Republicans proposed a three-month increase to the US debt ceiling Friday as they mulled breaking a protracted fiscal impasse, but warned any long-term deal would require Congress to pass a budget that cuts spending.
The Palestinians are bracing for a new right-wing government that Israel's election is expected to produce, hoping that international and domestic moves will strengthen their position.
Known mainly for its steelworks, the gritty industrial hub of Kosice in east Slovakia is hard at work reforging itself as a centre of creativity and the arts as it enters 2013 with the tag "European Capital of Culture".
South Korea plans to deploy Israeli-made precision guided missiles near its tense sea border with North Korea next month, including an island shelled by the North in 2010.
Apple chief Tim Cook and Google chairman Eric Schmidt are expected to face questioning in a lawsuit accusing Silicon Valley giants of secretly agreeing not to "poach" one another's workers.
South Korea's state auditor on Friday panned President Lee Myung-Bak's $20 billion effort to dredge, dam and beautify four major rivers, saying it was riddled with costly flaws.
The United States was rocked Thursday by a new crisis spurred by Islamic militants amid a deadly hostage-taking in Algeria, prompting warnings to US interests in north Africa to boost security.
South Africa's Lira will be one among many performers at Barack Obama's inaugural celebrations Monday, but she is determined to be remembered for a performance to rival Marilyn Monroe's wooing of John F. Kennedy.
More than half of Bolivian women have suffered domestic violence, according to a report out Thursday that found such abuse widespread in Latin America, with partners usually the perpetrators.
Sony said Friday it was selling its US headquarters in Manhattan for $1.1 billion as part of an overhaul aimed at rescuing the Japanese consumer electronics giant's tattered balance sheet.
Western governments voiced alarm over the fate of dozens of foreigners seized by Islamists at a gas plant in the Algerian desert after several hostages were killed in a dramatic rescue operation.
Hollywood icon Natalie Wood's husband has declined to talk to detectives who have re-opened a probe into his wife's mystery 1981 death, saying he has already answered all questions.
Jews of European origin are a mix of ancestries, with many hailing from tribes in the Caucasus who converted to Judaism and created an empire that lasted half a millennium.
A plate of crispy battered shrimp, mushrooms, tomato and arugula tossed with spaghettini and a cream sauce took the cake Wednesday as the most calorie-rich chain restaurant dish in America.
After lengthy delays, the International Monetary Fund unblocked part of its aid to Greece Wednesday, offering a brief respite to the recession-mired country grappling with austerity measures.
