Madrid - A Spanish fishing boat has rescued 49 African migrants from their sinking inner-tube craft in the sea area between Libya and Malta, the Spanish Foreign Ministry has reported on Friday.

Following the rescue Spanish authorities had ordered the migrants to be brought to Libya, from where they had likely begun their journey.

However, Libyan authorities at the port of Tripoli initially refused to let them enter, and were admitted only after a telephone call from Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos to his Libyan counterpart.

According to Spanish media reports, the migrants initially refused to leave the fishing boat upon arrival in Libya, and barricaded themselves inside the vessel.

Madrid  - New questions have arisen in the search for the cause

Madrid  - The identification of bodies of victims from Wednesday's plane crash in Madrid will take time, a Red Cross spokeswoman said Thursday.

More bodies were recovered from the wreck by rescue workers overnight. At least 153 people died in the crash, and 19 people remain critically injured.

A temporary morgue has been set up in an exhibition hall in the capital as the process of identifying bodies begins.

Beijing - Spain wants to use illuminated bathing costumes for the team synchronized swimming final at the Olympics, but the international swimming federation FINA was still studying the proposal Tuesday.

"Their excuse is that you cannot use accessories, but this is not an accessory because otherwise sequins would be an accessory too," team member Andrea Fuentes said.

"They are still looking into it, it is not certain. We will know tomorrow or the day after," she added.

Madrid - At least eight people died after a bus carrying tourists crashed at Oropesa del Mar, north of Valencia, on Sunday.

San Sebastian, Spain- The militant Basque separatist group ETA
has claimed responsibility for a series of terrorist attacks in recent
months, a newspaper reported Saturday.

In a communique sent to the Basque newspaper Gara, ETA said it had
carried out bomb attacks on several tourist facilities, a newspaper
office and three construction companies involved in building a high-
speed rail line through Basque country.

No-one was injured in the attacks.

The group has been fighting for the past 40 years for an