Other stories in brief.
Pressure mounts for Olmert to go
JERUSALEM - Israel's foreign minister deepened the uncertainty over prime minister Ehud Olmert's ability to survive a corruption scandal by saying their party had to prepare for a possible early election.
Mr Olmert has responded with a business-as-usual approach to a demand by defence minister Ehud Barak that he step aside.
But the comments by Mr Olmert's deputy, foreign minister Tzipi Livni, and other members of their Kadima party could increase pressure on the prime minister to go.
Ms Livni, Israel's chief negotiator with the Palestinians, said Kadima should "take decisions" and start preparing for "any scenario", including an early general election and an internal leadership vote. - (Reuters)
Bosnian-Croat kills six relatives
BOSNIA - A Bosnian-Croat man shot and killed six of his relatives in a village near the northern Bosnian town of Tuzla yesterday, gunning down three in their homes and three aboard a bus.
Local people identified the man as 45-year-old Tomislav Petrovic and said all the victims were related.
"The man has been arrested and an investigation is under way," said Tuzla police spokesman Izudin Saric, adding the victims were three men and three women. A bus driver shot in the early morning incident suffered a head wound and was in intensive care in hospital.
Four victims were members of the gunman's extended family, among them his uncle and aunt, neighbours and relatives said. The other two were more distant cousins.
- (Reuters)
'Discovery' set for launch
CAPE CANAVERAL - Nasa managers cleared space shuttle Discovery and a crew of seven for launch on Saturday to install Japan's research laboratory on to the International Space Station.
Lift-off is scheduled for 21:02 GMT from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The shuttle will be carrying a bus-sized lab module named Kibo, a Japanese word for hope. - (Reuters)
Court closes gay rights group
ISTANBUL - A court closed Istanbul's only gay rights association after a prosecutor said it broke public morality laws.
The prosecutor argued the association's aims broke the law for the protection of family and public morality, and a court ruled in favour of closing the association.
LambdaIstanbul, set up in 1993, will be the first gay rights association to be closed in the European Union candidate nation.
Homosexuality is legal in Turkey and central Istanbul has a thriving gay night scene, but there are no laws to protect gay men and lesbians from discrimination. - (Reuters)
Luxembourg ratifies treaty
LUXEMBOURG - The Luxembourg parliament ratified the Lisbon Treaty yesterday.
"This is a good treaty for Europe and it is a good treaty for Luxembourg," prime minister Jean-Claude Juncker said after parliament voted 47-1 in favour, with three abstentions. - (Reuters)
Dior pulls Sharon Stone adverts
BEIJING - Luxury retailer Christian Dior has pulled advertisements featuring Sharon Stone from stores across China after the actress suggested the country's earthquake was "bad karma" for Beijing's policies in Tibet.
"Due to some customer reaction we have decided to pull her image from all of the department stores and from all of China," Christian Dior China said. - (Reuters)