The goal of the New Safe Confinement project is to transform the site into a safe and environmentally stable system.

The plane, which was en route from Istanbul to the northern Iraqi city of Arbil, was forced to land in Turkey's Kayseri.

Senators cleared the way for Gen Joseph Dunford, the assistant commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, to take over in Afghanistan.

Last month, Cher previewed her long-in-the-works album by releasing a new dance single, "Woman's World," online.

"The Casual Vacancy," centers on the seemingly idyllic British town where, various conflicts belie the picture-perfect facade of the town.

The victims included villagers who had fled from their homes to a school and village hall, which were then swamped by the flash flood.

SANA said 28 students and one teacher were killed at the school in Wafideen Camp, in the Damascus suburbs.

The warning from NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen came as Syrian forces bombarded rebel districts near Damascus.

The plot has been described as a Blazing Saddles-style movie - meaning a Western with contemporary humor.