WEDNESDAY. APRIL 23, 2003
NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN - 11A
Shiites make once-banned pilgrimage
Holy cities crowded; France proposes end to UN's sanctions
The Associated Press
BAGHDAD, Iraq — Hundreds of thousands of Shiite Muslims crowded two holy cities yesterday in a fervent pilgrimage that had been banned for decades under Saddam, while at the United Nations. France proposed suspending sanctions targeting Iraqi civilians.
The surprise move by France's U.N. ambassador, Jean-Marc de La Sabiere, would be an important step toward the U.S. goal of ending trade embargoes that have crippled Iraq's economy.
U. S. soldiers trying to stop looting discovered more than $600 million in $100 U.S. bills behind a false wall in Baghdad,
Central Command spokesman Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks said. More than 800 explosive suicide vests also have been found in various places, he said.
In northern Iraq, Jay Garner, the retired American general overseeing the rebuilding of Iraq, got a warm welcome when he visited the Kurdish region.
"You always make me feel at home," Garner told one Kurdish leader.
At the largely peaceful Shiite pilgrimage in the southern city of Karbala, U.S. military officials said police arrested six men who had been planning to blow up two of Karbala's mosques. Five of those arrested were members of Saddam's Baath Party, and one said he belonged to al-Qaida, said Army Capt. Jimmie Cummings.
One of Saddam's most-feared lieutenants Muhammad Hamza al-Zubaydi was cap
tured Monday by the Iraqi opposition and turned over to American authorities for trial on war crimes charges. He is the highest-ranking figure — No, 18 — on the U.S. military's most-wanted list to be caught so far.
Al-Zubaydi was known as Saddam's "Shite Thug" for his role in the bloody suppression of the Shite uprising of 1991. Tens of thousands of people died in the revolt. Iraqi opposition groups have also accused al-Zubaydi of the 1999 assassination of a top Shiite cleric.
Al-Zubaydi, a Shiite himself, was featured in an Iraqi videotape brutalizing Shiite disidents.
"This is very significant—he is one of the most hated men in the former regime," said Haider Ahmad, a spokesman for the Iraqi National Congress, an exile group.
Eight of the 55 most-wanted are now in custody. A ninth figure, Ali Hassan al-Majid — known as
"Chemical Ali" for his use of poison gas against Kurds — is believed to have been killed in an airstrike.
During Saddam's rule, the Shites were forbidden to march. This year, they marched openly under black banners of mourning.
Shiites streamed toward Najaf — burial shrine of Imam Ali, son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad — and Karbala, where Hussein, Muhammad's grandson, was martyred in the 7th century.
"We were prohibited from visiting these shrines for a long time by the Baath Party and their agents," Abed Ali Ghilan said. "This year we thank God for ridding us of the dictator Saddam Hussein and for letting us visit these shrines."
Karbala was packed shoulder toshoulder with hundreds of thousands of pilgrims,waving black and green flags, chanting and beating their chests. Others carried photos of revered cheers.
SARS quarantine successful in Hong Kong
The Associated Press
HONG KONG — Quarantine measures appear to be paying off in Hong Kong's fight against SARS and its leader voiced growing confidence about beating the disease, but experts said yesterday it's unclear when the crisis will end.
The number of new cases reported daily seems to be declining in hard-hit Hong Kong. Some doctors, however, say there needs to be a sharper, more sustained drop before anyone can say severe acute respiratory syndrome is under control.
"My prediction is in three months' time Hong Kong can return to almost normal, not completely normal," said Dr. Lo Wing-lok, president of the Hong Kong Medical Association.
Lo, an infectious disease expert
and a lawmaker, said that under his projected scenario, SARS mostly would be contained but Hong Kong "might see sporadic cases."
Neighboring mainland China said Tuesday that 11 more people died from SARS, raising its total death toll to 97.
Hong Kong took a step toward normalley yesterday when 200,000 students returned to school after a three-week closure. But students and teachers were told to wear surgical masks and have their temperatures taken daily. Younger students still were staying home, and a few schools refused to open.
Singapore's Ministry of Education said yesterday it will distribute up to 500,000 thermometers to the city-state's students so they will be able to check themselves for fever twice a day to prevent the spread of SARS.
"My prediction is in three months' time Hong Kong can return to almost normal, not completely normal."
Dr. Lo Wing-Iok Hong Kong Medical Association president
Singapore has had 186 cases and 16 deaths, including two more cases yesterday. One of those was linked to an outbreak at its largest wholesale fruit and vegetable market, which closed for 10 days to stem the illness spread.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee-haw said Monday that Hong Kong was "slowly but surely getting the figures stabilized" and added he was increasingly optimistic about containing SARS.
He has not predicted how soon that could happen and officials have not said what would need to be seen before claiming victory.
The disease now has sickened more than 1,400 people in Hong Kong and killed 99. The five people whose deaths were reported yesterday were elderly with other chronic illnesses.
Hong Kong reported 32 new SARS cases yesterday,following back-to-back reports of just 22 each Sunday and Monday,which were the lowest totals this month.
Experts call that decline encouraging, but said Hong Kong needs to see lower numbers for more than just a few days. Some warned that the territory's proximity to mainland China, where the disease originated and still is spreading, could complicate matters.
Palestine government disagreements persist
The Associated Press
RAMALLAH, West Bank — Yasser Arafat and his prime minister-designate, Mahmoud Abbas, clung to their positions yesterday in a bitter dispute over naming a security chief, raising the possibility that Abbas will fail to form a Cabinet and resign.
Abbas' resignation could cause considerable delays in unveiling a U.S.-backed "road map" to full Palestinian statehood within three years.
Abbas must present a list of ministers to Arafat by the end of the day Wednesday, as required by Palestinian regulations, and the Palestinian parliament then would have a week to vote on the new Cabinet.
Palestinian law does not provide for additional time, so if the deadline is missed, Arafat would have to appoint a new person and start the process over.
International mediators have urged Arafat not to stand in Abbas' way, British Prime Minister Tony Blair called Arafat yesterday and, according to one Palestinian official, delivered a stern message that everything must be done to assure that Abbas is installed as prime minister.
Arafat consulted with Cabinet ministers and senior members of the ruling Fatah party at his West Bank headquarters yesterday. The meeting apparently was stormy, with yelling heard in the background when a reporter spoke to one of the participants by phone.
A senior Palestinian official close to Arafat said on condition of anonymity there was little hope for compromise and he expected Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, to resign. Arafat
already is considering Parliament Speaker Ahmed Qureia as a possible replacement for Abbas, the official said.
Ostensibly, the disagreement is over Mohammed Dahlan, a former Gaza security chief whom Abbas wants to name to a key security position but whom Arafat opposes. Beyond that, there is a broader struggle over how much authority Arafat is ready to relinquish.
The wrangling "is part of the labor pains of the transition to a new era" in Palestinian politics, Cabinet minister Saeb Erekat said, adding that a failure to install Abbas as prime minister would be devastating for the Palestinians.
Arafat does not want the independent-minded Dahlan in the Cabinet and prefers a confidant, Hani al-Hassan, as security chief. Dahlan has promised to crack down on Palestinian militias, and enjoys Israeli and U.S. support.
Al-Hassan has not confronted militant groups since being named interior minister last year and has been unable to persuade them to halt attacks on Israel.
Hassan Khreisheh, a Palestinian legislator, said yesterday that Arafat was trying to sabotage 'Abbas' Cabinet list because he was unwilling to surrender power.
"He fears he will not be the strongman in the coming phase," Khreisheh said about Arafat.
Lawmaker Hanan Ashrawi said the wrangling showed Arafat is having a hard time letting go of power, but she also accused Abbas of making some Cabinet appointments based on loyalty rather than merit.
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