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	Sunday, 17 February, 2008, 5:00 GMT 10:00 +05:00:Asia/Calcutta

In pictures President George W Bush kicks off his five-nation tour of Africa		Media spotlight Why is Los Angeles so obsessed with troubled singer Britney Spears?

TOP STORIES
	Kosovo gears up for independence Jubilant Kosovo Albanians pour onto the streets ahead of an expected declaration of independence.
	Paedophile check trials launched Parents will be able to check if people have child sex convictions under trials of a new policy.
	PM backs Scottish powers review Prime Minister Gordon Brown backs a review of the powers of the Scottish parliament, including taxation policy.
	Call for calm after Pakistan bomb The leader of Pakistan's main opposition party urges calm after a bomb kills 37 at a rally ahead of polls on Monday.
	Search for hospital escape rapist A search is continuing for a rapist who escaped from a London hospital for the second time in three years.

WORLD
	Kosovo gears up for independence Jubilant Kosovo Albanians pour onto the streets ahead of an expected declaration of independence.
	Call for calm after Pakistan bomb The leader of Pakistan's main opposition party urges calm after a bomb kills 37 at a rally ahead of polls on Monday.
	The Elite Squad wins Golden Bear Brazilian movie The Elite Squad wins at the Berlin Film Festival, while Britain's Sally Hawkins is best actress.

AFRICA
	Bush to address African conflicts US President George W Bush is due to hold talks in Tanzania with Darfur and Kenya on the agenda.
	Cyclone bears down on Madagascar People in Madagascar are braced for a tropical cyclone which is expected to make landfall in the north-east.
	UN troops 'trapped' in Eritrea The UN condemns Eritrea, saying its peacekeepers are being prevented from leaving the country.

AMERICAS
	Bush to address African conflicts US President George W Bush is due to hold talks in Tanzania with Darfur and Kenya on the agenda.
	Canada sends ex-SS guard to Italy A former Nazi prison guard, 83, arrives in Italy from Canada to serve a life sentence for murder.
	US wheelchair-dump deputy charged A US sheriff's deputy who dumped a quadriplegic man out of his wheelchair to search him is charged.

ASIA-PACIFIC
	Malaysian police break up protest Malaysian police make several arrests after using tear gas and water cannon to break up a protest by ethnic Indians.
	Australia pledges E Timor support Australia vows to help safeguard democracy in East Timor after attacks on the president and prime minister.
	Beijing athletes allowed to blog The International Olympic Committee gives the green light to blogging by athletes at the Beijing games.

EUROPE
	Kosovo gears up for independence Jubilant Kosovo Albanians pour onto the streets ahead of an expected declaration of independence.
	Danish MPs refuse cartoon apology Danish MPs cancel a trip to Iran after Tehran demands they apologise for the Muhammad cartoon row.
	Nazi-era singer returns to stage A 104-year-old Dutch cabaret singer who once performed for the Nazis gives a concert for the first time in decades.

MIDDLE EAST
	UN hints at Iraq refugee returns A top UN official hints that security may improve enough soon for 4m displaced Iraqis to begin returning.
	Army intervenes in Beirut clashes The Lebanese army intervenes to break up clashes between rival political factions in Beirut.
	Iranians urge Dutch to ban film The Iranian government calls on the Dutch to stop the screening of a film about the Koran.

SOUTH ASIA
	Call for calm after Pakistan bomb The leader of Pakistan's main opposition party urges calm after a bomb kills 37 at a rally ahead of polls on Monday.
	Indian Maoists kill 14 in Orissa Maoist rebels attack police stations in the eastern Indian state of Orissa, killing 13 officers and a civilian.
	India-Pakistan flights to double Pakistan and India agree to double the number of weekly passenger flights between the two countries.

UK
	Paedophile check trials launched Parents will be able to check if people have child sex convictions under trials of a new policy.
	PM backs Scottish powers review Prime Minister Gordon Brown backs a review of the powers of the Scottish parliament, including taxation policy.
	Fire at Grand Hotel in Brighton Hundreds of guests are evacuated from the Grand Hotel in Brighton following a fire in a sixth-floor room.

ENGLAND
	Fire at Grand Hotel in Brighton Hundreds of guests are evacuated from the Grand Hotel in Brighton following a fire in a sixth-floor room.
	'Super surgery' plans condemned Doctors and patients groups have criticised plans to set up health centres known as "polyclinics" across England.
	Search for hospital escape rapist A search is continuing for a rapist who escaped from a London hospital for the second time in three years.

NORTHERN IRELAND
	Minister may hold C. diff inquiry Health Minister Michael McGimpsey says he is ready to hold a public inquiry into the C. diff outbreak.
	Dublin flights disruption warning There will be no overnight air traffic services at Dublin Airport, the Irish Aviation Authority says.
	Man charged over street killing A 19-year-old man has been charged in connection with the death of a man outside a nightclub in Belfast.

SCOTLAND
	TV poll backs Berwick border move According to a television poll, 60% of people in Berwick-upon-Tweed want the town to become part of Scotland.
	Hospital parking cap introduced The maximum charge of £3 for car parking has been introduced to hospital sites in the Glasgow area.
	City's main bridge to be lit up Work is to begin on a £167,000 project to fit colour-changing lighting to a river crossing.

WALES
	Police probing deaths of cousins Police say the deaths of two cousins from Bridgend are not linked to 14 apparent suicides in the area.
	Expose 'nasty' Tories says Harman The deputy Labour leader says May's council elections give the party a chance to expose David Cameron.
	UK soldiers on standby for Kosovo The UK is placing 600 troops on standby to deploy to Kosovo as a quick reaction force in the event of violence

POLITICS
	PM backs Scottish powers review Prime Minister Gordon Brown backs a review of the powers of the Scottish parliament, including taxation policy.
	'Super surgery' plans condemned Doctors and patients groups have criticised plans to set up health centres known as "polyclinics" across England.
	Conway stripped of MP panel seat Derek Conway loses his £13,000 a year seat on a panel of senior MPs following his suspension from the Commons.

BUSINESS
	Green watchdog urges store reform An over-arching policy for supermarkets is needed to tackle obesity, waste and climate change, a report says.
	BA and Virgin to pay out refunds British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are to pay out refunds on fuel surcharges paid between 2004 to 2006.
	Northern Rock revises rescue bid The board of Northern Rock, leading an in-house bid to rescue the bank, submits a revised proposal.

ENTERTAINMENT
	The Elite Squad wins Golden Bear Brazilian movie The Elite Squad wins at the Berlin Film Festival, while Britain's Sally Hawkins is best actress.
	TV star held over binman threats An actor from the Red Dwarf television show is arrested over claims he threatened a binman with a knife.
	Actor Carty collapses during play Former EastEnders actor Todd Carty is recovering in hospital after collapsing on stage during a performance.

SCIENCE/NATURE
	Warming risks Antarctic sea life Sharks will migrate into Antarctic waters if warming continues, threatening marine animals, scientists warn.
	Gecko 'begs' insect for honeydew A bizarre relationship between a gecko and a sap-sucking insect is caught on camera for the first time.
	Early Mars 'too salty' for life The quest to find traces of life on Mars looks gloomy after Nasa says the Red Planet was 'too salty'.

TECHNOLOGY
	Machines 'to match man by 2029' Machines will achieve human level artificial intelligence by 2029, a leading US inventor predicts.
	Net firms reject monitoring role Net providers in the UK are resisting calls for them to police what customers do online.
	Text scams warning to youngsters The Office of Fair Trading sends thousands of text messages to 18 to 24-year-olds warning them about scams

HEALTH
	Spinal injury regeneration hope Scientists believe they are close to a significant breakthrough in the treatment of spinal injuries.
	'Super surgery' plans condemned Doctors and patients groups have criticised plans to set up health centres known as "polyclinics" across England.
	Stress may hit cancer virus fight A stressful life may make it tougher to fight the virus which causes most cervical cancer cases, say scientists.

EDUCATION
	Language GCSEs 'could drop orals' GCSE language pupils could no longer be required to take oral tests because they are "too stressful", a report says.
	Lesson one: no Orwellian language Mike Baker looks at how the language of management has begun to dominate discussions of education.
	Pilot progress tests made easier The basis of new 'single level' pupil progress tests is changed, to more closely resemble Sats.

SPECIAL COVERAGE

Shark attack Warming may allow predators to devastate Antarctic species		Voters, boycotters Pakistanis on their hopes and fears before the election

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