AP - John McCain's stance on the war is unambiguous: He voted for it, supports the current enhanced U.S. troop presence in Iraq and vigorously opposes any timetable to withdraw.

AP - Zimbabwe's opposition leader briefly emerged from his refuge at the Dutch Embassy Wednesday and called for African leaders to guide talks to end Zimbabwe's crisis, saying a presidential runoff this week was no solution.

AP - An angry employee opened fire at a western Kentucky plastics plant after an argument early Wednesday, shooting a supervisor and four others before committing suicide, police and a company official said.

AP - The Supreme Court on Wednesday outlawed executions of people convicted of raping a child.

AP - The Federal Reserve, navigating treacherous economic waters, decided on Wednesday to leave a key interest rate unchanged, bringing an end to a string of consecutive rate cuts.

AFP - US President George W. Bush and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani will meet Wednesday for talks on efforts to forge a deal on a US military presence in the war-battered country after 2008, the White House said.

AFP - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe said he is open to negotiations after this week's runoff presidential election, state media reported Wednesday.

Reuters - A roadside bomb killed three U.S. soldiers and an interpreter in northern Iraq, the U.S. military said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Pakistan's Supreme Court postponed on Wednesday a by-election in a constituency where former prime minister Nawaz Sharif had hoped to stand, pending a ruling on a decision by a lower court to bar him from the poll.

Reuters - South Korea will allow the resumption of U.S. beef imports starting Thursday, the farm ministry said, implementing an unpopular deal that sparked street protests and caused a crisis for the government.

Reuters - U.S.-led coalition and Afghan forces killed up to 35 Taliban insurgents after the militants attacked two towns in eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan border overnight, a police chief said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert averted a split in Israel's restive coalition on Wednesday by striking a deal with his biggest partner, the Labour party, that stopped it backing a bill to dissolve parliament.

Reuters - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev played down differences with his predecessor Vladimir Putin in an interview with Reuters but the contrast in style and tone between the two men was striking.

Reuters - The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday is expected to hold interest rates steady and indicate slightly greater unease on inflation, while stopping well short of signaling higher borrowing costs are imminent.