Messy battle expected in Japan vote next month: media
Japan's election next month will be a messy battle, media said Saturday, with more than a dozen parties fielding candidates and some of them trying to forge a "third pole" between the two largest camps.
Girl, seven, feared taken by crocodile in Australia
Australian police searching for a 7-year-old girl feared taken by a crocodile Saturday said finding what appeared to be human remains inside a three-metre reptile was a "heartbreaking" development.
Israeli strikes kills 4 in Gaza, hiking toll to 34
Israeli air strikes on central and southern Gaza killed four people on Saturday, medics said, with Palestinian security sources confirming at least three of them were militants.
Sierra Leoneans vote in high-stakes elections
Sierra Leoneans voted Saturday in general elections as the west African country continues to recover from a brutal civil war while beginning to reap the benefits of a mining boom.
Japan, India to cooperate on rare earth production
Japan has signed a memorandum of understanding with India to promote joint production of rare earth minerals, a move which will help reduce its reliance on China which controls most of the world's supply.
France proposes defensive weapons for Syria rebels
France raised the prospect of providing Syria's rebels with defensive weapons as Turkey joined it.
Man charged in Britain over Syria kidnappings
British police charged a man with the kidnapping of two Western journalists by Islamic extremists in Syria.
US urges Egypt, Turkey, Europeans to press Hamas
The United States called Thursday on Egypt, Turkey and European powers to press Hamas to end bloodshed in Gaza, putting the onus on the Islamist movement to end rocket attacks on Israel.
US pushing 'jobs diplomacy' after costly wars: Clinton
The United States will push its economic interests more aggressively to preserve its global leadership after being tied down by two wars in the past decade, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Saturday.
BBC Savile colleague held for suspected sexual offences
The BBC on Thursday agreed to pay a former politician £185,000 in damages over false child sex abuse claims, hours after police reportedly arrested another of its former presenters for sexual offences.
Nazarbayev calls for dual education model
Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev called the country's companies to implement a dual education model.
Charlie Chaplin hat and cane to go under hammer
Charlie Chaplin's iconic bowler hat and cane are to go under the hammer in Los Angeles this weekend, as part of an auction which also includes a John Lennon nude drawing of himself and Yoko Ono.
Tymoshenko ends hunger strike: doctors
Jailed Ukrainian opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko agreed to end her hunger strike, her doctors said, more than two weeks after she began her protest over alleged fraud in polls won by the country's ruling party.
US sees dramatic rise in diabetes rates: study
The United States saw a dramatic rise in the number of adults suffering from diabetes between 1995 and 2010, according to official statistics.
Panetta to tout US shift to Asia at ASEAN defence talks
US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta will outline Washington's strategic shift to the Pacific and a tentative rapprochement with Myanmar.
UN protests to Syria over Golan Heights attacks
The United Nations has protested to the Syrian government for claiming it had UN permission to attack rebel opponents in the Golan Heights demilitarized zone.
50 years since Solzhenitsyn Gulag story shocked USSR
The Soviet Union 50 years ago allowed publication of Alexander Solzhenitsyn's landmark account of life in the Stalin prison camps "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich", shocking readers by revealing a hitherto hidden horror.
Gaza conflict adds tension to Palestinian UN bid
Israel's air strikes on the Gaza Strip have heightened the tensions surrounding the Palestinian bid for observer membership at the United Nations planned for later this month.
BP to pay record $4.5 bn fine over US oil spill
BP agreed Thursday to pay a record $4.5 billion in US fines for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill and pleaded guilty to 14 counts including felony manslaughter in the deaths of 11 workers.
US lawmakers see footage of Benghazi attack
US senators got their first look Thursday at dramatic video footage of the attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya as they probed the government's response to the assault.