ON the eighth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq the lessons of two disastrous wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have not been learned.

WESTERN forces pounded Libya’s air defences and patrolled its skies yesterday, but their intervention hit a serious diplomatic setback as the head of the Arab League condemned the “bombardment of civilians”.

RESULTS from an initial air sampling after North Korea’s announced nuclear test showed no evidence of radioactive particles that would be expected from a successful nuclear detonation, a US government intelligence official said last night.

The top United States weapons inspector in Iraq is stepping down, it was announced the evening.

PERHAPS the only way was down after Ireland’s landslide win in the UN Security Council elections which caused gasps of disbelief in at the organisation’s New York headquarters in October, 2000.