2012 marked the warmest year on record for the United States and was also the second most extreme ever, the US government agency charged with monitoring weather events said.
Mexico City authorities chased down stray dogs Tuesday to find the canines behind the grisly killing of four people, angering pet defenders who say the animals are wrongly accused.
Honduran President Porfirio Lobo said Monday that a pre-Christmas party at the country's embassy in Colombia that included prostitutes was a "sad incident."
Chuck Hagel, bracing for a bruising Senate confirmation as the next US defense secretary, pledged "total support" for Israel on Monday after lawmakers criticized his Middle East views.
A cat trained by prisoners to deliver cell phones and tools to dig tunnels was caught at a jail in northeastern Brazil after sneaking in with forbidden items strapped to its body.
US President Barack Obama will host Afghan President Hamid Karzai at the White House on Friday for talks centered on the long-term security compact between the two countries.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton received a standing ovation from her staff and an American football helmet to protect her from Washington's hard knocks as she returned to work after a health scare.
A US judge Monday ordered Catholic leaders in Los Angeles to identify senior church officials accused of sexually abusing children, in a move welcomed by campaigners for victims.
Venezuela's leftist leadership has called for a massive show of support for ailing President Hugo Chavez in Caracas on Thursday -- the day he is supposed to be sworn in to a new six year term in office.
US President Barack Obama on Monday nominated controversial former Republican senator Chuck Hagel to lead the Pentagon and proposed that hard-nosed counterterrorism czar John Brennan to head the CIA.
The Milky Way contains at least 17 billion planets the size of Earth, and likely many more, according to a study out Monday that raises the chances of discovering a sister planet to ours.
The US Defense Department has prepared plans for a smaller presence in Afghanistan after the White House insisted on examining the option of leaving fewer troops in the country.
With zinc sources drying up and demand forecast to surge, resource hungry China is looking to Canada to approve two giant mines and close the gap -- but environmentalists and roving caribou stand in the way.