The US Department of Agriculture has opened a “hot line” for calls of citizens, concerned about the situation in Washington’s state of “cow rags”. This was reported by RIA Novosti with reference to the newspaper Washington Post. The press secretary of the US Ministry of Agriculture Daniel Puzo confirmed the newspaper that almost 100 people have taken advantage of the “hot line” over the past few days.

In Iraq, an investigation has begun in the case of assigning $ 40 million by higher officials of the Ministry of Trade. This was stated by the Minister of Trade of Iraq Ali Abdel Amir Alyavi, reports the Catar satellite television channel Al-Jazeera . According to the minister, there is reason to assume that the indicated amount was assigned "as a result of fraud with the signing of contracts," RIA Novosti reports.

Four people died and one was hospitalized as a result of poisoning by unknown poison in the Irkutsk region. According to the press service of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the Siberian Federal District, last weekend in the city of Slyudyanka Irkutsk Region in the apartment of the house on the street. 40 years of October, corpses of four local residents with traces of poisoning by unknown poison were discovered.

A group of terrorists blocked by the Russian federal forces in the mountains of Dagestan purposefully advances towards Georgia, the FSB Central Union of FSB was told to Interfax with reference to the testimony of the surrendered action movie.

In the prison of the Belgian city, Vervier, 20 km from the German-Belgian border, hit a 20-meter fragment of the internal belt of the wall of a correctional institution, RIA Novosti reports. Recovery work was carried out all night. From the side of the prisoners, the escape attempts were not made - the path to freedom was blocked by the external fence of a prison 4 m high, surrounded by barbed wire.

In Dnepropetrovsk on Monday, the Bogdan passenger minibus rolled over. One person died, 14 - suffered. "9 victims were hospitalized with injuries of varying severity to the city hospitals, including an 8-year-old girl with a traumatic brain injury to the regional children's hospital," Interfax told the Dnepropetrovsk city department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Ukraine.

The medical examination of Saddam Hussein for military doctors has definitely accepted a negative turn, writes today Newsweek . The American magazine reports that Saddam Hussein refused to take the flu vaccine, despite the warnings that this year the flu is spreading in a particularly dangerous form. General Ricardo Sanchez, the commander of the American forces in Iraq, confirmed that the "Iraqi Madman" prevents the coalition forces for a vaccine against influenza.

The latter in history risks becoming the current festive New Year's table in France for the famous Goose Pechenka. It is not excluded here that in the coming 2004 in France the Directive of the European Union will be enacted, which prohibits the torture of pets during their cultivation. The traditional French National Delicata Foie Gra - which translates as a "fat liver" - is obtained as a result of violent feeding of geese and ducks with corn.

The property of the general public was the name of the mysterious Russian businessman who, some time ago, tried to buy the English football club Manchester United. As reported by The Daily Telegraph , was one of the founders of the Russian oil company Lukoil Ralif Safin.

According to the Echo of Moscow radio station, with reference to its own sources, the co -chair of the ATP Irina Khakamada today decided to fight for the post of president of Russia. But as Interfax told the press secretary of the Khakamad Vitaly Evstigneev, the officially co-chair of the Union of Right Forces, will answer the initiative group on Tuesday in the afternoon. Earlier it was reported that Hakamad intended to decide on this issue by the end of Monday.

The emissar of Chechen militants Ahmed Zakayev in case of arrival in Denmark will be detained by the police. This was stated on Monday, Minister of Justice Denmark Lena Espersen, responding to a parliamentary request. According to some reports, Zakayev may come from London to Copenhagen, ITAR-TASS reports. According to the Minister of Justice, the Danish police believes that Zakaev or other persons on the international wanted list should be detained.

In Russia in 2003, 619 thousand minor street children were delivered to the internal affairs bodies. "In 2003, 619 thousand homeless homeless and hopeless children were delivered to the police units.

A memorial plaque on the temple is opened in Lviv, where the Russian first printer Ivan Fedorov is buried. The Moscow Dolgoruky and Lviv Russian Society named after Pushkin made the initiative to perpetuate his memory, ITAR-TASS was told today by the Society’s press service. In the Soviet years, in the monastery of St. Onufry, where Ivan Fedorov was buried, a primary printer was located.

The left at any time can withdraw their candidate for president of Russia, if they are convinced that the election campaign is biased. This was announced to reporters on Monday member of the Communist Party faction in the State Duma Viktor Ilyukhin, Interfax reports. “If the president will use his administrative resource, or more simply, his official position, we will remove our candidate at any time and make it loud enough,” Ilyukhin said.

The US dollar last week fell to a record historical minimum to the euro and three -year -old - to Yen. This happened, in particular, due to adverse statistical data on the American economy, Bloomberg reports. In Russia on Monday, the dollar has risen significantly - by 20 kopecks. And at European auction, he sank to a record minimum - for the euro they are already giving $ 1.25.