A round-up of other world news in brief
Britain to pay more towards border control
FRANCE – France and Britain signed an accord under which London will pay more towards tougher controls on illegal immigrants crossing from northern France.
French authorities estimate that almost 2,000 illegal immigrants are gathered in the northern coastal region around Calais waiting to try crossing the Channel to Britain with some 800 in an informal tent city.
Yesterday’s agreement will see Britain take on a greater share of the costs of handling the problem, with London paying for new detection equipment and staff costs and the two countries setting up a new joint information centre. – (Reuters)
West warned not to interfere in Iran
TEHRAN – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned western countries against interfering in Iranian affairs.
“We strongly warn leaders of some western countries not to interfere in Iran’s internal matters . . . The Iranian nation will react,” Khamenei said.
Britain said that Iran had freed one of its last two embassy employees detained after the election, leaving just one still in custody. – (Reuters)
Sarkozy made ‘slip of tongue’
JERUSALEM – Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman said that French president Nicolas Sarkozy had made a “slip of the tongue” by calling for his dismissal, but that he was not disturbed by the remark.
Mr Lieberman also dismissed what Israeli commentators call a snub by Benjamin Netanyahu, who has given defence minister Ehud Barak a mandate to narrow a rift with Washington over Jewish settlement building in the occupied West Bank.
Neither Mr Sarkozy nor Mr Netanyahu have confirmed Israeli media reports last week that the French leader had told the Israeli to “get rid of” the ultranationalist Mr Lieberman.
Attenborough’s coral reef warning
LONDON – The naturalist David Attenborough joined scientists yesterday to warn that carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is already above the level which condemns coral reefs to extinction, with catastrophic effects for the oceans and the people who depend upon them.
Coral reefs support a quarter of all marine life, including more than 4,000 species of fish. They also provide spawning, nursery, refuge and feeding areas for creatures such as lobsters, crabs, starfish and sea turtles. This makes them crucial in supporting a healthy marine ecosystem.
Attenborough, famous for making natural history documentaries, said the world had a "moral responsibility" to save corals. The naturalist was speaking at the Royal Society in London, following a meeting of biologists. – ( Guardianservice)