Baghdad  - Iraq's Presidential Council on Sunday approved a law that will govern the pullout of non-US troops from Iraq, according to a statement by the council.

The council, comprised of Iraq's president and his two deputies, approved the law that will allow non-US forces to remain in the country beyond December 31, when the old UN mandate permitting the presence of foreign troops in the country expires.

The Iraqi parliament had approved the law on Tuesday.

The law allows non-US troops to stay until July 2009. This covers the approximately 4,000 British troops in the country, as well as smaller forces from countries including Australia, Romania and El Salvador.

Harare/Johannesburg  - The legal battle between Harare and white landowners continues in Zimbabwe as President Robert Mugabe's government indicates it will prosecute 140 of them on charges of failing to vacate their farms.

"A total of 140 farmers are to be prosecuted for failing to vacate farms after being issued with eviction notices," the state-run The Sunday Mail reported.

The government had ordered the 140 farmers off their land by September 30 to pave way black peasant farmers but they defied the directive.

The newspaper cited a report presented at the ruling Zanu-PF party's recent national conference.

Conakry, Guinea  - The leader of a military coup in Guinea said Saturday that the new regime would renegotiate all mining contracts in the West African nation.

Captain Moussa Dadis Camara, who seized power on Tuesday hours after the death of President Lansana Conte, told a meeting of trade unions, civil groups and political parties that gold mining in particular was frozen until further notice, Radio France International reported.

Washington, Dec 27: From Sarah Palin''s shopping bills to John Edwards'' ''extra-marital'' affair, the 2008 US presidential campaign was full of political scoops.

The biggest names, including US President-elect Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, all were at the centre of controversy, giving enough material for newspaper headlines all through the year.

And now, Politico. com has released its list of the top ten political scoops of 2008, which is:

Washington, Dec 27: Caroline Kennedy, who is likely to replace Hillary Clinton as New York Senator, has said that she finally spoke to the Secretary of State-designate -- who didn't initially take her call, adding that if she is not selected, she won't run for the seat.

"We did have a very nice, you know, conversation, and obviously I'm not gonna talk about that, except to say that she said this was the greatest job that she'd ever had and could imagine having," Politico quoted Kennedy, as saying.

Washington - Caroline Kennedy rolled up her sleeves Friday in the scramble for the New York Senate seat being vacated by Hillary Clinton, batting down a comparison between her and actress Jennifer Lopez.

She was answering charges by New York Congressman Gary Ackerman, who insisted that Kennedy was just a celebrity like J-Lo, and not necessarily entitled to the Senate seat because of her famous name.