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A US federal judge in Miami, Florida handed down a 45-year jail sentence to Diego Montoya, aged 48, two months after he pleaded guilty to murder, drug trafficking and racketeering charges. At the proceedings, Montoya apologised for his past actions, saying he hoped his sentence would bring a measure of relief to victims and their families. "I am really repentant of my actions. I hope my sentence will bring some measure of peace to the victims and their families," he said. Montoya had been charged with heading the Norte Valle cartel, which ro

According to medical workers and witnesses, at least 20 people, including many civilians, have been killed in Somalia's capital of Mogadishu after one of the heaviest battles between Islamist militants and government forces in weeks. Ali Muse, the head of Mogadishu's ambulance services, said at least 58 other people were wounded. Other reports put the number of injured as high as 70. Witnesses say the shelling began on Thursday at the city's international airport, as President Sharif Shekh Ahmed was heading to Uganda for an African Union mee

India's ruling Congress Party-led alliance scored victories in elections held in three states to choose local governments. The results will boost the Congress Party, as it re-emerges as the country's major political force. The results from the elections, which were held last week, began to come in on Thursday. The party and its allies scored clear wins in two states: the western state of Maharashtra and the northeastern Arunachal Pradesh state. In the northern Haryana state, it emerged as the largest party, but failed to secure a majority. The

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates flew to Slovakia on Wednesday, to ask NATO defense ministers to help the United States respond to the request for more resources made by the US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal. Gates told reporters on his aircraft that he believed it makes sense to have these talks now, because he said the effort to stabilize and develop Afghanistan is a NATO mission, not just one for the US. "This is an alliance issue and my view all along has been we ought to do this in a way that if General Mc

A British soldier has been killed in Afghanistan, taking the number of British deaths there since 2001 to 222. He was a member of the Royal Military Police, and was killed while on foot patrol in the Helmand province, close to the Gereshk district in Southern Afghanistan. The cause of death has been reported to be an explosion, but the source is unclear. "It is my sad duty to confirm the death of a soldier, a Royal Military Policeman, in an explosion earlier today in Helmand Province," Lieutenant Colonel David Wakefield said of the incident.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has said one of its staff members has been kidnapped in Sudan's Darfur region. In a statement, the ICRC said that Gauthier Lefevre, a French national, was abducted Thursday near the town of Al Geneina in West Darfur. It added that Lefevre was traveling in one of two clearly marked Red Cross vehicles when unidentified kidnappers seized him around midday local time. The ICRC said the man "was returning with other ICRC staff to El-Geneina after completing a field trip north of the town to help

Suspected Somali pirates have hijacked the MV Al Khaliq, a Panama-flagged ship, off the eastern coast of Africa on Thursday. International maritime officials said the ship was seized about 330 kilometers west of the Seychelles islands. Officials reported that the ship is carrying 26 crew members — 24 Indians and two Burmese. The Al Khaliq is the fourth ship Somali pirates have hijacked this month, and the third in the past week. "The MV Al Khaliq, a Panamanian-flagged bulk carrier, has been hijacked early this morning off Somalia," said a

ITV have dropped images of the face of Big Ben from the title sequence of ITV’s News at Ten. ITN announced that the images were being removed as the show begins a revamp. The change comes as the company wants to engage with viewers who live outside of London where Big Ben is situated. The changes will be made on November 2 of this year. The bongs that come from the clock's bell will however remain as part of a new soundtrack. The ITV news returned in 2001 at the new time of 10:30 pm but was later changed back to its original timeslot of 10:

The murder rate in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico has become the highest in the world. There were an average of seven killings every day for the past twelve months in the city, which is currently in the midst of a clash between two powerful drug cartels. The majority of the 1,986 murders this year remain unsolved, and most involve drug gang members who have come from elsewhere to fight for control of the drug smuggling route into neighbouring El Paso, Texas, as well as the lucrative local trade in drugs. There is a jump of 815 murders from last year.

European Union (EU) Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel pledged million in aid to dairy farmers Monday, after weeks of protests. She said she would "empty her pockets", but that was as much as she could offer; "I don't have a special account in Switzerland or anywhere else," she commented at an EU farm conference in Luxembourg where farmers were holding their third protest in as many weeks. A recent demonstration in Belgium saw farmers dump three million litres (660,000 gallons) of milk on fields — and requests from 21 EU member sta

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has been sworn in for a second five-year term as president of Indonesia. During his election campaign he promised economic growth and political reform. Under his previous term he worked to remove corruption with the Corruption Eradication Commission. During yesterday morning's ceremonial swearing-in at the national assembly in Jakarta, broadcast throughout the country, he swore to uphold the constitution on the Qu'ran; Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world, with 234 million people, of which aro

Comments made about Olympics swimmer Rebecca Adlington on British television programme Mock the Week "breached guidelines", the BBC Trust has said. Scottish comedian Frankie Boyle, at the time a panelist on the satirical gameshow, made the comments about the swimmer. The episode the comments featured on was originally broadcast in August 2008 on BBC Two. The episode caused a total of 75 complaints to be made to the BBC. The producer then apologised four months later, saying, "[t]he ribbing may have gone a tad too far on this occasion." No