Meanwhile in Iraq

At least 20 killed including UK and U.S. occupation force soldiers: A roadside bomb targeting a U.S. military patrol killed three civilians, including a student, and wounded eight others, including three students

15 bodies found in the Tigris river as fierce battle rages in Ramadi: 15 bodies of unidentified torture victims were found floating in the Tigris River in Suwayrah, 25 miles south of Baghdad, Police Lt Mohammed al Shamari said.

10 Bodies Found In Occupied Baghdad: A total of 10 bodies were found with gunshot wounds during the last 24 hours in different districts of Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said. Some of the victims showed signs torture.

Fallujah once again beset by violence: In recent months, insurgents have filtered back into the city, despite tight controls that limit access to only six checkpoints. Residents must submit to an extraordinary identification system that includes fingerprinting, retina scans and bar-coded identification cards.

Iraqi Ministry Accuses Employees of Prison Abuse : The Interior Ministry has formally accused 55 employees of committing human rights crimes in connection with the torture and abuse of prisoners at a detention center in eastern Baghdad, a spokesman for the ministry said this morning.

Saddam will be hanged 'by end-January': Saddam’s execution will probably take place in a closed room inside an Iraqi prison, most likely in Baghdad in the presence of Iraqi government officials and private citizens, whose families suffered under the dictator’s reign

Two TV stations closed for showing Iraqis protesting against death sentence for Saddam: Reporters Without Borders today condemned the Iraqi government’s decision yesterday to close down two privately-owned TV stations for “inciting violence and murder” by screening footage of protests against former President Saddam Hussein’s death sentence.

Gwynne Dyer: Why Hussein ultimately wins, and dies a martyr: He is the victim of a state-sponsored lynching, and so, for many people, he will die a martyr.

Move to reinstate Saddam supporters : Iraq's Shia-dominated government has announced a major concession for the Sunni Muslim backers of Saddam Hussein, a day after the former president was sentenced to hang.

New audit hunts Iraq's lost millions: A new audit examining 15 contracts signed in Iraq has found new evidence of massive corruption and mismanagement by the US government.

Hundreds of US Soldiers Call for Iraq Withdrawal in Petition : Hundreds of US soldiers have signed a petition calling for a troop withdrawal from Iraq and the document is to be formally presented to Congress in January, organizers said.

'Failed' American envoy to leave Iraq : Zalmay Khalilzad, the US envoy in Baghdad who tried to conciliate the Sunni people, is to leave his post in the next few months said a senior member of the US administration.

Rats jump ship: U-turns the neocon way: David Frum, Mr Bush's "axis of evil" speechwriter, reportedly believes failure in Iraq is inescapable and the president is to blame. Other well-known neocons also have critical things to say about administration competence.