IN OTHER NEWS...

www.philly.com Posted on Tue, Feb. 18, 2003

IRAQ UNDER THE GUN

In Brussels, Belgium, divided European Union leaders sought to unite on Iraq at an emergency summit, putting the onus on Baghdad to disarm and accepting that the use of force could be a last resort if it failed to comply.

But while there was broad agreement to give U.N. weapons inspectors more time, the 15-nation bloc was split on how long to wait before declaring President Saddam Hussein had failed to rid Iraq of weapons of mass destruction.

See Story Page 15

OLD WAR REVISITED?

North Korea's army threatened today to abandon its commitment to the 1953 Korean War truce if sanctions such as a naval blockade are imposed on the isolated communist state over its nuclear crisis.

And Pyongyang said it would win any nuclear war with the United States as the crisis over North Korea's suspected drive to manufacture atomic weapons entered the fifth month.

HAMAS VOWS REVENGE

In Gaza, Israeli forces killed a leader of the military wing of Hamas, drawing threats of revenge at a massive Palestinian funeral in the Gaza Strip.

Riyad Abu Zeid died while being evacuated by a military helicopter to an Israeli hospital with wounds the Israeli army said had been sustained in an exchange of fire with soldiers trying to arrest him.

OIL KEEPS PUMPING

In Lagos, Nigeria, the government started sending replacement workers to its oil-export terminals yesterday, trying to stave off a shutdown of crude exports in a strike by a powerful oil workers union.

The two-day-old strike over pay and working conditions comes as the threat of war against Iraq and a prolonged strike in Venezuela have pushed oil prices near two-year highs.

Nigeria is the world's sixth-largest exporter of crude oil and half of its exports go to the United States. Oil exports account for more than 80 percent of government revenue.

SLOW DOWN, BLOKE!

In London, traffic levels dipped by a quarter as the city began charging $8 for motorists to drive into the city's center as part of a "congestion charge" scheme that went live under the watchful gaze of urban planners across the globe.

Cyclists celebrated and motorists fumed as the plan began in a bid to cut traffic by 15 percent in the city center, where average speeds have fallen below 10 mph.