A 3,000-year-old wooden sarcophagus confiscated at Miami airport after being shipped from Barcelona has been returned to Egypt.

The brightly painted sarcophagus dates back to the 21st Dynasty, which lasted from 1070 BC to 945 BC, and Egypt's Culture Ministry said it belonged to a noble called Imesy.

Customs officials at Miami airport seized the coffin in October 2008 from a shipment from Spain after the importer could not present proper documentation to prove ownership.

9/11 heart issues

Law enforcement officers who worked near Ground Zero after the World Trade Centre attacks seem to show early signs of heart problems at a higher rate than would be expected for their age, a new study suggests.

Nearly half of about 1,200 law enforcement workers who went to Mount Sinai Medical Centre's programme in New York to monitor medical effects from the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack showed some impaired heart function on ultrasound tests.

"This is the first study to suggest a potential link between exposure to Ground Zero and early pre-clinical heart abnormalities," said Dr Lori Croft, who led the work. Inhaling dust particles that can cause lung and heart disease may be to blame, she said.

Henry Kissinger in hospital

Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger is recovering after being taken to hospital in the South Korean capital with stomach pains, a hospital official said.

Severance Hospital spokesman Lee Sung-man said Mr Kissinger would be released today.

He did not give any further details.

The 86-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate arrived in Seoul earlier in the week to attend a security forum. He also met with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak.

Jerusalem clash

Several dozen Palestinian women scuffled with Israeli troops on the outskirts of Jerusalem amid rising religious and political tensions in the disputed city.

The confrontation erupted at the Qalandiya crossing between the West Bank and Jerusalem when the women chanted 'Jerusalem is Arab, our eternal capital' and briefly planted a Palestinian flag on one of the crossing's metal gates and tried to push through it.

Israeli troops scuffled with the women and dispersed them with tear gas. At one point, a firebomb hit a military jeep and soldiers rushed to extinguish the fire.

Flood deaths arise

The death toll from a massive flood that devastated a village in southern Kazakhstan has soared to 35, the country's president said.

A privately owned dam at a reservoir in the eastern Almaty region neighbouring China ruptured on Thursday evening, unleashing torrents almost 2 metres high and completely destroying Kyzyl-Agash, a village of 3,000 people.

President Nursultan Nazar-bayev said at a government meeting that the owner of the dam could face prosecution for failing to take adequate safety measures in preparation for the spring floods.

Woman killed by truck driven into home in California

A woman has died after a truck driven into her home pinned her against the kitchen stove.

Police in San Bernadino, California, said 45-year-old Glynna Rose Folkens was standing in her kitchen on Thursday night when a truck barrelled through a brick wall in the back of her home and pinned her, causing massive leg injuries.

Police officer Daniel Hesser said the driver, 19-year-old Christopher Segura, ran through a stop sign, breached a cinder block wall and crashed through the back of the house.

Segura was taken to hospital but his condition was not known. It was not clear whether he would face any charges.