The authorities in Mexico say hundreds of residents have fled their homes following a surge of drug-related violence in the Tierra Caliente region west of Mexico City. Mexican media says the army and the federal police have sent reinforcements to the area.
A new satellite television station, 1st TV, targeting audiences in Zimbabwe, has been launched in South Africa only two weeks before general elections are due to be held. 1st TV insists that it will be independent and aims to represent all parties and views in Zimbabwe. But even before it went on the air, President Robert Mugabe’s spokesman dismissed it as a pirate station. One of the station’s presenters, Violet Gondar, said she was not surprised at the critical reaction from Mr Mugabe’s Zanu-PF party.
"We are actually just providing a platform for Zimbabweans to be able to have access to all media, all information so that they can make informed decisions. We don’t see anything wrong with what we are doing. This is a natural reaction from Zanu-PF. I’m not bothered by it, and I’m sure Zimbabweans are not, either.”
Police in the US state of Texas have launched an investigation after four men were found in a house in the city of Houston who it believed have been held captive there for up to 10 years. The police were alerted by a neighbour and found conditions they described as like a dungeon. The men were malnourished and told officers that they’d been enticed to the house with promises of beer and cigarettes.