UNITED NATIONS

Libyan forces made ready to storm a desert town held by loyalists of Muammar Gaddafi on Monday but held off in the hope of a surrender that would avoid bloodshed.

Famine has spread to six out of eight regions in southern Somalia, with 750,000 people facing imminent starvation, the United Nations said on Monday, and hundreds of people are dying each day despite a ramping up of aid relief.

A new report by the National Research Council (NRC) has posed some serious queries about the immediate need for developing a strategic plan for managing space debris to mitigate risks.

Israel has also refused to apologize for the killings.

The European Union imposed a ban on purchases of Syrian oil on Saturday and targeted three Syrian firms in an expanded sanctions list meant to intensify pressure against President Bashar al-Assad's government.

The world economy is stepping into a new danger zone, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said on Saturday, as growth slows and investor confidence weakens.

The report (which were leaked to the New York Times newspaper) stated that Israeli military officers used excessive force.

China is backing off from oil and gas investments in Iran, angering the Islamic republic with move officials and executives said reflected Beijing's efforts to appease Washington and avoid U.S. sanctions on its big energy firms.

David Cameron has pledged the continuance of the combined UN and Nato operation against Libya, to prevent a pariah state on the borders of Europe.

The amount of space junk currently in the orbit has reached a threshold where it increases the danger of possible collision with active satellites and manned spacecraft. NASA needs to find ways to clean up the orbital debris, says a report by the National Research Council released on Thursday.

With news that the United Nations bombing in Nigeria is connected to al-Qaeda, how serious is the militant group's presence in the country?

On Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton said that Libya's interim government deserves a seat in the United Nations. But it is a premature statement.

Syrian forces raided houses in Hama on Thursday, residents said, hours after the city's attorney general declared on YouTube he had resigned in protest against the suppression of street demonstrations.

Food will be increasingly scarce in famine-struck southern Somalia until next year's harvest, the head of the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) said Thursday.

Food will be increasingly scarce in famine-struck southern Somalia until next year's harvest, the head of the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Thursday.

Muammar Gaddafi, driven into hiding by his foes, on Thursday urged his supporters to fight on, even as Libya's new interim rulers met world leaders to discuss reshaping a nation torn by 42 years of one-man rule and six months of war.

American troops may have executed at least 10 Iraqi civilians and then ordered an air strike to obliterate the evidence, according to a U.S. diplomatic cable released by Wikileaks.

The NTC received a large boost on Thursday when Russia finally granted its recognition.

Two of Moammar Gadhafi's sons clashed on the airwaves Wednesday, with one offering peace and another promising a 'war of attrition' as a final battle for control of Libya's coast loomed.

Rebels have overrun the capital of Tripoli, as well as the many mansions and estates owned by the Gadhafi family. The Gadhafis have been driven away, some into hiding and some out of Libya, perhaps for good. But where exactly are Gadhafi's children now?

The Gadhafi motorcade arrived at the Algerian border on Saturday.