August 28, 2003

Editorial: Arafat not worth the trouble New Zealand's National Business Review - Yasser Arafat is now urging Hamas and Islamic Jihad to resume the ceasefire with Israel they so shamefully broke with suicide bombs. This should be taken for what it is: a hollow public gesture by the Palestinian Authority chairman to gain liberal western sympathy while privately giving the green light to terrorists to strike at the heart of Israel. Mr Arafat, whose organisation Fatah was party to the start of modern terrorism in the 1970s, should be treated with contempt by democratic governments. No right-thinking politician ...should treat him as a serious player in the Middle East peace efforts. 11:14:04 AM

US says Iraq arms plan relied on deceit Boston Globe - Investigators searching for Iraq's suspected weapons of mass destruction will report next month that Saddam Hussein's regime spread nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons plans and parts throughout the country to deceive the United Nations, according to senior Bush administration and intelligence officials. 7:15:52 AM

Secrets of nature's silk weavers revealed Guardian - Researchers in the US have cracked the secret of the world's most efficient fabric manufacturers - the spider and the silkworm. 7:14:21 AM

Taliban Leader May Be Hiding in Southeast Afghanistan, AFP Says Bloomberg - Mullah Mohammad Omar, the fugitive leader of Afghanistan's ousted Taliban regime, may be hiding with a group of 800 fighters under attack in the country's southeast, Agence France-Presse said, citing an Afghan military commander. 7:13:10 AM