BBC World Service

Water supplier Severn Trent rejects a preliminary takeover offer from international investors, saying it fails to recognise the company's value.

Prince Harry has been playing baseball, promoting British tourism and dining with the stars in New York on the fifth day of his US tour.

Four men are given prison sentences in the US state of Minnesota in connection with the recruitment of fighters for a Somali militant group.

Footage has been released of the view from the steel spire at the top of One World Trade Center in New York.

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan declares a state of emergency in three north-eastern states after a spate of deadly attacks by Islamist militants.

Hundreds of refugees who fled to Turkey to escape the conflict in Syria are turning back, following the detonation of two car bombs in the southern town of Reyhanli which left 46 people dead.

The singer pulls out of a show in Antwerp with the venue blaming "dehydration and exhaustion".

Rescue work continues at a US-owned mine in Indonesia's Papua after a cave-in left four people dead and more than 20 others trapped.

How food shortages are dividing Venezuelans

Why have so many Tunisians joined the Syrian Islamists?

More transparency is needed in how natural resources are managed, a report says, as mismanagement and corruption often stops the wealth generated getting to citizens.

Scientists in India unveil a new low-cost vaccine against a diarrhoea virus that kills about half a million children around the world each year.

Japan's Nikkei climbs past 15,000 for the first time since January 2008 as the yen's continued decline is seen boosting earnings potential for Japanese exporters

Moscow's retro spy scandal shows old tricks still in vogue

Mexican authorities are closely monitoring a volcano and preparing for possible evacuations after it begin blowing steam on Tuesday morning.

Officials in Belize say a construction company has destroyed one of the country's largest Mayan pyramids.

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has declared a state of emergency in three states after a series of deadly attacks by Islamist militant groups.

US President Barack Obama says the federal tax agency's targeting of conservative groups for extra scrutiny was "intolerable and inexcusable".

Boeing says it has resumed deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner, after two incidents involving the lithium ion batteries led to a worldwide grounding.

US Attorney General Eric Holder says the leak that prompted the seizure of the Associated Press news agency's phone records put the US at risk.