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US military Clashes in Baghdad despite cease-fire

By Petr David Josek (AP)

American soldiers killed three Shiite extremists who attacked them with small arms and rocket launchers in Baghdad's sprawling Shiite slum, despite a reported cease-fire, the U.S. military said Monday.

The clashes broke out Sunday afternoon in Sadr City, marring the first day of a reported cease-fire between factions of Muqtada al-Sadr's political movement, who are thought to have influence over the extremists, and the Iraqi government.

Nasar al-Rubaie, a Sadrist lawmaker, said talks on final touches to the agreement were still under way on Monday. Al-Rubaie said he could not...

By Bela Szandelszky (AP)

Soldiers deployed throughout the mountains overlooking the capital Monday after at least 11 people were killed in clashes between government supporters and opponents in the area, security officials and paramedics said.

The fighting lulled late Sunday after pro-government Druse leader Walid Jumblatt called on his Druse opponents in the mountains, who are allied with Hezbollah, to mediate a cease-fire and hand over the region to Lebanese troops.

At least 11 people were killed in the town of Chouweifat near Beirut before a cease-fire went into effect there late Sunday,...

By Petr David Josek (AP)

American soldiers killed three Shiite extremists who attacked them with small arms and rocket launchers in Baghdad's sprawling Shiite slum, despite a reported cease-fire, the U.S. military said Monday.

The clashes broke out Sunday afternoon in Sadr City, marring the first day of a reported cease-fire between factions of Muqtada al-Sadr's political movement, who are thought to have influence over the extremists, and the Iraqi government.

Nasar al-Rubaie, a Sadrist lawmaker, said talks on final touches to the agreement were still under way on Monday. Al-Rubaie said he could not...

By Abd Raouf (AP)

A Sudanese opposition party says its leader has been arrested apparently because of he is allegedly linked to Darfur rebels who attacked close to the capital this week.

A spokesman for the Popular Congress Party says its chief Hassan Turabi was arrested early Monday at his home in Khartoum.

Awadh Ba Bakr, who is also Turabi's personal secretary, says at least 10 other party members were arrested across the city as part of a government campaign.

Turabi is believed to wield influence with the Justice and Equality Movement, whose fighters launched an unprecedented attack...

By Abd Raouf (AP)

Sudan severed ties with Chad Sunday, accusing its neighbor of backing a rebel assault on the capital and raising the possibility of new border clashes that could worsen Darfur's humanitarian crisis.

A curfew was lifted in Sudan's capital but residents hunkered inside and security remained tight a day after the government repulsed an unprecedented assault on Khartoum by Darfur rebels.

In the capital's twin city of Omdurman, frightened residents emerged slowly to find buildings pockmarked with bullet holes and streets littered with charred cars. Women draped in flowered gowns s...

By Alik Keplicz (AP)

Irena Sendler _ a Polish social worker who helped save some 2,500 Jewish children from the Nazis by smuggling them out of the Warsaw Ghetto and giving them false identities _ has died. She was 98.

Sendler died at a Warsaw hospital on Monday morning, her daughter, Janina Zgrzembska, told The Associated Press. She had been hospitalized since last month with pneumonia.

Born in Warsaw, Sendler served as a social worker with the city's welfare department, masterminding the risky rescue operations of Jewish children from the Warsaw Ghetto during Nazi Germany's brutal World War II...

By Bullit Marquez (AP)

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo pardoned nine military officers who apologized after being convicted of a 2003 coup plot, saying Monday that the Philippines yearns for stability _ not "political shenanigans."

Arroyo made the announcement during a nationally televised ceremony marking the oath-taking of new military chief Gen. Alexander Yano. He replaced a general known for fiercely defending Arroyo against coup plotters and other threats.

The government has struggled in recent years to head off unrest in the 120,000-strong military by fighting corruption, introducing...

By Oded Balilty (AP)

A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck mountainous western China on Monday, toppling a primary school and killing four students, Chinese state media reported.

The temblor, which was felt as far away as Vietnam and Thailand, injured more than 100 students in Chongqing in central China, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The quake struck 60 miles northwest of the Sichhuan provincial capital of Chengdu at 2:28 p.m., the U.S. Geological Survey said on its Web site. It said the quake was centered 6.2 miles below the surface. The area has a population of about 110,000 residents,...

By (AP)

The first U.S. relief airlift arrived in Myanmar on Monday after prolonged negotiations with the country's isolationist junta, which considers Washington its enemy and has restricted international aid to as many as 2 million cyclone victims.

The unarmed military C-130 cargo plane, packed with supplies, flew out of the Thai air force base of Utapao and landed in Yangon. Two more air shipments are scheduled to land Tuesday.

After the plane's arrival, the supplies were transferred to Myanmar army trucks.

Myanmar's junta said Sunday the official death toll from the May 3 Cy...

By DARKO VOJINOVIC (AP)

A pro-Western coalition determined to bring Serbia into the European Union made a surprisingly strong showing in parliamentary elections, but faced the specter of a protracted power struggle with rivals who vowed to join forces to form a government.

The challenge cast a shadow over President Boris Tadic's claim of victory in Sunday's vote, and triggered fresh political turmoil in a country divided over whether it should join the EU or shift toward its traditional ally Russia and revert to its nationalist past.

Tadic proclaimed "a great day for Serbia" after projections by an...

By Apichart Weerawong (AP)

The U.S. launched its first relief airlift to Myanmar on Monday after prolonged negotiations with the country's isolationist junta, which considers Washington its enemy and has restricted international aid to as many as 2 million cyclone victims.

The unarmed military C-130 cargo plane, packed with supplies, flew out of the Thai air force base of Utapao for Yangon. Two more air shipments are scheduled to land Tuesday.

Myanmar's junta said Sunday the official death toll from the May 3 Cyclone Nargis has jumped to nearly 29,000 with more than 33,000 missing.

But Richard...

By (AP)

The U.S. launched its first relief airlift to Myanmar on Monday after prolonged negotiations with the country's isolationist junta, which considers Washington its enemy and has restricted international aid to as many as 2 million cyclone victims.

The unarmed military C-130 cargo plane, packed with supplies, flew out of the Thai air force base of Utapao for Yangon. Two more air shipments are scheduled to land Tuesday.

Myanmar's junta said Sunday the official death toll from the May 3 Cyclone Nargis has jumped to nearly 29,000 with more than 33,000 missing.

But Richard...

By DARKO VOJINOVIC (AP)

A pro-Western coalition determined to bring Serbia into the European Union made a surprisingly strong showing in parliamentary elections, but faced the specter of a protracted power struggle with rivals who vowed to join forces to form a government.

The challenge cast a shadow over President Boris Tadic's claim of victory in Sunday's vote, and triggered fresh political turmoil in a country divided over whether it should join the EU or shift toward its traditional ally Russia and revert to its nationalist past.

Tadic proclaimed "a great day for Serbia" after projections by an...

By RZ (AP)

The man behind the camera had three requests for his subjects: no sunglasses, no smiling, and no underwear.

The latest work by New York photographer Spencer Tunick gathered 1,840 people, baring it all in Austria's Happel Stadium on Sunday.

"Stay very still. Don't move," the Austria Press Agency quoted Tunick as telling the crowd as he went to work.

Much of the hours-long photo shoot had little to do with soccer, with naked volunteers assuming different poses at the behest of the artist. But at least one of the photos had them with the ball, men first and then the women...

By Apichart Weerawong (AP)

The United States has launched its first relief airlift to Myanmar for last week's cyclone victims.

A military C-130 cargo plane packed with supplies left a Thai air force base Monday for Myanmar's biggest city, Yangon. Two more air shipments are scheduled to land Tuesday.

Allowing the U.S. flight is a huge concession by Myanmar's military government, which sees Washington as its enemy. The junta has also generally refused to allow international relief experts and slowed down aid delivery by the U.N. with red-tape.

Operation spokesman Lt. Col. Douglas Powell said the pl...

By Apichart Weerawong (AP)

The United States has launched its first relief airlift to Myanmar for last week's cyclone victims.

A military C-130 cargo plane packed with supplies left a Thai air force base Monday for Myanmar's biggest city, Yangon. Two more air shipments are scheduled to land Tuesday.

Allowing the U.S. flight is a huge concession by Myanmar's military government, which sees Washington as its enemy. The junta has also generally refused to allow international relief experts and slowed down aid delivery by the U.N. with red-tape.

Operation spokesman Lt. Col. Douglas Powell said the pl...

By (AP)

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez lashed out at Germany's chancellor on Sunday, suggesting that her party shares the political ideals of Adolf Hitler.

The Venezuelan leader criticized Chancellor Angela Merkel for belonging to the conservative Christian Democratic Union, calling the movement "the same right wing that supported Hitler and fascism."

Chavez was on the verge of launching more insults at Merkel, but suddenly stopped short.

"Ms. Chancellor, you can go to ..." he said during his weekly television and radio program, before pausing. Then he added: "Because you ...

By (AP)

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez lashed out at Germany's chancellor on Sunday, suggesting that her party shares the political ideals of Adolf Hitler.

The Venezuelan leader criticized Chancellor Angela Merkel for belonging to the conservative Christian Democratic Union, calling the movement "the same right wing that supported Hitler and fascism."

Chavez was on the verge of launching more insults at Merkel, but suddenly stopped short.

"Ms. Chancellor, you can go to ..." he said during his weekly television and radio program, before pausing. Then he added: "Because you ...

By (AP)

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez lashed out at Germany's chancellor on Sunday, suggesting that her party shares the political ideals of Adolf Hitler.

The Venezuelan leader criticized Chancellor Angela Merkel for belonging to the conservative Christian Democratic Union, calling the movement "the same right wing that supported Hitler and fascism."

Chavez was on the verge of launching more insults at Merkel, but suddenly stopped short.

"Ms. Chancellor, you can go to ..." he said during his weekly television and radio program, before pausing. Then he added: "Because you ...

By Bela Szandelszky (AP)

Lebanon hung between fears of all-out war and hopes of political compromise Sunday as government supporters and opponents battled with rockets and machine guns in the mountains overlooking the capital.

The fighting saw the collapse of pro-government forces in the Aley region, a stronghold of anti-Syrian Druse leader Walid Jumblatt.

Beirut was quiet a day after Hezbollah gunmen left the streets, heeding an army call for the Shiite fighters to clear out. The city was the focus of four days of Sunni-Shiite clashes that culminated with Hezbollah seizing large swaths of Muslim...

By DARKO VOJINOVIC (AP)

Serbia's pro-Western president declared victory in Sunday's parliamentary elections _ a stunning upset over ultranationalists who tried to exploit anger over Kosovo's independence and thwart the nation's ambitions to join the European Union.

"This is a great day for Serbia," Boris Tadic proclaimed after an independent monitoring group that carried out a parallel vote count nationwide said his bloc won 39 percent _ about 10 percent more than the ultranationalist Serbian Radical Party.

"The citizens of Serbia have confirmed Serbia's European path," he said. "Serbia will ...

By ZVEKI (AP)

Serbia's pro-Western president is declaring victory in the country's parliamentary elections.

President Boris Tadic has told cheering supporters that his Coalition for a European Serbia eked out a victory in a hard-fought battle with the ultranationalist Serbian Radical Party.

Independent monitors said Tadic's coalition had about 38 percent of the vote with about 50 percent of the vote counted nationwide. They said the ultranationalist Serbian Radical Party was running a distant second with 28 percent.

Tadic described Sunday's win as "convincing" and said it shows th...

By ZVEKI (AP)

A pro-Western coalition was leading Serbia's parliamentary elections, independent monitors said Sunday, suggesting that reformers might pull off a stunning upset in the closely contested vote.

With about 50 percent of the vote counted nationwide, the Center for Free Elections and Democracy said President Boris Tadic's Coalition for a European Serbia had about 38 percent.

The respected monitoring group said the ultranationalist Serbian Radical Party was running a distant second with 28 percent, and that nationalist Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica's bloc had about 11 percent....

By Diego Norona (AP)

Documents that Colombia says it recovered from a slain guerrilla leader give the clearest indication yet that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez sought to arm and finance insurgents across the border.

The documents _ more than a dozen internal rebel messages _ detail several years of close cooperation between top officials in Venezuela's government and military and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, including the construction of rebel training facilities on Venezuelan soil.

They also suggest Venezuela was preparing to loan the rebels at least US$250 million...

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