AP - Soldiers scrambled to shore up soggy levies with sandbags Tuesday in southern China as forecasters warned that more heavy rain in the central region could trigger flooding on the country's second-longest river. The death toll rose to 171, state-run media said.

AP - A serial killer who mutilated the bodies of four young girls and reportedly drank the blood of one of his victims was among three convicted murderers executed in Japan on Tuesday for crimes an official called indescribably cruel.

AP - ARGHANDAB, Afghanistan — Taliban militants destroyed bridges and planted mines in several villages they control outside southern Afghanistan's largest city in apparent preparation for battle, residents and officials said Tuesday.

AP - Security agents hoping to prevent displays of defiance jogged alongside Olympic torchbearers Tuesday as the flame began its journey through China's restive West, drawing cheers from carefully controlled crowds.

Reuters - A bomb exploded in a Shi'ite Muslim mosque in Pakistan's northwestern city of Dera Ismail Khan on Monday, killing four people and wounding two, police said.

AFP - At least 40 people drowned and around 100 are missing after a boat carrying illegal immigrants from Libya to Italy capsized, an Egyptian security official said on Monday.

AFP - No action will be taken against Real Madrid following Manchester United's lodging of an official complaint over Real's pursuit of star player Cristiano Ronaldo, FIFA said on Monday.

AP - Farmer Zaw Naing was puzzled as he stared at the brand new, unassembled tilling machine — equipment not seen in most of Myanmar's rice belt before the deadly cyclone.

AP - Followers of Muqtada al-Sadr won't resist a military operation in the southern city of Amarah unless government forces commit human rights violations and arrest suspects without warrants, a senior official and member of the cleric's movement said Monday.

AP - Hundreds of Taliban fighters took over several villages in southern Afghanistan on Monday just outside the region's largest city, and NATO and Afghan forces were redeploying to meet the threat, officials said.

AP - European Union nations agreed Monday on the need for a new round of sanctions to discourage Iran from developing nuclear weapons, targeting the country's oil and gas sectors in what would be the strongest punishment yet.

AP - Signs are emerging that Iraq has reached a turning point. Violence is down, armed extremists are in disarray, government confidence is rising and sectarian communities are gearing up for a battle at the polls rather than slaughter in the streets.