Another maid falls to her death

Another maid falls to her death

INDONESIA: An Indonesian housemaid fell to her death from her
employer's apartment in the Singapore area of Tampines while
cleaning the windows on Saturday.

Indonesian Embassy in Singapore spokesman Chalief Akbar
identified the woman as Tirakat, who had been working in the city
state for six years.

Chalief told Antara the embassy and Singaporean police were
investigating the incident.

"At present, her body is still in a general hospital in
Singapore. We will fly her body back to Indonesia after we
contact her family in Indonesia," he said.

Tirakat was the 78th migrant worker to have died after falling
from the same building. -- Antara

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Highlight-farmer-murdered
Farmer beheaded in water dispute
JP/2/HIGH

Farmer beheaded in water dispute

INDONESIA: A farmer from Bengkulu village, Bandu Agung was
beheaded during a dispute over irrigation water, Antara reported.

Police said Saturday that Ceman, 35, was killed on Wednesday
by his neighbor identified only as Sar, 32, who later surrendered
to police.

South Bengkulu Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Djumli Syafrudin
said Ceman accused Sar of controlling the irrigation water in his
favor so it did not flow to Ceman's rice field.

"On Wednesday, they ran into each other in a rice field and
Sar used his machete to kill Ceman there," he said. "I think it
is quite a rare crime."

Riuslan, a resident of the neighboring village of Padang Guci,
said conflict among farmers over irrigation water occurred
frequently there. -- Antara

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Egypt-US-warships
More U.S. warships cross the Suez
JP/2/HIGH

More U.S. warships cross the Suez

EGYPT: Eight U.S. warships crossed the Mediterranean into the Red
Sea Saturday to join the military buildup in the Middle East
region ahead of a looming war in Iraq, Egyptian port officials
said.

The warships that crossed through Egypt's Suez Canal included
the submarines USS Providence, USS Newport News and USS Augusta;
destroyer USS Donald Cook; guided missile destroyer USS Porter;
guided missile cruiser San Jacinto and the oiler, USS Kanawha,
the officials told The Associated Press.

On Friday, another five U.S. warships crossed the canal
following the Pentagon's decision to move about 10 Navy ships
from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, from where they could
launch cruise missiles toward Iraq. -- AP

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Pakistan-terror-suspects
Al-Qaeda suspects to be charged
JP/2/HIGH

Al-Qaeda suspects to be charged

PAKISTAN: An anti-terrorism court in eastern Pakistan will charge
a naturalized American doctor and his brother this month with
having links to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network, a defense
lawyer and court officials said Saturday.

Dr. Ahmad Javed Khawaja and his brother, naturalized Canadian
Ahmad Naveed Khawaja, have been in custody since December when
they were arrested by the Pakistani security agencies for
allegedly sheltering al-Qaida men at their house in a small
village near the Indian border east of Lahore.

"The prosecution has given us copies of the charges and the
evidence they have collected against our clients," defense
attorney Pervez Inayat Malik told The Associated Press.

"We have been told by the court that Dr. Khawaja and his
brother will be charged on March 25."

Public prosecutor Rana Bakhtiar told AP after the court
hearing that he has strong evidence to prove that the suspects
were harboring al-Qaida men. -- AP

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Cambodia-Thailand-riot
Cambodia to reimburse Thailand
JP/2/HIGH

Cambodia to reimburse Thailand

CAMBODIA: Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen on Saturday agreed to
reimburse Thailand in full for the damage to its embassy and
businesses in anti-Thai riots.

Hun Sen said a letter agreeing to pay US$5.9 million to repair
the embassy, which was torched and looted in January, was
submitted to Thailand's charge d'affaires here.

"I told my foreign and finance officials that we will fully
pay their claim and we should not ask for a discount, not even a
single cent," Hun Sen said in a national radio address.

"This is our responsibility," he said, adding that the
government would also pay for the 49 Cambodian houses that were
burnt down or damaged.

"We will not only pay for the damage of foreigners' property,
but we will also pay for Cambodians whose houses were burnt," he
said, appealing to the Thais and Cambodians not to exaggerate
their claims.

Dozens of Thai businesses were damaged or destroyed in the
anti-Thai violence of Jan. 29, but officials have given no word
yet on whether Cambodia has agreed to the final claim submitted
by Thai authorities and businesses. -- AFP

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Health-Asia-flu
Flu virus infects more in HK, S'pore
JP/2/HIGH

Flu virus infects more in HK, S'pore

HONG KONG/SINGAPORE: Eleven more people in Hong Kong and
Singapore have developed symptoms of a mystery flu-like virus
that has killed one person, infected scores of others and sparked
a rash of travel cancellations in Hong Kong.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) issued a global pneumonia
alert this week after outbreaks in Hong Kong and Hanoi and has
sent experts to Asia to track down the source.

Seven more people -- including five hospital staff -- have
developed symptoms of the virus in Singapore, bringing the total
number of cases to 16, the health ministry said on Saturday.

All the patients, except for two that have been discharged,
are in a stable condition, it said.

Four more medical workers were admitted to hospital in Hong
Kong on Saturday with similar symptoms, bringing the number of
Hong Kong medical workers infected to 47.

Thirty-seven have since developed signs of severe pneumonia,
up from 29 on Friday. Anxious Hong Kong residents have swept
surgical masks off pharmacy shelves. -- Reuters