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TOP STORIES

Britain's dead-heat election "down to the wire" on polling day

LONDON - Britons vote in the tightest election for decades; one that could cause government gridlock, push the world's fifth-largest economy closer to leaving the European Union and stoke a second attempt by Scotland to break away. (BRITAIN-ELECTION/ (UPDATE 3, PICTURE, TV), expect by 1300 GMT/9 AM ET, by Guy Faulconbridge and Andrew Osborn, 870 words)

+ See also:

- BRITAIN-ELECTION/POLL-ASHCROFT, moved, 100 words

Syrian army kills dozens of rebels near Lebanon border -Manar TV

BEIRUT/AMMAN - Syrian army bombing in the mountainous area along the border with Lebanon kills dozens of insurgents and helped Hezbollah fighters regain hilly territory overlooking the Shi'ite Muslim group's strongholds, the Lebanese militants say. (MIDEAST-CRISIS/HEZBOLLAH (UPDATE 2), moving shortly, by Laila Bassam and Suleiman Al-Khalidi, 460 words)

Iran says Maersk ship released, has left its territorial waters - ISNA

ANKARA - Iran has released a Marshall-Islands flagged container ship and its crew which were seized last month in one of the world's major oil shipping lanes, the Students News Agency ISNA quotes a foreign ministry official as saying. (IRAN-DENMARK/SHIP-RELEASE (UPDATE 3), moved, by Parisa Hafezi and Jonathan Saul, 420 words)

SPECIAL REPORT

Why gold threatens Ivory Coast's peace

GAMINA, Ivory Coast - Nestled among the cocoa plantations of western Ivory Coast is a gold mine that does not feature on any official maps. It is not run by an industrial mining company, nor does it pay taxes to the central government. (IVORYCOAST-GOLD/ARMY (SPECIAL REPORT, PICTURE, GRAPHIC), moved, by Joe Bavier, 2,000 words)

AFRICA

Protests after Burundi president sticks to vote bid, one dead

BUJUMBURA - Protesters are back on the streets of Burundi's capital and one person is killed after President Pierre Nkurunziza tell demonstrators to halt rallies against his third term bid, promising to make it his last if he wins. (BURUNDI-POLITICS/ (UPDATE 1), moving shortly, by Patrick Njuwimana and Njuwa Maina, 420 words)

EUROPE

French court approves Sarkozy phone-tapping in upset for comeback

PARIS - French magistrates back the phone-tapping of ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy as part of an investigation in allegations of influence peddling, in a potential blow to his hopes to run again for president in 2017. (FRANCE-POLITICS/SARKOZY (PICTURE, TV), moving shortly, by Chine Labbé, 425 words)

France's Marine Le Pen gambles with political patricide

PARIS - By pushing her maverick father out of the far-right party he founded four decades ago, French National Front leader Marine Le Pen is banking on an act of political patricide to ensure he does not end up ruining her bid for power. (FRANCE-LEPEN/ (ANALYSIS, PICTURE, TV), moved, by Ingrid Melander and Gregory Blachier, 835 words)

Rome airport gradually reopening after fire forces close

ROME - Rome's main Fiumicino airport is gradually reopening after a fire that badly damaged the main international terminal building forced a closure of about 12 hours. (ITALY-AIRPORT/ROME (UPDATE 3, PICTURE, TV), moving shortly, by Philip Pullella, 350 words)

UNITED STATES

Tornadoes, severe flooding hit Oklahoma City area, injuries reported

OKLAHOMA CITY - A series of tornadoes, including a major twister, touched down southwest of Oklahoma City, injuring several residents of a trailer park, causing severe flooding and the escape of bears from a wildlife park, officials say. (USA-WEATHER/OKLAHOMA (UPDATE 5, TV), moved, by Heide Brandes, 400 words)

ASIA

Australian could face death penalty in China drug trial

GUANGZHOU - An Australian man faces a possible death sentence on charges of attempting to smuggle millions of dollars worth of drugs out of China. (CHINA-CRIME/(UPDATE 1, TV, PICTURE), moved, by James Promfret, 410 words)

China warns Philippine military planes away from disputed sea area

MANILA - China warns Philippine air force and navy planes at least six times to leave areas around the disputed South China Sea, the Philippine military commander responsible for the region tells a Senate hearing. (SOUTHCHINASEA-PHILIPPINES/ (UPDATE 1), moved, by Manuel Mogato, 540 words)

Hundreds of bodies may be buried in Nepal avalanche, official says

KATHMANDU - Body parts are strewn on the slopes of a mountain in Nepal, and up to 300 people, many of them foreigners, are believed buried there by an avalanche set off by last month's devastating earthquake, an official says. (QUAKE-NEPAL/(PICTURE, TV, GRAPHICS), moved, by Gopal Sharma, 200 words)

+ See also:

- QUAKE-NEPAL/CUBA (UPDATE 1), moved, 190 words

Over 50 Thai police punished over links to human trafficking

BANGKOK - More than 50 Thai police officers are punished over suspected links to human trafficking networks, the police chief says, after the prime minister orders a probe into the discovery of trafficking camps near the Malaysian border.(THAILAND-ROHINGYA/TRAFFICKING (UPDATE 2, PICTURE), moved, by Aukkarapon Niyomyat, 415 words)

South Korea opposes Japan's bid for heritage status of industrial sites

SEOUL - South Korea condemns as "historic distortion" an effort by Japan to register 19th century industrial facilities as U.N. world heritage sites, urging full disclosure of Japan's use of Korean forced labour at some of them. (SOUTHKOREA-JAPAN/ (UPDATE 1), moved, by Ju-min Park, 360 words)