Washington

Trade between the United States and Africa fell during 2002, weighed down by a decline in US exports of transportation goods and a decrease in energy exports from Africa, according to a US report. In 2002, US-sub-Saharan merchandise trade totalled ,1-billion, down from ,8-billion in 2001.

Fear that ”terrorists” might set off a dirty bomb prompted United States authorities to raise the country’s level of alert to ”orange” or high. Based on experts’ belief that al-Qaeda may attempt to set off a dirty bomb during the end-of-year celebrations, scores of nuclear scientists with detection equipment travelled to five major cities.

Under US interrogation, former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein has so far denied leading or planning attacks in Iraq and the existence of weapons of mass destruction, The New York Times newspaper said on Tuesday.

For a president who invaded and occupied two foreign countries in his first term, the question being asked at the White House was: where next? The moon, apparently. With election season underway, George Bush’s advisers are looking for a grand scheme for the president to launch, to help reinforce his image as a decisive leader with big ideas.

The United States Congress was on the verge on Monday of approving the first law aimed at curbing the onslaught of unsolicited e-mail, or spam, but reactions from the technology community were mixed.

The United States on Monday tried to tamp down controversy over a two-million-dollar bounty for former Liberian president Charles Taylor, suggesting the money might not be used as a reward for his capture. The State Department said it was discussing what to do with the money.

In a dramatic legal reversal, a US federal court judge in Houston, Texas, has overturned the conviction of a former CIA agent who has spent 20 years in jail for trafficking high explosives to Libya, it emerged on Wednesday.

The polar ice cap is melting at an alarming rate due to global warming, according to Nasa scientists, with satellite images showing the ice cap has been shrinking by 10 percent per decade over the past quarter century.

Kim Yong seemed to have it all. He was a trusted lieutenant colonel in a North Korean police agency and worked for a company that exported fish to Japan. Then one day, North Korean authorities learned that Kim had been living for decades under an assumed name. Kim was immediately sent to a detention facility.

Rapper LL Cool J joined entertainment executives on Tuesday in defending the music industry’s lawsuits against hundreds of internet users who illegally distribute music online. ”My question is, if a contractor builds a building, should people be allowed to move into the building for free?”

When Pablo Picasso was 27 he spent the summer in a village in his native Spain, drawing and painting odd angles and curves that looked only a bit like his beautiful French mistress. They ended up helping inspire the cubism that defined his career.

U2 rocker and activist Bono has told President George Bush of his fears of seeing the United States fall down on its promise to finance the battle against Aids. ”I can get very angry,” Bono said to reporters. The president in January promised -billion to fight Aids over the coming five years, mostly in Africa.

On the eve of the second anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, President George Bush is embarking on two days of events in which he will claim progress in bolstering the United States against future attacks.

A federal programme created to monitor the health of rescuers who worked at the World Trade Centre site after the September 11 attacks in 2001 has found thousands still suffering from asthma, pneumonia, bronchitis and depression.

President George W. Bush has announced he will seek -billion to cover military operations and reconstruction in Iraq and Afghanistan over the next year. He said military and intelligence operations would cost -billion over the next year.