Chinese hostages

Chinese hostages in safe hands: Report (2x15)

Chinese news agency says Chinese hostages safely in Chinese hands

Eight Chinese construction workers taken hostage by Iraqi insurgents have been safely transferred to Chinese custody, China's Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday. The agency quoted the Chinese embassy in Baghdad as saying the eight would leave for home soon. The Associated Press telephoned the Chinese Embassy here but there was no answer, and the Foreign Ministry in Beijing said it had no confirmation of the report. The eight were seized this month by the Islamic Resistance Movement as they tried to leave Iraq for neighboring Jordan. In a videotape aired on Saturday, the insurgents said they had decided to release the captives after China pledged to discourage its citizens from traveling to Iraq. -- AP

UN launches clean water campaign (2x15)

UN launches major campaign to get water into schools

The United Nations will launch a global campaign on Monday aimed at ensuring every school in the world has clean water and sanitation within a decade, cutting health risks and raising attendance. Access to safe water and sanitation is one of the key Millennium Development Goals to be met by 2015. Studies show that besides safeguarding health, cleaner water helps boost school attendance which in many deprived areas is very low. "Half of the schools worldwide lack access to basic facilities like safe water and clean toilets. This is the start of a major effort to change that," a spokeswoman for the UN children's fund UNICEF said. A three-day conference starting in the central English city of Oxford is bringing together governments, international agencies and NGOs from the United States to Tajikistan but with a strong emphasis on Africa, Asia and Central America. -- Reuters