The veteran American film actor, Charlton Heston, has been re-elected president of the powerful United States gun lobby, the National Rifle Association. The organisation changed its rules to allow Mr Heston to serve a third term. Speaking afterwards, Mr Heston said he believed president Clinton's attempts to introduce gun controls were having the adverse effect of attracting more people to the NRA.

The gun lobby opposes measures such as child safety locks and stricter background checks on gun buyers which have been proposed by the Clinton administration in response to a wave of recent shootings.

Mr Heston has promised to fight strongly against the vice-president and Democratic Party nominee, Al Gore, in November's elections.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service