In the World
Report of royal breach is probed
LONDON - A royal chauffeur was suspended yesterday over allegations he gave undercover reporters a tour of Queen Elizabeth II's luxury limousines and other sensitive areas of her Buckingham Palace home in exchange for money.
London police said they were examining the allegations and holding talks on security with staff at the London palace following reports of the breach.
The News of the World tabloid said two of its reporters, posing as wealthy Mideast businessmen, were shown secure areas of Buckingham Palace and allowed to sit inside Bentleys used by the royal family. The newspaper said it paid the chauffeur $1,500 for the tour. - AP
Hezbollah denies assassination tie
BEIRUT - Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group denied a report by a German magazine linking it to the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri, saying yesterday that it was an attempt to tarnish its image before parliamentary elections.
Saturday's report in the weekly Der Spiegel came at a time of rising tensions before the crucial June 7 elections, which could result in the Western-backed government's being ousted by a Hezbollah-led coalition supported by Syria and Iran.
Hariri's assassination has deeply divided the country. His supporters blamed Syria for the killing, an allegation Damascus denies, but no one had ever accused Hezbollah of being involved. Hariri was killed along with 22 others in a massive truck bombing on a Beirut street in February 2005. - AP
Elsewhere:
Tamil Tiger rebels confirmed for the first time that their leader was killed May 17 in the final battle with Sri Lankan troops. The government declared last week that it had killed Velupillai Prabhakaran and crushed a 25-year rebellion.
Thousands of spectators stampeded out of a concert in the Moroccan capital, Rabat, causing a fence to collapse late Saturday. Eleven people were killed, including four children, and about 30 were injured.