World briefs 1/5/04

Tehran: 'Time is not ripe' for U.S. delegation to visit

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran rebuffed Washington's suggestion that a high-profile U.S. delegation fly in with earthquake relief, saying Sunday the time "is not ripe" for such an exchange -- which could be seen as a sign of smoother ties between the two. The United States had proposed dispatching Sen. Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina to bring in aid to the stricken city of Bam. Relations between Iran and the United States were broken by the seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979. U.S. staffers were held hostage for 444 days and the two nations have been estranged ever since. Relations thawed somewhat after the election of Mohammad Khatami as president in 1997.

Castro thanks supporters on revolution anniversary

HAVANA -- Fidel Castro thanked several thousand members of Cuba's political elite for their support over the decades as they gathered to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the revolutionary triumph that reshaped this Caribbean island. Castro spoke late Saturday in a 45-minute prepared speech. Castro today is the world's longest-ruling head of government -- the only socialist system in the Western Hemisphere. His leadership over this Caribbean nation of 11.2 million people is unchallenged. Castro has ruled during the administrations of 10 different American presidents, successfully defying their attempts to force him to change his socialist system.

China kills civet cats for possible link to SARS

BEIJING-- China on Monday ordered some 10,000 civet cats in wildlife markets killed in its southern province of Guangdong after genetic tests suggested a link to a suspected SARS case. All wildlife markets in Guangdong were ordered to close, Feng Liuxiang, deputy director of the province's health department, said on national television. The announcement came after researchers at Hong Kong University said they found similarities between a virus found in the cats and in a suspected SARS patient in Guangdong, suggesting the disease might have jumped from animals.

Sharon orders two more settlements dismantled

WEST TAPUAH, West Bank -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Sunday ordered two more West Bank settlement outposts dismantled as required under a U.S.-backed peace plan. Israel must dismantle scores of unauthorized outposts under the "road map" peace plan it signed in June. Sharon ordered four other West Bank outposts dismantled last week, but settlers appealed to the Supreme Court. A decision was expected in the next few days. If the court sides with the government, 3,500 soldiers and police officers will carry out the evacuations, security officials said. Settlers have said they will fiercely resist any effort to dismantle the outposts.

Georgians vote for new president in elections

TBILISI, Georgia -- Georgians lined up patiently at slow-moving voting stations Sunday to elect a successor to Eduard Shevardnadze, who stepped down six weeks ago in the face of massive protests over parliamentary election fraud. The overwhelming favorite among the six candidates on the ballot was Mikhail Saakashvili, the driving force behind the peaceful demonstrations that brought down Shevardnadze in what became known as the "rose revolution." Immediately after the polls closed, Georgian independent television Rustavi-2 said its exit polls indicated that Saakashvili won 85.8 percent of the vote. No official results were immediately expected.

'Crocodile Hunter' Irwin flees media frenzy

SYDNEY, Australia -- The "Crocodile Hunter" has become the hunted. Following a weekend of bad publicity, Steve Irwin and his family retreated from the media spotlight and the public outrage he provoked by hand-feeding a 13-foot crocodile as he cradled 1-month-old son Robert on Friday at his park in northeastern Australia. Since giving a news conference Saturday, Irwin has gone underground and refused to speak about Friday's media stunt gone wrong. Local media reported that Irwin left his popular reptile park in Beerwah, north of Brisbane, but his spokesman declined to comment on his whereabouts.

-- From wire reports