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/ 27 November 2006

Soccer comes to the really small screen

"In the past you’ve watched soccer … Now experience it!" Words flash across a cellphone screen, introducing viewers to the "soccer experience". Shaky footage shows amateur players passing the ball between themselves. Quick-moving shots capture sky, grass, players and legs — all in head-spinning motion.

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/ 27 November 2006

Massacre survivor tells Saddam trial of mass murder

A witness at Saddam Hussein’s genocide trial in Baghdad described on Monday how he survived the murder of dozens of villagers by Iraqi forces during the 1988 military campaign against the Kurds. The session resumed after a two-week break with witness Taimor Abdallah Rokhzai telling the court how Kurdish villagers were taken out into the desert and shot by soldiers.

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/ 27 November 2006

Ghana’s currency to shed four zeros in July

Ghana’s cedi currency will shed four zeros next July, a central bank official said on Monday, and shoppers weary of carrying big bundles of bank notes welcomed the plan. Residents of the West African country complain a combination of low-denomination notes and the low value of the cedi obliges them to carry bags full of tattered currency.

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/ 27 November 2006

New York on edge as police kill unarmed man

The New York authorities were scrambling to contain an angry backlash on Sunday after police shot a group of three unarmed black men, killing one of them on his wedding day. The shooting took place after a stag party at a strip club in Queens, a few hours before Sean Bell (23) was due to marry the mother of his two small daughters.

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/ 27 November 2006

Gaza truce first step on tortuous road to peace

Israelis and Palestinians have seen truces collapse before. That is why no one wants to call the ceasefire in Gaza a turning point to reviving peace talks. If other hurdles can be crossed such as striking a deal to free an Israeli soldier held captive in Gaza and if Palestinian factions can forge a unity government, the weekend truce should be a springboard to substantive contact between the two sides.

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/ 27 November 2006

UN troops open fire on rebels in eastern DRC

United Nations helicopters and peacekeepers on Monday opened fire against rebels after coming under attack in and around the volatile eastern town of Sake in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a spokesperson for the UN mission in the DRC said. Forces loyal to a rebel general seized part of Sake on Sunday in heavy fire fights with government soldiers.