Two men have been arrested by French police for selling cigarette lighters carrying pictures of Osama bin Laden next to the World Trade Centre.

Securicor repeated its assertion that its US arm Argenbright carried out its airport screening responsibilities "properly and in accordance with its contractual and regulatory duties" on the day of the Sept 11 attacks.

Leading blue chips closed just off their session highs, as investors took heart from Wall Street's advance ahead of the first anniversary of the Sept 11 attacks, albeit in thin volumes as investors kept to the sidelines, dealers said.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair, on a visit to the US for talks with President George W Bush, today warned that ``the policy of inaction'' with regard to Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction was "not something we can responsibly adhere to''.

The German government is ready to provide up to €10bn to provide coverage against terrorism risks in the planned joint venture between private insurance companies and the state, the finance ministry said.

A man has been arrested in Hamburg in Germany with alleged direct links to the September 11 attacks in the US.

It has been reported Osama Bin Laden has admitted for the first time that his al-Qaida network carried out the September 11 attacks.

France and Britain are drafting a United Nations Security Council resolution to hasten the process of setting up a government to replace the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, French president Jacques Chirac said.

The IMF says it's likely the US will enter a recession following the US terror attacks.