Show A10 — The Herald Journal Logan Utah Friday February 6 2004 Q World I 37 dead in ISeipng siamoned® breaks Lantern festival out in djsaster many who died suffocated ' i m AP photo Israeli settler boy Etzkxi 5 last name not given walks next to his house in the unauthorized Jewish settlement outpoet of Mitzpeh Yitzhar near the northern West Bank town of Nablus on Thursday Bribery case could force Prime Minister Sharon out of office JERUSALEM (AP) — Police questioned Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for more than two hours Thursday about a bribery case that could' force him out of office as criticism grew that his surprise proposal to remove Israeli settlements in Gaza was meant to deflect attention from the ' scandal The prime minister again denied wrongdoing' Israel TV said Sharon told investigators he did not know of a lucrative marketing contract his son Gilad signed'with a real estate : developer despite apparent lack of experience needed for the job the report said " Meanwhile Israeli forces in about 30 vehicles entered the town of Jenin at the northern edge of the West Bank late Thursday exchanging heavy fire with Palestinian gunmen the military and residents said An Israeli in the force was seriously wounded the mili- ' tary said No Palestinian casualties were reported Israel Radio said the soldiers were searching for terror suspects In the Gaza Strip members of rival security services exchanged fire' at Gaza police headquarters and 1 1 police officers were wounded One a serving under Jabali died of his wounds hospital officials said Police chief Ghazi Jabali : who was not hurt called it an attempt to assassinate him but a rival security service dismissed it as a "misunderstanding" M1YUN China (AP) — A lantern festival marking the end of China’s Lunar New Year celebrations erupted into a stampede Thursday killing at least 37 people and injuring 1 5 authorities said Many of the victims suffocated in the accident in Miyun County a northern suburb of the Chinese capital the official Xinhua News Agency said Officials from President Hu Jintao on down immediately expressed “deep concern" The mayor of Beijing and the region’s Communist Party chief went to v the scene to supervise The prompt involvement of senior leaders was inline with China’s new promise to keep people safe including doing more to prevent disasters 1 ' Revelers had gathered at for the annual Lantern Festival at popular Mihong Park when at 7:45 p'm someone tripped on a bridge in a crowded area and started a chain reaction said Wu Kun a spokesman for the Beijing city government : ' “One person fell down on a grate in the park and caused many people to fall down There was a stampede” Wu said “It was a lot of people I’m not sure how many These things are packed" he told The Associated Press early Friday At least 37 people were killed and 15 injured but Wu said there could be more AP photo Two grieving women speak to reporters outside a hospital where victims of a stampede were taken at Miyun a northern suburb of Beijing early Friday At least 37 people were killed and 15 others injured Thursday when a crowd stampeded on the bridge during a lantern festival gathering on the final day of the country's Lunar New Year celebrations dead The park the size of four football fields lanterns hung outside the park Ge Jing a street vendor who hawks roast meat said he had noticed the park filling up rapidly with people in the afternoon “I told my wife and child not to come tonight because I knew it would be too' crowded” he said “Such a terrible acc- was dark and nearly deserted early Friday Its concrete-and-metbridge over a frozen river appeared damaged and was littered with jewelry bits of broken plastic and dried Wax from lanterns There was no visible presence of police emergency personnel or injured people Darkened red ident" Inside nearby Miyun County Hospital bodies lay covered with white sheets in a lobby area Police barred all visitors from the building as ambulances hurried back arid forth Distraught relatives emerged through the main doors and told of die al : heartbreaking pastiche they had just left behind “It’s a horrible scene in there There are more than 30 dead bodies inside” said Zhao Jingfu whose died “My heart is in pain” he said fighting back tears Others emerging who didn’t give their names said there weren’t enough doctors to treat the injured PrnnierWen Jiabao ordered local authorities to find out how the accident happened and “to try their best to save the injured and make suitable arrange--' ment for the families of the dead” sister-in-la- w In brief Hopes dim of finding survivors in Turkey’s collapsed building KONYA Turkey (AP) — Rescue workers pulled 1 6 more bodies from the rubble of a collapsed apartment building on ' girl Thursday — including a pregnant woman and a — raising the death toll to 43 There was little hope of finding more survivors four days after the disaster though more than 60 people were believed trapped inside As rescue workers used drills to dig tunnels into the debris the concrete quickly crumbled to dust Most bodies were discovered squeezed between the ceiling and floor of the room in which the victims had been when the ' buildirigcpllapsedaccordiah-lik- e In one room the bodies of two boys were found hugging each other along with a young woman who had placed her head on the chest of an elderly woman said Murat Salim Sercn a relief worker “They were in fear and panic” he said The vjctims’ identities were riot known but they were thought to be from the same family ' Prime Minister RecepTayyip Erdogan vowed to punish those responsible for the tragedy which' was only five years old and ' considered upscalein Konya Grieving relatives lashed out at i ' the contractors who built it ‘‘This incident cannot he left without an answer There should be a price for Jt and there' will be” the prime minister said after inspecting the site -- Moroccan aquitted in Sept 11 trial HAMBURG Germany ( AP) — A court acquitted a Moroccan on Thursday of helping the Sept 1 1 hijackers while they lived and studied in Hamburg citing a lack of evi- dence he was involved in the al --Qaida cell’s : ' plans to attack the United States Mzoiidi a longtime acquaintance Abdelghani of lead hijacker Mohamed Atta who even signed his will smiled silently as he left the state court a free man after only the second trial anywhere of a Sept 1 1 suspect ' The verdict infuriated victims' relatives arid prompted Germany’s chief federal prosecutor to ' criticize Washington for refusing to allow testimony from a US captive — Ramzi Binalshibh believed to have been the hijackers' main contact with Even the presiding judge warned Mzoudi that his acquittal was : “no reason for joy '“You were acquitted not because the court is convinced of your ' innocence but because the evidence was not enough to convict you” Judge Klaus Ruehle said in explaining the verdict “In this case we have to give the defendant the benefit of the doubt” v The US Justice Department issued a statement saying it regretted the acquittal and defending its level of cooperation' 1 ' Sprint Offer ends February 14th! 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