10 June

The cleanest beaches in Europe are in Cyprus and Greece, according to a report released May 31 by the European Union. Cyprus had a score of 99 percent compliance with the EU's strictest standards, and Greece scored 96 percent. Spain's beaches scored 92.7 percent. At the bottom of the list was Luxembourg, whose beaches scored only 35 percent. The report on the 2006 season evaluated almost 22,000 beaches.

Fiji: The state of emergency imposed by Commodore Frank Bainimarama after a bloodless military coup in December was lifted Thursday. The regulations were necessary to ensure the safety of civilians and property, Bainimarama said. Anyone threatening public order will still face police action. Restrictions on the media and public gatherings will remain in place. Elections for a new representative government will not be held until 2010.

Spain: The Basque separatist group Eta ended its "permanent cease-fire" Wednesday, claiming that the minimum conditions for continuing negotiations with the government did not exist. The government halted peace talks in December after an Eta bombing at the Madrid airport killed two, an incident Eta claimed did not mean the cease-fire was over. Officials are concerned that the move by Eta may mean another attack is imminent, and it is likely that the government will take a hard line against the group after a year of pursuing a political settlement.