S P O T L I G H T

Arsenic threat to millions
Dhaka, May 6
Around 35 million Bangladesh nationals, or more than a quarter of the country’s population, and 5 million people in West Bengal are exposed to arsenic contamination, experts have said. A group of scientists from Jadavpur University, Kolkata observed that arsenic level in ground water in 47 districts in Bangladesh and nine in West Bengal had already crossed the maximum permissible level of 0.05 microgram per litre as set by the World Health Organisation, BSS news agency reported. PTI

14 Palestinians hurt
Jerusalem, May 6
At least 14 Palestinians were injured when Israeli tanks entered a Palestinian-controlled area outside Jerusalem and fired shells at gunmen who had been shooting at Israeli motorists, witnesses said today. A five-year-old Palestinian boy was seriously hurt. The most intense exchange of fire broke out in Beit Jalla, near the southern edge of Jerusalem, but shooting also erupted elsewhere in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. AP

Pope enters mosque
Damascus, May 6
John Paul II became the first ever Pope to set foot in a mosque today, as he entered the Omayyad mosque in Damascus on his historic visit to Syria amidst cheers from the crowd. He passed into the courtyard of the mosque, which was built on the site of a Christian church in 705 AD and contains the tomb of Saint John the Baptist. AFP