Foreign Desk
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

CENTRAL ASIA
U.S. INVESTIGATING ALLEGED ABUSE OF DETAINEE
KABUL, Afghanistan – The American military is investigating whether American soldiers abused an Afghan detainee so badly that he died last year at a special forces base in southeastern Afghanistan, an official said yesterday. The criminal case, the latest in a string of probes into alleged abuse of prisoners in American jails here, was opened over the weekend following a report that Afghan investigators concluded that he may have been murdered. “We do have an ongoing criminal investigation,” said Chris Grey, a spokesman for the Army’s Criminal Investigation Command at Fort Belvoir, Va. The probe focused on “an alleged death of an Afghan detainee and alleged abuse,” he said. Mr. Grey said the military was responding to an account in the Los Angeles Times of how an 18-year-old Afghan named Jamal Naseer died after he and seven other insurgents were seized by American soldiers in March 2003. Citing a report by Afghan military prosecutors and witness statements, the newspaper said the men were held for 17 days at the special forces base in Gardez, the capital of Paktia province. Survivors said they were beaten, hung upside down, and struck repeatedly with sticks, rubber hoses, and cables, the newspaper reported. Some alleged they were immersed in cold water, made to lie in the snow, or subjected to electric shocks. It said Naseer died on March 16 after complaining of abdominal pains, and that hospital officials and his mother said his corpse showed signs of severe bruising.
– Associated Press
MIDDLE EAST
BOMBING THREAT IN WAKE OF AIR STRIKE
GAZA CITY, Gaza City – Palestinian Arab terrorists fired three homemade rockets into southern Israel yesterday and Hamas threatened a suicide bombing in retaliation for Israel’s latest air strike in Gaza, which killed two terrorists from the Islamic group. The Israeli army said there were no injuries or damage from the rockets, which were fired from Gaza. It was the latest in a series of mortar and rocket attacks aimed at Jewish settlements in Gaza and southern Israeli towns in recent days. An Israeli helicopter fired a missile at a vehicle in Gaza City at nightfall Monday, incinerating the car and killing the two Hamas men instantly. Israel charged that they were going to fire rockets at Israeli targets. Israel is planning to withdraw its soldiers and dismantle all 21 Jewish settlements in Gaza next year, and analysts predict escalating violence as the pullout approaches. Palestinian Arab terrorists are trying to show that they are ejecting the Israelis by force, while Israel is just as determined to hit the terrorists and demonstrate that it would not tolerate attacks after the withdrawal.
– Associated Press
SHARON FACES CRITICS, VOWS GAZA PULLOUT
JERUSALEM – A defiant Ariel Sharon faced down detractors in his own party yesterday, insisting he would implement his embattled Gaza pullout, and rebellious settlers filed suit against a plan to give advance payments to families who leave their West Bank and Gaza homes. The prime minister’s mere mention of the term “disengagement plan” at a Likud Party convention set off several minutes of boos and catcalls. “The disengagement plan…has started on its way, and it will be carried out exactly according to the timetable approved by the Cabinet,” Mr. Sharon said, ignoring the noisy protest. Mr. Sharon’s party has voted against the pullout twice in different frameworks, but Mr. Sharon was adamant. The prime minister lost his parliamentary majority over his plan to evacuate all 21 Jewish settlements in Gaza and four in the West Bank next year. His own party and traditional supporters – settlers and their backers – rebelled, and pro-settler Cabinet ministers quit his coalition. In May, Likud members voted the plan down in a nonbinding referendum, and a few weeks later, a Likud convention vetoed Mr. Sharon’s plan to add the moderate Labor Party to his coalition – another blow to the pullout plan.
– Associated Press
EASTERN EUROPE
ONE MILLION REFUGEES RETURNED TO BOSNIA
The United Nations said yesterday that 1 million refugees have returned to Bosnia, a landmark in recovery from the war – but for many, coming home was just the beginning of a struggle for a normal life. Alija Tufekdzic, a 45 year-old unemployed carpenter who returned this summer to his devastated house, said he and his family of five live a “dog’s life,” and that they might leave Bosnia altogether if things don’t get better soon. Mr. Tufekdzic, in the village of Trnovo near Sarajevo, has trouble putting food on the table and making ends meet. “Real return is not just getting back into your shattered house. You have to repair the house, get a job, a school for your kids. …A lot of things essential for a normal life,” he said. Udo Janz, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees’ representative in Bosnia, called the return of 1 million refugees “a most significant milestone in the long process of rebuilding a nation.” In all, 2.2 million people were displaced by the fighting, Mr. Janz said. Mr. Janz admits, though, that for some refugees such as Mr. Tufekdzic, there are “still many difficulties to overcome, and continued support from the international community will remain essential for several years to come.”
– Associated Press
SOUTHEAST ASIA
WOMAN LIVES WITH SCORPIONS FOR 32 DAYS
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – A Malaysian woman has broken a world record by enduring 32 days enclosed in a glass box with 6,069 scorpions, suffering seven stings in the process, her sponsor claimed yesterday. Nur Malena Hassan, 27, will remain in the case, on display in a shopping mall in the eastern city of Kuantan, until Saturday, said Bohari Rahmat, whose biscuit company sponsored the stunt. Late Monday, Ms. Nur Malena surpassed the previous record held by Kanchana Ketkeaw from Thailand, who spent 31 days in a glass box with 3,400 scorpions, Mr. Bohari said. Mr. Bohari said he hadn’t talked to Ms. Nur Malena since she reclaimed her record, which she first won in 2001 by living for 30 days with 2,700 scorpions. “We don’t want her to lose focus, thinking that this is enough,” Mr. Bohari said. “If we can reach 36 days, it will be more difficult for someone else to beat us next time.” Sujatah Nair, a spokeswoman for the Malaysia Book of Records, said that video and other documentation were being sent to the Guinness Book of Records.
– Associated Press