Eric Linton

Kyrgyzstan's Russian-backed prime minister was poised to become president of the strategically important former Soviet republic Monday, with nearly all votes counted in an election set to be disputed by disgruntled rival candidates.

European shares extended the previous session's rally Friday, with investors still buoyant over a deal struck by euro zone leaders early Thursday to help end the bloc's two-year-old debt crisis.

The head of Europe's bailout fund said Friday he does not expect to reach a conclusive deal with Chinese leaders during a visit to Beijing but expects the surplus-rich country to continue buying bonds issued by the fund.

Traffic clogged roads out of Bangkok Friday as tens of thousands of people fled ahead of a high tide expected to worsen floods that have inundated factories and prompted foreign governments to warn their citizens to stay away.

Asian stocks headed for their best week in nearly three years after a long-awaited plan to resolve the European debt crisis sparked a huge relief rally in riskier assets, while the euro took a breather after jumping to a seven-week high.

Spot gold held steady Friday, on course for its biggest weekly rise in 33 months, after the euro zone's last-minute deal on containing the debt crisis cheered investors, but a rebound in the dollar may weigh on prices.

An Iraq War veteran badly wounded in clashes between protesters and police on the streets of Oakland was awake and lucid, hospital officials and family members said Thursday.

The Islamist Ennahda party was officially declared the winner of Tunisia's election Thursday, setting it up to form the first Islamist-led government in the wake of the Arab Spring uprisings.

Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has appointed Interior Minister Prince Nayef as the new crown prince, the royal court said in a statement issued Friday, signaling an orderly process of future succession in the world's largest oil exporter.

A U.S. drone strike Thursday killed five commanders of a powerful Pakistani Taliban faction that attacks Western forces in Afghanistan, one of the group's leaders told Reuters.

The dark shadow of German-driven austerity measures squeezing Greece has revived historical enmities and evoked comparisons to the massive destruction of the Mediterranean country at the hands of Nazi Germany nearly 70 years ago.

Asian shares declined Wednesday ahead of a key meeting of European policymakers later in the session, as investors feared the effort to contain Europe's sovereign debt crisis could fall short.

Two trusted loyalists of Libya's interim government were handed Muammar Gadhafi's body to bury secretly deep in the Sahara desert on Tuesday after a cleric prayed over his decomposing corpse, an official said.

European shares steadied Tuesday as earnings news offset fresh political uncertainty a day ahead of the euro zone leaders' meeting that many hope will take a big step toward solving the region's two-year-old debt crisis.

Moammar Gadhafi and his son Mo'tassim were buried at dawn Tuesday in an unknown location, ending a wrangle over their rotting bodies, a Libyab official said.

Ousted Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi will be buried Tuesday in a secret desert grave, a National Transitional Council official said Monday night, ending a wrangle over his rotting corpse that led many to fear for Libya's governability.

Moderate Islamists claimed victory Monday in Tunisia's first democratic election, sending a message to other states in the region that long-sidelined Muslim parties are challenging for power after the Arab Spring.

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation is probing the massive advisory fee paid by Japan's Olympus Corp. in its takeover of a British company, a media report said, as the firm's shares continued to slide over the scandal.

Argentina's center-leftist president, Cristina Fernandez, won a landslide re-election victory Sunday as voters credited her unconventional policies for a long economic boom.

President Barack Obama this week will announce a series of actions to help the economy that will not require congressional approval, including an initiative to make it easier for homeowners to refinance their mortgages, a White House official said.

A grenade attack on a bar in the center of Nairobi early Monday wounded 12 people, Kenyan police said, an incident that comes as Nairobi battles al-Qaida-linked militants in neighboring Somalia.

Argentina's fiery center-leftist president, Cristina Fernandez, swept to a landslide re-election victory Sunday, crowning a comeback that seemed unthinkable for much of her turbulent first term.

Stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street Thursday after a guidelines document said the European rescue fund will be able to buy bonds on the secondary market.

Greek unions began a 48-hour general strike Wednesday, the biggest protest in years, as Parliament prepared to vote on sweeping new austerity measures designed to stave off a default that could trigger a crisis in the wider Eurozone.

Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was released to a national outpouring of joy Tuesday after five years in captivity, exchanged for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in a deal with Gaza's Hamas rulers.

European shares fell for a second straight day on Tuesday, with investors cutting their exposure to riskier assets after Moody's warned on France's rating outlook and Chinese data showed growth in the world's second biggest economy slowed.

A long-awaited prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas began before dawn Tuesday when the first of hundreds of Palestinian inmates were bused from their jails to border crossings where they will be swapped for captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

Kenya deployed columns of troops into neighbouring Somalia and launched an offensive against al-Shabaab militants on Sunday, helping to drive the al-Qaida-linked militants out of two bases.

Iran demanded consular access Sunday to a man held in the United States over a suspected plot to kill the Saudi ambassador and vowed to respond robustly to any inappropriate measure by the West.