Prince Harry bound for Iraq, paper says

England

LONDON -- Prince Harry will be serving as a soldier in Iraq by the end of the month, a British newspaper reported yesterday, though government officials called the story speculative. The Daily Mirror newspaper -- citing an unnamed senior military official -- reported that Defense Secretary Des Browne is expected to announce Feb. 26 that the prince, who is third in line to the throne, will be deployed near Basra in southern Iraq. (AP)

AFGHANISTAN

KABUL -- A US-led coalition helicopter crashed today in southeastern Afghanistan after reporting engine failure, a coalition statement said. A NATO official said the helicopter was not shot down. It wasn't immediately clear how many people were on board or what type of helicopter it was. The coalition has launched a search and rescue operation for the helicopter and its occupants, a US military spokesman said. (AP)

Lesotho

MASERU -- Long lines of people braved a blistering sun yesterday to cast their vote in tight elections pitting Lesotho's ruling party, which has brought stability to the mountain kingdom, against a new rival set up on a platform of change. The mood was peaceful and turnout appeared high, with significantly large numbers of people showing up at the 2,500 polling stations throughout the southern African country, which has one of the highest incidences of AIDS in the world. (AP)

Italy

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Benedict yesterday attacked "lobbies" he blamed for unraveling the traditional family, as he escalated a war of words against Italian draft legislation that would recognize unwed and gay couples. The pontiff said in a Vatican speech the family "shows signs of ceding to lobbies capable of negatively eroding the legislative processes." "Divorce and free unions are on the rise, meanwhile adultery is viewed with an unjustifiable tolerance," he said. The draft legislation approved by Prime Minister Romano Prodi's government last week would recognize relations between unmarried heterosexual and homosexual couples, granting rights in areas like inheritance and health care. (Reuters)

VATICAN CITY -- A 450-year-old receipt has provided proof that Michelangelo kept a private room in St. Peter's Basilica while working as the pope's chief architect, Vatican specialists said. While going through the basilica archives for an exhibit on the 500th anniversary of the church, researchers recently came across an entry for a key to a chest "in the room in St. Peter's where Master Michelangelo retires." The Renaissance painter and sculptor, whose frescoes adorn the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, was put in charge of the restoration of St. Peter's Basilica by Pope Paul III at age 71 in 1546, a job he held until his death in 1564. (AP)