Egypt: 3 women killed in suspected 'honor' crime
LUXOR, Egypt (AP) -- A mother and two daughters were allegedly killed by male relatives in southern Egypt who believed they'd had affairs, the latest apparent example of so-called "honor killings" in which women are slain for violating traditional morals in the conservative region, a security official said Friday.... 5/24/2013 12:39 PM

Earthquake hits Russia's Far East
MOSCOW (AP) -- A powerful earthquake on Friday hit Russia's Far East with tremors felt as far away as Moscow, about 7,000 kilometers (4,400 miles) west of the epicenter, but no casualties or damage were reported.... 5/24/2013 12:33 PM

Q&A: On Turkey's proposed alcohol restrictions
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) -- A look at legislation passed in Turkey's parliament early Friday that would ban all alcohol advertising and tighten restrictions on the sale of such beverages, and how such a law could affect tourists and liquor companies in the mainly Muslim but secular country.... 5/24/2013 12:31 PM

Russia says Syrian regime agrees to peace talks
BEIRUT (AP) -- The Syrian government has agreed to attend a conference proposed by Russia and the United States on ending the country's civil war, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Friday, the first sign that President Bashar Assad's regime would be willing to take part in the talks with the opposition.... 5/24/2013 12:31 PM

Cuba silent on Canadian's corruption trial
HAVANA (AP) -- Official silence surrounded the case of a Canadian businessman targeted by a corruption probe in Cuba on Friday, as the initial trial of several foreigners suspected of graft entered its second day.... 5/24/2013 12:24 PM

UK-bound Pakistan plane diverted, 2 men arrested
LONDON (AP) -- Britain scrambled fighter jets Friday to intercept a commercial airliner carrying more than 300 people from Pakistan, diverting it to an isolated runway at an airport on the outskirts of London and arresting two passengers on suspicion of endangering the aircraft.... 5/24/2013 12:23 PM

Close allies urges Toronto mayor to talk
TORONTO (AP) -- Close allies of Toronto Mayor Rob's Ford said Friday they will release a letter that urges the mayor to address a purported video that apparently shows him smoking crack cocaine.... 5/24/2013 12:22 PM

World stocks lower after big sell-off
MOSCOW (AP) -- World stocks edged lower on Friday, a day after markets around the world dropped sharply on concerns global growth is slowing and the Federal Reserve could start scaling back its monetary stimulus.... 5/24/2013 12:13 PM

Chile blocks world's highest mine project
VALLENAR, Chile (AP) -- Chile's environmental regulator has stopped construction and imposed sanctions on Barrick Gold Corp.'s $8.5 billion Pascua-Lama project, citing "serious violations" of its environmental permit.... 5/24/2013 12:09 PM

Iran presidential candidate vows to resist West
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iran's top nuclear negotiator, a candidate in next month's presidential elections, says he will pursue a policy of resistance against the West if elected.... 5/24/2013 12:01 PM

Britain braces for possible copycat attacks
LONDON (AP) -- Britain is bracing for clashes with right-wing activists and possible copycat terror attacks by Islamic extremists after the savage slaying of a young soldier, whose grieving family spoke Friday of their loss.... 5/24/2013 12:01 PM

NKorean envoy delivers letter to China's president
BEIJING (AP) -- A top North Korean envoy delivered a letter from leader Kim Jong Un to Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday and told him Pyongyang would take steps to rejoin stalled nuclear disarmament talks, in an apparent victory for Beijing's efforts to coax its unruly ally into lowering tensions.... 5/24/2013 11:51 AM

China, Switzerland to seal free trade deal
GENEVA (AP) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is in Switzerland to seal a free trade pact with the Alpine nation - the first comprehensive agreement his country has reached with a major western economy.... 5/24/2013 11:48 AM

Nigeria military says it rescued hostages in north
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) -- Nigeria's military says it has rescued women and children taken hostage by Islamic extremists after an attack on a police barracks.... 5/24/2013 11:45 AM

Canada: Qatar gives up bid to relocate UN agency
TORONTO (AP) -- Canada's foreign minister said Friday that Qatar has abandoned its bid relocate the United Nations civil aviation agency from Montreal to the tiny emirate, ending a bitter fight between the two nations.... 5/24/2013 11:43 AM

French help Niger to kill last jihadist bombers
NIAMEY, Niger (AP) -- With the help of French special forces, Niger's military on Friday killed the last two jihadists holed up inside a dormitory on the grounds of a military garrison in the desert town of Agadez, and freed at least two soldiers who had been held hostage by the extremists, according to French and Nigerien officials.... 5/24/2013 11:36 AM

Aid group official says 4 wounded in Afghan attack
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- A spokesman for an international aid organization says that four of its staff were injured in an attack on a guest house it uses in the Afghan capital.... 5/24/2013 11:36 AM

Kenya's mental hospital drugs, confines patients
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- Patients at Kenya's only psychiatric hospital are often confined and immobilized using drugs that put them in a comatose-like state, factors that may have led to the recent escape of 40 male patients, an advocacy group said Friday.... 5/24/2013 11:29 AM

UN chief challenges African leaders over Congo
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday urged African leaders to implement a peace plan that the U.N. hopes will stabilize eastern Congo, a region long plagued by violence and which now is back on edge.... 5/24/2013 11:22 AM

Madrid's Catholic Church says it needs exorcists
MADRID (AP) -- The Catholic archdiocese in Madrid says it needs more exorcists to help some of its faithful cope with the devil.... 5/24/2013 11:20 AM