World Briefing

Hunter cites evidence of fugitive Nazi

The Simon Wiesenthal Center has strong evidence that a former SS member known as “Dr. Death” is in Chile or Argentina, a top Nazi hunter said.

Efraim Zuroff, the center’s director in Israel, said he would fly to the southern Chilean city of Puerto Montt, where SS doctor Aribert Heim’s daughter lives.

Heim, who would be 94, tops the center’s list of most-wanted Nazi war criminals. He was indicted in Germany on charges of murdering hundreds of inmates at the Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria.

Vote sought on minaret ban

Swiss nationalists are forcing a popular vote on whether to ban the construction of minarets. If approved, the ban could clash with Switzerland’s constitutionally protected right to freedom of religion.

The Interior Ministry said it received a petition for a referendum on the issue with more than the required 100,000 signatures. The Swiss People’s Party and the Federal Democratic Union say the minaret is more than a religious sign; it symbolizes a bid for political and religious power.

Rapist who won lottery to be sued

A British woman assaulted by a serial rapist has won the right to sue the attacker, who became a millionaire by winning the lottery while in prison.

A judge ruled that the 78-year-old victim, known only as Mrs. A, can seek punitive damages from Iorworth Hoare for an attempted rape in 1989.

Hoare won nearly $13 million in 2004. He received his money after his release in 2005.

City of Light may stand taller

The City of Light is looking to add a little height.

The Paris City Council voted to consider erecting tall buildings on the rim of France’s historically low-rise capital.

The decision means that buildings as tall as 656 feet, or a little under two-thirds the height of the Eiffel Tower, may be built at six new sites under consideration for completion between 2012 and 2014.

From Times Wire Reports