AP - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama met Saturday with officials of a region of Afghanistan that has been a hotbed of Taliban and al-Qaida activity, offering his support for reconstruction and security there and throughout the country, an official said.
AFP - Pope Benedict XVI offered a historic full apology for child sex abuse by predatory priests Saturday, saying he was "deeply sorry" and calling for those guilty of the "evil" to be punished.
AP - Tropical storm Kalmaegi churned along the Chinese coast Saturday, after leaving 13 dead in heavily populated Taiwan and its president scrambling to explain the island's apparent lack of preparedness in the face of the devastation.
AP - Tropical Storm Fausto became a hurricane Friday far off Mexico's Pacific coast, while Bertha strengthened back into a hurricane in the open Atlantic.
AFP - A 21-year-old British man who could face a life sentence for child sex and pornography offences in his homeland has been caught in a Prague suburb where he hid for two years, Czech police said on Saturday.
AP - Former Colombian rebel captive John Freddy Diaz knows something that recently freed hostages may just be discovering: The pain of a kidnapping doesn't end with liberation.
AP - Brick by brick and one cinderblock at a time, the residents of this Euphrates River village about 45 miles southwest of Baghdad are rebuilding homes that the U.S. military says al-Qaida destroyed while they occupied the area in 2006.
AP - Beijing's Olympic shutdown begins Sunday, a drastic plan to lift the Chinese capital's gray shroud of pollution just three weeks ahead of the games.
AP - Pope Benedict XVI used some of the strongest language yet in his apology Saturday for the sexual abuse of children by Australia's Roman Catholic clergy, but his words were just more of the same for the victims.
AP - Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama arrived in Afghanistan on Saturday, the first stop on a campaign-season tour of war zones, a spokesman said.
AP - SYDNEY, Australia — Pope Benedict XVI told representatives of Islam and other faiths that they must unite to combat religion's role in "sinister and indiscriminate" violence.
AFP - China's Liang Wen-chong successfully made the halfway cut in his British Open debut on Friday and hoped it would provide the inspiration for others in China to follow in his footsteps.
AP - A South African judge who was the first black woman to serve on her country's highest court will be the next U.N. human rights commissioner, diplomatic and U.N. officials said Friday. -- read full article
