WORLD

World leaders including French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown as well as Pope Benedict XVI sent condolences on Monday to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi who was attacked Sunday at a rally in Milan.

A British newspaper said on Monday that Iran is working on testing a final component to build a nuclear bomb.

Italians asked on Monday if an ugly assault on Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was prompted by a climate of hatred splitting their nation and commentators said a wave of sympathy looked set to boost his political fortunes.

A planned meeting of diplomats from major powers on Iran's nuclear program will not take place this year although discussions will continue by telephone, the State Department said on Monday.

Iran worked on testing a key component of a nuclear bomb as recently as 2007, a British newspaper said on Monday, a finding which if proven would be at odds with Iran's assertion its nuclear work is for civilian use.

The Philippines ordered the evacuation on Monday of thousands of people living near the most active volcano in the country, warning of a possible eruption within a week.

Thousands marched in ports and towns of southern Andhra Pradesh to protest plans to carve out a new state, as a backlash grew against demands for statehood in a challenge for the Congress party-led government.

African nations agreed to resume U.N. climate talks in Copenhagen on Monday after a half-day suspension, accusing rich countries of trying to kill the existing Kyoto Protocol.

President Barack Obama said he expects the U.S. Senate to pass by the end of next week legislation to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system, but the top Senate Republican scoffed on Sunday that Obama's Democrats were too divided to do so.

The top U.S. military officer warned on Monday the first U.S. troops headed to Afghanistan as part of President Barack Obama's surge can expect more fighting and casualties, hours after 15 Afghan police were killed.

Three U.S. citizens detained in Iran and charged with espionage will stand trial, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said on Monday, in a case that could further strain relations between Tehran and Washington.

Abu Dhabi stepped in to help fellow United Arab Emirates member Dubai on Monday with a $10 billion injection, of which $4.1 billion was allocated to troubled state-owned conglomerate Dubai World to pay immediate obligations, Dubai said on Monday.

A Thai court on Monday extended the detention of the crew of a seized cargo aircraft loaded with 35 tonnes of arms from North Korea as its unscheduled arrival in Bangkok stirred questions over illicit-weapons trade.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was rushed to hospital covered in blood with a broken nose and teeth after a man with mental problems hurled a statuette at him at a rally, officials said on Sunday.

North Korea and the United States have agreed to resume suspended four-way talks to replace the tattered Korean War armistice with a permanent peace accord, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said on Sunday.

India successfully tested a nuclear-capable ship-based ballistic missile on Sunday off its eastern coast, a defence official said.

Environment ministers tried to overcome rifts between rich and developing nations in Copenhagen on Sunday just days before a deadline for reaching a global pact on tackling climate change.

Tribal gunmen freed dozens of hostages in the southern Philippines on Sunday after authorities transferred murder cases against them to a tribal court and disarmed both them and a rival group.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Afghan President Hamid Karzai met at an Afghan air base on Sunday, aiming to fix a relationship that has grown bitter as the Afghan war grows deadlier and more unpopular.

Tribal gunmen holding 46 hostages in the southern Philippines have reached an agreement with negotiators and will free all those in captivity, a government spokesman said on Saturday.

Regional countries are trying to influence Iraq's upcoming elections but a coalition government is the mostly likely outcome, the foreign minister said on Saturday.

Thai security forces seized more than 35 tonnes of arms from a cargo plane and arrested five crew members after the aircraft made an emergency landing to refuel at a Bangkok airport, officials said on Saturday.

Tens of thousands of climate activists staged a colourful rally in Copenhagen Saturday to urge negotiators at U.N. talks to agree a strong deal to fight global warming in a worldwide Day of Action.

Iraq, emerging from the shadows of war, expects to boost its oil output to rival the level of top producer Saudi Arabia after awarding some of its most attractive oilfields to global energy companies this week.

The United States and Japan reached a landmark aviation agreement on Friday, a deal that eases barriers to passenger and cargo services and opens up the possibility for stronger alliances, officials said.

President Barack Obama defended on Saturday a consumer watchdog agency the financial industry wants to weaken or strip from legislation that would strengthen the regulation of Wall Street.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid urged Chinese President Hu Jintao to address his country's huge trade imbalance with the United States through a significant revaluation of China's currency.

President Barack Obama complained about fat-cat bankers and sharply criticized Wall Street banks for paying out big bonuses to executives in a television interview to air on Sunday.

Former prime minister Tony Blair believes it was right to oust Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein from power even though no weapons of mass destruction were ever found.