World

BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syria threatened yesterday to retaliate against any country that formally recognises a recently established opposition National Council which is seeking international support for the six-month-old uprising against President Bashar al-Assad.

LONDON  (Reuters) – Britain plans to tighten up rules on admitting relatives of migrants, cracking down on abuses used to gain entry to the country such as sham and forced marriages, Prime Minister David Cameron said today.

SIRTE, Libya (Reuters) – Libyan transitional government forces attacked deposed leader Muammar Gaddafi’s security headquarters in the centre of his hometown of Sirte, hoping that once the buildings had been captured the fight for the city would be won.

LONDON  (Reuters) – Barbados-born R&B singer Rihanna went straight to the top of singles charts with “We Found Love” to claim her sixth British number one, the Official Charts Company said yesterday.

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s Defence Secretary Liam Fox apologised yesterday for giving “the impression of wrongdoing” by having frequent private meetings with a personal friend in the defence business, but said he would not quit.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – A cyclical drop in the sun’s radiation can trigger unusually cold winters in parts of North America and Europe, scientists say, a finding that could improve long-range forecasts and help countries prepare for blizzards.

CARDIFF (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of fans rocked to the hits of Michael Jackson yesterday at a tribute concert his brothers hoped would put the spotlight on his musical legacy after so much controversy.

TUNIS (Reuters) – Islamists stormed a university in Tunisia yesterday after it refused to enrol a woman wearing a full-face veil, a staff member said, highlighting tensions over religion that are likely to dominate an election later this month.

CAPE TOWN – China is built on lies and its officials are hypocrites, the Dalai Lama said today, speaking via videophone after visa problems prevented him from joining Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s birthday celebrations in South Africa.

CARACAS (Reuters) – Socialist firebrand Hugo Chavez condemned on Saturday the “horrible repression” of anti-Wall Street protesters and termed a US Republican presidential candidate “crazy” for his criticism of Cuba and Venezuela.

SANAA (Reuters) – Yemen’s President Ali Abdullah Saleh suggested yesterday that within days he would step down, a promise he has made three times already this year, and analysts said it was yet another stalling tactic.

SIRTE, Libya (Reuters) – Transitional Libyan government forces swept into Sirte yesterday in one of the biggest assaults yet on Muammar Gaddafi’s hometown, but had to seek cover when they drew fire from his die-hard loyalists.

LONDON/MISRATA (Reuters) – Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron stepped into a row surrounding his defence secretary’s working relationship with a former flatmate yesterday by demanding initial findings of an inquiry be delivered within 48 hours.

OSLO (Reuters) – Declaring women’s rights vital for world peace, the Nobel Committee awarded its annual Peace Prize yesterday to three indomitable female campaigners against war and oppression — a Yemeni and two Liberians, including that country’s president.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Ivy League professors dropped by anti-Wall Street protest camps in Boston and New York yesterday to school the demonstrators on theories that bolster their demands to end inequality in the American economy.

ROME (Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi dismissed opposition calls to resign yesterday after yet another vulgar gaffe stirred up a mix of outrage and weary exasperation.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The voice of Michael Jackson’s doctor filled a Los Angeles courtroom yesterday as jurors heard tape of his police interview following the death of the “Thriller” singer in 2009.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican authorities yesterday blamed a surge of killings in Veracruz on a group linked to Mexico’s most powerful drug lord, Joaquin “Shorty” Guzman, who has been fighting a turf war with rivals in the port city.

OSLO, (Reuters) – Declaring women’s rights vital for  world peace, the Nobel Committee awarded its annual Peace Prize  today to three indomitable campaigners against war and  oppression — a Yemeni and two Liberians, including that  country’s president.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Protests against the US financial system and economic inequality spread across America yesterday and found unlikely sympathy from a top official of one of the main targets of scorn — the Federal Reserve.