The civilian death toll during the final days of Sri Lanka’s civil war was between 3,000 and 5,000, a senior government official estimated Thursday.
Rajiva Wijesinha, permanent secretary in Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Disaster Management and Human Rights, told a British newspaper, The Guardian, that earlier reports of many as 20,000 civilians being killed in the end stages of the years-long Tamil Tigers uprising were unverified and wrong.

Colombo – Amnesty International called Saturday for an independent probe into the number of civilians killed in the final weeks of Sri Lanka’s civil war and also urged the UN to reveal its own estimates.
The call by the rights group followed a report in the Times of London newspaper on Friday citing confidential UN reports that more than 20,000 civilians were killed by Sri Lankan army shelling.
The report followed weeks of allegations that large numbers of civilians had been killed as the army closed in on Tamil Tiger rebels to …

Tibetan groups are calling for urgent intervention in Tibet by U.N. human rights bodies. They appealed to the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva.
Representatives of several Tibetan groups in exile say tensions remain high in Tibet. The groups say China has responded to the 50th anniversary of the occupation of the country with a military crackdown that has increased the climate of fear and intimidation faced by the Tibetan people.

A senior European Union official touring war-torn Gaza has blamed the ruling militant movement Hamas for the humanitarian crisis there.
Humanitarian aid chief Louis Michel called the destruction left by Israel’s offensive “abominable”, but said Hamas bore “overwhelming responsibility”.
He said there would be no dialogue with the “terrorist” movement until it gave up violence and recognised Israel.
He also announced emergency aid for Gaza worth more than US $70m (£50m).

The BBC is facing an escalating crisis over its refusal to screen an aid appeal for Gaza.
The decision was bitterly criticised by a powerful coalition of politicians, charities and religious leaders.
More than 11,000 complaints from the public had been received by Sunday night, against only 68 messages of support.
Thousands of protesters massed outside BBC headquarters in London and demonstrators invaded the Glasgow office of BBC Scotland.

European Union foreign ministers meeting with their Arab counterparts in Brussels on Sunday called for the two rival Palestinian factions to unite to negotiate a lasting peace with Israel.
The European Union foreign ministers said it was critical that the rival Hamas and Fatah political factions reconcile, so the border crossings of the Gaza Strip can be opened for humanitarian and other assistance after three weeks of conflict with Israel.
European politicians said it is essential for the Palestinians to speak with a single voice.
Gaza medics say some 1,300 Palestinians were killed …

The World Health Organization is appealing to Israel to refrain from hitting hospitals, health care centers and paramedics. It says dozens of hospitals and ambulances have been hit by Israeli fire during the three-week conflict despite receiving assurances from Israeli authorities that they would be safe.
Just a couple of days ago, three hospitals were attacked. The most serious was on the Al-Quds Palestinian Red Crescent hospital in Gaza city. All the patients had to be moved to the main hospital, Shifa.
Tony Laurence is acting head of the World Health Organization’s …

JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel announced late Saturday night that the Israeli military would begin a unilateral cease-fire in Gaza within hours while negotiations continued on how to stop the resupply of Hamas through smuggling from Egypt.
Mr. Olmert, who said all Israeli objectives for the war had been reached, said Israel was responding positively to a call by President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt earlier in the day for an immediate cease-fire, in a clearly orchestrated move by two countries that both see the Hamas movement in …

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – Israel said it was approaching the “endgame” of its three-week offensive against Gaza’s Hamas rulers and scheduled a Security Cabinet vote Saturday on a truce proposed by Egypt. Under the cease-fire plan, fighting would stop immediately for 10 days, but Israeli forces would initially remain in Gaza and the border crossings into the territory would remain closed until security arrangements are made to ensure Hamas militants do not rearm.
If Israel agrees to stop shooting, Israel radio said a truce summit would be held in Cairo …

Six seriously injured Palestinian children have been flown to Belgium from the war-torn Gaza Strip for treatment in Brussels hospitals.
The children were airlifted on a Belgian military plane, which brought them from El-Arish, an Egyptian town about 60km (37 miles) from Gaza.
Belgian media say the children’s ages range from two and a half to 18 years.