[One-Minute World News] from [BBC NEWS]
[Middle East]
Page last updated at 00:31 GMT, Sunday, 20 September 2009 01:31 UK
Obama to meet Middle East leaders
President Barack Obama will meet Israeli and Palestinian leaders on Tuesday to try to relaunch peace talks.
Mr Obama will hold separate talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, before a joint meeting.
Efforts to restart the peace process have so far been blocked by disagreements over Israeli settlements.
A senior US official told the BBC that there was no expectation of an announcement after Tuesday's meetings.
He said the meetings are "clear sign of the President's personal commitment to this issue."
But he added that it was critical to put the discussions "in context".
"Nine months ago there was a war in Gaza," he said. "The Israeli government has only existed for five months.
"And now these three leaders are going to sit down in the same room and continue to narrow the gaps."
Mr Netenyahu's office issued a statement welcoming the invitation to talks and saying they would be held "without preconditions", Reuters news agency reported.
'Deep commitment'
The announcement of the meetings, which will take place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, came after US envoy George Mitchell's latest round of shuttle diplomacy ended without agreement.
The White House said the meetings next week would continue efforts by Mr Obama, Mr Mitchell and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton "to lay the groundwork for the relaunch of negotiations".
{The road is now blocked
Mahmoud Abbas
Palestinian president}
Mr Mitchell said Mr Obama's desire to personally engage at this juncture showed his "deep commitment to comprehensive peace".
The US envoy held a series of meetings with Mr Netanyahu last week in a fresh attempt at getting a deal on Jewish settlement activity.
He also went to the West Bank to talk to Mr Abbas.
Mr Mitchell was hoping for a consensus before all sides attend the UN General Assembly, but he returned to the US without reaching any agreement.
Mr Abbas and the US administration have been demanding a complete freeze on Israeli construction activity.
Mr Netanyahu had previously offered a temporary freeze for several months, but not in East Jerusalem or in cases where homes have already been approved.
He noted this week that there had been a slowdown in settlement construction, but that work would continue on 2,400 units currently being built.
'New conditions'
On Saturday, both sides were reported as blaming each other for the lack of any agreement to resume the peace process following Mr Mitchell's visit.
Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Yossi Levi said the Palestinian Authority was "preventing the resumption of the peace process by making conditions that it has not made in the past", AFP news agency said.
It was not reported which conditions he was referring to.
But Mr Abbas said Israel was to blame for not agreeing to a total freeze in settlement building.
"The road is now blocked," he told journalists in Cairo.
"There is no more work [for Mr Mitchell] with the Western or Palestinian sides because we are complying with all our duties.
"The focus has to be on the Israeli side."
[Americas]
Page last updated at 07:59 GMT, Sunday, 20 September 2009 08:59 UK
Three Afghans held over US 'plot'
Three men have been arrested in connection with an alleged plot to launch an attack in the United States, the US Justice Department says.
Two Afghan-born men, a father and son, were arrested in Denver, Colorado.
A third man, also from Afghanistan, was later detained in New York, the department said.
The men are accused of making false statements related to "a matter involving international and domestic terrorism", the statement said.
The FBI was investigating several people "in the United States, Pakistan and elsewhere, relating to a plot to detonate improvised explosive devices in the United States", the Justice Department said in court documents related to the arrests.
US media have reported that the investigation was focusing on a possible plan to attack a public area in New York.
David Kris, assistant attorney general for national security, said the arrests were part of "an ongoing and fast-paced investigation".
"It is important to note that we have no specific information regarding the timing, location or target of any planned attack," AFP news agency quoted him as saying.
'Not true'
The arrests followed three days of questioning by federal authorities of Najibullah Zazi, the Colorado-based son.
Earlier this week officials searched the Denver home of Mr Zazi, a 24-year-old airport shuttle driver.
He and his father, Mohammed Zazi, 53, will appear in court in Colorado on Monday. Ahmad Wais Afzali, 37, will appear in court in New York the same day.
In a telephone interview with the Denver Post newspaper on Saturday, Najibullah Zazi denied media reports that he had admitted any link to al-Qaeda or involvement in terrorism.
"It's not true," Mr Zazi said. "I have nothing to hide. It's all media publications reporting whatever they want. They have been reporting all this nonsense."
[Europe]
Page last updated at 08:20 GMT, Sunday, 20 September 2009 09:20 UK
Italian Afghan dead brought home
The bodies of six Italian soldiers killed in a suicide attack in Afghanistan have arrived in Rome.
They have been met by the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano, family members and an honour guard.
On Monday a state funeral will be held with a minute's silence in schools and public buildings across Italy.
Their deaths on Thursday were the single biggest loss the country has suffered since it sent troops to Afghanistan five years ago.
The BBC's correspondent in Rome Duncan Kennedy says it was a moving moment when President Napolitano placed his hands on each of the six coffins.
The deaths have made a powerful impact on Italy, with extensive coverage in newspapers and on television.
Our correspondent says the killings have started a fractious debate about Italy's role in Afghanistan.
There are now more than 3,000 Italian soldiers in the country, mostly in the capital, Kabul, and the western area of Herat.
Some political parties have called for their withdrawal but earlier this week, the Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said the troops must remain in Afghanistan despite the high price Italy is paying.
[Asia-Pacific]
Page last updated at 09:35 GMT, Sunday, 20 September 2009 10:35 UK
Taiwan city to screen Kadeer film
A documentary about exiled Uighur activist Rebiya Kadeer is to be shown in Taiwan's second city, despite concerns that it will anger China.
But officials in Kaohsiung said the film would be shown this week, not during a festival next month as originally planned.
Businesses had urged the city to cancel the screening, fearing repercussions.
China has accused Ms Kadeer of orchestrating recent violence it its Xinjiang region - a charge she denies.
In July about 200 people were killed in ethnic violence between the region's Muslim Uighurs and Han Chinese settlers.
Security has remained extremely tight there since then, amid reports of ongoing tensions and sporadic violence.
Australian furore
Officials in Kaohsiung said that they would show the documentary, The 10 Conditions of Love, four times in the coming week.
"To draw the curtains over this controversy as soon as possible, the film will be screened ahead of schedule," the city said in a statement.
{ CHINA'S UIGHURS
> Ethnically Turkic Muslims, mainly live in Xinjiang
> Made bid for independent state in 1940s
> Sporadic violence in Xinjiang since 1991
> Uighurs worried about Chinese immigration and erosion of traditional culture}
Local tourism officials had spoken out against the move, Taiwanese media reported, fearing it would drive Chinese tourist numbers down.
Rebiya Kadeer heads the World Uighur Congress, which represents the Uighur community in exile.
Once a prominent businesswoman in Xinjiang, she was jailed for five years for sending newspaper reports about the Uighurs - some of whom want greater autonomy from China - to her US-based husband.
When the film was shown at the Melbourne Film Festival, diplomats urged Australian organisers to withdraw it, several Chinese films were withdrawn and hackers - apparently Chinese - attacked the festival's website.
The move by the Taiwanese city is likely to spark an angry response from Beijing - already irked by a recent visit to Taiwan by Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.
China considers the exiled Dalai Lama a dangerous separatist and self-governed Taiwan to be part of its territory.
[Middle East]
Page last updated at 00:31 GMT, Sunday, 20 September 2009 01:31 UK
Obama to meet Middle East leaders
President Barack Obama will meet Israeli and Palestinian leaders on Tuesday to try to relaunch peace talks.
Mr Obama will hold separate talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, before a joint meeting.
Efforts to restart the peace process have so far been blocked by disagreements over Israeli settlements.
A senior US official told the BBC that there was no expectation of an announcement after Tuesday's meetings.
He said the meetings are "clear sign of the President's personal commitment to this issue."
But he added that it was critical to put the discussions "in context".
"Nine months ago there was a war in Gaza," he said. "The Israeli government has only existed for five months.
"And now these three leaders are going to sit down in the same room and continue to narrow the gaps."
Mr Netenyahu's office issued a statement welcoming the invitation to talks and saying they would be held "without preconditions", Reuters news agency reported.
'Deep commitment'
The announcement of the meetings, which will take place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, came after US envoy George Mitchell's latest round of shuttle diplomacy ended without agreement.
The White House said the meetings next week would continue efforts by Mr Obama, Mr Mitchell and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton "to lay the groundwork for the relaunch of negotiations".
{The road is now blocked
Mahmoud Abbas
Palestinian president}
Mr Mitchell said Mr Obama's desire to personally engage at this juncture showed his "deep commitment to comprehensive peace".
The US envoy held a series of meetings with Mr Netanyahu last week in a fresh attempt at getting a deal on Jewish settlement activity.
He also went to the West Bank to talk to Mr Abbas.
Mr Mitchell was hoping for a consensus before all sides attend the UN General Assembly, but he returned to the US without reaching any agreement.
Mr Abbas and the US administration have been demanding a complete freeze on Israeli construction activity.
Mr Netanyahu had previously offered a temporary freeze for several months, but not in East Jerusalem or in cases where homes have already been approved.
He noted this week that there had been a slowdown in settlement construction, but that work would continue on 2,400 units currently being built.
'New conditions'
On Saturday, both sides were reported as blaming each other for the lack of any agreement to resume the peace process following Mr Mitchell's visit.
Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Yossi Levi said the Palestinian Authority was "preventing the resumption of the peace process by making conditions that it has not made in the past", AFP news agency said.
It was not reported which conditions he was referring to.
But Mr Abbas said Israel was to blame for not agreeing to a total freeze in settlement building.
"The road is now blocked," he told journalists in Cairo.
"There is no more work [for Mr Mitchell] with the Western or Palestinian sides because we are complying with all our duties.
"The focus has to be on the Israeli side."
[Americas]
Page last updated at 07:59 GMT, Sunday, 20 September 2009 08:59 UK
Three Afghans held over US 'plot'
Three men have been arrested in connection with an alleged plot to launch an attack in the United States, the US Justice Department says.
Two Afghan-born men, a father and son, were arrested in Denver, Colorado.
A third man, also from Afghanistan, was later detained in New York, the department said.
The men are accused of making false statements related to "a matter involving international and domestic terrorism", the statement said.
The FBI was investigating several people "in the United States, Pakistan and elsewhere, relating to a plot to detonate improvised explosive devices in the United States", the Justice Department said in court documents related to the arrests.
US media have reported that the investigation was focusing on a possible plan to attack a public area in New York.
David Kris, assistant attorney general for national security, said the arrests were part of "an ongoing and fast-paced investigation".
"It is important to note that we have no specific information regarding the timing, location or target of any planned attack," AFP news agency quoted him as saying.
'Not true'
The arrests followed three days of questioning by federal authorities of Najibullah Zazi, the Colorado-based son.
Earlier this week officials searched the Denver home of Mr Zazi, a 24-year-old airport shuttle driver.
He and his father, Mohammed Zazi, 53, will appear in court in Colorado on Monday. Ahmad Wais Afzali, 37, will appear in court in New York the same day.
In a telephone interview with the Denver Post newspaper on Saturday, Najibullah Zazi denied media reports that he had admitted any link to al-Qaeda or involvement in terrorism.
"It's not true," Mr Zazi said. "I have nothing to hide. It's all media publications reporting whatever they want. They have been reporting all this nonsense."
[Europe]
Page last updated at 08:20 GMT, Sunday, 20 September 2009 09:20 UK
Italian Afghan dead brought home
The bodies of six Italian soldiers killed in a suicide attack in Afghanistan have arrived in Rome.
They have been met by the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano, family members and an honour guard.
On Monday a state funeral will be held with a minute's silence in schools and public buildings across Italy.
Their deaths on Thursday were the single biggest loss the country has suffered since it sent troops to Afghanistan five years ago.
The BBC's correspondent in Rome Duncan Kennedy says it was a moving moment when President Napolitano placed his hands on each of the six coffins.
The deaths have made a powerful impact on Italy, with extensive coverage in newspapers and on television.
Our correspondent says the killings have started a fractious debate about Italy's role in Afghanistan.
There are now more than 3,000 Italian soldiers in the country, mostly in the capital, Kabul, and the western area of Herat.
Some political parties have called for their withdrawal but earlier this week, the Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said the troops must remain in Afghanistan despite the high price Italy is paying.
[Asia-Pacific]
Page last updated at 09:35 GMT, Sunday, 20 September 2009 10:35 UK
Taiwan city to screen Kadeer film
A documentary about exiled Uighur activist Rebiya Kadeer is to be shown in Taiwan's second city, despite concerns that it will anger China.
But officials in Kaohsiung said the film would be shown this week, not during a festival next month as originally planned.
Businesses had urged the city to cancel the screening, fearing repercussions.
China has accused Ms Kadeer of orchestrating recent violence it its Xinjiang region - a charge she denies.
In July about 200 people were killed in ethnic violence between the region's Muslim Uighurs and Han Chinese settlers.
Security has remained extremely tight there since then, amid reports of ongoing tensions and sporadic violence.
Australian furore
Officials in Kaohsiung said that they would show the documentary, The 10 Conditions of Love, four times in the coming week.
"To draw the curtains over this controversy as soon as possible, the film will be screened ahead of schedule," the city said in a statement.
{ CHINA'S UIGHURS
> Ethnically Turkic Muslims, mainly live in Xinjiang
> Made bid for independent state in 1940s
> Sporadic violence in Xinjiang since 1991
> Uighurs worried about Chinese immigration and erosion of traditional culture}
Local tourism officials had spoken out against the move, Taiwanese media reported, fearing it would drive Chinese tourist numbers down.
Rebiya Kadeer heads the World Uighur Congress, which represents the Uighur community in exile.
Once a prominent businesswoman in Xinjiang, she was jailed for five years for sending newspaper reports about the Uighurs - some of whom want greater autonomy from China - to her US-based husband.
When the film was shown at the Melbourne Film Festival, diplomats urged Australian organisers to withdraw it, several Chinese films were withdrawn and hackers - apparently Chinese - attacked the festival's website.
The move by the Taiwanese city is likely to spark an angry response from Beijing - already irked by a recent visit to Taiwan by Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.
China considers the exiled Dalai Lama a dangerous separatist and self-governed Taiwan to be part of its territory.
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