Sara Danius, the former head of the scandal-tainted committee which awards the Nobel Prize in Literature, has died of cancer, Swedish news agency TT said on Saturday.

Five literary figures have been named temporary members of the Nobel Committee that awards the Nobel Prize in literature.

The Swedish Academy says it has given up trying to reach Bob Dylan, days after it awarded him the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged yesterday to form a new governing.