Europe News

Berlin/Brussels, Nov 20 (DPA) Top diplomats from the so-called '5+1' group of world powers expressed disappointment Friday at Iran's rejection of a compromise deal on the country's controversial nuclear programme and urged its leaders to reconsider.

Lifeboats and military helicopters rescued hundreds of people overnight in northern England and a policeman was feared dead as torrential rain flooded homes and washed away bridges.

A Briton who strangled his wife during a nightmare because he believed he was attacking an intruder, walked free from court on Friday after prosecutors withdrew their case against him.

Somalia has announced it plans to ratify a global treaty aimed at protecting children, leaving the United States as the only country outside the pact, UNICEF said on Friday.

Port-of-Spain, Nov 20 (IANS) French President Nicholas Sarkozy and UN chief Ban Ki-moon will be attending the Commonwealth of Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in the Trinidad and Tobago capital Nov 27-29 as special guests, Prime Minister Patrick Manning said. Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen will also attend.

Slovenia expects to build its second nuclear power plant by 2025 at a cost of 3.5 billion to 5 billon euros ($5.21 billion to $7.44 billion), Economy Minister Matej Lahovnik said on Friday.

A Brazilian transsexual caught up in a scandal which prompted the resignation of a senior Italian politician -- the centre-left governor of Lazio region, which includes Rome -- was found burnt to death in his home on Friday.

The crew of a Spanish fishing boat freed by Somali pirates this week said they had been threatened with being shot during their near two month captivity.

Rome, Nov 20 (IANS/AKI) The transsexual prostitute at the centre of the sex, drugs and extortion scandal involving former governor Piero Marrazzo was Friday found burned to death in a fire at her apartment in the Italian capital Rome.

London, Nov 20 (IANS) The estranged husband of an Indian-origin woman who was murdered this week with her hand chopped off has vowed to catch her killer.

Rome, Nov 20 (IANS/AKI) Almost four million Italians are living abroad, according to a new report released Thursday.

Hamburg, Nov 20 (DPA) Asterix, the world's most famous Gaul just turned 50, bringing all of Europe into a fever about the comic book hero.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has secured a high-profile European Union foreign policy job for Britain, but may have to cede to France an important role in overhauling financial regulation.

The European Union says it finally has the answer to a question long attributed to former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

European Union leaders named Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy, who is little known outside his own country, as the bloc's first president on Thursday to lead efforts to make it more influential on the world stage.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is not thinking of extraditing Italian former guerrilla Cesare Battisti despite a Supreme Court ruling that he should be sent home, a high-ranking government source said on Thursday.

Roman Catholics should look beyond the divisive issue of ordaining women to see how much they share with the world's Anglicans and work toward greater Christian unity, the head of the Anglican Communion said on Thursday.

Nigeria signed a 677 million euro ($1 billion) pact with the European Union on Thursday aimed at combating corruption and promoting peace in its troubled, oil-producing Niger Delta region.

Brussels, Nov 20 (DPA) European Union leaders agreed to appoint Herman Van Rompuy, a relatively inexperienced prime minister from Belgium, as their first-ever full-time president.

Brussels, Nov 20 (DPA) European Union leaders agreed to appoint Herman Van Rompuy, prime minister of Belgium, as the bloc's first-ever full-time president, diplomatic sources said.