Benedict XVI vows "unconditional obedience and reverence" to his eventual successor as pope on his final day in office at the Vatican.

Benedict XVI vows "unconditional obedience and reverence" to his eventual successor as pope on his final day in office at the Vatican.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has reported its fifth year of losses since it was bailed out by the government in 2008, hit by fines and mis-selling charges.

Three people accused of killing six children in a house fire "rehearsed" the act six weeks before the night of the blaze, a court is told.

Online currency Bitcoin reached an all-time high price of more than $32 (£21), a sign the virtual money fortunes have reversed.

Deyan Deyanov is sentenced to 20 years in a Spanish secure unit for the murder of Briton Jennifer Mills-Westley.

The mother of Joe Bampton, a victim of the Egypt hot air balloon tragedy, says her son and his partner, who also died, "lived life to the full".

A Swiss teacher is freed by her kidnappers in Yemen after nearly a year in captivity, following mediation by the Qatari government.

The performance of the US economy in the last three months of 2012 is revised from a 0.1% contraction to 0.1% growth by the Commerce Department.

Thousands of litres of whisky are flushed down the drain by accident at a bottling plant in Dumbarton.

The mummified heart of England's King Richard I - better known as Richard the Lionheart - is analysed by forensic scientists.

The mummified heart of England's King Richard I - better known as Richard the Lionheart - is analysed by forensic scientists.

Net migration to the UK fell by a third in the year ending June 2012, compared with the previous 12 months, the latest immigration figures show.

Q&A on the proposed EU cap on bonuses for top bankers

City authorities in Caracas are hiring actors to re-enact key historical scenes in the streets to help bring Venezuela's past to life.

The rabble-rouser shaking up Italian politics

The rabble-rouser shaking up Italian politics

Two Palestinian prisoners held in an Israeli jail have ended their hunger strike and two others continue to refuse food.

Singer Anastacia is forced to cancel her European tour after being diagnosed with breast cancer for the second time.

Video footage of an eight-year-old girl driving her family's car at high speed on an icy Russian road has led to a police investigation.