A decision on the fate of Australian WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will be made within 24 hours, Ecuador's deputy foreign minister Marco Albuja said on Thursday.

The US military said Wednesday "poor judgement" allowed an instructor to present inflammatory anti-Islamic material in a course for senior officers.

England manager Roy Hodgson has brushed off concerns over the form and fitness of Wayne Rooney after the striker's ring-rusty comeback in the victory over Ukraine.

England manager Roy Hodgson has praised his squad's burgeoning team spirit as they prepare for the challenge of Sunday's Euro 2012 quarter-final showdown with Italy.

England will step up their penalty-taking practice as they enter the Euro 2012 knockout rounds desperate to atone for repeated failures in shoot-outs, manager Roy Hodgson has revealed.

The US government offered up new areas of the central Gulf of Mexico for drilling for the first time since the 2010 BP oil spill and received $1.7 billion in winning bids, officials said Wednesday.

Anglo-Dutch group Shell will soon be allowed to resume oil exploration off the coast of French Guiana, lawmakers from the overseas French department said Wednesday.

Romania's former prime minister Adrian Nastase attempted suicide Wednesday, hours after the Supreme Court threw out his appeal against a two-year jail sentence over corruption.

The National Basketball Association finals are a battle of attrition and no team understands this better than the Miami Heat.

Living Social, the number two US online deals firm, indicated Wednesday it had no immediate plans for an initial public offering, saying it had sufficient funds to expand its operations.

A court date for the man who confessed to killing six-year-old Etan Patz in New York City in 1979 has been postponed for three months, the office of the Manhattan district attorney said Wednesday.

Even with its highly publicized launch of a new tablet computer, Microsoft is expected to have little impact this year on the fast-growing market, a research firm said Wednesday.

Italy's Francesca Schiavone reached the quarterfinals at 's-Hertogenbosch on Wednesday, saving eight match points in her 6-2, 2-6, 7-6 (10/8) win over Romania's Irina-Camelia Begu.

Iran's uranium enrichment effort has picked up speed and Tehran could produce enough fissile material needed for a nuclear weapon within four months, experts told US lawmakers on Wednesday.

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari has nominated textile industry minister Makhdoom Shahabuddin as the new prime minister, state television reported on Thursday.

A Burundian court sentenced a journalist and 13 others to life in prison on terrorism charges Wednesday for a November attack launched from across the Tanzanian border, a ruling criticised by media watchdogs.

Sony on Wednesday launched a shooter title PlayStation 3 (PS3) users can play in an unprecedented blend of hard-core console and free casual gaming.

Romania's former prime minister Adrian Nastase attempted suicide Wednesday, hours after the Supreme Court threw out his appeal against a two-year jail sentence over corruption, prosecutors said.

Fresh clashes broke out on Wednesday in an area of northern Nigeria already under a round-the-clock curfew after three previous days of attacks and reprisal violence killed at least 101 people.

Portuguese defender Pepe is not renowned for his discipline on the pitch but it is no coincidence that their progress to the Euro 2012 quarter-finals has been helped no end by the restraint he has shown here.

Injured midfielder Blaise Matuidi is a doubt for France's Euro 2012 quarter-final against holders Spain in Donetsk on Saturday, coach Laurent Blanc revealed on Wednesday.

The Israeli government and residents of an outpost neighbourhood agreed on the peaceful evacuation of five buildings ahead of an imminent demolition order, a Wednesday statement from the premier's office read.

A US House panel voted along party lines Wednesday to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress for failure to turn over Justice Department documents tied to a gun-running probe.

Anglo-Dutch group Shell will soon be allowed to resume oil exploration off the coast of French Guiana, lawmakers from the overseas French department said Wednesday.

Several thousand New Yorkers calmly invaded Times Square Wednesday, transforming it into an immense outdoor yoga class to salute the arrival of summer.

World leaders gathered in Rio on Wednesday weighed steps to root out poverty and protect the environment as UN chief Ban Ki-moon warned that "time is not on our side" for fixing a mounting list of problems.

Mike Dunlap, whose 32 years in coaching include a three-year stint with Australia's Adelaide 36ers, was named coach of the NBA Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday.

New US Open champion Webb Simpson is making a quick PGA return this week, joining fellow reigning US major champions Bubba Watson and Keegan Bradley at the Travelers Championship.

UEFA's chief refereeing officer Pierluigi Collina on Wednesday said that a Ukraine effort ruled out against England in their final Euro 2012 Group D match for not crossing the goal line should have been given.

All 1,800 firms listed on the London Stock Exchange's Main Market will be required to list their greenhouse-gas emissions from next April, British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said at the Rio+20 summit on Wednesday.

The Washington Wizards strengthened their lineup by obtaining forwards Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza in a trade with the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday for forward Rashard Lewis and a draft pick.

The military wing of Hamas said late on Wednesday it had agreed to an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire with Israel, after three days of bloodshed in and around Gaza.

America's Brian Baker, who lost six years of his career to an assortment of injuries, continued his impressive comeback on Wednesday when he qualified for Wimbledon for the first time.

Microsoft on Wednesday ramped up its push to regain ground in the precious mobile computing market by giving developers a "sneak peek" at new Windows software for smartphones.

US officials Wednesday upped pressure on Congress to scrap a decades-old law imposing trade restrictions on Moscow and predicted Russia could complete legal moves to join the WTO by late August.

Crude oil prices tanked Wednesday as investors weighed a worrying increase in US stockpiles and disappointment that the Federal Reserve did not announce a big, new economic stimulus.

Centre-back Giorgio Chiellini was on Wednesday ruled out of Italy's Euro 2012 quarter-final against England in Kiev.

Spain insisted Wednesday it had no need of a full-blown bailout even though its borrowing costs were hovering near danger levels and a vast rescue loomed for its stricken banks.

US President Barack Obama has opened up a double-digit lead over Mitt Romney in a national poll released Wednesday, even as a majority of respondents say the country is on the wrong track.

The Federal Reserve unleashed a fresh wave of economic stimulus Wednesday in another gambit to tackle subpar US jobs growth, and predicted a slower output expansion amid the crisis in Europe.

The UN said Wednesday that people displaced by deadly cross-border raids in western Ivory Coast are afraid to go home, as Liberia denied launching an ethnic witch-hunt over the attacks.

Paulo Bento said he won't be changing his tactics as his Portugal team take on the Czech Republic in the Euro 2012 quarter-finals here on Thursday.

A Texas appeals court on Wednesday cleared the way for DNA testing on 19-year old evidence asked for by death row inmate Hank Skinner, who faces execution for bludgeoning his girlfriend to death and fatally stabbing two of her children.

Egypt's election commission delayed the announcement of presidential results scheduled for Thursday, as tension spiked over who will succeed ailing ousted president Hosni Mubarak after moves by the ruling military to extend powers.

All Blacks matchwinner Dan Carter is out of Saturday's third Test against Ireland in a revamped side that also features Richie McCaw moving to the backrow.

President Barack Obama asserted executive privilege Wednesday in withholding documents in a gun-running probe, sharpening a battle between the White House and foes in Congress over citing Attorney General Eric Holder for contempt.

Yemeni security forces carried out air strikes in which 30 suspected Al-Qaeda militants were reported killed in the south of the country on Wednesday and said they foiled a plot to attack embassies.

Feng Shanshan, coming off the first major triumph for a Chinese golfer, will try to continue her success starting Thursday at the inaugural $1.3 million Manulife Financial LPGA Classic.

Czech Republic coach Michal Bilek says his team must stop Cristiano Ronaldo running at them or he will be "impossible" to stop.

Israel's state watchdog on Wednesday criticised a number of cabinet members in a report on the country's worst ever fire that killed 44 people as it swept through a northern forest in late 2010.