Kosovska Mitrovica, Kosovo
Serbs riot against independence: NATO troops rolled into a Kosovar town this week to quell violent riots by ethnic Serbs who oppose the new country’s recent split from Serbia. The riots began after U.N. police forced Serbian protesters to end their three-day occupation of two U.N.-run courthouses. In the ensuing violence, one U.N. policeman was killed and a total of 150 people were injured, as rioters attacked with guns and grenades. Kosovo’s minority Serbs have been attacking government buildings and international forces since last month, when the ethnic-Albanian-led government declared independence from Serbia. They are trying to force the Kosovar government to relinquish control over ethnic-Serbian areas, which could then rejoin Serbia.
Brussels
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A government at last: Belgium ended months of political crisis this week when five parties agreed to join together in a coalition government. Parliamentary elections last June gave a plurality to a Flemish party, but it was unable to find enough partners to form a majority government because of major disagreements between parties representing Dutch speakers and those representing French speakers. Many observers feared the country would break in two. After six months of stalemate, the king appointed an interim government. Now, three months after that step, five parties—some Dutch-speaking, some French-speaking—have finally agreed to share power. The new prime minister is Yves Leterme of the Dutch-speaking Christian Democrats.
Brussels
Iraqis flock to Europe: The number of Iraqis seeking refugee status in Europe nearly doubled in 2007, compared with the previous year, the U.N. said this week. Fully 38,286 Iraqis arrived in Europe last year, nearly half of them heading for Sweden, which has the most generous policy toward Iraqis. Sweden accepts 90 percent of Iraqis who apply for refugee status there. Other countries lag far behind. Britain, for example, takes in just 12 percent of Iraqi asylum seekers. The U.S. last year reported just 734 applications from Iraqis; it’s not clear yet how many were accepted. Most Iraqis seeking to leave their country try to settle first in another Arab country, such as Jordan or Syria.
Istanbul
Judiciary battles government: Turkey’s chief prosecutor is seeking to ban the ruling Islamic Justice Party, or AKP, charging it with undermining the country’s secular constitution. The prosecutor has asked the courts to rule that the AKP has been “taking gradual steps” to make Islamic law the law of the land, citing such government actions as allowing women to wear head scarves in universities, permitting the banning of alcohol in AKP-led towns, and trying to criminalize adultery. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has governed as head of the AKP since 2002, insisted this week that he is loyal to the secular philosophy of government established by modern Turkey’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. But secular parties contend that Erdogan has been more eager to push for Islamic freedoms than for the democratic reforms that the country must adopt to join the E.U.
Champagne, France
More Champagne for all: Faced with a growing global demand for bubbly, French wine authorities this week expanded the region in which vineyards can legally label their product as Champagne. For 90 years, the Champagne region has covered just 319 districts; the Bordeaux region is nearly four times larger. Now, vintners in an additional 38 districts will be allowed to sell their sparkling wine as Champagne. The news means a windfall for the lucky vintners. In a Champagne-producing district, land is worth well over half a million dollars an acre. In a neighboring region producing a different wine, land brings just $3,000 an acre.
Rome
Lying about affairs is legal: Italians cannot be punished for lying to police about their love affairs, Italy’s highest court ruled last week. The ruling came in a case in which a woman lent her cell phone to her lover, who used it to make harassing calls to her husband. When police asked whether she knew the caller, she said no—and was later indicted for obstructing justice. The court, though, decided that denying an affair is a matter of self-protection, and falls under the law that says Italians cannot be forced to incriminate themselves. “Having a lover is a circumstance that damages the honor of a person,” the court ruled, so it is every Italian’s right to hide that circumstance.
