LOS ANGELES, 3 SEPT, 2010: NASA is working on a plan to launch a mission to visit and study the sun closer than ever before, China's Xinhua news agency quoted the Jet Propulstion Laboratory (JPL) as saying.

LONDON, 3 SEPT, 2010: God did not create the universe, world-famous physicist Stephen Hawking argues in a new book that aims to banish a divine creator from physics, CNN reported and published on it's website.

WASHINGTON, 3 SEPT, 2010: Direct talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders kicked off again Thursday with pledges of support from leaders on both sides -- as well as the United States -- for a peace process leading to a comprehensive settlement within one year, CNN reported and published on it's website.

GOMA, CONGO, 3 SEPT, 2010: The United Nations appears to have been aware of rape by rebels in eastern Congo earlier than it originally said it was, according to an internal e-mail and a humanitarian bulletin, CNN reported and published on it's website.

JOHANNESBURG, 3 SEPT, 2010: South African union members Thursday rejected an improved wage offer from the government as a public sector strike continues to cripple the country, CNN reported and published on it's website.

NEW ORLEANS, 2 SEPTEMBER,2010 – An offshore petroleum platform exploded and was burning Thursday in the Gulf of Mexico about 100 miles off the Louisiana coast, west of the site where BP's undersea well spilled after a rig explosion.

NEW DELHI, 2 SEPTEMBER, 2010: India will build the world's largest solar telescope in the India-controlled Kashmir's cold desert region of Ladakh, at an estimated cost of US$31 million, the Indian Institute of Astrophysics said Thursday.

NEW DELHI, 2 SEPTEMBER, 2010: Indian Muslims will stage protest rallies for the liberation of Masjid Al Aqsa and condemn the US-led Israeli atrocities on the innocent people of Palestinian on the International Qods Day on Friday, Iranian news agency IRNA reported Thursday.

CHENGDU, 2 SEPTEMBER, 2010: Giant pandas remain as an endangered species despite the births of 23 cubs in Chinese zoos over the past two months, a leading panda researcher in southwest China's Sichuan Province said Thursday.

JAKARTA, 2 SEPT, 2010: Indonesia has decided to solve border dispute with Malaysia through diplomatic channel in a bid to avoid disturbing stability in the southeast Asian region, Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said on Thursday.

WELLINGTON, 2 SEPT, 2010: Fiji says it will open diplomatic missions in Indonesia, South Africa and Brazil as it continues to move away from traditional allies critical of its military-led government, reports China's Xinhua news agency on Thursday.

GENEVA, 2 SEPT, 2010: Switzerland will host an informal summit of 40 countries on global warming this Friday, to discuss modalities for a new Climate Fund, which is expected to unblock the stalled negotiations on the issue, according to Press Trust of India (PTI).