Italy's constitutional court ruled on Thursday that a law which has protected Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from prosecution for corruption and tax fraud was invalid in key points and judges could order him to stand trial.
China dumped plans to import several million tonnes of expensive corn and South Korea unveiled cuts in import tariffs on some products, underscoring the dilemma over how to tackle rising food prices.
Rescue workers dug desperately for survivors on Thursday and struggled to reach areas cut off by raging floods and landslides that have killed at least 388 people in one of Brazil's worst natural disasters in decades.
The United Nations' human rights chief raised the alarm on Thursday over a suspected third mass grave in Ivory Coast, as tensions remained high in the main city Abidjan after deadly clashes between rival camps.
Lebanese leaders agreed on Thursday to start talks next week on rebuilding a government after Hezbollah walked out of Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri's coalition, testing political faultlines across the Middle East.
South Sudan's independence vote cleared two major hurdles on Wednesday after former U.S. president Jimmy Carter gave the poll his endorsement and organisers said huge turnouts meant the result would be binding.
At least five people suffered gunshot wounds in clashes with police in the centre of Tunisia's capital on Wednesday in a sharp escalation of the worst unrest in decades.
Floods left parts of Australia's third-biggest city on Thursday looking like a war zone in need of years of reconstruction, the state premier said, while fresh threats loomed with a cyclone forecast offshore.
Sarah Palin will probably never become President of the U.S. because she does not have an Ivy League education.
Ethiopia has penalised retailers and suppliers in the capital who raised the prices of consumer goods such as bread by amounts higher than caps set in January, authorities said on Thursday.
Oil prices at $100 a barrel would not harm the world economy and there is no need for OPEC to hold an emergency meeting or add supplies, Libya's top oil official said on Thursday.
Three Bulgarian helicopter crew members contracted to the U.N. World Food Programme were kidnapped in Darfur on Thursday, officials said, the latest in a wave of abductions hindering aid in Sudan's war-torn region.
The United Nations' human rights chief raised the alarm on Thursday over a suspected third mass grave in Ivory Coast, as tensions remained high in the main city Abidjan after deadly clashes between rival camps.
Clashes between political gangs rather than attacks on oil facilities are the greatest threat to Nigeria's Niger Delta ahead of April elections and the long-term security of its oil output depends on much more than who wins.
More than 375 people have been killed in Floods and landslides in the in the mountainous area near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Heavy monsoons and resultant floods have affected nearly 1-million people in the north central and eastern provinces of the island nation and have killed at least two dozen people. It is believed that more than 300,000 people have been displaced from their homes.
Hospitals serving low-income patients favor keeping the health care reform law passed last year which insures millions of additional patients, according to an industry group.
Moody’s Investors Service warns that the U.S., U.K., Germany and France need to clamp down on health care and pension expenditures in order to stabilize their debt structure over the long term.
India has now exempted foreign tourists from the mandatory two-month gap to re-enter the country for regular onward medical treatment.
In a development that may underscore a growing resentment of Asian business acumen on the African continent, authorities in Tanzania recently ordered foreign traders doing business in a key market in the capital city of Dar es Salaam to close up shop and depart the country within thirty days or risk arrest and prosecution.
The number of people claiming unemployment benefits continued to rise for the second week, according to a report by the U.S. Labor Department.
Queensland premier Anna Bligh on Thursday said the reconstruction of Queensland following the devastation of raging flood waters meant a huge task of post war proportions.
Industrial production continues to remain below expectations in the U.K., hurt by weakness in the oil and gas extraction sector.
Sarah Palin, Republican known for fiery statements, has landed in another controversy for using blood libel while defending herself against allegations on the Tuscon shooting. The row has shed light on the increasingly caustic political rhetoric.
Amid reports of looting in Brisbane and Ipswitch due to heavy floods, Police Minister Neil Roberts and Commissioner Bob Atkinson have announced Operation Safeguard to deploy 100 policemen from Brisbane and another 100-member squad drawn from interstate police services on Thursday.
To give thanks to a powerful god for blessing him with a longed-for daughter, Sharma Muthu will skewer his tongue with a spear for Malaysia's largest Hindu festival.
Tata Steel, the world's No. 7 steelmaker, has received government approval to raise 11 billion rupees through issue of warrants to overseas investors, the Press Information bureau said in a statement on Thursday.
Floods and landslides devastated several mountain towns near Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday, killing at least 257 people as torrents of water and mud swept through the region, burying many families as they slept.
After Chinese President Hu Jintao and Barack Obama show the world smiles and handshakes next week, the wait will begin for the next of the feuds that have regularly sapped trust between the two powers.
Flood water in Australia's third-biggest city peaked below feared catastrophic levels on Thursday but Brisbane and other devastated regions faced years of rebuilding as a fresh flood threat loomed with a cyclonic storm building off the coast.
