A 13th person dies from injuries sustained when tornadoes ripped through the US Midwest, flattening communities and injuring more than 100 people.

A siege at a wheelie bin factory in northern Greece ends after a gunman surrenders, having injured two people and taken another two hostage.

The price of crude oil reaches a three-and-a-half-year high following reports of an explosion at a pipeline in Saudi Arabia.

Drugs gangs are undermining democracy in Latin America by threatening politicians and even running their own candidates, the regional grouping warns.

The public are invited to study data from telescopes which could point to extraterrestrial life forms.

The Red Cross is poised to enter the Baba Amr area of the Syrian city of Homs to deliver food and medical supplies after a month-long siege.

A tough-talking Arizona sheriff suggests US President Barack Obama's birth certificate may be a forgery, and calls for an criminal investigation.

Australian PM Julia Gillard names Bob Carr to replace Kevin Rudd as foreign minister in a cabinet reshuffle following Monday's leadership vote.