■ Ivory Coast
President vows to stay
The president vowed to stay in power for another year, as security forces fired into the air and hurled tear gas at opposition militants protesting a bitterly disputed, UN-backed extension of his mandate. Laurent Gbagbo also said on Sunday that he would name a new prime minister within days to ensure presidential elections are held within 12 months. Late Sunday, the rebels issued a statement proclaiming their leader Guillaume Soro as the new premier, although they have no legal authority to do so. The move, sure to increase tensions in the West African country, underscored the profound differences between the two sides.
■ United Kingdom
Britons prefer ghosts
More Britons believe in ghosts than in God, according to research published yesterday. In a poll of 2,012 people, 68 percent said they believed in the existence of ghosts and spirits, while 55 percent said they believed in the existence of a god. Some 26 percent said they believed in the existence of unidentified flying objects, or UFOs, while 19 percent believed in reincarnation. Of those who believed in ghosts, 12 percent said they had actually seen an apparition and 76 percent said that TV reality shows about the supernatural and films like The Blair Witch Project had played a part in convincing them that ghouls exist.
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