SOUTHERN AFRICA

MARK THATCHER GETS OFF WITH FINE AFTER GUILTY PLEA

The son of Prime Minister Thatcher pleaded guilty yesterday to unwittingly helping bankroll a botched coup plot in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea, and in exchange he received a fine, a suspended jail sentence, and the right to rejoin his family in America.

Within hours of agreeing to the $506,000 fine, Sir Mark Thatcher checked in for a flight out of South Africa. “There is no price too high for me pay to be reunited with my family, and I am sure all of you who are husbands and fathers will understand that,” Sir Mark Thatcher told journalists outside court. Across the street, a poster reading “Save me mummy” hung from a window. The bizarre coup plot drew mercenaries from elite British schools into an attempt to take over Africa’s third-largest oil producer, which is led by a dictator with reported cannibalistic tendencies. Sir Mark Thatcher admitted in the Cape High Court that he paid $275,000 in two installments last year to charter an Alouette III helicopter to be used in the takeover attempt.

– Associated Press

SOUTH AMERICA

BLACK HAWK HELICOPTER CRASH KILLS 20 SOLDIERS

BOGOTA, Colombia – An American-donated military helicopter crashed yesterday while flying in thick fog during a nighttime counter narcotics mission in southwest Colombia, killing all 20 soldiers aboard, the army said.

The Black Hawk helicopter, used in the American-funded anti-drug effort called Plan Colombia, went down just after midnight near the village of Manguipayan, 340 miles southwest of the capital, Bogota.

Early investigations indicate the crash was caused by bad weather, the army said in a statement. An army official said the problem was “thick fog.”

An American official in Bogota, speaking on condition of anonymity, said American personnel were aiding in efforts to recover bodies of the victims and the wreckage of the chopper. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the Black Hawk was one of 16 purchased by America to support Plan Colombia and, according to his information, all those aboard were Colombian nationals.

– Associated Press

PERSIAN GULF

IRAN FEARS U.N INSPECTORS HAVE ULTERIOR MOTIVES

TEHRAN, Iran-Iranian officials vowed to carefully watch for any attempted espionage by international inspectors, who yesterday were visiting a military complex that America alleges may be involved in nuclear weapons research. Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, arrived in Iran on Wednesday for a visit to the huge Parchin military complex just outside the capital Tehran, according to state-run TV.

Iran has said it will allow U.N. nuclear experts to take environmental samples from landscaped areas outside the military complex’s ammunition production workshops, but it won’t allow them to inspect military equipment.

– Associated Press

MIDDLE EAST

ISRAEL: RUSSIA’S PLANNED MISSILE SALE DISRUPTS REGIONAL STABILITY

The planned sale of advanced Russian missiles to Syria will disrupt regional stability and Moscow should call off the deal, Israel’s foreign minister said yesterday.

Israel fears that the shoulder-held anti-aircraft missiles could fall into the hands of Lebanese guerrillas and be aimed at Israeli targets.

The foreign minister, Silvan Shalom, was the first official to confirm publicly that Israel has asked Russia to halt the deal, which has clouded Israel-Russia relations. Russian and Syrian officials denied that such a deal had been reached.

“We turned to the Russians and asked that they not complete this deal,” Mr. Shalom said. “Syria is a country that supports terror and is supplying Hezbollah with weapons nonstop.”

– Associated Press