News
Car bombs kill 23 across Iraq
Car bombs killed 23 people in Baghdad and three other Iraqi cities on Wednesday but U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates said that a secure, stable country was within reach.
Ghana delays sentencing of UK drug girls
A court in Ghana on Wednesday delayed until January the sentencing of two British teenagers found guilty of smuggling 6 kg (13 lbs) of cocaine, saying it first needed to consider a social services report on the girls.
Government planning big new prisons
Justice Secretary Jack Straw said on Wednesday the government would spend 1.2 billion pounds to create 10,500 extra jail places by 2014 to help tackle a crisis of overcrowding in prisons.
U.S.'s Rice seeks to ease African crises
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Wednesday received commitments from Africa's Great Lakes countries to stick to previous promises to end a conflict in eastern Congo which risks spilling across borders.
Kenya clashes kill 16 ahead of elections
Land clashes in Kenya's fertile Rift Valley highlands have killed 16 people, uprooted hundreds and fuelled fears of a bloody campaign ahead of a December 27 election, police said on Wednesday.
Archaeologists say dig reshapes Roman Jerusalem
Israeli archaeologists have unearthed a wall beyond Jerusalem's old boundaries, showing the city built by biblical King David may have been much larger than previously thought, they said on Wednesday.
EU talks must place focus on Zimbabwe - Tearfund
UK relief and development agency Tearfund says AU / EU talks this weeks must focus on the devastating humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe.
NY Catholic comic book warns kids about sex abuse
The New York Roman Catholic Archdiocese is using comic and coloring books to warn children about sex predators, drawing critics who say they fail to alert kids that priests may pose a threat.
Serb Church says Belgrade must act tough on Kosovo
Serbia should organise protests and military exercises to warn Kosovo and its Western backers it will not tolerate a declaration of independence by the breakaway province, a Serb Orthodox Church leader said on Tuesday.
Church bells in Ireland to sound the alarm on global warming
Cathedrals and parish churches in Ireland will ring their bells at 2pm this Saturday to mark the Global Day of Action on Climate Change.
Saints on cellphones - Italy firm sparks controversy
If you are a Catholic looking for a saint in heaven to protect you, you no longer have to carry a small "holy card". You can get the image sent to your cellphone.
China consecrates two Vatican-approved bishops
China's state-backed Catholic church installed a Vatican-approved bishop in the southern diocese of Guangzhou on Tuesday, just days after another was consecrated in the central province of Hubei.
Iran declares victory after U.S. atom report
Iran's president declared victory over the United States on Wednesday after a U.S. intelligence report contradicted the Bush administration's charges that Tehran was actively seeking a nuclear weapon.
Guantanamo prisoners get day in U.S. high court
Lawyers for terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay will argue in the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday that the prisoners' detention is unconstitutional, focusing renewed attention on the United States' tarnished human rights record.
Government enlists church group to raise public participation in budgets
Church Action on Poverty (CAP) has welcomed the announcement from Communities Secretary Hazel Blears of plans to give local communities a greater say in what council money is spent on.
Myanmar to free 49 Bangladeshi detainees
Myanmar has agreed to release 49 Bangladeshi fishermen and loggers arrested in border areas between the two countries over recent months, Bangladesh officials said on Wednesday.