A round-up of today's other stories in brief
At least four die in Greek train crash
ATHENS - An Intercity passenger train collided with a truck in northern Greece yesterday, killing at least four passengers and injuring many others, the fire brigade said.
The train was travelling from the northeastern city of Alexandroupolis to the port of Thessaloniki when it hit a truck trying to cross the tracks near the town of Drama. - (Reuters)
Boy scouts killed in bush crash
MADRID - Four people, two of them boy scouts, were killed when a bus returning from a holiday camp overturned near the northern Spanish city of Oviedo last night. Spanish news agency Efe said the busload of boy scouts was returning after a four-day camp and that there were 27 children and five monitors on board. - (Reuters)
Compensation fears in drug trial
LONDON - Lawyers acting for the six volunteers who suffered multiple organ failure during the trial of a new drug last month fear the men may not get full compensation because the company accepting liability for the injuries was underinsured.
Martyn Day, solicitor for four of the men, said the German pharmaceutical company TeGenero, which created the drug TGN1412, had insurance of only £2 million sterling for the trial but the liability for damages and losses of the men may be much bigger. - (Guardian Service)
New cartoon offends Muslims
ROME - A cartoon depicting Muhammad in hell has been published by an Italian magazine close to Opus Dei, bringing angry criticism from Muslim groups and disapproval from the Vatican.
The drawing in Studi cattolici takes its inspiration from Dante's Divine Comedy, in which the 14th-century poet imagines being guided through hell by the Latin poet Virgil, and sees the prophet cut in two as his punishment for spreading division.
In the cartoon, Virgil points out another figure to Dante, saying: "And that one there with his pants down, that's Italian policy towards Islam."
The caption uses a play on words to suggest Italy has chickened out in its attitude to Muslims. - (Guardian Service)
Bomb wounds 31 in Istanbul
ISTANBUL - A bomb explosion on a busy pedestrian street on the outskirts of Istanbul wounded 31 people yesterday, police said, in the latest violence to strike Turkey in recent weeks.
Istanbul's police chief Celalettin Cerrah said two civilians were in critical but not life-threatening condition and had been rushed to hospital for emergency surgery. He said two plainclothed policemen had been injured by broken glass. - (Reuters)
Woman evicted for helping police
ROME - A woman was last night being cared for by social services in Sicily after losing her home and her job for collaborating with police against an alleged rapist.
The woman was sacked by her employer and evicted by her brother, even though her assistance enabled criminal charges to be brought against an alleged murderer. - (Guardian Service)
Four Russian police killed
MOSCOW - Four Russian policemen were killed in two separate attacks in the North Caucasus region, local news agencies reported yesterday.
Two policemen were killed and five wounded when gunmen ambushed their armoured personnel carrier in Chechnya. One policeman was killed by a roadside bomb and the second died when gunmen with automatic weapons opened fire. - (Reuters)