Japan manga 'geeks' seek love at masked match-making
Self-confessed geeks in Japan who might ordinarily be too shy to ask someone on a date are trying a new kind of matchmaking: wearing cartoon character masks.
Blind pianist beats odds to become Taiwan movie star
Huang Yu-siang was born with a gift and a disability. He has a huge talent for music, but he is blind. His story has become a movie that has captivated audiences in his native Taiwan.
Japan's secret economic weapon: women
In next month's general election, politicians -- nearly all of them men -- will make promises on what they will do to fix Japan's economic morass.
Sudan disrupts security 'plot'; tanks seen in street
Sudan's powerful intelligence service on Thursday said it had disrupted a "plot" to disturb the country's security, as a witness saw tanks moving in the streets of the capital.
The world won't end next month, Maya experts insist
Relax doomsayers, the Maya people did not really mark their calendar for the end of the world on December 21, 2012.
Victims of Hurricane Sandy forgotten in Haiti
Hurricane Sandy, the deadly storm that slammed into New York and New Jersey in October, tore through the Caribbean long before reaching America. In Haiti, many still await help.
Briton in serious condition after pizza fight on ferry
Two British passengers on a Dutch-bound ferry were airlifted to hospital in a serious condition after two separate fights onboard, including one over a slice of pizza.
New Israel strike on Gaza kills 3, pushes toll to 80
Three people were killed early Monday morning in new Israeli air strikes on Gaza, pushing the death toll in six days of violence to 80 Palestinians.
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.
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.
113 rebels killed as violence flares in DR Congo
Some 113 rebels died in clashes between the M23 rebel group and Democratic Republic of Congo troops as violence flared days after the UN and US imposed sanctions on the group's leader.
Romney breaks silence in bitter broadside at Obama
Mitt Romney, in his first remarks since an unexpectedly lopsided election loss to Barack Obama, blamed his defeat Wednesday on "gifts" showered by the president on his female, African-American and Hispanic supporters.
Death sparks criticism of Irish abortion laws
Ireland's tough abortion laws came under fire on Wednesday following the death of an Indian woman after doctors allegedly refused her a termination because it was against the laws of the Catholic country.
Spanish police, protesters clash amid European strikes
Spanish police fired rubber bullets at die-hard protesters hurling bottles, rocks and firecrackers late Wednesday, capping anti-austerity strikes across southern Europe that boiled over into sporadic clashes.
UN rights chief warns Australia on refugees
The UN's top human rights official Wednesday described a hunger strike by refugees banished by Australia to the remote Pacific as a sign of the "unbearable conditions" of their detention.
New Zealander admits Prince Charles manure plan
An elderly New Zealand anti-royalist planned to hurl manure at Britain's Prince Charles and his wife Camilla during their visit to Auckland.
Malnutrition in N.Korea despite better harvests: UN
North Korea's staple food output has improved but the poverty-stricken country is still struggling to eradicate malnutrition and provide its people with vital protein.
500 rabbis call for release of US man jailed in Cuba
The wife jailed US contractor Alan Gross took part in a Florida protest Sunday seeking her husband's release from a Cuba prison, as some 500 rabbis from around the world appealed to Havana on his behalf.
Strong quake strikes off Guatemala: USGS
A strong 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck off the Pacific coast of Guatemala on Sunday, just days after a tremor in the same area left 42 people dead.
Spain anti-bank protest decries second evictee suicide
Hundreds of people demonstrated in Madrid on Friday after a woman due to be evicted killed herself in northern Spain, the second such suicide in two weeks, which the protesters blame on predatory mortgage lenders.