Global briefs
The Hague: The trial of former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic may be extensively delayed as the court seeks a new judge. Richard May, the presiding judge has announced that he is retiring because of ill-health.* * * BRITAIN: The number of prisoners in England and Wales reached an all-time high of 74,543 despite pleas from ministers to the courts to use imprisonment as a last resort.* * * IRAQ: 1.7 million signatures have been collected on a petition demanding a referendum on the future of northern Iraq's Kurdish region. For the past decade Kurds in northern Iraq have been largely autonomous under Western protection. Their status in the new Iraq has become an extremely contentions issue for negotiators as they are trying to finalise an interim constitution. Organisers are demanding a vote on whether the Kurdish zone in northern Iraq should become part of the country in a federal structure or declare independence. The petition was handed to Iraqi and American officials. Kurdish leaders have been pressing for self-government in a federal system but many in Iraq view this as the first step to the break-up of Iraq.* * * INDONESIA: Indonesian Vice President Hamzah Haz described the US-led invasion of Iraq as "terrorism against all mankind" at the closing of a three-day international conference of Islamic scholars. The conference held in the world's largest Muslim populated nation was attended by some 300 Islamic scholars from 49 countries. The conference opened last Monday with stinging attacks by President Megawati Sukanoputri and Islamic leader Hasyim Muzadi on the US-led invasion. Haz ended the meeting on the same note. "When the United Nations is no longer able to restrain the yearnings of strong states' leaders to kill harmless, innocent (people) and devastate a civilisation, I'm very sure that the voice of worldwide Muslim scholars has more value still in the global endeavour to halt the violence by strong countries against the weak", Haz said. The conference's closing statement condemned terrorism and called on Muslims worldwide to practice moderation and tolerance.* * * ISRAEL: Israeli forces raided Arab banks on the West Bank, seizing millions of dollars. The money was removed from hundreds of institutional and personal accounts. Witnesses said soldiers covered the banks' security cameras with black plastic bags and herded employees together before ordering workers with keys to open the vaults. Amin Haddad, the head of the Palestinian Monetary Authority called the raid a robbery intended to "shake our banking system". He rejected assertions that the accounts were linked to terrorism.