AP - The party of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi denounced the extension of her house arrest and said Wednesday it would launch an appeal, while foreign donors said aid for cyclone victims in the military-ruled nation will continue.

AP - Rebuilding China's devastated earthquake zone will be a long and arduous process, the government warned Wednesday in a signal to millions of survivors living in tents that there will be no quick return to normalcy from their upturned lives.

AP - Nepal's lawmakers abolished the monarchy and declared the country a republic Wednesday, ending 239 years of royal rule in the Himalayan nation.

AP - Israel's powerful defense minister on Wednesday called on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to step down amid a burgeoning corruption scandal and threatened to bring down the government if the Israeli leader does not comply.

AFP - Pope Benedict XVI will meet Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu leaders during his visit to Australia in July, organisers said Wednesday.

AP - The leader of Taiwan's new ruling party met Chinese President Hu Jintao on Wednesday in a symbolic closing of the ranks between the rivals.

AFP - Sudan's President Omar al-Beshir on Wednesday demanded international action against Chad as tensions between the two countries flared over the Darfur crisis.

AP - A prominent Sunni politician says the largest Sunni bloc in Iraq's parliament has suspended talks with the Shiite-led government to end its boycott and rejoin the Cabinet.

AFP - A verdict was expected Wednesday in the trial of a French serial killer for the rape and murder of seven girls and young women, and his wife, accused of helping lure his victims.

AP - YANGON, Myanmar — Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi began a sixth year under detention Wednesday as foreign donors said aid would continue to flow into the military ruled nation to save cyclone victims.

AP - Nearly 160,000 people have been evacuated downstream from an unstable earthquake-created dam that is threatening to collapse, and troops rushed to carve a trench to drain the water before it floods the valley.

AP - The Canadian foreign minister who resigned this week for a security breach had left classified documents about a NATO summit at the home of his ex-girlfriend, the government said Tuesday.