Tirana - The US actor with Albanian roots, James Belushi, was decorated Monday in Tirana by President Bamir Topi for taking care of his family heritage, the ATA news agency reported.

"You are a remarkable case we are proud of you," Topi said after handing the Honour of the Nation medal to Belushi in "gratitude to the man who ... inherited and preserved in the love for Albania and his Albanian descent."

A first-generation Albanian-American, Belushi admitted he was not sure "what I have done to deserve it - except that I have always been proud for who I am and where I come from."

Tirana - Albanian rescuers recovered three bodies from the rubble of a collapsed building Monday, as meanwhile police took nine people into custody in connection with the accident.

A 12-year-old girl, her mother aged 38 and an elderly woman, 65, were killed Sunday afternoon when their five-storey building collapsed in Gjirokaster in southern Albania.

Though all of the tenants were accounted for, firefighters continued sifting through the wreckage. Reports said 20 people were injured.

Tirana - Albanian rescuers pulled two bodies from the rubble of a collapsed building and were searching for another victim Monday, as police held nine people in connection with the accident.

A 12-year old girl was still missing a full day after the five- storey building collapsed in Gjirokaster in southern Albania.

The girl's mother was one of the confirmed victims and a woman in her 60s the other one, while 20 escaped with injuries.

Tirana, Albania  - The United States "will remain the leader" in resolving the world's crises and promoting democracy when president-elect Barack Obama takes power in January, Albanian President Bamir Topi said Wednesday.

Topi congratulated Obama on his victory in Tuesday's election, calling it a "lesson in democracy" and "a historic day for America."

Tirana, Albania  - Czech power company CEZ won preliminary approval Monday to take a controlling stake in Albania's only electricity distributor for 102 million euros
(149 million dollars), beating a rival bid by Italian utility Enel.

A nine-member privatization commission that reviewed both bids for a 76-per-cent stake in Operatori i Sistemit te Shperndarjes (OSSH) ruled that Enel's offer failed to meet "the minimal mandatory conditions for the technical performance."

Tirana - Three men were charged with murder as a result of the ammunition depot blast last March that killed at least 15 people and injured hundreds near Tirana, local media quoted the Albanian prosecutor's office as saying Saturday.

Three employees in the depot were also charged for neglecting safety procedures for disposing and destroying munitions, and and had been arrested days after the explosion.

The blast at a depot at Gerdec village near Tirana resulted in at least 300 people being injured and more than 5,500 houses damaged or destroyed.

The depot had hundreds of tons of ordnance bating back as far as 1945. The blast also led to the sacking of the defence minister and army headquarters chief.