DUBLIN - HUNDREDS of fans on Saturday gathered in Dublin for the funeral of Boyzone star Stephen Gately, paying the singer an emotional farewell one week after his death at the age of 33 shocked the pop world.
His bandmates, friends and family packed into St Lawrence O'Toole's church near Gately's home in the north of the Irish capital for the funeral service, while outside tearful crowds held white roses and left flowers in tribute.
MALE (Maldives) - THE Maldives' government on Saturday held an underwater cabinet meeting in a bid to focus global attention on rising sea levels that threaten to submerge the island nation.
President Mohamed Nasheed plunged first into the Indian Ocean followed by his ministers, all clad in scuba gear, for the nationally televised meeting in this archipelago known as an idyllic holiday getaway for the rich.
TEHERAN - IRAN'S Martyr Foundation said on Saturday it will declare Neda Agha-Soltan a martyr if is proven that an enemy of the state caused the young woman's death during a protest rally after the June election.
'The pictures seem to show that Neda Agha-Soltan's death was the result of a plot by opponents and the enemy,' ILNA news agency quoted Masoud Zaribafan, head of the state-run foundation, as saying. 'If this is confirmed by the intelligence ministry... her family must be somehow covered by the foundation,' Mr Zaribafan said.
WASHINGTON - THE US government closed its 2009 fiscal year with a record US$1.417 trillion (S$1.9 trillion) budget deficit as it poured resources to contain a serious financial crisis that plunged the nation into recession.
The deficit was some $962 billion higher than the prior year and amounted to 10 per cent of US gross on Friday.
