The reunion between Jaycee Lee Dugard and her family 18 years after she was kidnapped has given the parents of Madeline McCann new hope in the search for their daughter. Before this week, Ms Dugard, now 29, had not been seen by her family since she was bundled into a car outside their home in Lake Tahoe, California, in 1991. Kate and Gerry McCann have not seen Madeleine since she disappeared from their villa in Praia da Luz, Portugal, more than two years ago aged three.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 17:30:00

Gordon Brown and Asif Ali Zardari are holding talks in order to improve UK-Pakistani counterterrorism strategies. The UK prime minister and Pakistani president held talks earlier this year to announce new joint initiatives to prevent the spread of extremism and terrorism. Mr Zardari's visit to No 10 today, part of a three-day trip to Europe, comes as Islamabad calls for greater help from the west in securing its border with Afghanistan.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:15:00

The incoming head of the British army has made Afghanistan and modernising UK forces his top priorities in the post. General Sir David Richards today takes over as chief of the general staff from General Sir Richard Dannatt. Gen Richards, the former head of Nato's International Security Assistance Force, had previously courted controversy by predicting UK troops could be in Afghanistan for the next four decades.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:01:00

Japan's government has been hit by two separate economic bombshells ahead of Sunday's general election. On Friday new data showed that unemployment had reached a post-war high, while deflation continued apace to its worst-ever level. Official figures revealed that in July 5.7 per cent of Japan's workforce was unemployed, although analysts say the way the government collates the data means the real figure could be much higher. Nevertheless, the country's jobless rate has now risen by 40.2 per cent in a year.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:00:00

The UK economy contracted by 0.7 per cent in the second quarter in a better than expected fall. Analyst had predicted GDP would shrink by 0.8 per cent in April to June. The revised figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said year-on-year the economy fell by 5.5 per cent, a 0.1 point improvement on analyst expectations.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 12:00:00

Barack Obama's most senior diplomat in Afghanistan has shared "sharp exchanges" with the country's president over alleged fraud in last week's elections. Diplomatic sources have indicated that when Richard Holbrooke complained about widespread election fraud to Hamid Karzai the Afghan president reacted angrily, deteriorating into a shouting match that the US envoy stormed out of. A senior US official told CNN there had been a "back and forth".

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 11:00:00

Thousands of people 'disappear' every year around the world and human rights groups have today called for something to be done. This Sunday will mark the International Day of the Disappeared, with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Amnesty International both highlighting the importance of the occasion. Amnesty has taken its fight to Westminster, where it has called on the government to sign up to the UN Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances. Meanwhile the ICRC has highlighted the plight of the Gulf region, where it says hundreds of thousands of people need help to find missing loved ones.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 11:00:00

The mother of a UFO enthusiast facing extradition to the US on charges of hacking into government computers has made an impassioned direct appeal to Barack Obama to intervene in the case. Gary McKinnon has been told by the home secretary and director of public prosecutions he cannot be tried in the UK and he must be extradited. The Pentagon accuses him of hacking into military computers in the aftermath of September 11th 2001 and deleting sensitive information, but Mr McKinnon, who suffers from Asperger syndrome says he was just looking for information on UFOs.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 11:00:00

A woman kidnapped 18 years ago as an 11-year-old has turned up alive in San Francisco. Police said they were certain the 29-year-old woman was Jaycee Lee Dugard, who was snatched from outside her home in California in 1991. A convicted paedophile and his wife have been arrested over her reappearance. It is thought Phillip Garrido kidnapped Ms Dugard, made her live in a series of sheds and tents in his backyard in complete isolation and fathered two children with her.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 10:30:00

A football fan stabbed before the stormy West Ham v Millwall Carling Cup tie this week has been described as an "innocent family man". Police said the unnamed 43-year-old and ten family members, all Millwall fans, had arrived at the wrong entrance at Upton Park before being pursued by a "large group" of West Ham supporters. The man and his two teenage sons, who along with the rest of the group were not wearing any team colours, were punched and kicked as they fled along nearby Tudor Road.

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 10:30:00