I. SKYNEWS - U.S. Soldiers Shot Dead At Frankfurt Airport
Two U.S. soldiers have been killed, two injured in a shooting at Frankfurt airport. Shots were fired on a bus carrying soldiers. In addition, reports are that a 21-year-old suspect from Kosovo has been arrested.
II. ECONOMIST - Mr. Erdoğan goes to Germany
Turkey's prime minster Recep Tayyip Erdoğan goes to Germany in efforts to shore up support for his country's EU assession bid. However, while there, Erdoğan takes aim at Germany's chancellor, Angela Merkel. If anything his visit has had the opposite effect.
After hearing Turkish prime minsiter Erdoğan's remarks at the Turkish-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry, questioning Cyprus's accession to the EU, since he claims no such state exists, Cyprus government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou reminded Erdoğan in a statement that the Republic of Cyprus is an internationally recognised member state of the UN since 1960 and of the EU since 2004. Stefanou was sure not forget to add that the only country that does not recognise the Republic of Cyprus is Turkey.
IV. EKATHIMERINI - Ferry with Chinese evacuees docks in Crete
The Cretan port of Iraklio, on Wednesday morning, welcomed a Greek passenger ferry that evacuated 2,146 Chinese and one Greek national from Libya. Another Greek vessel, is expected to arrive in Crete on Wednesday afternoon carrying 665 Filipino nationals. For its services, Greek shipping firms are expected to earn about $20 million Euros.
EULEX Spokeswoman Irina Gudeljević said Wednesday that no one was currently under investigation for organ trafficking in Kosovo and Albania. Gudeljević said that its goal is to determine whether there is enough evidence for an official inquiry. "EULEX acts based on fact and evidence, which means there can be no criminal trial without evidence, and as soon as such information surfaces, EULEX prosecutors will be ready to act,” the EULEX spokeswoman pointed out.
Assailants purportedly sent by al-Qaida and the Taliban killed the only Christian member of Pakistan's federal Cabinet Wednesday, Shahbaz Bhatti. His alleged "crime" was opposition to Pakistan's blasphemy laws that impose the death penaly for insulting Islam. The 42-year-old Roman Catholic, had been threatened by the Taliban and al-Qaida and said that these threats would not deter him from speaking for persucuted Christians and that he would "die to defend their rights."
VII. CHRISTIANPOST - Monk, Workers Shot in Monastery Attack in Egypt
One monk and six church workers were shot and wounded last week when the Egyptian Army attacked a Coptic Orthodox monastery in order to destroy a wall monks had built to defend their property from raiders. When the monks had asked for protection, the military told them to fend for themselves. The monks then built a brick wall, with a metal gate, around the monastery grounds. Later, the army claimed the monastery had not acquired the proper permits, ordering wall to be torn down. The monks refused and the army moved in. Despite a video that has been widely circulated on the Internet showing soldiers firing weapons on top of U.S.-supplied armored personnel carriers, the army denied conducting the attack.