¤ Germany's new chancellor, Angela Merkel, told France it remained a key ally at the start of a lightning tour intended to reassure her European Union partners she plans no major foreign policy changes.
Ms Merkel has said she wants better ties with the United States but sent a clear signal to the rest of the EU by deciding to visit Paris and then Brussels on her first full day as Germany's leader. She plans to visit EU president Britain on Thursday.
¤ Iran expects its nuclear talks with the European Union, which broke down in August, to resume after this week's board meeting of the UN's nuclear watchdog, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said.
"The atmosphere exists for such negotiations to be held after the Vienna meeting" of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mr Mottaki told a news conference.
¤ A new Vatican document on homosexuality in the Catholic priesthood touched off a storm of criticism from those who say the Church is using gays as scapegoats for its sexual abuse scandals.
The document, which says the Church can admit those who have clearly overcome homosexual tendencies for at least three years, is due to be released officially next week.
¤ China said that a woman farmer had died of bird flu, its second confirmed fatality from the virus that is spreading across Asia.
The H5N1 virus had already killed at least 67 people in Asia since 2003. It remains hard for people to catch but there are fears it could mutate into a form which can be passed from person to person, sparking a pandemic in which millions could die.
¤ Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki fired all the ministers and assistant ministers in his government after a stinging defeat in a referendum to replace the east African nation's constitution.
"I have sacked all ministers and assistant ministers with immediate effect. I will announce a new government line-up before the end of two weeks," Mr Kibaki said in a televised address.
¤ A leading human rights watchdog gave European governments three months to reveal anything they know about illegal jailing of terrorist suspects or secret flights carrying them across the continent.
The Council of Europe, invoking rarely used legal powers, said it had written to its 45 member states and given them until February 21 next year to provide the requested information.
¤ Liberia's former Finance Minister Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf became the first woman to be elected head of state of an African country when she was declared the winner of a presidential run-off.
Liberia's electoral commission said official results from the November 8 run-off showed the Harvard-trained World Bank economist beat soccer millionaire George Weah by winning 59.4 per cent of the valid votes, compared to Mr Weah's 40.6 per cent.