World Scene

KAZAKHSTAN

Space capsule back to Earth safely

KUSTANAI — A Soyuz space capsule touched down safely in the steppes of Kazakhstan today, bringing a Russian, an American and a Dutchman back to Earth from the International Space Station.

NASA’s Michael Foale and Russian Alexander Kaleri spent six months aboard the 16-nation, $95 billion station. Dutchman Andre Kuipers, of the European Space Agency, spent 11 days there conducting scientific experiments on his maiden trip into space.

The craft landed near the northern Kazakh town of Arkalyk at 4:11 a.m. Moscow time.

IRAQ

Negroponte wins Senate panel nod

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday approved President Bush’s selection of John D. Negroponte, the ambassador to the United Nations, to be the first U.S. ambassador to Iraq after the planned June 30 transfer of sovereignty to a new Iraqi authority.

The full Senate was expected to approve the nomination next week.

NORTH KOREA

Seoul promises aid for train blast victims

SEOUL — South Korea’s Red Cross will send medicine, blankets and other aid to North Korea in the first cargo flight ever allowed into the communist state from the South as part of relief efforts after the deadly train blast last week.

The government also said yesterday that it will send a separate shipment next week with $25 million in building materials and other goods for the North Korean town of Ryongchon, where the April 22 train explosion killed 161 persons and destroyed thousands of homes.

INDONESIA

Militant cleric is re-arrested

JAKARTA — Police today re-arrested a militant cleric who is accused of leading the al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah terror group, whisking him away for questioning about a series of deadly bombings.

Abu Bakar Bashir has repeatedly denied any links to terrorism and maintains that he is being punished for his anti-American stance.

CYPRUS

EU rewards Turks after failed vote

LUXEMBOURG — The European Union yesterday approved $311 million in aid to the Turkish part of Cyprus — a reward for voting in favor of a United Nations’ plan to reunify the island.

The overwhelming “no” vote by the ethnic Greek majority will keep the island divided, so Cyprus will not join the European Union on May 1 as a united state.