Washington - The US raid against a top al-Qaeda operative this week in Syria was the latest effort by the Bush administration to step up pressure on the terrorist network, even by striking in countries without the approval of their governments.

Syria strongly protested the helicopter-borne attack on Sunday, 8 kilometres beyond the Iraqi border, where the United States is believed to have killed an al-Qaeda lieutenant responsible for smuggling fighters, weapons and money into Iraq.

The White House has not publicly acknowledged the attack. Damascus says that only civilians were killed.

Paris - Only weeks after celebrating its world debut at the Paris Motor Show, the Renault Laguna Coupe goes on sale in Europe at a starting price of 30,300 euros (40,715 dollars).

Renault is offering the choice of three petrol and three diesel engines in the range 110 kW/150 hp to 175 kW/238 hp.

The 3.5-litre V6 petrol and 3.0 V6 turbo diesel engines equipped with six-speed automatic transmission are new and will in future also be available in other models, the manufacturer announced.

Marseille, France - Five models of the Nissan luxury brand, Infiniti, will be available in Europe from 2009 including the new G37 and the EX and FX Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs).

The G37 line-up will include the convertible which is scheduled for sale late in the year and celebrates its world debut at the upcoming Los Angeles Motor Show, featuring a retracting steel roof.

The G37 is powered by the same 320 hp V6 engine as the sedan and coupe versions. The basic model will sell for around 40,000 euros (53,876 dollars), according to the company.

The Crossover EX 37 will sell for 46,000 euros (62,000 dollars) with the longer FX costing an additional 9,000 euros (12,123 dollars).

Seoul - Hyundai is launching its new Genesis Coupe on the South Korean and U. S. markets based on the sedan with a range-topping 223 kW/303 hp V6 engine and other sport credentials.

Fuerth, Germany - While the car industry is suffering a sharp decline, the model car industry appears unaffected by the downturn with collectors anxiously awaiting new products.

To keep up with developments, the model car manufacturers maintain close ties with car makers such as Mercedes and Opel.

Car makers themselves have a keen interest in seeing a model car of their new vehicle on the shelf and normally hand over secret construction plans under strict conditions.

"The model car makers in principle manufacture their products based on the same data that is used to assemble body panels and axles," says Daniel Stiegler, spokesman of the model car manufacturer Herpa.

Hamburg - The familiar cluttering sound of motorbike scooters that has reigned in southern European for more than a century may be ending as an electric scooter silently takes over the streets.

Until a few years ago, the electric scooter was considered an inventors' joke with a cumbersome heavyweight battery pack that made it about as manoeuvrable as a loaded Bedford truck. But the latest battery-driven scooters and bikes can hardly be distinguished from their petrol-driven cousins with the new battery technology making it possible to hide the battery pack in the bodywork, giving it the same optimal weight distribution as in conventional bikes.