Trains collide, killing at least 43

BEIJING - A predawn collision today between two passenger trains in eastern China killed at least 43 people and injured 247, a state news agency reported. Witnesses said a train traveling from Beijing to Qingdao, a coastal city, derailed and hit a second train at about 4:40 a.m. in Shandong Province, Xinhua News Agency said. Rescuers pulled passengers from a derailed carriage in a ditch, according to images from the scene. (AP)

PORT-AU-PRINCE - President René Préval named a new prime minister yesterday after lawmakers fired his predecessor to quell violent protests ignited by rising food prices in the impoverished Caribbean nation. Préval named Ericq Pierre, a senior adviser with the Inter-American Development Bank, to replace former prime minister Jacques-?douard Alexis, lawmakers said. Alexis was dismissed on April 12 in a vote by opposition senators who blamed him for failing to boost food production and reduce the cost of living. Pierre's appointment must be ratified by Parliament. (Reuters)

GAZA CITY - The ruling Hamas militant group has issued tough restrictions on public gatherings in the Gaza Strip. Gaza's police force says anyone who wants to hold an indoor cultural event or celebration will now need a special permit. It says the move is necessary to "uphold law and order." The announcement yesterday was the latest move by Hamas to consolidate power in Gaza since the group seized control there last June. Hamas appears to be concerned by attempts by the rival Fatah group to hold events. (AP)

GAZA CITY - The Palestinian fuel association rejected a request by the Hamas government to resume deliveries in the impoverished territory, officials said. The association said yesterday it went on strike to protest Israeli supply limits. It has prevented delivery of a million liters of diesel and petrol in tanks on the Gaza-side of the Nahal Oz border terminal. Israel has sharply cut the amount of fuel pumped into the Gaza Strip. Israel has accused Hamas and the association of preventing fuel supplies from reaching ordinary Gazans. (Reuters)

BERLIN - A grassroots campaign to save Tempelhof Airport, the epicenter of the Berlin Airlift of 1948-49, fizzled yesterday after supporters failed to win enough votes in a citywide referendum. Voters endorsed a measure to prevent the closure of the Cold War landmark this year by a 3-2 ratio. But election officials said they could not certify the results because turnout was too low. Only 22 percent of registered voters cast ballots in favor of the measure, just short of the 25 percent required. Berlin lawmakers had previously decreed that the historic site - Orville Wright tested one of his flying machines on the grounds, and Adolf Hitler later transformed it into the largest building in Europe - must close to make way for a new international airport. (Washington Post)

CARACAS - President Hugo Chávez said yesterday he will try to facilitate the release of three Americans held captive by Colombia's largest rebel group - even though he has lost contact with the guerrillas. Chávez confirmed his willingness to help a day after New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson said the socialist leader had agreed to mediate a possible exchange of the defense contractors for imprisoned guerrillas. Earlier this year, Chávez had helped secure the release of six captives of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. (AP)