Venezuela's former Defence Minister Raul Isaias Baduel, a long-time ally of President Hugo Chavez, said he is planning a campaign to urge citizens to vote against the government's proposed review of the constitution which he described as a coup.

Members of the United States Congress accused Yahoo of lying about its co-operation with the Chinese Government in an incident that led to a dissident's imprisonment, according to The Washington Post.

Chilean officials confirmed this week in Santiago the attendance of Hugo Chavez, Evo Morales, and Daniel Ortega at this week's Summit of Friendship and Integration of Latin American Peoples, also known as the People's Summit.

Interpol rejected Wednesday a request by the government of Iran to drop arrest warrants against six leading Iranians, wanted by Argentina for their alleged role in a 1994 bombing that killed 85 people and left hundreds injured.

Uruguayan president Tabare Vazquez said that the Botnia pulp mill will be authorized to begin production next week, no matter what happens in the coming Ibero-American summit in Chile. The Finnish built plant is at the heart of an acrimonious dispute between Uruguay and Argentina.

The Roman Catholic bishop Fernando Lugo who is running for Paraguay's presidency and leading in the opinion polls, has polarized the Church with some backing him as a force for change and others saying he violated age-old doctrine.

Brazil plans a major increase of the armed forces budget and a long term boost to the local defense industry and military technology which includes the purchase of 36 fighter jets worth 2.2 billion US dollars revealed the Brazilian press over the weekend.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he has repeatedly offered his good offices to address the Malvinas/Falklands issue, but there must be an understanding between the countries involved, and that has not happened.

TWO hundred and fifty British Falklands War veterans landed at Mount Pleasant Airport at 9am this morning. The group visit under the auspices of the charity the South Atlantic Medal Association (82).

A former army general who once took on the insurgency in Guatemala's long civil war lost his battle for the country's presidency on Sunday night, with voters rejecting his plan to use an iron fist, as well as the country's military, to control a sky-high murder rate.