World News from the BBC
The security forces in Colombia say they have killed at least 11 left-wing rebels in a clash in the northeast of the country, close to the Venezuelan border. The army said troops captured a camp belonging to the ELN - the smaller of Colombia's two guerrilla groups. The fighting came a day after the authorities confirmed that 14 policemen had been killed by suspected fighters of the larger rebel group, the Farc.
Figures for employment in the United States reveal a better-than-expected rise in private sector jobs, but the jobs market
overall
remains weak. A report for the US Labor Department shows that 67,000 new private sector jobs were created last month. President Obama said the figures were positive but not good enough. Mark Mardell reports from Washington.
With important elections for Congress, the Senate and state governors two months away, the state of America's economy is deeply political. And President Obama
challenge
d his Republican opponents to support plans for tax cuts and loans for small businesses which they have so far blocked. Speaking outside the White House, he announced there would be more action soon.
"The key point I'm making right now is that the economy is moving in a positive direction. Jobs are being created; they are just not being created as fast as they need to, given the big hole that we experienced."
The European Union's trade commissioner, the Belgian Karel De Gucht, has apologized for