Geneva - Global concentrations of greenhouse gases continued to increase in 2007, a report issued Tuesday said, with carbon dioxide rates reaching the highest level ever recorded.

The major cause of the gas emissions was human activities like burning fossil fuels and agriculture, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reported, adding that methane gas emissions had their greatest increase since 1998.

Geneva - The number of dead from cholera in Zimbabwe continued to rise, the United Nations said Tuesday, and so far 313 deaths have been reported in the latest outbreak of the disease.

"We are very concerned by the deteriorating health situation in Zimbabwe," the World Health Organization (WHO) said in Geneva.

The number of reported cases in the country in the past three months has increased to 7,283, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said, up over 1,000 from a week before.

The most affected areas were parts of the capital Harare.

Geneva - Myanmar was the only country that used landmines in the past year, an international coalition reported Friday, adding that Turkey, Greece and Belarus failed to meet their deadlines to destroy stockpiles of the weapon.

The International Campaign to Ban Landmines also said Russia was still considered a violator as it had not reported stopping usage. The campaign monitors the treaty on banning the antipersonnel weapon.

"The treaty has made a real difference in saving lives and limbs all over the globe," said Stephen Goose from Human Rights Watch, a member of the campaign.

Geneva - All the delegations attended "constructive" talks on the Russia-Georgia conflict Wednesday and agreed to meet again for another round of negotiations next month, the European Union representative to the discussions said.

"We had constructive meetings of the two working groups," said Pierre Morel. As planned, the two groups, with eight delegations in total, met on security and refugee issues for about three hours each.

Geneva - The delegations from Russia, Georgia and the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia arrived Wednesday morning at the United Nations in Geneva for a second round of talks since they went to war in the summer.

Also attending the meetings are representatives from the United States, European Union, UN and Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

An official with the self-declared Abkhazian government said he hoped the talks would be "constructive" but stressed that there would be no plenary meeting.

"It will be eight individuals in groups working together," said Maxim Grinjia, a deputy to the foreign minister.

Geneva  - In spite of the global financial crisis, auction house Christie's managed to beat expectations at its most recent watch sale in Geneva, a Christie's official said Tuesday.