National / International News

Twenty four hours of news photos: 4 February

The EU resumes tough negotiations on its multi-year budget, with leaders warning that big differences remain ahead of a Brussels summit this week.

A skeleton discovered under what's now a parking lot in the English city of Leicester is that of the warrior king, researchers say. They identified him by matching DNA to that of a distant relative who's alive today.

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A leader of Ireland's Muslims warns that the discovery of pork DNA in halal products could damage the reputation of Irish meat.

MPs hear evidence on the MoD's Major Project Report 2012.

Sales staff in major electrical stores in Wales are misleading customers when they sell extended warranties, a BBC Wales investigation finds.

A man appears in court charged with murdering a 16-year-old girl who was found stabbed in a Blackpool alleyway.

Are you being overcharged by London buses' new card system?

Israeli forces in the West Bank arrest at least 20 members of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, including three members of parliament.

The estate of late British painter Lucian Freud bequeaths a portrait by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot to the nation, under the government's acceptance in lieu scheme.

A man is killed and a woman seriously injured in a crash on a stretch of road between Auchtermuchty and Cupar in Fife.

Explore the evidence that identified a lost king

Children are increasingly being groomed over the internet for the sole purpose of online sexual abuse, research by a child protection watchdog suggests.

Royal Irish Regiment soldiers are among a number of British Army units who are on standby for potential deployment to Mali, the BBC understands.

If you filled up your car at a gas station this weekend, you probably noticed that it cost you a bit more than it did the last time you were at the pump. The average price for a gallon of gas is about 13 cents higher than it was two weeks ago. Several factors contributed to that rise.

One of those factors -- refineries are transitioning from producing cheaper winter-blend to more expensive summer-blend gasoline. Refineries also use this time of year to do maintenance on their facilities, which means they produce less gas, lowering supply.

"Well, basically, they are cleaning their machines and making sure everything is functioning properly ahead of the high demand season," says Gregory Dacko, a senior economist at IHS. Yet another reason for the higher price at the pump, says Dacko, is cutbacks in production by OPEC.

But the single biggest factor is the price of crude oil. "The price of crude oil makes up about 66 percent of the price of a gallon of gasoline" says Avery Ash, a spokesperson for AAA.

Crude oil is up by 14 percent since mid-December. Analysts don't expect prices to rise quite as fast as they did this time last year. But last Friday did mark the first time in 2013 that the national average price of a gallon of gas was higher than that same day in 2012.

San Francisco will not be getting a Superbowl trophy, but it is the beneficiary of a PR stunt by Jell-O, which is offering the city free pudding today. And for fans that don't like Jell-O, the company is offering an app for Google Chrome that will block words and images related to Baltimore with puppies.

Beyonce wows audiences and critics with her live half-time performance at the Super Bowl in New Orleans.

Chancellor George Osborne will warn that any bank which fails to separate its high street division from its riskier investment activities will face being broken up.

Debt-burdened Greece's fragile political stability is under attack. On the left, anti-government groups have bombed a series of Greek government offices, banks and other symbols of the establishment. Meanwhile, violent attacks by supporters of a neo-Nazi and anti-immigrant party are also on the rise.

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Paul Gascoigne needs almost 24-hour supervision for his own safety, PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor says.