GAZA - In what looked ever more like civil war, the forces of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas battled supporters of the Islamist prime minister across Gaza.
At least 27 people were killed and 70 wounded, hospital officials said, takingto 47 the number of dead in the coastal enclave since Saturday. Early on Tuesday, the Gaza homes of both Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas were fired on.
The European Union said there was an imminent risk of civil war if fighting went on, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged support for Abbas's efforts "to restore law and order".
SYDNEY - Prison inmates in the NSW Hunter region are helping in the clean-up after the storms and floods that have ravaged the area.
NSW Attorney-General John Hatzistergos says 28 minimum security prisoners from Cessnock and St Heliers correctional centres are assisting council workers at Singleton.
The hunt for missing British girl Madeleine McCann is moving to the virtual world.
Missing person signs featuring the four-year-old are visible throughout the incredibly popular virtual community site Second Life.
Police investigators are planning to feature images of the girl, who disappeared without trace in Portugal nearly six weeks ago, throughout virtual society, said Jim Gamble of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre.
