China floods update: passenger train falls into river in Sichuan; Zhouqu cleans Bailong River
Three people have been killed and four others are missing in flash floods and landslides that swept Qingchuan county in southwest China's Sichuan province.
Authorities say the county is now isolated with three major roads leading to neighboring counties cut off by the landslides.
In Wenchuan County in Sichuan, clean-up operations continue after a torrent of flood waters swept through the epicenter of the devastating 2008 earthquake.
Geological engineer Wang Yonghong argues the earthquake is one of the contributing factors behind the latest mudslides in the mountainous western regions.
"Earthquakes provide a lot of soft materials. That is why earthquake have relationship with mudslides."
Meanwhile, in Zhouqu County in Gansu, the country's worst landslides have left 1,364 people and left some 400 missing.

UN: Flood victims in Pakistan in need of relief Increase to 8 Million
The United Nations says the number of Pakistan's flood victims in need of urgent humanitarian relief has increased from six to eight million.
Manuel Bessler, Head of U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Pakistan.
"We have the huge area effected and we have a large number, over 15.4 million affected in a way or another affected by this disaster. Not all of them are in need of humanitarian assistance. We see about eight, nine million people will need assistance but it's still subject to ongoing assessment."
More than four million Pakistanis are now homeless nearly three weeks after the floods began, the worst in Pakistan's history.
Aid agencies have been pushing for more funding as they try to tackle major problems such as food supplies, lack of clean water and shelter and outbreaks of disease.

UN chief honors aid workers as "unsung heroes" on World Humanitarian Day
UN Secretary-general Ban Ki- moon has called on the international community to remember and honor humanitarian workers and their sacrifices at a ceremony to observe the second annual World Humanitarian Day.
The UN chief spoke to a crowd at the UN headquarters after placing a wreath at a plaque honoring 22 UN humanitarian workers killed in the Canal Hotel bombing in Baghdad on Aug. 19, 2003. The UN established this date as an annual commemoration of the humanitarian work all over the world.

First Roma expatriated by France arrive back in Romania
France has expelled scores of Romanians, the first expulsion after President Nicolas Sarkozy announced a crackdown on crime and immigration, which has been condemned by rights groups and the opposition.
The first flight from France carrying 79 people arrived in Romania under the French government's plan to send a total of 700 people to Romania and Bulgaria by the end of the August.
Last month Sarkozy ordered 300 illegal traveller camps be dismantled as part of a broader crime crackdown following riots in two French cities.

Threat halts US flight on runway at California airport
An American Airlines flight bound for New York City was stopped before takeoff at San Francisco International Airport after a threat to the plane was reported.
Passengers were removed from the flight, taken by bus to a terminal, and sent through security a second time.
Two individuals on the plane were taken into custody, according to one witness.
It was unclear whether a bomb or hijack threat prevented the flight from leaving the airport.

U.S. budget deficit to exceed 1.3 trillion dollars in 2010: CBO
The U.S. federal budget deficit will exceed 1.3 trillion dollars in fiscal year 2010, the second largest shortfall in 65 years, just below 2009 level.
The U.S. Congressional Budget Office says the budget gap is expected to be about 1.34 trillion dollars for the year ended in September.
The CBO also projected the U.S. economy to grow 2.8 percent in fiscal year 2010 and slow down to 2.0 percent in 2011.

Explosion kills seven in China's Xinjiang
Seven people have been killed and 14 other injured in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, after criminal suspects detonated explosives in a crowd
The blast went off on a bridge in the outskirts of Aksu city. The suspects, a man and a woman, rode an electric bike and threw the explosives as the drove by.
The female suspect died in the blast, while the male has been seized by police.

Crashed aircraft in NE China identified
A plane that crashed in northeast China's Liaoning Province earlier this week has now been identified as a military aircraft from North Korea.
Investigations show the plane suffered mechanical failure, which caused it to lose course and stray into Chinese territory.
North Korea has expressed regret to China over the accident.
Only the pilot was killed in the crash.

China's Tibet Airlines orders 3 Airbus planes for debut
China's Tibet Airlines buys three Airbus A319 aircrafts for its fleet due to debut in 2011.
The three planes will be delivered to Tibet Airlines, the first airline based in Tibet, in the third quarter next year.
The Lhasa-based airline plans to launch its first flight next August and expand its fleet to 20 aircraft in the coming five years.