Main news of April 4

A roundup of what has happened in the past 24 hours

WORLD

* Three car bombs exploded in the Iraqi capital on Sunday, killing at least 30 people and injuring more than 200 in coordinated attacks that security officials said targeted foreign diplomatic missions

* Prague Castle will be closed to visitors for three days while the Czech capital hosts the signing ceremony for the new Russian-U.S. treaty on strategic arms cuts

* UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon took a helicopter tour over the Aral Sea, seeing first hand the environmental devastation the receding waters have left behind

* Thirty militants and six soldiers have been killed in an operation held by Pakistani troops in the country's northwest

* A Soyuz TMA-18 piloted spacecraft with a new space crew docked with the International Space Station (ISS)

RUSSIA

* Two bombs that went off on a railway track in the Republic of Dagestan in Russia's North Caucasus can be seen as the continuation of the recent terrorist attacks in Russia, a high-placed security officer said

* Police are investigating the circumstances of the death of fugitive Russian businessman Yevgeny Chichvarkin's mother in Moscow, a police source said

* Fugitive Russian businessman Yevgeny Chichvarkin said he believed his mother was murdered and he would not return from Britain to attend her funeral

* President Dmitry Medvedev has congratulated Russians on Easter and said Christians should join hands to harmonize relations between different faiths.

* Over 3.5 million people attended Easter night services in Russia, with about 114,000 police and interior troops providing public security during the festivities, the Interior Ministry reported

* Easter celebrations in Moscow were held in a calm atmosphere, with an extra 3,000 officers providing security following the recent terrorist attacks

RELIGION

* The social work of the Russian Orthodox Church, which is most evident in Moscow, should be extended to all regions of Russia, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia said

* Russia is celebrating Easter, the most important and joyful feast for Christians, when the Church commemorates the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

SPORTS

* Lokomotiv held off Moscow rivals Dynamo on Sunday to record their second win of the season, while reigning champions Rubin failed to find a way past Saturn and were held 0-0 by the draw specialists

* The start of marathon dog sled race intended to attract tourists to Russia's Chukotka region was postponed due to a major snowstorm

* Fans of Russian skater Evgeni Plushenko, who hoped to become the first repeat men's Olympic gold medalist since 1952 but won silver in the free skate at the Vancouver Games, will give the skater and his coach "people's" gold medals