• Iraqi and US forces clashed with Shi'ite militia loyal to radical cleric Moqtada al -Sadr in a major operation launched at dawn aimed at returning the volatile city of Diwaniya to government control. In Ramadi, west of Baghdad, a chlorine truck bomb killed at least five people in the latest in a string of attacks involving the poisonous chemical, Iraqi police officers said.

• Afghan President Hamid Karzai has spoken directly with Taliban insurgents about bringing peace to the country, he admitted for the first time. His comments came hours after a suicide bomber killed at least six people near the country's parliament in Kabul on a normally quiet Muslim sabbath.

• Greek rescuers searched for two French tourists missing after the evacuation of a cruise ship which ran aground off the Aegean island of Santorini before sinking. A 45-year-old Frenchman and his 16-year-old daughter were missing. His wife and son were among 1,151 passengers safely evacuated from the Greek-registered Sea Diamond.

• The US has found a way to transfer frozen funds to North Korea and US negotiator Chris Hill will leave for the region tomorrow to refocus attention on denuclearisation, the State Department said. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the US supported the release of the entire $25 million in funds held at Banco Delta Asia in Macau.

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