Jack Kim

Republicans and Democrats rushed to rework rival deficit reduction plans on Wednesday, but with the fate of both proposals heavily in doubt top lawmakers pursued a behind-the-scenes compromise to avert a crippling U.S. default.

A suicide bomber killed the mayor of Afghanistan's Kandahar Wednesday, a further blow to stability in the southern city still reeling from the assassination two weeks ago of President Hamid Karzai's powerbroker half-brother.

Norway's prime minister on Wednesday promised a security review after a mourning period for at least 76 people killed by a far-right extremist in bombing and shooting attacks that have traumatised the nation.

An international rights group on Wednesday called on Uganda to stop prosecuting civilians in military courts and to immediately release 341 people under army detention.

Libya's rebel leader said on Wednesday that his council had offered to allow Muammar Gaddafi to stay in the country provided he step down first, but that this offer had now expired.

McDonald's Corp said on Tuesday it will soon tweak its children's Happy Meals, reducing the french fry portion by more than half and automatically adding apples to the popular meals, after coming under pressure from consumer groups to provide healthier fare.

Efforts to find a deal to end the civil war in Libya intensified on Tuesday, with a U.N. special envoy heading for Tripoli and Western powers signalling that Muammar Gaddafi could stay in the country if he gives up power.

President Barack Obama's Democrats and their Republican rivals on Tuesday headed for a showdown over competing debt plans one week before a deadline for averting a potentially disastrous U.S. default.

China's rail minister, facing public outrage over Saturday's deadly train crash, has ordered a two-month safety review of railway operations and apologised for the accident which killed 39 people, state media reported on Tuesday.

The lawyer of a Norwegian who killed at least 76 people in a bombing and a shooting spree said on Tuesday his client appeared to be a madman.

The number of Kenyans who will need food aid due to drought will rise to 3.5 million by September, the United Nations said on Tuesday, while European officials warned such crises would flare up again unless more money was directed at prevention efforts.

The Ugandan High Court has ordered the police to produce a journalist who has been held in an unknown location for 13 days, after a local media watchdog sued security chiefs over his disappearance.

Efforts to find a deal to end the civil war in Libya intensified on Tuesday, with a U.N. special envoy heading for Tripoli and Western powers signalling that Muammar Gaddafi could stay in the country if he gives up power.

U.S. President Barack Obama declared solidarity between the United States and economically struggling Ireland with a symbolic gulp of beer and a rousing speech, telling a huge Dublin crowd on Monday: Your best days are still ahead.

Japan's unpopular Prime Minister Naoto Kan on Monday refused to step down after the resignation of his foreign minister over a political funding scandal that has added to pressure on him to quit or call a snap election.

North Korea has proposed Red Cross talks to try to resolve a row over the fate of 31 of its nationals in South Korea, four of whom have said they want to defect, officials in the South said on Monday.

Hong Kong police arrested 113 protesters after an anti-budget demonstration late on Sunday, as the government came under increasing pressure from activists who criticised authorities for not doing enough to help the poor.

Chinese police had nothing to do with the beating of foreign reporters covering a possible protest last month, the foreign minister said on Monday, as security forces intensified their monitoring of journalists.

Men in plain clothes armed with swords and petrol bombs attacked protesters in Cairo on Sunday night during a demonstration demanding reform of security services with a reputation for brutality, witnesses said.

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Afghanistan on Monday at a time of increased strain between Kabul and its Western backers and with important security transition milestones looming.

Bahrain's crown prince warned all sides against escalating a standoff with disgruntled majority Shi'ites seeking an elected government in the Gulf Arab kingdom, asking for patience ahead of a national dialogue.

South Africa's Sasol on Monday posted a 22 percent rise in first-half profit, boosted by cost cuts and higher oil and product prices, and said it expects better full-year operational performance.

Standard Chartered Bank Kenya joined other banks that experienced high growth in 2010 by posting a 14 percent rise in 2010 pretax profit on increases in income and customer deposits on Monday.

The Kenyan shilling was steady against the dollar on Monday, and traders said it was likely to weaken due to demand for dollars from oil importers.

British miner Cluff Gold Plc has suspended operations at its Angovia mine in Ivory Coast due to shortages of fuel, explosives, cement and cyanide and will not reopen it until political stability returns.

China granted initial environmental approval to an $8.8 billion project by South African petrochemical firm Sasol and China's top coal producer Shenhua Group to turn coal into fuels.

Rebels in eastern Libya have captured members of a British special forces team but the issue will be resolved shortly, rebel sources said on Sunday.

Ivory Coast rebels said they captured the western town of Toulepleu from forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo on Sunday, but Gbagbo's military said fighting continued.

Men in plain clothes armed with swords and petrol bombs attacked protesters in Cairo on Sunday night during a demonstration demanding reform of security services with a reputation for brutality, witnesses said.