"Terrorism in Southeast Asia will remain a continuing challenge. Across wider continental Asia, the rise of India and China represent great economic, environmental, energy policy and security reverberations for the future," Rudd said in a speech to the Asia Society Australiasia in Sydney.

"I believe it is time that we started to think about where we want to be with our regional architecture in 2020. We need to have a vision for an Asia-Pacific Community," he said, adding the world could learn from Europe where centuries of animosity had been transformed into transnational cooperation. Rudd said an Asia-Pacific Community, which should include the United States, Japan, China, India, Indonesia and the other states of the region, would encourage cooperation and action on economic, political and security issues but also develop a "genuine and comprehensive sense of community".

Rudd said the region faced a dynamic demographic challenge in the future, with populations becoming wealthier but older. He said the region's population by 2020 was projected to be 4.6 billion, out of a total global population of 7.7 billion. APEC estimates that its member economies demand for energy will grow by around 40 per cent by 2020 and Asia's energy consumption could grow by around two-thirds by 2020.

The question now lurking behind every discussion of Obama's campaign is: Will America elect a black man as its President? It is an uncomfortable question for a country with a particularly troubled history of race relations. Has America changed enough since King made that epoch-changing speech? Or will the electorate, or more terrifyingly, another assassin, block his path?

The facts are not propitious. Obama received secret service protection earlier than any other presidential candidate in history, because of threats to his life. For almost a year, he has been protected 24 hours a day. Organisations which track white supremacist websites and communications reported a surge in activity as Obama's candidacy took flight.

As the security cordon around Obama was intensified, it was both a validation of his new, historic status, and a stark reminder of the lethal risks his candidacy now faces.

TOWN HALL SPIES found out who residents were phoning and emailing as they investigated such misdemeanours as dog quarantine breaches and unlicensed storage of petrol. The news prompted fresh calls from civil rights groups for a reform of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa), which WAS ORIGINALLY BROUGHT IN TO COMBAT TERRORISM AND SERIOUS CRIME but is increasingly being used by councils to snoop on members of the public.

In April a council in Dorset used Ripa powers to spy for weeks on a family it wrongly suspected of breaking rules on school catchment areas. Other local authorities have used covert surveillance to investigate such petty offences as dog fouling and under-age smoking. When Ripa was passed in 2000, only NINE ORGANISATIONS, including the police and security services, were allowed to use it, but THAT NUMBER HAS SINCE RISEN TO 792, INCLUDING 474 COUNCILS, whose use of Ripa is soaring.

Ripa allows council officials to authorise the use of covert surveillance, to obtain phone records and details of email traffic from personal computers (though not the contents of the emails) and to find out which websites people are logging on to.

"JERUSALEM WILL REMAIN THE CAPITAL OF ISRAEL AND IT MUST REMAIN UNDIVIDED," Obama told the vast annual policy conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Council (AIPAC).

Addressing the group in almost his first act since claiming the Democratic nomination late Tuesday, Obama said he was a "true friend" of Israel and that THE US BOND WITH THE JEWISH STATE WAS "UNBREAKABLE." Obama drew a standing ovation as he arrived to address the mighty US-Israel lobby, and also addressed perceived suspicion of him in some sectors of the Jewish community.

"AS PRESIDENT I WILL NEVER COMPROMISE WHEN IT COMES TO ISRAEL'S SECURITY," Obama said in a cavernous Washington conference center, his image emblazoned across eight massive cinema-style screens. Obama said in the strikingly pro-Israel speech that the US bond with the Jewish state was "UNBREAKABLE TODAY, UNBREAKABLE TOMORROW, UNBREAKABLE FOREVER," adding he was speaking from his heart as a "true friend" of Israel.

Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean, one of the strongest advocates of a push to finish off the round, said TRADE HAD HISTORICALLY HELPED DRIVE WORLD ECONOMIC GROWTH. "Each round has produced a new impetus," he told a conference at the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation. "That's why securing an outcome in Doha is so critical and more so in the current climate not just because of the economic uncertainty but because of - high food prices."

A United Nations summit on the global food crisis in Rome on Wednesday thrashed out ways of tackling the surge in global prices which has aggravated the problems of nearly one billion people facing hunger. "If we're ever to achieve the breakthrough in agriculture and the reduction in subsidies it's got to be at the time in which producers are getting the best returns. And if we can't get that outcome now we will never get it," Crean said.

New Zealand, once one of the most subsidized countries, had found that eliminating subsidies was good for the economy and good for the environment, Trade Minister Phil Goff said. "POOR COUNTRIES RIGHTLY BLAME SUBSIDIES AND TRADE BARRIERS for denying them the opportunity to earn their living in the global market place," he told the conference.

The proclamation in an executive order allows water officials to more rapidly shift water around California, ONE OF THE NATION'S TOP FARM STATES that also has wilderness areas prone to wildfires. Many California water districts have already imposed restrictions on water use amid dry weather and after a U.S. court aiming to protect a fish species forced the state to pump less water from its San Joaquin-Sacramento River Delta, the state's fresh-water hub.

"For the areas in Northern California that supply most of our water, this March, April and May have been the driest ever in our recorded history," Schwarzenegger said in a statement. "As a result, some local governments are rationing water, developments can't proceed and AGRICULTURAL FIELDS ARE SITTING IDLE," HE SAID.

"We must recognize the severity of the crisis we face, so I am signing an executive order proclaiming a state-wide drought and directing my Department of Water Resources and other entities to take immediate action to address the situation."

King Abdullah was speaking at a three-day conference in Mecca, attended by hundreds of Muslim delegates. The king, whose country is mainly Sunni Muslim, said extremists were exploiting the tolerant nature of Islam. As well as extremism, delegates hope to tackle what is seen as the negative perception of Islam in the West.

Delegates said the aim was to agree on a global Islamic charter for dialogue with Christians and Jews, ahead of a call by Saudi Arabia for an interfaith dialogue. Saudi Arabia currently has no diplomatic ties with Israel, and NON-MUSLIM RELIGIOUS SERVICES AND SYMBOLS ARE BANNED IN THE KINGDOM.

Mainly Sunni Saudi Arabia and mainly Shia Iran stand on opposite sides of many of the conflicts dividing the Muslim world, and some observers say political rifts are being laid bare, such as different attitudes towards the US. Mr Rafsanjani also URGED THE WORLD'S ONE BILLION MUSLIMS TO STOP WASHINGTON CONTROLLING THE NATURAL RESOURCES IN THEIR COUNTRIES - a pointed comment in oil giant Saudi Arabia, a top ally of Washington. "Why should this tremendous group be weak before the international arrogance?" he said, using the Iranian revolutionary term for the US.

Lab tests have confirmed 40 illnesses in Texas and New Mexico as the same type of salmonella, right down to the genetic fingerprint. An investigation by Texas and New Mexico health authorities and the Indian Health Service tied those cases to uncooked, raw, large tomatoes.

At least 17 people in Texas and New Mexico have been hospitalized. Another 30 people have become sick with the same Salmonella Saintpaul infection in Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Idaho, Illinois and Indiana.

Salmonella is a bacterial infection that lives in the intestinal tracts of humans and other animals. The bacteria are usually transmitted to humans by eating foods contaminated with animal faeces. Most infected people suffer fever, diarrhoea and abdominal cramps starting 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness tends to last four to seven days.

Ministry of Justice data shows almost 40,000 inmates have opted out of the early release tagging scheme since it was introduced in 2000, turning down the chance to leave jail up to 18 weeks early. And MORE THAN 40 OUTSIDERS HAVE BEEN CAUGHT INSIDE PRISONS or trying to enter by scaling walls. Many are apparently selling drugs to criminals while others may be offenders trying to get back in.

The findings follow warnings from prison officers' leaders, who claimed inmates were often happy to enjoy 'soft' conditions behind bars, where drugs are cheaper than outside. They said PROSTITUTES PLIED THEIR TRADE IN OPEN PRISONS AND CRIMINALS IN SECURE UNITS ENJOYED BREAKFAST IN BED, SATELLITE TV AND SPORTS FACILITIES, while staff treated them 'with kid gloves' and were 'SUBSERVIENT' FOR FEAR OF BREACHING THEIR HUMAN RIGHTS.

Tory justice spokesman Nick Herbert said: 'Labour's mismanagement of prisons is descending from tragedy to farce. "HOW SECURE ARE OUR JAILS IF CRIMINALS CAN BREAK INTO THEM?" Dr Neil Bentley, director of public services at the Confederation of British Industry, will today accuse the prison system of being a 'hugely expensive bed and breakfast' facility.

He defended his policy of seizing land from white farmers that has brought his country to the brink of economic collapse, saying he had undone a legacy left by Zimbabwe's former "colonial masters." MUGABE BOASTED THAT 300,000 FAMILIES WERE NOW LANDOWNERS and said: "Previously this land was owned by a mere 4,000 farmers mainly of British stock."

"While this land reform programme has been warmly welcomed by the vast majority of our people it has however elicited wrath from our former colonial masters. In retaliation for measures we took to empower the black majority the United Kingdom has mobilised her friends and allies to impose illegal sanctions against Zimbabwe." He added: "All this has been done to cripple Zimbabwe's economy and thereby effect illegal regime change in our country." Sanctions are in fact restricted to a travel ban and asset freeze on Mugabe and his acolytes.

Zimbabwe, once known as the "bread basket of Africa," is now ravaged by 165,000 PER CENT INFLATION AND 80 PER CENT UNEMPLOYMENT, while 3.5 million people have fled the country as a result of his policies.

As major users told MPs that EUROPEAN POWER MONOPOLIES WERE EFFECTIVELY HOLDING BRITAIN TO RANSOM, the extent of the UK's suffering was spelled out by the respected Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. It said UK energy prices have jumped 13.6 per cent in the past year, adding hundreds of pounds to domestic bills. This compares with 9.5 per cent in Germany, 12 per cent in France and just 2.8 per cent in the Netherlands.

And there are warnings that UK household bills could rise by a further 25 per cent this autumn. The problem stems from the fact the country is no longer self-sufficient in gas from the North Sea and has become reliant on imports during the winter. Foreign power firms are buying cheap North Sea gas from Britain in the summer and putting it into vast storage facilities on the Continent.

They then refuse to pipe it back to the UK when it is needed in the winter, effectively rationing supplies and pushing up prices. The UK is vulnerable to these strong-arm tactics because we have such tiny gas holding facilities that we cannot store cheap North Sea gas in the summer for use in the winter. THERE IS ENOUGH STORAGE TO SUPPLY THE COUNTRY WITH GAS FOR ONLY 13 DAYS, compared with 99 days in Germany and 122 in France.

The US has been spending hundreds of billions on the Iraq war, suffered massive trade deficits for many years ($708 billion in 2007), and now is paying about $1.2 billion a day for imported oil. Moreover, the dollar has been hugely devalued against the euro (the currency of 15 nations in the European Union), the British pound, and some other currencies.

Conventional wisdom among economists is that currency ascendancy gives a nation an economic advantage. The US, for instance, finances much of its international payments deficit by issuing Treasury bonds and other debt instruments denominated in dollars. SO WHEN THE DOLLAR LOSES VALUE, AS IT HAS ON FOREIGN-EXCHANGE MARKETS, THE DEBTS ARE PAID IN THOSE SAME CHEAPER DOLLARS.

In effect, the dominance of the dollar has enabled the US to live beyond its real means for decades. Charles de Gaulle, founder of France's fifth republic, complained in the 1960s about the "exorbitant privilege" the dollar gave the US. Loss of the privilege could lower US living standards a little. Another piece of conventional wisdom is that loss of the key currency role can take many decades to happen. "This is not what history tells us," Professor Eichengreen says.

One source from the union Unite, which represents the drivers, said its members had the capacity to seriously disrupt supply of petrol. There is also the threat of secondary picketing which means other petrol stations could be affected. The source said: "THIS WILL BRING PETROL FORECOURTS TO A HALT AND PICKET LINES WILL NOT BE CROSSED." If the meeting fails to resolve the dispute then the walk-out could be as early as this week, or the beginning of next week.

Tony Woodley, the union's joint general secretary, described the level of profits in the oil industry as "obscene". Earlier this year Shell reported annual profits of £13.9 billion, a record for a UK-listed company. Much of the rise has been attributed to increased oil prices.

The agency's main focus on its planned June 22-24 visit to Syria is a building in the country's remote eastern desert that was destroyed in September by Israeli jets. IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei announced Monday that Syria had agreed to an agency check of U.S. assertions that the target was a plutonium-producing reactor that was near completion, and thus at the stage where it could generate the fissile material for nuclear arms.

But the agency is also interested in following up on information THAT SYRIA MAY HAVE THREE OTHER UNDECLARED ATOMIC FACILITIES. Diplomats and a nuclear expert told the AP Monday that at least one of the sites may have equipment that can reprocess nuclear material into the fissile core of warheads.

UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei said on Monday that his inspectors would this month visit the site of the suspected reactor that was bombed by Israeli warplanes in September last year. The Al-Kibar site was attacked after Israeli and US intelligence concluded it was a partly constructed nuclear reactor built with North Korean help, but the Syrians have strongly denied the allegations.

"The American and Israeli claims are false. Instead, Israel should be called on to submit its own nuclear installations to international inspection so at least we know how many nuclear weapons it possesses," Syria's official Ath-Thawra newspaper said in an editorial. Israel is widely believed to be the only nuclear armed power in the Middle East but has a policy of neither confirming nor denying its arsenal and is not a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.