Bird flu spreads to Cameroon
Cameroon has become the fourth African country to be struck by the deadly bird flu virus, as the government announced its first confirmed case on Sunday.
The H5N1 bird flu strain was detected in a duck on a farm close to the northern town of Maroua, near the border with neighboring Nigeria, the government said in a statement broadcast on state radio. The fatal virus was first discovered in Africa on a commercial poultry farm in Nigeria in February. It has since been reported in Niger and Egypt.
Slobodan Milosevic found dead
Slobodan Milosevic, the former Yugoslav president who was on trial at The Hague for alleged war crimes, was found dead in his cell today, the U.N. war crimes tribunal said. Authorities have launched an investigation into his death. His lawyer wants an autopsy elsewhere as Mr Milosevic feared he was being poisoned.
Former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic began his career as a party official in communist Yugoslavia. He rose to power in 1987 and the wars that followed cost at least 100,000 lives. Since 2001, Milosevic has been in court at the Yugoslav war crimes tribunal in The Hague. His trial was nearing its end. His death means that he has escaped judgement.
Now there will never be a judgement from outside the region, which former Yugoslavs might one day be able to look to as impartial This single fact is a tragedy. It means that, for some, Milosevic will remain a virtual saint, who set out to save the Serbs from their enemies - while for others he will remain a force for evil who destroyed Yugoslavia and set out to commit genocide. His death means that now there will never be a judgement from outside the region, which former Yugoslavs might one day be able to look to as impartial.
In the region though, and in the short term, the passing of Slobodan Milosevic will make little difference.
German cat gets deadly bird flu
A domestic cat in Germany has become the first European Union mammal to die of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu.
The cat was found dead at the weekend on the Baltic island of Ruegen, where dozens of birds infected with H5N1 have been found.
Further north, Sweden has detected "aggressive" bird flu in two wild ducks and is testing to confirm H5N1.
Meanwhile, vets from 50 countries have been meeting in Paris for a second day to discuss ways to combat the virus.
The H5N1 infection in the German cat was confirmed by officials at the national laboratory, the Friedrich Loeffler Institute, but tests are continuing to determine if it is the exact strain that has been found in birds.
Laboratory chief Thomas Mettenleiter said pet owners on the island should keep cats inside for the time being.
Cats have been known to contract the virus from eating infected birds. Three rare civet cats in Vietnam died of bird flu last August. In October 2004, dozens of tigers died at a private zoo in Thailand after a bird flu outbreak.
There are no recorded cases of cat-to-human infection, but the German finding will raise concerns of further cross-species transmission.
President Bush visits Afghanistan
US President George W Bush has arrived in Kabul in a surprise stop at the start of a maiden trip to South Asia.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai greeted Mr Bush, who is making his first visit to the country since the US-led overthrow of the Taleban in 2001.
The US has about 20,000 troops in Afghanistan, where they are hunting al-Qaeda and Taleban fighters.
Later on Wednesday, Mr Bush will head to India, where some 20,000 people have protested in Delhi against the visit.
In a sudden change to a schedule kept secret for security reasons, Mr Bush headed to Afghanistan before, rather than after, his visit to India.
Security is tight in Kabul, with reports of helicopters flying over the city and US military Humvees patrolling the streets.
Ahead of the US president's arrival, Kabul airspace was closed to civilian air traffic.
We are confident in the security precautions that have been taken. One of those was not informing you of the trip until now said an official.
Mr Bush immediately headed to the presidential palace with Mr Karzai for talks.
President Bush is accompanied by wife Laura and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
The president is also expected to address US troops at the main Bagram air base.
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