Gustav was the seventh named storm of the hurricane season

Tropical storm Gustav has killed more than 15 people in Haiti and threatened to dump more rain as it passed around Jamaica on Thursday.

Gustav dumped up to 12 inches of rain on Haiti's de-forested land before slowing down.

Fatalities were linked to landslides in the country.

Gustav weakens in Haiti

The National Hurricane centre has issued a hurricane and tropical storm watch for Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.

In Jamaica, people have been stocking up on supplies in local shops.

Gustav was projected to leave 6 to 12 inches of rain as it skirted south of Jamaica, then swopping up towards the Cayman Islands.

The Centre has also predicted that Gustav could gain in power, returning to hurricane status by the time it crosses Cuba's north-eastern peninsula and into the Gulf of Mexico.

Trinidad union

Trinidad and Tobago's Prime Minister Patrick Manning is promising that heads of government will discuss his project for Trinidad's political union with three eastern Caribbean states.

Over recent months, the Trinidadian leader has been pushing the proposal for union with Grenada, St Vincent, and St Lucia.

He has paid several visits to individual territories, meeting government officials to discuss the proposal.

He told reporters in the Trinidadian capital Port of Spain that there will be no political and economic union outside of Caricom's existing single market and economy without full discussion at a meeting of regional leaders of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) grouping.

Dominica opposition

The leader of Dominica's newest political party, the People's Democratic Movement (PDM), William "Para" Riviere, has said that he is now seeking to forge an alliance with the Dominica Freedom Party (DFP) and the United Workers Party (UWP) for upcoming general elections due in 2010.

Riviere is a former General Secretary of the ruling Dominica Labour Party (DLP).

He resigned from the DLP after the death of Pierre Charles because he openly challenged prime minister Roosevelt Skerrit for the leadership of the party.

Opposition leader and head of the UWP Ron Green has welcomed the latest comments by Riviere.

Most wanted

Police in Dutch St Maarten say they've captured one of America's ten most wanted fugitives.

Michael Registe is wanted by the FBI in connection with a double homicide in Georgia last year.

He was detained at a guesthouse in the St maarten capital Philipsburg.

Ricardo Henson, a spokesman for the St. Maarten police, said plans were being made to extradite Registe to the United States.

Tasers in Castries

Parliamentarians in St Lucia have passed an amendment allowing police to use tasers and pepper spray in the apprehension of citizens.

The move follows a spate of fatal police shootings, the latest involving an apparent case of mistaken identity earlier in August.

Both St Lucia's Home Affairs Minister and the Island's Police Commissioner believe the amendment, which has to go before the Senate, will reduce the number of fatal encounters involving the police and members of the public.

Government says that the new equipment will only be used by specially trained officers.