Iran has appealed for foreign help to deal with the aftermath of the deadly twin earthquakes that hit it last weekend after initially claiming it was not needed.

IRAN said Israel was behind the murder of one of its nuclear scientists, who was killed by a magnet bomb fixed to his car by a motorcyclist.

IRAQI authorities uncovered a mass grave with 900 corpses near the central city of Diwaniyah yesterday, believed to be Kurds killed during the rule of ousted dictator Saddam Hussein, an official said.