Bad day at the office? At least you weren't driving the armoured truck whose doors flew open, sending thousands of crisp dollar bills billowing down a US highway.

RACY WRITER

The remains of two British hostages handed to authorities in Iraq were identified by forensics today, UK government sources said.

The US military believes that five British security guards kidnapped in May in Baghdad are still alive, the No 2 American commander in Iraq said today.

Hundreds of Iraqi and US troops cordoned off sections of Baghdad’s Sadr City slum early today for a series of raids in an effort to find five Britons abducted from a nearby government building.