The searches by police officers in Greater Manchester, which has been plagued by gang shootings, even discovered a machine gun hidden under the bed of a ten-year-old boy. It is believed that some of the children had been asked to look after handguns for gang members because they are too young to be charged. Others claimed the weapons belonged to their mother or father or other close relatives. According to a senior police source, the ten-year-old kept the sub-machine gun in the bedroom of his house in South Manchester. It was not loaded. The source said: "It was absolutely astonishing. Apparently he was minding the gun for his brother who was in jail for firearms offences."

Only last month a gifted sportsman, Halton McCollin, 20, was shot dead in a Chinese takeaway in a case of mistaken identity. None of the children under ten was arrested or charged, as they are below the age of criminal responsibility, but campaigners have called for their parents to be prosecuted.

Lucy Cope, from Mothers Against Guns, said: "The consequences of an inquisitive eight-year-old getting their hands on a gun do not bear thinking about." Professor Peter Squires of the Gun Control Network, which campaigns for tighter controls on guns of all kinds, said: "In the more troubling cases serious offenders will have given young children guns to carry because they are off the surveillance radar." Three children caught with guns were aged 11 while a further 12 were 12 years old, 16 were aged 13, 27 were 14 years old, and 50 were aged 15.

"Just when we thought the indoctrination in California's public schools couldn't get any worse, state lawmakers introduce bills that will further brainwash innocent children," said a statement from Capitol Resource Institute, a traditional values and family advocacy organization based in California. "We're in California. Of course it has a chance of succeeding," CRI spokeswoman Karen England told WND. "These people get bolder and bolder every year."

Her organization, along with several others, already has been battling over lawmakers' orders, already placed in law, that public schools in the state teach nothing but positive messages about homosexuality, transsexuality, bisexuality and other alternative lifestyles.

Those plans are being challenged in court, by citizens' attempts to place the issue on the 2008 election ballot and by family advocates who say the best option is for families to abandon public schools for private schools or other alternatives.

Al-Naimi said that in April 2003 - LESS THAN FIVE YEARS AGO - when a barrel of oil cost one-quarter of this week's whopping $100, and when prices were regarded as high enough to keep oil-rich countries happy. Which brings up the question: HOW LONG WILL THE PRICE OF OIL REMAIN SKY-HIGH? Judging by the analysts' predictions, it could be several years. "PRICES ARE GOING TO BE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER," says John V. Mitchell, an OPEC expert and associate fellow at Chatham House in London.

That realization deepened this week when OPEC's president, Algeria's Oil Minister Chakib Khelil, rebuffed President Bush's appeal for OPEC to boost production and so help avert a U.S. recession by easing oil prices on the world market. Instead Khelil said that production quotas for its 13 members - who supply about 40% of the world's oil - will "either decrease or be stable" when OPEC oil ministers next meet in Vienna on March 5.

BUT ANALYSTS SAY THAT THE PROBLEMS DATE BACK YEARS, AND COULD TAKE SEVERAL MORE YEARS TO FIX. When oil prices were low during the 1980s and 1990s, big oil companies and governments decided it was not worth investing in new oil fields or in building thousands more oil refineries - projects that cost billions of dollars and can take about seven years of work before any new oil is sold. THAT DECISION TURNED OUT TO BE A BAD MISCALCULATION, say analysts. It ignored the biggest factor that has sent the world's oil demand soaring - the economic boom in China and, to a lesser extent, India. "NO ONE SAW THIS COMING DOWN THE LINE 10 YEARS AGO," says Harry Tchilinguirian, senior oil market analyst for BNP Paribas in London.

The price may also be affected by something a little more volatile: the action on WALL STREET, where investors have poured money into the New York Mercantile Exchange, trading oil contracts - WHAT ANALYSTS CALL "PAPER BARRELS" - IN SEARCH OF QUICK PROFITS. "People are looking at oil as a hedge against inflation," says David Kirsch, an analyst for PFC Energy in Washington.

Oil companies are finally scrambling to lock in exploration contracts in key growth areas like the Caspian Sea, Canada and the West coast of Africa. THAT NEW OIL COULD TAKE YEARS TO START FLOWING. And so oil prices are likely to remain high for years, and "could go higher, at least temporarily," says Waterlow.

The draft, submitted by the nationalist Radical Party on Tuesday, is backed by the party of Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica and by the Socialists of late President Slobodan Milosevic. Altogether they hold 144 of the assembly's 250 seats. The resolution condemns the EU's deployment of an "illegal" supervisory mission to Kosovo after the former Serbian province seceded last month, and calls on the EU to withdraw it. It also asks all EU countries that have recognized Kosovo as independent -- Britain, France and Germany among others -- to annul their decision.

"We, the representatives of the people of Serbia warn the EU that only a whole, not a fragmented Serbia can and wants to negotiate on European integration," the resolution states. "Parliament calls on the EU to clearly and unequivocally affirm the entirety of Serbia's territory as a condition for the resumption of talks on Serbia's association with the EU."

State-owned Gazprom cut supplies by a further 25% on Tuesday, following a 25% cut a day earlier - thereby cutting supplies by half. Prior to the news, the EU called for an emergency internal meeting amid fears the row could hit European supplies. Much of the gas Russia sells to Europe passes through pipelines in Ukraine.

The EU said the meeting would ensure "a fully coordinated EU response to the situation," adding "we look to both parties to ensure that gas supplies to the EU remain unaffected". The news of the second cut was made after a 1700GMT deadline on Tuesday. "If the Ukrainian side does not return to the negotiating table, I do not exclude a further reduction in supplies," Sergei Kupriyanov, a Gazprom spokesman, said on state television.

The dispute started after Russia said Ukraine had not paid its debts for previous deliveries, which Gazprom says totals $1.5bn (£770m). But Ukraine maintains the payments have already been made.

It is claimed retrospective changes to the Highly Skilled Migration Programme (HSMP) in 2006 will mean thousands of non-EU migrants have to leave the UK. The HSMP Forum, which is seeking the judicial review, says 90% - 44,000 people - who entered under the HSMP no longer qualified. They claim the decision was unfair and in breach of their human rights.

Last year, MPs from the Joint Committee on Human Rights said the retrospective changes were harsh, unfair, and incompatible with the Human Rights Act. The HSMP Forum said the retrospective changes had affected the lives of thousands of non-EU nationals, who left well paid jobs, perks and families to make the UK home. Forum member Chandrasekar Elangovan said: "It is ironic that a government which boasts itself as champions of human rights around the globe is actually playing with the lives of thousands of skilled immigrants and their families."

There are robots serving as receptionists, vacuuming office corridors, spoon-feeding the elderly. They serve tea, greet company guests and chatter away at public technology displays. Now startups are marching out robotic home helpers.They aren't all humanoid. The Paro is a furry robot seal fitted with sensors beneath its fur and whiskers, designed to comfort the lonely, opening and closing its eyes and moving its flippers.

For Japan, the robotics revolution is an imperative. With more than a fifth of the population 65 or older, the country is banking on robots to replenish the work force and care for the elderly. In the past several years, the government has funded a plethora of robotics-related efforts, including some $42 million for the first phase of a humanoid robotics project, and $10 million a year between 2006 and 2010 to develop key robot technologies.

The government estimates the industry could surge from about $5.2 billion in 2006 to $26 billion in 2010 and nearly $70 billion by 2025. For Hiroshi Ishiguro, also at Osaka University, the key is to make robots that look like human beings. "One day, they will live among us," Ishiguro said. "Then you'd have to ask me: 'Are you human? Or a robot?'"

The Liberal Democrats, who hold the key to the vote, came under pressure to back a proposal for a "double referendum" on both the Lisbon Treaty and whether Britain should remain a member of the EU. An amendment to the Bill paving the way for a two-question referendum has been tabled by the Labour MP Ian Davidson and could unite about 30 rebel Labour MPs, most Tories and some Liberal Democrats - enough to defeat the Government. The Liberal Democrats want an "in or out" referendum on EU membership while the Tories want one on the treaty.

The Tories made a last-minute plea to the Liberal Democrats to honour their 2005 manifesto pledge to back a referendum on the EU constitution, the treaty's forerunner. They said the Government could be defeated if Mr Clegg's party joined them in voting for a public vote. "The LibDems have an absolutely pivotal position," said William Hague, the shadow Foreign Secretary.

The announcement comes a day after the U.S. Defense Department warned that China lacks openness about the buildup of its forces and is posing a threat to the stability of other countries. Jiang Enzhu, a spokesman for China's National People's Congress, or parliament, told reporters that the government will spend 417,769 million yuan (about $58.79 billion) on its military this year, but its aim is purely defensive. "China's limited military capability is solely for the purpose of safeguarding independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and it does not pose a threat to any country," he said.

The U.S. Defense Department on Monday released a report alleging that China spent as much as $139 billion upgrading its military last year, about three times more than it publicly announced. The Pentagon report said some of that spending has gone towards developing a new generation of nuclear submarines, missile technology, fighter aircraft and precision weaponry.

The Pentagon report says China's near-term military aim is to stop moves in Taiwan towards it formally declaring independence. China claims sovereignty over Taiwan and has threatened to attack if the self-governing island declares formal independence. The report says Beijing is developing a number of military options including an air and missile campaign, a blockade and an amphibious invasion of the self-governing democratic island.

Legislature spokesman Jiang declined to say how much of China's military budget is directed at Taiwan, but he made a veiled threat against Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian, whom Beijing regards as a separatist. "We are fully prepared to repulse any activities aimed at Taiwan's independence and to prevent anybody from separating Taiwan from China. If the Chen Shui-bian authorities should stubbornly move down this path they will surely play a dear price," he said.

The U.S. Defense Department report suggests that Beijing is creating a military force which could operate far beyond Taiwan. It also voiced particular concerns about what it says are organized attacks by China's military against computer systems around the world, including government networks. China and the United States have formally agreed to set up a hot line between the two countries' militaries to improve communications. However, in what analysts say is a sign of the increased tensions between the two sides, Beijing has described U.S. allegations of Chinese military espionage as a return to a "Cold War mentality."

A number of economists and banking industry experts believe the subprime crisis could metamorphose into the biggest debacle to hit the sector since the savings and loan catastrophe of the 1980s, which caused some $500 billion in losses to the banking industry. And that means the future of a couple of name-brand financial institutions could be in jeopardy.

"The principal concern of the current credit crisis lies in the possibility that banks will eventually run out of capital," said Doug Duncan, chief economist with the Mortgage Bankers Association, in his updated 2008 forecast. Many believe the government will ultimately step in with a housing industry bailout to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars before it would allow a major bank to collapse.

Some industry analysts and investors see opportunity in the beaten-down financial stocks and battered mortgage-backed securities market. "There are double-A and triple-A subprime-backed securities that have a 25% or 30% collateral cushion below them that are trading at 50 cents on the dollar," Persky said. "This presents one of the best distressed opportunities I've seen in years." Sharon Haas, managing director of Fitch Ratings, admits investors "started to panic" and randomly slashed values on virtually all mortgage-backed securities, even those that aren't at risk. "The market just doesn't know how to value those securities," she said. It had better learn soon, or the price of that education will become astronomical.

According to a new study by France's National Institute of Consumption (INC), prices for foodstuffs rose from between 5% and 48% between November and January. And this after an earlier wave of inflation had already sent many prices up by double digits since July. Michel-Edouard Leclerc - president of the giant Leclerc supermarket chain - said he expects food inflation to continue at a quarterly rate of 4%. Shoppers are reeling: New polls show 81% say their overall purchasing power has shrunk in the past year. Many suspect that corporations are simply using high commodity prices as an excuse for sticking it to consumers. There's ample reason for suspicion.

France's Byzantine laws regulating the food supply create a troubling degree of price obscurity. That haziness, according to some producers - particularly tightly squeezed farmers - allows stores to add markups of over 300% to products bought at cut-rate wholesale prices. That same murkiness, suggests French Secretary of State for Consumption and Tourism Luc Chatel, could be how the recent 30% increase in market prices for milk has sent yogurt prices up by over 25%, even though yogurt's lactic content would justify only a 10% hike.

"I suspect distributors are taking advantage of the situation to further pad their profit margin," comments Pauline Martin, referring to the tight global market for some basic foods. "The increases in prices have been too high, and too general, for there not to be some exploitation at work." Martin's suspicions are widely shared. Although there are signs of food-price inflation throughout the world, right now, French government studies indicate that prices here are, on average, 5% higher than elsewhere in Europe.

On Wednesday, Le Figaro reported France is officially investigating price-fixing allegations against nine European and U.S. household product companies - including Unilever and Procter & Gamble. If found guilty of that offense, those groups could be fined up to 10% of their annual global revenue - a financial sting sure to be compounded if consumers retaliate via boycotts.

People who enrolled in the settlement by this past Friday could be eligible to receive an interim payment later this year. Whitehouse Station, N.J.-based Merck has said it will withdraw from the agreement unless at least 85 percent of people in different groups of claimants join in the settlement.

Those thresholds would be met - and exceed 93 percent of eligible claims in each of four key categories - if all of the more than 44,000 submissions are verified, the company said. "We are very pleased with the large number of enrollments we are seeing and are confident that when the enrollments are verified, all 85 percent thresholds will be met and exceeded within the timeframes in the agreement," Ted Mayer, a lawyer for Merck, said in a statement.

Lawyers for Merck and thousands of people who blamed Vioxx for their heart attacks or strokes announced the settlement in November 2007 during a court hearing in New Orleans. The deal was expected to end an estimated 45,000 to 50,000 state and federal lawsuits. Merck voluntarily pulled Vioxx off the market in 2004 after its own study showed the painkiller doubled the risk of heart attack when taken for at least 18 months. Vioxx accounted for $2.5 billion of Merck's 2003 sales and an estimated 15 percent of the company's profit that year.

Dozens of sex workers marched to demand the decriminalization of adult prostitution, securing social recognition of sex work as a valid profession and establishing sex workers' right to self-determination. The movement started in India in 2001 when 25,000 sex workers mobilized together to raise awareness of the violence directed at sex workers and their lack of rights.

Palestinians say Israel's pilotless planes have been a major weapon in its latest offensive in Gaza, which has killed nearly 120 people since last week. "Our experience is that the drone missile is successful in hitting its targets, and it's deadly," said Dr. Mahmoud Assali, a Palestinian physician who works in the emergency room of a northern Gaza Strip hospital that has often treated Palestinian gunmen hit by Israeli drones. "The drone has a zone of around 15 meters (50 feet) where it decimates everything. It targets people and leaves them in pieces," Assali said. Israel is at the forefront of the drone technology that is increasingly being used in hotspots around the world.

The unmanned craft provide a deadly and cost-effective alternative for armies to target enemies, without risking their own pilots' lives and reducing civilian casualties in heavily populated areas. Damian Kemp, an aviation desk editor at Jane's Defence Weekly, said Israel is probably the first country in the world to use unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, for both surveillance and to fire missiles. Israel is a world leader in the field and "capable of doing everything from the very small to the very large," he said.

He said drones were likely more accurate, cost-effective and safer than manned F-16 fighter jets and Apache helicopters. "The key thing in a UAV is it does missions that are dull, dirty and dangerous," Kemp said. "They can be up there for a long time and in areas where you don't need to put a pilot at risk."

Venezuela also said it was expelling all Colombian diplomats in the wake of the raid, which killed senior Farc rebel Raul Reyes and 16 others. Venezuela and Ecuador have deployed troops to their borders amid calls for restraint led by the head of the UN. Latin American powers including Chile, Mexico and Brazil have offered to mediate in the dispute.

An emergency meeting of the Organisation of American States will be held on Tuesday to discuss the crisis. Farc - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - has been fighting for more than four decades with the declared aim of a fairer wealth distribution in Colombia. They fund themselves largely through the cocaine trade, analysts say, while holding hundreds of kidnapped hostages for ransom and political ends.

Meanwhile, Colombia accused Ecuador and Venezuela of having ties with the Farc and said the rebels had tried to buy uranium. The Colombian authorities said the information had come from documents found during Saturday's raid on the rebel camp in Ecuador. "When they mention negotiations for 50 kilos of uranium, this means that the Farc are taking big steps in the world of terrorism to become a global aggressor. We're not talking of domestic guerrilla but transnational terrorism," said Colombian national police chief Oscar Naranjo at a news conference in Bogota. Other documents showed that President Chavez had provided $300m (£151m) to the Farc, and had received funds from them many years earlier, he said.