A total of 231 nominees are up for the Nobel Peace Prize this year, the Nobel Institute said Monday, with Bill Clinton, Helmut Kohl, the EU and US soldier and WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning known to be on the list.With 188 individuals and 43…

They are deadly, hard to detect and fast becoming one of the most sought-after weapons in the air defence industry.Global demand for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), better known as drones, is heating up as armed forces invest in new systems to boost their ability…

A diamond coveted by kings, queens and princes for centuries, used to reinforce alliances between nations and pawned to pay off royal debts goes on sale at Sotheby's in Geneva on May 15.The auction house called the "Beau Sancy" "one of the most important…

Melting sea ice in the Arctic may be causing the snowier winters the northern hemisphere has experienced in the last two seasons, US and Chinese researchers reported on Monday.The level of Arctic sea ice reached a new record low in 2007, said the study…

Carnival frenzy is sweeping Brazil as the South American powerhouse prepares Friday to launch a week of sizzling samba dancing, glittering parades, and unabashed merry-making.Over the next days this racially diverse country of 191 million people will come to a standstill for the pre-Lent…

The biggest lobster ever caught in Maine, a 27-pounder (12.25 kg) nicknamed "Rocky" with claws tough enough to snap a man's arm, was released back into the ocean after being trapped in a shrimp net last week, marine officials said.The 40-inch (one-meter) male crustacean,…

Nearly 500 elephants have been killed in a Cameroon national park in less than two months by poachers from Sudan and Chad, a park official told AFP on Thursday."As of today we estimate that 480 elephants have been slaughtered in our park," said Mathieu…

The World Bank was on Friday to propose a coalition of governments, global organisations and other groups to protect the oceans, aiming to raise $1.5 billion in the next five years for the purpose.World Bank president Robert Zoellick was to tell a global conference…

A remote controlled car bomb exploded near the Kohat bus depot on Thursday, killing at least 12 people and injuring 36 others.Almost 15 cars were also badly damaged in the blast.Following the blast, security forces cordoned off the area while the injured people…

An explosion at a steel plant in northeastern China killed 13 people and injured another 17, a company official said Tuesday, in the latest industrial accident to hit the country.The blast happened late Monday in a steel casting workshop owned by state-run Angang Heavy…