It is twenty-three hours thirty Universal Time and here is the news in Special English. ▼ Pakistani officials say at least thirty-three people have died in a car bombing in the town of Dera Ghazi Khan. Investigators say many others were injured in the blast and some may be trapped in the wreckage. The explosion struck at a busy market near the home of a local government advisor. Officials say his house and other buildings were badly damaged. Officials are not sure if the advisor was the target of the bombing.
Afghan police say a suicide bomb attack in Kabul has killed at least eight people and wounded forty others. Officials say the attack Tuesday took place in the neighborhood of Wazir Akbar Khan. They say former Vice-President Ahmed Zia Massoud may have been the target of the attack. The former Vice-President survived the explosion, but two of his guards were killed. No one has claimed responsibility for Tuesday's bombing. Students in Iran held competing demonstrations Tuesday at a university in the capital, Tehran. Iranian state media reported that seven hundred government supporters gathered at the Azad University. They condemned the destruction of an image of the Islamic Republic's founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. About one hundred opposition supporters also protested at Azad University. They denied claims that their members destroyed images of Ayatollah Khomeini. They accused the government of creating the story to weaken the reformist movement.
President Obama has ordered the federal government to buy a state prison in Illinois. The prison would hold up to one hundred detainees from the American military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Top administration officials said, “The purchase of the Thompson Correctional Center will help complete the goal of closing the Guantanamo prison.” Governor Quinn and Senator Dick Durban of Illinois welcomed the decision. They said it will create more than three thousand jobs in the community.
The European Union has reached a deal with Latin American countries to end a fifteen-year dispute over E.U. banana imports. European Trade Commissioner Benita Ferraro-Waldner said, “The agreement reached Tuesday solves the longest trade dispute in history.” Under the agreement, the E.U. will cut its import tax on bananas from Latin American nations. It will also give up to three hundred million dollars to the main banana exporting countries in Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific areas. The money is aimed at helping those countries compete with Latin America.
The new Boeing seven eighty-seven aircraft has had its first test flight. The plane is supposed to be quieter, use less fuel and create less pollution than other planes. Boeing created a revolutionary design for the plane. It is made up of composite materials and uses less metal, so it is much lighter than other planes. Supply and labor problems have put the plane more than two years behind its expected production date.
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For the second time in two days, the United States has urged China to release a jailed Chinese dissident. China has warned the United States not to interfere with the case. Liu Xiaobo is charged with inciting rebellion in China. An American State Department official called on China to respect the rights of all of its citizens to peacefully express their views and desire for basic freedoms. China says twenty-two ethnic Uighurs seeking asylum with the United Nations in Cambodia are involved in crimes. Foreign Ministry spokesman Jung Yu spoke to reporters in Beijing Tuesday. She said the U.N. refugee program should not be a shelter for criminals to avoid legal punishment. The Uighurs traveled to Cambodia in recent weeks after fleeing China's Xinjiang area. The government says close to two hundred people were killed in July in clashes between Uighurs and members of the ethnic Han majority.
Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping met Emperor Akihito of Japan in Tokyo Tuesday. Critics say the meeting used the Emperor for political purposes. Policy in Japan requires at least one month's notice for such meetings. China asked for the meeting with the Emperor in late November. Political opponents in Japan say the meeting was permitted to please China. Former Japanese Prime Minister and opposition member Shinzo Abe has accused the government of using the Emperor for political purposes. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama says, “The meeting was approved because of the important effect it would have on relations between Japan and China.” Mr. Xi is considered the likely candidate to replace Chinese President Hu Jintao when his term ends.
Thailand has begun inspecting thirty-five tons of North Korean weapons seized from a transport plane that was refueling in Bangkok. Police and weapons experts Tuesday examined one hundred forty-five boxes and containers that were on the plane. They say they found explosives, devices for missiles and other arms. The plane is registered in Georgia. It was seized on Friday. On Monday, a Thai court extended the detention of the plane's five crewmembers for twelve more days. Malaysian police have arrested three people suspected of making bombs near the border with Thailand. Officials seized chemicals and devices believed to be homemade bombs during a raid in northern Kelantan state on Tuesday. Police are investigating whether the men have links to a Muslim rebellion in southern Thailand. Media reports from Malaysia say the suspects are from Thailand. Officials have not confirmed their nationality. ▲ Briefly, here again is the major news of the hour.
Pakistani officials say at least thirty-three people have died in a car bombing in the town of Dera Ghazi Khan. Afghan police say a suicide bomb attack in Kabul has killed at least eight people and wounded forty others. And, President Obama has ordered the purchase of a state prison to hold detainees from the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
And, that's the news in VOA Special English. Source: VOA Special English December 15, 2009 2330UTC
