TEHERAN - A BOMB blast at a Shi'ite mosque in the south-eastern Iranian city of Zahedan on Thursday killed at least 19 worshippers and wounded 80 others, the official Irna news agency reported.

The evening explosion struck the Amir al-Momenin mosque in Zahedan, the restive capital of Sistan-Baluchestan province, which has a substantial Sunni minority, it said.

MIAMI- A POPULAR US Roman Catholic priest photographed frolicking with a woman on a Florida beach announced on Thursday he had joined the Episcopal Church to pursue the priesthood in a faith that allows married clergy.

The charismatic 40-year-old is a well-known religious leader in Miami who dispensed relationship advice on Spanish-language television shows, church radio programs and newspaper columns.

NEW YORK - BRITAIN'S Prince Harry will start his first official visit to America on Friday, with plans to see the World Trade Centre site, meetings with wounded veterans and a polo match.

Third in line to the British throne, the 24-year-old red-haired prince is a much-watched member of the royal family on both sides of the Atlantic. His party-boy image, romantic escapades and brushes with scandal regularly make newspaper headlines.