World highlights

¤ The trial of Saddam Hussein was delayed again yesterday, with judges apparently divided after a series of setbacks that defence lawyers said proved political interference with the US-sponsored Iraqi court.

¤ The African Union yesterday chose Congo Republic as a compromise to chair the organisation after opposition to Sudan because of fears its human rights record could hurt the continent's credibility.

¤ Bombs ripped through a bank and government building in the southern Iranian oil city of Ahvaz yesterday, killing eight people in a region that has seen intermittent bombings and rioting since April.

¤ Police combed a wreckage-strewn ravine yesterday for passengers still missing from Montenegro's worst train accident, which killed 44 people when packed carriages plunged into a river gorge.

¤ Global unemployment hit a record high of 192 million last year, despite a buoyant economy, with young people making up nearly 50 per cent of the jobless, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) said yesterday.

¤ Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi came under fire yesterday after the arrest of a brash young Internet CEO who shook up corporate Japan and ran for parliament with ruling party backing as a poster boy for reform.

¤ Turkey proposed a revival of Cyprus reunification talks under UN auspices yesterday in an attempt to regain the initiative over a thorny diplomatic issue which threatens Ankara's bid to join the European Union.