Previous Day
Death of 4,000th US soldier in Iraq a 'sober moment'
UNITED STATES: PRESIDENT GEORGE Bush, poised to
roll out the final battle plan of the war that will be his legacy,
yesterday confronted the growing human cost to America of its
engagement in Iraq as the US death toll rose to 4,000. p
Pakistan's new PM orders release of chief justice
PAKISTAN: PAKISTAN'S NEW prime minister ordered the release from house arrest of the country's former chief justice within minutes of coming to power yesterday, driving home how rapidly president Pervez Musharraf's authority is ebbing. p
Activists say army killing civilians to 'gain points'
COLOMBIA: Rights groups allege intense pressure for
results in US-funded counter-insurgency war is sparking illegal
killings, writes
Chris Kraul in Colombia p
Other World Stories
Tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians dead in war
IRAQ: THE NUMBER of civilians killed in the Iraq war is incalculable. The lack of records, the displacement of more than four million Iraqis from their homes, and the problems posed by collecting data from a war zone, have led to the figures for civilian deaths varying widely, from about 85,000 to 655,000. pLabour peer says Catholic cardinal 'lying' over bill
BRITAIN: THE ROW in Britain over embryo research turned acrimonious yesterday as Catholic leaders rejected Labour claims that they were misleading the public. pBill would prevent couples choosing sex of baby
BRITAIN: What does the Human Fertilisation and Embryo Bill involve? It is designed to update legislation on assisted reproduction and the use of embryos in scientific research and therapy. pPoll puts Obama back in the lead after race speech
UNITED STATES: SENATOR BARACK Obama gained a boost yesterday when the first poll taken since his make-or-break speech last week on race put him back ahead of Hillary Clinton. pProtest disrupts Olympic ceremony
GREECE: THE OLYMPIC flame yesterday began its 136,000km (84,500- mile) meandering journey from rural Greece to Beijing for this summer's Olympic games amid embarrassing scenes, as protests by human rights activists over the turmoil in Tibet all but eclipsed the lighting ceremony. pBush administration appeals to Putin for longterm agreement
UNITED STATES: THE BUSH administration is seeking to persuade Russian president Vladimir Putin to sign up to a long-term agreement on Moscow-Washington relations, arguing that it will be harder for Russia to agree such a deal with the next occupant of the White House. pChina braced for huge increase in migration to cities by 2025
CHINA: MORE THAN 40 per cent of the population of Chinese cities will be made up of migrants within two decades, putting huge pressure on the ability of local governments to provide services to citizens, according to a study by the McKinsey Global Institute. pBelgian patriots fold up their flags, but may need them again soon
EUROPEAN DIARY : I COULD tell that the immediate crisis was over when the tenants in the apartment block opposite my flat began taking down the national flags they had hung out on their balconies last year in support of "the movement to save Belgium". pVoting may be compulsory under proposed UK electoral reforms
BRITAIN: A SIGNIFICANT overhaul of electoral legislation in Britain to give voters a second vote, open polling stations at weekends, and make it compulsory to participate, is being proposed by the government to increase turnout and improve the legitimacy of the Commons. pBeatle friend Neil Aspinall dies aged 66
UNITED STATES: NEIL ASPINALL, a close friend of The Beatles, has died in New York of lung cancer, former band members said yesterday. He was 66. pGhana sets regional example as democracy takes root in west Africa
GHANA: Rumours of the death of Ghana's opposition presidential candidate were exaggerated, writes CRAIG TIMBERG in Winneba, Ghana. pSerbs say Kosovo is illegal 'Nato state'
SERBIA: NINE YEARS after western powers started bombing Belgrade's forces out of Kosovo, Serb leaders yesterday denounced the fledgling country as an illegal "Nato state" and confirmed making plans to divide the territory along ethnic lines. pCheney accuses Syria, Iran over Palestinian peace talks
MIDDLE EAST: THE US vice-president Dick Cheney yesterday accused Syria and Iran of using the Islamist movement Hamas to "torpedo" peace talks between the Palestinians and Israel. pFrench press mocks wedding of former first lady
FRANCE: THE FORMER wife of French president Nicolas Sarkozy has married a PR executive in a fashionable ceremony that the French media has poked fun at. pReport slates failure to deliver Afghan aid
AFGHANISTAN: PEACE IN Afghanistan is undermined by Western nations' failure to deliver promised aid and 40 per cent of funds that do reach the country return to the West in profits and salaries, aid agencies said yesterday. pEmergency appeal for food aid launched
UNITED NATIONS: THE WORLD Food Programme has launched an "extraordinary emergency appeal" to governments to donate at least $500 million (€323.8 million) in the next four weeks to avoid rationing food aid in response to the spiralling cost of food. pIn Short
A roundup of today's other world news in brief: p
