The murder rate in Jamaica inched closer to the record 1,139 of 2001, following Friday night's murder of seven men in Spanish Town and Portmore in St. Catherine, Glendevon and Norwood in St. James and St Andrew.

Grenada will not wait on Caricom to bear its financial burden, Prime Minister, Dr Keith Mitchell, has said.

Seven million dollars' worth of cocaine and heroin was seized between Wednesday and yesterday, resulting in the arrest of two people.

Castries, St Lucia: The Jamaica-based Sandals Resorts International on Thursday 30 September said it plans to spend an estimated 80m US dollars constructing a new 300-room upscale facility on Pigeon Island, north of here.

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. - The House of Blues has canceled a concert featuring dancehall reggae star Capleton after a gay and lesbian community group protested over his songs' references to violence against gays.

Downtown Kingston was tense yesterday after a man was chopped and stabbed to death, and his body dragged about 80 yards before being left on a pavement in front of the Redemption Market on West Street.

A shipment of ganja destined for Barbados was Monday intercepted at the Norman Manley International Airport's Fumigation and Quarantine Centre by the Jamaica Customs Department's Contraband Enforcement Team (CET).

PORT OF SPAIN, Sept. 30 -- The governments of Trinidad and Tobago, Algeria, and Indonesia are discussing construction of a regasification terminal in the US, said Trinidad and Tobago's Prime Minister Patrick Manning.

When Bermudian couple the Cowens boarded a flight from Athens on Sunday they had expected to spend the journey reminiscing about a wonderful holiday in the Black Sea.

The Jamaican government last night told 281 Haitians, who had applied for refugee status here, that they do not qualify.