IBT Staff Reporter

Briton Peter Moore, taken hostage in Baghdad in 2007, has been released alive, the Iraqi and British governments said on Wednesday.

North Korea has been taking equipment left at a nuclear reactor site that was mothballed when an international consortium halted work on grounds the communist state was breaking an agreement, a news report said on Wednesday.

Twin suicide bombs killed at least 24 and wounded more than 100 in Iraq's Sunni Arab heartland on Wednesday and a roadside bomb killed seven pilgrims returning from a major Shi'ite Muslim religious festival.

Perhaps it's not surprising, but for members of the U.S. armed forces, combat duty in Iraq and Afghanistan increases the risk of depression, according to a new study.

A voluntary recall of Tylenol Arthritis Pain Caplets is being expanded because of consumer reports of an unusual moldy odor with the 100-count bottles, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said late on Monday.

Tens of thousands of government supporters rallied in cities across Iran on Wednesday swearing allegiance to the clerical establishment and accusing opposition leaders of causing unrest in the Islamic state.

Taking a cholesterol-lowering statin will lower your cholesterol but it won't cut your risk of developing colorectal cancer, according to study of more than 400,000 Canadians.

Stocks were little changed on Wednesday, as a stronger U.S. dollar outweighed data showing business activity in the U.S. Midwest expanded more than expected in December.

The Food and Drug Administration's approval of cardiovascular devices is often based on weak studies or may be prone to bias, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

The United States has pledged $16 billion (10 billion pounds) to spend on training and equipping Afghanistan's army and air force, but the country needs more to build a force that can guarantee stability, an Afghan army official said on Wednesday.

A Zanzibari man crouches in a half-built roofless building, struggling to find a vein in his arm, while his friend takes over and injects the heroin for him, drawing blood back into the syringe.

Smoking and other types of tobacco use may increase the pain of temporomandibular joint disorders, a new study suggests.

Avoiding fast food burgers and fried chicken may cut your risk of developing type 2 diabetes -- the kind closely linked to obesity, new research hints.

Luxury car dealer H.R.Owen said it expected to return to profitability in 2010 and predicted better trading conditions, lifting its shares more than 6 percent on Wednesday.

General Motors has extended a December 31 deadline for bids for its Swedish car brand Saab, which will restart some production lines in January after a shutdown, Saab said on Wednesday.

Britain's Takeover Panel granted confectionery maker Cadbury three extra days to publish 2009 results that could become a key plank in its defense against Kraft Food's hostile 10 billion pound ($15.9 billion) bid.

Japan Airlines Corp stock tumbled as much as 32 percent to a record low on Wednesday on growing expectations the struggling carrier was headed for bankruptcy under a state restructuring plan.

(Corrects bid currency in first paragraph to pounds from dollars. Adds dollar conversion)

General Motors has extended a December 31 deadline for bids for its Swedish car brand Saab, which will restart some production lines in January after a shutdown, Saab said on Wednesday.

Israeli drugmaker Compugen Ltd said it raised net proceeds of about $19 million through a share sale at an average price of $4.91 a share, sending its shares up 5 percent in pre-market trade.

French ministers scrambled on Wednesday to rescue a carbon tax aimed at cutting energy consumption, which was annulled by the Constitutional Court just 48 hours before it was due to come into force.

Wall Street was poised for a lower open on Wednesday, taking a cue from a decline in global markets, as investors found little reason to propel stocks higher as the market's solid year draws to a close.

A storm of Republican protest is erupting over the Environmental Protection Agency's finding that greenhouse gases pose a public danger, with the latest wave coming from a state among those most at risk from the effects of climate change.

South Korea will launch a pilot carbon emissions trading scheme from January after the environment ministry received applications from 641 public and private organizations, the ministry said on Wednesday.

Nokia's latest patent strike against Apple underscores the changing dynamics of the cell phone market, with the sector leader no longer holding the whip hand over rivals in terms of product development.

International air passenger and freight demand rose in November, a clear sign of global economic recovery, although the improvement was accentuated by the sharp fall in traffic at the end of 2008.

Wall Street's efforts to quell public outrage over its pay practices could in fact be setting up its top executives, bankers, and traders for even bigger payouts down the road, which in turn could reignite the outcry.

International air passenger and freight demand rose in November, a clear sign of global economic recovery, although the improvement was accentuated by the sharp fall in traffic at the end of 2008.

Stock index futures fell on Wednesday, taking a cue from a decline in global markets, as investors found little reason to propel stocks higher as the market's solid year draws to a close.