New Zealand Prime Minister John Key has declared a national state of emergency on February 23 as the death toll from earthquake in Christchurch rose to 75.

At least 36 people were killed and more than 110 others injured in a stampede overnight at a stadium in Mali's capital, officials said on February 22.

A strong earthquake killed at least 65 people in New Zealand's second-biggest city of Christchurch with more casualties expected as desperate rescuers picked through rubble to find people trapped in toppled buildings.

Two Iranian warships have entered the Suez Canal to make a passage to the Mediterranean Sea, canal officials say.

A strong quake hit New Zealand's second-biggest city of Christchurch on February 22 for the second time in five months, toppling buildings, causing "multiple fatalities," trapping people beneath rubble and sparking fires.

BP lined up one of the biggest foreign direct investments in India to date with a US$7.2 billion tie-up with the country's Reliance Industries to explore for deepwater oil and gas.

Libya's leader, Muammar Gaddafi, has dismissed reports that he had fled amid the unrest sweeping the country, calling foreign news channels "dogs".

At least 30 people have been killed in a stampede at a stadium in the Malian capital of Bamako on February 21, officials say.

China has raised fuel prices for a second time in three months as it looks to offset a jump in global crude costs.

Philippine seismologists issued an alert on Mount Bulusan on February 20 that after the Luzon Island volcano erupted twice during a 24-hour period, according to a bulletin released by the nation's volcano-monitoring agency.