From Our Own Correspondent

Whatever happened to his notebooks? Jeremy Bowen, charting the demise of the Gaddafi regime in Libya, wonders why his precious notebooks keep going missing. Mishal Husain travels though five countries finding out about the role Twitter and Facebook have played in the Arab Spring. Thousands of Zimbabwean children have been making a long, risky and illegal journey south in search of a place in a South African schoolroom; Mukul Devichand's been metting some of them. Lesley Curwen's been to the US to find out how families are getting by during the economic downturn. And in Ireland, Fergal Keane sees signs of hope and optimism after the worst banking crisis and recession in the country's history.

The day after history was made in Libya Kevin Connolly was out shopping -- and tells a story of a capital city trying to return to normal. Few parts of the United States have escaped the economic downturn -- as Jonny Dymond's been finding out on a Main Street in North Carolina; Fiona Lloyd-Davies has been meeting a woman in the Democratic Republic of Congo who's been helping thousands of victims of rape. Summer may have been something of a damp squib in the UK but Huw Cordey's been to Death Valley in California where it's been scorchingly hot. And back to Tripoli in Libya where Andrew Hosken's been learning about the dangers of what they're calling 'celebratory gunfire.' What goes up, he's told, must always come down!

The Arab-Israeli conflict seems to have been sidelined in this year of revolutions. But our Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen tells us that it hasn't gone away, and the signs are not good. It was 37-degrees at the Italian air base where Jonathan Marcus has been to meet some of the pilots flying NATO missions over Libya -- but not too hot for them all to tuck into a full English breakfast while Jonathan inquired: how much have the pilots contributed to the rebels' success in and around Tripoli? They've been celebrating twenty years of independence in Estonia and, not surprisingly, we find they've been doing it in song. Kieran Cooke's been to Shangri-La. This town in western China is supposed to be as close as you can get to an earthly paradise, but Kieran's not entirely convinced. And call him a hypochondriac but our man in the Hollywood hills, David Willis, is more than a little scared when he opens up an email telling him if he's likely to get Parkinson's or Alzheimer's.

'Politics at its most brutal, its most basic, democracy as a demolition derby.' That's Mark Mardell's view as he contemplates months of Republican infighting ahead of next year's US presidential election. The Moscow coup of twenty years ago: Bridget Kendall, who was there during that eventful August back in 1991, says it could so easily have succeeded. The smiles seem to have faded somewhat in newly-independent South Sudan but Robin Denselow, just back from the capital Juba, says they still revere their cattle. David Hargreaves has been attending a spectacular riverside religious festival in central India and Karishma Vaswani's had to call in the Indonesian witch doctor after strange goings-on at her house in Djakarta.

Aleem Maqbool reports on Karachi, where inter-ethnic violence between Urdu speakers and Pashtuns has killed hundreds in the last few months; as Sonia Gandhi receives medical treatment in the US, Mark Tully explores her enduring political power in India, despite the fact that she holds no government office; Orla Guerin is in Misrata, in Libya, where rockets still threaten civilians and little appears to have changed for the better; Sudan is now officially divided into two and Sudanese pride, especially in the north, has taken a battering - James Copnall describes how national hopes lay with a horse called Diktator at the Sudanese Derby; and despite their economic woes, Jake Wallis Simons sees how the Portuguese still found a way to celebrate, with trays full of bread.

Mexico's drug wars are notoriously violent and the killings have spread to neighbouring Guatemala. Linda Pressly has been to the scene of a gruesome massacre in northern Guatemala. The "indignados" in Spain began their protests in May, angry at the banks and at the way the government has responded to the economic crisis with spending cutbacks, privatisations and redundancies. Sarah Rainsford recently joined some of the young indignants on the road. Colombia's "Red Zone" is traditionally a no-go area for medics and journalists. But Imogen Foulkes has travelled upriver in this area - long fought over by drug cartels, FARC rebels and the Colombian military. Government cutbacks across Europe, particularly spending cuts for social programmes, are sometimes hitting the most vulnerable hardest. Emma Jane Kirby has been spending time with those who have fallen onto hard times in Paris. Why is it that Poles love to dress up as knights at the weekend? Adam Easton has been finding out.

Today: Peter Svaar finds out that the man behind the killings in Norway was his class mate and friend. Charles Haviland visits northern Sri Lanka to see if life is returning to normal there. Justin Rowlatt examines if Iceland, which refused to pay off its debts, offers a solution to Europe's economic woes? Christine Finn gets a peek into the secretive world of bobbins, skeins and "metiers" with the lace makers of France. And we hear from Oliver Bullough why Russian officials, not known for their smiles, are now beaming at babies.

Will Thursday's eurozone agreement be enough to save the European single currency and the union of European nations? Chris Morris in Brussels considers the deal designed to prevent the debt crisis from spreading. Michael Buchanan was in Helmand province Afghanistan as the city of Lashkar Gah was returned to Afghan control. For the westerners leaving, he says, their job was far from done. Some Ethiopian girls are getting married at the age of five and Claudia Hammond has been finding out about the efforts being made to stamp out the practice of child marriage. Ever wondered what sound a post-coital baboon makes? Wonder no longer. Jake Wallis Simons imitates it as part his extraordinary story about the Australian much more at home in the real jungle than its urban equivalent. And Berlin's a city noted for its counterculture, its anti-establishment stance. Steve Evans is there exploring its more gentle side.

Could the Libyan rebels be poised to march on the capital Tripoli? Gabriel Gatehouse, who's been spending time with them near the coastal city of Misrata, doubts they have the capability for military victory; Andrew Hosken's just returned from Somalia where the rains have failed again, drought has taken hold and many people are in danger of starving to death; a battle between modernity and an older way of doing things is underway in the Indian state of Orissa and Justin Rowlatt's been finding out that in this case, the modern world might be about to lose out; Chris Simpson's in the Gambia where the president has made it clear that he has a low opinion of journalists -- the media people, on the other hand, complain of harrassment and worse. And from the Seychelles out in the Indian Ocean, a tale from Tim Ecott about the extraordinary coco de mer; a coconut tree with erotic connotations.

They are celebrating in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, the world's newest country. But Fergus Nicoll, who's there, says its leaders must address some of the lessons they've been handed down by history. Who's visiting the great archaeological sites in Libya as the conflict in that country continues? Justin Marozzi's just been to one of them and had little company there other than cows and goats. David Willey in Rome talks about the country's much respected President Giorgio Napoletano and explains how he's trying to rein in some of the activities of the controversial prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. India's caste system was supposed to have been done away with decades ago but Craig Jeffrey, in Uttar Pradesh, has found that in many areas of life, it simply has not gone away. And it's proving a sweltering summer in the city of Algiers and Chloe Arnold, who lives there, has been finding out how a Scottish firm is keen on securing a slice of the market in long, cool, fizzy drinks!

The end of the world is nigh! Well, it is according to one estimate. But Chris Bockman who's in the French Pyrenees says there's a village there where you might just be safe. Much joy's being reported in South Sudan. Peter Martell's in this region which has experienced generations of civil war but is now getting ready to usher in independence. Could the mighty US be about to default on its debts? Lesley Curwen says the government in Washington's been given a deadline by which time it must pay up. But before that can be achieved, Republicans and Democrats must sort out their differences. Alex Renton's been learning that these are tough times in Armenia but still there's pride in the country's fine brandy which was, so they say, a favourite of Winston Churchill's. And Emily Lethbridge has been finding out that a good place to research the mediaeval sagas of Iceland is a petrol station, not far from the capital Reykjavik.

The Greek austerity bill may have been passed by the Athens parliament, but Justin Rowlatt's wondering if anyone expects it to be fully implemented. It may be one of the most polluted cities in the world but Delhi, as Anu Anand has been finding out, is home to an astonishing collection of bird life. The Libyan Mediterranean city of Misrata is still coming under rocket fire from troops loyal to Colonel Gaddafi, but Andrew Harding's been seeing that families still enjoy an afternoon at the beach there. Thaksin Shinawatra may be living in self-imposed exile in Dubai but Rachel Harvey, who's been there to meet the former Thai prime minister, says he's still dominating discussion about the upcoming Thai election. And is the Amazon a resource to be exploited or one simply to be protected - questions Robin Lustig's had in mind during his travels in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso.

Now the Greek parliament's voted for austerity, large numbers of people working in the country's huge public sector are waiting to see where first the axe will fall -- Manuela Saragosa's in Athens. Saving cash is a theme throughout Europe and Mark Lobel's been to Strasbourg where some say the city should no longer be a base for the European Parliament, it's just too expensive. Venezuelan security forces are said to have been tunnelling INTO a jail to try to resolve a riot inside. Sarah Grainger in Caracas on the state of Venezuela's chaotic prison system. Chris Hogg's in Shanghai where, ninety years ago, the Chinese Communist Party was formed. He examines some of its founding principles and assesses how relevant they are today. And it's been a sad week for supporters of the Argentine football club River Plate. Their team has been relegated to a lower division. But isn't football just a game? Daniel Schweimler, who's in Buenos Aires, says that in Argentina, it's much more than that!

The lights go out in the United States. It's only a simulation at present but Mark Mardell in Washington says it's evidence the US military is taking seriously the threat of war in cyberspace. Inside the walls of a prison in the Horn of Africa our correspondent Mary Harper is surprised by a demand for an interview ... from a Somali pirate! Misha Glenny reflects on the EU's decision to admit Croatia to full membership:proof, he believes, that a powder keg has finally been defused. Rupert Wingfield Hayes has an account from inside the Bahrain courtroom where a number of people were sentenced to life imprisonment after being found guilty of trying to overthrow the country's royal family. And Andrew Martlew's been walking in the mountains of northern Italy tracking down some rarely visited British war graves.

A voice from Croatia's war-torn past is recalled by Allan Little in Zagreb as the EU prepares to admit this country to full membership of the Union. Chris Morris is in Athens as Greece faces fresh hurdles in its attempts to avoid defaulting on its debt repayments. Lobsters are big business but in Nicaragua, as Conor Woodman's been hearing, catching them can be dangerous. Reggie Nadelson tells us how the price of property's soaring in Harlem, a part of New York once associated with poverty and crime. But, she wonders, is the price of development the loss of the district's soul? It's all change on the buses in Malta. Jake Wallis Simons has been finding out that the island's getting rid of its fleet of characterful and individualistic buses and replacing them with something altogether more modern and efficient. But, it seems, not all the islanders welcome the change.

The ultimate failed state. That's what some call Somalia in the Horn of Africa. Peter Greste is in the capital Mogadishu, perhaps the most dangerous city in the world. He's finding out why thousands of Somalis are leaving homes in the countryside and flooding in to the city? Another mass migration's going on in China. But, as Juliana Liu tells us, difficulties can lie ahead for the country people heading for town in search of a better life. Paul Henley's been looking at an economic boom that's lifting parts of Poland; one port city's described as the future Sydney and Dubai of the Baltic. The worst drought in fifty years has hit Texas. Jonny Dymond finds one rancher whose fortunes are suffering -- but he says he's battling on: it's the American way. And she's called the Miss Marple of the Himalayas; Joanna Jolly meets the woman who keeps climbers in Nepal roped to the truth.

Tunisia's fragile revolution is under threat from the violent uprising in Libya. Pascale Harter, investigating in these borderlands, also reveals what a football commentary sounds like in Libya where the only name permissible is that of Gaddafi. The blockade on Gaza means that many people living in that territory never get to leave. Jon Donnison's been meeting two men, at the Erez crossing into Israel, who get nearer than most. Cheung Chau island, not far from Hong Kong, has become notorious as a place where people go to kill themselves. Claudia Hammond's been there finding out how the local community is trying to change all that. Need to cure a headache? Or impotence? A remedy can be found at a traditional medicine market in Johannesburg. Stewart Maclean's been there to see what's on offer. And Rajesh Mirchandani enjoyed what some would consider the perfect posting - as our man in California. And yet, he has some rather controversial views to share with us about the sunshine state.

The bloody events in Syria are making the government in neighbouring Turkey uneasy, as Hugh Sykes has been finding out on the eve of the Turkish general election there; Chris Hogg's in Taiwan where, amid a thawing in relations with mainland China, there are businessmen who are prospering in the new climate of detente; corruption in India is now so pervasive, it reaches even the smallest country village but, as Craig Jeffrey's been hearing, it can still be a joking matter; there's a ban on divorce in the Philippines, but Kate McGeown tells us, there are ways around the ban, particularly if you have money; one of our most seasoned travellers, the reporter and presenter Robin Lustig's visited 75 countries without losing his luggage. Surely his luck can't last ...?

Amid uproar in and around Syria, Kevin Connolly considers suggestions that there have been attempts by the authorities in Damascus to manipulate the news agenda to distract the world from events going on in their country. A year after violent disturbances in the Kyrgyz town of Osh Rayhan Demytrie, who covered those events, considers the difficult legacy they've left in their wake; Tracey Logan is in the Republic of Ireland examining how an EU directive, aimed at protecting Ireland's peat bogs, is being widely flouted. Tom Blass takes a walk in a Belgian village which has been swallowed up by the inexorable growth of Antwerp's docklands. And South Korea's a country which takes recycling very seriously -- it's causing our correspondent there, Lucy Williamson, some difficulty.

A mysterious encounter with the sinister Colonel Tariq, thought to be from Pakistani Intelligence, is described by Aamer Ahmed Khan. Tim Whewell's in the Sinai Desert finding a roaring trade in rifles. A guided tour of Benghazi with Andrew Hosken: he is told that Colonel Gaddafi couldn't make the railways run on time -- he couldn't make the railways either! An acute housing shortage in Beijing is described by Martin Patience - it's meant people living in air raid shelters, bunkers and tunnels. And there's joy and some plum brandy in the foothills of the Carpathians as Caroline Juler joins a cheerful crowd of farmers at their annual measuring of sheep's milk.