BEIRUT – Activists say Syrian rebels and government troops are clashing south of the capital as Internet and telephones lines remain cut for a second day nationwide.
Workers protest for compensation from Bangladesh factory where fire killed 112
DHAKA, Bangladesh – Hundreds of workers are protesting in front of a Bangladeshi factory where 112 people were killed by a fire, demanding compensation for their lost salaries.
Syria: Clashes in capital as Internet still cut
Activists say Syrian rebels and government troops are clashing south of the capital as Internet and telephones lines remain cut for a sec ond day nationwide. London mayor Johnson pitches city as ideal location for Bollywood films
MUMBAI, India – The mayor of London has announced that two Indian films will be shot in his city next year as part of a bid to bring Bollywood to the British capital.
Uganda's anti-gay bill won't contain death penalty
A lawmaker in Uganda says an anti-gay bill that will be voted on soon will not contain the death penalty.
S. Africa deputy president cagey on leading ANC
South Africa’s deputy president says he is “agonizing” over whether he would accept leading the governing African National Congress if he’s chosen during the party’s convention next month.
Anti-EU party beats ruling Conservatives in UK polls
LONDON (Reuters) – A British anti-EU party has polled more votes than the ruling Conservatives in two elections for parliamentary seats, in the latest sign that Prime Minister David Cameron’s party faces a threat from the right. The UK Independence Party, or UKIP, is enjoying a surge in popularity as some right-leaning voters become disillusioned with the ruling Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition against a backdrop of persistent economic problems. …
Anti-EU party beats ruling Conservatives in UK polls
LONDON (Reuters) – A British anti-EU party has polled more votes than the ruling Conservatives in two elections for parliamentary seats, in the latest sign that Prime Minister David Cameron’s party faces a threat from the right. The UK Independence Party, or UKIP, is enjoying a surge in popularity as some right-leaning voters become disillusioned with the ruling Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition against a backdrop of persistent economic problems. …
Chinese man sentenced to death in sex slave murder case
BEIJING (Reuters) – A Chinese court sentenced a man to death for holding six women as sex slaves in an underground prison and killing two of them, Xinhua news agency said on Friday. Li Hao, 35, was convicted of murder and rape in Luoyang Intermediate People’s Court in China’s central Henan province, Xinhua said. Media reported in 2011 that the former local government employee kidnapped six nightclub and karaoke bar workers and repeatedly raped them in a self-built dungeon. Two of the six were found dead when a 23-year-old woman escaped and led police to the basement. …
LONDON (Reuters) – Concerns about the deadlock in crucial U.S. budget talks capped gains in world equity markets on Friday, while falling yields on Spanish and Italian bonds kept the euro near a one-month high. Markets are on edge over the lack of progress by political leaders in Washi ngton as a failure to resolve their differences by year-end would trigger automatic spending cuts and tax rises that will tip the U.S. economy into recession. Many investors also expect that once the so called 'fiscal cliff' is resolved, the brighter economic outlook for China and the U.S. … 
BEIJING (Reuters) – The nephew of blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng unexpectedly went on trial on Friday for intentional infliction of injury in a case likely to refocus international attention on China's human rights and legal system. Chen Kegui has been held incommunicado by police for over six months and has been denied access to his choice of lawyers. His case is widely seen as illegitimate by Chen's family and human rights advocates. … 
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syrian rebels battled forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad just outside Damascus on Thursday, cutting access to its international airport, and Dubai-based Emirates a irline and EgyptAir stopped flights to the Syrian capital. The Internet and some telephone lines went down across Syria. Rebels and the government traded blame for the blackout, the worst communications outage in 20 months of conflict. Rebels fighting to topple Assad have been making gains around Syria by overrunning military bases and have been ramping up attacks on Damascus, his seat of power. … 
BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany's lower house of parliament will approve a fresh bailout for Greece on Friday in a vote seen as a test of Chancellor Angela Merkel's authority over he r centre-right coalition less than a year before federal elections. The outcome of Friday's vote in the Bundestag is not in doubt but unease over the costs of the euro zone debt crisis and over talk of another write-down of Greek debt means the number of coalition lawmakers voting against will be keenly watched. … 
PERTH (Reuters) – Australia's ove rhauled pace attack mauled South Africa with five wickets in the hour around the lunch break to leave the tourists floundering at 141 for seven at tea on the opening day of the third and final test of the series on Friday. Seamers Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Johnson and debutant John Hastings as well as all rounder Shane Watson all got amongst the wickets to leave South Africa perhaps ruing the decision to bat first on a bouncy WACA track. … 
The political party that ruled Mexico for seven straight decades is back, assuring Mexicans there's no chance of a return to what some called "the perfect dictatorship" that was marked by a mixture of populist handouts, rigged votes and occasional bloodshed. 
PARIS (Reuters) – European Central Bank President Mario Draghi sa id on Friday that budgetary consolidation in the euro zone would entail a short-term economic impact but the currency bloc was on track for a recovery in the second half of 2013. Draghi told Europe 1 radio that euro zone governments must push ahead with implementing a banking union which should apply to all banks to avoid fragmenting the sector. Governments must pursue structural reforms to reduce labor market rigidity, notably in France and Italy, he added. (Reporting By Nicholas Vinocur; Editing by Daniel Flynn) 
Gotye has taken home album of the year at Australia's Aria music awards for hi s internationally acclaimed "Making Mirrors." 
MACAU (Reuters) – Wan "Broken Tooth" Kuok-koi will emerge from jail this weekend into a very different Macau gambling haven than the one he bullied in the late-1990s. Under new leadership, chosen at a Chinese Communist Party Congress this month where corruption was a dominant theme, Beijing is sending strong signals to Macau authorities to tighten regulation and promote responsible gaming in the world's casino capital. It's a far cry from more than a decade ago when Wan and other triad gangsters ran amok during the final days of Portuguese rule of this southern Chinese outcrop. … 
The single line of Napoleon's secret code told Paris of his desperate, last order against the Russians: "At three o'clock in the morning, on the 22nd I am going to blow up the Kremlin."