Thailand expects Vietnam tourists to return

Thai tourism officials said yesterday they expected the number of Vietnamese visitors to remain high, despite the recent temporary closure of the country's airport." Speaking at a press briefing in HCM City, Pichai Raktasinha, director of HCM City's Tourism Authority of...

Iran envoy abducted in Pakistan

Unknown gunmen kidnapped an Iranian diplomat Hashmatullah Atharzadeh after killing his guard in the restive Peshawar early today. Mr Atharzadeh was traveling towards his office from his home when his vehicle was intercepted by some unknown armed men who took him...

Unease over Guatemalan gold rush

"With gold prices skyrocketing, the Mayans of Guatemala find themselves caught up in a new rush for the precious metal.   Tema sits across from me, a Mayan with a mission. We are in the town of Sipacapa in the Western Highlands of...

Missing teenage beauty queen is found in London

"A TEENAGE beauty queen has been reunited with her parents after vanishing for nine days with a man she met on a social networking website. The family of Kovi Dunbar, 17, blamed cruel jibes at school about an illness which altered her looks, after she disappeared from her...

Crew dragged co-pilot off jet at Shannon after mid-air scare

"An international flight travelling from Canada had to be diverted to Shannon Airport after a crew member in the cockpit fell ill. The flight was on route from Toronto to London yesterday when it was forced to land. The co-pilot was taken to a psychiatric hospital in the...

Kayakers arrive in NZ after 62 days

"Two adventurers who spent two months paddling across the Tasman Sea in a kayak arrived in New Zealand today, becoming the first people to kayak there from Australia. Several thousand people crowded the shore at Ngamotu Beach, near New Plymouth on New Zealand's west coast, to...

EU leaders sign Lisbon Treaty

"EU leaders meeting in Lisbon have signed the treaty to reform the institutions of the Union. It is to be called the Lisbon Treaty. The British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, did not attend the signing ceremony due to to a parliamentary committee hearing. He has now signed the...

More than 400 Indonesians evacuated after ferries hit reef: official

""We have evacuated 420 passengers out of all 450 passengers aboard the two ferries which hit reefs this morning," said Roki Asikin, chief of Southeast Sulawesi's provincial rescue office."We are now transporting the remaining 30 passengers... There are no victims in this...