Queen Alexandra dead: Queen Alexandra, widow of the last King of Yugoslavia, died in London on Saturday aged 72, according to a statement from her son released on Sunday. Reuter reports from London.
Born Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark she married King Peter II of Yugoslavia in 1941 in London. The king, who died in 1970, had gone into exile after the axis countries occupied his country In the Second World War.
The couple were both great-grandchildren of Britain's Queen Victoria.
Their son. Crown Prince Alexander, was born in Claridge s hotel In London In 1945. His godfather, King George VI, declared their hotel suite Yugoslav territory for the day.
Cosmonauts return to Earth: fwo Russian cosmonauts returned safely to Earth on Monday after 189 days In space, the ITAR-Tass news agency said, AP reports from Moscow.
The spacecraft carrying Anatoly Solovyov and Sergei Avdeyev landed about 100 kilometers (62 miles) northwest of the city of Arkalyk in Kazakhstan, It said.
The two made four space walks during their 189-day stay on the orbiting space station MIR and carried out a variety of experiments, the dispatch said.
A replacement team of astronauts recently took up residence on the MIR.
Cuellar gets Kuwait award: sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Al-Sabah on Sunday awarded former UN Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar one of Kuwait's highest distinctions for helping to end Iraq's occupation. AFP reports from Kuwait.
The former UN chief was also awarded an honoray doctorate by Kuwait University.
Perez de Cuellar headed the United Nations during the Gulf crisis, sparked by Iraq's August 1990 invasion of Kuwait, notably when the world body authorized the use of force to oust Baghdad's troops after a seven-month occupation.
Sheikh Jaber in 1991 also bestowed an award on former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who was given an honorary doctorate at Kuwait University for her role during the Gulf crisis.
7 burnt to death in Venezuela: seven people were burned to death Sunday after a truck carrying liquified gas crashed and exploded, the local news agency Innac reported, AFP says from Venezuela.
Innac said the truck overturned and exploded on the Lara Zulia highway In northwest Venezuela, burning a rental car carrying six people, killing all of them.
The driver of the truck also was killed.
Malan quits politics: Cabinet Minister General Magnus Malan — a former Defence Minister under P W Botha, President Frederik de Klerk’s predecessor — announced Sunday he was resigning and retiring from politics, AFP reports from Pretoria.
Malan, whose' 1 I years as Defence Minister overshadowed his current forestry portfolio, was singled out in the South African press Saturday as one of four ministers likely to loose thetr jobs in a possible cabinet reshuffle to streamline the racially-segregated government machine.
In his speech at the opening of parliament Friday. De Klerk announced plans to amalgamate the race-based own affairs department.
In a statement released late Sunday, Malan said he "whole heartedly" supported the government's plans and with his own department earmarked for rationalisation. It was "the appropriate moment for me to retire."
He said he had told De Kerk of his Intentton to retire early
Arafat in Jordan: PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat arrived In Jordan yesterday for talks with King Hussein on the plight of Palestinian deportees in South Lebanon, an official said, Reuter reports from Amman.
Talks were also expected to focus on the stalled Middle-East peace process which has been complicated further by Israel's expulsion on December 17 of 415 Palestinians
The Palestine Liberation Organisation has said It will not let Palestinian negotiators, attending peace talks In a joint delegation with Jordan, return to the negotiating table until the deportees problem is solved.
Arafat, who made a brief stopover In Cairo on his way to Amman, last visited Jordan In October