Authorities have said that a woman whose children were found dead in her townhouse in Edinburgh, Scotland, has been charged with their murder.

The Scotsman has reported that Theresa Riggi, 46, who was hospitalized after falling or jumping from a balcony, was arrested Friday at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.

It was also reported that Riggi and her husband, Pasquale, were in the process of a bitter divorce. The couple, both U. S. nationals, had lived in Scotland for 13 years.

The three children, Gianluca and Augustino, both 8, and Cecelia, 5, were born in Scotland.

Edinburgh (Scotland), Nov. 18 : Taliban fighters should be persuaded to lay down their arms and take seats in the Afghan Parliament to build a lasting peace in that country, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has said.

In a speech to a NATO conference here, Miliband sought to soothe growing public fears that British troops could be bogged down indefinitely in Afghanistan, promising: "This in not a war without end."

The Independent quoted him as saying that Britain was ready to commit more soldiers to Afghanistan, but stressed military action had to be backed by a lasting political settlement.

It is well established fact that stressful pregnancy could lead to health problems for both child and the mother. Recent study indicated that exposure to stress hormone in womb not only has negative effect on growth of the child it could also negatively affects fertility of male child.

Research team from the University of Edinburgh found that combination of stress hormone along with the chemical compound dibutyl phthalate, commonly present in glues, paints and plastics, could harm the male reproductive system subsequently leading to risk of reproductive birth defects.

Edinburgh (Scotland), Aug. 29 : Despite a jam-packed international cricket schedule, Australian vice-captain Michael Clarke says he is keen to try his hand at the Indian Premier League.

Having missed the first two tournaments, the Australian vice-captain indicated he would consider taking part in 2010, believing it could provide ideal preparation for the ICC World Twenty20, which starts five days after the April 25 IPL final.

Edinburgh (Scotland), Aug. 22 : Scotland’s police force is using "porta-prisons" which can transported to areas in need of extra space to house those in custody.

The mobile cells – designed to help meet a growing demand for extra accommodation for prisoners – are being used by Grampian Police. It is the first time they have been deployed in Scotland.

Five of the modular units, each weighing eight tonnes and contain two separate cells, reports The Scotsman.

Each of the cells incorporates state-of-the-art facilities for prisoners.

Edinburgh (Scotland), Aug. 17 : A Scottish Government minister is to take the case of Pakistani visitors barred from visiting Scotland to the Home Office.

Michael Russell, the external affairs minister, has written to Home Office minister Phil Woolas asking for a meeting after the UK Border Agency (UKBA) refused to grant visas to a Pakistani pipe band and a business delegation coming to Glasgow.

Edinburgh (Scotland), June 14 : Scotland's anti-terror chiefs have announced plans to launch a scheme to deradicalise Scots who have fallen prey to Islamic extremists.

According to The Scotsman, vulnerable individuals, including children, will be targeted under the plan, which is aimed at preventing disaffected young Muslims from becoming involved in terrorism.

The initiative, to be modelled on an English program, will also be open to people being lured into other forms of political violence, such as fanatics on the fringes of Scottish nationalism or the animal rights movement.

Edinburgh (Scotland), May 15 : Campaigners chained themselves together on Thursday as part of a worldwide call for the release of a doctor jailed for speaking out about poverty.

Dr Binayak Sen worked with the poorest people in central India for decades, but was jailed two years ago for speaking up for his patients.

The campaigners - who included MSP and GP Richard Simpson - dressed in white coats and masks to protest outside the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh.

Amnesty International''s Scottish programme director John Watson said: "Dr Sen has worked with the poor people in central India for decades. He has won international acclaim and awards."

Edinburgh, April 30 : Two communities in Tanzania have gained appreciation for making bagpipes from ethical sources of wood for the first time.

All Highland bagpipes and many other traditional Scottish pipes are made from African blackwood, which comes from the rare and threatened mpingo tree found only in certain parts of Africa.

Now, according to a report in The Scotsman, two communities in Tanzania have been awarded certification for managing their forests sustainably.

Edinburgh (Scotland), Mar. 19 : The Guinness Book of World Records has officially recognized the Old Golf Course at Musselburgh Links as the oldest in the world.

According to the Account Book of Sir John Foulis of Ravelston, the earliest game played on Musselburgh Links took place on March 2, 1672. He also mentions that "Mary, Queen of Scots reputedly played here in 1567".

This documentary evidence was included in The Golf Book Of East Lothian, published in 1896 and written by John Kerr, the minister of Dirleton.

The Old Golf Course, which is now managed by SportPlus on behalf of East Lothian Council, was originally a seven-hole course. The eighth and ninth holes were added in 1838 and 1870 respectively.

Edinburgh, Feb 17 : Dee Caffari, a British sailor, has become the first woman in history to sail round the world solo in both directions.

According to a report in the Scotsman, after spending 99 days at sea, Dee Caffari crossed the finishing line of the Vendee Globe yacht race in sixth place on February 16.

She subsequently entered the record books as the first female to sail round the world solo in both directions.

"My goal was to set the double world first and I have done it. It's quite a numb feeling now but here I am - the first woman to sail solo, non-stop both ways around the world. You can't buy a feeling like this," said Dee Caffari.

Edinburgh, Feb. 15 : Several Islamic clerics will join police and youth workers in an innovative new scheme to wean young Muslims away from trouble.

According to The Scotsman, the imams, most of them Scottish-born, will take to the streets starting this week, targeting a dozen teenagers believed to be on the edge of the embryonic Asian gang culture on Glasgow''s Southside.

Their allies, including workers from Youth Counselling Services Agency (YCSA), a support group for young Asians, reckon the clerics will be able to command more respect from youngsters than other professionals, including the police.

Edinburgh, Jan 26 : Scientists from Scotland are all set to use data from new carbon-hunting satellites to map levels of greenhouse gases around the world for the first time.

The Earth is thought to be absorbing about 50 per cent of the carbon dioxide we put out, but little is known about exactly where it is soaked up.

Edinburgh, Nov. 15 : An Edinburgh-based company, Canongate Books, has won the right to publish Barack Obama''s latest book – “Change We Can Believe In”.

Canongate Books will release the book on December 11.

The firm already publishes Obama’s memoir – “Dreams from My Father”, and his political manifesto, “The Audacity of Hope”.

The new book outlines Obama''s vision for the US and features his ideas on how to tackle key issues such as the economy, healthcare, energy, and America''s image abroad.

The giant Panda is one of the rarest species in the animal world, and the researchers at York university fear that they might become extinct if global warming keeps having its adverse affects on the climate.

The research which was jointly carried out by the University of York and the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh, in conjunction with Sichuan University and the Kunming Institute of Botany in China, has been reported in Environmental News Network (ENN).

The giant panda's main source of food is bamboo, which may get scarce due to unwanted effects of the climate change.

Edinburgh, Oct 9 : Sharia courts, which have been operational in England for more than a year now, will soon be set up in Scottish cities, like Edinburgh and Glasgow. Secret talks are said to be underway to bring these courts to the neighbouring country.

The move is being opposed by several quarters of the Scottish society. Attempts to set up sharia courts in Canada in 2005 were abandoned after protests.

Qamar Bhatti, director of the Muslim Arbitration Tribunal (MAT), which runs the courts, admitted secret discussions were taking place with lawyers and Muslim community groups in Scotland, reported The Scotsman.

Edinburgh, September 29 : Scotland has announced that it would build the world’s first tidal farms under the sea within three years, which would be a major step in marine renewable energy.

According to a report in The Scotsman, two tidal projects, each with up to 20 turbines, could be installed on the seabed in the Pentland Firth and the Sound of Islay. A third is planned off the North Antrim coast in Northern Ireland.

The aim is that all the underwater turbines would be constructed in Scotland, kickstarting the renewables industry in the country.

Edinburgh, September 2 : A new study has suggested that as a result of unprecedented temperature rise, the world should be prepared for doubling the safe limit for global warming to 4 degrees Celsius, to avoid a potential climate catastrophe.

According to a report in the Scotsman, the study has been done by scientists at the Tyndall Centre, a leading organistation for climate change research at the University of Manchester in the UK.

Edinburgh, September 1 : A new research, by scientists at the Edinburgh University, has suggested that climate change could make Africa’s animals evolve into a number of new separate species.

According to a report in the Scotsman, the future loss of lakes and rivers in Africa would influence how species such as buffalo, wildebeest and elephants evolve.

Large populations of animals, which need water to survive, could be divided and, over time, evolve into new species to cope with their new surroundings.

An isolated population of buffalo, unable to interbreed with others, might evolve to the size of small elephants in the future, in order to accommodate a larger stomach, according to the report.

Edinburgh, August 12 : Scientists have left stunned by the discovery of a shark that had eaten a polar bear.

According to a report in The Scotsman, part of the jaw of a young polar bear was found in the stomach of a Greenland shark in Svalbard, northern Norway.

“We’ve never heard of this before. We don’t know how it got there. We can’t say whether or not the shark took a swimming young bear or ate a carcass,” said Kit Kovacs, of the Norwegian Polar Institute.

“We don’t know how active these sharks are as predators,” he added.

However, shark experts think it was likely the bear was dead before the shark found it. Even a young bear would be a ferocious opponent for a Greenland shark.