British computer expert Peter Moore, held captive in Iraq for 2-1/2 years until his release in December, has said he was tortured and subjected to mock executions by a well-trained kidnap gang.
China-friendly Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou faces a new test of public confidence ahead of tense year-end elections after the sudden resignation of his justice minister and the health minister's threat to quit.
India signaled on Friday it was open to a new round of talks with Pakistan, raising fresh hopes of a thaw in relations after last month's official dialogue between the nuclear-armed rivals produced no breakthrough.
Around 20 people died and thousands were evacuated in Kazakhstan on Friday after severe floods destroyed two dams in the south of the Central Asian state, the emergencies ministry said.
An upcoming U.S.-led military campaign to regain control of the Taliban heartland of Kandahar will be a decisive phase in the Afghan war, Defense Secretary Robert Gates told frontline troops this week.
Corporal Jacob Turbett gave out a single groan of pain before the Taliban bullet, which had pierced his heart, ended his life.
As U.S. prospects for a national climate change bill fade, five U.S. states and Canadian provinces are on track to start a cap-and-trade market for carbon dioxide in 2012, say officials who see fading federal momentum boosting regional efforts.
President Barack Obama plans to nominate San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Janet Yellen, a respected policy dove, to be vice chairman of the central bank, a source familiar with the process said on Thursday.
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki had a modest lead over rival Shi'ites, partial results from Iraq's tight election race showed on Friday, but a secularist challenger remained far ahead among Iraqi Sunnis.
The United States should not make a political issue out of the yuan, a Chinese central banker said on Friday, as the two countries lurched toward a potential bust-up over Beijing's currency regime.
The wife and daughter of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid were injured on Thursday when their vehicle was rear-ended by a truck on a highway, the senator's office said.
The Swedish parliament approved a resolution to recognize the 1915 mass killings of Armenians during the Ottoman empire as genocide.
The House voted nearly unanimously on Thursday to send its ethics panel a Republican measure to investigate what House Democratic Party leaders and their staffs knew about allegations against former Rep. Eric Massa.
As the ground shook and buildings swayed, conservative billionaire Sebastian Pinera took office as Chile's president on Thursday, tasked with rebuilding after a massive earthquake killed hundreds just 12 days ago.
An overwhelming majority of Americans wants Wall Street subjected to tougher regulation in the aftermath of the bank bailout and the bonus scandals that have rocked the U.S. financial sector, according to a Harris poll released on Thursday.
China's insatiable demand for energy to power its economy has made it a serious contender in the fight for control over vast energy resources in its thinly populated and impoverished western backyard.
Pakistan's unprecedented crackdown on its homegrown Taliban may have weakened the militants but the insurgency is still a threat to the unpopular U.S.-backed government.
If Greece's debt crisis is giving the European Union a headache, it is minor compared to the pain it will suffer if a large member state such as Spain sinks into similar trouble.
Police clashed with stone-throwing youths in Athens on Thursday as tens of thousands protested draconian cutbacks aimed at pulling Greece out of a debt crisis shaking the euro zone.
Big business is now free to blitz the airwaves to attack politicians who support action against climate change, which could smother messages from environmentalists.
With Governor David Paterson enveloped in scandal, New York's lieutenant governoris leading the notoriously difficult budget process and freeing up his boss to fight for his political life, experts say.
Democrats in the House of Representatives moved on Wednesday to limit the ability of lawmakers to tuck pet projects into spending bills amid mounting election-year ethics concerns.
President Barack Obama, anxious to spur growth and tackle unemployment, will name two top executives from Boeing and Xerox on Thursday to spearhead his drive to boost U.S. exports.
President Barack Obama declared on Wednesday the time for talk is over and urged the U.S. Congress to vote on healthcare.
JP Morgan's private bank has embarked on an international expansion in a bid to reduce its focus on the United States, expand its Europe footprint and join the battle to tap the ultra-wealthy in emerging markets.
In a tunnel deep beneath Shenyang's busy streets, Lu Ze flicked a switch and a lone light bulb revealed a cluttered concrete floor.
Chinese consumer inflation spurted to a 16-month high in February and a raft of economic data displayed broad-based strength, providing fresh arguments for policy tightening sooner rather than later.
The world has a new richest man after Bill Gates had safely secured that seat for three consecutive years.
President Barack Obama on Tuesday said the challenge in Haiti today is to prevent a second disaster as more than a million people in the earthquake-hit nation remain homeless ahead of the rainy season.
Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius ratcheted up the pressure on health insurance companies on Wednesday, urging them to forgo short-term profits to make coverage more affordable and to stop fighting the Obama administration's reform effort.
