AP - The U.S. ambassador to Iraq said Saturday that al-Qaida's network in the country has never been closer to defeat, and he praised Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for his moves to rein in Shiite and Sunni militant groups.

AP - Colombia's Defense Ministry said Saturday it believes the legendary leader of Latin America's largest guerrilla army is dead and President Alvaro Uribe announced he is willing to offer rebels who free hostages "conditional liberty" and passage abroad.

AP - Forecasts of rain added to worries Sunday about relief efforts to house millions of people left homeless by China's massive earthquake nearly two weeks ago.

AP - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Sunday he was hopeful "a turning point" had been reached in Myanmar's cyclone crisis as an international conference convened to pledge funds for some 2.4 million survivors.

AFP - The Red Cross in South Africa said Saturday it was caring for 25,000 displaced people following nearly two weeks of anti-immigrant violence amid emerging evidence of a humanitarian crisis.

AP - Lawmakers loyal to anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr accused the Iraqi government of trying to crush the movement and warned Saturday of "black clouds" on the horizon for truces that have eased fighting between al-Sadr's militia and security forces.

AFP - Robert Karlsson of Sweden was in pole position at the BMW PGA Championships after overnight leader Paul McGinley's form dramatically deserted him on the third round on Saturday.

AP - Hezbollah fighters have pulled back since seizing parts of Lebanon's capital, but their brazen display has made one thing clear: A private army blamed for terrorist attacks on Western interests and dedicated to the destruction of Israel will be a fixture in this weakened country for a long time.

AP - The abused and orphaned children in Pastor Julius Bonani's church are the face of an AIDS epidemic that is killing nearly 1,000 South Africans a day and infecting even more.

AP - Opposition leader and presidential candidate Morgan Tsvangirai returned to his homeland Saturday, stopping first to visit hospitalized supporters who had been targeted in an onslaught of state-sponsored violence.

AP - Foreign aid agencies Saturday called on Myanmar's junta to urgently clarify the rules for operating in the country's cyclone-devastated areas, expressing hope tinged with skepticism after the regime promised to open its doors to the international community.

AP - China warned Saturday that the death toll from a massive earthquake two weeks ago could take a major leap and pass 80,000, suggesting the government may be giving up hope of finding more survivors.

AFP - Two divers survived more than 20 hours in shark-infested waters in Australia's Great Barrier Reef before being found, rescuers said Saturday.

AP - China's government says the confirmed death toll from this month's massive earthquake has risen to 60,560.