Kim Jong Il, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), passed away last Saturday at the age of 69 "from a great mental and physical strain," the DPRK's official KCNA news agency reported on Monday.

A total of 103 security force members and three officers were injured when protesters hurled stones and Molotov cocktails in downtown Cairo on Sunday, the third consecutive day of violent clashes in the capital of Egypt.

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese athletes set up three records at the sixth Para Games in Solo City, Central Java, in Indonesia yesterday, Dec 18.

VietNamNet Bridge – Famous artists from Viet Nam and South Korea joined in a chamber music performance at the capital's Opera House on Saturday.

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese referees and assistants were struggling with the physical aspect of their jobs and English language qualifications required by FIFA to officiate in World Cup matches,

The White House Sunday threw its weight behind a bipartisan compromise achieved in the Senate to extend the U.S. payroll tax cuts for two months, after Republican leaders rejected the Senate proposal.

Israel freed 550 Palestinian prisoners on Sunday evening in the second phase of a prisoner swap deal, while Hamas movement announced the Palestinian-Israeli agreement reached in October had been finalized.

VietNamNet Bridge – French quartet Limousine will be performing at L'Espace on January 12.

A majority of shares saw gains on both national stock exchanges yesterday, once again halting the prolonged downward trend as investors began hunting for bargain shares.

VietNamNet Bridge – Many inner city maternity clinics are failing to attract business from expectant mothers, as concerns over the safety of these facilities see most women choosing to give birth at major hospitals.

VietNamNet Bridge - A Mercedes E300 car suddenly burst into flames at 2pm, December 18, while running on Nguyen Xien Road, Hanoi. When the fire was stamped out, the car consisted of ash and a carbonized frame.

Party leaders attending a two-day national meeting on reviewing the inspection and supervision tasks of Party members and organisations called for strict punishments to be meted out against those indulging in corrupt and wasteful acts.

The Government plans to tighten management and increase the economic effectiveness of economic zones, industrial zones and industrial clusters. Deputy head of the Central Institute for Economic Management Vo Tri Thanh talks about the issue.

VietNamNet Bridge – Two South Korean movie stars--Kim Tae Hee and Song Seung Hun will be in Vietnam next month, when their TV series entitled “My Princess” is to be aired on a local channel.

The Ministry of Science and Technology will begin an investigation of all petrol and gas vendors nationwide next month, Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang has announced.

VietNamNet Bridge – Gardeners in Hanoi’s famous flower and apricot village of Nhat Tan are in a hurry to cultivate trees to prepare for the lunar New Year (Tet holiday), which is coming in over a month.

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Sunday signed a document officially ending the Iraq War, after the last U.S. combat forces left that country.

The search and rescue operation at the second day on Sunday for about 217 missing migrants, as their wooden ship sank in waters off Trengglek district of East Java on Saturday, fails to find any one of them, a rescuer said.

Sector’s feet stuck in cement; Depreciation pressure stalks bullion price; Sugar surplus may be exported; Low-income families to get apartments; Pepper exports to hit 130,000 tonnes; US restaurant chains eye franchises in Vietnam

Four people were dead and 49 missing after a drilling platform with 67 people on board overturned in the Sea of Okhotsk in Russia's Far East on Sunday, news agencies reported.

Vietnam's once-frenzied property market has ground to a halt, leaving local developers limping and international investors salivating at the chance of snapping up distressed deals.

The death toll from tropical storm Washi (or local name Sendong) in the Philippines rose to 497, with 162 others still missing, the Philippine Red Cross said Sunday.

British scientists have discovered a new way to target cancer through manipulating a master switch responsible for cancer cell growth. The findings, published Monday in the U.S. journal Cancer Cell, reveal how cancer cells grow faster

A lot of businesses keep a hesitant outlook about the merger and acquisition (M&A) which is booming in Vietnam.

VietNamNet Bridge – Returning to Son My this time, at the age of 71, Ron Haeberle tried to please everyone, with his patience and enthusiasm. He seemed to try his best to compensate the pain in Son My.