And we come now to 15:30 Universal Time.
[1] In the news at this hour, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says he is ready to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to restart peace talks. Mr. Abbas spoke after meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair in the West Bank city of Ramallah. On Saturday Mr. Olmert said he is also ready to meet the Palestinian president for talks.
[2] NATO says two coalition troops have been killed in separate incidents in southern Afghanistan. A military statement says the soldiers were killed on Saturday night in Kandahar and Zabul provinces. NATO also says its troops have killed 94 Taliban rebels in four clashes in Kandahar province. In Patkia province a bomber has attacked and killed the area's governor and two other people. Officials in the eastern province say Abdul Hakim Taniwal, his relative and his chief bodyguard died when a man carrying a bomb exploded it near the official's car. At least three police officers also were wounded. A reported Taliban spokesman says that the group was behind the attack.
[3] Iraqi police say a bomb explosion in Baghdad has killed at least three people. Sixteen others were injured. The Iraqi parliament has postponed a debate on Shiite proposals to create a new independent area in the southern part of the country. Iraqi officials say the strong Sunni opposition led to the decision to delay the meeting. The main Shiite political group in parliament offered the bill calling for a three-part federal system in Iraq. The proposed system would include an independently governed area in southern Iraq where Shiites are in the majority. Iraq's Sunni Arab minority fears the bill would give control of the country's oil resources to Shiites and Kurds.
[4] A top European diplomat and the chief Iranian nuclear negotiator say they have made progress in talks about Iran's nuclear program. In Vienna on Sunday, the European Union's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana said discussions with Iran's Ali Larijani have gone well. He says negotiations will continue in coming days.
[5] The Sri Lankan military says 28 soldiers have been killed in recent fighting with Tamil Tiger rebels. The military says 119 other soldiers were wounded. The clashes took place in the Jaffna area. The Sri Lankan military says rebels recently carried out artillery attacks against troops in Jaffna. The Tamil Tigers say six rebels were killed and 13 wounded. However, a report by the French news agency says that Sri Lankan military officials put the number of rebel deaths at 115. The Tamil Tigers say fighting continued on Sunday but gave no details.
You are listening to the news in VOA Special English.
[6] Asian leaders are in the Finnish capital, Helsinki, for a two-day meeting with the European Union. Delegates are discussing world trade, security and other issues. Asian leaders attending the event include Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. They are expected to express concerns about North Korea's nuclear program. Before the talks began on Sunday, Asian leaders invited India, Mongolia and Pakistan to join the meeting.
[7] European officials again have urged Burma to improve its record on human rights, but Burma says it needs more time. The statement followed a meeting between European Union officials and Burma's Foreign Minister U Nyan Win in Helsinki, Finland. Finnish Foreign Ministry official Markus Lyra said the EU hopes that reforms in Burma start moving forward. Finland currently holds the EU presidency.
[8] Chinese state media say workers are destroying a metal-melting factory in the western province of Gansu. The factory caused lead poisoning that has sickened hundreds of people who live nearby. Inspectors say the factory's waste removal equipment is not good enough. Lead pollution from the factory has sickened 368 people since August.
[9] Thousands of Taiwanese protestors remain in the capital Taipei for a second day of demonstrations against President Chen Shui-bian. Mr. Chen, several members of his family and some top government officials are accused of wrongdoing. The president denies the accusations. On Sunday at least ten thousand people had arrived outside the presidential office building by the middle of the day. Saturday's demonstration drew crowds of at least ninety thousand people. The main protest organizer has promised that demonstrations will continue until Taiwan has a new president.
[10] And the Chinese government has placed news rules on foreign media. China says that foreign media must get permission from the Xinhua News Agency to provide information in the country. Xinhua released the list of 22 restrictions on Sunday. Officials say the new rules are designed to prevent news reporting that may endanger China's national security. Xinhua says it has the right to remove any material released by foreign news agencies that it does not approve. ......................
And so briefly now, here again the major news of this hour.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says he is ready to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to restart peace talks. NATO says two coalition troops have been killed in separate incidents in southern Afghanistan. And the Sri Lankan military says 28 soldiers have been killed in recent fighting with Tamil Tiger rebels.
So ends the news in VOA Special English.
