Police in Mexico say eight officers who were abducted by gunmen in the southern state of Guerrero on Friday have been found shot dead.

Three people died on September 18 in accidents linked to Typhoon Fanapi's approach to Taiwan's eastern coast, where it is expected to make landfall on 20, reported Taiwan's official news agency.

Taiwanese authorities issued warnings on September 18 for a mid-strength typhoon packing wind gusts as strong as 191kph and shaping up as the island's most severe storm of the year.

Insurgents launched a rocket attack in Kabul on September 18 as Afghanistan went to the polls to elect a new parliament, with security forces on full alert after Taliban threats to derail the vote.

Three containers filled with explosives meant for road construction detonated outside a police station in eastern Sri Lanka, killing 25 people, most of them police officers, in a blast government officials called an accident.

Israel reiterated on September 17 its refusal to extend curbs on settlement building that expire this month, despite US pressure and Palestinian threats to walk out of peace talks.

Seiji Maehara, a security expert and former transport minister, has been appointed Japan's new foreign minister.

Pakistani politician Imran Farooq, a leader of the MQM party influential in Pakistan's biggest city, was stabbed to death in London on Thursday but it was unclear if his killing was a result of political rivalry.

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and his Russian counterpart, Anatoly Serdyukov, have vowed to expand military cooperation signaling an improvement in relations between the former Cold War foes.

The European Union is targeting more of the financial practices that are blamed for prompting the financial crisis.