Xinhua News Agency back issues from Saturday, May 8:
Indonesian police asked to set Ba'asyir free
May 08, 2004 ... Indonesian police asked to set Ba'asyir freeJAKARTA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- In a move seen as attempting toinfluence the legal process, a number of legislators of Muslim- basedparties submitted on Friday a letter asking the police to temporarilyrelease terrorist suspect Abu Bakar ...
News analysis: Fukuda's quit pressures opposition party
May 08, 2004 ... News analysis: Fukuda's quit pressures opposition partyTOKYO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Japan's pension premium scandalculminated in the resignation of a top ruling party and governmentofficial Friday, but the loss may lead to a bigger one to theopposition party if its leader were ...
Bush considers unrealistic creation of Palestinian state in 2005
May 08, 2004 ... Bush considers unrealistic creation of Palestinian state in 2005CAIRO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- US President George W. Bush revealed inan interview published on Friday that it will be no longer realisticto set up a Palestinian state by 2005, and acknowledged that thetimes are tough for ...
94 suffer from food poisoning in northern China's rural village
May 08, 2004 ... 94 suffer from food poisoning in northern China's rural villageHOHHOT, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A total of 94 people suffering from foodpoisoning in a rural village in north China's Inner Mongolia had beenhospitalized by Saturday morning. They jointed 60-plus others in attending a ...
Health rule upheld for Indonesian presidential candidates
May 08, 2004 ... Health rule upheld for Indonesian presidential candidatesJAKARTA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Chief Justice Bagir Manan said that theSupreme Court's decision to uphold a ruling that would effectivelyoust former president Abdurrahman Wahid from the presidential racewas final. "The ...
Chavez criticizes opposition for pursuing western democracy
May 08, 2004 ... Chavez criticizes opposition for pursuing western democracyCARACAS, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez onFriday criticized the opposition for pursuing western democracy. Chavez was responding to the demands by the opposition that aninternational court or the ...
Foreign exchange rates in Indonesia
May 08, 2004 ... Foreign exchange rates in IndonesiaJAKARTA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The following are foreign exchangerates against the Indonesian rupiah here Saturday:SaturdayFriday US dollar 8,730/8,7608,720/8,750 Euro ...
Major news items in leading Pakistani newspapers
May 08, 2004 ... Major news items in leading Pakistani newspapersISLAMABAD, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The following are major news items inleading Pakistani English newspapers on Saturday.Dawn: -- Fourteen people were killed and 96 others injured when asuicide ...
Kindergartens roped into fight against smoking
May 08, 2004 ... Kindergartens roped into fight against smokingBANGKOK, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Kindergarten children are not oftenasked to participate in nationwide campaigns to change adultbehavior, but Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) of Thailand ishoping that pre-schoolers will successfully be ...
Xinhua world economic news summary at 0500 GMT, May 8
May 08, 2004 ... Xinhua world economic news summary at 0500 GMT, May 8WASHINGTON -- US Treasury Secretary John Snow said Friday thathigh oil prices were "unwelcome" and "unhelpful" as oil prices hit 40dollars a barrel in New York for the first time since 1990. "The high energy prices we are ...
US accused of violating human rights of Cubans
May 08, 2004 ... US accused of violating human rights of CubansHAVANA, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Cuba accused the Bush administration ofviolating human rights of the Cuban people and attempting to annexthe Caribbean island country on Friday, a day after US PresidentGeorge W. Bush announced a new set of ...
Thai government earmarks 1.6 mln dlr for mosque project in Muslim- dominant south
May 08, 2004 ... Thai government earmarks 1.6 mln dlr for mosque project in Muslim-dominant southBANGKOK, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's National Security Councilapproved 67 million baht (about 1.6 million US dollars) for mosquerenovation in every community in the country's Muslim dominant ...
Thai small business concerns over petrol price rise
May 08, 2004 ... Thai small business concerns over petrol price riseBANGKOK, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Owners of small business in Thailandhave raised concern over the rising costs of fuel since the price capfor premium gasoline and cooking gas rose on Friday, local pressreported on Saturday ....
Roundup: Bangladeshi opposition calls countrywide hartal to protest killing of MP by Dai Xiaozheng
May 08, 2004 ... Roundup: Bangladeshi opposition calls countrywide hartal toprotest killing of MP by Dai XiaozhengDHAKA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The main opposition in Bangladesh AwamiLeague (AL) Friday called a countrywide dawn-to-dusk hartal on Sundayto protest the killing of an AL lawmaker. ...
Major news items in leading Kenyan newspapers
May 08, 2004 ... Major news items in leading Kenyan newspapersNAIROBI, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The following are major news items inleading Kenyan newspapers on Saturday. East African Standard: -- Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki has announced that an inspectionboard will soon be constituted ...
Arab FMs to meet to prepare for summit as US scrambles to defuse anger in Mideast
May 08, 2004 ... Arab FMs to meet to prepare for summit as US scrambles to defuseanger in MideastCAIRO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Arab foreign ministers will start theirtwo-day meeting here Saturday to prepare for a postponed summit asthe United States is trying to reach out to people in the Middle ...
Billups helps Pistons to second win over Nets
May 08, 2004 ... Billups helps Pistons to second win over NetsWASHINGTON, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Chauncey Billups had 28 points and aplayoff-high 13 assists to help the Detroit Pistons to a 95- 80 winover the New Jersey Nets in their Eastern Conference playoffsemifinal in Auburn Hills, Michigan, on ...
Zimbabwean president appoints acting finance minister
May 08, 2004 ... Zimbabwean president appoints acting finance ministerHARARE, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe hasappointed Herbert Murerwa as acting minister of finance and economicdevelopment in the absence of Chris Kuruneri who is in remand prison,local media reported ...
Tunisia pulls out of World Cup bidding
May 08, 2004 ... Tunisia pulls out of World Cup biddingKUALA LUMPUR, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Tunisia has withdrawn from biddingto host the 2010 World Cup after FIFA rejected its hope of co-hosting the event with Libya, FIFA President Sepp Blatter said onSaturday. Blatter told The Associated ...
Sudanese govt. troops block Uganda's rebels
May 08, 2004 ... Sudanese govt. troops block Uganda's rebelsKAMPALA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The Sudanese government troops insouthern Sudan have blocked the advance northward of Uganda's rebelLord's Resistance Army (LRA), Ugandan newspaper New Vision reportedSaturday. The rebels led by Joseph ...
Results of volleyball Olympic qualifiers
May 08, 2004 ... Results of volleyball Olympic qualifiersTOKYO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Following are the results from thewomen's volleyball Asian/final qualifying tournament for the AthensOlympic Games on Saturday. The ...
First SARS patient in E. China to be out of hospital by Monday
May 08, 2004 ... First SARS patient in E. China to be out of hospital by Monday HEFEI, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The first SARS patient in east China's AnhuiProvince is expected to be discharged from hospital by Monday,according to hospital sources. The patient, surnamed Song, had normal temperature for ...
Ugandan govt. forces kill 11 rebels
May 08, 2004 ... Ugandan govt. forces kill 11 rebelsKAMPALA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The Ugandan government forces, UgandaPeople's Defense Forces (UPDF), have killed 11 rebels of the Lord'sResistance Army (LRA) recently in northern Uganda, the New Visionnewspaper reported Saturday. It quoted ...
GCC states eyes trade pact with China
May 08, 2004 ... GCC states eyes trade pact with ChinaABU DHABI, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)countries have set their eyes on China for a trade agreement thatwill give them access to one fifth of the world market, the Gulf Newsreported here Saturday. Finance ...
Afforestation to check shrinking of Tianchi Lake in Xinjiang
May 08, 2004 ... Afforestation to check shrinking of Tianchi Lake in XinjiangURUMQI, May 8 (Xinhua) -- More than 100 people went to the areasnear Tianchi Lakein northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur AutonomousRegion during the May Day holidays to plant trees. The local government is launching a ...
Israeli army kills 15 Palestinians in one week
May 08, 2004 ... Israeli army kills 15 Palestinians in one weekGAZA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A total of 15 Palestinians were killed bythe Israeli army last week, six of them in the Gaza Strip and theother nine in the West Bank, a report of a local rights group said onSaturday. The Palestinian ...
FLASH: THE TWO-DAY ARAB FOREIGN MINISTERS MEETING OPENED HERE ON SATURDAY.
May 08, 2004 ... FLASH: THE TWO-DAY ARAB FOREIGN ...
Spanish Grand Prix practice times
May 08, 2004 ... Spanish Grand Prix practice timesMADRID, may 8 (Xinhua) -- Following are the results in Saturday 'sfree practice for Sunday's Spanish Formula One Grand Prix: First session: 1. Jenson Button, Britain, BAR, one minute 15.984 seconds 2. Jarno Trulli, Italy, ...
Urgent: Arab foreign ministers meet in Cairo
May 08, 2004 ... Urgent: Arab foreign ministers meet in CairoCAIRO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A two-day ...
One computer for every 32 students in Chinese middle, primaryschools in 2003
May 08, 2004 ... One computer for every 32 students in Chinese middle, primaryschools in 2003BEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- About 6.63 million computers wereutilized in Chinese middle schools and primary schools in 2003, whichmeans there was one computer for every 32 students in middle andprimary ...
Air quality of major Chinese cities -- May 8
May 08, 2004 ... Air quality of major Chinese cities -- May 8BEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Report on the quality of air in 47major Chinese cities (12:00 May 7 to 12:00 May 8, Beijing Time),released by the China Environmental Monitoring Center:City Major Pollutant Air ...
Major news items in leading British newspapers
May 08, 2004 ... Major news items in leading British newspapersLONDON, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The following are the major news itemsin leading British newspapers on Saturday: The Times: -- Soaring oil prices are forcing airlines to consider imposing anemergency surcharge on holiday ...
Top chemical company official resigns for river pollution case
May 08, 2004 ... Top chemical company official resigns for river pollution caseCHENGDU, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A top official of a leading state- runchemical company in southwest China recently resigned for what wasthe "most serious water pollution" case in the country, according tothe provincial ...
Xinhua world news summary at 0800 GMT, May 8
May 08, 2004 ... Xinhua world news summary at 0800 GMT, May 8MANILA -- With two days to go before election day, incumbentPresident Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has widened her lead over hernearest rival movie star Fernando Poe Jr. by seven percentage pointsin the race for presidency, according to a ...
Fujian leads China in sound ecological environment status
May 08, 2004 ... Fujian leads China in sound ecological environment statusFUZHOU, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Southeast China's Fujian Province topsthe list of China's provinces, regions and municipalities in 2003 interms of ecological environment quality, a result based on a nationalsurvey taking into ...
Japan's Sakamoto pulls out of athletics nationals
May 08, 2004 ... Japan's Sakamoto pulls out of athletics nationalsTOKYO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Japan's Naoko Sakamoto, who will competein this summer's Athens Olympics, has pulled out of next month's10,000-meter race at the athletics national championships, her coachYutaka Taketomi said on Saturday ....
Pop concert held in Kuwait amid Islamists' protest
May 08, 2004 ... Pop concert held in Kuwait amid Islamists' protestKUWAIT CITY, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A pop concert was held here Fridayevening amid Islamists' protests, local daily Kuwait Times reportedon Saturday. As a crowd of about 500 Islamists demonstrated outside theInternational Fairs ...
Major news items in leading German newspapers
May 08, 2004 ... Major news items in leading German newspapersBERLIN, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The following are the major news itemsin leading German newspapers on Saturday:Frankfurter Allgemeine: -- US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Friday apologized toIraqi prisoners abused by ...
German police arrest Sasser worm suspect
May 08, 2004 ... German police arrest Sasser worm suspectBERLIN, May 8 (Xinhua) -- An 18-year-old teenager, suspected ofcreating the "Sasser" computer virus that infected millions ofcomputers all over the world, has been arrested in northern Germany,police said Saturday. The suspect, a ...
China to play Hungary in soccer friendly international
May 08, 2004 ... China to play Hungary in soccer friendly internationalBEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- China will play Hungary in a soccerfriendly in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, on June 1 towarm up for their World Cup qualifying tournament, the China FootballAssociation announced here ...
Gold price in Hong Kong down
May 08, 2004 ... Gold price in Hong Kong downHONG KONG, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The gold price in Hong Kong fell 21HK dollars at 3,566 HK dollars a tael Saturday, according to the Bankof China (Hong Kong), one ...
Major news items in leading Egyptian newspapers
May 08, 2004 ... Major news items in leading Egyptian newspapersCAIRO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The following are major news items inleading Egyptian newspapers on Saturday.Al Ahram: -- US President George W. Bush said in an interview with IbrahimNafei, Al Ahram editor-in-chief that he ...
Hospice care accepted by more families in China
May 08, 2004 ... Hospice care accepted by more families in ChinaKUNMING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The rising number of hospice careorganizations in recent years indicates more Chinese families areaccepting the service, according to Prof. Cui Yitai, director of theChina Hospice Care Commission ....
HK Customs seizes 9.1 kg cannabis resin
May 08, 2004 ... HK Customs seizes 9.1 kg cannabis resinHONG KONG, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong customs officers on Fridayseized 1.45 million HK dollars worth of suspected cannabis resin froman incoming passenger at the Hong Kong International Airport, the HKcustoms authority said Saturday ....
Jamaican athletics International Invitational results
May 08, 2004 ... Jamaican athletics International Invitational resultsWASHINGTON, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Following are the principal resultshere from the Jamaican International Invitational athletics meet inKingston on Friday. Men 100m: 1. Darvis Patton, United States, 10.12 ...
Chinese city maps public toilets for tourists
May 08, 2004 ... Chinese city maps public toilets for touristsKUNMING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A map of public toilets became a best-seller in the streets of Kunming City, southwest China, over the week-long May Day holiday. The map, printed by a local survey and mapping institute at therequest ...
Writethru: Arab foreign ministers meet in Cairo
May 08, 2004 ... Writethru: Arab foreign ministers meet in Cairo Eds: Updates withdetailsCAIRO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A three-day meeting of Arab foreignministers opened here Saturday in preparation for a upcoming Arabsummit. The meeting was opened by Tunisian Foreign Minister Habib ...
Man proclaims himself "Zorro", establishes rescue center in SWChina
May 08, 2004 ... Man proclaims himself "Zorro", establishes rescue center in SWChinaCHENGDU, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Zorro serials seem to have becomereality in China's southwestern province of Sichuan as a 42-year- oldman announced he had established a rescue center named after theheroic figure in ...
S. African national park "overcrowded" with elephants: expert
May 08, 2004 ... S. African national park "overcrowded" with elephants: expertJOHANNESBURG, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Overgrowth of elephant populationin South Africa's Kruger National Park (KNP) has posed threats to thesafety of bio-diversity and human beings in the area, an expert haswarned ....
China reports no new SARS cases: health ministry
May 08, 2004 ... China reports no new SARS cases: health ministryBEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- No new SARS cases were reported on theChinese mainland in the 24 hours from 10:00 a.m. Friday to 10: 00a.m. Saturday, China's Health Ministry said here Saturday afternoon. The ministry said that SARS ...
Cause of recent SARS epidemic still under investigation, China'shealth ministry says
May 08, 2004 ... Cause of recent SARS epidemic still under investigation, China'shealth ministry saysBEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Health said hereSaturday that it is making thorough investigation into the cause ofrecent severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic, but ...
1,700 Rafah houses demolished during uprising
May 08, 2004 ... 1,700 Rafah houses demolished during uprisingGAZA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Majid Al-Agha, governor of the southernGaza Strip city of Rafah, said Saturday that 1,700 Palestinian housesin the city had been demolished since the outbreak of the Intifada(uprising) in September 2000 ....
Thai PM calls on Thais to help cut fuel consumption
May 08, 2004 ... Thai PM calls on Thais to help cut fuel consumption BANGKOK, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Thai Prime Minister Thaksin ShinawatraSaturday called on the Thai people to cut fuel consumption uponconcern over increasing oil prices in the world market, according tothe Thai News Agency ....
Palestinian observers doubt Bush's statements on final status
May 08, 2004 ... Palestinian observers doubt Bush's statements on final statusGAZA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian observers expressed skepticismon Saturday over US President George W. Bush's pledge to JordanianKing Abdullah II about not affecting the Palestinian- Israeli finalstatus issues ....
Backgrounder: Philippines' electoral system
May 08, 2004 ... Backgrounder: Philippines' electoral systemMANILA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines will hold national andlocal elections on Monday to select a president, a vice- president,half of the Senate, the entire House of Representatives, and all thelocal government officials and ...
US military suffers one more casualty in Afghanistan
May 08, 2004 ... US military suffers one more casualty in AfghanistanKABUL, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A US Marine was killed and another oneinjured as a convoy of US-led coalition forces was ambushed in asouthern city last night, US military spokesman said Saturday. "One US Marine was killed and ...
Backgrounder: List of elective posts in coming Philippine polls
May 08, 2004 ... Backgrounder: List of elective posts in coming Philippine pollsMANILA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The following is a list of electivepositions at stake in Monday's national and local elections in thePhilippines:Elective Positions Number of Positions ...
Major news items in leading Nigerian newspapers
May 08, 2004 ... Major news items in leading Nigerian newspapersLAGOS, May 8 (Xinhua) -- The following are major news items inleading Nigerian newspapers on Saturday. Weekend Vanguard: -- The Nigerian Naval Task Force has intercepted and arrestedeight smugglers, comprising Nigerian ...
Iraq's Sadr militia, British troops clash in southern cities
May 08, 2004 ... Iraq's Sadr militia, British troops clash in southern citiesBAGHDAD, May 8 (Xinhua) -- British soldiers raided two offices ofthe radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in southern Iraq Saturdayas hundreds of sadr's militiamen took to the streets amid continuedclashes, witnesses ...
Hamas says Bush statements unbalanced
May 08, 2004 ... Hamas says Bush statements unbalancedGAZA, May 8 (Xinhua)--The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) on Saturday considered USPresident George W. Bush's position on final status issues as"unbalanced and biased to the Israeli occupation."Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Al-Zuhri told ...
Singaporean Deputy PM to Visit China
May 08, 2004 ... Singaporean Deputy PM to Visit ChinaBEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister LeeHsien Loong will pay a visit to China from May 12 to 17 at theinvitation of Chinese Vice-Premier Wu Yi, sources with ChineseForeign ...
Polish soldier killed in Iraq road accident
May 08, 2004 ... Polish soldier killed in Iraq road accidentWARSAW, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A Polish soldier was killed Saturday ina road accident near the Iraqi city of Karbala and two others wereinjured, the military said. The accident took place at about 10 a.m. local time (0600 GMT)when a ...
Cambodian official values work of Chinese archaeologists
May 08, 2004 ... Cambodian official values work of Chinese archaeologistsPHNOM PENH, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A Cambodian cultural officialpraised Saturday the good masterpiece of Chinese archaeologists inrenovating and conserving temples in Cambodia, saying that it is amodel in reconstructing ...
Adzharia to retain autonomous status: Georgian presidential envoy
May 08, 2004 ... Adzharia to retain autonomous status: Georgian presidential envoy MOSCOW, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Georgia's presidential envoy to thecrisis-hit region of Adzharia Levan Varshalomidze on Saturdayreaffirmed the central authorities' commitments to local people thatAdzharia's status as an ...
HK government to study ways to improve KCRC operations
May 08, 2004 ... HK government to study ways to improve KCRC operationsHONG KONG, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong government will studyvarious ways to improve the operation of the Kowloon Canton RailwayCorp (KCRC), an official said on Saturday. Hong Kong Secretary for Financial Services and the ...