MIDDLE EAST

ABBAS DENOUNCES ‘ZIONIST ENEMY’

BEIT LAHIYA, Gaza Strip – Palestinian Arab presidential candidate Mahmoud Abbas denounced Israel as the “Zionist enemy” yesterday – his harshest language yet on the campaign trail – after Israeli tank shells slammed into a strawberry patch, killing seven Palestinian Arabs, many of them children. Israel insisted the shells hit terrorists who were firing mortar rounds at Israeli targets, but relatives and witnesses said the dead were children and teenagers, and a senior army commander apologized for civilian casualties. It was the bloodiest strike in Gaza in three months.

Mr. Abbas’s rhetoric has grown increasingly hard-line during a four-day campaign swing through Gaza as he reached out to younger Palestinian Arabs ahead of Sunday’s election. But his comments condemning yesterday’s deaths were his most inflammatory. “We came to you today, while we are praying for the souls of the martyrs who were killed today by the shells of the Zionist enemy in Beit Lahiya,” Mr. Abbas told thousands of supporters, using a term for Israel usually employed by Islamic terrorists. In response, the Israeli foreign minister, Silvan Shalom, broke with his government’s policy of not criticizing Mr. Abbas during the campaign.

“Israel is very concerned about Abu Mazen’s recent statements which are very militant…and the like of which we haven’t heard in a long time,” he said, referring to Mr. Abbas by his nickname.

– Associated Press

SOUTH AMERICA

PERUVIAN GROUP’S CAPTIVES BUSED TO SAFETY

ANDAHUAYLAS, Peru – More than 100 fighters belonging to an armed nationalist group that seized a remote Peruvian police station and took officers and soldiers hostage surrendered to authorities yesterday and freed their 17 captives, officials said.

The surrenders of the group’s leader and his fighters came separately. Antauro Humala, the former army major, turned himself in to National Police chief Felix Murazzo at the town’s municipal building before dawn yesterday. But about 125 members of the xenophobic fringe group remained barricaded inside with the hostages. Hours later at midday, dozens of fighters wearing combat fatigues and carrying white flags walked out of the station and placed their automatic rifles on the ground. The rebels, all former soldiers, flashed “V” signs for victory and sang the Peruvian army anthem before climbing into three buses provided by the police and riding away. The hostages also left in one of the buses. Fighters supporting Mr. Humala, whose group wants to establish a nationalist indigenous movement modeled on the ancient Incan Empire, ambushed police reinforcements as they crossed a bridge Sunday, killing four officers. Mr. Humala’s group demanded the resignation of President Toledo, accusing him of selling out Peru to business interests in Chile, a historic rival. Mr. Humala and his brother led a failed military uprising against former President Fujimori in 2000.

– Associated Press

COURT UPHOLDS PINOCHET INDICTMENT

SANTIAGO, Chile – Chile’s Supreme Court yesterday upheld the indictment and house arrest of General Augusto Pinochet, the former dictator, for nine kidnappings and one homicide allegedly committed during a long regime marked by human rights abuses. The court’s 3-2 vote cleared the way for Mr. Pinochet to be tried on the latest human rights abuse charges stemming from his 1973-1990 rule.

“The sentence that has been appealed has been confirmed,” court secretary Carlos Meneses said, referring to Mr. Pinochet’s appeal.

A small group of Pinochet supporters were removed from the court by guards as they shouted slogans interrupting Mr. Meneses’s announcement. The ruling prompted applause and cheers from gathered relatives of alleged victims of Mr. Pinochet’s regime. “We are happy, the entire world is happy,” said Lorena Pizarro, president of an association of relatives of dissidents who were killed during Mr. Pinochet’s reign. “Pinochet cannot continue to live in impunity.”

Mr. Pinochet remained at his countryside residence west of Santiago, where he will remain under house arrest during the trial. He has been there recovering from a stroke he suffered in December. Mr. Pinochet’s legal team said it would ask the court for authorization to transfer Mr. Pinochet to the hospital if he suffered another stroke.

– Associated Press

EASTERN EUROPE

UKRAINE OPPOSITION LEADER SAYS SHE EXPECTS TO BE PREMIER

Ukraine’s fiery opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko said yesterday she expects to become the country’s next prime minister, given her stalwart support for Viktor Yushchenko, whose presidency is increasingly likely. In an interview, Ms. Tymoshenko said she and Mr. Yushchenko signed a written agreement when she joined his coalition that leaves no alternative than for her to head a new government when Mr. Yushchenko is inaugurated.

“I believe that Viktor Yushchenko will follow our formal agreement,” said Ms. Tymoshenko, whose elaborately braided hair, hip orange outfits, and sharp tongue have earned her thousands of worshippers among the opposition. Asked if anyone else could become prime minister, she replied: “There are no other alternatives.”

Mr. Yushchenko, who won a court-ordered revote on December 26 but has not been declared the victor because his opponent appealed the results, has so far refused to say who he will tap to be prime minister. “It’s too early to begin with names,” he told Ukraine’s TV5 last week. The Central Election Commission said yesterday that it expected to announce final results today, at which point Mr. Yushchenko’s opponent Viktor Yanukovich is expected to file an appeal with Ukraine’s Supreme Court.

– Associated Press