Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation: News in English, 03-02-20

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

CONTENTS

[01] HEADLINES

[02] IRAN PLANE

[03] PAKISTAN CRASH

[04] TURKEY IRAQ

[05] IRAQ SUMMIT

[06] IRAQ

[07] N.KOREA

[08] MIDEAST

[09] TASSOS MEETING

[10] DENKTASH

[11] KASOULIDES PARTY

[12] STABBING PAPHOS

[13] WEATHER THURSDAY 20 FEBRUARY 2003

[01] HEADLINES

-- The commander of Pakistan's air force, Air Chief Marshal Mushaf Ali Mir, his wife and 15 other people were killed in a plane crash today.

-- Turkish leader Tayyip Erdogan was quoted today as saying Turkey would not open its bases to U.S. troops unless Washington guarantees aid and Turkey's role in any Iraq war in writing. And,

-- Newly elected President of the Republic, Tassos Papadopoulos held a meeting this morning with the leaders of the parties and movements which supported him in the presidential elections. Mr. Papadopoulos informed them on the latest Cyprus developments.

[02] IRAN PLANE

The crash last night evening was the worst in a string of air disasters in Iran involving Russian-built aircraft.

No official explanation has been put forward for the crash, which killed all 302 people, including 18 crew, on board, or why so many troops were being deployed in that area.

Officials said bad weather may have been a factor. The pilot complained of strong winds shortly before contact with the aircraft was lost.

A senior source close to the government told Reuters scores of high-ranking military officials were among the dead. It was not clear why so many personnel were travelling together.

Formed shortly after Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution, the Revolutionary Guards force is independent of the regular army and played a key role in the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war.

Today it numbers about 120,000 personnel and answers directly to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei -- the head of Iran's Shi'ite Muslim establishment.

[03] PAKISTAN CRASH

State-run Pakistan Television said the air force Fokker-27 turboprop in which Mir and the others were travelling crashed in an accident caused by "technical reasons", but did not elaborate.

The aircraft had been on a flight from Islamabad, when it lost contact with the control tower 17 minutes later.

The crash came after Pakistan experienced four successive days of heavy rain, some of the heaviest downpours in decades.

President Perrvez Musharraf and Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali expressed shock and grief and said the deaths of Mir and the other officers were a great national loss.

[04] TURKEY IRAQ

NATO ally Turkey has dragged its feet on a parliamentary vote to allow American troops to station on its soil, throwing into doubt U.S. plans to launch a secondary northern front against Iraq, accused of building weapons of mass destruction.

Turkey argues that it lost out heavily after the 1991 Gulf War in financial terms and had insufficient say in the new order constituted in the area, especially northern Iraq.

Washington has expressed frustration over Turkey's delays in accepting a multi-billion-dollar aid package in exchange for access to bases and sea ports, which could serve as staging points for a war against neighbouring Iraq.

The White House said last night its latest offer to Turkey, amounting to 6 billion dollars in grants and up to 20 billion dollars in loans was final. Official sources here said contacts overnight with Washington had brought some progress, but gave no details.

Turkey wants a formal assurance the U.S. Congress will act quickly to release financial aid.

[05] IRAQ SUMMIT

Egypt's official MENA news agency on Thursday quoted Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher as saying that there is an agreement between the Arab states to hold a summit on March 1 in Cairo. This comes in light of current joint Arab efforts to unite Arab positions on the Iraq issue.

The official Bahrain News Agency said that Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa had spoken with Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak by telephone and they had agreed that Manama would invite Arab states to attend the annual summit at Arab League headquarters in Cairo.

[06] IRAQ

With Western forces building up in the Gulf region, the United States and Britain worked on a U.N. resolution authorizing force that they hope will placate global opposition to a war assumed to be only weeks away.

The United States and Britain plan to introduce the U.N. resolution within a week, but diplomats said the Bush administration was unlikely to push it to a vote until well into the first week of March, after another report from U.N. weapons inspectors.

[07] N.KOREA

The South Korean Defence Ministry said the first air incursion by the communist North since 1983 ended in just two minutes when the intruding MiG-19 was chased back across the maritime border by the South's F-5E fighters.

The violation of the Yellow Sea border at a site of two deadly naval clashes since 1999 followed a statement from the North Korean military on Tuesday threatening to abandon the armistice which ended the 1950-53 Korean War.

Mr. Powell will travel to Tokyo on Saturday, to Beijing on Sunday and to Seoul on Monday to attend Tuesday's inauguration of South Korean President-elect Roh Moo-hyun.

[08] MIDEAST

In fresh violence in the West Bank, Israeli troops killed an armed Palestinian during a battle with gunmen in the city of Tulkarm, the army said. Hamas's armed wing said one of its members was killed in a firefight with soldiers in the city.

The army set up roadblocks splitting the Gaza Strip into three sectors following a day of violence yesterday in which the 11 Palestinians, including two gunmen and four security officers, were killed in Israeli raids.

[09] TASSOS MEETING

In statements, AKEL General Secretary Demetris Christofias and SOcial Democrats' leader, Yiannakis Omirou said they discussed the Cyprus problem and exchanged ideas, in view of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's arrival to the island.

[10] DENKTASH

He also said that he did not discuss with the UN Secretary-General's Special Adviser, Alvaro de Soto, the submission of a new revised plan.

He also claimed the philosophy of the Annan plan for a Cyprus settlement and its approach on various issues was not right and that the aim was not to secure equality.

[11] KASOULIDES PARTY

In statements to CyBC, Mr. Kasoulides said that the crisis in the party has been simmering for a long time and culminated with the presidential elections.

What is important, he said, is the party's unity, without expulsions.

He also said that the Party's High Council should consider some self criticism and apologise to the people who support the party.

[12] STABBING PAPHOS

Police said four people, possibly Iraqis, visited a tourist complex in Paphos last night, and for no apparent reason, attacked the three palestinians, aged 23, 26 and 30 injuring them. They were taken to Paphos Hospital where the two were released after being treated and the third one was admitted because of head injuries.

Police is still looking for the four Iraqis.

[13] WEATHER

Winds will be westerly strong to very strong, five to six beaufort, reaching near gale, seven beaufort. The sea will be rough to very rough. Temperatures will reach 13 C inland, 15 C on the coasts and one over the mountains.

Tomorrow, cloud will increase to give local rain and snow over the mountains.

Winds will be westerly to north-westerly moderate to strong, four to five beaufort and the sea will be rough to very rough. Temperatures will fall to five degrees inland and on the east coast, to eight on the south and west and minus three over the mountains.

The depth of snow on Mt. Olympus is 45 Cm and 35 over Troodos square.

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