Australia’s Parliament today lifted a ban on cloning human embryos for stem cell research despite opposition from the prime minister and other party leaders.

Scores more foreign soldiers today landed in East Timor to bolster a force struggling to stop mob violence in the capital.

Hundreds of UN employees were evacuated from East Timor today as rival gangs roamed the streets, torching homes and battling with machetes in defiance of foreign peacekeepers sent to quell violence that has plunged the fledgling country into chaos.

Australian troops won’t be drawn into the conflict in East Timor as they attempt to restore peace and stability to the troubled island nation, the country’s defence chief said today.