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Tensions between North Korea and the United States have escalated after the the United States Navy began tracking a North Korean ship suspected of carrying illegal weapons or technology. Media reports from Japan also claim that the North may launch a long range missile toward the U.S. state of Hawaii in July. The North Korean flagship, the Kang Nam, is currently in the Pacific Ocean and is reported to be heading toward Singapore. North Korea has warned that any effort to stop its ships would be considered an act of war. The U.S. started track

According to Cyrus News Agency (CNA) in Iran, at least 16 members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly attempting to join the "people's movement." Protests, riots and violence broke out in several cities in Iran on Saturday night following an election which many in Iran and the world say was fraudulent. "These commanders have been in contact with members of the Iranian army to join the people's movement. Three of the commanders are veterans of Iran-Iraq war. They have been moved to an undisclosed location i

The first deaths from swine flu in Argentina have been reported. To-date there have been a total of four deaths tied to the disease. The first was a baby girl aged three months. According to a report from the government's health ministry, she died in a Buenos Aires hospital, having been there since earlier in June. The Argentinian health ministry announced an additional 89 cases confirmed on Monday, bringing the total in the country to 733. As winter begins in the southern hemisphere, health officials believe that the virus will spread in the

A new television advert for Diet Coke featuring singer Duffy has been cleared by the Advertising Standards Authority in the United Kingdom after they received twenty two complaints. The advert depicts Duffy cycling through a supermarket during a concert she was performing in. Eighteen viewers complained because she was not wearing reflective clothing and her bicycle had no lights. Four other viewers complained because they believed children could copy her actions. ASA upheld Coca Cola's argument that the ad was supposed to reflect Duffy's f

Kathmandu, the capital of the Asian country of Nepal, has been shut down after former Maoist rebels called a strike to protest to the alleged killing of one of their leaders. Businesses, schools, and factories closed down on Monday, when members of the Young Communist League (YCL) entered city intersections to enforce the strike. Vehicles of drivers who have defied the strike have been torched and vandalised. The protests and strikes come several days after local Maoist leader Rajendra Phuyal was found dead in the country's capital on June 11

An Oklahoma police officer is on paid administrative leave, following an altercation with ambulance personnel while they were transporting a patient to the hospital. Trooper Daniel Martin, a member of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP), was caught on video by his police vehicle's dashboard-camera in a physical struggle with paramedic Maurice White, Jr. after Martin pulled the ambulance over. Martin had previously passed the ambulance while en route to another call, but came back and pulled over the ambulance. The incident occurred on May 24, and

The Guardian Council of Iran has announced it is willing to recount contentious votes from Friday's presidential elections. Iran's top legislative body has said votes would be recounted in regions where other losing candidates contest the results, but the Council says they have no plans to annul the election. Candidates opposing the current president elect, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, made the official request for a recount saying they believe thousands of ballots went missing. There will be a 10 day waiting period while the council reviews the elec

According to a recent study, almost every kind of animal on Earth engages in same-sex sexual behavior whether intentional or natural. Lead scientist on the study, Nathan Bailey, says the list includes, among others, dolphins, penguins, frogs and birds. "It's clear that same-sex sexual behavior extends far beyond the well-known examples that dominate both the scientific and popular literature," said Bailey, a postdoctoral researcher of biology at University of California, Riverside. The study was published in today's edition of the journal Tre

Today, the Yemeni embassy in the United States announced that Yemeni troops and air support had been dispatched to search for six missing hostages, after three bodies were found on Saturday. Reports suggest that the group of nine were having a picnic on Friday when they were abducted in the Saada province of Yemen. The three bodies discovered were those of a South Korean teacher and two German nurses. The missing six are believed to consist of five Germans, of whom three are children and a Briton. A spokesman for the Yemeni Embassy said "[T

Unconfirmed reports say that at least one person has been shot and killed, and several others were seriously wounded, during a rally against the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in Azadi Square, Tehran, Iran. Reports say that pro-government militia opened fire on protesters after they attempted to storm a Revolutionary Guard compound. The defeated candidate, Mir Hossein Mousavi, appeared at the rally and addressed the crowd earlier in the day, in contravention of a ban. In the past few days there have been reports of violence and

United Kingdom Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced today that the independent inquiry into the Iraq War will be held in private. It has been called for by opposition MP's and Labour MP's since the invasion and it was announced today that it will start next month. It is planned to take at least a year, according to Mr. Brown, and is being held in private for national security matters and to protect Britain's military capability. Protestors have reacted angrily to the news, believing the government will try to hide blame.

Yesterday, the first fatality in the UK caused by swine flu was announced. Jacqueline Fleming, who was 38, from Glasgow, Scotland, died at the Royal Alexandria Hospital in Paisley. She had been admitted to hospital two weeks earlier after the premature birth of her baby son, Jack. Reports suggest that she was admitted having suffered a stroke and suffered further complications, in part related to the birth of Jack. Professor Hugh Pennington, a bacteriologist at Aberdeen University was quoted as saying that underlying health problems were li