European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 02, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 8 world the stars and stripes tuesday april 2, 1991 j a a .41 i. Greek minister escapes injury in mortar attack from wire reports. Athens Greece a terrorists fired a mortar toward a luxury hotel where a Cabinet minister was eating dinner sunday night causing Light damage but no injuries police  said they believed the left Wing terrorist group november 17 was responsible for the. Attack on the grounds of the Pente Likon hotel in the Northern Athens suburb of a Ephesia. The missile hit a tree and exploded shattering windows in the hotel and in nearby apartment buildings. To to Quot -7/�?�. A vat Quot it was not Clear if the terrorists were targeting education minister Giorgos Fouflias who police said was in the hotel at the  authorities believed the weapon was a mortar that had been stolen from a War museum and that november 17 has used in previous attacks. They said the weapon was apparently fired from an empty House 200 Yards from the hotter of at 10 35  earlier sunday bombs went off at two Branch of dices in Athens of the , no one claimed responsibility for those attacks which caused no injuries but blew  windows. Volcano getting unruly Manila Philippines a residents have begun leaving their Homes on a volcanic Island because of signs the Mountain May erupt officials said monday. The Taal Volcano on an Island in a Large lake30 Miles South of Manila has been showing abnormal activity for , said Raymundo Puyong hit an director of the philippine Institute of Voica ology and seismology. A a a. A. The Island has about 4,000 residents. Officials had no exact count of the number that have left although a television report said some 500 people mostly women and children volunteered to leave. Monday. A. \. A Quot right now there is no volcanic activity except Quot that you have some earthquakes occurring beneath the Volcano showing signs of unrest a Punongbayan said a a but whether or not this will Lead to an Crup Tion we done to know yet a a afghan rebels take town , Pakistan after two weeks of fierce fighting  guerrillas on sunday captured the besieged town of Khost in Southeastern Afghanistan Western diplomats and the rebels said. The taking of the Garrison town marked an important Victory for the 13-year insurgency in Afghanistan. Khost is the first town captured by the a Rehels since soviet troops supporting the government left in february 1989. A the Mujahideen rebels have total control now in Khost. There is no More fighting a said guerrilla spokesman Nasrullah who like most afghans uses Only one name. \ at least 800 government troops were captured he said in a report relayed to the pakistani Border City of Peshawar. There was no immediate comment from the soviet backed government in the afghan capital of Kabul. An afghan Diplomat in Islamabad do Nied that the guerrillas had captured Khost saying the fighting had intensified. ,. Western diplomats in Islamabad however confirmed that Khost was under guerrilla control and said As Many As 2,000 government soldiers had been taken prisoner. Gians r. Moscow apr georgians have voted overwhelmingly for Independence in the strongest Rebuff by a soviet Republic to president Mikhail s. Gorbachev s efforts to hold the Union together preliminary results showed monday. 7 a a. A i /. With 38 of the republics 71 districts reporting 99.3 percent of voters in sundays referendum favored secession said Valerian Khunkhun Shvili a georgian government spokesman in Moscow 7 v nearly 90 percent of the 3.3 million eligible voters in the fractious Southern Republic cast ballots the inde. Pendent inter fax news Agency quoted Vakhtang Khmaladze chairman of Georgia a electoral commission As  of its near unanimity and High turnout the vote dealt an even stronger blow to Gorbachev s Campaign to unite the 15 diverse republics in a new Union treaty than similar referendums in the three Baltic republics. A a a a a a a a a a a a a a a -. A a a a  a a a in february 91 percent of lithuanian voters endorsed Independence followed in March by 74 percent of latvians and 78 percent of estonians. Armenia has scheduled a vote for sept. 21. The georgian referendum asked a do you agree that the state Independence of Georgia should be restored on the basis of the Independence act of May 26, 1918?�?� Georgia a Multi ethnic Republic of 5.3 million wedged Between the caucasus mountains and the Black sea proclaimed Independence from the russian Empire near the end of world War l it was forcibly absorbed into the soviet Union nearly three years later and incorporated under a 1924 treaty. There was to immediate reaction to the preliminary results from the georgian government or Oviad Gam Sak Hurdia the georgian nationalist Leader recently elected president on a program of Independence. He had confidently predicted Victory on sunday. Georgia Lithuania Latvia Estonia Armenia and Moldavia refused to take part in the March 17 nationwide referendum on preserving the Union. Gorbachev vigorously campaigned for passage of the referendum. Nine republics representing three quarters of the country a population approved the referendum by 76 percent. Gorbachev has used the results to bolster support for his proposed Union treaty. He has said that he considers anti Kremlin polls to be invalid but has not tried to Stop them. Fifteen countries including the United states sent election observers to Georgia to Monitor the voting. No election violence was reported although tension remained High in the autonomous Region of South Ossetia where ethnic fighting has claimed at least 40 lives. The separatist enclave near the russian Border has a sided with the Kremlin and declared Independence from Georgia. Most voters there boycotted sundays referendum. A a. A a a a spitting image will the real John major please step Forward Britain a prime ministering Case you Hadnot guessed he a the one on the left a gives his waxwork twin a cautious glance at Madame Tussaud a Wax museum in London artists took precise measurements of the Leader before molding his  claim Victory in albanian election Tirana. Albania apr communists claimed Victory monday in albanians first Iree election in 46 years saying they would win  of the scats in a new parliament. V a a a a a. The opposition democratic party conceded it a uld fall Short of forcing the communists from Power but said the communists would fall within months anyhow. Xhelil Glisoni a Central committee Secretary of  labor party announced the party a claim at a news con Fere Nee. A a a v a we consider this an important Victory for the party of labor a he  results confirm that the communists Are a the major political party in our country and. Enjoy the full Trust of the poor Pic a he said. A  predicted the official results would show the party of labor winning about two thirds of the 250 seats in the Peoples Assembly albanians new parliament. But the communists also suffered a string of embarrassing defeats including that of albanian president and party Leader Ramiz Alia to a Little known Engineer in the Tirana District source Sakalia won 36 percent of the vote in Lut contest with Democrat Franko Kurogi. Ghoni said he did not know How badly Alia had been beaten but added that the labor party generally won 30-40 percent of the vote in the capital. ,. A. A 7 a a asked about alias future he said the Assembly Wall choose the president and added a Ramiz Alia is at the head of the party and he will continue to be at the Bead a Puthe party a. A a a a the communists Are willing to co opera t e a t i he opposition he a i d. Ahou t 3,000 democratic party supporters held an Impromptu rally outside party Headquarters and  speeches by the party a two leaders. A. A yesterday we marked not a democratic Victory but a Victory for democracy a said Gramozi Pashko one of the leaders. A the communists who sucked our blood for 46 years Are finished. Within two months they will be in  7 Quot a 7 -. Quot 7 7 the democratic party took an Early Lead 7 in at least 20 of the 29 voting districts in the capital of Tirana according to preliminary unofficial results based on partial returns and opposition sources. Pashko and his co Leader Sali Berisha also had Strong Early leads outside Tirana in the districts of Flor and Durrs party officials said