In the run up to his meeting with President Bill Clinton next week, Mr Netanyahu is already leaving the American leader in no doubt that Israel has no intention of implementing the Oslo accords of 1993 whereby it would withdraw from most of the West Bank and Gaza. Benjamin Netanyahu will make clear at his meeting with President Clinton next week that he has no intention of withdrawing from most of the West Bank. “They targeted kids as young as 14,” Mr Waxman said, adding that he would be pushing for perjury charges.RJR has said the documents have been “cherry picked” and taken out of context. It added that one mention of 14-year-olds was a typographical error and should have read 18-year-olds..

“The President finds the release of the documents in the tobacco case to be one more cause for urgency,” it said.Under the settlement, the tobacco companies would pay out $368bn (pounds 231bn) over 25 years and pledge to take action to reduce smoking levels among young people. In return, they would receive partial immunity from future suits.The documents were released by Henry Waxman, a California congressman who has led the crusade against tobacco. The papers, spanning 1973 to 1990, appear to contradict testimony given to the United States Congress by RJR executives three years ago in which they said under-18-year-olds had never been targeted. They could face perjury charges.
“If you are looking for a smoking gun regarding youth smoking, you need look no further,” commented David Kessler, former head of the US Food and Drug Administration.Reacting to the papers, the White House asked Congress to move quickly to pass legislation authorising a litigation settlement struck by the tobacco companies and US states last year. A new storm was breaking around the American tobacco industry yesterday following the release of internal documents from RJ Reynolds apparently showing how the company courted young teenagers to boost cigarette sales. “One is certain the left was for the abolition of slavery, and you can’t say the same for the right,” said Mr Jospin..

And as it’s the first time, I intend that it will be the last.”
Conservative MPs shook their fists and yelled at Mr Jospin after a fellow left-wing MP asked him to speak on the 150th anniversary of the abolition of slavery. Mr Jospin, under pressure for his failure to end protests by the unemployed, tried to play down his remarks at the National Assembly. “It’s really a parliamentary incident, of which there are many in a democracy,” he said “It shouldn’t be dramatised. He said he would express his regrets during next week’s question-and- answer session in parliament for comments he made on Wednesday, in which he said the right had opposed the abolition of slavery 150 years ago. Attempting to amend for a political faux pas, the French Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin, said yesterday he would apologise to conservative MPs for comments linking the right to racism. “It is up to the English and Americans to come and protect us,” the man said..

This is precisely the sort of allegation which has fanned rumours of tacit government connivance in some of the massacres, a charge furiously denied by Algiers, as it resists foreign involvement. Technically, Mr Hachani could still be tried for his breach of a three-year ban on such media contact, but even if it proves merely temporary, his release seems timed to improve the political climate during the EU visit.In Sidi Hammed, Mr Gordon was told by survivors that they had sought guns in vain from the Algerian authorities with which to protect themselves.Another survivor, whose wife was murdered, said he tried to call the security forces during the attack, but they did not come in time. Indeed, the Foreign Secretary himself achieved the breakthrough, in a telephone conversation with his Algerian opposite number, Ahmed Attaf.But whether the visit does anything to hasten an end to the carnage which has taken some 75,000 lives in the past six years, and up to 1,700 during the first 16 days of the current holy month of Ramadan alone, is another matter.Yesterday did bring other fragile grounds for hope, with the release of a leading member of the outlawed FIS Islamic fundamentalist group, permission for the British Ambassador, Francois Gordon, to visit Sidi Hammed, south-west of the capital where at least 100 people were slaughtered by rebel guerrillas on Sunday, and apparent approval for a separate visit by members of the European Parliament in early February.In Algiers, Abdelkader Hachani, third ranking leader of the FIS, was freed after being detained for 24 hours for giving interviews to two French newspapers, in which he urged foreign countries to press the Algerian government to open talks with his group. The visit by the team, which, according to a Commission spokesman in Brussels, will discuss “all subjects, no matter how sensitive”, will take place at the start of next week, in good time to submit a report to EU foreign ministers on 26 January.
With Britain in the EU chair, the troika mission will be headed by Derek Fatchett, Minister of State at the Foreign Office, accompanied by his opposite numbers from Luxembourg and Austria, thus substituting junior ministers for senior officials rejected by Algiers on Wednesday.The change of mind does spare Robin Cook what would have been a notable embarrassment just a fortnight into Britain’s six-month European Presidency. Algeria yesterday relented and agreed to receive an upgraded European Union delegation to discuss the continuing massacres in the former French colony. It is difficult and a controversial job to do and there is no easy precedent.”. In a BBC interview, he said Mr Mandelson was doing an important job and it was “very understandable” that he should have visited DisneyWorld in pursuit of ideas.

Mr Heseltine, who ran the project himself until May, and is a Millennium Commissioner, said: “He is doing the job as well as it can be done. This is yet another unanswered question in the troubled saga of the millennium project for Mr Mandelson.”Mr Heseltine, however, had kind words. has a lot of admiration for [Mr Mandelson].”Mr Maude said: “I think there is a real issue here. They have been badly hit by Bayley and they are desperate not to have another open dispute,” a senior Tory source said.Neither Mr Mandelson’s office nor the Mr Smith’s department was prepared to comment last night but a spokeswoman for the commission strongly denied any rift with Mr Mandelson: “We were well aware that it was the same week as Stephen Bayley, but these stories are complete nonsense It’s very annoying Eric … Mr Sorensen issued a press release saying it was “a necessary part of managing the work of a short-life body”.”There have been some major rows in the commission. After a tough year resolving disputes over the millennium plans, it lost responsibility for the Dome when it was taken over by Mr Mandelson, and its other tasks were reduced.Mr Sorensen’s departure was dismissed as part of a restructuring by Chris Smith, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, and chairman of the commission. While the Tory leader and his culture spokesman, Francis Maude, had been directing their fire at the project, the former deputy prime minister decided to speak out in its support, even praising Mr Mandelson.Mr Sorensen was hired from London Docklands Development Corporation in March last year, to head the commission, which distributes money to projects.