News

Rice and Barak meeting to focus on West Bank barriers

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Sunday met Israel's defence minister to discuss removing West Bank roadblocks as she began a day of meetings that aim to speed up Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Torch arrives in China proper to thunderous welcome

Thunderous applause and cheers greeted the Olympic torch on Sunday as it began the first leg of its marathon relay through mainland China after a protest-harried overseas journey.

China seeking 'positive outcome' from Tibet talks

China's president said he was hoping for a "positive outcome" from talks with envoys of the Dalai Lama, which were due to open on Sunday, but state media kept up a barrage of attacks on Tibet's exiled spiritual leader.

Cyclone turns Burma city into 'war zone'

Burma's military government declared disaster areas in five states on Sunday after a Category 3 cyclone tore through the Irrawaddy delta region, killing at least four people in Yangon, state newspapers said.

Malaysia angers women with travel-restriction idea

Malaysian women's groups reacted with outrage on Sunday to a government proposal to impose restrictions on women planning to travel overseas on their own.

Bolivia's richest region votes on autonomy drive

Bolivia's richest region of Santa Cruz votes on greater autonomy from the central government on Sunday in a referendum that poses the biggest challenge yet for leftist President Evo Morales.

Japan and China keen to avoid 1998 Jiang visit rerun

Ten years after a disastrous visit to Japan by China's top leader dominated by their bitter wartime past, Beijing and Tokyo are keen to avoid a rerun that would risk damage to the deep economic ties between the Asian rivals.

Cruise ship runs aground off Latvian coast

A cruise ship with 984 people on board ran aground off the coast of Latvia on Sunday, the coast guard said.

U.S. rocket strike in Baghdad wounds 20

The U.S. military fired rockets at a target near a major hospital in eastern Baghdad on Saturday, wounding 20 people and damaging several ambulances, the head of the hospital said.

Johnson pledges to fight crime

Boris Johnson, fresh from being elected London's first Conservative mayor, pledged on Saturday to tackle crime and teenage delinquency as he prepared to replace Labour's Ken Livingstone in City Hall.

Plane with 4 Britons lost in Brazil

A small plane carrying six people, including four British businessmen, has disappeared along Brazil's northeastern coast, a Brazilian airline said on Saturday.

McCanns convinced Madeleine alive

The parents of Madeleine McCann remain convinced their daughter is still alive after she went missing from a sleepy Portuguese holiday resort a year ago, they said on Saturday.

The fiancÃ©e of a member of the Royal Family has renounced her Catholic faith, which effectively allows her future husband to stay in line to the throne.

Christian party loses 'censorship' case against BBC

The Christian Choice Party has lost a case against the BBC in which it accused the broadcasting company of censoring its message concerning Muslims.

America's oldest Ecumenical Council of Churches installs new head

The Rev. A.R. Bernard, founding senior pastor of Christian Cultural Center, was officiated as the new president of the Council of Churches of the City of New York, USA Thursday night, during an installation service where speakers called for the revival of the Church.

Muslim Rebels Expel Over 1,000 Christians from Village

Muslim rebels drove off more than 1,000 Christians from a southern Philippine farming village and took over their land, the guerillas and a mayor said Friday.