* The cases of influenza A(H1N1) infection, also known as swine flu, were registered in 17 countries, the Russian consumer rights regulator Rospotrebnadzor said, referring to the World Health Organization
* The death toll from a fire that broke out in a wooden residential building in Irkutsk in east Siberia rose to eight people, the regional emergencies department said
* The leader of Russia's North Caucasus Republic of Chechnya pledged to make the republic prosperous in 10 years and resign by that time
Russia's Yevgeniya Kanaeva and Vera Sesina took gold in all the four rhythmic gymnastics individual events at the 5th World Cup competition in Pesaro, Italy
WORLD
* Mexico's health minister Jose Angel Cordova said that the number of people infected with swine flu had risen to 473 with 19 confirmed deaths
* Somali pirates seized a British-owned ship with a Ukrainian crew, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said
* Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's wife decided to file for divorce, Italian media reported
