World

Agencies Occupied Jerusalem: The Israeli army pushed ahead with its ground offensive in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, with tanks and infantry battling Hamas fighters. Hamas said that Israeli forces clashed with Palestinian fighters in the outskirts of Gaza City. In northern

A 12-year-old boy has been found guilty in the United States of murdering his mother following a row over his household chores. A judge in Arizona ruled prosecutors had proved the boy acted intentionally when he shot his mother, Sara Madrid, eight times last year. The boy, from the city of Douglas in Cochise County, ... Read more

MICHAEL LEVENSON Boston, Jan. 2: Seems fair to say that the passengers who boarded Northwest Airlines Flight 59 in Amsterdam yesterday did not expect that by the time they landed in Boston seven hours later they would have new faith in themselves, and almost certainly not in the state of humanity. But as they jubilantly ... Read more

By David Willey, BBC News, Rome The Vatican City State, the world’s smallest sovereign state, has decided to divorce itself from Italian law. Vatican legal experts say there are too many laws in Italian civil and criminal codes, and that they frequently conflict with Church principles. With effect from New Year’s Day, the Pope has ... Read more

Sri Lanka’s military have seized control of the Tamil Tiger rebels’ de facto capital of Kilinochchi, President Mahinda Rajapaksa has announced. He described the taking of the northern town as an “unparalleled victory” for government forces. A pro-Tamil website confirmed the news but said the town was mostly empty as the rebel fighters had moved ... Read more

From Times Online Sex on beach Briton, Vince Acors, speaks out for first time Nico Hines A British businessman today spoke out for the first time about his conviction for having sex on a beach in Dubai, saying that he had been “extremely naive” but claiming that the verdict against him was unjust. Vince Acors ... Read more

• Shredded westuit found off Perth coast • Son hears father’s screams Ellen Connolly in Sydney, guardian.co.uk A snorkeller is believed to have been snatched by a shark as he swam last weekend with his son at a beach south of Perth. Witnesses reported seeing a dorsal fin and thrashing in the water before the ... Read more

India has advised its citizens against travelling to Pakistan as tension continues in the wake of last month’s deadly attacks in Mumbai. India’s foreign ministry said travel was “unsafe” after reports Indians had been detained following recent bomb attacks in Pakistani cities. Pakistani officials say the tension has meant scaling down military operations against militants ... Read more

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has topped the list of US officials for the number of gifts received in 2007, a state department report shows. Ms Rice received $312,000 (£211,000) worth of jewels from the king of Saudi Arabia – worth three times more than his gifts to President George W Bush. Among the ... Read more

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) — Dressed as Santa, Bruce Jeffrey Pardo walked up to his ex-in-laws’ home in Covina, California, on Christmas Eve and knocked on the door. An 8-year-old girl, elated to see Santa, ran toward the door. That’s when, police say, Pardo lifted a gun and shot her in the face. Pardo, 45, ... Read more

AP Guadalajara: A reigning Mexican beauty queen from the drug-plagued state of Sinaloa was arrested with suspected gang members in a truck filled with guns and ammunition, police said on Tuesday. Miss Sinaloa 2008 Laura Zuniga stared at the ground, with her flowing dark hair concealing her face, as she stood squeezed between seven alleged ... Read more

Friends say she was also troubled over a sex film featuring her, posted on the Net By Ians London: Sahar Daftary, an aspiring model and last year’s Miss Face of Asia, reportedly jumped to her death from her boyfriend’s apartment in Manchester following a break-up. Minutes before her death on Saturday night, the police received ... Read more

AP Baghdad: The Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at President George W Bush was visited by a judge in jail, the reporter’s brother said at a news conference. Muntadar Al Zaidi has been in custody since Sunday, when he gained folk hero status across the Arab world by throwing both shoes at Bush during ... Read more

Afp, Baghdad  Iraq faced mounting calls yesterday to release the journalist who hurled his shoes at George W Bush, an action branded shameful by the government but hailed by many in the Arab world as an ideal parting gift to the unpopular US president. Colleagues of Muntazer al-Zaidi, who works for independent Iraqi television station ... Read more

Agence France-Presse (Baghdad): The Iraqi journalist who caused a furore when he hurled his shoes at visiting US President George W Bush “detested America” and had been plotting such an attack for months, colleagues said on Monday. Muntazer al-Zaidi, 28, was being hailed as a hero by some after his action against the US President ... Read more

GLOBAL BESTSELLER: Suzue Miuchi (l.) writes one of Japan’s longest-running girls’ manga. Andy Nelson/The Christian Science Monitor Japan is quietly emerging as a global trendsetter in pop culture, as well as in green technology and environmental practices. By Amelia Newcomb | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor TOKYO – Just two decades ago, Japan’s ... Read more

Ap, Washington. Democrats reached for a blowout at the polls Tuesday in heavy early congressional balloting that could add more than 20 seats to their House majority. Long lines formed as polls opened before daybreak in about a dozen Eastern seaboard states. Democrats were counting on heavy turnouts to capture more than 15 GOP seats, ... Read more