political news

Most of the 11 people accused by the US of spying for Russia appear to have led middle-class, all-American lives, pursuing businesses, setting up home in leafy surburbs, raising families.

Donald Heathfield (all names here are as given in the indictment) had convinced a business contact in the UK he was an "aggressive American entrepreneur".

Anna Chapman, the most glamorous of the 11, described herself in a YouTube video as a "start-up" specialist looking to connect young professionals in New York and Moscow, with a business pedigree acquired in the UK.

Moscow confirmed that at least some of the suspects were Russian citizens, but there were few immediate details from within Russia itself.

Here BBC News sketches in some of what is now known about the 11.

ANNA CHAPMAN

According to a profile put together by the Russian news website lenta.ru, she is a 28-year-old divorcee (nee Kushchenko), the daughter of a Russian diplomat, and received her higher education in Volgograd and Moscow.

She did not seek to conceal her Russian identity when she arrived in New York from Moscow in February 2010, saying she wanted to build up a recruitment agency targeting young professionals in both cities.

Before that, she said she had lived for five years in the UK, working in the financial sector.

Moving into an apartment within walking distance of Wall Street, she launched on social networks including LinkedIn and Facebook to develop business contacts and market her skills.

On her LinkedIn page, Chapman is listed as the chief executive officer of PropertyFinder Ltd, which maintains a website featuring property listings in Moscow, Spain, Bulgaria and other countries.

"Love launching innovative high-tech start-ups and building passionate teams to bring value into market," her LinkedIn summary says.

Among dozens of photos posted online is one of Ms Chapman posing with a glass of wine between two men at the Global Technology Symposium at Stanford University in March - an event that cost more than $1,000 to attend.

An acquaintance in New York's property market, David Hartman, described her as "pleasant, very professional, friendly".

"There's nothing too crazy about her that I knew of," he added.

The US Congress has overwhelmingly approved new sanctions against foreign companies that trade with Iran, over its nuclear programme.

Those firms that supply Iran's Revolutionary Guards or contribute to the country's energy industry are targeted by the bill.

The sanctions are designed to put pressure on Tehran which denies seeking to acquire nuclear weapons.

The bill now goes back to President Barack Obama to be signed into law.

The Senate and House of Representatives acted in quick succession on Thursday to agree to the new penalties. The Senate vote was 99-0 and the House vote was 408-8.

Iran says its nuclear industry is for peaceful purposes.

'No both ways'

"We must stop Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, a weapon that would surely threaten the national security of the United States and of Israel," said Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Republican Senator John McCain said: "We will be posing a choice to companies around the world: Do you want to do business with Iran? Or do you want to business with the United States?

"We don't think that is much of a choice, but we will force companies to make it. They can't have it both ways."

Earlier this month, the UN Security Council voted to impose a fourth round of sanctions on Tehran for failing to halt its nuclear enrichment programme.

They include tighter finance curbs and an expanded arms embargo, but not the crippling sanctions the US had wanted.

Three earlier rounds of UN sanctions have blocked trade of "sensitive nuclear material", frozen the financial assets of those involved in Iran's nuclear activities, banned all of Iran's arms exports and encouraged scrutiny of the dealings of Iranian banks.

A man who says he is an Iranian nuclear scientist claims to have escaped after being abducted by US agents.

In a video shown on Iranian state TV, he says he has escaped in the US state of Virginia and is now on the run.

Mr Amiri disappeared a year ago while undertaking the Hajj in Saudi Arabia.

Two videos purportedly showing him surfaced three weeks ago. One said he had been kidnapped, the other that he was living freely in Arizona.

The US has strenuously denied abducting him, but ABC News reported in March that Mr Amiri had defected and was helping the CIA compile intelligence on Iran's controversial nuclear weapons programme.

The state department has refused to say whether he is in the US.

'Not free'

In the new video, broadcast on Tuesday, a man claiming to be the missing scientist says: "I, Shahram Amiri, am a national of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a few minutes ago I succeeded in escaping US security agents in Virginia.

"Presently, I am producing this video in a safe place. I could be re-arrested at any time."

The man says the video broadcast earlier this month - in which someone claiming to be Mr Amiri says he was kidnapped by Saudi and US agents, tortured, forced to say he had defected and was living in Tucson, Arizona - is "completely authentic and there are no fabrications in it.

"The second video which was published on YouTube by the US government, where I have said that I am free and want to continue my education here, is not true and is a complete fabrication.

"I am not free here and I am not permitted to contact my family. If something happens and I do not return home alive, the US government will be responsible."

He finishes the video by urging Iranian officials and human rights organisations to "put pressure on the US government for my release and return".

"I was not prepared to betray my country under any kind of threats or bribery by the US government," he adds.

A US official told the AFP news agency the allegations were "ludicrous".

Iranian media have said Mr Amiri worked as a researcher at a university in Tehran, but some reports say he worked for the country's atomic energy organisation and had in-depth knowledge of its nuclear programme.

Insurgents have attacked Nato forces in eastern Afghanistan.

Several attackers have been killed in the Taliban attack on a base at an airfield outside Jalalabad, near the border with Pakistan.

Gunmen set off a car bomb and fired rocket-propelled grenades, and reports say the fighting continues. There are no reports of Nato casualties.

The attack comes a day after US Gen David Petraeus warned of an "industrial strength insurgency" in the country.

Gen Petraeus, who is set to take over command of the US military in Afghanistan, also warned on Tuesday that fighting "may get more intense in the next few months".

He is due to take up his post as Nato commander in Afghanistan following the dramatic departure of Gen Stanley McChrystal last week.

Commando-style raid

The attack began at 0730 local time (0330 BST), with insurgents hitting the airport from different directions.

A Nato spokesman said the perimeter of the base had not been breached.

A Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, said six suicide attackers had taken part in the assault.

The attack is yet another example of the increasingly sophisticated assaults favoured by the Taliban, says the BBC's Quentin Sommerville in Kabul.

These commando-style operations are increasing in numbers, and often result in higher civilian and military casualties.

A total of 100 Nato troops serving in Afghanistan were killed in June, making it the deadliest month for the alliance since the US-led invasion of 2001.

An Afghan army-led operation is taking place in nearby Kunar, where 600 troops are attempting to rout about 250 insurgents thought to have links to al-Qaeda.

Jalalabad is one of Nato's largest bases in Afghanistan, after Kandahar in the south and Bagram near Kabul.

Both of those have been attacked by insurgents in recent months.

At least 26 policemen have been killed in a Maoist attack in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, police have told the BBC.

Those killed in the latest attack were members of the paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

Two CRPF personnel were injured and police are searching for casualties.

In late May, more than 145 people were killed when a train crashed in West Bengal after Maoist rebels allegedly sabotaged the rails.

The Maoists, also known as Naxalites, say they are fighting for the rights of rural poor who have been neglected by the government for decades.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described their insurgency as India's biggest internal security challenge.

Heavily armed

In the most recent attack, the CRPF members were attacked as they were returning after clearing a road, officials say.

Chhattisgarh anti-Maoist operation head Ram Niwas told the AFP news agency that they were ambushed by a large number of heavily armed militants in Dhodai, 300km (190 miles) south of the state capital, Raipur.

Police said the ensuing gun battle lasted three hours. They say that the injured have been evacuated by helicopter and reinforcements have been sent to the area.

In May a Maoist landmine attack in Chhattisgarh destroyed a bus and killed more than 30 people, most of them civilians.

Maoist supporters saw that armed police were on board the bus and an attack was organised extremely quickly.

Correspondents said that the bus attack showed how powerful the rebels have become in remote regions such as the forests of southern Chhattisgarh. The government said it also demonstrated their barbarity.

Following the attack, the home minister said he would request wider powers to deal with the rebels.

A government offensive against the rebels - widely referred to as Operation Green Hunt - began last October.

It involves 50,000 troops and is taking place across five states - West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Orissa and Chhattisgarh.

Ministers in Delhi have always accepted that there is a need to tackle the root causes of the rebellion, such as poverty and the absence of effective local government.

The man chosen to take charge of the US military in Afghanistan, Gen David Petraeus, has warned of an escalation of violence in the coming months.

"The going inevitably gets tougher before it gets easier," he told the Senate Armed Services Committee, which backed his nomination to lead the war.

The general said troops were engaged in a contest of wills with the Taliban and promised a more co-ordinated approach.

President Obama chose Gen Petraeus after sacking Gen Stanley McChrystal.

The outgoing general and his aides criticised senior administration officials in a Rolling Stone magazine article. He has since announced his retirement.

Rules of engagement

In written answers to the Senate committee on Tuesday, Gen Petraeus described the security situation in Afghanistan as "tenuous" and insurgents as "resilient and still-confident", particularly in the south of the country.

However, he did say that he believed progress was possible.

"They can sense concern in various capitals around the world and of course they want to increase that concern," he said.

"My sense is that the tough fighting will continue; indeed, it may get more intense in the next few months," he added. "As we take away the enemy's safe havens and reduce the enemy's freedom of action, the insurgents will fight back."

The general said he supported the president's plan to begin withdrawing troops in July 2011, but emphasised that there would be "certain tweaks, refinements, perhaps significant changes" after the White House's year-end review.

Senator John McCain said the US could not "afford to have a stay-the-course approach to starting our withdrawal in July 2011 when the facts on the ground are suggesting that we need more time".

Later, Gen Petraeus warned that raising the standards of the Afghan army and police was a "hugely challenging" task, he said, comparing it to "building an advanced aircraft while it is in flight, while it is being designed and while it is being shot at".

He also said he would look very hard at the current rules of engagement for US ground and air forces, which were drawn up to reduce civilian deaths but have been criticised for putting units at unnecessary risk.

"Those on the ground must have all the support they need when they are in a tough situation," he told the committee.

Mounting unease

Gen Petraeus, 57, was nominated by President Obama last week to replace Gen McChrystal as commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan.

The widely-lauded soldier has formidable political and diplomatic skills. He has been credited with having turned around the military situation in Iraq with a "surge" there.

There is a broad consensus among lawmakers that there is not a better man for the job, the BBC's defence correspondent Nick Childs says.

But his confirmation hearing is also likely to be become a platform for the airing of mounting unease in the Congress over the administration's Afghan strategy, our correspondent says.

Republicans are expected to question Gen Petraeus about whether Mr Obama's strategy of commencing a troop drawdown in July 2011 will hamper his leadership of the war effort.

The leading Republican on the Armed Services Committee, Senator John McCain, has been a vocal critic of setting a date for withdrawal.

Some in Washington political circles also question the reliability of the Afghan government as a partner and the quality of Afghan forces.

The Obama administration is stressing that Gen Petraeus represents continuity and reassurance, and that he is in many ways the father of the strategy to which the US and its allies are wedded.

In December, President Obama ordered 30,000 extra troops into Afghanistan, an announcement that received support from both parties.

Meanwhile, Defence Secretary Robert Gates held talks at the Pentagon with his UK counterpart, Dr Liam Fox.

During their meeting, Dr Fox stressed the need to keep focus on ensuring that the necessary security conditions are met before transition to the Afghan authorities can take place.

"We cannot afford Afghanistan to lapse back into a failed state, which will create a security vacuum, contaminate the region and threaten the national security of the UK and its allies. That is why we are there and that is why we stay," he said.

Ten people have been arrested in the US for allegedly spying for the Russian government, US officials say.

They were allegedly part of an operation where agents posed as ordinary American citizens, some living together as couples for years.

They are charged with conspiracy to act as unlawful agents of a foreign government, a crime which carries up to five years in prison.

An 11th suspect remains at large, according to the US justice department.

Nine of them are also charged with conspiracy to launder money, which carries a 20-year prison sentence.

Infiltrate'

The US Department of Justice says eight of the suspects allegedly carried out "long-term, 'deep-cover' assignments" on US soil, working in civilian jobs so as not to arouse suspicion.

They were allegedly trained by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) to infiltrate policy-making circles and collect information, according to court papers filed in the US court for the southern district of New York.

Many of the alleged spies, referred to in court papers as "illegals", were given false names and citizenships.

They were told to befriend US officials and send information using various methods to Russian government handlers.

US officials said the spy-ring was discovered in a "multi-year investigation" by FBI agents who posed as Russian handlers and gleamed information from two of the suspects.

The BBC's Kim Ghattas in Washington says it is a story of Cold War era espionage with the tools and technology of the 21st Century.

Investigators say some of the agents had been living under false identities since the early 1990s, using codes and engaging in advanced computer operations, including posting apparently innocent pictures on the internet which contained hidden text.

The FBI also reported observing older techniques, such as money being buried next to a beer-bottle marker and "brush pasts" in parks, where agents swap identical bags as they pass each other.

"You were sent to USA for long-term service trip," says one purported message to two of the suspects that was intercepted by US intelligence.

"Your education, bank accounts, car, house etc - all these serve one goal: fulfil your main mission, ie to search and develop ties in policymaking circles in US and send intels."

'Americanised'

The alleged spies were allegedly tasked with becoming "Americanised" to be able to do this, with some pursuing university degrees, holding jobs, and joining relevant professional associations. Some even had children together.

The group allegedly got close to a scientist involved in designing bunker-busting bombs and a top former intelligence official.

Five of the suspects will appear later in a Manhattan federal court - a couple known as "Richard Murphy" and "Cynthia Murphy", who were arrested in Montclair, New Jersey; Vicky Pelaez and a man known as "Juan Lazaro," who were arrested in Yonkers, New York state; and Anna Chapman, who was arrested in Manhattan, New York City.

Another three - Mikhail Semenko and a couple known as "Michael Zottoli" and "Patricia Mills" - will appear in a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, after being arrested in Arlington, Virginia.

The final two people - a couple known as "Donald Howard Heathfield" and "Tracey Lee Ann Foley" - were arrested in Boston, Massachusetts, and will appear in a federal court in the city.

A suspect known as "Christopher R Metsos" remains at large.

All the suspects except Ms Chapman and Mr Semenko have also been charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Our correspondent says the arrests will come as quite a surprise, as relations between Washington and Moscow have warmed considerably in recent months.

Just last week, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was in Washington having lunch with President Barack Obama.

It is still unclear how the White House will react or how Russia will explain this, our correspondent adds.

Aijalon Mahli Gomes, a former English teacher in South Korea, was arrested in January after crossing from China.

North Korea said it would use "wartime law" against the 30-year-old if the US continued its "hostile approach" over the sinking of a South Korean warship.

An international inquiry found a North Korean torpedo sank the Cheonan.

According to North Korea's state news agency, US requests to free Gomes will not be accepted while the dispute over the sinking of the warship continues.

Instead the Korean Central News Agency says "there remains only the issue of what harsher punishment will be meted out to him".

"If the US persists in its hostile approach, the latter will naturally be compelled to consider the issue of applying a wartime law to him," state media reported.

Analysts say "wartime law" could mean a life sentence or the death penalty.

The Cheonan went down near the disputed maritime border in March, with the loss of 46 South Korean crew.

Investigators said they had discovered part of a torpedo on the sea floor and it carried lettering that matched a North Korean design.

Pyongyang rejected the claim as a "fabrication" and threatened war if UN sanctions were imposed.

This latest statement by North Korea raises the stakes in the confrontation still further.

Gomes was the fourth American citizen to be accused of entering the country in the past year.

In February, North Korea freed Robert Park, who had entered the country from China by walking over a frozen river.

Last year two US journalists, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, were also arrested by North Korea on the border with China.

They were sentenced to 12 years' hard labour but freed after four months, as part of a diplomatic mission spearheaded by former US President Bill Clinton.

President Obama says he has had what he called blunt talks with President Hu Jintao of China on the issue of the sinking - allegedly by North Korea - of a South Korean warship in March.

Mr Obama said he understood China's position of restraint as regards its neighbour.

But, he said, restraint was different to what he called "willful blindness".

North Korea has denied it was responsible for the sinking of the warship, the Cheonan.

Its foreign ministry has instead issued a statement saying the country would be preparing a new level of nuclear deterrent in response to US "hostility".

Walking the line

The United States wants China to support a resolution in the United Nations Security Council condemning North Korea.

Speaking at a press conference after the G20 meeting Mr Obama said he hoped President Hu would recognise the incident was an example of North Korea overstepping the line.

International investigators said the South Korean warship had been hit by a North Korean torpedo.

The Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan told reporters he has also asked China to issue a "necessary" condemnation of the sinking.

On Saturday, the US president had said North Korea must be "held to account" for the sinking of a South Korean warship.

He said he stood with South Korean leader Lee Myung-Bak, and condemned Pyongyang's "irresponsible behaviour".

The G8 leaders had issued a statement condemning the attack on 26 March that caused the loss of 46 lives.

The statement also expressed the G8 leaders' "gravest concern that the nuclear test and missile activities carried out by the Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea have further generated increased tension in the region and beyond, and that there continues to exist a clear threat to international peace and security."

North Korea said on Sunday that the investigation which blamed it for the ship attack was all "fabrication and lies".

The director of the CIA has conceded that the war in Afghanistan has been "harder and slower" than expected.

Speaking on US television Leon Panetta said while progress had been made in Afghanistan, serious problems with governance, corruption and the Taliban insurgency remained.

Mr Panetta's comments come as Gen David Petraeus takes over command of multinational forces in Afghanistan, following the sacking of Gen Stanley McChrystal.

Gen McChrystal was dismissed last week over critical comments about senior US officials.

Speaking to ABC This Week programme Mr Panetta insisted that "the fundamental key is whether the Afghans accept responsibility" for taking over the battle against the insurgency once foreign troops pull out of the country.

Drones defended

Mr Panetta defended CIA drone strikes on senior al-Qaeda of Taleban leaders in the region, saying that claims they violate international law are "dead wrong".

"We have a duty, we have a responsibility, to defend this country so that al-Qaeda never conducts that kind of attack again," he said.

Mr Panetta said that al-Qaida was probably at its weakest since the 11 September 2001 attacks on the US.

He said 50 to 100 militants were operating inside Afghanistan and the rest hiding along Pakistan's mountainous western border region.

"We are engaged in the most aggressive operations in the history of the CIA in that part of the world, and the result is that we are disrupting their leadership," Panetta told ABC television.

He said the US had not had good intelligence on Osama Bin Laden's whereabouts for years.

Mr Panetta said that the al-Qaeda network was finding new ways to try to attack the United States. Of greatest concern, he said, was al-Qaida's reliance on operatives without previous records or those living in the US.

US President Barack Obama has said North Korea must be "held to account" for the sinking of a South Korean warship.

He said he stood with South Korean leader Lee Myung-Bak, and condemned Pyongyang's "irresponsible behaviour".

His comments came shortly after the G8 group of industrialised nations meeting in Toronto condemned the sinking of the corvette Cheonan earlier this year.

North Korea has denied attacking the ship.

An international investigation concluded that it was sunk by a North Korean torpedo.

After meeting the South Korean leader on the sidelines of the summit, Mr Obama said: "There has to be consequences for such irresponsible behaviour."

The G8 leaders also criticised of North Korea - and Iran - over their nuclear activities, and they described the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip as "not sustainable".

And they admitted that the global financial crisis had compromised efforts to meet UN targets for reducing world poverty.

Canada is also hosting a summit of the wider G20 group of industrial and developing powers, which will will discuss the global economy and financial reform.

Thousands of demonstrators marched on the G20 summit on Saturday in what is being reported to have been a largely peacefully rally that saw outbreaks of violence on its edges. These saw groups of young men scuffle with riot police and set fire to at least two patrol cars.

Security concerns

In their final summit statement, the G8 - the US, Canada, Germany, UK, France, Italy, Russia and Japan - said: "We deplore the attack on 26 March that caused the sinking of the Republic of Korea's naval vessel, the Cheonan, resulting in tragic loss of 46 lives."

Noting that an international investigation had found that, despite its denials, Pyongyang was to blame for the attack that sank the warship, the statement adds: "We condemn, in this context, the attack which led to the sinking of the Cheonan.

"We demand that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea refrain from committing any attacks or threatening hostilities against the Republic of Korea."

Reuters news agency says the statement was not as strongly worded as some nations, including the United States, had hoped. It says Russia was said to have held out against stronger language.

The statement also expresses the G8 leaders' "gravest concern that the nuclear test and missile activities carried out by the Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea have further generated increased tension in the region and beyond, and that there continues to exist a clear threat to international peace and security."

The document calls on Iran to carry out a "transparent dialogue" over its controversial nuclear programme.

"We are profoundly concerned by Iran's continued lack of transparency regarding its nuclear activities and its stated intention to continue and expand enriching uranium," it says.

The UN Security Council earlier this month approved a fourth round of sanctions against Tehran for failing to halt nuclear enrichment. The measures include tighter finance curbs and an expanded arms embargo, but not the crippling sanctions the US had wanted.

On Gaza, the communique says the G8 leaders "deeply regret" the loss of life and injuries in the aid flotilla that was stormed by Israeli commandos last month as it was approaching the Palestinian territory. Nine Turkish activists died on board the flotilla's main ship.

In a reference to the Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory, which is controlled by Islamist group Hamas, it says: "We urge all parties to work together... to ensure the flow of humanitarian and commercial goods and persons, to and from Gaza. The current arrangements are not sustainable and must be changed."

China's President Hu Jintao has accepted an invitation for a state visit from US President Barack Obama, the White House has said.

The invitation was made on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Canada.

Officials from the two countries are to set a date for the state visit, Mr Hu's first to the US under President Obama.

The two countries have disagreed recently on currency exchange rates, trade and how to deal with Iran's nuclear programme.

China has agreed recently to let its currency float more freely from its previous peg to the US dollar, but many in the US say it is undervalued, giving China an unfair trade advantage.

"The president extended an invitation to President Hu to visit the United States on a state visit. President Hu accepted and the two sides will work out the timing," White House aide Jeffrey Bader said.

Mr Obama told Mr Hu that China's move to greater flexibility on its currency exchange was welcome and that "implementation of it was very important," Mr Bader said.

"The president stressed the need for balanced and sustainable growth and the role that China can play in achieving balanced and sustainable growth," he added.

A senior Indian army officer has been killed in a gun battle with separatist militants in Indian-administered Kashmir.

Colonel Neeraj Sood was "leading his troops" when he was gunned down by militants in Lolab area, the army said.

He is the highest ranking officer to be killed by militants in Kashmir in 2010.

Despite a decline in violence in Kashmir in recent years, there are fears that militants are trying to regroup in the region.

Hundreds of thousands of Indian troops are based in Kashmir to fight a two decade-old insurgency against Indian rule.

A spokesman for the Indian army said the operations against militants, launched by Col Sood before he was killed, is still on in the forested areas of Lolab, north of the capital, Srinagar.

It is not clear whether the militants have suffered any casualties in the clashes.

Spain's parliament has ratified labour reforms designed to bring down high unemployment.

Measures include promoting youth employment and cutting the cost of firing workers, which critics say makes employers reluctant to hire more staff.

Changes to the labour law follow spending cuts introduced last month in a bid to cut the large budget deficit.

Spain's two main unions have called a general strike on 29 September in protest at the tough economic measures.

Only members of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's Socialist Party voted in favour of the labour reforms.

Members of the two biggest opposition parties, the Popular Party (PP) and Catalan nationalist party (CIU), abstained and eight deputies voted against the moves.

Spain's unemployment rate of 20% is the highest in the eurozone.

Some economists have laid the blame on the cost of firing workers which encourages the use of temporary contracts that have few benefits and rights.

Workers on full contracts are entitled to severance pay of as much as 45 days per year worked, one of the highest levels in Europe.

Under the reforms this would be cut to 33 days for some contracts.

Labour Minister Celestino Corbacho told parliament that more than eight million workers who are either unemployed or on temporary contracts "will directly benefit" from the reform plan.

He said it would increase flexibility for companies without reducing job security, "promoting stable employment instead of uncertainty".

The labour reforms can still be amended in parliament over the coming months.

"Labour reform is necessary but this is not labour reform, it is the reform of (job) dismissals," said PP spokeswoman Soraya Saenz de Santamaria.

"We intend to enhance it with our amendments," she said.

Spain's high unemployment and large budget deficit had prompted speculation that it might be seeking a Greek-style bailout.

But the head of the International Monetary Fund, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, calmed those fears during a recent visit to Madrid saying Spain was taking the right measures for economic stability.

The UN secretary general has set up a panel to look into alleged human rights abuses during the final stages of Sri Lanka's civil war in 2009.

Ban Ki-moon's spokesman said the three-man panel would advise on how to deal with alleged perpetrators.

The UN says more than 7,000 civilians died in the last five months of the conflict between the Sri Lankan troops and Tamil Tiger rebels.

Rights groups accuse both sides of war crimes - a claim which has been denied.

The rights groups have produced what they say is photographic and video evidence of the army executing Tamil rebels, and testimony of indiscriminate bombing of civilians.

The insurgents are accused of using civilians as human shields and killing those who tried to leave the conflict zone.

The 37-year conflict ended last year with the defeat of the Tamil Tigers. The UN estimates 100,000 people were killed.

'Vague' mandate

UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said that the UN panel would be chaired by former Indonesian attorney general Marzuki Darusman.

The other two members are South African human rights lawyer Yasmin Sooka and Steven Ratner, a US international law expert.

Mr Nesirky said the three men "will advise him [Mr Ban] on the issue of accountability with regard to any alleged violations of international human rights and humanitarian law during the final stages of the conflict in Sri Lanka".

However, the panel is not an investigative body and its mandate is vague, which reflects the extreme sensitivity of the subject, says the BBC's Barbara Plett at the UN headquarters in New York.

Neither the UN Security Council nor the UN's Human Rights Council has called for an inquiry, and the panel may be a way for the secretary general to keep up the pressure for accountability, our correspondent adds.

The authorities in Colombo have strongly rejected persistent allegations of human rights abuses.

They have established their own investigation, and have lashed out at Mr Ban's decision.

Spain is taking the right measures for economic stability, the head of the International Monetary Fund has said.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn said he was "confident" Spain's economy would recover and called on all Spaniards to back the government's austerity work.

He was speaking after a meeting in Madrid with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

Mr Zapatero had earlier denied his government was seeking an IMF bailout, but markets have been nervous.

Mr Zapatero said on Thursday that Spain's economy was solid and solvent, and the visit by Dominique Strauss-Kahn was a scheduled one.

'Determination'

Mr Strauss-Kahn said all the measures being put in place by the Spanish government were "clearly being done for the benefit of the economy".

"I am really confident in the medium and long-term prospects for the Spanish economy, providing the efforts that have to be made will be made," he added.

He specifically praised continuing efforts to liberalise the Spanish labour market, saying they went in "the right direction".

Mr Zapatero said that during the meeting he had conveyed to Mr Strauss-Kahn "the determination of the Spanish government to implement and to make effective every single one of these reforms that we have launched".

Nervous markets

Mr Zapatero's government recently introduced a package of spending cuts and a reform of the labour market in an attempt to persuade nervous financial markets that Spain's finances are under control.

However, that's a difficult task, as after the crisis in Greece, the financial markets have been concerned that Spain could be the next country to require outside financial assistance.

As a result, Spain is having to pay record rates to sell its debt, and this week a senior banker revealed that Spanish financial institutions are struggling to get funding on international markets.

Spain is now promising to publish the results of what are known as "stress tests" on its banks, to prove that any fears of their failure are unfounded.

The country is still reeling from the collapse of the construction sector, has a budget deficit of 11%, and one in five workers is unemployed.

To help reduce the jobless count, the Spanish government wishes to liberalise labour laws that currently deter Spanish firms from taking on full-time staff because of the difficulty of making redundancies.

However, this has already faced strong opposition from unions, who are threatening to hold a general strike in September.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has criticised the unilateral US and EU sanctions on Iran that go beyond those approved by the UN Security Council.

He said Russia "did not agree" to any separate sanctions when it backed a joint UN resolution last week.

Meanwhile, Pentagon chief Robert Gates said US intelligence showed that Iran could be able to attack Europe with "scores" of missiles by 2020.

He added that Russia seemed to have a "schizophrenic" approach to Iran.

Moscow viewed Iran as a threat, but still pursued commercial ties with it, he told a US senate hearing in Washington.

Western powers suspect Iran is seeking nuclear weapons - which Tehran denies.

'Collective action'

In an interview that ran on Thursday, the Russian leader criticised the EU and US for acting unilaterally.

"We didn't agree to this when we discussed the joint resolution at the UN," Mr Medvedev told the Wall Street Journal.

Russia this month agreed to back a fourth round of UN sanctions against Tehran, following months of US-led diplomacy.

An Indian Muslim preacher has been banned from entering the UK for his "unacceptable behaviour", the home secretary says.

Zakir Naik, a 44-year-old television preacher, had been due to give a series of lectures in London and Sheffield.

Theresa May said that visiting the UK was "a privilege, not a right".

The home secretary can stop people entering the UK if she believes there is a threat to national security, public order or the safety of citizens.

That includes banning people if she believes their views glorify terrorism, promote violence or encourage other serious crime.

However, somebody cannot be banned just for having opinions that other people would find offensive.

Ms May said: "Numerous comments made by Dr Naik are evidence to me of his unacceptable behaviour .

"Coming to the UK is a privilege, not a right and I am not willing to allow those who might not be conducive to the public good to enter the UK.

"Exclusion powers are very serious and no decision is taken lightly or as a method of stopping open debate on issues."

This is the first person who has been excluded from the UK since Ms May became home secretary last month.

Mr Naik is based in Mumbai (Bombay) where he works for the Peace TV channel.

The BBC's Sanjiv Buttoo says that he is recognised as an authority on Islam but also has a reputation for making disparaging remarks about other religions.

Peace TV itself describes him as "a medical doctor by professional training... and a dynamic international orator on Islam and comparative religion".

"Dr Naik clarifies Islamic viewpoints and clears misconceptions about Islam using the Koran," the channel's website says.

A spokesman for Mr Naik said it was "deeply regrettable" the UK government had "bowed to pressure" from certain groups to exclude him.

He said Mr Naik had been holding talks in the UK for 15 years and the decision to bar his entry was disappointing.

The United States is expanding its sanctions against Iran because of concerns about its nuclear ambitions.

Washington said the individuals and institutions targeted were helping Iran to develop its nuclear programme.

This is the first step in implementing sanctions adopted by the UN Security Council last week.

Those blacklisted include Iran's Post Bank, Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi and the air force and missile command of the Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Western powers accuse Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons - a charge Iran strongly denies.

Front companies targeted

The US sanctions prohibit any American business or individual from trading with those named on the blacklist. The sanctions also freeze any assets they may have under US jurisdiction.

"We will continue to target Iran's support for terrorist organisations, we will continue to focus on Iran's Revolutionary Guard, and we will continue to expose Iran's efforts to evade international sanctions," US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told a White House news briefing.

Also on the list is a front company for the national shipping line, which is run by the Revolutionary Guards.

The Treasury has designated 27 new ships and has updated entries for 71 others whose names had been changed.

The designation of Post Bank brings to 16 the total number of Iranian banks under sanctions. The US Treasury says Post Bank is a front for Bank Sepah, which was designated in 2007 for providing financial services to the Iranian missile industry.

EU sanctions

Last week, Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dismissed the UN sanctions as "a used handkerchief" fit for the dustbin.

The European Union, which has been working closely with Washington, will decide on its own sanctions at a summit on Thursday.

The EU's proposed sanctions go further than the UN, targeting the oil and gas industry.

EU countries such as Germany and Italy have become important trading partners for Iran, but the EU is becoming increasingly concerned that Iran may be pursuing nuclear weapons.

Seattle police are to review training procedures after video of an officer punching a teenage girl circulated widely on US television and online.

The officer struck the 17-year-old after she tried to intervene while he was scuffling with another teenage girl he had seen jaywalking, officials said.

The Seattle police union defended the officer, saying he was working alone amid a crowd and feared for his safety.

The girls, who were arrested, were not harmed in the incident, police said.

In the video, shot on Monday, the officer is shown struggling with a girl in black who police said had tried to leave the scene when he confronted her about jaywalking.

A girl in a pink top intervenes, apparently trying to free the other girl. The footage then shows the police officer punching her as onlookers watch.

The officer, Ian Walsh, has been transferred temporarily to the department's training unit, Seattle police said.

Police officials said the review of training procedures was not meant as a criticism of the officer's actions but would examine whether training could be improved.

Seattle police officers' guild president Richard O'Neill said officers were wary of crowds that could turn violent.

"This officer, if you see on the video, was surrounded by an ever-growing group," he said. "This could have been a tragedy."

A Seattle police spokesman said that use of force was within an individual officer's discretion.

Turkish troops in pursuit of Kurdish rebels have crossed into northern Iraq and killed four militants, Turkish officials say.

The military said air strikes were also launched against rebel positions deeper inside Iraqi territory.

The offensive took place after rebels made an unsuccessful attack on border guards, Turkish officials said.

Turkey has been fighting insurgents of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) for more than a quarter of a century.

Military officials said three commando companies and one special forces battalion penetrated 3km (two miles) into Iraq in pursuit of the rebels.

The PKK is fighting for autonomy in Turkey's largely Kurdish south-east.

The group is considered a terrorist group, not just by Turkey but by the US and the EU.

More than 40,000 people are believed to have died in the conflict, on both sides.

At least 16 people have died in the US state of Arkansas after floodwaters hit campsites in a mountainous national park, state governor Mike Beebe says.

Two dozen people were taken to hospital and some 30 others remained unaccounted for.

Helicopters are taking part in the search in a remote, mountainous area in the state's south-west.

The operation is focused on campsites along the Little Missouri and Caddo rivers in the Ouchita Mountains.

Mr Beebe said the deaths had occurred at about 0530, when the floodwaters reached their peak.

A river gauge at Langley, just south of Albert Pike in the Ouachita National Forest, showed the water rose 8ft (2.4m) in one hour, according to the US Geological Survey.

The National Weather Service said 7.6in (19.3cm) of rain had fallen overnight.

Some campers described how they had to cling to trees for hours to survive.

The remains of destroyed tents and damaged log cabins were later seen lining the banks of the swollen rivers.

The governor said damage to the area was comparable to a strong tornado.