Iraq suicide bombers target city of Baquba

Suicide attacks in the central Iraqi city of Baquba have killed at least 31 people and injured dozens more.

Two car bombs exploded within minutes of each other near government buildings in the capital of Diyala province, 60km (40 miles) north of Baghdad.

A later third blast targeted the city's main hospital, where victims of the first attacks were being treated.

The attacks come just days before parliamentary elections, the third since the US-led invasion in 2003.

Nearly a million military and police personnel have been placed on the highest alert ahead of Sunday's polls, defence officials have told the BBC, amid fears the country could slide back into sectarian conflict.......... read more>>

Iraq suicide bombers target city of Baquba

China activist demands quake recovery budget info

BEIJING — A prominent Chinese artist and activist has filed a suit against the Ministry of Civil Affairs for allegedly failing to respond to his request for information about the toll and cost of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

Ai Weiwei told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he filed a request in November asking the ministry how many buildings fell in the quake, the amount of donations received, the cost of recovery and other details but has yet to receive a response.

China enacted a freedom of information regulation on May 1, 2008, allowing citizens to request information and get a response from the government within 15 to 30 days, but implementation has been slow and uneven.......... read more>>

China activist demands quake recovery budget info

Gates outlines study on letting gays serve openly in the military

A Pentagon study on how to implement a plan to allow gays to serve openly in the military, "can only be successful if it is managed in a way that minimizes disruption to a force engaged in combat operations," according to Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Gates made the comments in a letter sent Tuesday to the four service heads and other senior staff who will work on a study looking at implications of repealing the "don't ask don't tell" law.

President Barack Obama requested that the Congress repeal the law and directed Gates to consider how best to implement a repeal.

The letter by Gates included an outline with objectives for the study and how to approach executing it throughout the services......... read more>>

Gates outlines study on letting gays serve openly in the military

Chileans' instincts saved their lives

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet said all emergency measures should be in place by Tuesday, three days after an 8.8-magnitude earthquake destroyed large swaths of the central and southern parts of the nation.

The death toll stood at 723 Tuesday, with 544 reported killed in Maule, where a sewer system collapsed and several water towers were close to toppling, the National Emergency Office said. The death tally was expected to climb, officials said.

Although damage was significant in Santiago, the nation's capital, electricity and water were restored to much of the city by late Monday and many residents could use their cell phones and other conveniences. About 90 percent of the city's stores were open......... read more>>

Chileans' instincts saved their lives

Gossip Girl`s Leighton Meester puts music career on hold - to go back to acting

Gossip Girl star Leighton Meester is putting her music career on hold to star in a new movie.

The actress and singer is to shoot the indie dramatic comedy The Oranges, opposite House star Hugh Laurie.

The film, which also stars Catherine Keener, centres around a man's romantic relationship with the daughter of a family friend, which turns all their lives upside down....... read more>>

Gossip Girl`s Leighton Meester puts music career on hold - to go back to acting

Pound hit over hung parliament fears

The pound was punished today amid worries that plans to slash the UK's soaring deficit could be delayed by political uncertainty.

Fears of a hung parliament after the looming general election have been fuelled by a narrowing Conservative poll lead and sent sterling to a nine-month low of 1.478 against the dollar at one point.

The pound was also on the back foot against the euro, falling as low as 1.09 before clawing back some ground against both currencies.

"If there is one thing markets hate it is uncertainty, and the prospect of a hung parliament could keep sterling on the defensive until the general election is done and dusted," Capital Economics' John Higgins said.......... read more>>

Pound hit over hung parliament fears

Microsoft offers browser choices to Europeans

Microsoft is to ask millions of users across Europe if they want to use a web browser other than its own.

Windows users will be offered the choice as part of a deal Microsoft struck with the European Commission.

The agreement resolves a long-running case in which the software giant was accused of abusing its market position.

A pop-up window will prompt people to choose and install one of 12 different browsers or let them stick with Microsoft's Internet Explorer........... read more>>

Microsoft offers browser choices to Europeans

Peter Gabriel and Jamie Cullum cover tunes, and 'Alice in Wonderland'

On March 2 two Alice in Wonderland soundtracks, plus a title from Peter Gabriel surfaces after seven years with a backscratching idea, Jamie Cullum returns after only four, and ABBA's Benny Andersson. Peter Gabriel, Scratch My Back
On Gabriel's first studio album in seven years, he covers songs by artists such as Radiohead and Paul Simon, who will in turn record his music on an upcoming collection called I'll Scratch Yours. The 12 tracks are the first of a series of "song exchanges" with artists reinterpreting one another's music, including Lou Reed's "The Power of the Heart" and David Bowie's "Heroes." He performs with a 54-piece orchestra - no guitar or drums - which he will take on the road for The New Blood tour, a limited engagement at select venues in Europe and North America. The collection was released in the UK/Europe February 16 on Virgin Records.......... read more>>

Peter Gabriel and Jamie Cullum cover tunes, and 'Alice in Wonderland'

Death toll in Chile quake reaches 723

Rescuers searched for survivors Monday as crews sought to deliver food and water and prevent looting after the fifth strongest earthquake in some 100 years ravaged central and southern Chile.

More than 1.5 million people were without power in and around the capital of Santiago, according to Chile's National Emergency Office, but the hardest-hit areas after Saturday's 8.8-magnitude quake were farther south in the Maule and Bio Bio regions along the coast.

Authorities said 544 of the 723 reported deaths were in Maule, where a sewer system collapsed, water towers were close to toppling and communities lacked basic services, the emergency office said.......... read more>>

Death toll in Chile quake reaches 723

Showdown over healthcare reform

A few weeks ago, you could almost hear it echoing through the halls of the White House: "We were this close."

Barack Obama, the US president, has for years talked about the need for health insurance reform. He campaigned on the issue and spent his first year in office focusing on what is his top domestic priority.

The House and the Senate were both able to pass health insurance reform bills in the past, but as the two chambers were reconciling their differences, a giant roadblock emerged from something unexpected in Massachusetts.......... read more>>

Showdown over healthcare reform

Prudential in talks over AIG Asia

Prudential, the British insurer, says it is in "advanced" talks to purchase AIA, the Asian arm of US insurance company AIG, in a deal that would create the biggest insurer in Southeast Asia.

A source close to the deal said late on Sunday that AIG had agreed to sell its Asian division to Prudential for around $35bn.

"The board of Prudential plc notes the recent press speculation regarding a possible transaction involving AIA Group Limited," the London-listed Prudential said in an official statement on Monday......... read more>>

Prudential in talks over AIG Asia