US study says Christians one third of world population

A major US study released Monday put the total number of Christians worldwide at 2.18 billion -- almost a third -- of the estimated global population of 6.9 billion.Christians make up as big a proportion of the world's population as they did a century ago, but whereas two-thirds of them in 1910 were

Dec. 20, 2011

Syria mulls Arab observers

BEIRUT (AP) ― Armed clashes erupted in Syria, killing at least 15 civilians and six government troops, activists said. Isolated and faced with a possible civil war, Syria appeared to be bending toward allowing Arab League observers in as a step toward ending the conflict.The Al-Arabiya TV channel said it had information from the Qatari prime minister that Syrian President Bashar Assad will sign an observer deal but gave no further details. Last month Syria agreed to an Arab League plan but balke

Dec. 19, 2011

Yemen in danger of becoming next Somalia: U.N.

International body says Yemen crisis can effect nearly 4 million peopleDUBAI (AFP) ― U.N. agencies warned on Sunday that Yemen is on its way to becoming another Somalia, saying nearly four million people will be affected by the impoverished nation’s political and economic crisis in 2012.“About four million people will be affected by the crisis in Yemen in 2012 and will require immediate humanitarian support,” said the U.N. Inter-Agency Standing Committee.More than half will be “severely food ins

Dec. 19, 2011

Pakistani president returns amid pressure

KARACHI (AP) ― Pakistan’s president returned home early Monday, nearly two weeks after a surprise trip to Dubai for medical treatment sparked rumors that he might step down under pressure from the country’s powerful military.President Asif Ali Zardari’s arrival will likely help quell speculation about his future. But officials have not spelled out exactly what was wrong with the president, and he is still under threat from a memo scandal that has upset the army and already forced the Pakistani a

Dec. 19, 2011

Israel completes swap for captured soldier

BEITUNIA, West Bank (AP) ― Israel released hundreds of Palestinian prisoners late Sunday, the second and final phase of a swap with Gaza Hamas militants that brought home an Israeli soldier after five years in captivity.Under the Egypt-brokered deal, Israel agreed to exchange a total of 1,027 prisoners for Sgt. Gilad Schalit, who was captured by Gaza militants in June 2006. Schalit returned home in October when Israel freed the first batch of 477 prisoners. Sunday’s release of 550 prisoners comp

Dec. 19, 2011

Iran TV shows suspected US spy 'confessing'

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) _ Iran's state TV broadcast video of a young man Sunday it claimed was a CIA spy who sought to infiltrate Iran's secret services.The TV identified the man, apparently in his late 20s, as Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, an American-Iranian who received special training and served at U.S. mili

Dec. 19, 2011

Pope urges dignity in emotional visit to prison

ROME (AP) _ Pope Benedict XVI made an emotional visit Sunday to Rome's main prison, meeting with detainees, denouncing prison overcrowding and calling for greater dignity for inmates everywhere.Benedict spent over an hour at Rome's Rebibbia prison, fielding questions from a half-dozen inmates who sp

Dec. 19, 2011

Last troops exit Iraq in subdued end to 9-year war

AT THE IRAQ-KUWAIT BORDER (AP) _ Outside it was pitch dark. The six American soldiers couldn't see much of the desert landscape streaming by outside the small windows of their armored vehicle. They were hushed and exhausted from an all-night drive _ part of the last convoy of U.S. troops to leave Ir

Dec. 19, 2011

Yemen: 4 soldiers killed in clashes with militants

SANAA, Yemen (AP) _ Four Yemeni soldiers and two al-Qaida-linked militants were killed in clashes in the country's south, military and medical officials said Sunday.The fighting took place overnight outside the city of Zinjibar, the capital of Abyan province that Islamic militants seized earlier thi

Dec. 18, 2011

652 dead, 808 missing in Philippine floods

ILIGAN, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine Red Cross says the death toll from a storm that ravaged a wide swath of the south has risen to 652 with 808 others still missing.Red Cross Secretary-General Gwendolyn Pang said Sunday that flash floods set off by Tropical Storm Washi killed 346 people in Cagayan de Oro city and 206 in nearby Iligan city. Deaths were also reported in five other southern and central provinces.Pang said more people have reported missing relatives, including 447 in Iligan an

Dec. 18, 2011

Iran’s fortunes in post-U.S. Iraq clouded

CAIRO (AP) ― The U.S. military’s departure from Iraq opens the door to expanded Iranian influence in the Middle East, though that door could close fast if Iran’s closest Arab ally Bashar Assad falls from power in Syria.That’s among the uncertainties looming over the Middle East in the wake of President Barack Obama’s decision to remove all U.S. troops by the end of this month, fulfilling a campaign promise to end the unpopular war and abandoning efforts to negotiate an extension of the year-end

Dec. 18, 2011

China stresses 'wisdom' over 'fist' in diplomacy

   HONG KONG -- China stressed Sunday that it needs to grow in wisdom rather than using military power in its foreign policy as the country's global prowess escalates.   In the wake of Beijing's increasing influence, Washington has moved to reassert its presence in the Asia-

Dec. 18, 2011

Russian oil platform capsizes; 4 dead, 49 missing

MOSCOW (AP) — An oil drilling platform capsized Sunday in the Sea of Okhotsk off Russia's east coast, leaving four workers confirmed dead and 49 missing.The Emergencies Ministry said in a statement Sunday that there were 67 people aboard the platform as it was being towed about 200 kilometers

Dec. 18, 2011

Arab League mulls turning to U.N. over Syria

BEIRUT (AP) ― The Arab League has given Syria until Wednesday to allow observers into the country or else it will likely turn to the U.N. Security Council for action to try to end the deadly violence against regime opponents, Qatar’s prime minister said Saturday.Sheik Hamad Bin Jassem Bin Jabr Al Thani said in Qatar that Arab foreign ministers will hold a “decisive and important” meeting in Cairo on Wednesday to decide on next steps. He said there is near unanimity on taking the Arab League’s pl

Dec. 18, 2011