World highlights

• President Viktor Yushchenko told Ukraine's prime minister his decision to dissolve parliament was final and warned his long-time rival against resorting to force. The pro-Western Yushchenko has been at odds with Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich since reluctantly appointing his Moscow-friendly rival last August, nearly two years after being swept to power by the "Orange Revolution" protests.

• The 2007 Atlantic hurricane season will be far more active than usual with nine hurricanes, and the United States has an above-average chance of being hit by a major storm, a closely watched forecasting team said. In an updated outlook, the Colorado State University forecasters led by pioneer researcher William Gray said the June 1-November 30 season will produce 17 tropical storms. Of the nine hurricanes forecast, five will be major ones of Category 3 or higher with winds over 177 kph.

• More than 2,000 lawyers and flag-waving opposition supporters rallied outside the Supreme Court in the Pakistani capital in support of the country's suspended top judge who appealed for a public hearing. The government's move to sack Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry on March 9 outraged the legal community, which sees it as an attack on the independence of the judiciary, and galvanised political opposition to President Pervez Musharraf.

• The US, Europe and African countries pushed for peace in Somalia after heavy fighting in Mogadishu killed hundreds and the rest of the country struggled with an influx of 100,000 refugees. Diplomats from an International Contact Group on Somalia met into the evening in Cairo to discuss how to stop the fighting aid agencies say was the bloodiest in Mogadishu in 15 years.