In a televised address on Thursday evening, President George W. Bush plans to announce his plans to withdraw 5,000 troops from Iraq by December. He has also accepted the recommendations on force numbers by the top US commander and diplomat in Iraq.

President Bush is also expected to endorse a proposal to reduce US forces down from the 20 current brigades to just 15. However, no time frame is expected to be given.

The President's decision comes in the face of growing opposition to his strategy in Iraq, and after two days of congressional testimony by his top officials in Baghdad.

Following on the advice given by General David Petraeus and his recommendation to gradually with draw 30,000 of the 169,000 troops in Iraq, Bush's plan to reduce the troops would bring the levels back down to pre "surge" levels.

Madeleine McCann, the little British girl who went missing while on holiday with her parents in Portugal, is now believed to have died from an overdose of sleeping pills, despite the lack of a body having been found. A French newspaper, France Soir, reported that they had seen evidence that bodily fluids found in the trunk of her parents' rental car prove that the girl was sedated.

France Soir also said that DNA analysis of the fluids found in the trunk showed Madeleine had ingested large quantities of sleeping pills, and said that they had seen "hard evidence" about Madeleine's death that is now in the hands of Portuguese authorities investigating the case.

Other sources have previously revealed that Portuguese investigators found "bodily fluids" - not blood - with an 88% match to Madeleine in the car's trunk. Others have reported that clumps of her hair were found in the trunk as well, with a significant enough quantity present to prove that the little girl's body had been in the trunk.

According to the new Zagat guide, the average price of a nice dinner out in London will run you far more than one in any other large city around the world. The average three course meal and a glass of wine costs £39.09, or about USD$79.38. Comparatively, it's $71.82 in Paris, $71.28 in Tokyo, $39.19 in New York City, and $31.74 in Los Angeles.

Not surprisingly, Londoners eat out less than those in other more sensibly priced cities. Londoners eat out just 2.5 times per week, compared to 2.9 in Paris, 3.6 in New York, and every other day in Tokyo.

One of the reason's for London's particularly expensive restaurants is that they simply use better ingredients, many of which are now sustainbly-raised and organic, and consequently more expensive. More than half of those surveyed by Zagat (59%) would pay more for sustainably-raised food, and 54% said they would pay more for organic food.

"Today's diners have a better understanding of what their food choices mean - not only to their health, but their impact on the environment," said Tim Zagat.

Russian Governor Sergei Morozov has taken the James Bond film "From Russia With Love" seriously. He has given his province the day off so they can, well, have sex. Not only will the couples have fun in the sack, they are also eligible for a number of prizes. Winners (those who conceive) will receive a number of prizes ranging from free refrigerators to automobiles.

The "patriotic procreation" comes at a time when the population in central Russia has been dwindling. The program is in its third year and it is working. On June 12th, which is exactly nine months after "patriotic procreation" day, 78 babies were born compared to an average day of 28.

An earthquake that measured 7.9 on the richter scale struck Indonesia today. The powerful quake also triggered a small tsunami. Fortunately, this will not be a repeat of the 2004 Christmastime disaster that caused mass destruction as the tsunami this quake caused only raised waters 2 feet.

When the quake hit a warning warning was quickly issued:

"Earthquakes of this size have the potential to generate a widespread destructive tsunami that can affect coastlines across the entire Indian Ocean Basin," it said.

That warning was just called off, according to CNN.

The 7.9 earthquake could be felt nearly 400 miles away from the epicenter in Bengkulu.

Concerns about a new Cold War and arms race heat up as Russia exploded the world's biggest non-nuclear bomb, a thermobaric bomb nicknamed "the father of all bombs." While US authorities knew they had the technology, they had absolutely no idea that Russia would be testing it out, which causes some concern. It is not known when Russia tested the bomb, as no indication was given in the video, and the devices military name was also not revealed.

The bomb was filmed being dropped from a strategic bomber and exploding into a massive fireball. It then showed the after-effects of the bomb's wrath - debris from apartment buildings and armoured vehicles at the testing range, and a huge burnt spot in the ground.

Russia's big bomb is reportedly four times more powerful than the US's Massive Ordnance Air Blast, which is nicknamed the "mother of all bombs." Russia's would be suitable for targeting specific areas more accurately than nuclear bombs, and is considered an immediate threat to "problem" areas such as Chechnya.

Just the day before the sixth anniversary of the September 11th attacks of the World Trade Center in New York City, al-Qaida revealed that a second Bin Laden video will be released. This video will reportedly present the last will and testament of one of the suicide hijackers.

Each year since the infamous 9/11 attacks, al-Qaida has released videos of last statements by hijackers, and use the occasion to rally sympathizers.

Many of the past video releases included old footage, but it is expected that in an effort to tout his re-emerging leadership and strength, Bin Laden's latest video will include a newly created speech.

The video is expected to be released within 24 hours to coincide with the sixth anniversary of 9/11. The impending video was announced by Al-Sahab with a banner advertisement posted on an Islamic militant forum often used by the group to post messages. The banner read:

Anita Roddick, founder of the internationally-known cosmetics chain The Body Shop died suddenly on Monday evening after a massive brain hemorrhage at the age of 64.

Roddick's family issued a statement, explaining how she collapsed after complaining of a headache on Sunday evening:

"Gordon, Justine and Sam Roddick are very sad to announce that, after suffering a major brain hemorrhage, Anita Roddick died at 6.30 this evening at the age of 64. Mrs Roddick was admitted to the hospital's intensive care unit and her husband Gordon and two daughters, Sam and Justine, were with her when she died."

Roddick was well-known throughout the business community for not only her fine business sense, but also her passion for social change and environmental awareness.

A child of Italian migrants, Roddick opened the first Body Shop in Brighton (UK) in 1976 with the help of just a £4,000 loan. Her main ambition was to provide some income for herself and her two daughters while her husband was abroad. She decided that products should be natural, sold in reusable containers, and bear handwritten labels. And although not intentionally environmentally conscious at first, the Body Shop was going green just as a global green consciousness started to emerge.

Size zero model Charlotte Carter, 22, has been banned from London Fashion Week because she is too thin. A top model, she has worked for fashion designers throughout Europe at her current size.

But now the 5ft 10in model is being told by her agency to put on some weight because of her unhealthy appearance. An American size zero is the equivalent of a British size four, and fits a 22-inch waist. A 22-inch waist is far from typical of that of a mature adult woman, and rather, is the average measurement of an eight-year-old girl.

Last year, ultra skinny models took to the catwalks at London Fashion Week, much to the dismay of many who have sought to rid the industry of such unhealthy "standards".

Charlotte Carter admits to having battled with eating disorders since her teens, and said that she always felt she had to be thin to land top modeling jobs.

German police today arrested three people who are suspected of planning "massive" terrorists attacks on the United States and other German targets. In foiling the attacks, authorities say that they prevented the deaths of "many, many people."

The suspects were arrested yesterday at a house in Oberschledorn, a village in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Two of the suspects were Germans, and the third was a Turkish national. Bomb-making materials and military detonators were seized.

The three suspects are allegedly members of a local cell of the Islamist terrorist organization Jihad Union, which has links to al-Qaeda.

Police are calling the planned attacks "one of the worst terror acts ever planed in Germany." Attacks were planned on sites in Germany frequented by American citizens, including bars, transport facilities, and discos.

The hyrdogen peroxide based liquid explosives seized were equiavlent to 550 kilograms of TNT, which is greater explosive power than the Madrid bombings of 2004 and the London bombings of 2005.

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