E. Berlin Relaxes For Easter

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30366, 15 February 1964, Page 13

E. Berlin Relaxes For Easter

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter —Copyright) EAST BERLIN, February 11. ; The East German government has pro- ’ posed an Easter passes agreement similar to 1 the Christmas scheme which allowed West Berliners to visit relatives in East Berlin

Under the Christmas scheme West Berliners made more than 1,200,000 visits to East Berlin from December 20 to January 5; This was the first time they had had access to the Communist sector of their city since it was sealed off by the wall in August, 1961. The new proposal, allowing issue of passes, to begin a month early, would preclude repetition of queues of hundreds of thousands of people and many angry incidents as people were turned away. BORDER Mr Ketema Yifru, Ethiopian Foreign Minister, said today his country was prepared to go to war over the border dispute with Somalia. “The last Ethiopian will die before we give up an inch of our territory,” he said. Somalia was embarking on the same expansionist policy as “Nazi Germany and will no doubt meet the same end — destruction.”—Nairobi, February 14. NO BAN A State Department spokesman said today the Government was not planning retaliatory action against British products because of Britain’s sales to Cuba.—Washington, February 14. VIET WAR South Vietnamese troops started the “year of the dragon” today with an operation in the Mekong river delta in which they killed 10 guerrillas and captured three, according to American officers.—Saigon, February 14. EXPLOSION An Atlas missile exploded in a silo yesterday but there were no casualties. The silo is alongside a busy highway. No nuclear warhead was in position. A column of smoke could be seen 35 miles away —Roswell (New Mexico) February 14. SHOCKING Two scientists are experimenting with a new way of breaking the cigarette habit. They say a smoker would carry a battery and a push button in his pocket and wear a bracelet, wired together. When the sjnoker lighted a cigarette from habit he would push the button with the first puff—and receive a painful electric shock through the bracelet, theortetically creating an “aversion” for smoking.—New York, February 14. TAKEOVER The Minister of Peoples Industries, Major-General Azis Saleh, has placed 13 British commercial enterprises -under the supervision, control and security of his department.— Djakarta, February 14.

ARMS OFFER America yesterday proposed that she and Russia should undertake to halt production of fissionable materials for war weapon uses and to transfer such materials to peaceful purposes.— February 14. DYNAMITE Four boys foiled an attempt to dynamite a goods train near Cape Kennedy last night by disconnecting wires linking the rails with 45 sticks of explosive. They were walking along the track of the Florida east coast line, only minutes before a goods train was due to pass, when they noticed the charge.—Cape Kennedy, February 14. TRADE The British Prime Minister (Sir Alec Douglas-Home) said yesterday Britain is prepared to increase her trade with Cuba, and possibly to extend long-term credits to the Soviet Union, because it believes “comfortable” Communists are less dangerous in the world than lean Communists.—Washington, February 14. EXPERT A 19-year-old boy who spent three months in a detention centre for stealing a bottle of whisky is among 40 people chosen to sit on a British advisory committee on juvenile delinquency.— London, February 14.