LONDON -- There is no evidence that Prince Phillip ordered the assassination of England's Princess Diana, the lead coroner at her inquest said."There is no evidence that the Duke of Edinburgh ordered Diana's execution and there is no evidence that the secret intelligence service or any other government agency organized it," said Scott Baker, the coroner at the inquest examining the death of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed.Baker told the jury simply that the accident ... [full story]

HARARE, Zimbabwe -- Claims of vote rigging have been raised in Zimbabwe's elections as results began being announced Monday.The delay prompted speculation about irregularities after the Movement for Democratic Change said its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, defeated incumbent Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF, Business Day reported.In Harare, unofficial reports indicate Tsvangirai won 55 percent of the vote in the presidential race, against 37 percent for Mugabe and 5 percent for independent candidate Simba Makoni.Elections in the 24 parliamentary ... [full story]

KATHMANDU, Nepal -- The Nepalese government, facing anti-China protests by its Tibetan exiles, dismissed reports Chinese security agents are deployed on its territory.The official denial came after authorities in the Himalayan kingdom, which has been facing daily protests, arrested more than 120 Tibetans Sunday after they allegedly tried to storm the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu, the Press Trust of India reported.The Nepalese Foreign Ministry called the reports that Chinese security agents have been deployed on ... [full story]

BEIJING -- China, concerned about the Dalai Lama's Tibetan government-in-exile in India, has sought New Delhi's "understanding" and "support" for its stand on the issue.In a telephone conversation, Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo briefed India's National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan on the Tibetan unrest and "expressed the hope that India would continue to show understanding and support to China," the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.The Xinhua report quoted Narayanan as saying, "Tibet is part of ... [full story]

BEIJING -- China has expressed "strong dissatisfaction" with the European Union's weekend statement on Tibet.The 27 EU foreign ministers meeting in Slovenia expressed concern regarding the Tibetan unrest stemming from demonstrations against Chinese rule of their homeland, and called for talks between China and Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, who has lived in exile in India since 1959."The Tibet issue is completely China's internal affairs. No foreign countries or international organizations have the right ... [full story]

Looking out for No. 1, Julianna Margulies made it known through a network of agents that she was ready and willing to work, but any involvement with a dramatic television series would be limited to a cable-TV project only calling for a dozen or so episodes per season.   JULIANNA MARGULIES - In the TV drama 'Canterbury's Law,' Julianne Marguiles plays Elizabeth Canterbury, a brilliant attorney dedicated to taking on impossible cases. CNS Photo courtesy of ... [full story]

During a recent trip to China, I visited a sports school in Beijing where specially selected children, some as young as 5 or 6, live and train away from their families. At the end of each dormitory hallway is a large board with room numbers and colored flags next to them - the results of weekly checks for cleanliness, a teacher informed me. "This must be a pretty messy room," I joked, pointing to a ... [full story]

As the "grand" experiment in early primaries rolls on toward Pennsylvania, it is time for the nation's political parties to reassess the value of this radical change in American elections. In my opinion, early primaries create more confusion than clarity for the scrutiny of presidential candidates. The early primaries have succeeded in only one category. They have brought out increased turnouts in Democratic elections and have gained interest among young people. Most of that, however, ... [full story]

In Philadelphia, with the eyes of a nation upon him, Sen. Barack Obama gave a great speech recently. In the tradition of Jefferson, Lincoln and King he spoke to the heart of this country. He made us listen. Many of us hoped that this historic presidential election, with the first truly viable woman candidate and black candidate, would not deteriorate into another ugly street fight over race. But, I suppose it was inevitable, especially given ... [full story]

The indignation of Americans is growing rapidly about the U.S. Air Force granting a French company a $35 billion tanker-aircraft contract that could eventually grow to $100 billion and is estimated to create 100,000 jobs in Europe. French government subsidies are one of the factors that enabled the lucky company, EADS N.V., to underbid Boeing. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., the ranking Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, is leading the battle in Congress to ... [full story]