60229    President Castro and Player Maradona have known each other for a long time.

60230    Families of the two plan to enjoy holidays together in Cuba until January 2.

60231    Confrontations between Palestinians and Jewish colonists have expanded in Efrat, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank of the Jordan River, almost twenty kilometers south of Jerusalem.

60232    With eighteen injured on December 30, the conflict is ever deteriorating.

60233    According to the report from Israel, the cause of this dispute was the expansive construction of residences by colonists.

60234    Palestinians protested to this move by planting olive seedlings in the area.

60235    Colonists felled the olive trees, and about fifty Palestinians were arrested.

60236    President Kim Young-Sam of the Republic of Korea issued a New Year's announcement on December 31, appealing for improvement of the North-South relationship that has deteriorated following the death of Kim Il Sung.

60237    In this announcement, President Kim pointed out that the year 1995 would mark the fiftieth anniversary of the country's liberation from Japan.

60238    The ROK President insisted, "Korean Society needs to be internationalized" towards this memorable year, as well as calling for the unification of the two Koreas, saying, "North and South must work together to open a new age of reconciliation and cooperation."

60239    In the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the late President Kim Il Sung used to issue a New Year's announcement on January 1st every year.

60240    Amidst the great attention on what will happen on New Year's Day this year, Central TV of North Korea notified Japan's NHK, "We want a satellite line secured for an hour starting at 11:00 a.m., January 1st, to convey our news video."

60241    Consequently, the diplomatic security source in Seoul believes that it is highly probable that Kim Jong Il, who has not been officially seen for about two months, will appear in front of TV to impress the North Koreans and foreign countries as "Supreme Commander."

60242    However, many also suspect, "Not the President himself, but another Communist Party executive will read the New Year's statement."

60243    The World Trade Organization, the international body to monitor and promote the free trade system, is launched on January 1.