USA - Modern life is killing children with the number of youngsters diagnosed with cancer rising 40 per cent in the past 16 years because of air pollution, pesticides, poor diets and radiation, scientists have warned. New analysis of government statistics by researchers at the charity Children with Cancer UK found that there are now 1,300 more cancer cases a year compared with 1998, the first time all data sets were published. The rise is most apparent in teenagers and young adults aged between 15 and 24, where the incident rate has risen from around 10 cases in 100,000 to nearly 16. Researchers say that although some of the rise can be explained by improvements in cancer diagnoses and more screening, the majority is probably caused by environmental factors.

SWEDEN - Next month, on October 31, the eve of All Saints Day, Pope Francis will visit Lund, Sweden, to participate with Lutheran church leaders in a joint ecumenical commemoration of the Reformation. October 31 is Reformation Day on Protestant church calendars, and this year it will mark the 499th anniversary of Martin Luther’s posting of the 95 Theses on the Castle Church door at Wittenberg. The Pope’s presence at the prayer service in Lund Cathedral (Domkyrka), a church where Christians have worshiped for more than one thousand years, will be followed by a larger gathering at nearby Malmö. This historic occasion, which will launch a full year of Reformation remembrances, will doubtless be the most talked about ecumenical event of 2016.

USA - One day after an IED exploded in a busy midtown Manhattan sidewalk, an explosion took place at a train station in Elizabeth, New Jersey, after a suspicious backpack was found. The detonation was "not controlled", the city's mayor said. Elizabeth's mayor, Christian Bollwage, said the blast occurred when authorities were trying to "disarm" the backpack, and that the explosion was not controlled. As many as five potential explosive devices tumbled out of the backpack when it was emptied, Bollwage said. After cordoning off the area, a bomb squad used a robot to cut a wire to try to disable the device, but inadvertently set off an explosion, he said. "I can imagine that if all five of them went off at the same time, that the loss of life could have been enormous if there was an event going on,” Bollwage said.

USA - New York City, New Jersey and Minnesota were all hit by terror attacks within a 24 hour time period, and authorities are concerned that this may be the start of a fresh wave of terrorism in this country. Those that conduct acts of terror do so because they want to create fear and because they want attention.

USA - The New York and New Jersey bombings suspect is in custody after a shootout with police that began when he was found sleeping in a bar doorway. Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28, is undergoing surgery for a gunshot wound. Two officers were also injured in the confrontation in Linden, New Jersey. Linden is four miles (6km) south-west of the city of Elizabeth, where further devices were found late on Sunday. The FBI said no other suspect was being sought over the weekend's blasts. Linden Mayor Derek Armstead said the suspect was found sleeping in the vestibule of Merdie's Tavern by the owner, who reported him to police. When a police officer went to investigate and wake him, he realised he resembled the man in the wanted poster, the mayor said. "Within moments the suspect fired on him. Thank God he had his vest on." The injured police officers are "ok and safe", Mr Armstead said.

USA - A man who described himself as a childhood friend of the 28-year-old busted today in connection with this weekend's New York-area bombings told the Herald the suspect made a life-changing trip to Afghanistan two years ago.

GERMANY - The Berlin election on Sunday was bad news for Angela Merkel and her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) but it was not as shocking as the vote in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania two weeks ago. Putting the result in a more positive light, the CDU is the second-strongest party in the German capital - behind the Social Democratic SPD.

GERMANY - Germany’s anti-Islamization and Eurosceptic AfD entered its tenth state assembly, as voters deserted the mainstream parties in the nation’s capital. But a left-leaning coalition is likely to take control of the city. With all votes counted, Alternative for Germany (AfD), founded only three years ago, captured 14.1 percent of the vote, putting it in fifth place, but within range of the four leading parties. “It’s a huge success. We are a party coming from nothing, so the only party that is gaining two digits is us. Now, we are moving from the regional elections here this year, and looking to the national polls in 2017,” Beatrix von Storch, an AfD MEP, told RT amid celebrations. "Berlin was the real loser tonight," said General Secretary of the center-right CDU, Peter Tauber, whose party achieved its lowest post-WW II result, to a somber audience across town.

ISRAEL - Israel has 200 nuclear weapons, according to the latest revelation hidden in a cache of Colin Powell's leaked emails. The former US secretary of state revealed the information in an email he sent to a colleague last year, which was obtained by the hacking group DCLeaks and published on LobeLog, a foreign policy blog. Israel has a policy of nuclear ambiguity and has never talked about the type or size of its weapons, even if it has been an “open secret” that the US ally is well armed.

USA - The Arizona Supreme Court issued a stunning and horrifying decision on Tuesday, interpreting a state law to criminalize any contact between an adult and a child’s genitals. According to the court, the law’s sweep encompasses wholly innocent conduct, such as changing a diaper or bathing a baby. As the stinging dissent notes, “parents and other caregivers” in the state are now considered to be “child molesters or sex abusers under Arizona law.” Those convicted under the statute may be imprisoned for five years. This terrible decision has gutted constitutional rights and turned many of the state’s residents into unknowing criminals. Barring intervention by the US Supreme Court, due process has now been suspended for Arizona’s parents and caregivers.

UNITED NATIONS - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has harshly criticized Israeli settlements in the West Bank and is calling for urgent action to save “the two state solution”. He insists that Israeli settlements in the West Bank “are illegal under international law” and he told reporters that the “occupation” of Palestinian-controlled territories “must end”.

CHINA - China has failed to curb excesses in its credit system and faces mounting risks of a full-blown banking crisis, according to early warning indicators released by the world’s top financial watchdog. A key gauge of credit vulnerability is now three times over the danger threshold and has continued to deteriorate, despite pledges by Chinese premier Li Keqiang to wean the economy off debt-driven growth before it is too late.

UK - Britain will veto measures to build an EU army for as long as it remains a member of the union, the defence secretary has warned. Sir Michael Fallon’s comments came as it emerged that France and Germany had drawn up a timetable to create a “common military force” that would rival Nato in army capability. According to a document discussed by EU leaders at a summit in Bratislava yesterday, the European Commission will put forward proposals in December for the common military force, with the aim of agreement by June next year. Britain was not invited to the summit.

GERMANY - German Chancellor Angela Merkel's party suffered a historic loss in Berlin state elections Sunday while the right-wing populist AfD gained fresh support, riding a wave of popular anger over her open-door refugee policy. The anti-Islam Alternative for Germany party won around 14 percent, according to public broadcasters' projections, in the capital which has long prided itself on being a hip, diverse and multicultural city. The strong AfD result, thanks to support especially in the vast tower block districts in Berlin's former communist east, meant it has now won opposition seats in ten of Germany's 16 states, a year ahead of national elections.

USA - It’s one of the most dangerous myths most people believe… Boobus Americanus thinks cash he deposits into a bank is a personal asset he owns. But that’s not true. Once a deposit is made at the bank, it’s no longer your property. It’s the bank’s. What you own instead is a promise from the bank to repay. It’s an unsecured liability.