European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 3, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes Friday april 3, 1992 san Vito base reports most thefts in Safe air Force regions Region 17th air Force Central Europe e 16th air Force Dehiter Jennean Region 3rd air Force United kingdom population figures include Servio members fan members and  civilian amp Tyeena. By Gary Miller Mediterranean Bureau a Small air station in Southeastern Italy has the dubious distinction of suffering the highest personal property theft rate in . Air forces in Europe. Since oct. 1, 1991, the Legal office at san Vito Dei Normanna air station has received 75 theft claims and paid victims More than $60,000, said maj. Anna Smith the bases staff judge advocate. Quot in be never been stationed anywhere that has a theft rate that was even close to what we see Here a said capt. Bill Bicker commander of san Vito s Security police. San Vito near the Adriatic port of Brindisi is Home to about 1,855 service Mem ers . Civilians and family members. According to Safe spokesman Doug Moore the five Safe bases reporting the highest number of crime against property per thousand population during Calendar year 1991 were in order of highest to lowest san Vito in Ciurlik a Turkey Izmir air station Turkey Tempelhof Central aim Ort Berlin Germany and Raf Greenham common England. Across the command the Safe rate of reported crimes against property per 1,000 population is 27 per thousand Moore said. In Calendar year 1990, it was 34 per thousand. A Safe a population is 129,326 service members family members and . Civilian employees. At san Vito americans cars Are stolen at a rate of four to six a month Bicker said. A something is stolen from a car or a residence off base on an average of eight to 10 times a month a Bicker said. Some of the local thieves demonstrate How familiar they Are with american Standard products by taking not Only stereos tvs and video cassette recorders from Homes but the transformers necessary to  110-Volt equipment on Italy s 220-Volt electrical system. Villas Are burglarized most frequently because they Are generally situated in the most Remote locations Bicker said. Most Homes Are broken into during the Day when everyone is gone. A these thieves wont stand their ground a Bicker said. A if you come Home they will run. Calf Tel per 1,060 population pop. 62,437 22 24,537 68 42352 20 ass a a we be never had anyone robbed at  a depressed local Economy and High unemployment Are two factors that contribute significantly to the High theft rate for both americans living on the Economy and italians As Well Bicker said. Eight of the claims filed at san Vito Slegal office were from air Force members assigned to natos Allied forces Southern Europe Headquarters in Naples Italy. The roughly 400 airmen there fall under san Vito administratively Smith said. That a a Small part of the property crimes that the 10,000 americans in Naples a part of another services jurisdiction a experience each year. 1990, thieves had broken into 148 by the end of american Homes. That figure jumped to 166 for last year according to Naples naval support activity statistics. The rate of personal vehicle theft and vandalism in Naples also increased from 185 in 1990 to 203 in 1991. Navy bases Are not required to report crime statistics to higher echelons so various installations standings for property crimes Are not available according to Navy Security officials from Naples to Washington. Adm. Mike Boorda commander of . Naval forces in Europe and natos Allied forces Southern Europe recently established a Security committee consisting of representatives from Naples area commands. Informing americans through the local military Media about Steps they can take to reduce the risk of being robbed has been one of die groups most visible efforts to Date. Geared on Southern european broadcasting network Public for example Boorda has a Soi in service announcements explaining the Steps service members can take to heighten Home Security. Base officials Are also investigating the possibility of using a program developed at naval air station Simonel la Sicily that has apparently reduced the number of household break ins there significantly. Jordan ends martial Law report says Cairo Egypt up a King Hussein of Jordan ordered on wednesday the abolition of martial Law which has been in place in his kingdom for 25 years Amman radio said in a broadcast. The radio monitored in Cairo said King Hussein signed a Royal decree approving a recommendation by his government. Martial Law was introduced in Jordan after the 1967 six Day Middle East War in which Israel occupied the West Bank previously controlled by Jordan. Under martial Law crimes such As spying Selling land in the West Bank to israeli authorities hiding foodstuffs and raising prices carried severe punishments including the death penalty. Security authorities had Broad Powers under martial Law and could hold any person considered a threat to the county a a National Security for an unlimited period. Jordanian opposition groups and International human rights organizations had sharply criticized the Law. Quot the end of martial Law represents a new Era in our constitutional and National life a the speaker of Jordan a Senate Ahmed Al Law i told the official Amman radio. A lifting martial Law is an indication that life in Jordan has returned to  meanwhile Jordan a prime minister Zaid Ibn Shaker ordered the cancellation of All administrative regulations stemming from martial Law. Travellers advisory floods Force tourists to Wade through Venice from wire reports Venice Italy a tourists waded through knee High water in St. Marks Square on wednesday As unseasonal Strong winds sent the Adriatic sea Rushing into the venetian Lagoon. The High tide a or a Aqua Alta a As venetians Call it a left storekeepers pumping out ground floor shops and restaurant patrons sitting on tables to keep from getting their feet wet. Stefano Piasentin a local flood technician said the City a entire historic Quarter was under water with Levels peaking at 4 feet in St. Mark s Square late tuesday. He said the flooding should continue for another few Days. Piasentin said that while there might have been some damage it appeared minimal As the flooding had been predicted. A by now people Are used to this around Here he said. Since its founding 1,100 years ago Venice has been plagued by floods water pollution and steady sin lung. The Island City has dropped More than 9 inches in relation to sea level in this Century alone. National and local authorities have been studying flood control projects since a major inundation hit Venice in 1966. But Lack of funding and bureaucratic infighting and red tape have prevented definitive action from being taken. Northwest aids disabled St. Paul Minn. A Northwest airlines which was subject to negative publicity last year for making life difficult for prominent disabled passengers on its commuter links said tuesday that it will try to make flying easier for people with disabilities. Northwest said that by midyear it will provide disabled passengers with wheelchairs for in flight use new ticket and Gate counters with tables adjusted to wheelchair height wheelchair Battery packaging kits open captioned safety videos on aircraft and improved passenger boarding chairs. Other services will be phased in Over time. All new wide body aircraft will be made with disabled Access toilets and any new toilets installed on existing aircraft will also be accessible to the disabled. Airline to take off grand Bahama Island Bahamas a sir Freddie Laker who jolted the airline Industry by offering bargain fares on trans Atlantic routes in the 1970s, is once again Back in business. He said wednesday that he received approval from the Bahamas government for his new charter airline Laker airways Bahamas Ltd. It will Fly two 727-200 jets each with 173 seats Between the Bahamas and numerous . Gateways. Spanish workers strike Santiago de Compostella Spain about 1 million workers stayed off the Joo in the Northwestern Region of Galicia on thursday in a one Day general strike to protest the areas Industrial decline a Union official said. Seven unions called the walkout and 95 percent of the regions 1 million workers were estimated to have answered the Call said Luis Sanchez spokesman for the general workers Union. Kurd report sudden Lull in shelling by iraqis Ankara Turkey apr the iraqi army abruptly stopped its heavy shelling of kurdish areas in Northern Iraq on wednesday after seven Days of bombardment a kurdish official said. Quot so far today there has been no shelling a said ser Chi Kazaz an Ankara based representative of the patriotic Union of Kurdistan a major kurdish rebel group. A but that does no to mean its All Over a he added. He also said 30,000 kurd had fled the area of the attacks and were headed North kurdish rebels and . Officials have reported iraqi attacks on kurdish villages in the Mosul area. They also said iraqi troops appeared to be massing along the Edge of the slice of Northern Iraq under the control of iraqi kurd. Iraq on wednesday denied its army had clashed with kurdish guerrillas or shelled villages in kurdish areas. An iraqi government spokesman also rejected allegations that the iraqi military was building up its forces in the North to disrupt elections for a kurdish Assembly the state run iraqi news Agency said. April 30 elections Are to choose an Assembly that will determine whether the nation s 3.5 million kurd continue negotiating an autonomy Accord with president Saddam Hussein a government or Jom other opposition forces in trying to overthrow Saddam. Kazaz said villages had been heavily damaged during the week of shelling and attacks by iraqi army helicopters. Earlier Massoud Barzani head of another iraqi kurdish group the Kurdistan democratic party met with turkeys foreign minister the sem official Anatolia news Agency reported. A foreign ministry spokeswoman Filiz Din men said Barzani asked minister Hikmet Cetin for assistance in agriculture and animal husbandry Anatolia reported. She said the minister told Barzani that turkish forces were trying not to hit civilians in its Cross Border raids into Iraq. The turkish air Force has made several forays into Iraq in search of Camps of turkish kurdish guerrillas. Turkey has denied hitting iraqi civilians As . Workers and iraqi kurdish rebels have reported