AP - Venezuela's Hugo Chavez and Colombia's Alvaro Uribe are attempting rapprochement after months of sniping that threatened billions of dollars in trade and unleashed a diplomatic crisis.

AP - Seeking a way out of their country's political crisis, Zimbabwean government and opposition officials met in South Africa, with the opposition pressing for an end to attacks on its supporters.

AP - A decade-long drought in Australia's most important crop-growing region is worsening and there is little hope for relief from either saving rains or a new government conservation plan, officials said Thursday.

AP - Negotiators from six nations began Thursday to hash out exactly how they will verify North Korea's declaration of its nuclear materials, the U.S. envoy said.

AFP - Kevin Pietersen marked his first Test innings against South Africa, the land of his birth, with a commanding 104 not out as England regained the initiative here at Lord's on Thursday.

AP - A news agency says police have caught a fugitive gunman wanted in connection with the attack on the U.S. consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

AFP - Ten teams will compete this December in the first race to the South Pole since pioneers Amundsen and Scott reached the geographic landmark, organisers said Thursday.

AP - A major case involving the abuse and torture of 10 Iraqi civilians at the hands of the British military was settled Thursday, with lawyers for the victims saying the Ministry of Defense agreed to pay them just under $6 million.

AP - Lu Jun, a campaigner for the rights of millions of Chinese with hepatitis B, seems an unlikely threat to the Beijing Olympics.

AP - It's been a year of drought and sand storms across Iraq — a dry spell that has devastated the country's crucial wheat crop and created new worries about the safety of drinking water.

AP - Condoleezza Rice flexed America's muscles in the Middle East Thursday, forcefully warning Iran the U.S. won't ignore threats and will take any action necessary to defend friends and interests in the Persian Gulf.

AP - Iran test-fired more long-range missiles overnight in a second round of exercises meant to show that the country can defend itself against any attack by the U.S. or Israel, state television reported Thursday.

AFP - An Indian doctor should never have been charged with terrorism-related offences in Australia because there was insufficient evidence, state police said in documents released Thursday.

AP - Japanese shares rose Thursday on bargain-hunting in the financial sector, but buying sentiment fizzled amid continued uncertainty over oil prices and lingering fears over a slump in the global economy.