Britain- Police searched five locations in northeast England in the first known raids in Britain in connection with last week's bombings in London which claimed more than 50 lives. Lebanon Lebanon's outgoing Defence Minister Elias Murr was wounded in an explosion in a Christian suburb just north of the capital Beirut that also caused fatalities, police said. Iraq A US soldier died of wounds sustained in an attack on his patrol in Baghdad while 14 suspected insurgents were killed in US-led operations in northwestern Iraq, the US military said. Afghanistan Taliban rebels offered shelter to four Arab militants who were being hunted by US and Afghan forces after they escaped from a high-security prison at the main American base in the war-torn country. Australia Australia's government made a decision on a new troop deployment to Afghanistan but refused to immediately announce whether its military will join US-led coalition forces bracing for a rebel offensive ahead of parliamentary elections. North Korea US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice demanded that North Korea renounce nuclear weapons for good when talks resume after a year, as South Korea offered a major food package as an incentive for its impoverished neighbor. Spain An explosion caused by a home-made bomb rocked the Italian cultural center in the Spanish city of Barcelona, injuring a policeman, local officials and Spanish radio said. China Chinese Trade Minister Bo Xilai urged World Trade Organisation member states to accept 2010 as the deadline for the elimination of export subsidies ahead of WTO talks here. Russia- A murder and arson inquiry has been opened after 24 people died in a fierce blaze at a shop in the northwest Russian city of Ukhta, the local prosecutor general said. Eritrea- At least 56 people were killed and 30 were seriously injured when an overloaded bus plunged over an embankment southwest of Asmara in Eritrea's worst-ever road accident, officials said. Monaco Prince Albert II of Monaco was set to be enthroned as ruler of the Mediterranean statelet which has become indelibly linked with Hollywood glamour and jet-set wealth.