UK - A steel-cutting ceremony at Govan shipyard later will mark the beginning of construction of two new aircraft carriers, military vessels that stir emotions among supporters and opponents alike. What is it about aircraft carriers?
GENEVA - The Group of Eight nations should not presume a global economic recovery is near, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said in a letter to G8 host Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi obtained by Reuters on Monday.
CHINA - Violence in China's restive western region of Xinjiang has left at least 140 people dead and more than 800 people injured, state media say. Several hundred people were arrested after a protest, in the city of Urumqi on Sunday, turned violent.
RUSSIA - The United States and Russia have agreed a deal to cut back their stockpiles of nuclear weapons. US President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev reached the agreement during talks in Moscow.
USA - The first thing you need to know about Goldman Sachs is that it's everywhere. The world's most powerful investment bank is a great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money.
IRAN - Iran is ready to take "real and decisive" action if Israel attacks its nuclear facilities, a senior Iranian parliamentary official said Monday. The remarks by Alaeddin Broujerdi, the head of Iran's parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy, came after US Vice President Joe Biden signaled that Washington would not try to prevent any such Israeli assault.
UK - What is probably the oldest known Bible is being digitised, reuniting its scattered parts for the first time since its discovery 160 years ago. It is markedly different from its modern equivalent. What's left out?
UK - About 800 pages of the earliest surviving Christian Bible have been recovered and put on the internet. Visitors to the website www.codexsinaiticus.org can now see images of more than half of the 1,600-year-old Codex Sinaiticus manuscript.
UK - The UK is to spend £1bn a year in overseas aid on countries that have recently emerged from conflict. The money will target security and job creation rather than traditional areas such as health and education. International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander is expected to unveil the move in a White Paper on Monday.
USA/VATICAN - US President Barack OBAMA IS TURNING TO THE POPE TO BACK HIS VISION OF A NEW ARAB STATE in all of Judea and Samaria and eastern Jerusalem.
USA/ISRAEL - The US will not stand in Israel's way if Israel believes military action is needed to eliminate Iran's nuclear threat, Vice President Joe Biden said on Sunday, during an interview with ABC's 'This Week.'
ISRAEL - The head of Mossad, Israel's overseas intelligence service, has assured Benjamin Netanyahu, its prime minister, that Saudi Arabia would turn a blind eye to Israeli jets flying over the kingdom during any future raid on Iran's nuclear sites.
BEIJING - Flooding and heavy rain in southern China have forced 400,000 people to evacuate their homes and killed at least 15, Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.
IRAN - A group of clerics in Iran has called Iran's presidential vote invalid, contradicting official results. The pro-reform group's statement pits it against the top legislative body, which last week formally endorsed the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
UK - Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone has spoken of his preference for totalitarian regimes over democracies and praised Adolf Hitler for his ability to "get things done." In an interview with The Times published Saturday, the 78-year-old said current lawmakers were weak.