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> Tue., Aug. 8, 2006
FSRN
FREE SPEECH RADIO NEWS
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Today's lead stories:
U.S. Secretary of Energy Eyes Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
for Oil Exploration
UN Security Council Meets with Arab League
Christians and Muslims Living Through War in Lebanon
Israelis Split on Continued Attacks
U.S. Military Steps Up Attacks on Sadr Movement
Demonstrators Arrested for Protecting Trees in Oregon
FSRN Headlines
ISRAEL TO STEP UP ATTACKS ON SOUTHERN LEBANON
Israeli air strikes have killed at least 14 villagers in southern
Lebanon today – pushing the Lebanese death toll over
1,000. The Lebanese government is pressing the U.N. Security
Council to adopt reforms to a U.S.-French backed ceasefire
plan – as the country faces its toughest set of crises
since Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers on July 12.
Jackson Allers reports from Beirut.
Among the many casualties of war during the near four week
Israeli military offensive is a growing environmental disaster
along the Lebanese coastline. Nearly 90 miles of coastline
has been covered by a more than 14 thousand ton oil spill
that is spreading north into Syrian waters. Marine analysts
say that the oil spill will affect the fishing industry for
at least 2 to 3 years and that a cleanup is not possible until
a ceasefire is complete. Meanwhile, the Lebanese government
called up 15,000 Reserve troops to fulfill their commitment
to a domestic ceasefire plan that would put Lebanese government
forces in control of the southern territories – areas
that Israel intends to occupy in the coming weeks –
part of the Israeli government's strategy to force Hezbollah
from the southern Lebanese border. And today, as the United
Nations Security Council debates changes to the U.S. backed
ceasefire agreement, Israel dropped thousands of leaflets
onto the coastal city of Tyre in Southern Lebanon –
indicating that any moving vehicle would be considered hostile
and would face Israeli missile attacks. Reporting for Free
speech Radio News, this is Jackson Allers in Beirut, Lebanon.
NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN SRI LANKA
Sri Lankan rebels today released water from a disputed irrigation
reservoir ending a 20-day blockade that had instigated fierce
clashes between government forces and the Tamil Tigers. In
a separate development, 17 local aid workers were found dead
in a battered nearby town. The French charity Action Against
Hunger said it has suspended its mission to Sri Lanka following
the massacre of its local staff in the country. Ponniah Manikavasagam
has more.
On July 20, Tamil Tiger rebels blocked the Mavil Aru irrigation
water supply to 30,000 acres of paddy lands in the government
held area. The government launched an offensive to open the
water gates and fierce fighting erupted between the two parties
in the eastern town of Muttur and hundreds of combatants and
civilians were killed. The rebels said they want the government
to fulfill the long felt basic needs including drinking water
of the people in their area. Hours after Norway`s peace envoy
Jon Hanssen-Bauer clinched a deal with the rebels on Sunday
to open the Mavil Aru canal, the government launched fresh
artillery attacks. Senior rebel leader Elilan said they opened
the water gates on humanitarian grounds and at the request
of the Norwegian government. Meanwhile, the funeral of 17
local aid workers killed in Muttur took place in Trincomalee
today. The tragic death of these people has sent shock waves
among the aid agencies engaged in relief and rehabilitation
projects in the country. The European Union has urged the
government to take legal action against the perpetrators and
to assure the safety of the humanitarian workers. For Free
Speech Radio News, I am Ponniah Manikavasagam in Vavuniya,
Sri Lanka.
DEATH TOLL FROM ETHIOPIAN FLOODING RISES
Floods in Ethiopia have claimed more than 200 lives since
the weekend. Over 10,000 people have been left homeless in
the eastern city of Dire Dawa. Hundreds of people are still
missing. The updated death toll comes amid new warnings of
flash floods for lowland regions.
CONGOLESE DISPLACED RUNNING OUT OF FOOD
Aid workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo say that internally
displaced civilians in the northeast are dying for lack of
food. Violence still rages in areas of the DRC although the
country's devastating civil war formally ended three years
ago. A UN humanitarian aid coordinator told Reuters that an
estimated 10 people die each day in one camp that shelters
some 40,000 displaced people. Some of the displaced are left
with no choice but to return to their fields in areas patrolled
by violent militia groups. The civil war in the DRC has been
ranked as the deadliest conflict since WWII.
STRIKE AT HUGE CHILEAN COPPER MINE
More than 2,000 miners in the world's largest private copper
mine, La Escondida, went on strike yesterday demanding better
wages and working conditions. FSRN's Jorge Garretón
reports from Santiago.
The striking miners are demanding a 13 percent pay increase
and a one time bonus of some 30 thousand dollars per worker
because of the high price of copper in world markets. They
also demand pay benefits because they have to work under a
harsh environment at nearly 10 thousand feet in the mountains.
La Escondida, owned by the Anglo-Australian mine consortium
BHP Billiton, is offering only 3 percent increase in wages.
La Escondida produces 8 percent of the world's copper and
last year the mine had record profits of 2.5 billion dollars.
Union officials say La Escondida is operating at 30 percent
capacity with non-union labor and scab miners. Company officials
say the mine is working at 40 percent capacity. Union leader
Pedro Marin calls the strike historic and says it is the rebirth
of the mining union movement silenced after the 1973 military
coup. Marin says they have the support of other mining unions,
but warns that miners need to be responsible in their demands
because Chile's economy and success is owed largely to its
commodities. For FSRN this is Jorge Garretón in Santiago.
[top]
U.S. Secretary of Energy Eyes Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge for Oil Exploration (4:16)
US Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman showed optimism in
the U.S.' capacity to make up for the 400,000 barrels of oil
that will be lost due to BP's pipeline leak in Prudhoe Bay,
Alaska. As FSRN's Leigh Ann Caldwell reports, amidst his assurances,
he encouraged the opening of the ANWR to further oil exploration.
[top]
UN Security Council Meets with Arab League
(1:01)
The Arab League, composed of Foreign Ministers from 20 countries,
met in Beirut yesterday and rejected a UN resolution drafted
by the U.S. and France. Yahya Mahmassani is the Permanent
Observer to the UN from the League of Arab States. He said
the current proposal has a discriminatory tone, adding that
3 key details are missing from the draft.
[top]
Christians and Muslims Living Through War in Lebanon
(4:12)
Meanwhile, the violence continues in the Middle East. Israeli
warplanes destroyed 5 bridges along the main north-south coastal
highway this week, killing 5 people, wounding 19 others, and
completely isolating Beirut from the north of the country.
The strikes destroyed the only remaining outlet via Syria
after the bombardment of other border crossing points, and
might challenge the relationship between a city’s Christian
and Muslim communities. Christians were the majority in the
region and Muslims were the minority in numbers – until
22,000 refugees arrived from the southern war zone, seeking
shelter. FSRN’s Khaled Sid Mohand reports from this
Christian stronghold, to access if the destruction of the
bridges is causing more than just physical damage.
[top]
Israelis Split on Continued Attacks (3:29)
At least 1,000 Lebanese people, more than 800 of them civilians,
and 97 Israelis, 33 of them civilians, have been killed in
the three-week long war. But while Israeli officials present
a 'united front' to the world media, the reality on the ground
is a far more fractured populace. Jenka Soderberg reports.
[top]
U.S. Military Steps Up Attacks on Sadr Movement
(4:41)
As Israel continues its invasion of Lebanon, the United
States military is stepping up its attack on the movement
of Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in Iraq. Like Hezballah
in Lebanon, the Sadr movement has millions of members, opposes
the Israeli and U.S. military, and provides social services
for the poor. Aaron Glantz and Salam Talib report.
[top]
Demonstrators Arrested for Protecting Trees in Oregon
(2:34)
The first tress were chopped down in a pristine Roadless
Area yesterday since the Bush Administration repealed a 2001
rule last year, which protected 58-million acres of unspoiled
forest land. About 100 demonstrators from Oregon rallied in
front of the Forest Service office in Medford, Oregon, protesting
the trees destruction. As FSRN’s Jacob Fenston reports,
12 protestors were arrested when they occupied the crosswalk
in front of the Agency's office.
[top]
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