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The Obama administration has designated the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico as an event of national significance, a move which allows it to draw on resources from across the country to deal with the leak. Mr Obama said everything possible was being done to tackle the problem.

"The Department of Interior has announced that they will be sending SWAT teams to the Gulf to inspect all platforms and rigs. And I have ordered the secretaries of interior and Homeland Security to visit the site on Friday to ensure that BP and the entire US government is doing everything possible, not just to respond to this incident but also to determine its cause."

A state of emergency has been declared in Louisiana whose coastline is the most threatened by the spill. As many as 5,000 barrels of oil a day may now be leaking into the sea after last week's explosion on a drilling rig which then sank.

Britain's three main political leaders have confronted each other over the country's economic difficulties in the third and final televised debate before next week's general election. How to tackle the country's huge budget deficits was at the heart of some exchanges. Here is our political reporter Naomi Grimley.

After a miserable 24 hours for Gordon Brown he used his opening statement to argue that being prime minister was tough. "I don't always get things right," he said, in a reference to his unguarded remarks about an elderly voter he met on Wednesday. But David Cameron called Mr Brown a desperate man and said the Conservatives were the only party to get the country out of its economic rots. As for Britain's third leader Nick Clegg, he criticized his opponents for their old-style politics, telling the audience the Liberal Democrats would do something different.

Belgium has moved a step closer to becoming the first European country to ban Islamic full-face veils in public places. MPs approved the legislation which now goes to the senate. It can recommend changes but not overturn the new law. Parliament in France is due to debate a similar law later this year. From Brussels here is Dominic Hughes.

Belgian members of parliament gave the new law their overwhelming backing, just two abstentions and no votes against. The law makes no direct reference to full-face veils like niqabs or burkas. Instead it bans clothing that hides someone's identity in public places like parks, buildings or on the street. Some MPs back the law on the grounds of security; others say the full-face veil is a symbol of the oppression of women. The Muslim executive of Belgium has criticized the new law arguing that it would lead to women who do wear the veil being trapped in their homes.

Senators in the United States have begun a debate on the most sweeping financial reform since the 1930s. The legislation is designed to help avoid a repeat of the global crisis. The Democrats want to tighten controls over the financial services industry, but the opposition Republicans object to much of the new bill, in particular a plan for a consumer protection agency.

Iraqi officials say a manual recount of the ballots for Baghdad will start on Monday and may take up to two weeks. The partial recount follows a successful appeal by the incumbent Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki who came a close second in last month's parliamentary election. His opponents say Mr al-Maliki is abusing the law to change the result of the election and to disqualify his political enemies.

A car bomb has exploded near an alcohol shop in Baghdad. At least eight people are reported to have been killed in the blast which happened in a busy area, southwest of the city.

The European Commission has said it expects a rescue package for Greece to be finalized in a few days. After meeting officials of the International Monetary Fund, the Commissioner of Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn said the package would give the Greek economy some breathing space. Analysts say Germany might be closer to endorsing its share of the bailout.

The Turkish government has given the long-awaited go-ahead for a third bridge spanning the busy Bosphorus waterway dividing the city of Istanbul and the continents of Europe and Asia. When it's finished in about five years time, the suspension bridge will be one of the longest of its kind in the world. Jonathan Head sent this report from the city.

For all its scene and beauty, the Bosphorus is very inconvenient for the inhabitants of Istanbul. One hundred and forty million cars cross the two existing Bosphorus bridges every year causing almost continuous traffic jams on them. So the long-awaited announcement of a third bridge will be welcomed by some but not everyone. Critics who include environmentalists, architects and city planners argue that the bridge will do little to solve Istanbul's traffic woes.

From today women are allowed to serve on board United States' submarines. Congress had until today to object to the policy shift but didn't. It's expected it will take up to a year before the first women can be trained for submarine duties and before separate quarters can be built for them.