Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation: News in English, 03-08-12

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

CONTENTS

[01] HEADLINES

[02] IACOVOU

[03] TURKEY 'UNION'

[04] MIDEAST EXPLOSIONS

[05] ISRAEL REAX

[06] QUAKES IRAN BANGLA

[07] CHINA ACCIDENT

[08] VIETNAM

[09] WEATHER TRITH 12/08/03

[01] HEADLINES

-- Turkey's Vice President Abduladif Sener said the framework agreement for a customs union signed between the illegal state an Turkey is the first step towards customs union which will be a long procedure.

--Back-to-back suicide bombings in Israel and the West Bank killed two people and wounded several others today, shattering a period of calm ushered in by a truce backing a new peace plan.

And,. --A moderate earthquake hit northwest Iran today and two tremors shook Bangladesh's southeast region in quick succession early today, but there were no immediate reports of casualties.

[02] IACOVOU

Speaking to CyBC, Mr. Iacovou said the experts are in communication with the Attorney-General and are coordinating their moves.

He dismissed criticism that the government is complacent over the issue, stressing that Nicosia is fully cooperating with Athens and immediately took action both towards the Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights.

He said the government's aim is to persuade the countries - members of the Council of Europe that Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash's aim is to gain political advantages and not help the European court.

[03] TURKEY 'UNION'

He also said the EU is making agreements for free trade with countries such as Canada, Mexico, Algeria and Egypt and is not asking Turkey's view, so Turkey went ahead with the framework agreement.

[04] MIDEAST EXPLOSIONS

The first explosion happened in a grocery store in the central Israeli town of Rosh Ha'ayin. At least one person was killed as well as the suicide bomber and six were hurt.

Less than an hour later, a suicide bomber killed himself and one other person near the major Jewish settlement of Ariel in the West Bank. Several others were hurt.

Palestinian militants called the suicide bombings against Israelis today a "natural reaction" to Israeli attacks but said they remained committed to a six-week-old truce.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombings.

But militant groups Islamic Jihad and Hamas said Palestinians were acting in self-defence.

The attacks followed vows of revenge by Hamas for Israel's killing of two Hamas members during an army raid in the West Bank city of Nablus last Friday.

Israel said the two were bomb makers and that it reserved the right to continue hunting militants preparing attacks against Israelis.

Meanwhile, Palestinian Prime Minsiter Mahmoud Abbas said he had cut short his Gulf visit today in response to the two suicide bombings.

Mr. Abbas told Reuters he condemned the bombings but he also denounced the almost daily Israeli raids in Palestinian areas which he said provoked such actions.

[05] ISRAEL REAX

Israel had called the planned release a gesture to bolster a U.S.-backed peace plan. Palestinians had dismissed it as a sham.

The Israeli source said it was not known for how long the release would be postponed. The prisoners, all held on criminal charges such as illegal entry into Israel or car theft, were due to have been freed, starting at 0900 GMT today.

Palestinian Prisoners Affairs Minister Hisham Abdel-Razek said Palestinians did not accept Israel's release of inmates jailed for criminal offences as a goodwill gesture, and he maintained it had nothing to do with implementation of the "road map" to peace.

Israel released more than 330 Palestinians from Israeli jails last week. They included dozens of militants and others who had been arrested by Israel in sweeps in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Palestinians said that was not enough and demanded amnesty for all 6,000 detainees in Israeli jails.

[06] QUAKES IRAN BANGLA

IRNA said the quake in Iran, measuring 4.7 on the Richter scale -- powerful enough to cause damages in a populated area -- shook Iran's West Azerbaijan province. A spokesman for the Disaster Task Force in Khoy told Reuters aid workers had been dispatched to the area.

Earthquakes are common in Iran which straddles several major faultlines. In June last year, a quake hit northern Iran, killing at least 229 people and injuring more than 1,000.

Meanwhile, two tremors shook Bangladesh's southeast region in quick succession early today but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage to property.

Experts have warned that a recent series of moderate to medium intensity tremors could be a sign of a forthcoming major earthquake.

[07] CHINA ACCIDENT

The official Xinhua news agency said today rescue work was under way at a coal mine in Shanxi province to find the missing, but the possibility of locating any more survivors was slim. One miner survived Monday's explosion.

Two coal mine employees have been detained over the accident.

China's mining industry is one of the deadliest in the world, claiming 2,798 lives in the first six months of 2003.

[08] VIETNAM

According to police in the northern Vietnamese port city of Hai Phong, Pham Thi Mai Phuong, 18, has been missing for a week now. Witnesses told police that the woman had been forced into a van by several young men as she was leaving her English class at a local language school on August 5.

Ms. Phuong, a high school senior, was catapulted to fame when she won the reinstated national beauty contest last year. She represented Vietnam at the Miss World contest that was originally held in Nigeria but was moved to London due to protests.

Communist Vietnam had discouraged such competitions for some years as a promotion of undesirable values.

The teenager had recently been awarded a scholarship to study business management at Luton University in England.

Police said it seemed unlikely that Miss Vietnam was kidnapped for money as no ransom has been demanded and Phuong had been allowed to call home to tell her parents she is well.

[09] WEATHER

Tonight fine conditions will alternate with some thin mist and low cloud in some areas. Winds will be north-westerly light, three beaufort and on the west coast reaching four beaufort. The sea will be slight to moderate in western windward areas.

Temperatues will fall to 22 C inland and on the coasts and 18 over the mountains. The fire hazard remains extremely high in all forest areas.

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