Germany's chancellor apparently waded into Greece's choppy political waters today, with Athens saying Angela Merkel suggested that the country should hold a referendum on the euro together with next month's national elections. Related StoriesVladimir Putin gives top government job to tank factory workerGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including Santander

18 May 2012 | 2:41 pm

Greece to dissolve parliament for new election

Greece's day-old Parliament held its last session today to allow for new elections next month that are being cast as a decision on whether to keep the country in the 17-nation eurozone — even if that means accepting a deeply unpopular austerity programme.Related StoriesVladimir Putin gives top government job to tank factory workerGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 12:03 pm

Greece to dissolve Parliament for new election

Greece's day-old Parliament held its last session today to allow for new elections next month that are being cast as a decision on whether to keep the country in the 17-nation eurozone — even if that means accepting a deeply unpopular austerity programme. Related StoriesVladimir Putin gives top government job to tank factory workerGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 12:03 pm

Malawi's new president to repeal ban on gay sex

Malawi's new president says she will repeal the country's ban on homosexual acts. Related StoriesCharles Taylor claims West rigged his trial at The HagueSomaliland court sentences 17 to death for attack on military base

18 May 2012 | 9:34 am

Rockets kill 2 Nato troops and 3 Afghan civilians

Rockets crashed into a US base and a house Friday in a remote area of northeast Afghanistan along the Pakistan border, killing two Nato service members and three civilians, officials said.Related StoriesUludere drone attack sparks claims Kurdish civilians are being targeted by Turkish armySwimming challenge: All at sea and out on a limb – but he doesn't mindSpecial Report: Helmand deaths prompt security rethink34 dead as bus plunges off bridge into river in VietnamBriton arrested in Thailand after being found with six roasted human foetuses

18 May 2012 | 9:32 am

Spain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including Santander

The flames of the eurozone crisis leapt higher yesterday, as fears spread about the state of the Continent's most vulnerable banks.Related StoriesVladimir Putin gives top government job to tank factory workerGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 9:00 am

Europe rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including Santander

The flames of the eurozone crisis leapt higher yesterday, as fears spread about the state of the Continent's most vulnerable banks.Related StoriesVladimir Putin gives top government job to tank factory workerGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 9:00 am

Vladimir Putin gives top government job to tank factory worker

Russian president Vladimir Putin today gave a senior government post to a tank factory worker who had offered to come to Moscow with fellow laborers to disperse opposition protests. Related StoriesGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 8:23 am

Briton arrested in Thailand after being found with six roasted human foetuses

A British citizen in Bangkok has been arrested after Thai police found six roasted human foetuses packed in his luggage.Related StoriesUludere drone attack sparks claims Kurdish civilians are being targeted by Turkish armySwimming challenge: All at sea and out on a limb – but he doesn't mindSpecial Report: Helmand deaths prompt security rethink34 dead as bus plunges off bridge into river in VietnamRockets kill 2 Nato troops and 3 Afghan civilians

18 May 2012 | 7:19 am

Five dead and 37 injured in Baghdad bird market bomb blasts

Three bombs struck near simultaneously at a busy bird market in eastern Baghdad this morning, killing five people and wounding dozens, police and health officials said. Related StoriesTurkey's war on militants leaves Kurdish community feeling under fire Syria's opposition on the brink as activists criticise lack of leadershipUS has plan to attack Iran over nuclear threatIsrael wants Olympic silence for Munich

18 May 2012 | 6:31 am

Documents show Trayvon Martin was shot through the heart and George Zimmerman suffered broken nose

Trayvon Martin was shot through the heart at close range and George Zimmerman had a broken nose, bruises and cuts on the back of his head, new documents show.Related StoriesCanadian police wait on suspect gem eater's next moveRevealed: Bin Laden's lair in miniatureZimmerman 'found with bloody nose'Revealed: Osama Bin Laden's lair in miniatureGeorge Zimmerman 'found with bloody nose'

18 May 2012 | 5:00 am

David Cameron to meet new French President François Hollande for first time at G8 summit

David Cameron will hold his first face-to-face talks with Francois Hollande today as they join world leaders in the US for a G8 summit set to be dominated by the eurozone crisis.Related StoriesGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 5:00 am

Europe rocked by Spanish banking crisis

The flames of the eurozone crisis leapt higher yesterday, as fears spread about the state of the Continent's most vulnerable banks.Related StoriesGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 5:00 am

David Cameron to tell Angela Merkel she is the only person who can save euro

David Cameron will today press the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, to come to the rescue of Greece and other ailing European economies or risk the collapse of the single currency.Related StoriesGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 5:00 am

Prosecution error sees Ratko Mladic trial delayed for months

After waiting nearly 20 years for the war crimes and genocide trial of Ratko Mladic, the families of his alleged victims will have to wait some months more after the judge at the special court for the former Yugoslavia in the Hague yesterday suspended proceedings indefinitely after it transpired that the prosecution had failed to release thousands of documents to defence lawyers.Related StoriesGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 4:00 am

Eurozone crisis: Don't panic – yet... Our expert guide to the coming storm

Q. If Greece does leave the euro, what will this mean for other indebted eurozone economies?

18 May 2012 | 4:00 am

George Zimmerman 'found with bloody nose'

A Florida neighbourhood watch volunteer who shot an unarmed black teenager had a bloody nose and a cut on his head, according to police reports.Related StoriesCanadian police wait on suspect gem eater's next moveRevealed: Bin Laden's lair in miniatureZimmerman 'found with bloody nose'Documents show Trayvon Martin was shot through the heart and George Zimmerman suffered broken noseRevealed: Osama Bin Laden's lair in miniature

18 May 2012 | 4:00 am

34 dead as bus plunges off bridge into river in Vietnam

A crowded overnight bus plunged off a bridge into a river in central Vietnam, killing 34 passengers and injuring 21 others in one of the country's deadliest road accidents. Related StoriesUludere drone attack sparks claims Kurdish civilians are being targeted by Turkish armySwimming challenge: All at sea and out on a limb – but he doesn't mindSpecial Report: Helmand deaths prompt security rethinkBriton arrested in Thailand after being found with six roasted human foetusesRockets kill 2 Nato troops and 3 Afghan civilians

18 May 2012 | 3:49 am

Russian defense plant worker convicted over passing on missile secrets

A court says it has convicted a Russian defense company worker of passing missile secrets to foreign intelligence. Related StoriesGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 3:16 am

Pre-school children of the world despair as Wiggles trio call time on 21-year career

To the uninitiated, the four Australian middle-aged men in rollneck sweaters do not look like multimillionaire performers with the capacity to sell out Madison Square Garden 12 nights in a row.Related StoriesThe Wiggles to hand over to next generation

18 May 2012 | 3:00 am

Revealed: Osama Bin Laden's lair in miniature

The once top-secret scale model of Osama bin Laden's hideout in Pakistan used to plan the raid that killed the al-Qa'ida chief has been revealed at the Pentagon in Washington.Related StoriesCanadian police wait on suspect gem eater's next moveRevealed: Bin Laden's lair in miniatureZimmerman 'found with bloody nose'Documents show Trayvon Martin was shot through the heart and George Zimmerman suffered broken noseGeorge Zimmerman 'found with bloody nose'

18 May 2012 | 3:00 am

David Cameron to meet François Hollande for first time at G8 summit

David Cameron will hold his first face-to-face talks with Francois Hollande today as they join world leaders in the US for a G8 summit set to be dominated by the eurozone crisis. Related StoriesGreece to dissolve Parliament for new electionGreece to dissolve parliament for new electionEurope rocked by Spanish financial crisis as Moody's downgrades 16 banks including SantanderSpain crisis rocks Europe as Moody's downgrades banks including SantanderMerkel suggests Greek euro referendum

18 May 2012 | 2:00 am

Israel wants Olympic silence for Munich

Israel urged the international community yesterday to overturn the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) “unacceptable” rejection of its request for a minute’s silence during London 2012 in memory of the 11 athletes murdered at the 1972 Munich games. Related StoriesTurkey's war on militants leaves Kurdish community feeling under fire Syria's opposition on the brink as activists criticise lack of leadershipUS has plan to attack Iran over nuclear threatFive dead and 37 injured in Baghdad bird market bomb blasts

17 May 2012 | 7:01 pm

Special Report: Helmand deaths prompt security rethink

Vetting procedures for Afghan security personnel in Helmand are being tightened after the killing of two members of the British forces by policemen, The Independent has learnt.Related StoriesUludere drone attack sparks claims Kurdish civilians are being targeted by Turkish armySwimming challenge: All at sea and out on a limb – but he doesn't mind34 dead as bus plunges off bridge into river in VietnamBriton arrested in Thailand after being found with six roasted human foetusesRockets kill 2 Nato troops and 3 Afghan civilians

17 May 2012 | 7:01 pm

Zimmerman 'found with bloody nose'

A Florida neighbourhood watch volunteer who shot an unarmed black teenager had a bloody nose and a cut on his head, according to police reports.Related StoriesCanadian police wait on suspect gem eater's next moveRevealed: Bin Laden's lair in miniatureDocuments show Trayvon Martin was shot through the heart and George Zimmerman suffered broken noseRevealed: Osama Bin Laden's lair in miniatureGeorge Zimmerman 'found with bloody nose'

17 May 2012 | 7:00 pm