A statement has been released by member states of the G8 expressing 'grave concern' over the current situation in Zimbabwe.

In the first section of the statement, the leaders wrote that they "deplore the fact that the Zimbabwean authorities pressed ahead with the presidential election despite the absence of appropriate conditions for free and fair voting as a result of their systematic violence, obstruction and intimidation." Furthermore, the G8 member nations noted that they do "not accept the legitimacy of any government that does not reflect the will of the Zimbabwean people."

The statement continued by asking for the opposition party Movement for Democratic Change to co-operate with ZANU-PF, the party in power. "We strongly urge the Zimbabwean authorities to work with the opposition to achieve a prompt, peaceful resolution of the crisis," they said. They did, add, however, that "it is important that any mediation process respect the results of the March 29, 2008 election. "

In addition, the G8 members expressed concern at the humanitarian situation in the coutry. "Zimbabwean authorities must allow the immediate resumption of humanitarian operations and full and non-discriminatory access to humanitarian assistance to prevent the suffering of the most vulnerable people in Zimbabwe."

The G8 summit is an annual gathering of the leaders of France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada. This year, the 34^th G8 summit took place in Hokkaidō, Japan.

An H-IIA rocket, carrying the SELENE lunar orbiter and several smaller satellites, was launched on Friday September 14 from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan.

The launch, conducted at 01:31 GMT by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), begins the voyage of SELENE to the Moon, and Japanese space officials say that the mission has been going smoothly.

"The flight has been proceeding smoothly to this point. We haven't had any reports of problems with any of the equipment," said JAXA spokesman Seiji Toyama who also added that the probe is about to finish its first of two orbits around Earth.

JAXA will be placed in orbit 60 miles (100 kilometers) above the Moon's surface where two smaller probes will be released and then begin to orbit the Moon at both poles. Scientists are hoping that the data will shed more light on how the Moon was formed, and how it has evolved through time. They also hope to study the composition of dust samples from the surface and are planning on taking 3-D images of the Moon's surface.

JAXA was forced to delay the launch by three days, with the launch originally scheduled to occur on September 11.