Nicknames are a big part of popular culture in most countries, particularly in sports, but most still hold tight to formalised names when it comes to anything official. Not so the Brazilians. Affectionate familiarity in Brazil is for everyone from the kid next door all the way up to the country’s president. They don’t use the last names.

Seven people died in a series of attacks in Iraq on Monday, including three killed when a car bomb exploded in a Baghdad shopping area.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s brother-in-law was promoted and a Premier who apologised for a currency debacle was replaced on Monday in a rare parliamentary session with strong signs that the secr

A high school student stressed out over pressure to excel burned down part of his prestigious boarding school in what may have been behaviour copying the widespread arson of recent protests in Bangkok

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is heading to China this week to discuss the threat of new UN sanctions over Iran’s nuclear programme, as US secretary of state Hillary Clinton said world powers have the

A lesbian couple wed on Monday in Portugal’s first same-sex ceremony since the predominantly Catholic country introduced a law allowing gay marriage last month.

World stock markets mostly fell on Monday and the euro hit a new four-year low in the wake of poor US jobs figures and amid fresh fears that the debt crisis that began in Greece is spreading to Hungar

Italian Matteo Carrara won the Tour of Luxembourg with Lance Armstrong ending third in the overall standings on Sunday.

Spain will reportedly receive the most money out of all 32 World Cup teams if they win the World Cup, and several Spanish political parties are unhappy at the figure with the country facing an economi

About 5,000 fans created a party atmosphere on Sunday when Diego Maradona and Argentina’s national team made their first public appearance since arriving in South Africa for the World Cup.