as a whole

and additional aid for Greece.

The lower house of the Italian parliament has approved a tough austerity package, which was passed on Thursday by the Senate. The package includes tax measures and cuts of $68bn over three years. It's designed to end

speculation

on the markets about the Italian economy.

President Obama has said time is running out for a political deal to raise America's debt limit and stabilise the economy by cutting spending. American officials and economists are warning of national and global consequences if the US starts to default on its

obligation

s. From Washington, Paul Adams reports.

Most of the country's political leaders agree that the debt ceiling must be raised and that this

protract

ed debate is not good for economic confidence. But after long hours of meetings and with various competing solutions on the table, a deal is still not

in sight

. Barack Obama said he wanted to see the logjam broken in the next couple of days and urged members of Congress to think in ambitious terms.

Five civilians have been killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan. They were all passengers in a minivan travelling in Helmand province. Earlier this week, the United Nations said the number of Afghan civilians dying in war-related violence had gone up 15% this year.

You're listening to the World News from the BBC in London.

Western and Arab foreign ministers have agreed to recognise the Libyan rebels' National Transitional Council as the country's legitimate governing authority. The US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the rebel council had given important guarantees on transparency and democratic reform. Kim Ghattas reports from Washington.