US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice put Iran on notice today that it cannot use a European diplomatic initiative to delay indefinitely accountability for a suspected nuclear weapons programme.

France is receiving information about the two French journalists held hostage in Iraq on a regular basis and, despite four months of captivity, they are in good health, Foreign Minister Michel Barnier said.

Comatose Yasser Arafat’s condition worsened today as Palestinian officials visited their critically ill leader, ignoring his wife’s angry objections.

BRITISH Prime Minister Tony Blair last night congratulated George Bush on his election victory and said he intended to maintain his strong relationship with the president in his second term.

French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier, in an interview published today, compared Iraq to a “black hole that is sucking up” the world and said France would at no time send in troops.