England

Trafalgar re-enactment a neutral event

An estimated 250,000 spectators gathered Tuesday on England’s southern shores to watch a re-enactment of the Battle of Trafalgar, the naval engagement 200 years ago that destroyed Napoleon’s hopes of invading Britain.

But the re-enactment, shown above, did not feature the British against the French. What spectators got instead were the Reds vs. the Blues.

Not wishing to offend French and Spanish sensibilities by rubbing in those countries’ historic naval defeat at the hands of the British Royal Navy, organizers of the Trafalgar anniversary celebration decided that the ships involved would fly only generic colors and not national flags.

The battle took place on Oct. 21, 1805, near the southwestern coast of Spain.

Egypt

Opposition candidate pleads not guilty

The most prominent opposition candidate in Egypt’s coming presidential election pleaded not guilty to forgery charges Tuesday as a heavily criticized trial got off to a tumultuous start.

As opening statements were heard in a cramped courtroom, thousands of security agents sealed off and lined the streets.

Ayman Nour, a member of parliament and critic of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, is accused of forging signatures collected to found his opposition Tomorrow Party. He was abruptly stripped of his legislative immunity earlier this year and jailed for more than a month.

Nour and his followers have insisted that the charges against him were trumped up. They say that Nour is being persecuted because the regime wants to stifle an emerging political challenger to Mubarak.

Jerusalem

Premiers warn against violence during pullout

Israeli and Palestinian leaders warned Tuesday against a violent response to Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip later this summer, reflecting concern that extremists on both sides could trigger confrontations.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said if Israeli opponents employ violent tactics in resisting security forces dismantling the settlements, it could endanger Israel’s existence. Two days earlier, settlers in Gaza clashed with soldiers trying to tear down empty buildings, providing a taste of what could lie ahead when actual settlements are to be emptied.

On the Palestinian side, Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia warned militant groups against carrying out attacks during the withdrawal.

Beijing

China returns Japanese school books

Textbooks headed for a Japanese school in China were seized by customs officials who objected to the way maps in the books depicted the Chinese mainland and rival Taiwan, an official said Tuesday.

The maps showed the mainland and the island in different colors, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao, indicating that Beijing was concerned this might make Taiwan seem like a separate country.

China and Taiwan split amid civil war in 1949, but the communist government in Beijing claims the self-governed island as part of its territory and rejects any suggestion that it is a sovereign nation.

“The Japanese textbooks showed China and Taiwan in different colors,” Liu said at a regular news briefing. “The ‘one-China principle’ is paramount, so it is legitimate for China’s customs to handle this according to the law.”