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San Francisco  – “You are not alone. You have a whole world of supporters who are rallying and praying for you.” That was the message issued this week to two American reporters in North Korea from Roxana Saberi, the US-Iranian journalist who was recently freed from detention in Iran.

Washington  – Edward “Ted” Kennedy has grown old, his age etched on his face, his hair faded white. The brain tumour found last year keeps the storied senator from his usual forceful rounds of the nation’s capital.

Sydney  – Iron ore tycoon Andrew Forrest could finish the week as Australia’s richest man after a 40-per-cent lift in the share price of Fortescue Metals Group since the start of the month.

Munich – The compact Audi Sports Utility Vehicle, the Q5, the Honda Jazz and the Hyundai i20 received a top five-star rating in the latest EuroNCAP crash test while the Suzuki Alto failed the safety test.

Wolfsburg, Germany  – Volkswagen and the Chinese car maker BYD (Build Your Dreams) have signed a memorandum of understanding on building hybrid and electric vehicles powered by lithium batteries, according to a VW statement.

Paris  – Renault has given the Laguna a makeover for the 2010 model year with both the sedan and estate Grandtour coming standard with extras such as air conditioning, leather steering wheel, onboard computer and a 3-D sound system.

Munich  – BMW has no plans for forming a partnership with other manufacturers on battery powered electric vehicles and has its own plans to mass-produce “megacity” e-vehicles by the year 2015, BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer has announced.

Cologne  – Motorists should take care to load their roof box carefully to avoid accidents as it can affect the roadholding of the car, according to safety experts.

Los Angeles  – The Philadelphia 76ers, addressing the need for outside shooting, acquired long-distance marksman Jason Kapono from the Toronto Raptors in exchange for rugged rebounding forward Reggie Evans.

Washington  – US President Barack Obama’s plans to close the Guantanamo Bay prison has prompted politicians from across the country to declare their opposition to bringing any of the detainees to their constituencies. But there is a small poor town in Montana with welcoming arms open.