A woman in her 60s has died following a collision involving her bicycle and a tractor yesterday afternoon in Co Cork.

A woman in her 60s has died following a collision involving her bicycle and a tractor yesterday afternoon in Co Cork.

The victims of yesterday’s tragic crashes which claimed five lives, have been named.

Most US administrations have had an aide who deemed himself crucial to the president. Steve Bannon was Donald Trump’s, until he had his wings clipped says Elizabeth Drew

The UK will pay its final respects to Margaret Thatcher today as friends and foes continue to row over her legacy.

The two people that know Rory McIlroy best, long-time coach Michael Bannon and Dave Stockton feel the 23-year-old is in flying form ahead of next month’s Masters.

Hillary Clinton’s long and storied career will be extended by her adaptability, says Yuriko Koike

The US vice president Joe Biden has begun talks at the White House with the country’s top gun lobby, which has fiercely opposed any suggestion of new gun controls.

Germany’s Martin Kaymer set about silencing any lingering Ryder Cup critics with a timely return to form on day two of the BMW Italian Open in Turin.

President Barack Obama sternly proclaimed ratification of the US-Russia nuclear arms treaty “a national security imperative” today.

A WOMAN branded “Britain’s most disgusting person” walked out of court yesterday before she could be sentenced for urinating on a cenotaph.

Alex Bogdanovic battled for almost two hours but he could not avoid defeat against Agustin Calleri who gave Argentina a 2-0 lead against Great Britain in the Davis Cup World Group first-round tie.

The BP executive in charge of the Texas City refinery hit by a fatal blast two years ago is to step down at the end of August, the oil giant said today.

Robert Zoellick, a nimble negotiator who has criss-crossed the globe as President George Bush’s trade chief and as the number two US diplomat, is the White House’s choice for the next World Bank presidency.

Oil major BP today announced the appointment of a watchdog to monitor safety improvements at its five US refineries.

Safety failures at all levels of the BP business were to blame for the Texas City refinery explosion which killed 15 people, a new report said today.

Board directors of oil giant BP knew about the link between spending cuts and poor maintenance at its Texas City oil refinery a year and a half before the fatal accident which killed 15 workers, it was reported today.

BP was accused of failing to ensure the safety at its refineries in the United States today in a devastating blow to the oil giant’s reputation.

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has proposed closed-door talks with Israel on some of the Middle East’s most difficult disputes, including the status of Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees.

Australia would not expand its forces to combine its troops with Iraqi forces as part of a withdrawal strategy in Iraq, the country's prime minister John Howard said today.

US President George Bush is meeting British Prime Minister Tony Blair today as the American leader faces urgent pressure to find a fresh strategy in Iraq following a scathing bi-partisan commission report that says his war policies have failed and “time is running out”.

The United States faces a “grave and deteriorating” situation after nearly four years of war in Iraq, a high-level commission warned bluntly today, prodding President George Bush to launch a diplomatic offensive to stabilise the country and allow withdrawal of most combat troops by early 2008.

A long-awaited study expected to call for a US change of course in Iraq is intensifying pressure on President George Bush to find a way out of a war that has lost favour with the American public.

President George Bush said he wanted to hear all advice before making decisions about changes in Iraq strategy, even as it was disclosed that Donald Rumsfeld had called for major changes in tactics two days before he resigned as defence secretary.

A cross-party commission, under pressure to offer a US exit strategy for Iraq, has reached a consensus and will announce its recommendations – reported to be a gradual pullback – next week, the group’s co-chairman said.

US President George Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki will discuss a speedier hand-over of security control to Iraqi forces as a prelude to the start of a US withdrawal when they meet in Amman, Jordan, later this week, top Iraqi government officials said today.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said today that Iraq is close to civil war as the Bush administration stepped up diplomatic efforts to stabilise the violent country.

US President George Bush traded ideas on Iraq with a bipartisan commission and promised to work with the incoming Democratic majority toward “common objectives”.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair will give evidence next week to a US task force looking at future policy in Iraq, Downing Street confirmed today.

GEORGE W BUSH’S sudden selection of former CIA Director Robert Gates as US defence secretary brings back a member of the team that waged the successful first Gulf War with just two years to resuscitate the faltering US policy in Iraq.

BRITAIN’S defence chiefs have banned a broadcaster from “embedding” its reporters with troops in combat zones in a row over its coverage of the medical treatment of troops.

WITH the White House bracing for guerrilla warfare on the home front politically if Republicans lose control of Congress, President George W Bush is seeking to shift the debate away from Iraq and scandal and boost his reputation for economic competence.

Awaiting the recommendations of a commission exploring US options in Iraq, the White House today emphatically ruled out some proposals to end the long and unpopular war.

Oil giant BP today defended its safety record at the end of a year that senior executives described as challenging and of mixed fortunes.

THE campaign teams of US President George Bush and Democratic challenger Senator John Kerry have tentatively agreed to three face-to-face debates, it was reported yesterday.

WHAT was the secret of Ronald Reagan’s success? Was it his timing and theatricality? His charisma? His optimism? His circle of advisers? Or was it that, time after time, people underestimated him?

A HUGE explosion destroyed the offices of a major Shi’ite party yesterday as it was revealed that US administrator Paul Bremer escaped a rebel ambush on his convoy two weeks ago.

US special envoy James Baker arrived in Paris today, kicking off a European mission to win support for Iraq’s reconstruction from some of the staunchest opponents to the US-led Iraq war.

By Noel Whelan IN 1997 the former British Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd, now Lord Hurd, made a series of TV documentaries for the BBC called 'The Search for Peace.'

Thousands of papers from the administration of Ronald Reagan have been made public.