European leaders agreed early Thursday that private creditors have to accept a 50 percent cut in the value of the Greek government debt they hold, and the bailout fund would be increased to 1 trillion euros (1.37 trillion U.S. dollars).

 Bangkok residents were fleeing the capital Thursday after authorities called an emergency five-day holiday and urged people in flood-prone parts of the city to leave to avoid a massive deluge.

On October 25 night, victory celebrations erupted outside the modest office building in downtown Tunis where Ennahda is headquartered. A crowd of about a hundred party supporters gathered, singing the national anthem, clapping and chanting.

Don Muang airport, used mainly for domestic flights, is in northern Bangkok - the area of the capital worst hit by the flooding.

A strong quake has shattered buildings near the Turkish city of Van, killing at least 138 people and trapping an unknown number under rubble.   

NATO called an end to its air war in Libya, and the clan of Muammar Gaddafi demanded a chance to bury the body that lay on display in a meat locker after a brutal and chaotic death. 

Tens of thousands of job opportunities will be created by the 2012 London Olympic Games, according to the London Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG).

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is currently in Afghanistan to encourage President Hamid Karzai to continue efforts to reconcile with the Taliban. 

German Chancellor Angela Merkel held talks with visiting French President Nicolas Sarkozy Wednesday to discuss a solution to the eurozone debt crisis, but failed to reach any concrete agreement on the issue.

The United States said Wednesday it will hold rare direct talks with North Korea next week on ending the authoritarian state's nuclear programme and announced it was replacing its chief envoy.

Thailand's cabinet met on October 18 to discuss the mounting economic cost of floods that have killed 315 people, and residents of Bangkok were told not to drop their guard even if the immediate danger to the capital had passed. 

Israel has published the names of 477 Palestinian prisoners who are to be released in exchange for captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

The death toll in Mexico and Central America climbed to 55 on October 15 as torrential rain storms continued, causing deadly mudslides and massive flooding.

ASEAN trade ministers have pledged to accelerate the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community by 2015 and closely coordinate with partners in the fight against global economic slowdown.