Bangladesh-India border tense over deportations: Bangladesh and

Bangladesh-India border tense over deportations: Bangladesh and India strengthened their border security forces and hundreds of fearful villagers left their homes on Wednesday as a standoff over deportations heightened tensions along the border. Indian authorities have tried to deport hundreds of Bengali-speaking Muslims it says are illegal Bangladeshi migrants. Bangladeshi border guards have turned back the deportees, saying they are not Bangladeshis but Muslims from India's West Bengal state who are physically similar to Bangladeshis and speak the same Bengali language. --AP

Fischer said Iraq can be disarmed without war: German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said on Wednesday he was confident that Iraq could still be disarmed without military action. Speaking just hours before a meeting of the UN Security Council Fischer told Germany's ZDF television channel that UN weapons inspectors needed more time and warned of the consequences of military action. --Reuters

Arabic-language U.S. TV takes aim at 'CNN of the Arab world': The United States is preparing to launch an Arabic-language television station in the Middle East, as part of a media counterattack aimed at boosting the U.S. image in the region and reducing the influence of Al-Jazeera, the "CNN of the Arab world." --AFP

Blair phones Koizumi to discuss Iraq: British Prime Minister Tony Blair called Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Wednesday to coordinate their policies toward Iraq, just hours before U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was to present Washington's case to the UN Security Council. Koizumi's spokeswoman, Misako Kaji, said Koizumi told Blair he continues to support U.S. efforts to unite the international community. --AP