BOSTON - A man has been sentenced to 17 years in prison in a plot to use remote-controlled model planes packed with explosives to blow up the Pentagon and US Capitol. Rezwan Ferdaus of Ashland, Massachusetts, was sentenced in federal court after pleading guilty in July to various charges. Ferdaus was arrested last year after federal employees posing as members of al-Qaeda delivered materials he requested, including grenades, machine guns and explosives. Authorities have said the public was never in danger. AP
PARIS - French President Francois Hollande admitted facing a "very hard" situation as his popularity rating dived to a new low amid anger over double-digit joblessness, mass layoffs and shutdowns. Hollande's defence came as his rating dropped by five points compared with last month, with only 36 per cent of French people expressing confidence in him. Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault fared worse at 34 per cent in the poll conducted by TNS Sofres-Sopra for Le Figaro magazine. Hollande's score in the six months after a presidential election was the lowest since Jacques Chirac tallied 37 per cent in 1995. AFP
BUENOS AIRES - Argentina has approved a law to lower the legal voting age to 16 in a move that could strengthen President Cristina Kirchner's populist bloc ahead of next year's legislative elections. Voting is compulsory for Argentinian people aged 18 and older, but will be optional for some one million people aged 16 and 17. Critics said the move is aimed at winning a large enough majority to change the constitution to allow Kirchner to seek a third term the following year. AFP