The occasion was today’s launch of the Foreign Office’s annual report on human rights, and William Hague was keen not to let the media monopolise the questioning. So he turned to a lady sitting on the front row, among the great and the good at Lancaster House

Guards foiled plans for a jailbreak similar to that shown in the film The Shawshank Redemption when they found a tunnel that inmates had dug, leading to a sewer.

A healthy-sounding President Hugo Chavez called Venezuelan state television from Cuba yesterday to dispel rumours fanned by a nine-day silence that he had died undergoing cancer treatment at a hospital in Havana.

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has been out of sight for a week, speaking only through Twitter messages and written statements while undergoing cancer treatment in Cuba.

Hugo Chavez thrives on drama. After coming to power thirteen years ago, the former military officer has survived a coup, likened a US president to the devil and used a combination of charisma and oil revenues to sweep away all serious opposition. But today his raging invincibility is in doubt.

A showcase for three young conductors, a malfunction at the printers, and for the first time in my experience no programmes for the audience and the prospect of blind-tasting their talents.

Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Cuba in the footsteps of his more famous predecessor, gently pressing the island's long-time communist leaders to push through "legitimate" reforms their people desire.

President Hugo Chavez is back working on government affairs after undergoing an operation in Cuba.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez came out of cancer surgery on Monday night in Cuba and is recovering in a hospital, sources reported yesterday.

Amerigo Vespucci remains a complex figure. By Peter Popham

He had two continents named after himself and thrilled Europe with the salacious tales of what he saw there. But, 500 years on, can we trust Amerigo Vespucci's accounts? Peter Popham discovers the full story

Oil, foreign investment, free enterprise, and golf courses are on their way

Getting young people into work using a tax on bankers' bonuses is a major priority for the Labour Party, leader Ed Miliband said as he launched his local election campaign.

Opposition leaders will hold the nation's first primary election to choose the strongest challenger to the populist President, Hugo Chavez.