KAMPALA, Sept 25, 2007 (AFP) - Two Congolese troops and a Ugandan soldier were killed in clashes on a flashpoint border lake where oil was recently discovered, a Ugandan army spokesman said Tuesday.

He said the Monday clashes erupted when a military ship from the Democratic Republic of Congo intervened as Ugandan soldiers were seeking the release of an oil exploration vessel impounded by troops from the UN mission in Congo.

JERUSALEM, Sept 18, 2007 (AFP) - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's lowly ratings have climbed since Israel's reported air strike in archfoe Syria, reflecting overwhelming public support for the operation, a poll said on Tuesday.

Thirty-five percent of those polled rated Olmert's performance as 'good,' an increase of 10 percentage points from a similar survey two weeks ago, said the poll published in the mass-selling Yediot Aharonot newspaper.

But the majority of Israelis continued to be disappointed with the premier -- 63 percent described his performance as 'not good.'