American disappeared in Iran on rogue CIA mission
Adam Goldman An American man who disappeared in Iran more than six years ago had been working for the CIA.
Top world stories
Execution sign of a regime on the edge
Rose Kim North Korea said it executed leader Kim Jong-un's uncle Jang Song-thaek after a military trial convicted him of trying to overthrow the regime.
Obama White House 'selfie' hypocrisy
The Internet has been abuzz over the spectacle of President Obama and the prime ministers of Britain and Denmark snapping a photo of themselves - a “selfie,” with a smartphone at the memorial service for Nelson Mandela.
Mafia boss threatens prosecutor
"I'll cut him up like a tuna," Salvatore "the Beast" Riina said, according to judicial sources in Palermo who have heard the recordings.
Latest world news
Dutch poll finds 21% 'back more euthanasia'
Ella Pickover 3:19pm More than one in five Dutch people believe that euthanasia should be allowed for elderly people who are "tired of living", new research suggests.
Iceland increases 2014 whaling quotas
1:17pm REYKJAVIK, Dec 13 AFP - Iceland says it will increase its 2014 quotas for whaling in a move likely to intensify international condemnation of the practice.
Monarchy treason law still stands, says British government
1:35pm LONDON, Dec 13 AFP - It is still a crime in Britain to call for the abolition of the monarchy and the offence is punishable by transportation.
Another school shooting in Colorado
Nick O’Malley 2:44pm Almost a year to the day after the Sandy Hook massacre, a student has opened fire in a school.
China makes US Navy ship change course
4:26pm A US guided-missile cruiser had a confrontation with Chinese ships in international waters this month.
South Africa prepares to bring Mandela home
NICK MILLER 11:50am Mandela remembered Qunu, where he will be buried, as "a beautiful country" that was "green even in winter".
Kiss and hell: Italian police want her charged
Tom Kington 1:25pm The Italian police union is furious with the protester photographed kissing an officer's helmet.
Saatchi books 'bought in bulk by staff to lift sales'
Gordon Rayner 1:05pm Nigella Lawson's staff were given money by Charles Saatchi, her husband, to buy his books so that they would get on to bestseller lists, a jury has been told.
Nigella Lawson let her children smoke cannabis, says assistant
Gordon Rayner 12:33pm Nigella Lawson permitted her children to smoke drugs, a jury was told on Friday.
Student opens fire in US school
8:46am A student has reportedly opened fire in a US high school before turning the trigger on himself.
US airport worker arrested for car bomb
7:45am US authorities have arrested an aviation worker in an apparent sting operation after he tried to explode what he thought was a car bomb at an airport in the state of Kansas.
Hundreds break through barrier to see Mandela's body
3:47am Hundreds of South Africans broke through a police cordon in a last-gasp bid to join the estimated 100,000 people who viewed Nelson Mandela's remains during three days of lying in state.
US court rules wealthy teenager suffered from 'affluenza' after he killed four drink driving
Ramit Plushnick-Masti 4:03am Houston: "Affluenza," the affliction cited by a psychologist to argue that a North Texas teenager from a wealthy family should not be sent to prison for killing four pedestrians while driving drunk, is not a recognised diagnosis and should not be used to justify bad behaviour, experts said on Thursday.
Prince Harry reaches South Pole
3:45pm Prince Harry has become the first member of Britain's royal family to reach the South Pole after a three-week charity trek with injured military veterans from Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia.
Long walk still ahead for new South Africa
NICK MILLER Despite the false steps, the corruption and the poverty Nelson Mandela left South Africans a legacy to be proud of.
Use of film subtitles in project PlanetRead helps more than 200 million Indians learn to read
Amrit Dhillon Ever wondered why your mind weirdly starts reading English subtitles on an English film, automatically, without your being able to stop it? The answer lies in neuroscience, of course, but this feature of the brain is the key to a literacy project that has benefited more than 200 million Indians.
Mandela memorial's 'fake interpreter' has long history of fraud and criminal charges: reports
NICK MILLER 2:29am The ‘fake interpreter’ for the deaf who caused a global scandal at Nelson Mandela’s memorial service has a history of lying and fraud, and has previously faced rape and murder charges according to local media reports.
James Bond was an alcoholic: medical study
1:22am "A dry martini. Just hand it to me, and I'll do the shaking myself."
Prince Harry reaches the South Pole
3:20am Prince Harry has become the first member of Britain's royal family to reach the South Pole after a three-week charity trek with injured military veterans from Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia.
One year on: Sandy Hook service remembers all victims of gun violence
Nick O'Malley, Washington Washington: One by one the family members rose to stand before the altar at the Washington National Cathedral and tell their stories of loss in a service of remembrance of all victims of gun violence in America, marking the first anniversary of the massacre in Newtown.
One year on: Sandy Hook service remembers all victims of gun violence
NICK O'MALLEY One by one the family members rose to stand before the altar at the Washington National Cathedral and tell their stories of loss in a service of remembrance for all victims of gun violence in America, marking the first anniversary of the massacre in Newtown.
War-crime execution sparks fresh violence in Bangladesh
BEN DOHERTY With the first execution of a prisoner convicted by Bangladesh’s controversial war crimes tribunal, the country has plunged back into violence, and elections scheduled for next month seem increasingly unlikely to go ahead.
Thaksin-phobic Bangkok may not have votes to topple Thai political dynasty
LINDSAY MURDOCH When protesters occupied key government buildings in Bangkok in November they scrawled graffiti that read in Thai: “Stupid crab bitch water buffalo face.”
Air travel
Pilots ordered to 'land blind' in smog to cut China's flight delays
China ordered the nation's commercial pilots to learn to "land blind" in smoggy conditions to help alleviate chronic flight delays.
Catalonia sets date for vote on independence from Spain
Fiona Govan Catalonia has announced it will hold a referendum on independence next year, setting the region on a collision course with the Spanish government.
China orders pilots to 'land blind' as smog delays flights
Jasmine Wang China ordered the nation's commercial pilots to learn to "land blind" in smoggy conditions to help alleviate chronic flight delays.
Indian govt vows 'swift action' to reverse gay sex ban
Christian Otton India's government says it will look at ways to swiftly reverse a shock ruling which reinstated a ban on gay sex, accusing the Supreme Court of dragging the country back to the 19th century.
