
UN nuke agency: progress on Iran nuclear program
A senior U.N. official announced progress Friday in long-stalled efforts to resume a probe of suspicions that Iran may have worked to develop nuclear ...

Famed French mountaineer Maurice Herzog dies at 93
France loved him for his indefatigable, pioneering spirit — the first man to climb an 8,000-meter Himalayan peak despite losing all his fingers and ...
Obama signs Russian trade and human rights bill
President Barack Obama has signed a bill that will expand trade with Russia but could antagonize relations with Moscow over its treatment of ...
Popularity of Caribbean island soars after wedding
A speck of an island in the Dutch Caribbean has become increasingly popular with gay couples after legislators legalized same-sex marriages in a ...

Stocks fluctuate amid China data, US budget talks
World markets were cautious on Friday as concerns over ongoing U.S. budget talks offset the impact of survey showing China's manufacturing production ...

Russia backtracks on statement about Assad's fall
Russia's attempt to backpedal after a top diplomat said Syrian President Bashar Assad is losing control of his country reflects the dilemma Moscow ...

UK police say they won't charge hacker
British authorities opted Friday not to charge a computer hacker who waged a decade-long struggle to avoid trial in the U.S. for breaking into ...
Svindal continues dominance with super-G win
Not too many skiers can afford to make a big mistake and still be more than a second faster than anyone else. Lindsey Vonn has done it a few times on ...

Lara Gut wins WCup downhill; Vonn crashes out
Lara Gut and Lindsey Vonn had mixed fortunes on one of their favorite courses on Friday. Gut won her first World Cup downhill and Vonn had a rare ...

Spaniard jailed in Cuba to finish sentence at home
A Spaniard sentenced in Cuba to prison for the death of a prominent dissident will fly back to Spain to serve the rest of his four-year term, ...

Christmas comes to Vatican with tree lighting
The Christmas season kicked off Friday at the Vatican with the traditional lighting of the tree in St. Peter's Square — and a reminder from the pope ...
Merkel: Crisis could weigh on Europe for years
German Chancellor Angela Merkel says Europe will continue to suffer from slow or no growth and high unemployment next year — and maybe beyond.

As Syrian rebels close in, Assad has cards to play
With rebels trying to penetrate Syria's capital, Damascus, President Bashar Assad may appear to be heading for a last stand as his weakened regime ...

Prosecutors see Islamist link in station bomb
A radical Islamic terrorist group is suspected of being behind an attempted bombing this week at a railway station in Bonn, German prosecutors said ...

Spain's house prices keep tumbling
Spain's ailing property market showed little sign of recovery Friday, with the latest figures showing house prices were down some 15 percent in the ...

Swedish Christmas goat engulfed in flames...again
Not even a layer of ice was enough to keep three people from torching the giant straw goat in a Swedish town where the annual challenge of charring ...
Fiat denies reports of capital increase talks
Fiat has denied reports that it is talks with banks to raise capital to boost its ownership of U.S. automaker Chrysler LLC. Fiat said in a statement ...

Queen Elizabeth II gets art trove as jubilee gift
What do you get the woman who has everything? Britain's Royal Academy of Arts has presented Queen Elizabeth II with works by some of the country's ...

Coroner: Eva Rausing died as result of drug abuse
Eva Rausing, one of Britain's richest women, died in a squalid corner of her luxury home as a result of her "dependent abuse" of drugs, a coroner ...
Kazakhstan to introduce mayoral elections in 2013
Kazakhstan's president announced a raft of reforms for this energy-rich, authoritarian state Friday, ranging from having more direct local and ...

From 'Sherlock' to 'Star Trek' for Cumberbatch
Benedict Cumberbatch has had a busy 24 hours. The British actor was nominated for a Golden Globe, chased by the paparazzi in London and unveiled the ...

Italian debt at record high above 2 trillion euros
Italian public debt has swelled to its highest ever level, reaching €2.014 trillion ($2.64 trillion) in October, the Bank of Italy said Friday — ...

Pentagon to send missiles, 400 troops to Turkey
The U.S. will send two batteries of Patriot missiles and 400 troops to Turkey as part of a NATO force meant to protect Turkish territory from ...

ECB: Crisis eases, "no room for complacency"
European Central Bank officials say there is "no room for complacency" even though stresses from the debt crisis have eased on banks and financial ...
30 days in jail for Serbia's richest man
A judge on Friday ordered the richest man in Serbia to be held in prison for 30 days pending trial on suspicion of corruption, as the government ...