Ecuador's president has denounced a "coup attempt" after mass protests by members of the security forces against his government's austerity programme.
After being forced to flee a rally at a barracks in Quito, Rafael Correa said "the opposition and sections of the armed forces and police" were to blame.
Mr Correa said they would have to kill him first to achieve their goals.
Thirty-three miners trapped underground in Chile for nearly two months could be out sooner than thought.
Rescuers digging to reach the men say one of their drills has cut through 50m (164ft) of rock in 24 hours.
At that rate they could be ready to bring the men to the surface by the middle of October.
But they have warned that they could yet run into problems, and the government still says it could take until early November to get them out.
One of the three drills digging rescue shafts - the T-130 - has now penetrated more than 300m (984ft) of the 630m (2,066ft) of rock separating the miners from the surface.
"This headway is some of the best we have had and it is due to the better continuity we have had with this drill," Andrew Sougarret, the head of the rescue operation, said.
"We have reached 300m, which is the area where we have had the most unfavourable geological conditions, so hopefully we can think about maintaining this rhythm of drilling."
A cage specially built to help rescue 33 men trapped underground in a mine in Chile has arrived at the mine head.
The steel capsule will be used to pull the men to safety one by one, once a rescue shaft wide enough to haul them up has been drilled.
Relatives of the miners were allowed to get into the narrow cage, which is little more than 50cm (20in) wide.
It is expected to take between 20-30 minutes to pull each miner up from their shelter at a depth of 700m.
It all started with a “yes”. On 12 October 1810 Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria (the future King Ludwig I) and Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen exchanged their marriage vows, thus kicking off a mega-bash that culminated five days later with a spirited horse race. The party was such a rip-roaring success that the Munich magistrate decided that it warranted an annual repeat performance.
Over time, many other traditions were added. Carnival booths appeared in 1816, the folk costume and riflemen's parade followed in 1835, while the brewers first paraded in 1887. And since 1950, the Oktoberfest has officially opened with the tapping of the first keg by the Munich mayor.
And so it will be again this year. At noon on 18 September 2010, Mayor Christian Ude will launch the world's biggest collective drink-up with the magic words: O'zapft ist! (It is tapped!). For the next 17 days, more than six million normally prim and sober citizens from every country in the world will descend upon the Theresienwiese festival grounds (Wiesn, for short) to guzzle towering mugs of beer and engage in good cheer and outright debauchery. This year is the 200th anniversary of the tankard-clinking marathon and the city of Munich has come up with some unique ways to mark the occasion.
For a primer on the Oktoberfest, report to the Münchner Stadtmuseum (Munich City Museum; www.stadtmuseum-online.de), where a special exhibit tracks its evolution from Bavarian royal wedding gala to beery extravaganza. There are plenty of fun displays, like the oldest beer keg, an epic painting that graced the festival entrance on the 100th anniversary, and fancy dirndl (traditional women's dress) designs through the ages.
La celebración del 28 Maratón Internacional de la Ciudad de México desquicia el tránsito vehicular en la zona centro y poniente de la capital del país.
Con la participación de más de 15 mil atletas, a las 7:15 horas inició la carrera en la avenida 20 de Noviembre, con un dispositivo para garantizar la seguridad de corredores y público en general.
La ruta de 42 kilómetros que siguen los competidores esta mañana nublada y de escasos espectadores comprende 20 de Noviembre, José María Pino Suárez, Doctor Río de la Loza, Chapultepec, Sevilla, Thiers, Ejército Nacional, Homero, Horacio, Presidente Masaryk y cruzará la Segunda Sección del Bosque de Chapultepec.
Los maratonistas continuarán por Salamanca, Durango, Oaxaca, Tamaulipas y Alfonso Reyes para incorporarse al Circuito Bicentenario, Revolución, Río Mixcoac y regresarán por Insurgentes Sur, Avenida Juárez, Eje Central Lázaro Cárdenas e Izazaga, para volver a la Plaza de la Constitución.
Además de esas calles, las autoridades capitalinas mantienen cerradas al tránsito vehicular avenidas como Juárez, Hidalgo y el Paseo de la Reforma.
Israeli scientists believe they have identified why Arabic is particularly hard to learn to read.
The University of Haifa team say people use both sides of their brain when they begin reading a language - but when learning Arabic this is wasting effort.
The detail of Arabic characters means students should use only the left side of their brain because that side is better at distinguishing detail.
The findings from the study of 40 people are reported in Neuropsychology.
When someone learns to read Arabic they have to work out which letters are which, and which ones go with which sounds.
It is the ability to tell letters apart that seems to work differently in Arabic - because telling the characters apart involves looking at very small details such as the placement of dots.
Professor Zohar Eviatar, who led the research team, said: "The particular characteristics of Arabic make it hard for the right hemisphere to be involved. When you are starting something new, there is a lot of [right hemisphere] involvement."
BEAVERTON, Ore. - A homeless man who called 911 from the hot tub of a suburban Portland, Oregon home and asked for towels, hot chocolate and a hug.
He didn't get any of those items — he got arrested for trespassing instead.
Beaverton police say Mark Eskelsen called 911 from his cellphone, identified himself as "the sheriff of Washington County," and asked for medical help.
He later admitted he wasn't the sheriff but informed the dispatcher he'd been in the water about 10 hours and his towels had gotten wet.
As he put it, "I just need a hug and a warm cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows in it."
The Oregonian newspaper says arriving officers arrested Eskelsen for investigation of second-degree criminal trespass and improper use of 911.
