Police catch suspect in 75 drug cartel killings

MONTERREY, Mexico (AP) _ Police in northern Mexico have captured an alleged member of the Zetas drug gang who confessed to killing at least 75 people, including many who were pulled off buses, authorities said Monday.Enrique Elizondo Flores told investigators 36 of his victims were bus passengers tr

Jan. 31, 2012

Sudan tensions dominate African Union talks

ADDIS ABABA (AFP) ― The African Union’s new chairman faced tough challenges Sunday as U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon warned that a furious row between Sudan and South Sudan threatened regional security.Thomas Boni Yayi, the president of Benin, vowed to work for peace in his one-year tenure as the 54-member bloc’s rotating head, as sideline talks at the two-day summit tried to tackle several hotspots across the continent.Top of these were Sudan tensions. Ban said both Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir an

Jan. 30, 2012

Hamas leader visits Jordan

AMMAN (AP) ― A high-profile visit to Jordan by the leader of Hamas has revived contacts with the Palestinian militant group, but Jordan will not lift a ban on its activities there, a senior Jordanian official said Sunday.Khaled Mashaal’s visit was part of Jordan’s efforts to engage with previously shunned Islamists, who have been gaining ground across the region in Arab Spring uprisings.“It will only break the ice, following years of estrangement,” said the official, who was attending talks betw

Jan. 30, 2012

Sudan army frees 14 of ‘kidnapped’ Chinese

KHARTOUM (AFP) -- The Sudanese military has freed 14 Chinese workers “kidnapped” by rebels in the country’s South Kordofan state, the official SUNA news agency reported on Monday.“SAF troops succeeded in freeing 14 of the Chinese workers,” SUNA quoted state governor Ahmad Harun as saying.Harun said the Chinese were in good condition and had been taken to nearby El Obeid in neighboring North Kordofan.The fate of other Chinese reported captured with the group was not immediately clear.China confir

Jan. 30, 2012

Raul Castro defends Cuba’s party system

HAVANA (AP) ― President Raul Castro delivered a full-throated defense of Cuba’s one-party political system on Sunday, and a sharp warning to Communist Party delegates to fight corruption he said was a greater threat to the revolution than anything the United States could dream up.In a stern closing speech to the party’s national conference, Castro reiterated a pledge to institute term-limits for Cuban officials, saying a constitutional amendment would be required but that leaders should begin to

Jan. 30, 2012

Twisted ‘honor’ results in tragic family murder

KINGSTON, Ontario (AP) ― A jury on Sunday found an Afghan father, his wife and their son guilty of killing three teenage sisters and a co-wife in what the judge described as “cold-blooded, shameful murders” resulting from a “twisted concept of honor.”The jury took 15 hours to find Mohammad Shafia, 58; his wife Tooba Yahya, 42; and their son Hamed, 21, each guilty of four counts of first-degree murder in a case that shocked and riveted Canadians from coast to coast. First-degree murder carries an

Jan. 30, 2012

‘Occupy’ shows flicker of resurrection

OAKLAND, California (AP) ― For weeks the protests had waned, with only a smattering of people taking to Oakland’s streets for occasional weekend marches that bore little resemblance to the headline-grabbing Occupy demonstrations of last fall.Then came Saturday, which started peacefully enough ― a midday rally at City Hall and a march. But hours later, the scene near downtown Oakland had dramatically deteriorated: clashes punctuated by rock and bottle throwing by protesters and volleys of tear ga

Jan. 30, 2012

Officer shot, killed by fellow police in Calif.

SANTA MARIA, Calif. (AP) — A police officer under investigation for sexual misconduct with a teenage minor was shot and killed while on duty by fellow officers Saturday as they tried to arrest him on California's central coast, authorities said.The officer was manning a DUI checkpoint when the

Jan. 30, 2012

‘Beijing should punish Manila over U.S. offer’

BEIJING (AFP) ― China should impose “sanctions” against the Philippines after it offered to allow more U.S. troops on its soil, state media said Sunday, amid growing tensions over disputed waters in the South China Sea.Manila said Friday it planned to hold more joint exercises and to let more U.S. troops rotate through the Southeast Asian country ― an offer welcomed by the United States as it seeks to expand its military power in Asia.China has not yet officially responded to the announcement, w

Jan. 29, 2012

Tibetans live in fear as China cracks down on protests

CHENGDU, China (AFP) -- Sitting in a teahouse in Chengdu’s Tibetan quarter, a nervous young monk spoke of how police arrests of innocent people were adding to the climate of fear in China’s Tibetan-inhabited regions.The Lama temple where the monk lives is a 15-hour drive away, high up on the Tibetan plateau in the southwestern province of Sichuan where rights groups say police have fired on demonstrators three times in the past week, killing at least three and leaving dozens wounded.The 28-year-

Jan. 29, 2012

Early French exit a mistake: Afghans

KABUL (AP) ― France’s plans to withdraw its combat troops from Afghanistan a year early drew harsh words Saturday in the Afghan capital, with critics accusing French President Nicolas Sarkozy of putting domestic politics ahead of Afghans’ safety.A wider proposal by Sarkozy for NATO to hand over all security to Afghans by the end of next year also came under fire, with one Afghan lawmaker saying it would be “a big mistake” that would leave security forces unprepared to fight the Taliban insurgenc

Jan. 29, 2012

27 killed in fire at Peruvian rehab center

LIMA (AP) ― A fire swept through a two-story private rehabilitation center for addicts in a poor part of Peru’s capital Saturday, killing 27 people and critically injuring five as firefighters punched holes through walls to rescue residents locked inside.The “Christ is Love” center for drug and alcohol addicts was unlicensed and overcrowded and its residents were apparently kept inside “like prisoners,” Health Minister Alberto Tejada told the Associated Press.Authorities said 26 people died at t

Jan. 29, 2012

Cuba Communist Party holds key meeting

HAVANA (AP) ― Cuba’s Communist Party closed the first day of its national conference Saturday with declarations of support for the burgeoning private-sector class, tough talk on corruption and vows to be attentive to islanders’ complaints.But there were no concrete resolutions on President Raul Castro’s call for political term limits or word on leadership changes during the closed-door gathering, a two-day follow-up to last April’s historic party summit where delegates opened up long-shut doors

Jan. 29, 2012