International

• Monday, May 19th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  FARC Colombia leader rebel urges others to surrender

  A day after surrendering to the army, a one-eyed, battle-hardened female rebel commander urged other guerrillas Monday to follow her example and abandon their decades-long struggle

• Sunday, May 18th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Uruguayan players miss out on Champions League

  Uruguayan International players Luis Suarez and Bruno Silva have expressed their disappointment at missing out on the opportunity to play in next season's Champions League as their team Ajax of Amsterdam surprisingly missed out after a series of play-off games.

• Saturday, May 17th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Saudis reject oil production increase request from Bush

  Saudi Arabia rejected on Friday an appeal by visiting US President George W Bush to raise oil production reported a US official. Saudi officials said they were already meeting demand, and had increased production by 300,000 barrels per day earlier this month.

• Saturday, May 17th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Chinese investor eyeing 9% stake in BHP Billiton

  Shares in mining giant BHP Billiton have jumped on fresh speculation a Chinese investor is eyeing up a 9% stake in the company. The Australian press reported that “Chinese interests” have approached an Australian investment fund to help buy into the world's biggest miner.

• Friday, May 16th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  “Worst of financial turbulence is over”, but hangover persists

  

  The worst of the global financial turbulence is over, but the effects on the world economy will be felt for some time, the head of the International Monetary Fund said Thursday in Brussels before a European Parliament committee.

• Thursday, May 15th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  International airport next to Torres del Paine Park

  A blue print to turn Puerto Natales airfield in the extreme south of Chile into an international airport was announced this week by the regional government.

• Thursday, May 15th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  WTO optimistic about Doha accord before 2008 is over

  

  World Trade Organisation director general Pascal Lamy said it is still possible that trade ministers could meet this month to work out the outlines of an agreement in the Doha Round of world trade talks.

• Thursday, May 15th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Colonialism has no place in today's world, says UN

  Although decolonization has been one of the United Nations' great success stories, the fact that 16 non-self-governing Territories remains means that the task has yet to be completed, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said this week.

• Thursday, May 15th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  Barclays announces £1 billion write down and lower profits

  

  Britain's Barclays has taken a further one billion sterling write-down on assets and confirmed profits for the first quarter of 2008 will be lower than last year. Last month, the bank warned that tough trading in its investment bank division Barclays Capital during March would cut group profits for the quarter.

• Thursday, May 15th 2008 - 21:00 UTC

  US lists polar bears as threatened species, with a loophole

  The United States has listed the polar bear as a threatened species, because its Arctic sea ice habitat is melting due to climate change. US government scientists predict that two-thirds of the polar bear population of 25,000 could disappear by 2050. However, the government stressed the listing would not lead to measures to prevent global warming.