Sunday, September 06, 2009 OHRID: An ageing tourist boat sank suddenly in Macedonia's popular Lake Ohrid on Saturday, killing 15 people, mostly Bulgarians, as survivors clung to wooden planks and buoys, officials said. The Iliden was 200 metres (220 yards) from shore when it apparently capsized into the deepest lake in the region -- famous for its turquoise waters -- at around 11:00 am (0900 GMT) near a campground outside Ohrid city. "More than 70 passengers were on the boat," Interior Minister Gordana Jankulovska told reporters. "Fifteen perished, four seriously injured were taken to hospital in Ohrid and about 50 survivors are at a local hotel." The captain of the Iliden was among the dead, Jankulovska said, adding that the vessel was carrying "a group of Bulgarian tourists and their Macedonian guide". Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said 12 Bulgarians including a child were among the dead. The three other bodies have yet to be identified. One survivor said the boat sank suddenly and that there were not enough life jackets for everybody. "The boat swerved sharply and capsized. It started to sink instantly and everybody tried to save their lives the way they could," the survivor identified as Ivan told Bulgarian radio."They grabbed wooden planks and life buoys, but there were not enough buoys and not enough life saving jackets for everybody," he said.
BEIRUT: Thousands of people converged Saturday on central Beirut to mark the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Lebanese former premier Rafiq Hariri.Waving Lebanese flags and carrying pictures of the slain leader, men, women and children gathered under sunny skies in Martyr's Square where members of the parliamentary majority were to address the crowd. The rally comes as final preparations are underway in The Hague for the launch of the international tribunal set up to bring Hariri's killers to justice. It also comes as the country prepares for legislative elections in June that will pit Western-backed political parties against a Hezbollah-led alliance backed by Syria and Iran.Hariri died in a massive car bombing on February 14, 2005 that also killed 22 others. The assassination was widely blamed on then Lebanese power-broker Syria, which has denied any involvement. The attack on the Beirut seafront was one of the worst acts of political violence to rock Lebanon since t...
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