Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation: News in English, 99-06-10

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From: The Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation at <http://www.cybc.com.cy/>

CONTENTS

THURSDAY 10 JUNE 1999

[01] HEADLINES

[02] YUGOSLAVIA WAR

[03] US TROOPS

[04] BELGIUM FOOD

[05] DIOXIN HOUSE

[06] G8 CYPRUS

[07] BIKE ACCIDENT

[08] CONSTRUCTION STIFFS

[09] HAMBIS COURT

[01] HEADLINES

U.S. troops land on the beaches of northern Greece on their way to Kosovo as part of the international peacekeeping force,

A list cataloguing all Belgian foodstuffs in Cyprus that may be dioxin contaminated will be made public tomorrow,

G-8 foreign ministers decide to press for new UN talks on the Cyprus problem,

One more student loses his life in a motorbike accident,

And construction workers take to the streets in Paphos protesting illegal workers.

[02] YUGOSLAVIA WAR

Yugoslav troops began pulling out of Kosovo today and NATO said it was suspending its air war.

U.S. President Bill Clinton called the peace deal "a moment of hope", adding that the job has to be finished in order to build the peace.

Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic called for unity to rebuild his devastated country and said international forces coming into Serbia's Kosovo province would serve peace.

In a televised address to the nation, he said 462 soldiers and 114 police had been killed by NATO air strikes.

But he insisted Yugoslavia was the winner because it had refused to give up Kosovo, a cradle of Serb religion and culture.

Meanwhile, NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana said alliance soldiers could enter as early as Friday.

Solana said he had taken the decision to suspend bombing after receiving confirmation from General Wesley Clark, NATO's supreme commander in Europe, that the full withdrawal of the Yugoslav security forces from Kosovo has begun.

The U.N. Security Council stood ready to vote in New York on a resolution approving the entry of international peacekeepers to guarantee the return of more than a million ethnic Albanian refugees to their homes.

President Boris Yeltsin called the NATO bombing pause a step in the right direction but urged further steps to foster peace with Yugoslavia.

[03] US TROOPS

They were met however, by hundreds of protesters composed of local residents, Communist party members and others voicing their anti-American sentiments.

With the first light of day and under the watchful gaze of mount Olympus, the landing operation from three US warships began.

The U.S. Marines arrived on shore on amphibious armoured troop carriers and other landing craft.

The demonstrators did not attempt to block the landing as they were monitored a strong police force. They did however, convey their anti-U.S. message.

[04] BELGIUM FOOD

The food scare, the gravest in Europe since the mad cow debacle, began nearly two weeks ago when Belgium announced high levels of the highly toxic chemical dioxin in chicken and eggs. Pork, beef and dairy products have since been drawn into the crisis, rocking the Belgian government just days before an election.

[05] DIOXIN HOUSE

The affair over dioxin-tainted Belgian products was the object of discussion today at the House of Representatives.

In the morning, Health and Agriculture Ministers Christos Solomis and Kostas Themistocleous discussed the matter with Acting President Spyros Kyprianou.

In statements following the meeting, Mr. Solomis announced that a list of all Belgian products in Cyprus which may be contaminated with dioxin would be made public within 24 hours.

The matter also preoccupied the House of Representatives' Health and Agriculture committees.

Consumer representatives supported the release of a list naming Belgian products imported to Cyprus, while it was confirmed that no danger is posed by imported livestock feed.

[06] G8 CYPRUS

Meeting in Cologne to prepare next week's annual G8 summit among other things, a joint statement said they would urge their leaders to get fresh negotiations under way between the illegal administration in the occupied areas and the Cypriot government.

A European source at the G8 talks said there was general frustration that there was still a stalemate over the status of the island 25 years after Turkish troops invaded following a short-lived coup backed by the then military junta in Athens.

The G8, fresh from taking a lead in ending NATO's war with Yugoslavia, was not seeking to take over the Cyprus peace process from the United Nations, the source said.

But there was a consensus that the parties should get back to the negotiating table under UN auspices.

[07] BIKE ACCIDENT

The accident happened around 9 this morning when 16 year-old Andreas Kalli, refugee from Yenagra and now resident of Tsakillero, was riding his moped in Larnaca on his way to school for final exams.

He collided with a car driven by Maria Karyou from Avgorou.

Kalli was taken to Larnaca General Hospital suffering from head and other serious injuries and was later transferred to Nicosia General Hospital.

[08] CONSTRUCTION STIFFS

They called on the government to seek out and bring before justice those who employ illegal workers.

In a resolution they presented to Paphos Police, the Labour Office and the Aliens Department, the construction workers also ask for the discovery and deportation of illegal workers.

[09] HAMBIS COURT

The accused are police officer Christos Symianos, special constable Savvas Ioannou, Prokopis Prokopiou, Sotiris Athinis and his Sister Zoi Aleksandrou.

Police took severe security measures and thoroughly checked all those who entered the court room.

The hearing was interrupted because Prokopiou fainted. He suffers from kidney problems.

Prokopiou was taken to Nicosia General Hospital and after being treated, he returned to court.

He was however, unable to follow courtroom procedures, so the court postpone the trial till tomorrow.

The accuser's as well as Aeroporos' relatives were present in the courtroom.

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