World News: Train and bus crash kills 35 guests from India wedding

A TRAIN hit a bus at a railway crossing in northern India early today, killing at least 35 people returning from a wedding party, an official said.

At least 39 others were injured when the train dragged the mangled bus more than 1600 feet before coming to a halt, local administrator Selva Kumar said.

The bus, filled with about 80 people, had stopped at the unmanned crossing after its axle broke and then was hit by the speeding train.

The bride and the groom were travelling in a separate vehicle and were not among the victims, Ms Kumar said. No passengers on the train were hurt.

Two men sitting on top of the bus escaped when they jumped off seconds before the train crashed into the bus, said government official Shobharan Singh.

The accident happened near Kanshiramnagar, a village 220 miles south-west of Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh state.

Local villagers and passengers from the train rushed to the bus to pull out the injured, who were taken to a nearby hospital.

"It appears the conductor was driving the bus, as his body has been found in the driver's seat," Mr Singh said.

Jiang death rumours denied

China today dismissed reports that retired president Jiang Zemin has died as "pure rumour".

The denials follow internet speculation that Jiang, 84, had died, fuelled by his failure to appear at Friday's 90th anniversary celebrations of the Communist Party.

Pakistan 'took nuclear bribe'

The founder of Pakistan's nuclear weapons programme claims that North Korean officials paid kickbacks to senior Pakistani military figures in exchange for critical weapons technology.

Abdul Qadeer Khan has given a US-based expert documents that appear to show North Korea paid more than $3.5 million to two Pakistani military officials.

Mr Khan also released what he said was a copy of a 1998 letter to him that purports to describe the deal.

Egypt protesters on rampage

Hundreds of Egyptian protesters have lobbed rocks at security headquarters and set fire to police cars for two days over delays in trying former regime officials and police accused of killing protesters.

The Interior Ministry said hundreds of officers will be sacked for their roles in the deaths of 850 anti-government protesters.

Royal visit to wildfire town

Prince William and Kate saw burned-out cars, blackened trees and the charred remains of homes in a surprise visit to a village heavily damaged by a wildfire in May.

The stop in the northern Alberta town of Slave Lake was an apparent effort to bring much-needed cheer to residents.

Eight bodies pulled from sunken ferry

Bangladesh: Rescuers have recovered eight bodies from a ferry that sank after it collided with an oil tanker.

Local media said more than 20 people were still missing.

United States: A female grizzly bear killed a man who was hiking with his wife in Yellowstone National Park after the couple apparently surprised the animal and its cubs.

It was the park's first fatal grizzly mauling since 1986.