Admiral warns against Iran strike
America's top military officer has warned that an attack on Iran would prove "extremely stressful" for his forces. Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that an Israeli or
US strike over Iran's nuclear programme could destabilise the entire Middle East. The Admiral is reportedly fighting... [continued]
Robert Fox: US and Israel should be wary of taking on Iran 
Betancourt freed in dramatic rescue
Colombia's most prominent hostage, Ingrid Betancourt, was released yesterday after Colombia's security forces duped her Marxist rebel captors into releasing her and 14 other hostages from a secret
jungle camp. The 46-year-old former presidential candidate, who was seized by Farc rebels in February 2002, described the rescue - in which... [continued]
The question behind Betancourt's release
UN moves to replace Mbeki
The UN is moving to replace Thabo Mbeki as the key mediator over the crisis in Zimbabwe, after worldwide condemnation of the South African president's "softly softly" approach to Robert Mugabe's
regime. The UN is understood to be lining up a shortlist of leading African politicians, including the former UN... [continued]
Zimbabwe Today: Tsvangirai issues his conditions for talks
Worsthorne: let's put our own house in order first
Bulldozer killer was ‘heartbroken’
A Palestinian construction worker who killed three women and injured 45 others after driving a bulldozer into several cars and a bus in Jerusalem yesterday, was "heartbroken" after a doomed romance
with a young Jewish woman and a spell in prison, his family said. Israeli police shot and killed Hossam... [continued]
News in pictures: road rampage
NRA campaigns against Obama
America's gun lobby, the National Rifle Association, will launch a $40m advertising campaign this autumn in a bid to stop Barack Obama winning the presidential election. The Democratic candidate, who
supports gun ownership, wants a ban on semi-automatic weapons and a limit on the number of handguns bought in one... [continued]
US election: latest news, gossip and analysis
Medvedev hopes to end rift with UK
Russia's new president Dmitry Medvedev has signalled a desire to draw a line under the Putin years, calling for a new era of relations with Britain. The move follows a rocky two years for diplomacy between the two countries, after the murder of Alexander Litvinenko and battles over British business... [continued]
MoD orders giant aircraft carriers
The Ministry of Defence is set to sign a £3bn deal to build Britain's biggest-ever aircraft carriers. The two 65,000-ton ships, the Queen Elizabeth and the Prince of Wales, will each measure more than 300 yards in length, with a flight deck the size of three football pitches and space... [continued]
Starbucks to close 600 stores
Starbucks is to close 600 of its American stores over the next year, in a sign that the world's largest coffee shop chain is feeling the strain in a faltering US economy. The cuts will affect around 12,000 workers and are up dramatically from a previous plan to shut 100... [continued]
Living standards to fall over year
Economists have warned for the first time that Britain is heading for a recession, with the respected think-tank Capital Economics predicting yesterday that a recession is a real possibility next year. The comments came as the Bank of England's new deputy governor, Charlie Bean said that living standards are likely... [continued]
