Suriname lawmakers adopt amnesty for president
10:46
Lawmakers approved amnesty legislation Wednesday that pardons Suriname's president for crimes committed under his earlier military dictatorship, rejecting pleas that his murder trial be allowed to run its course. The...
Chile's Congress passes anti-discrimination law
9:55
Chile's Congress passed an anti-discrimination law Wednesday following the killing of a gay man whose attackers beat him and carved swastikas into his body. The House of Deputies approved the law in a close 58-56 vote,...
Southeast Asian leaders: Lift Myanmar sanctions
9:27
Southeast Asian leaders called for Western countries to immediately lift punitive sanctions imposed on Myanmar now that the once-pariah nation has embraced democratic reforms, and the U.S. took steps in that direction. ...
Group calls for Jamaica to stop open trash fires
8:46
Jamaica must clamp down on trash fires because the smoke, soot and microscopic pollutants they release into the air are serious health hazards, an environmental group said Wednesday. The Jamaica Environment Trust...
Haiti leader goes to Florida for surgery on arm
8:15
Haitian President Michel Martelly has gone to Miami for an operation on his right shoulder. The presidential office's announcement Wednesday night doesn't include specific details on the problem. But the 50-year-old...
Brazil: Officer latest slaying victim in Rio slum
7:29
About 150 special operations police officers are patrolling Brazil's biggest shantytown after a police officer was shot to death. Rio de Janeiro's police department says officer Rodrigo Cavalcante was killed early...
Mexico conservative party pledges campaign changes
7:16
A top official of Mexico's conservative National Action Party says changes are planned for the campaign of presidential candidate Josefina Vazquez Mota, following a series of missteps. Party leader Gustavo Madero says...
Mexican conservatives revamp presidential bid
6:55
By Lizbeth Diaz and Mica Rosenberg MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Conservative candidate Josefina Vazquez Mota will re-jig her campaign to become Mexico's first woman president in an effort to close a yawning gap w
Somali theater bombing kills 10, shatters calm
6:21
Two weeks ago, Somalia's National Theater reopened for the first time in 20 years for a concert that drew an audience in festive colors in a city trying to rise above war. A welcoming banner proclaimed: "The country is...
DomRep capital welcomes its first artificial beach
6:08
The Dominican Republic has built its first temporary artificial beach in the capital for people who cannot afford to travel during Holy Week. Dozens of onlookers watched as crews dumped 1,500 square feet (139 sqquare...
Islamists impose sharia in Mali's Timbuktu
5:57
Mali's crisis deepened Wednesday, as officials in the fabled northern city of Timbuktu confirmed that the Islamic rebel faction that seized control of the town over the weekend has announced it will impose sharia law. ...
Sunnis seek own voice in Bahrain's turmoil
5:40
By Andrew Hammond MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahrain's Sunni Muslim minority, fearful of Shi'ite political assertiveness, is spawning factions that rail against compromise with the island's sectarian majority, while
South Sudan says it shoots down Sudanese jet
5:18
South Sudan says it shot down a Sudanese fighter jet Wednesday after two military planes dropped bombs around its oil fields, but Sudan denied it had lost such an aircraft. Military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer said the...
Wounded survivor revisits massacre island as Norway trial looms
5:17
By Walter Gibbs UTOEYA, Norway (Reuters) - She last saw Anders Behring Breivik when he raised his rifle at her on the shore of a small Norwegian island and calmly pulled the trigger. Now, 18-year-old Alexand
Egypt: Constitution panel on track despite boycott
5:10
The head of Egypt's constitutional assembly said Wednesday the committee will forge ahead with its work despite appeals from liberals, Christians and others who walked out in protest against the Islamist domination of...
Iraq's fugitive vice president in Saudi Arabia
5:03
Iraq's fugitive vice president arrived Wednesday in Saudi Arabia hours after he vowed in a television interview that he would return home. Tariq al-Hashemi, the top Sunni official in Iraq's Shiite-dominated government,...
7 killed in sect violence in north Nigeria
5:03
Suspected members of a radical Islamist sect opened fire on a crowded market in northeast Nigeria Wednesday, killing at least seven people in an area protected by federal troops, witnesses and the police said. The...
Egypt Brotherhood hopeful promises clerics a role
4:25
The Muslim Brotherhood's candidate for Egypt's presidency is lobbying hard for support of ultraconservative Muslim clerics, promising them a say over legislation in the future to ensure it is in line with Islamic law,...
International court tells Libya to hand over Seif
4:17
The International Criminal Court told Libyan authorities Wednesday to surrender former dictator Moammar Gadhafi's son _ wanted by the permanent tribunal for crimes against humanity. Seif al-Islam Gadhafi was arrested...
Greek pensioner kills himself outside parliament
4:15
By Renee Maltezou ATHENS (Reuters) - A cash-strapped Greek pensioner shot and killed himself outside parliament in Athens on Wednesday saying he refused to scrounge for food in the rubbish, touching a nerve
Angry football fans shake Egypt's fragile peace
4:03
By Tom Pfeiffer and Osama Khairy CAIRO (Reuters) - Lingering enmity between Egyptian soccer fans and police since the country's deadliest stadium disaster could shatter a fragile calm on the streets as the a
Pope donates huge chocolate Easter egg
3:39
The Easter Bunny has arrived early at the Vatican. Pope Benedict XVI was presented Wednesday with an enormous, 250-kilogram (550-pound), 2.2-meter (7.2-foot) tall chocolate Easter egg by Italian chocolatier Tosca,...
UK zoo's pandas meet for date, but will they mate?
3:37
Zoo officials have created a private love nest for Britain's only pair of giant pandas in hope the fertility-challenged animals will mate _ and Wednesday may be their last chance for quite a while. Keepers at Edinburgh...
US drone crashes on Seychelles runway
3:28
A U.S. Embassy statement says an American military drone used to monitor piracy off the East African coast has crashed at an airport on the island nation of Seychelles. A U.S. statement said the unmanned, unarmed Air...
U.S.-Afghan deal could delay operations, curb raids
3:25
By Hamid Shalizi KABUL (Reuters) - U.S.-Afghan talks on a judicial veto for Kabul over military raids on Afghan homes at night could delay anti-insurgent operations and curb the use of what coalition general
Guyana seeks public opinion on controversial laws
3:25
Guyana is launching a national debate on whether to eliminate its death penalty and overhaul laws that discriminate against gays, lesbians and transgender people. Town-hall-style meetings will be held across the...
U.N. council draft demands Syria meet April 10 deadline
3:24
By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - A U.S.-drafted U.N. Security Council statement would have the 15-nation panel step up the pressure on Syria by ordering it to comply with an April 10 deadline
Oil drops below $102 on big US supply increase
3:15
Oil dropped more than 2 percent on Wednesday after the government said U.S. supplies of crude keep growing. The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said crude supplies rose by 9 million barrels, or...
Japan, Britain in talks on joint arms development
3:15
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan and Britain hope to reach a deal to begin joint development of arms following Tokyo's easing of its ban on exports of military equipment late last year, Britain's Ministry of Defence said on
Mexican conservatives shake up presidential campaign
3:08
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Conservative candidate Josefina Vazquez Mota will re-jig her campaign to become Mexico's first woman president in an effort to close a yawning gap with the opposition front-runner, her party
Mali parties reject junta talks, Qaeda stokes fear
3:05
By John Irish and Bate Felix PARIS/BAMAKO (Reuters) - Mali's political parties on Wednesday rejected the army's plan to hold a national convention to end a crisis sparked by a coup, which has led to internat
Critics blast UK plans for more snooping, secrecy
3:03
British plans to expand the use of secret court hearings to protect intelligence shared by the United States and other allies and to extend state snooping on the Internet are vital to protect the public, Prime Minister...
Sept. 11 trial to resume at Guantanamo
2:57
The Pentagon said Wednesday it is ready to resume a trial at Guantanamo Bay for the acknowledged mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks and four other men, more than two years after President Barack Obama halted the case in...
VP: Chavez's 2nd radiation treatment 'successful'
2:41
Venezuela's vice president says Hugo Chavez's second cycle of radiation treatment was successful. Elias Jaua says Chavez plans to return to Venezuela on Wednesday after receiving treatment in Cuba. Chavez has vowed to...
AP Interview: Falkland gov. seeks lower tensions
2:33
The British governor of the Falkland Islands says he hopes Argentina may ease tensions in its dispute with Britain over the archipelago. Gov. Nigel Haywood told The Associated Press in an interview on Tuesday that...
Quarter of a million Pakistanis flee fighting in Khyber: group
2:28
By Nita Bhalla NEW DELHI, April 4 (AlertNet) - A quarter of a million Pakistanis are in desperate need of food, water and medicine after being forced to flee their homes due to intensified fighting between t
Movie, centennial, return Canada town to spotlight
2:08
Among the graves of Fairview Lawn Cemetery, there is one that was a magnet for bouquets and weeping girls in the 1990s. The name on the tombstone: J. Dawson. Jack Dawson, you will recall, is the name of the character...
Israeli forces evict settlers in Hebron
1:54
Israeli security forces swiftly evicted dozens of Jewish settlers from an illegally occupied building in this volatile West Bank city on Wednesday, ending a weeklong standoff that had threatened to spill over into...
French police arrest 10 in crackdown on radicals
1:52
French police rounded up 10 suspected radical Islamists in their second countrywide sweep in several days Wednesday, leading to criticism that President Nicolas Sarkozy is ramping up raids to win votes in a tight...
Elderly Greek kills himself in main Athens square
1:50
A Greek retiree shot himself dead in the busiest public square in Athens during morning rush hour Wednesday, leaving a note police said linked his suicide with the country's acute financial woes. Hours later, more than...
State lawmaker dies after shooting in Venezuela
1:48
Venezuelan state radio says a state legislator has died after being shot in an apparent robbery. Radio Nacional de Venezuela says Juan Carlos Figarella died on Wednesday. He was a member of President Hugo Chavez's...
AP names interactive producer for Spanish Service
1:45
Alba Mora Roca, an international multimedia and documentary producer from Catalonia, Spain, has been named to the newly created position of interactive producer for the Spanish Service of The Associated Press. Mora,...
Swedish Cold War spy Bertil Stroberg dies at 79
1:27
Bertil Stroberg, a former Swedish air force officer who was convicted of spying for Poland during the Cold War but always maintained his innocence, has died. He was 79. Stroberg's wife, Marianne Stroberg, said...
Iran arrests 13 pirates in international waters
1:26
Iran's navy has detained 13 pirates in international waters after a 2-day fight, a local newspaper reported Wednesday. The state-run IRAN daily quoted navy chief Adm. Habibollah Sayyari as saying the clashes broke out...
Far-right Hungarian lawmaker urged to resign
1:25
A far-right Hungarian lawmaker was urged to resign Wednesday after making a speech in Parliament that was widely criticized as anti-Semitic. In his speech, Zsolt Barath criticized the verdict in a well-known,...
Nobel winner Grass: Israel a threat to world peace
1:25
German Nobel literature laureate Guenter Grass labeled Israel a threat to "already fragile world peace" in a poem published Wednesday that drew sharp rebukes at home and from Israel. In the poem titled "What must be...
Two decades from war, a new fight to save Bosnia
1:24
By Matt Robinson and Daria Sito-Sucic SARAJEVO (Reuters) - The shooting began over the course of weeks, but if Bosnia's war needs a beginning to mark, then it's April 6, 1992, twenty years ago this Friday.
Uganda outlaws 'Walk to Work' protest group
1:20
The Ugandan government on Wednesday outlawed the activist group that has since last year led popular protests against official corruption and the high cost of living, saying it had become a force for instability. The...
Afghan bomb kills at least 10, including 3 GIs
1:17
A suicide bomber on a motorcycle killed at least 10 people, including three American soldiers, at a park in a relatively peaceful area of northern Afghanistan on Wednesday, part of an increase in violence at the start...
Strauss-Kahn speech finds welcoming audience in Ukraine
12:58
KIEV (Reuters) - Former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn made a successful return to the international speech circuit on Wednesday, delivering a lecture in the Ukrainian capital Kiev without