
Russia welcomes any offer to give Assad refuge
Russia would welcome any country's offer of safe haven for Syrian President Bashar Assad, but has no plans to make one of its own, Moscow's foreign ...
2 bombers target mobile phone firms in Nigeria
Authorities blame a radical Islamist sect for twin suicide car bombings targeting two major mobile phone companies, an official said Saturday, ...

Pope pardons ex-butler who stole, leaked documents
Pope Benedict XVI granted his former butler a Christmas pardon Saturday, forgiving him in person during a jailhouse meeting for stealing and leaking ...

Hurting Spaniards celebrate Christmas lottery wins
Winners of Spain's cherished Christmas lottery — the world's richest — celebrated Saturday in more than a dozen locations where the top lucky tickets ...

Highlights from Egypt's draft constitution
Egypt's draft constitution, which is being voted on in a referendum Saturday, is made up of an introduction, an 11-part preamble and 236 articles.

Key events in Egypt's revolution and transition
Egyptians are voting Saturday in the second round of a referendum on disputed draft constitution that has polarized the country and plunged it into ...

Pope stresses family values as gay marriage gains
The pope pressed his opposition to gay marriage Friday, denouncing what he described as people eschewing their God-given gender identities to suit ...

Egyptian Islamists, opponents clash ahead of vote
Violence erupted between Egypt's divided camps on Friday, the eve of the final round of a referendum on a constitution that has polarized the nation, ...
Iraq confirms arrest of minister's bodyguards
Iraqi authorities said Friday they've arrested 10 bodyguards of the country's Sunni finance minister in a terrorism-related sweep, the first official ...

New female mayor gears Bethlehem up for Christmas
Bethlehem's first female mayor, Vera Baboun, can't walk through the main square of the biblical town without being stopped by admirers. "This is our ...

Hot spots draw believers, but not doomsday
As the sun rose from time zone to time zone across the world on Friday, there was still no sign of the world's end — but that didn't stop those ...

UN: Syrian civil war increasingly sectarian
Syria's civil war is increasingly turning into a sectarian conflict pitting majority Sunni rebels against government forces supported by the country's ...
EU observers to monitor Jordan's January elections
A European Union official says the bloc's observers will monitor the upcoming parliamentary elections in Jordan for the first time in the country's ...

Fear keeps Egypt's Christians away from polls
A campaign of intimidation by Islamists left most Christians in this southern Egyptian province too afraid to participate in last week's referendum ...
AP Interview: Egypt atheist blasts Islamist regime
An Egyptian atheist convicted then released from prison on bail this week told The Associated Press Wednesday that the new Islamist government is no ...

Egypt: Top elections official resigns
One of the top officials in charge of overseeing Egypt's vote on a contentious Islamist-backed draft constitution resigned Wednesday, citing health ...

Israeli Arabs unenthusiastic about Jan. 22 vote
Israeli Arab activist Rasool Saada is crisscrossing the country to encourage fellow Arab citizens to vote in Jan. 22 parliamentary elections, ...
$500 million in checks left at Jerusalem holy site
Worshippers usually leave notes to the Almighty at one of Judaism's holiest sites. But half a billion dollars? Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch, who oversees ...
Irish government to legalize life-saving abortion
Ireland's government pledged Tuesday to pass a law soon that will allow women to receive abortions if continued pregnancy threatens their lives — ...

Egypt's Alexandria gripped by feud over future
The Qaed Ibrahim mosque, revered by Alexandrines as the embodiment of their Mediterranean city's cosmopolitan heritage, has become a battleground ...

Israeli leader vows more east Jerusalem building
Israel's prime minister on Tuesday rejected international criticism of plans to build thousands more Jewish homes in east Jerusalem, insisting that ...

Egypt orders probe into alleged vote violations
Thousands of Egyptian protesters marched on the presidential palace and Cairo's downtown Tahrir Square on Tuesday to protest a contentious ...

Conn. victims: Lively youngsters, devoted adults
At the very start of their lives, the schoolchildren are remembered for their love of horses, or for the games they couldn't get enough of, or for ...
China detains 500-plus people for doomsday rumors
Chinese police have detained more than 500 people from a fringe Christian group for spreading rumors about the world's impending end, state media ...

Low turnout in Egypt's vote raises questions
Just under a third of voters turned out for the first stage of the referendum on a constitution meant to be a historic milestone in setting Egypt's ...