At least three Canadian tourists and two hotel staff are killed in an explosion at a luxury hotel on Mexico's Caribbean coast.

The head of peacekeepers in Darfur warns of increased violence ahead of January's referendum on possible independence for South Sudan.

Campaigners working with West African farmers are calling on Europe and the United States to cut the subsidies they pay to their cotton farmers.

Police in southern California arrest a car driver following a head-on collision with a group of motorcyclists which leaves five people dead.

Greece's governing Socialist party wins control of the capital Athens, in the second round of local elections dominated by the country's debt crisis.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy replaces his foreign and defence ministers but keeps his PM as part of a cabinet reshuffle.

Israel's cabinet considers a package of incentives the US has proposed in exchange for a partial freeze on settlement construction.

An Afghan diplomat set to be ambassador to Pakistan when he was kidnapped by Pakistani militants two years ago is freed.