Police arrest Indian spiritual leader on charges of raping a minor

JAIPUR, India –  Police say they have arrested a controversial spiritual guru on a rape charge filed by a teen-age girl in northw...

Suspected sect members ambush, kill at least 24 people in northeast Nigeria, dozens missing

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria –  A security official says suspected Islamic sect members have ambushed and killed at least 24 members of a y...

Thousands of Tunisians protest Islamist-led govt as political crisis deepens

TUNIS, Tunisia –  Thousands of Tunisians have marched through the capital calling for the resignation of the Islamist-led governm...

Israel deploys "Iron Dome" missile defense system in Tel Aviv ahead of potential Syria strike

JERUSALEM –  The Israeli military says it has deployed an "Iron Dome" missile defense battery in the Tel Aviv area. ...

US swimmer Diana Nyad again tries Cuba-Florida crossing that has resisted repeated attempts

HAVANA –  The Florida Strait has stubbornly resisted Diana Nyad's repeated attempts to conquer it. But the Flor...

Ethiopian Airlines CEO says Boeing credits Boeing 787 planes for contributing to profits

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia –  Ethiopian Airlines' chief executive officer says that the company has made a record profit he partly...

Pope names veteran Vatican diplomat to be Holy See No. 2, replacing divisive top aide

VATICAN CITY –  Pope Francis has tapped a veteran Vatican diplomat to replace the Holy See's secretary of state who in recent...

India juvenile court convicts 1 in New Delhi gang rape

NEW DELHI –  A lawyer says an Indian juvenile court has convicted one person of rape and murder in the December gang rape of a yo...

Satellite images show North Korea expanding rocket launch site, analysts say

WASHINGTON –  New satellite imagery shows North Korea is conducting major new construction to expand facilities at a launch site ...

Bomb hits police checkpoint in southern Afghan city, killing at least 5

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan –  Afghan officials say a suicide car bomb at a police checkpoint in the southern city of Kandahar has kill...

UN chemical weapons experts pull out of Syria

A team of U.N. chemical weapons experts gathering evidence of a possible chemical weapons attack in Syria have left the country a...

At least 1 reportedly killed after earthquake hits China

BEIJING –  An earthquake hit a mountainous area in southwestern China Saturday morning, killing at least one person and injuring ...

Venezuelan gets 5 ½-year sentence in strip club shooting of US Embassy workers

CARACAS, Venezuela –  A man who shot two U.S. Embassy employees in a Caracas strip club has been convicted of attempted murder by...

Bosnian Serbs welcome released war criminal Momcilo Krajisnik home as a hero

PALE, Bosnia-Herzegovina –  Singing Serb national songs and waving flags, more than 2,000 people have welcomed home convicted war...

NATO chief says alliance has no plan to intervene in Syria, despite alleged chemical attack

COPENHAGEN, Denmark –  NATO's chief has said for the first time the alliance has no plans for military action in Syria becaus...

As peace talks begin, Palestinians reach out to Israeli counterparts

RAMALLAH, West Bank –  The Palestinians have traditionally shown little affection for Israeli politicians. These days, however, t...

Critics say Mali coup leader should face trial for abuses, not promotion to 4-star general

BAMAKO, Mali –  Amadou Haya Sanogo's rise through the ranks in Mali's military hadn't exactly been meteoric. He'd...

Gold miners set to go on strike in South Africa, escalating labor unrest across many sectors

JOHANNESBURG –  A spokesman for a mineworkers' union in South Africa says gold miners will go on strike next week after talks...

Irish poet Nobel winner Seamus Heaney dies at 74

DUBLIN –  Seamus Heaney, Ireland's foremost poet who won the Nobel literature prize in 1995, has died after a half-century ex...

German government says it has no plans to join military action against Syria

BERLIN –  The German government says it currently has no plans to join military action against Syria. Government sp...

EU and eurozone July unemployment rate remain steady on the month, though 50,000 jobs added

BRUSSELS –  Europe's statistics office says the July unemployment rate across the 17 nations using the euro has remained stea...

Media report: Australian troops investigated for allegedly cutting hands off dead Afghan

CANBERRA, Australia –  Australia's national broadcaster has reported that Australian troops are under investigation for alleg...

Oil prices fall below $108 a barrel after Britain refrains from approving action against Syria

BANGKOK –  The price of oil fell below $108 a barrel Friday after British lawmakers refused to approve military action against Sy...

Pakistan overturns prison sentence for doctor who helped CIA get Bin Laden

The 33-year prison sentence of a Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA locate Usama bin Laden has been overturned and a retrial has...

2 Canadian men remain behind bars in Egypt after detention during riots

TORONTO –  Two Canadian men remain behind bars in Egypt after a Cairo prosecutor failed to meet with their lawyers Thursday. ...

Mayor says 2 people killed when rockets land inside Rwandan border town near Congo

KIGALI, Rwanda –  The mayor of a Rwandan town on the border with Congo says rockets have landed inside Rwandan territory, killing...

US judge could lift debt ruling stay, pushing Argentina toward a destabilizing default

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina –  Argentina has been called back to court in New York to explain why it shouldn't be found in violat...

Iranian president says country will work with Russia to stop strike on Syria

TEHRAN, Iran –  Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said his country will press forward with efforts to ward off military action by ...

Report: Iran appoints first Foreign Ministry spokeswoman

TEHRAN, Iran –  Iran's state TV is reporting the country has appointed its first ever Foreign Ministry spokeswoman. ...

UN chemical experts probing purported Syria poison gas attack leave hotel, destination unclear

DAMASCUS, Syria –  U.N. experts investigating purported poison gas attacks have left their Damascus hotel, but anti-regime activi...

Price of oil eases off 2-year highs, falls below $110 a barrel as Syria jitters ease

BANGKOK –  The price of oil fell below $110 a barrel Thursday, easing off a two-year high, after a report showed a rise in U.S. c...

Air New Zealand profit more than doubles as national carrier plans to buy new planes

WELLINGTON, New Zealand –  National carrier Air New Zealand says its annual profit more than doubled from the previous year as it...

Former USS Cole Commander on Syria: Don’t get engaged in conflict

As the likelihood of a military strike on Syria increases in response to last week's alleged chemical weapons attack, a forme...

Syria ambassador demands UN investigate 3 alleged chemical weapons attacks against soldiers

UNITED NATIONS –  Syria's U.N. ambassador is demanding that United Nations experts investigate three alleged chemical weapons...

Paraguay bus drivers crucify themselves, nails through hands, for 20 days to protest layoffs

ASUNCION, Paraguay –  A woman in Paraguay has climbed onto a wooden cross and had nails pounded through her hands, joining five m...

Nigerian court grants US request for extradition of Nigerian wanted on terrorism charges

ABUJA, Nigeria –  A Nigerian court has ordered the extradition of one of its citizens wanted in the United States for terrorism. ...

Israel arrests Gaza man who had been invited to US-sponsored technology fair

JERUSALEM –  Israel has confirmed the arrest of a Gaza man who was detained as he prepared to travel to a U.S.-sponsored cultural...

Detainees disappearing amid military crackdown to fight Islamic uprising in north Nigeria

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria –  In an area of Nigeria where an Islamic insurgency has caught fire, security forces are carrying out night r...

Egyptian police arrest 60 more Brotherhood members and supporters in ongoing crackdown

CAIRO –  Egyptian security officials say police have detained more than 60 supporters and members of the Muslim Brotherhood over ...

Flash flood traps 27 hikers in Austrian cave, rescue crews say they are not in danger

VIENNA –  A flash flood unleashed by heavy rains has trapped 27 hikers in an underground cave in western Austria, but rescue work...

US envoy headed to North Korea says no guarantees American prisoner will be released

TOKYO –  A senior U.S. envoy who will travel to North Korea later this week said Wednesday that he plans to strongly appeal for t...

China confirms raid on alleged terror cell in restive northwest, but details remain sketchy

BEIJING –  China has confirmed its police conducted a raid last week on an alleged terrorist cell in the restive northwestern reg...

Peace Palace celebrates centenary as world powers appear to move toward strikes against Syria

THE HAGUE, Netherlands –  United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is celebrating the centenary of the Peace Palace in The Ha...

Oil surges past $112 per barrel as tensions escalate over alleged chemical attack in Syria

BANGKOK –  The price of oil rose surged past $112 a barrel Wednesday, as the U.S. edged closer to intervening in Syria's civi...

Air China profit rises on yuan gains but says passenger, cargo business remain tough

HONG KONG –  State-owned Air China says half-year profit rose 10 percent as foreign currency gains more than made up for declinin...

Twerk, verb: Sexually-charged dance shakes its way into pages of Oxford dictionary

LONDON –  Twerking, the rump-busting up-and-down dance move long beloved on America's hip-hop scene, has officially gone main...

Suspected Islamic sect member attacks on young vigilantes kill at least 20 in north Nigeria

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria –  Residents and officials say two attacks by suspected members of a Nigerian Islamic sect have killed at leas...

Attorney for convicted Puerto Rico drug lord accused in $3M bribery scheme

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico –  A Puerto Rico lawyer has been arrested on allegations he collected funds meant to bribe a judge to overt...

Conflicting versions of death tolls in recent spate of Congo fighting

DAKAR, Senegal –  Following days of fighting in eastern Congo, conflicting versions of the death toll emerged, with rebel and gov...

Vigilantes attack police, take arms in southern Mexico

MEXICO CITY –  Vigilantes in the southern Mexico state of Guerrero have attacked local police in the town of Tixtla, beaten them ...

Turkey reportedly seizes gas masks, ammo from North Korea headed to Syria

North Korea tried to export gas masks to Syria but they were seized in Turkey along with arms and ammunition, a Japanese daily sa...

Mexico offers $150,000 rewards for drug war missing

MEXICO CITY –  The Mexican government is offering rewards of up to 2 million pesos ($150,000) for information on 14 people who ha...

Lawyer: probe of bus plunge that killed 39 in Italy points to failed transmission, brakes

ROME –  A lawyer for the relatives of victims in a deadly tour bus plunge in southern Italy says an initial technical examination...

UN confirms Syria chemical weapons team delaying 2nd trip to Damascus suburb by 1 day

DAMASCUS, Syria –  The United Nations says that a team of chemical weapons experts in Syria has delayed a second trip to investig...

Lawmakers: Iraq court rejects draft law that would impose term limits on prime minister

BAGHDAD –  Iraqi lawmakers say a top court has rejected a draft law that would have prevented embattled Prime Minister Nouri al-M...

Syria says US Secretary of State Kerry lying about proof of large chemical weapons attack

DAMASCUS, Syria –  Syria has accused U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry of lying by claiming there is "undeniable" evid...

Taliban attacks kill 12 Afghan civilians, including aid workers, in 2 separate incidents

KABUL, Afghanistan –  Afghan officials say insurgents have shot and killed 12 civilians, including six aid workers working on gov...

Vandals damage cars in Arab neighborhood in Jerusalem in apparent political act by extremists

JERUSALEM –  Police say vandals have slashed car tires in an Arab neighborhood in Jerusalem, the latest in a series of similar in...

Oil price rises above $106 a barrel after Kerry ratchets up rhetoric on Syrian crisis

BANGKOK –  The price of oil rose above $106 a barrel Tuesday after a U.S. official said there was strong evidence that Syria used...

Argentine couples sweep 3 top spots in salon tango finals at 2013 World Tango Competition

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina –  Argentine couples have swept top honors in the "salon tango" finals at the world's top t...

All 25,000 students who took University of Liberia admission test fail

Not a single new student will be admitted into the University of Liberia this year after nearly 25,000 candidates failed the scho...