Britain expressed on Tuesday its concern over the clashes that took place in the southern city of Sidon over the past two days.

Minister for the Middle East Alistair Burt said that he is very worried with the violence in Sidon and the death of a number of Lebanese soldiers in the unrest.

British police on Sunday said that a suspicious item found outside a mosque in central England, which led to 150 local residents being evacuated, was a small home-made explosive device.

West Midlands Police confirmed that a loud noise reported by residents near the Aisha Mosque in Walsall on Friday "appeared to be consistent" with the object exploding.

A treaty intended to clear the way to deporting radical cleric Abu Qatada to Jordan has passed into law in Britain.

The agreement, announced by Home Secretary Theresa May in April, aims to allay fears that evidence extracted through torture will be used against the terror suspect at a retrial.

Relatives of British soldiers killed while fighting in Iraq can sue the government for negligence and claim damages under human rights law, the Supreme Court in London ruled on Wednesday.

Lawyers for the family members, who can now proceed to trial, said the ruling means the Ministry of Defense owes a duty of care to properly equip service personnel who go to war.

Ankara on Monday summoned Britain's charge d'affaires to demand an explanation over newspaper allegations that Britain spied on the Turkish finance minister's emails and phone calls during a G20 meeting in London in 2009, a foreign ministry diplomat told Agence Francr Presse.

In the absence of the ambassador, the ministry summoned the charge d'affaires "to express our concerns over the allegations", the diplomat said on condition of anonymity, adding that Ankara was expecting an "official and satisfying explanation" from British authorities.

A British energy worker kidnapped in the restive Indonesian province of Aceh has been released unharmed after just one day in captivity, embassy and police officials said Thursday.

Malcolm Primrose was abducted on Tuesday by a group of armed men who stopped his car as he was being driven to a work site in Lubuk Pempeng, a village in East Aceh district, at around 11:00 am (0400 GMT).

Gunmen have kidnapped a British man working for an energy company in the restive Indonesian province of Aceh, officials said Wednesday.

Malcolm Primrose was being driven to a work site on Tuesday when he was stopped by a group of armed men at around 11:00 am (0400 GMT) in Lubuk Pempeng village, East Aceh district, officials said.

Six Islamic extremists were handed lengthy jail terms in Britain on Monday for plotting a murderous attack on a far-right group.

They planned to attack a rally by the English Defense League (EDL) -- a group which opposes the spread of radical Islam in Britain -- in June last year but turned up after the demonstration had ended.

Queen Elizabeth II's husband Prince Philip is "comfortable" as he recovers from exploratory abdominal surgery in a London hospital, Buckingham Palace said on Saturday.

The 91-year-old had surgery at the private London Clinic in Harley Street on Friday following tests earlier in the week, and was said by the palace to be "progressing satisfactorily.”

Queen Elizabeth II's husband Prince Philip was to undergo exploratory surgery on his abdomen on Friday after spending the night in a London hospital, raising fresh questions about his health.

The Duke of Edinburgh, who turns 92 on Monday, was admitted to the private London Clinic on Thursday for what Buckingham Palace said was a planned operation under general anesthetic.