SriLanka Sri Lanka declared a state of emergency after the assassination of Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar in an attack blamed by police on Tamil rebels that threatens to undermine the peace process. Iraq Iraq's president said the country's first post-Saddam Hussein constitution was nearly ready, as focus moved to autonomy for the majority Shiites, an issue that could trigger a revolt from the ousted Sunni Arab elite. Britain British Airways said it was making "good" progress on clearing a huge flight backlog at Heathrow Airport caused by a staff strike but admitted efforts to bring the situation to normal would continue into next week. US The Pentagon moved forcefully to block the release of new video evidence of prisoner abuse at Iraq's ill-fated Abu Ghraib prison, arguing it would help recruit new Islamist insurgents and endanger American lives. Mideast Israel stepped up security at Jerusalem's holiest site to prevent clashes between Muslim worshippers and Jewish extremists opposed to the imminent evacuation of the Gaza Strip settlements. Indonesia Indonesian ministers and other officials headed for Finland to sign an agreement with separatist rebels to end decades of bloodshed in tsunami-hit Aceh province. India More than 157 people have died from water-borne illnesses in India's financial capital Mumbai and surrounding regions following a week-long deluge of rain, health officials said. Britain An Islamic scholar said radical preachers such as Omar Bakri Mohammed "should have been deported from England many years ago" for encouraging suicide attacks which were never part of Islam-sanctioned warfare. China An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale shook southwest China's Yunnan province, toppling houses and causing several injuries, state media reported. Zimbabwe US envoy Tony Hall was barred from visiting a settlement for Zimbabweans displaced during a government demolitions campaign as Washington got behind a major food aid plan for Zimbabwe. Pakistan A man suspected of involvement in the murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl appeared in court over a separate murder and was remanded in custody for a further four days.