A round-up of today's other stories in brief.
Bin Laden says Moussaoui did not plan attack
DUBAI - Osama bin Laden has said that Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person convicted in a US court for the September 11th attacks, had nothing to do with the operations, according to a website audiotape released yesterday.
Bin Laden said he had personally assigned tasks to the 19 hijackers who carried out the attacks on US cities on September 11th, 2001. - (Reuters)
Convoy of officials attacked
KABUL - Eleven Taliban fighters and three policemen were killed yesterday when guerrillas attacked a convoy of provincial officials in southern Afghanistan. Meanwhile the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, expressed "concern at the coalition forces' decision to bomb civilian areas" during attack on Azizi on Monday, when 16 civilians were killed. - (Reuters/Guardian service)
Vatican press attacks ministers
ROME - The Vatican newspaper has criticised comments by Italy's health minister in favour of the abortion pill, setting the tone for a debate with the new centre-left government over its proposed social policies.
L'Osservatore Romano was speaking out for the second time in as many days against two of Romano Prodi's women ministers, less than a week after they were sworn in. - (Reuters)
CIA director endorsed
WASHINGTON - Air Force general Michael Hayden's nomination as CIA director won the endorsement of the senate intelligence committee yesterday in a vote that sets the stage for formal confirmation by the full Senate later this week. - (Reuters)
Copy of Hutton report auctioned
LONDON - Labour was last night facing demands for a public apology following reports that an autographed copy of the Hutton report was auctioned to raise funds for the party.
It was reported that a copy of the report, which looked into the death of the government scientist David Kelly, was signed by the prime minister's wife Cherie Blair and sold for £400 at a party fundraising event last week in Mayfair. - (PA)
Spain asks for help on migrants
BRUSSELS - Spain has asked the European Union for help in dealing with thousands of African migrants landing in the Canary Islands to seek work in Europe.
Some 7,400 migrants have arrived in the Canaries this year, five times more than in the same period last year, after Spain and Morocco blocked easier migration routes to mainland Europe. - (Reuters)
Call for UN force soon for Darfur
KHARTOUM - The Sudanese government must agree to let a UN peacekeeping force into Darfur within weeks to make sure a peace agreement is applied, according to African Union commission chief Alpha Konare.
"In two months time, the rainy season starts. If confidence does not rule again to improve the security situation by then, it could be very bad," he said after a meeting in London with British prime minister Tony Blair. - (Reuters)
Wild bear returns to Austria
BERLIN - The first wild bear seen in Bavaria in 170 years is believed to have returned to Austria after authorities gave hunters the green light to shoot the rampaging beast, the state's ministry said on Tuesday.
"There have been no sightings or signs of the bear today and local authorities believe that he has returned to Austria," said Roland Eichhorn, spokesman at Bavaria's environment ministry. - (Reuters)