television mini-series based on the original edition of the book. \I(USA, UK)\i
#
"October 8, 1997",644,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
In the first dynastic succession of power in a Communist state, Kim Jong Il, 55, is formally proclaimed General Secretary of North Korea's ruling Worker's Party, partially filling a three-year leadership vacuum left by the death of his father, Kim Il Sung, in July 1994. The post of state president, which was also occupied by Kim Il Sung, still remains vacant. \I(North Korea)\i
In his first major policy speech, Hong Kong's post-colonial leader, Tung Chee-hwa, unveils an ambitious program aimed at moving the territory into the information age. To achieve his aim, Mr. Tung plans major reforms of Hong Kong's education system, allocating an increase of 38 per cent to the total education budget. \I(Hong Kong)\i
Indonesia discloses that it has called in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in an attempt to staunch the slide of its currency, which is threatening some of the country's biggest conglomerates. The Indonesian rupiah has lost more than 36 per cent of its value since mid-August, with a concurrent drop of almost 35 per cent in stock values. \I(Indonesia)\i
The United States designates 30 foreign groups as terrorist organizations whose members or representatives are to be denied funds and US visas. Included on the list are a range of Palestinian groups, two Jewish organizations, and Sri Lanka's Tamil separatists. The Irish Republican Army is not included, but remains under review. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel, Sri Lanka, Northern Ireland)\i
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II addresses a joint session of Pakistan's parliament in Islamabad, urging Pakistan and India to renew efforts to settle their differences. The Queen's state visit to the region marks the 50th year of both countries' independence from Britain. \I(UK, Pakistan, India)\i
United States Commerce Secretary, William Daley, estimates that China's trade surplus with the US will swell to $US44 billion this year, a trend he condemns as unacceptable, and one that must change. Mr. Daley's remarks precede this month's Sino-US summit, at which bilateral trade is expected to be a major item on the agenda. \I(USA, China)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Hurricane Pauline ravages southern Mexico, with fierce sheets of horizontal rain destroying homes, stranding towns, and cutting communications, and waves up to 30 feet high swamping the beaches of southern Oaxaca State and flooding the main coast highway. \I(Mexico)\i
A Scenic Airlines single-engine Cessna 208 crashes about 20 miles from southwestern Colorado's Montrose airport shortly after takeoff. The plane, which was completely destroyed, was carrying the pilot and eight employees of the Federal Government's Bureau of Reclamation. \I(USA)\i
The United States designates 30 foreign groups as terrorist organizations whose members or representatives are to be denied funds and US visas. Included on the list are a range of Palestinian groups, two Jewish organizations, and Sri Lanka's Tamil separatists. The Irish Republican Army is not included, but remains under review. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel, Sri Lanka, Northern Ireland)\i
United States Commerce Secretary, William Daley, estimates that China's trade surplus with the US will swell to $US44 billion this year, a trend he condemns as unacceptable, and one that must change. Mr. Daley's remarks precede this month's Sino-US summit, at which bilateral trade is expected to be a major item on the agenda. \I(USA, China)\i
Wall Street's Dow Jones Industrial Average plunges 83 points following warnings from Federal Reserve Board Chairman, Alan Greenspan, that the US economy has been on an unsustainable track, and that it would be unrealistic to expect a continuation of stock market gains anything like those of the past two years. \I(USA)\i
After a hearing lasting more than eight weeks, the United States Army orders a court martial for 29-year-old Sergeant-Major Gene McKinney, the service's highest-ranking enlisted man, on sexual harassment charges brought against him by six female servicewomen. \I(USA)\i
A South Carolina jury finds the Chrysler Corporation negligent in the design and testing of a 1985 Dodge minivan, and orders that it pay damages of $US262.5 million to the family of a six-year-old boy who was killed when he was thrown out of the vehicle after the rear door latch failed under impact. The payment is the largest ever awarded against a car manufacturer, and Chrysler officials say they plan to appeal the ruling. \I(USA)\i
United States scientists report that the Mars Pathfinder spacecraft has provided them with strong evidence that there was once water on the red planet, the basic ingredient for creating and sustaining life. \I(USA)\i
Cuban President Fidel Castro delivers a dramatic six-hour, 43-minute opening speech to delegates of the Cuban Communist Party's first congress in six years, dampening rumors about his dwindling stamina and concentration that have been circulating since early this year. \I(Cuba)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
In their first summit for eight months, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, meet for two-and-a-half hours of talks on the Gaza-Israel border, both pledging their resolve for a fresh start in peacemaking. Just hours later, four Israeli soldiers are killed and nine are wounded when Hezbollah fighters launch a series of attacks inside Israel's south Lebanon occupation zone. \I(Israel, Palestine, Lebanon)\i
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II addresses a joint session of Pakistan's parliament in Islamabad, urging Pakistan and India to renew efforts to settle their differences. The Queen's state visit to the region marks the 50th year of both countries' independence from Britain. \I(UK, Pakistan, India)\i
NATO deploys peacekeeping troops to the Bosnian Serb village of Tromedja to prevent possible violence during a confrontation between police loyal to Bosnian Serb President, Biljana Plavsic, and police loyal to indicted war criminal, Radovan Karadzic. \I(Bosnia)\i
Ten Bosnian Croats appearing before a United Nations tribunal in The Hague plead not guilty to war crimes against Bosnian Muslims. The most prominent of the ten, Bosnian Croat political leader, Dario Kordic, denies charges of responsibility for the persecution and killing of hundreds of Muslim civilians in the Lasva Valley area of central Bosnia in 1993. \I(Bosnia, The Netherlands)\i
On the opening day of his trial for crimes against humanity during World War II, former French Vichy Government official, Maurice Papon, 87, appeals to be allowed to stay out of prison during proceedings because of a heart ailment. Papon is accused of ordering the handover of more than 1,500 Jews to the occupying Nazis between 1942 and 1944. \I(France, Germany)\i
The United States designates 30 foreign groups as terrorist organizations whose members or representatives are to be denied funds and US visas. Included on the list are a range of Palestinian groups, two Jewish organizations, and Sri Lanka's Tamil separatists. The Irish Republican Army is not included, but remains under review. \I(USA, Palestine, Israel, Sri Lanka, Northern Ireland)\i
#
"October 9, 1997",645,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
At estimated 2,000 mainland-born children face deportation from Hong Kong after a court rejects a legal challenge to a new immigration law, which demands that they must prove their status as children of Hong Kong residents before arriving in the territory. \I(Hong Kong, China)\i
Following two days of talks with Japanese trade officials, United States trade negotiators express disappointment over Japan's reluctance to honor promises in a 1995 trade accord and open up its car and parts markets to more foreign competition. \I(Japan, USA)\i
As the winds turn and scattered showers start to fall over Singapore and parts of Malaysia and northern Indonesia, the choking smog caused by Indonesia's forest fires begins to clear, with many cities in the region reporting the lowest air pollution levels for weeks. There are no signs of improvement in southern areas, however, with at least four airports in Sumatra and Kalimantan still closed, and visibility down to 150 meters in some places. \I(Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia)\i
Sri Lanka's Foreign Ministry hails the inclusion of the Tamil Tiger separatist group on the United States' list of foreign terrorist organizations, saying it is a victory for Sri Lanka's foreign policy, and proof of strong and healthy bilateral relations with the United States. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
The Singapore Government demands an apology from Australian lawyer Stuart Littlemore, a representative of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) who criticized a defamation judgment in favor of Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong. Mr. Littlemore represented the ICJ as an observer at the trial of opposition leader, Joshua Jeyeretnam, who was found guilty of making defamatory remarks at a political rally. \I(Singapore, Australia)\i
Nepal's new Prime Minister, Surya Bahadur Thapa, and his three-party coalition win a vote of confidence boycotted by the main opposition United Marxist-Leninist party. The country's Constitution required Mr. Thapa to prove a parliamentary majority within 30 days of assuming office. \I(Nepal)\i
\BThe Americas\b
Hurricane Pauline continues its assault on Mexico, with torrential rain and winds of up to 150 miles per hour battering the Pacific tourist resort of Acapulco. At least 122 people are killed when buildings collapse and streets become raging rivers. \I(Mexico)\i
The United States warns Iraq against continued violation of no-fly zones in the country's south, adding that the powerful US military contingent in the Gulf is prepared to enforce the United Nations ban. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
Following two days of talks with Japanese trade officials, United States trade negotiators express disappointment over Japan's reluctance to honor promises in a 1995 trade accord and open up its car and parts markets to more foreign competition. \I(Japan, USA)\i
Sri Lanka's Foreign Ministry hails the inclusion of the Tamil Tiger separatist group on the United States' list of foreign terrorist organizations, saying it is a victory for Sri Lanka's foreign policy, and proof of strong and healthy bilateral relations with the United States. \I(Sri Lanka)\i
President Clinton announces that eight major United States firearms manufacturers have agreed to fit child-safety locks on all new handguns, a move that will affect 80 per cent of handguns sold throughout the country. According to Government figures, some 1,500 children are accidentally shot each year. \I(USA)\i
Two police officers and a civilian are killed while trying to deactivate a bomb planted by rebels on a highway near Buenaventura, in western Colombia. According to witnesses, the rebels fled after stopping traffic to plant the device. \I(Colombia)\i
Hillary Rodham Clinton addresses a Panama conference of 20 first ladies from South America. Mrs. Clinton calls for women around the world to play full parts in the political and economic lives of their countries, but suggests that advancing the political and economic rights of women could be more arduous than the building of the Panama Canal. \I(USA, Panama, South America)\i
With the eyes of the high-fashion world upon her, designer Donatella Versace shows her first collection for the Gianni Versace label in Milan, dedicating the glittering, celebrity-studded show to the founder of the internationally acclaimed fashion house, her brother Gianni, who was murdered in Miami three months ago. \I(Italy, USA)\i
Sotheby's announces that a black chalk drawing by Michelangelo is to be sold in New York on January 28 next year. \IChrist and the Woman of Samaria\i is one of the few Michelangelo drawings in private hands, and only the second of his works to be offered for sale in the past two decades. It is being sold by a Swiss foundation established by the late bibliophile, Martin Bodmer. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
Italian playwright Dario Fo is awarded the 1997 Nobel Literature Prize for creating texts which expose social abuses and injustices with a blend of laughter and gravity. Seventy-one-year-old Do has written about 70 works, including \IAccidental Death of an Anarchist,\i which has been staged around the world. \I(Italy)\i
The United States warns Iraq against continued violation of no-fly zones in the country's south, adding that the powerful US military contingent in the Gulf is prepared to enforce the United Nations ban. \I(USA, Iraq)\i
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) appeals for international help to prevent the civil conflict raging in the neighboring Congolese capital of Brazzaville from crossing the Congo river into Kinshasa. Earlier, DRC troops fired retaliatory volleys of rockets across the river after shells from Brazzaville killed two soldiers guarding President Laurent Kabila's offices in Kinshasa. \I(Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire), Congo)\i
Italian Prime Minister, Romano Prodi, offers his resignation after his Communist allies refuse their support for his 1998 budget. Mr. Prodi and his Government are to stay on as caretakers until a solution to the situation is found. \I(Italy)\i
Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, reveals that he is considering resigning over the botched assassination attempt of Hamas leader, Khaled Meshaal. Mr. Levy says he was not consulted about the "damaging" operation by Mossad secret agents, and denounces Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, for making such an unnecessary decision. \I(Israel)\i
Germany's central bank raises interest rates for the first time since July 1992, triggering interest rate rises in France, Belgium, Austria, The Netherlands, and Denmark. With the exception of Denmark, all of the countries are strongly committed to a single European currency. \I(Germany, France, Belgium, Austria, The Netherlands, Denmark)\i
A court-appointed panel of doctors recommends that Maurice Papon, the former French Vichy Government official charged with crimes against humanity between 1942 and 1944, should be held in a hospital rather than a prison for the duration of his trial, which is expected to last three months. Papon, 87, underwent triple bypass surgery last year, and has suffered an angina attack since the proceedings began this week. \I(France)\i
\ISchloss Kammer am Attersee II,\i a landscape by Viennese master, Gustav Klimt, is sold at Christie's in London to an anonymous telephone bidder for ú14.5 million, more than double the price expected. Christie's says it is a record price for a Klimt, and makes it the most expensive work sold anywhere this year. \I(UK, Austria)\i
Sotheby's announces that a black chalk drawing by Michelangelo is to be sold in New York on January 28 of next year. \IChrist and the Woman of Samaria\i is one of the few Michelangelo drawings in private hands, and is only the second of his works to be offered for sale in the past two decades. It is being sold by a Swiss foundation established by the late bibliophile, Martin Bodmer. \I(USA, Switzerland)\i
With the eyes of the high-fashion world upon her, designer Donatella Versace shows her first collection for the Gianni Versace label in Milan, dedicating the glittering, celebrity-studded show to the founder of the internationally acclaimed fashion house, her brother Gianni, who was murdered in Miami three months ago. \I(Italy, USA)\i
#
"October 10, 1997",646,0,0,0
\BAsia/Pacific\b
After 10 days of talks at Burnham military camp in New Zealand, Bougainville rebels and the Papua New Guinean Government declare a truce in Bougainville's nine-year civil war, a conflict which has cost the lives of an estimated 10,000 people. \I(New Zealand, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea)\i
North Korean leader, Kim Jong Il, makes his first public appearance since his formal appointment as General Secretary of the Workers' Party, marking the party's 52nd anniversary with a visit to the Kumsusan Memorial Palace, where the embalmed body of his father, founding leader Kim Il Sung, lies in state. \I(North Korea)\i
Cambodia's Second Prime Minister, Hun Sen, vehemently rejects suggestions that his Cambodian People's Party has been divided by the diplomatic and economic consequences of the July ousting of co-Prime Minister, Prince Norodom Ranariddh. Hun Sen says that after the May 1998 polls, he intends to propose his candidacy for another term as Prime Minister in order to finally crush the Khmer Rouge guerrilla group and its allies. \I(Cambodia)\i
About 50 anti-riot police and another 200 security men clash with 300 workers in the southwestern Chinese city of Zigong, in Sichuan province. The workers were blocking traffic to protest against cuts in pay and benefits by their state-run radio factory. \I(China)\i
Former Lahore High Court judge and senior member of the Pakistan People's Party, Arif Iqbal Bhatti, is shot dead by gunmen in his office in Lahore. \I(Pakistan)\i
All five crew members are killed when a Taiwanese military plane crashes while attempting to land in heavy rain at Tapei's domestic Sungshan Airport. \I(Taiwan)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin announces that his country will support an international treaty banning landmines, a reversal of the decision taken at last month's conference in Oslo, when Russia joined China and the United States in declining to sign the treaty. \I(Russia, China, USA)\i
A group of 200 women parade through Tokyo's streets to the music of k.d. lang in Japan's first gay march in support of lesbian rights. \I(Japan)\i
\BThe Americas\b
The International Campaign to Ban Landmines and its American coordinator, Jody Williams, are awarded the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize. Ms. Williams and the campaign are cited for starting a process which changed a ban on anti-personnel mines from a vision to a reality within a few years. In an interview later, Ms. Williams criticizes President Clinton's stance against the recently drafted accord to outlaw the deadly weapons, accusing him of allowing the military to set US foreign policy, but adding that she will be urging him to sign the treaty when it is ratified by 100 countries in Ottawa in December. \I(USA, Canada)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin announces that his country will support an international treaty banning landmines, a reversal of the decision taken at last month's conference in Oslo, when Russia joined China and the United States in declining to sign the treaty. \I(Russia, China, USA)\i
Seventy-five passengers and crew members are killed when an Argentine Austral airlines DC-9 crashes and explodes in Uruguay during a heavy rainstorm. The last contact with the plane was about 40 minutes earlier, when the pilot reported a change of course to avoid heavy rain and hail near Buenos Aires. \I(Argentina, Uruguay)\i
In the wake of Hurricane Pauline's devastating sweep across Acapulco and the coast of southern Mexico, the death toll remains undetermined with about 128 people confirmed dead, and hundreds more still missing. As the extent of the disaster becomes clearer, officials estimate that 20,000 people have been stranded without food, drinking water, or homes. \I(Mexico)\i
The first-ever secondhand smoke lawsuit to come to trial in the United States ends abruptly with the tobacco industry agreeing to fund a $US300 million research foundation on secondhand smoke on international airline flights. The industry must also pay $US46 million in legal fees to lawyers for the 60,000 non-smoking flight attendants who collectively filed the suit, and who now have the right to file individual suits under the terms of the agreement. \I(USA)\i
At the Fifth Party Congress in Havana, Cuba's Communist Party announces its decision to reduce the Central Committee from 225 members to 150, a reduction designed to make the committee more agile and more active, and to ensure the party's immunity from "ideological viruses". Later, in a closing speech, President Fidel Castro names his brother Raul as his successor, re-igniting rumors that the 71-year-old leader suffers from ill health. \I(Cuba)\i
Canada receives a full written apology from Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, who vows that the use of forged Canadian passports by Israel will never happen again. The apology clears the way for the return to Israel of Canadian Ambassador, David Bergen, who was withdrawn by his Government after it was discovered that Mossad secret agents had used forged Canadian passports during an attempt on the life of Hamas chief, Khaled Meshaal, in Jordan last month. \I(Canada, Israel, Jordan)\i
\BEurope/Africa/Middle East\b
European leaders from 40 nations gather at a two-day Council of Europe summit in Strasbourg, France. The aim of the summit is to establish a European social model in defense of social rights and social cohesion, which will include joint action against organized crime and drug abuse, a ban on human cloning, protection of ethnic minorities, and promotion of gender equality. \I(France, Europe)\i
Canada receives a full written apology from Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, who vows that the use of forged Canadian passports by Israel will never happen again. The apology clears the way for the return to Israel of Canadian Ambassador, David Bergen, who was withdrawn by his Government after it was alleged that Mossad secret agents had carried forged Canadian passports during an attempt on the life of Hamas chief, Khaled Meshaal, in Jordan last month. \I(Canada, Israel, Jordan)\i
Israel goes on high alert for Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish year, after receiving new intelligence warnings that the Islamic group Hamas will try to extract revenge for the attempted assassination of Khaled Meshaal. At the same time, reports emerge that King Hussein of Jordan has ordered the expulsion of the entire Israeli intelligence mission from the Jewish state's embassy in the Jordanian capital of Amman. \I(Israel, Jordan)\i
Four Kenyan opposition members of parliament are beaten up and arrested by riot police breaking up a rally at Kamukunji. The opposition rally was called to snub Moi Day, the anniversary of President Daniel arap Moi's 19th year in power. \I(Kenya)\i
The Congo's civil war takes a dramatic turn when the treasury building and the international airport in the capital of Brazzaville fall to the Cobra militia, which supports former military ruler, Denis Sassou Nguesso. Diplomats and aid workers later report fighting around the riverside palace of President Pascal Lissouba, but cannot confirm any outcome. \I(Congo)\i
Russian President Boris Yeltsin announces that his country will support an international treaty banning landmines, a reversal of the decision taken at last month's conference in Oslo, when Russia joined China and the United States in declining to sign the treaty. \I(Russia, China, USA)\i
A French court grants the request of 87-year-old Maurice Papon to be freed from jail for the duration of his trial, a decision that outrages the families of Jewish holocaust victims. The ailing former Vichy Government official is charged with signing the arrest orders which sent over 1,600 Jews from Bordeaux to Nazi extermination camps between 1942 and 1944. \I(France, Germany)\i
Following the results of a survey of passengers, British trains are to be fitted with "no-telephoning" carriages, the windows of which will be covered in metallic microfilm to prevent penetration of mobile phone signals. \I(UK)\i
#
"October 11, 1997",647,0,0,0
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"October 12, 1997",648,0,0,0
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"October 13, 1997",649,0,0,0
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"October 14, 1997",650,0,0,0
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"October 15, 1997",651,0,0,0
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"October 16, 1997",652,0,0,0
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"October 17, 1997",653,0,0,0
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"October 18, 1997",654,0,0,0
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"October 19, 1997",655,0,0,0
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"October 20, 1997",656,0,0,0
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"October 21, 1997",657,0,0,0
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"October 23, 1997",659,0,0,0
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"October 25, 1997",661,0,0,0
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"October 27, 1997",663,0,0,0
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"October 28, 1997",664,0,0,0
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"November 7, 1997",674,0,0,0
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"November 9, 1997",676,0,0,0
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"November 10, 1997",677,0,0,0
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"November 11, 1997",678,0,0,0
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"November 12, 1997",679,0,0,0
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"November 13, 1997",680,0,0,0
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"November 14, 1997",681,0,0,0
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"November 15, 1997",682,0,0,0
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"November 16, 1997",683,0,0,0
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"November 19, 1997",686,0,0,0
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"November 20, 1997",687,0,0,0
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"November 21, 1997",688,0,0,0
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"November 22, 1997",689,0,0,0
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"November 26, 1997",693,0,0,0
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"November 27, 1997",694,0,0,0
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"November 28, 1997",695,0,0,0
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"November 29, 1997",696,0,0,0
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"November 30, 1997",697,0,0,0
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"December 1, 1997",698,0,0,0
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"December 2, 1997",699,0,0,0
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"December 3, 1997",700,0,0,0
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"December 4, 1997",701,0,0,0
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"December 5, 1997",702,0,0,0
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"December 6, 1997",703,0,0,0
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"December 7, 1997",704,0,0,0
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"December 8, 1997",705,0,0,0
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"December 9, 1997",706,0,0,0
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"December 10, 1997",707,0,0,0
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"December 11, 1997",708,0,0,0
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"December 12, 1997",709,0,0,0
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"December 13, 1997",710,0,0,0
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"December 14, 1997",711,0,0,0
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"December 15, 1997",712,0,0,0
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"December 16, 1997",713,0,0,0
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"December 17, 1997",714,0,0,0
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"December 18, 1997",715,0,0,0
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"December 19, 1997",716,0,0,0
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"December 20, 1997",717,0,0,0
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"December 21, 1997",718,0,0,0
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"December 22, 1997",719,0,0,0
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"December 23, 1997",720,0,0,0
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"December 24, 1997",721,0,0,0
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"December 25, 1997",722,0,0,0
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"December 26, 1997",723,0,0,0
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"December 27, 1997",724,0,0,0
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"December 28, 1997",725,0,0,0
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"December 29, 1997",726,0,0,0
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"December 30, 1997",727,0,0,0
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"December 31, 1997",728,0,0,0
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"January 1, 1998",729,0,0,0
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"January 2, 1998",730,0,0,0
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#
"January 3, 1998",731,0,0,0
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#
"January 4, 1998",732,0,0,0
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#
"January 5, 1998",733,0,0,0
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#
"January 6, 1998",734,0,0,0
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"January 7, 1998",735,0,0,0
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"January 8, 1998",736,0,0,0
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"January 9, 1998",737,0,0,0
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#
"January 10, 1998",738,0,0,0
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#
"January 11, 1998",739,0,0,0
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#
"January 12, 1998",740,0,0,0
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"January 13, 1998",741,0,0,0
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"January 14, 1998",742,0,0,0
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"January 15, 1998",743,0,0,0
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"January 16, 1998",744,0,0,0
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"January 17, 1998",745,0,0,0
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"January 18, 1998",746,0,0,0
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"January 19, 1998",747,0,0,0
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"January 20, 1998",748,0,0,0
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"January 21, 1998",749,0,0,0
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"January 22, 1998",750,0,0,0
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"January 23, 1998",751,0,0,0
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"January 24, 1998",752,0,0,0
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"January 25, 1998",753,0,0,0
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"January 26, 1998",754,0,0,0
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"January 27, 1998",755,0,0,0
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"January 28, 1998",756,0,0,0
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"January 29, 1998",757,0,0,0
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"January 30, 1998",758,0,0,0
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"January 31, 1998",759,0,0,0
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"February 1, 1998",760,0,0,0
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"February 2, 1998",761,0,0,0
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"February 3, 1998",762,0,0,0
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"February 4, 1998",763,0,0,0
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"February 5, 1998",764,0,0,0
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"February 6, 1998",765,0,0,0
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"February 7, 1998",766,0,0,0
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"February 8, 1998",767,0,0,0
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"February 9, 1998",768,0,0,0
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"February 10, 1998",769,0,0,0
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"February 11, 1998",770,0,0,0
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"February 12, 1998",771,0,0,0
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"February 13, 1998",772,0,0,0
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"February 14, 1998",773,0,0,0
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"February 15, 1998",774,0,0,0
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"February 16, 1998",775,0,0,0
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"February 17, 1998",776,0,0,0
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"February 18, 1998",777,0,0,0
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#
"February 19, 1998",778,0,0,0
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#
"February 20, 1998",779,0,0,0
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"February 21, 1998",780,0,0,0
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"February 22, 1998",781,0,0,0
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"February 23, 1998",782,0,0,0
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"February 24, 1998",783,0,0,0
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#
"February 25, 1998",784,0,0,0
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#
"February 26, 1998",785,0,0,0
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#
"February 27, 1998",786,0,0,0
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#
"February 28, 1998",787,0,0,0
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#
"March 1, 1998",788,0,0,0
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#
"March 2, 1998",789,0,0,0
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#
"March 3, 1998",790,0,0,0
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#
"March 4, 1998",791,0,0,0
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#
"March 5, 1998",792,0,0,0
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#
"March 6, 1998",793,0,0,0
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"March 7, 1998",794,0,0,0
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#
"March 8, 1998",795,0,0,0
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#
"March 9, 1998",796,0,0,0
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#
"March 10, 1998",797,0,0,0
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#
"March 11, 1998",798,0,0,0
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#
"March 12, 1998",799,0,0,0
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#
"March 13, 1998",800,0,0,0
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#
"March 14, 1998",801,0,0,0
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#
"March 15, 1998",802,0,0,0
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#
"March 16, 1998",803,0,0,0
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#
"March 17, 1998",804,0,0,0
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#
"March 18, 1998",805,0,0,0
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#
"March 19, 1998",806,0,0,0
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#
"March 20, 1998",807,0,0,0
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#
"March 21, 1998",808,0,0,0
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#
"March 22, 1998",809,0,0,0
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#
"March 23, 1998",810,0,0,0
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#
"March 24, 1998",811,0,0,0
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#
"March 25, 1998",812,0,0,0
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#
"March 26, 1998",813,0,0,0
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#
"March 27, 1998",814,0,0,0
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#
"March 28, 1998",815,0,0,0
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"March 29, 1998",816,0,0,0
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#
"March 30, 1998",817,0,0,0
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#
"March 31, 1998",818,0,0,0
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#
"April 1, 1998",819,0,0,0
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#
"April 2, 1998",820,0,0,0
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#
"April 3, 1998",821,0,0,0
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#
"April 4, 1998",822,0,0,0
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#
"April 5, 1998",823,0,0,0
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#
"April 6, 1998",824,0,0,0
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#
"April 7, 1998",825,0,0,0
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#
"April 8, 1998",826,0,0,0
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#
"April 9, 1998",827,0,0,0
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#
"April 10, 1998",828,0,0,0
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#
"April 11, 1998",829,0,0,0
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#
"April 12, 1998",830,0,0,0
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#
"April 13, 1998",831,0,0,0
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#
"April 14, 1998",832,0,0,0
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#
"April 15, 1998",833,0,0,0
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#
"April 16, 1998",834,0,0,0
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#
"April 17, 1998",835,0,0,0
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#
"April 18, 1998",836,0,0,0
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#
"April 19, 1998",837,0,0,0
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#
"April 20, 1998",838,0,0,0
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#
"April 21, 1998",839,0,0,0
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"April 22, 1998",840,0,0,0
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#
"April 23, 1998",841,0,0,0
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#
"April 24, 1998",842,0,0,0
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#
"April 25, 1998",843,0,0,0
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#
"April 26, 1998",844,0,0,0
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#
"April 27, 1998",845,0,0,0
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#
"April 28, 1998",846,0,0,0
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#
"April 29, 1998",847,0,0,0
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#
"April 30, 1998",848,0,0,0
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#
"May 1, 1998",849,0,0,0
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#
"May 2, 1998",850,0,0,0
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#
"May 3, 1998",851,0,0,0
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#
"May 4, 1998",852,0,0,0
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#
"May 5, 1998",853,0,0,0
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#
"May 6, 1998",854,0,0,0
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#
"May 7, 1998",855,0,0,0
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#
"May 8, 1998",856,0,0,0
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#
"May 9, 1998",857,0,0,0
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#
"May 10, 1998",858,0,0,0
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#
"May 11, 1998",859,0,0,0
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#
"May 12, 1998",860,0,0,0
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#
"May 13, 1998",861,0,0,0
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#
"May 14, 1998",862,0,0,0
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#
"May 15, 1998",863,0,0,0
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#
"May 16, 1998",864,0,0,0
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#
"May 17, 1998",865,0,0,0
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#
"May 18, 1998",866,0,0,0
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#
"May 19, 1998",867,0,0,0
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#
"May 20, 1998",868,0,0,0
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#
"May 21, 1998",869,0,0,0
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#
"May 22, 1998",870,0,0,0
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#
"May 23, 1998",871,0,0,0
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#
"May 24, 1998",872,0,0,0
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#
"May 25, 1998",873,0,0,0
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#
"May 26, 1998",874,0,0,0
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#
"May 27, 1998",875,0,0,0
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#
"May 28, 1998",876,0,0,0
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#
"May 29, 1998",877,0,0,0
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#
"May 30, 1998",878,0,0,0
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#
"May 31, 1998",879,0,0,0
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#
"June 1, 1998",880,0,0,0
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#
"June 2, 1998",881,0,0,0
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#
"June 3, 1998",882,0,0,0
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#
"June 4, 1998",883,0,0,0
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#
"June 5, 1998",884,0,0,0
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#
"June 6, 1998",885,0,0,0
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#
"June 7, 1998",886,0,0,0
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#
"June 8, 1998",887,0,0,0
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#
"June 9, 1998",888,0,0,0
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#
"June 10, 1998",889,0,0,0
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#
"June 11, 1998",890,0,0,0
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#
"June 12, 1998",891,0,0,0
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#
"June 13, 1998",892,0,0,0
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#
"June 14, 1998",893,0,0,0
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#
"June 15, 1998",894,0,0,0
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#
"June 16, 1998",895,0,0,0
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#
"June 17, 1998",896,0,0,0
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#
"June 18, 1998",897,0,0,0
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#
"June 19, 1998",898,0,0,0
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#
"June 20, 1998",899,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 21, 1998",900,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 22, 1998",901,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 23, 1998",902,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 24, 1998",903,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 25, 1998",904,0,0,0
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#
"June 26, 1998",905,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 27, 1998",906,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 28, 1998",907,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 29, 1998",908,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"June 30, 1998",909,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 1, 1998",910,0,0,0
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#
"July 2, 1998",911,0,0,0
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#
"July 3, 1998",912,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 4, 1998",913,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 5, 1998",914,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 6, 1998",915,0,0,0
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#
"July 7, 1998",916,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 8, 1998",917,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 9, 1998",918,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 10, 1998",919,0,0,0
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#
"July 11, 1998",920,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 12, 1998",921,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 13, 1998",922,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 14, 1998",923,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 15, 1998",924,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 16, 1998",925,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 17, 1998",926,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 18, 1998",927,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 19, 1998",928,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 20, 1998",929,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 21, 1998",930,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 22, 1998",931,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 23, 1998",932,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 24, 1998",933,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 25, 1998",934,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 26, 1998",935,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 27, 1998",936,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 28, 1998",937,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 29, 1998",938,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 30, 1998",939,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"July 31, 1998",940,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"August 1, 1998",941,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"August 2, 1998",942,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"August 3, 1998",943,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"August 4, 1998",944,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"August 5, 1998",945,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"August 6, 1998",946,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"August 7, 1998",947,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"August 8, 1998",948,0,0,0
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#
"August 9, 1998",949,0,0,0
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#
"August 10, 1998",950,0,0,0
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#
"August 11, 1998",951,0,0,0
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#
"August 12, 1998",952,0,0,0
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#
"August 13, 1998",953,0,0,0
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#
"August 14, 1998",954,0,0,0
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#
"August 15, 1998",955,0,0,0
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#
"August 16, 1998",956,0,0,0
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#
"August 17, 1998",957,0,0,0
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#
"August 18, 1998",958,0,0,0
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#
"August 19, 1998",959,0,0,0
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#
"August 20, 1998",960,0,0,0
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#
"August 21, 1998",961,0,0,0
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#
"August 22, 1998",962,0,0,0
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#
"August 23, 1998",963,0,0,0
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#
"August 24, 1998",964,0,0,0
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#
"August 25, 1998",965,0,0,0
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#
"August 26, 1998",966,0,0,0
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#
"August 27, 1998",967,0,0,0
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#
"August 28, 1998",968,0,0,0
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"August 29, 1998",969,0,0,0
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"August 30, 1998",970,0,0,0
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"September 1, 1998",971,0,0,0
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"September 2, 1998",972,0,0,0
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"September 3, 1998",973,0,0,0
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"September 4, 1998",974,0,0,0
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"September 5, 1998",975,0,0,0
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"September 6, 1998",976,0,0,0
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"September 7, 1998",977,0,0,0
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"September 8, 1998",978,0,0,0
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"September 9, 1998",979,0,0,0
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"September 10, 1998",980,0,0,0
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"September 11, 1998",981,0,0,0
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"September 12, 1998",982,0,0,0
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"September 13, 1998",983,0,0,0
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"September 14, 1998",984,0,0,0
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"September 15, 1998",985,0,0,0
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"September 16, 1998",986,0,0,0
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"September 17, 1998",987,0,0,0
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"September 18, 1998",988,0,0,0
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"September 19, 1998",989,0,0,0
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"September 20, 1998",990,0,0,0
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"September 21, 1998",991,0,0,0
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"September 22, 1998",992,0,0,0
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"September 23, 1998",993,0,0,0
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"September 24, 1998",994,0,0,0
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"September 25, 1998",995,0,0,0
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"September 26, 1998",996,0,0,0
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"September 27, 1998",997,0,0,0
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"September 28, 1998",998,0,0,0
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"September 29, 1998",999,0,0,0
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"September 30, 1998",1000,0,0,0
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"October 1, 1998",1001,0,0,0
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"October 2, 1998",1002,0,0,0
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"October 3, 1998",1003,0,0,0
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"October 4, 1998",1004,0,0,0
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"October 5, 1998",1005,0,0,0
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"October 6, 1998",1006,0,0,0
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"October 7, 1998",1007,0,0,0
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"October 8, 1998",1008,0,0,0
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"October 9, 1998",1009,0,0,0
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#
"October 10, 1998",1010,0,0,0
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"October 11, 1998",1011,0,0,0
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#
"October 12, 1998",1012,0,0,0
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#
"October 13, 1998",1013,0,0,0
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"October 14, 1998",1014,0,0,0
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#
"October 15, 1998",1015,0,0,0
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#
"October 16, 1998",1016,0,0,0
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#
"October 17, 1998",1017,0,0,0
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#
"October 18, 1998",1018,0,0,0
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"October 19, 1998",1019,0,0,0
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#
"October 20, 1998",1020,0,0,0
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#
"October 21, 1998",1021,0,0,0
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#
"October 22, 1998",1022,0,0,0
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#
"October 23, 1998",1023,0,0,0
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#
"October 24, 1998",1024,0,0,0
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#
"October 25, 1998",1025,0,0,0
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"October 26, 1998",1026,0,0,0
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"October 27, 1998",1027,0,0,0
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"October 28, 1998",1028,0,0,0
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"October 29, 1998",1029,0,0,0
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"October 30, 1998",1030,0,0,0
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"October 31, 1998",1031,0,0,0
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"November 1, 1998",1032,0,0,0
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"November 2, 1998",1033,0,0,0
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"November 3, 1998",1034,0,0,0
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"November 4, 1998",1035,0,0,0
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"November 5, 1998",1036,0,0,0
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"November 6, 1998",1037,0,0,0
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"November 7, 1998",1038,0,0,0
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"November 8, 1998",1039,0,0,0
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"November 9, 1998",1040,0,0,0
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"November 10, 1998",1041,0,0,0
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"November 11, 1998",1042,0,0,0
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#
"November 12, 1998",1043,0,0,0
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#
"November 13, 1998",1044,0,0,0
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#
"November 14, 1998",1045,0,0,0
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"November 15, 1998",1046,0,0,0
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"November 16, 1998",1047,0,0,0
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#
"November 17, 1998",1048,0,0,0
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#
"November 18, 1998",1049,0,0,0
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"November 19, 1998",1050,0,0,0
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#
"November 20, 1998",1051,0,0,0
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"November 21, 1998",1052,0,0,0
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"November 22, 1998",1053,0,0,0
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"November 23, 1998",1054,0,0,0
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"November 24, 1998",1055,0,0,0
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"November 25, 1998",1056,0,0,0
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"November 26, 1998",1057,0,0,0
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"November 27, 1998",1058,0,0,0
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"November 28, 1998",1059,0,0,0
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"November 29, 1998",1060,0,0,0
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"November 30, 1998",1061,0,0,0
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#
"December 1, 1998",1062,0,0,0
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"December 2, 1998",1063,0,0,0
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"December 3, 1998",1064,0,0,0
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#
"December 4, 1998",1065,0,0,0
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#
"December 5, 1998",1066,0,0,0
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#
"December 6, 1998",1067,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 7, 1998",1068,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 8, 1998",1069,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 9, 1998",1070,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 10, 1998",1071,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 11, 1998",1072,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 12, 1998",1073,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 13, 1998",1074,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 14, 1998",1075,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 15, 1998",1076,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 16, 1998",1077,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 17, 1998",1078,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 18, 1998",1079,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 19, 1998",1080,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 20, 1998",1081,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 21, 1998",1082,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 22, 1998",1083,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 23, 1998",1084,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 24, 1998",1085,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 25, 1998",1086,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 26, 1998",1087,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 27, 1998",1088,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 28, 1998",1089,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 29, 1998",1090,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 30, 1998",1091,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
#
"December 31, 1998",1092,0,0,0
This information became available after this title was published. To view this information, you can download an update from the Internet. To do this, run the \JInternet Updater\j, from the \BActivities\b menu in the toolbar.
