They're calling him "Harry the Hero!"

British Royal Prince Harry has been fighting in Afghanistan since late December -- and has been directly involved in gun battle, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.

The prince, a junior officer in the Blues and Royals, and third in line to the throne, has been a "magnificent soldier" and an "inspiration to all of Briton."

Prince Harry is talking part in a new offensive against the Taliban.

Ministry of Defense and Clarence House refuse all comment. Army chiefs have managed to keep the prince away from media and have encourage fellow soldiers in his squadron to stay quiet.

About 4.4 million customers across South Florida were affected, Florida Power and Light officials said.

The outage struck shortly after 1 p.m., as scattered thunderstorms passed through the region. But the cause of the outage was not immediately known.

In Washington, officials at the Department of Homeland Security said there was no immediate concern that terrorism was behind the outage.

Stan Johnson, a spokesman for the North American Electric Reliability Council, said eight power plants were off-line across the region, but officials believe the outage has been contained.

Detective Robert Williams, a Miami-Dade County police spokesman, said power was out across the entire county.

President George W Bush said the US was ready to help the "people of Cuba realise the blessings of liberty".

A senior US state department official, John Negroponte, added that the 1962 embargo would probably not be lifted "any time soon".

The European Union said it hoped to relaunch ties with Cuba that were almost completely frozen under Mr Castro, while China described Mr Castro as an old friend and said it would maintain co-operation with Cuba.

Mr Castro has ruled Cuba since leading a revolution in 1959.

The BBC's Michael Voss reports from Havana that most Cubans will be saddened by news of their leader's retirement, but many hope the political transition will bring economic improvements.

The U.S. and the European Union's biggest powers quickly recognized Kosovo as an independent nation Monday, widening a split with Russia, China and some EU members strongly opposed to letting the territory break away from Serbia.

The rift was on view for a second day at the U.N. Security Council, which was holding an emergency session to discuss the declaration of independence issued Sunday by Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority.

Ethnic Serbs rallying in northern Kosovo angrily denounced the United States and urged Russia to help Serbia hold on to the territory that Serbs consider the birthplace of their civilization. Protesters also marched in Serbia's capital, and that nation recalled its ambassador to the U.S. to protest American recognition for an independent Kosovo.

Denmark's leading newspapers reprinted a drawing of the Prophet Muhammad on Wednesday, a day after three men were arrested on suspicion of plotting to kill the cartoonist whose work had spurred deadly protests in the Muslim world.

The papers said they wanted to show their firm commitment to freedom of speech after Tuesday's arrests in western Denmark.

The Jyllands-Posten newspaper, which first published 12 depictions of Muhammad on Sept. 30, 2005, reprinted Kurt Westergaard's cartoon in its Wednesday edition. Several other major dailies also reprinted the drawing, which shows Muhammad wearing a turban shaped like a bomb with a lit fuse.

Suicide bombings continue to be the preferred terrorist tactic because the bomber controls the location, timing, and method of delivery. Many facilities such as public places are inherently vulnerable to suicide bombing attacks and the terrorist's latitude in determining and adjusting the target and timing of an attack up to the point of detonation further complicates countermeasures. These factors indicate the importance of disciplined security measures and alertness by security professionals to potential threats from the full-range of gender and age groups.

Despite the lack of a reliable, predictable profile of a suicide terrorist, security and law enforcement officials and first responders should be aware of terrorists' use of female suicide operatives and familiarize themselves with behavioral patterns that such bombers have demonstrated in previous attacks.

Saudi authorities consider Valentine's Day, along with a host of other annual celebrations, as un-Islamic.

In addition to the prohibition on celebrating non-Islamic festivals, the authorities consider Valentine's Day as encouraging relations between men and women outside wedlock - punishable by law in the conservative kingdom.

The Saudi Gazette reported that some people placed orders with florists days or weeks before Valentine's Day in anticipation of the ban, which is a regular occurrence.

"Sometimes we deliver the bouquets in the middle of the night or early morning, to avoid suspicion," one florist said.

Mr Ramos-Horta was shot in the stomach in a pre-dawn attack on his Dili home.

Alfredo Reinado, a renegade soldier who had threatened the government, was killed by guards during the attack.

Gunmen also attacked Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao but he was not hurt. He called the incidents an attempted coup by Reinado and appealed for calm.

Mr Ramos-Horta is to be flown to the Australian city of Darwin for further treatment.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the "attempt to assassinate the democratically elected leadership of a close friend and neighbour of Australia's is a deeply disturbing development".