TOKYO: Earthquake rattles northern part of Japan
A strong earthquake shook northern Japan on Saturday, but there were no reports of damage or injuries.
The quake hit at 6:06 p.m. and was initially measured at magnitude 5.7. It was centered about 30 miles below the seabed off the southern coast of Kunashiri Island, about 620 miles northeast of Tokyo, the Meteorological Agency said. There was no risk of tidal waves, the agency said.
The shaking was mostly limited to the city of Nemuro on the eastern edge of Japan's northernmost island.
Iraq: Saddam reportedly has initiative for U.N.
The Arab League chief said Saturday that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein had asked him to convey a new initiative to the United Nations in an apparent bid to resolve Iraq's crisis with the world body.
The Arab League's Amr Moussa did not say what the message to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan entailed, telling reporters after two hours of talks with Saddam only that the message "deals with the current and expected developments."
"The president asked me to talk and to convey a specific position" to Annan, Moussa said, calling the initiative "an important stance."
Arab diplomats in Cairo said Iraq is poised to a new initiative to resolve a dispute with Kuwait over prisoners of war.
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