As he raised his hand in blessing and made a firm, expansive sign of the cross, spontaneous cheers erupted.A Belgian priest in the square below said: "He has given us an example of great courage. The Pope follows Christ's example and accepts his suffering, and that's an example for us all.". Spain's socialist Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, has been forced to defend a decision to sell arms worth €1.3bn (£900m) to the left-wing Venezuelan President, Hugo Chavez, in a deal condemned by the opposition as "a monstrous error". Mr Zapatero said the vehicles would be used to monitor coastlines, combat terrorism and drug traffickers, and mount rescue operations during natural disasters. The deal was announced by the Spanish Prime Minister during a visit to Venezuela yesterday when he also met fellow left-wing leaders from Colombia and Brazil.Spain's opposition leader, Mariano Rajoy, whose conservative Popular Party criticised the deal, said: "This is something the Spanish government should never have done. Scientists filmed the birth and monitor the litter round the clock, but have not approached close enough to establish the kittens' sex.The mother, Sielaga, was enthusiastically feeding and licking her kittens, scientists said.

"It is a scientific and ecological success," Fuensanta Coves, Andalusia's regional environment minister, said.. The Pope is being fed by a tube through his nose, according to the Vatican. The disclosure came soon after John Paul II blessed thousands of pilgrims and tourists in St Peter's Square from his window yesterday. It is the latest indication of the steady physical decline of the pontiff, who is 85 in May and has suffered from Parkinson's disease for more than a decade.But in the first medical bulletin on the Pope's condition to be issued for nearly three weeks, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, the Vatican spokesman, described the latest intervention as part of the Pope's "slow and progressive convalescence".John Paul II is now receiving both air and food through tubes, although no tubes were visible during his appearance at his window yesterday morning.Wednesday is the day of his customary general audience, but since he was taken to hospital with flu on 1 February, his doctors have stopped him from appearing in public.His four-minute appearance brought tears to the eyes of many waiting below in the piazza.

The births mark what scientists call a "historic turning point" in efforts to save the endangered species from extinction. The birth appears to vindicate an ambitious programme of captive breeding launched in Spain's Coto Do? nature reserve two years ago. Only 150 Iberian lynxes remain in the wild, in two colonies in Andalusia and Portugal.Numbers of the cat, noted for its long, tufted ears, have fallen in recent years because disease has killed the rabbits on which they prey and because many are run over by motorists.The three lynx kittens were born in a 2,200 square metre enclosure where their parents have lived since 2003. Three Iberian lynxes have been born at a Spanish nature reserve, the first time the species has successfully bred in captivity. Seven of the watercolours were unknown to modern scholars.Estelle Morris, the Arts minister, acted on the recommendation of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art by placing the temporary export bar. It is hoped the works, which mark a vital element in the development of British Romanticism, will be saved for the nation.The value of the artworks was discovered when two booksellers from Yorkshire acquired the paintings and took them for independent valuation Two Tate gallery experts verified the find.. A valuable collection of William Blake watercolours discovered lying in a Glasgow bookshop has been stopped from leaving the country.