World digest 07/26/04

Diana took Charles' 'every penny' in divorce

LONDON -- Princess Diana "took every penny" that Prince Charles had in their divorce settlement, the prince's former financial adviser was quoted as telling a Sunday newspaper. Geoffrey Bignell told The Sunday Telegraph that Charles handed over his entire personal fortune when the divorce was settled in 1996, a year before Diana died in a Paris car crash. He did not reveal the amount, but at the time it was widely reported to be between $25 million and $33 million. A spokeswoman for Prince Charles refused to comment.

Train slams into minibus, killing 15 in Turkey

ANKARA, Turkey -- A passenger train slammed into a minibus rushing to cross its tracks Sunday in western Turkey, killing 15 people and injuring four, just days after the deadly derailment of a Turkish express train. The minibus -- carrying 19 passengers returning from a wedding party -- was trying to cross the lines before the barriers came down, a railroad official told The Associated Press. Thursday's derailment of a new, high-speed train about halfway through its trip from Istanbul to Ankara killed 37 people.

Flood waters threaten capital in Bangladesh

DHAKA, Bangladesh -- Workers and volunteers frantically stacked sandbags Sunday to protect Bangladesh's capital from rising water, and a crowded boat ferrying villagers across flood waters capsized in northeastern India, killing at least 10 people. The combined death toll in both countries rose to more than 760 fatalities, with some 200 deaths in Bangladesh. Rivers around the capital, Dhaka, burst their banks, leaving 40 percent of the city of 10 million people under water. Nearly two-thirds of Bangladesh has been flooded since the start of the monsoon in June.

North Korea accuses U.S. of spy flights

SEOUL, South Korea -- North Korea on Sunday accused the U.S. military of conducting more than 1,200 spy flights over the communist country from January to June and claimed that Washington was looking for a chance to launch an attack. The U.S. military used U-2, RC-135, and other reconnaissance aircraft for the flights, North Korea's official news agency KCNA said. North Korea regularly makes such accusations. The U.S. military does not comment on North Korean claims about spy flights, although it acknowledges monitoring the North's military activity.

Morocco warns Spain about 400 militants

MADRID, Spain -- Moroccan authorities have warned Spain that they have lost track of 400 suspected militants who trained in al-Qaida terrorist camps in Afghanistan, a newspaper reported Sunday. Most of the suspects in the Madrid train bombings were Moroccan, prompting the government to alert Spanish anti-terrorism judge Baltasar Garzon of the situation during a meeting in Rabat, Morocco, in July. About 600 Moroccans were known to have trained in Afghanistan in camps sponsored by Osama bin Laden, the daily El Pais said.

-- From wire reports