In the World

ANKARA, Turkey - To some, they are terrorist sympathizers. To others, they are champions of Turkey's ethnic Kurd minority.

Today, 21 lawmakers backed by a political party accused of links to Kurdish rebels take the oath of office in Turkey's new parliament, marking the first time the group has been represented in the legislature since its ouster in 1994.

For many Kurds, the revival of the Democratic Society Party raises hopes for a new era in their struggle for more rights.

The 550-member parliament will be dominated by the Islamic-oriented ruling party of Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan, who led supporters to a resounding triumph in July 22 elections. But the Kurds will now have a platform to push for more control over their affairs. - AP

BEIJING - Scores of people were arrested in a traditionally Tibetan area of western China following public calls for the return of Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, reports said yesterday.

Police and army reinforcements were sent to Lithang in western Sichuan province following the incident Wednesday at an annual horse festival that attracts thousands, according to the overseas monitoring group International Campaign for Tibet and the U.S. government-supported Radio Free Asia.

A local man, Runggye Adak, was detained after he climbed onto a stage erected for Chinese officials, grabbed a microphone, and asked members of the crowd if they wanted the Dalai Lama to return. Hundreds responded with a roaring yes, the reports said. - AP

TEHRAN, Iran - Iran's president criticized the United States yesterday for its plan to increase weapons sales to several Arab countries and step up military aid to Israel, saying Washington was trying to impose its dominance on the Middle East.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's comments were sparked by Washington's announcement earlier this week that it would sell at least $20 billion in advanced weaponry to Persian Gulf nations and provide new 10-year military-aid packages to Israel and Egypt.

"All U.S. efforts are for the creation of differences among our brothers in the region to impose its ideas and hegemony," Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying on his office's Web site. "Americans feel their relations with regional [Mideast] countries are weakened, and under cover of this, the arms deal, they want to make relations warm." - AP

A rising wave in an eastern Chinese river known for its strong tides engulfed 33 swimmers and visitors walking along a levee, state media reported yesterday. At least eight people were killed Thursday, and three were missing.

An Italian scientific research vessel sank after it was hit by a Panamanian-registered cargo ship in thick fog off Sicily's southern coast. Italian media reported that 14 scientists and crew members were rescued, and one Russian researcher was missing.