The 9/11 conspiracy theories are pretty well known by now. The BBC addressed them earlier this month with a documentary, The Conspiracy Files, shown within the UK.

Until now, I don’t think we’ve been accused of being part of the conspiracy. But now some websites are using news footage from BBC World on September 11th 2001 to suggest we were actively participating in some sort of attempt to manipulate the audience. As a result, we’re now getting lots of emails asking us to clarify our position. So here goes:

THE annals of American history had already reserved a place for William Rodriguez, but he was not content with a mere footnote.

The 43-year-old former New York janitor claims to have been the last man out of the north tower of the World Trade Centre before it imploded on September 11, 2001. Just moments before the tower’s final destruction, Rodriguez assisted firemen and rescue crew in saving hundreds of lives. But for the Puerto Rican, the experience also marked the beginning of a life-changing journey - or, in his words, “a quest for the truth”.

Senior Democrats in the United States have urged the Bush administration to be cautious about accusing Iran of fomenting violence in Iraq.

They were speaking after US officials in Iraq said they had evidence that Iran was providing weapons to Shia militias who attacked the US military.

US claims the bombs were smuggled from Iran cannot be independently verified.

When it comes to 9/11, America right now is divided between two camps, those who trust the official account of the attacks, and those who, well, have questions. It’s occasionally the case that the first camp will publicly denounce the second camp as a bunch of nutcases, and when this happens, it’s usually the rowdier section of Camp Two, the Loose Change, bullhorn-wielding, “death to the New World Order” crowd, that takes the most heat.

What tends to get ignored, however, is the quieter section of Camp Two, and especially a group of widowed mothers from New Jersey and New York who over the last six years have worked harder than just about anyone to protect the country from terrorism.

A former New York policeman died late Tuesday in a Manhattan hospital, just as his 21-year-old son prepared to appear at the State of the Union speech to symbolize the desperate health problems of his father and other sick Sept. 11 workers.

The former officer, Cesar Borja, 52, had been in intensive care, breathing through a tube, at Mount Sinai Medical Center, awaiting a lung transplant. Hospital spokeswoman Lauren Woods confirmed the death late Tuesday