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Hello, everyone, I'm Steve Norman in the VOA News Center.

South African President Thabo Mbeki: He has met with Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe to try to help with Zimbabwe's political crisis. Mr. Mbeki also met Saturday with leaders of a breakaway faction of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change. However, the main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai declined to participate in that meeting. A spokesman for the opposition says the party is waiting for the African Union to join the mediation efforts. Last weekend, the AU met in Egypt and generally did not condemn the political situation in Zimbabwe, namely, the previous election. VOA's Peter Heinlein reports some see that as a failure for the

African Union.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro called this a moment of truth for Africa's leaders. But if it was, the truth was unpleasant. In an address to a pre-summit session, Migiro, a former Tanzanian foreign minister, described the failure of democracy in Zimbabwe as the single greatest challenge to stability in southern Africa. The British Minister Mark Malloch Brown bluntly told reporters "Mr. Mugabe has to go." But this expressions of international outrage seemed not to matter. When Mr. Mugabe arrived at the summit hall, he was warmly greeted by the host, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. And Mr. Mugabe through his spokesman George Charamba made it clear to reporters that he couldn't care less what the west thinks of his election. In the meantime, Africa's optimists point to a ray of hope. Word from inside the summit hall was that a small, but vocal minority of African leaders join the international chorus of outrage at Mr. Mugabe's assault on democracy. Peter Heinlein, VOA News, in Adis

Abeba.

French-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt underwent medical tests at a hospital in Paris Saturday following her release after 6 years of Colombian rebel group's hostage. Betancourt's sister told French media that the initial results were satisfactory. Earlier Ingrid Betancourt told French media she suffered a series of ailments while living under harsh, jungle conditions as a hostage of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. She was rescued Wednesday in a Colombian military operation

along with 14 other high profile hostages, including 3 American defense

contractors.

Pakistani military officials were denying claims by the country’s disgraced nuclear scientist of the Army President Pervez Musharraf sends centrifuges to North Korea. The head of the agency handling Pakistan's nuclear arsenal Lieutenant General Khalid Kidwai told reporters on Saturday the allegation was absolutely false. Kidwai was reacting to a Friday interview disgraced scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan gave to the Associate Press, in which the nuclear scientist of the Army had complete knowledge of the shipment of nuclear centrifuges to North Korea in 2000. Khan also alleged that President Musharraf must have given consent.

US President George Bush is traveling to Japan for a summit of leaders of the world's leading eight industrialized nations, known as the Group of Eight. Mr. Bush said earlier in the week that the three-day summit will address critical world issues including energy supplies. "It takes a while to get into the energy situation we ‘re in while it takes a while to get out of it. But one thing is for certain here in United States that we can help alleviate shortages by drilling for oil and gas in our own country." President Bush also said the world's food shortage will be high on the G8 agenda when the summit begins on Monday.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki says security forces in Iraq have saved Baghdad from what he called a terrorist siege. Mr. Maliki Saturday said his government will never stop battling outlaws, criminals and militants. But he said the country's security forces have managed to defeat terrorism in the nation's capital once considered the epicenter

of violence in Iraq.

US presidential candidate Barack Obama told reporters on Saturday he remains committed to ending the war in Iraq. Democratic Senator's trying to end speculation that he is inching away from promise to withdraw troops within 16 months of taking office. On Thursday, Republicans accused Obama of reversing his position after he might redefine his timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq. Republic candidate John McCain has said the

United States can not risk progress made in Iraq by withdrawing US troops without concerns for conditions on the ground.