Bern  - The Swiss Federal Council rejected criticism Friday which had been directed at the Alpine nation over tax issues, saying that privacy in banking remained intact.

In a statement, the council, the executive branch of government, said it would, however, work "to improve cooperation with other countries in the area of tax offences."

The Council added that "it is prepared to enter into dialogue with third countries on the taxation of savings income." To do so, it set up a "group of experts," which includes civil servants, bankers and academics, to advise the government.

Lausanne, Switzerland - Churandy Martina of the Dutch Antilles on Friday lost an appeal before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to be reinstated as Beijing Olympics 200 metres silver medallist.

The CAS cited rules by the governing body IAAF that decisions by a race jury of appeal are final and can not be fought.

Martina had originally finished second in the Beijing race in August won by Usain Bolt of Jamaica, with American Wallace Spearmon placing third.

Lausanne, Switzerland - Dutch Antilles runner Churandy Martina was not reinstated as Beijing Olympics 200 metres silver medallist as the Court of Arbitration for Sport 
(CAS) rejected his appeal on Friday.

The CAS cited rules by the governing body IAAF that race jury decisions are final and can not be appealed.

Churandy had originally finished second in the Beijing race in August won by Usain Bolt of Jamaica, with American Wallace Spearmon placing third.

Nairobi/Geneva - The human rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW) warned on Friday of a possible humanitarian disaster in Darfur, western Sudan, if the Khartoum government went ahead with its threat to expel aid organizations.

The threat by President Omar al-Bashir to withdraw work permits for 13 Western aid agencies came after the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday issued a warrant for his arrest on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Geneva - The Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) revealed its plans Thursday to ensure all F1 teams make it through the global economic crisis safely and can participate in the sport until the end of the 2012 season.

Among the proposals presented at a press conference in Geneva is a new points-scoring system whereby the points for a race win would rise from 10 to 12, with nine points for second and seven for third.

Positions four to eight would continue to score in the current 5- 4-3-2-1 manner.

Geneva - Defiant Sudanese officials confirmed Thursday that the government had kicked several charities out of the country for "violating the law" and "passing information" onto the International Criminal Court, which they accused of being a colonialist body.

The ICC on Wednesday issued an arrest warrant for Omar al-Bashir, the president of Sudan.