One group of militants, Hisbul Islam,is said to have held both hostages briefly before handing Obriere's colleague to al-Shabab.

VOA: standard.2009.08.26

The fate of the second French hostage, who was being held by al-Shabab, an al-Qaida-linked militant group allied with Hisbul Islam, is not immediately clear.

VOA: standard.2009.08.26

Hughes and Al Mubarak held talks before Sunday's game to discuss the long-term plans for the club, with the manager expected to fly out to Abu Dhabi to discuss his list of targets at least once ahead of the January transfer window.

BBC: Hughes safe in job, say Man City

The last time Democrats had control of the Senate was in 1994 -- except for a period of 17 days earlier this year when Vice President Al Gore held the tie-breaking vote as president of the evenly divided Senate until the new Bush administration took office.

CNN: In the Senate, it's the day of the Democrats

But it is also possible that Belmoktar may try to bargain for the release of al Qaeda operatives held in Algerian jails.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS