WORLD BRIEFS

GAZA: Hamas adds Hebrew to its college

Hamas' flagship university in Gaza has a new diploma on offer: Hebrew, the official language of its archfoe, Israel. Gaza's Hamas rulers say they want to produce qualified teachers as Hebrew studies are gradually introduced in high schools. The aim is simple: It wants Palestinians in Gaza to learn their enemy's language. "As Jews are occupying our lands, we have to understand their language," said Education Ministry official Somayia Nakhala. Nineteen students are enrolled in the first one-year Hebrew diploma course offered at the Islamic University in Gaza City.

CHINA: Dubious agreement on censorship

A deal to keep propaganda officials from rewriting articles before they appear in the Southern Weekly in Guangzhou does not mean an end to censorship in media, although it does defuse a standoff that became an unexpected test of the new Chinese leadership's tolerance for political reform. Censorship is often subtle, rather than overt, and frequently consists of bargaining between editors and propaganda overseers. Hopes among supporters of the Southern Weekly that the dispute would strike a blow against censorship appeared to fizzle under the tentative resolution reached Tuesday between the newspaper's Communist Party-backed management and rebellious staff.

VENEZUELA: Top court backs delay for Chávez

Supreme Court President Luisa Estella Morales endorsed putting off President Hugo Chávez's inauguration Wednesday, which had been scheduled for Thursday, siding with the government in a heated dispute while the ailing leader struggles with complications a month after cancer surgery in Cuba. Morales rejected the opposition's view that the delay was unconstitutional.