Jerusalem  - Israeli caretaker Prime Minister Ehud Olmert congratulated president-elect Barack Obama Wednesday on his "historic victory," saying the "special" relationship between Washington and Israel would not only continue but even strengthen during his time in office.

"America proved once again that it is indeed the greatest democracy, which presents an example to all other democracies in the world. President-elect Obama proved his abilities and leadership to the entire world," Olmert said in a statement from his office.

Amsterdam  - Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende congratulated Barack Obama on Wednesday with his victory in Tuesday's US presidential elections.

The Dutch prime minister sent a letter to the US president-elect, wishing him success.

In a statement released by the Dutch government communication service RVD, Balkenende further said "it was beautiful to see this election has moved millions of people, both in the US as well as abroad."

Referring, among others, to the global credit crisis, Balkenende said Obama's presidential term will be "challenging" and noted that the need for "intensive trans-Atlantic co-operation" was "never more urgent" than today.

London, Nov 5: Feeding your pet at table or giving them chocolate treats might land you in jail, if new guidelines proposed to pet owners in Britain are to be believed.

The new code released for consultation, as a part of Animal Welfare Act 2006 to prevent cruelty, recommends that chocolate, raisins or grapes are "poisonous" for pets and a dog should not be disturbed when eating as this can cause "food-related aggression".

It also says that dogs should not be fed at the table as this can lead to begging, while "curious" cats should be kept away from windows or tumble dryers.

London, Nov 5: Girls Aloud singer Sarah Harding has finally opened up about her terrifying car crash last week, insisting that it was the “worst week of her life”.

The 26-year-old star emerged unharmed following a head-on collision with a double-decker bus.

“I had a nark on. I was moving house, we had the builders in and my mum was down to visit,” the Mirror quoted her, as saying.

“I jumped into the Range Rover and because I’m only just getting used to the new roads around my house, drove up a one-way street.

“Unfortunately, there was a bus hurtling down the other way. It rammed my car into these bollards on the side of the road.

Moscow - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called for the extension of his term in office to six years in his first state-of- the-nation address on Wednesday since succeeding Vladimir Putin.

Medvedev, 43, addressing the country's top political elite gathered in the Kremlin's most opulent St George Hall, said the proposed amendment was not a reform to the constitution, but rather a "correction."

The basic principles of the constitution would remain unchanged, he said, proposing to extend the presidential term to six from the current four years and the term for lawmakers in Russia's lower house of parliament to five.

Tokyo - People in the small north-central and southern Japanese towns of Obama exuberantly celebrated Wednesday as the communities' namesake was elected US president.

The Obama Boys and Girls were dancing their hula in north-central Obama city when the news broke that Barack Obama defeated rival Republican candidate John McCain and was declared president-elect.

During Obama's victory speech at Grant Park, Chicago, his fans in the far-eastern fishing town also joined the Obama chants.

"Mr Obama proved to us that we can make our dreams come true by taking action," an Obama resident said after the results came in.