Indonesian fishing boats held in Australia: Two Indonesian

Indonesian fishing boats held in Australia: Two Indonesian fishing boats whose crews have been accused of illegally catching sharks and cutting off their fins have been detained by authorities off Australia's northeast coast, fisheries officials said on Tuesday. One boat found with 30 shark fins and seven crew on board was being escorted to Darwin. Another vessel, with five crew and two sets of shark fins, was also intercepted, an Australian Fisheries Management Authority spokesman said on condition of anonymity. --AP

Russian supply vessel docks with ISS: A Russian supply vessel successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Tuesday at 1447 GMT (9:47 p.m. Jakarta time), bringing food and water to three astronauts, Russian mission control said. The Progress supply ship, launched on Sunday, was carrying sufficient food and water to last the astronauts until June, officials said. However Vladimir Solovyov, head of Soyuz manned missions, said the ISS astronauts would "remain aboard the platform until late April, mid May, and will return to earth aboard a Soyuz." --AFP

France says still scope to disarm Iraq peacefully: French President Jacques Chirac said on Tuesday there was still much that could be done to disarm Iraq by peaceful means and France would support any request by UN arms inspectors for extra resources. Chirac spoke at a news conference after talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair in the northern French town of Le Touquet. Britain tried to woo a reluctant France at Tuesday's meeting into backing military action against Iraq. --Reuters

Israeli court says Arafat liable for bus firm losses: An Israeli court has ordered Palestinian President Yasser Arafat to pay more than $10 million in damages to Israel's main bus company for losses caused by Palestinian suicide bombings, a spokesman said on Tuesday. Arafat, who has denied Israeli accusations of responsibility for attacks during the 28-month-old Palestinian uprising, mounted no defense in the civil lawsuit, and it was unclear how he could be forced to pay the damage award. --Reuters