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BBC World News, I am David *

The United Nations says there has been a dramatic rise this year in the production of opium in Afghanistan. The UN says the area devoted to cultivating poppies, the raw material for heroin, has increased 60% compared to last year. It accuses officials in the Afghan police, parliament, government and provincial administrations of being involved. The head of the UN Drugs Office Antonio Maria Costa said the increase in production was particularly large in the south.

The increasing cultivation took place mostly in the southern provinces, in particular, I want to stress the dramatic increase in the province of Helmand, 160% increase or 3 times of the national average. Significant cultivation also in Kandahar and in /.

14 British military personnel supporting the NATO-led international force in Afghanistan have been killed in a plane crash. The Nimrod plane belonging to Royal Air Force came down near the southern city of Kandahar. It's the biggest single loss of British troops in Afghanistan since international forces overthrew the Taliban government in 2001. Roland Buerk reports from Kabul.

The RAF Nimrod crashed 12 miles to the west of Kandahar city. A NATO spokesman said it was not shot down. Earlier indications are that there was a technical fault with the aircraft. On board were 12 members of the Royal Air Force, a Royal Marine and an army soldier. The Ministry of Defense says they were all killed. The Nimrod is a large reconnaissance plane packed with surveillance and communications equipment. It was in the skies above Kadahar to support an offensive by NATO forces to clear Taliban fighters from the district of Panjwayi.

United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has held talks in Tehran with the Iranian leaders as part of his Middle East tour to secure support for the peace plan for Lebanon, which includes an arms embargo. A UN spokesman said Mr. Annan had received assurances from a top Iranian security official; that Tehran would cooperate fully with the UN resolution on Lebanon. The Israelis have accused Iran of supplying Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon with the missiles fired into Israel in the recent conflict.

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Several hundred Italian soldiers have arrived in southern Lebanon where they are due to join the expanded United Nations force to keep the peace between Israel and Hezbollah. They are part of the first large contingent of UN troops to reach the area since a truce was agreed three weeks ago. Chris Morris reports from the southern Lebanese port of Tyre.

All day long, helicopters have been ferrying Italian soldiers ashore from an aircraft carrier Garibaldi stationed off the Lebanon coast. The Mediterranean Sea was rougher than expected slowing the deployment just a little. Some military vehicles were unloaded the small UN port of /, right on the border with Israel. While troops wearing the blue helmets of the United Nations arrived here in Tyre. The Italians come fully armed but not with a mandate to disarm Hezbollah. Still, nearly 1,000 soldiers will arrive during the course of this weekend, a significant boost to the UN contingent already here.

Members of parliament in Lebanon have begun a sit-in to protest about Israel's continuing air and sea blockage of the country. The speaker of parliament N B said the blockade was a military aggression against Lebanon and violated the UN resolution that led to the halt in fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. UN officials have said the restriction should be lifted immediately. Israel says the blockade is necessary to prevent Hezbollah rearming.

The Union of the Islamist Courts which controls much of Somalia including the capital Mogadishu has warned that any steps to send foreign troops into the country would be a recipe for civil war. The transitional government of Somalia backs the plan to deploy foreign peacekeepers in the country. The two sides are holding their first peace talks in two months in the Sudanese capital Khartoum. Our east Africa correspondent C has sent this report.

The government's been keen to focus the agenda on power sharing, while the Islamists want the issuer security to be given priority. They are concerned about the presence of Ethiopian troops on Somalian soil and feel threatened by a plan sanctioned by regional leaders to send foreign peacekeepers then. The head of the Islamist delegation professor A H A warned of what he described as foreign interference would be a recipe for the renewal of another civil war in Somalia. Some of the international communities are worried about the Islamists are links with Al-Qaeda.

Hurricane John has been downgraded to a tropical storm after hitting the Baja California peninsula on the west coast of Mexico. The storm struck the tourist port city of Lepas, bringing down trees and power lines and flooding streets. It had earlier inundated the seaside resort of Los Cabos.

BBC World News.