World Scene

CYPRUS

Greek-Cypriot leader slams U.S. remarks

NICOSIA — Greek-Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos yesterday criticized U.S. accusations that his government manipulated public opinion to ensure a rejection of a U.N. reunification plan for the Mediterranean island.

U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the Greek-Cypriot government restricted the press, limited coverage of statements by foreigners backing the plan and instructed students to demonstrate for a “no” vote.

“I want to condemn with all my strength the offensive remarks from the representative of the U.S. State Department,” Mr. Papadopoulos said. “It is shameful for Cyprus to be defamed in such a manner.”

COLOMBIA

President cites threat from paramilitaries

BOGOTA — President Alvaro Uribe, charging yesterday that some paramilitary forces want to kill him, warned that the government would annihilate the outlawed militias unless they abide by a cease-fire and stop trafficking in drugs.

Power within the paramilitary groups appears to be shifting to members heavily involved in drug trafficking since paramilitary co-founder Carlos Castano disappeared on April 16 during a reported attack by rivals.

“The peace process with the illegal self-defense groups cannot advance amid cease-fire violations, vendettas, drug trafficking or confrontations between criminal groups,” Mr. Uribe said.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Al Qaeda figure threatens Americans

DUBAI — On an audiotape that surfaced yesterday, a man claiming to be al Qaeda’s top agent in Saudi Arabia promised renewed attacks on Americans in the kingdom.

“Jews, Americans and crusaders will be the target of our coming operations. This year [will witness] stronger and more crushing” attacks, the man on the tape said.

The speaker identified himself as Abdulaziz Issa Abdul-Mohsin al-Moqrin, Saudi Arabia’s most wanted militant.

CUBA

Sentences given to 10 dissidents

HAVANA — Blind lawyer Juan Carlos Gonzalez Leiva said in an interview that he and nine fellow dissidents had been sentenced to jail terms or house arrest yesterday.

“After 26 months of isolation and psychological torture, they granted me house arrest for the rest of my [four-year] sentence,” he said from his home in Ciego de Avila.

Other dissidents received sentences ranging from 2 years of house arrest to 3 years in jail, he said. They were the first such trials since April 2003, when 75 dissidents received sentences provoking worldwide outrage.

The 10 persons sentenced yesterday were arrested in March 2002 “on the basis of their political beliefs and nonviolent political activities,” Human Rights Watch reported.

FRANCE

Rights called price of war on terror

PARIS — France will have to curb some legal rights to fight the threat posed by terrorist networks, Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin said yesterday.

Mr. de Villepin told the National Assembly that the March 11 train bombings in Madrid underlined the need for tighter security throughout Europe.

If courts stood in the way of deporting foreigners who threatened public order, then France would have to change its laws, he said to applause from fellow conservatives and booing from left-wing deputies.