Britain, Austria, Australia Threatened by Anthrax. Hundreds Died at Anti-US Demonstration in Nigeria.

The United States, which never lightened its raids on Afghanistan over past 8 days under the banner of anti-terrorism war, is now encountering an unexpected obstacle caused by the spread of `fear of anthrax terror` throughout the world and the intensification of anti-U.S. demonstrations in Islamic countries.

While it was confirmed that one person had been killed by and thirteen exposed to the anthrax bacteria only in America, office workers in Australia were evacuated from their offices as a letter containing unidentified white power was delivered to 7 offices in Australia, including the U.S. Consulate in Melbourne and the British Embassy in Brisbane on Oct. 15.

In addition, hundreds of people were evacuated from Canterbury Cathedral in England and from an airport in Austria on Oct. 14 when an unidentified power was found scattered on a floor. At Rio de Janeiro`s International Airport in Brazil an envelope containing a white powder was found on a Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt.

In the United States, a police offer and tow lab technicians involved in an investigation at NBC’s New York headquarters were reported on Oct. 14 to have been exposed to the anthrax bacteria. The U.S. Wall Street Journal reported on Oct. 15 that the U.S. Government and Congress are considering to draw up the additional budget of 1.5 billion dollars for a preparation against biochemical attacks, including anthrax.

Amidst the spreading of anti-U.S. demonstrations all over Arab countries to protest the U.S. attacks on Afghanistan, CNN News reported on Oct. 14 that several hundred people were killed at a demonstration in the northern Nigerian city of Kano on Oct. 12, which later converted to a collision between Christians and Moslems.

In Pakistan, about 4,000 protestors confronted and exchanged fire with the police near the Shabaz airbase in the southern city of Jacobabad, in which three demonstrators were killed and tens of others injured. In Karachi, two police officers were killed from shooting by an armed person.

The U.S. forces conducted night air raids on such strategic cities, including Kabul, Kandahar, Jalalabad, Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif, on Oct. 14, and launched airstrikes on Kabul and Jalalabad in the following morning.

Secretary of State Colin Powell visited Pakistan on Oct. 15 and discussed with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf issues of cooperative measures the field of intelligence war to ferret out Osama bin Laden and the establishment of an interim government after the Taliban.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reported on Oct. 15 that the U.S. investigation squads had rooted out tens of cell-groups of bin Laden`s terrorist network, Al-Qaeda, operative in the U.S. Investigation officials told that about 700 suspects had been arrested so far, among whom at least 10 had been the members of cell-groups linked to Al-Qaeda.

Han Ki-Heung eligius@donga.com