Noriega extradition approved

US secretary of state Hillary Clinton has approved the extradition of former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega to France, an official said tonight.

The official said Mrs Clinton signed a so-called "surrender warrant" for Noriega today after a judge in Miami, Florida, lifted a stay blocking the extradition last week.

Noriega, who faces money-laundering charges in France, was ousted as Panama's leader and put on trial after a 1989 US invasion that drove him from power.

He was convicted of drug racketeering and related charges in 1992. His sentence ended in 2007, but Noriega has remained in prison.