1New South Wales Police have admitted that they and the Corrective Services knew drug trafficker Peter Fulcher was wanted in New Zealand almost a week before his release from a Sydney prison.

2Water safety authorities are concerned at the increased number of drownings at New Zealand beaches so far this summer.

3At least 25 people have now been killed in election violence in India, and nearly 200 have been injured.

4Forty tonnes of lethal chemicals have leaked from a wagon at a railroad depot in Yugoslavia.

5Forty people have been killed and thirteen seriously injured as a bus overturned on a mountain pass in South Africa.

6Thieves in New Jersey have stolen around $4 million from a security firm.

7Israel's Parliament has voted for the first time in its history, to limit the immunity and freedom of one of its members, anti-Arab militant Rabbi Meir Kahane.

8The birth of a new baby tuatara has caused excitement at the Otorohanga Kiwi House as it is one of the few times the reptile has been bred in captivity.

9The annual influx of holidaymakers to Wanaka has begun while the town is still trying to clean up after last week's floods.

10The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester will visit Christchurch early next year. They will stay in the Royal Suite in Noah's Hotel, which has been stripped and painstakingly renovated.

11Prime Minister David Lange spent the day with his family at Auckland's Lion Safari Park before a ride down the Alpine Toboggan Run.

12In Britain this Christmas, one of the most popular gifts has been the home computer. However, authorities are becoming concerned at how such electronic equipment can be put to use.