A Zimbabwe cargo plane crashed as it took off from Shanghai's main airport yesterday, killing three American crew members and injuring four other employees after it veered off the runway and burst into flames. More than 30 international flights were delayed, leaving about 4,000 travellers stranded on planes or in airport lounges, Xinhua said. CCTV said two runways at the airport were shut down.
Israeli settlement freeze dismissed
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas dismissed an Israeli plan to halt new construction of West Bank settlements as insufficient, saying it would not be enough to restart peace talks.
The Palestinian president said during his first visit to Venezuela that "we can't accept the current Israeli government's concept for the negotiations".
Mr Abbas said Wednesday's announcement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of a 10-month halt to new construction in West Bank Jewish settlements "didn't bring anything new" because building would continue in east Jerusalem and in the West Bank.
Bison return
Bison have returned to Mexico for the first time since the 1800s, with authorities releasing 23 donated US animals in northern Chihuahua state.
Parts of northern Mexico once constituted the southern range for huge herds of the roaming bison before they were killed off.
Environment secretary Juan Elvira Quesada said the movement and grazing of the bison could help regenerate natural grasses and grassland species in Chihuahua's El Uno nature reserve.
Bank chiefs banned from travelling
A Venezuelan court has barred 16 bank executives from leaving the country after a scandal that led the government to take over management of four banks.
Prosecutors say those banned from travelling include six directors of Banco ProVivienda (BanPro), eight of Banco Confederado, and two of Bolivar Banco. The ex-president of Banco Canarias, Alvaro Gorrin, has also been questioned.
The government intervened in the four banks a couple of weeks ago. Major shareholder Ricardo Fernandez and his lawyer Jose Camacho have been arrested on charges of misappropriating deposits and providing loans to other businesses in which they were investors.
Air tragedy remembered
About 70 people stood in silence in the Antarctic snow to remember 257 people who perished 30 years earlier when a plane smashed into a mountain in New Zealand's worst air disaster.
After a commemorative service at New Zealand's Scott Base science station on the northern Antarctic coast, the group, which included victims' relatives, held a short vigil to mark the moment the crash occurred.
New spy satellite
Japan has launched its fifth spy satellite in a bid to boost its ability to independently gather intelligence.
The domestically-developed H-2A rocket carrying the £338 million satellite lifted off from a space centre on the southern island of Tanegashima. Japan launched its first pair of spy satellites in 2003, prompted by concerns over North Korea's missile programme.
Panda parry
Two giant pandas from China were welcomed to Australia with gifts of bamboo and a city party before settling in to their new home, a 25-acre natural enclosure at Adelaide Zoo. Four-year-old male Wang Wang and three-year-old female Fu Ni are on loan to the zoo for 10 years as part of a joint research programme.
Twelve life-size panda figures lined the runway at Adelaide airport, where the animals' flight was met by state premier Mike Rann and other officials holding a "welcome" sign and branches of bamboo.
Diamond gun gang
Mexican soldiers captured six suspected drug gang members with a collection of weapons that included a .50-calibre rifle and a diamond-encrusted pistol.
The suspects are believed to have worked for drug trafficker Raydel Lopez Uriarte, nicknamed Muletas, or 'Crutches'.
General Alfonso Duarte Mujica said the suspects might have been involved in an attack on soldiers in October, when gunmen fired on an army raid that netted vehicles disguised with military-style paint.