2A - The Michigan Daily - Friday, October 25, 2002 NATION/WORLD Hostage-taking continues in Russia NEWS IN BRIEF IN F AgN T ORL 0 MOSCOW (AP) - The body of a young woman shot by Chechen rebels was dragged from a Moscow theater yes- terday while two other captives raced to freedom under fire as insurgents holding hundreds threatened to kill themselves and their hostages if the Russian army does not pull out of Chechnya. Forty rebels, including women who claimed to be widows of ethnic insur- gents, stormed the theater just before the second act of a popular musical at 9:05 p.m. Wednesday. The woman, shot in the chest, was the only known fatali- ty of the hostage-taking as it moved into its second day. Relatives and friends stood in freezing weather outside the theater in a rundown southeast Moscow neighborhood 3 miles from the Kremlin, their dread matching the grimness of the scene and the desper- ation of the estimated 600 captives inside. Special forces troops moved in formation around the building and armored vehicles stood ready. Snipers were on rooftops. Three Americans were among the 75 foreign hostages in the theater. In televised remarks, President Vladimir Putin described the hostage- taking as one of the largest terror attacks in history and claimed it had been planned "in one of the foreign terrorist centers" which "made a plan and found the perpetrators." He did not provide evi- dence the raid was organized abroad. In a broadcast monitored in Cairo, Egypt, the Qatar-based satellite TV channel AI-Jazeera transmitted state- ments by some of the hostage-takers who said thousands of their comrades stood ready to die for the Chechen cause. "I swear by God we are more keen on dying than you are keen on living," a black-clad male said in the videotaped broadcast. "Each one of us is willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of God and the independ- ence of Chechnya." "Even if we are killed, thousands of brothers and sisters will come after us, ready to sacrifice themselves," said a female among the group, only her eyes peering from a head-to-toe black robe. An employee said the tape had been delivered to Qatar from Al-Jazeera's Moscow bureau yesterday morning. It apparently was made Wednesday before the theater takeover. The language spo- ken by those on the tape could not be determined since the audio was broadcast with a voiced-over Arabic translation. The tape underlined what appeared to have been intense planning that went into the audacious operation, which brought the Chechen war 865 miles north to the Russian capital. One of the masked men on the tape sat before the camera with a laptop computer in front of him and a Quran, the Muslim holy book, on the floor at his right side. "We came to the Russian capital to stop the war or gain martyrdom, and our demands are stopping the war and the withdrawal of Russian troops," one speaker said. Another man on the Al- Jazeera tape said the attack was planned "based on orders from the mil- itary ruler of the Republic of Chech- nya," possibly referring to Aslan Maskhadov, who was president of the province in the interval between the 1996 end of the first war with Russia and the resumption of fighting in 1999. UNITED NATIONS , U.S. drafts resolution to spur U.N. action Russia yesterday warned that putting the new US. resolution on Iraq to a quick vote would be "counterproductive" and France said it was "very important" to hear whether UN. weapons inspectors believe they can operate under its provisions. In a move to spur U.N. action, the United States introduced a seven-page draft resolution to the full 15-member Security Council on Wednesday after six weeks of difficult negotiations by the five veto-wielding permanent members. The permanent members - the United States, Russia, China, France and Britain - remain divided over language in the U.S. draft which Moscow, Paris and Beijing believe could trigger military action against Iraq, and over tough new rules for inspections. Whether the United States is prepared to make further changes to meet the con- cerns of Russia, China and France and avoid a possible veto remains to be seen. Russia appeared to be the main obstacle, rejecting the draft and not ruling out a veto. France, the most vocal opponent of earlier U.S. drafts, was ready to negoti- ate and wouldn't block the resolution's passage, French diplomats said. With the White House declaring Wednesday that talks were in their "final moments," Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Yuri Fedotov reiterated Thursday that the latest draft contains provisions which are "impossible to implement." The MicianCommiteefoaSfesael dsintehOctobe r24 edition of The " After Israel's rebirth, Jews became known as "Israelis." Arabs then laid claim to the identity of "Palestinians"- as a people who had been living in Palestine for over a thousand years. * According to the fabrication, Israel faces, not terrorists, but "Palestinian freedom fighters" who have the "legitimate right" to liberate their land "occupied" by the Jews. mu Ar " 1II 7' MdfaC SAN LUCAS, sexico lV~idI~e ast eace APEC summit addresses open border, safety talks raise new complaints, issues We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused The Michigan Committee for a Safe Israel. The Michigan Daily Advertising Department United in a common mission, leaders of nations and corporations tackled an urgent global dilemma yesterday: how to open borders to trade while closing them to terrorists. But violence kept Russia's president away as his Pacific Rim counterparts streamed iri for a weekend summit. The parallel gatherings of ministers from four continents and executives from 400 companies - as well as the violence that has hit nations of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum - left no doubt that the realms of finance and diplomacy have merged. In the post-Sept. 11 world, terror- ism sends markets plunging, and the global economic slump forces politi- cians to rethink priorities. "Terrorism, in all its forms, is a threat to economic stability in APEC, as well as a threat to regional peace and security, and a direct challenge to APEC's vision of free, open and prosperous economies," APEC foreign and economy ministers said in a joint declaration. Just down the road, sipping drinks in plush hotel lobbies, business leaders discussed the same challenges - and came to many of the same conclusions. JERUSALEM (AP) - A U.S. envoy's first round of talks on a new Middle East peace plan produced a host of complaints yesterday, with Palestinians balking at the idea of skipping presidential elections - a means of sidelining Yasser Arafat - and Israel saying its security concerns were not being addressed. The envoy, Assistant Secretary of State William Burns, met separately with officials from both sides, but not with Arafat-. The Bush administration is boycotting the Palestinian leader, fol- lowing Israel's lead in blaming him for continuing violence and deepening Palestinian suspicions of a U.S. bias. Later, Israeli and Palestinians had a high-level meeting of their own, both sides said. Teams headed by Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres and Palestinian Cabinet Minis- ter Saeb Erekat discussed security and other issues, according to a statement from Peres' office. The peace proposal, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, calls for creation of a Palestinian state with temporary borders next year. The Burns mission is the most ambi- tious diplomatic push in the region in months, and its lukewarm reception underscores the minimal expectations on both sides at a time when two years of fighting appear to have ground to an unhappy stalemate. Israeli troops have taken over key areas of the West Bank and have relent- lessly struck at Palestinian militant groups - killing dozens of accused terrorists and arresting thousands - yet suicide bombings persist, and Israel's military strikes have taken an increas- ing toll in civilian lives. In the latest violence, Israeli soldiers killed a 15-year-old Palestinian in the West Bank town of Jenin yesterday. Witnesses and the military said soldiers opened fire after the youth climbed onto a tank. The military said he was shot because soldiers thought he might be carrying a firebomb, but he was not. In Gaza, the Israeli military said sol- diers shot and killed a Palestinian who was throwing grenades at them. The exchange took place near Rafah on the Egyptian border, scene of almost daily clashes. Palestinians said he was appar- ently infiltrating from Egypt. Burns is carrying a so-called U.S. "road map" for settling the Israeli- Palestinian conflict in three phases. Palestinian officials who met with Burns in the desert oasis of Jericho, far from Arafat's headquarters in Ramal- lah, complained the proposal called for parliamentary but not presidential elec- tions. It calls for a prime minister to take over some of Arafat's duties. FBI wars WASHINGTON Fiscal ear ends with major udget dive The government ran a $159 billion deficit in the fiscal year just ended, the Bush administration said yesterday, punctuating one of the federal budget's worst nosedives ever just 12 days before elections for control of Congress. The figure was not a surprise and, largely reflected an ongoing dip in fed- eral revenue collections. But it was nonetheless breathtaking for its contrast with the $127 billion surplus - the second largest ever - shown by the government's books just a year before. Though Democrats hope the budget's deterioration will help them in next month's elections, many analysts and officials from both parties believe the return of deficits after four straight years of surpluses will have a minimal political impact. That is because the public seems more focused on the flag- ging economy and the threat of terror- ism and blames them - not politicians - for the revived red ink. Category 5 is the strongest category of hurricane and is considered capable of causing catastrophic damage. "This is a potentially devastating hur- ricane if it comes in at this intensity or even if it weakens a little bit," said Ed Rappaport, deputy director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami. "Based on the records, which go back 40 or 50 years, this would be one of the two or three strongest" hurricanes to hit Mexico's Pacific coast if it does not weaken substan- tially, Rappaport said. OBAMA, Japan Japanese abductees will remain at home Five visiting Japanese who were abducted decades ago to North Korea will stay indefinitely in their native land, Japan announced yester- day in a move that delighted long- separated family members but could further rankle relations with its com- munist neighbor. The decision comes amid an intensi- fying tug-of-war between Tokyo and Pyongyang over the returnees, who arrived in Japan on Oct. 15 expecting to stay no longer than two weeks. The visit hit an unexpected snag, however, when family members in Japan began pressuring the govern- ment to keep the abductees in their native land for good. The families also demanded that Tokyo press North Korea to let the abductees' children join them perma- nently in Japan. - Compiled from Daily wire reports. PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico of oss1 e Mexico prepares for S b d hurricanelanding ge Hurricane Kenna grew into one of the strongest hurricanes to menace Mexico' rl P n i f i r r n t i n dl r e dn r rd 0 0 e s d attacks rac iic coas in Uecaes ana veerea toward land last night, as forecasters called for urgent action to protect an area that includes major tourist resorts. The Category 5 hurricane with winds of 160 mph was veering away from a Baja California summit of world leaders. WASHINGTON (AP) - The FBI issued a warning to state and local law enforcement nationwide yesterday about a possible attack soon against transporta- tion systems, particularly railroads. Officials said the warning, based on information obtained from al- Qaida prisoners, suggested that ter- rorists may try to take out bridges, key sections of tracks or train engines in an effort to cause derail- ments and widespread damage. "Information from debriefings of al- Qaida detainees as of mid-October indi- cates that the group has considered directly targeting U.S. passenger trains, possibly using operatives who have a Western appearance," the FBI said in a statement. Intelligence officials continue to believe that al-Qaida plans to attack targets that would be readily recog- nized as representing U.S. economic interests, the FBI said. Captured al-Qaida photographs of U.S. railroad engines, cars and crossings have increased concern about the threat, the FBI said. Amtrak President David Gunn said federal transportation officials noti- fied him about the warning. "The threat, like a lot of others, is not spe- cific," Gunn said. "It's not targeted at anything per se." Gunn said the passenger railroad is taking steps to enhance security and pas- senger safety, but declined to describe them except to say they will not be evi- dent to riders. Amtrak has increased patrols and freight railroads have tightened security, the FBI said. Around the Sept. 11 anniversary, Amtrak announced it intended to The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by students at the University of Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the Daily's office for $2. Subscriptions for fall term, starting in September, via U.S. mail are $105. Winter term (January through April) is $110, yearlong (September through April) is $190. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscrip- tions must be prepaid. The Michigan Daily is a member of The Associated Press and The Associated Collegiate Press. 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