Despite being in one of the richest countries in the world, more than one in 20 Americans aged 12 and older are depressed, according to the latest statistics from the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.

China on Saturday began fresh round of talks with United States on the North Korean nuclear issue after receiving signals that Pyongyang may be in the process of reassembling the Yonbgyon nuclear reactor.

Iran could impose unilateral sanctions against western powers in response to measures to punish Tehran over its nuclear programme, Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said.

US scientists have unveiled the most complete genetic profile ever attempted of glioblastoma, a common and deadly form of the brain cancer that US Senator Edward Kennedy is battling.

The United States will likely scrap a US-Russia civilian nuclear cooperation pact next week. The White House said August 28 that it was considering dropping the agreement.

Colombia's notorious drug lord Edgar Vallejo-Guarin, nicknamed "Beto el Gitano (Beto the Gypsy)", has been arrested in Madrid after being on the run for several years, the Spanish Police have said.

The United States has offered Cuba $100,000 in emergency aid for the victims of Hurricane Gustav and is willing to send far more if a US-approved disaster assessment team is allowed to tour the hardest-hit areas.

India got the NSG waiver by consensus, diplomats at the Vienna said on Saturday.

The White House hopes that India and the US could put the furore caused over the release of a so-called "secret letter" on Washington's position on their civil nuclear deal behind them to get the "agreement done."

Tropical Storm Hanna lashed the US states of South and North Carolina on Saturday, prompting coastal residents to seek refuge inland and authorities to declare a state of emergency.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Tunis early on Saturday to pursue a North Africa tour, after a landmark meeting in Libya with its leader Moamer Gadhafi.

The US unemployment rate jumped to a five-year high of 6.1 per cent as 84,000 jobs were slashed, according to a government report on Friday suggesting fragile economic conditions.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Libya on Friday for a landmark meeting with its leader Moamer Kadhafi as she hailed the West's reconciliation with the long-ostracised nation.

Syria's leader has said that he offered a proposal for peace with Israel but also refused to break off ties with Hezbollah and militant Palestinians — a key Israeli demand.

The United States has made it clear it expects India to adhere to its unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing, but would not spell out whether it would cut off supplies in the event of India doing so.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was due on Friday to make the first visit to Libya by the top US diplomat since 1953 and meet Libyan leader Colonel Moamer Khadhafi.

US Vice President Dick Cheney was set on Friday to meet with Ukraine's squabbling leaders as he continues his tour to bolster US allies in the region following the conflict between Georgia and Russia.

Helicopters rescued survivors from rooftops in the flooded Haitian city of Gonaives as Tropical Storm Hanna claimed at least 61 lives, the third major storm to hammer Haiti in as many weeks.

US Vice President Dick Cheney has condemned Russia for what he said was an "illegitimate, unilateral attempt" to change Georgia's borders by force.

Brazil's foreign minister said that his country is likely to press the World Trade Organisation to take action against US tariffs on ethanol imports.

A Pakistan provincial governor on Wednesday confirmed coalition troops from across the Afghan border had raided a Pakistani village, calling the incident "a direct assault" on sovereignty. The raid killed at least 20 people, he added.

Tropical storm Hanna left at least 19 dead in Haiti as it turned its heavy winds and rains on the Bahamas and threatened to head toward the southeastern US coastline.

With the Nuclear Suppliers Group all set to meet in Vienna on Thursday to consider waiver for India, the United States on Wednesday said that it will not "give up the ship" and push forward for the agreement.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will mark one of the rare diplomatic successes of President George W Bush with her first visit to Libya this week, less than four months before the end of Bush's eight-year White House tenure.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy was due to arrive in Damascus on Wednesday on a high-profile visit aimed at restoring top-level ties and drawing Syria further out of international isolation.