Reuters - VIENNA (Reuters) - Forty-five countries mulling dropping a ban on nuclear trade with India welcomed an Indian pledge on Friday to uphold non-proliferation standards but some felt it did not go far enough, diplomats said.

Reuters - MOMBASA, Kenya (Reuters) - Maasai warrior Lempuris Lalasho went to Kenya's tourist haven Mombasa to find a white woman to marry, but he ended up working as a hairdresser, a profession that is taboo in his culture.

Reuters - KHARTOUM/JUBA (Reuters) - In a dusty church in Khartoum's Jeberona camp for displaced persons, the congregation claps and sings beneath a portrait of a smiling woman who has become a focus of hope for a divided country.

AFP - NEW DELHI (AFP) - An Indian court on Friday jailed the well-connected son of a rich arms dealer for five years for killing six people in a hit-and-run car accident nearly a decade ago, lawyers said.

AFP - TOKYO (AFP) - The United Nations on Friday launched a bid to designate Iraq's famed marshlands, which were ravaged by Saddam Hussein, a World Heritage site after a four-year restoration project.

AFP - LISBON (AFP) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Friday hailed the West's reconciliation with Libya ahead of a landmark meeting with its leader Moamer Kadhafi but also highlighted the "suffering" caused by the prolonged standoff.

AFP - LISBON (AFP) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Friday hailed the West's reconciliation with Libya ahead of a landmark meeting with its leader Moamer Kadhafi but also highlighted the "suffering" caused by the prolonged standoff.

AFP - TOKYO (AFP) - Beijing Olympic marathon champion Samuel Wanjiru of Kenya vowed here Friday to go for a world record in the Berlin Marathon next year and retain his title at the 2012 London Games.

Reuters - ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's new president, almost certain to be the widower of Benazir Bhutto, will have to contend with a host of critical problems including militant violence and an economy in crisis.

AFP - PATNA, India (AFP) - Rescue workers in flood-hit northern India have brought over 800,000 people to safety, but tens of thousands more are still believed to be trapped, officials said Friday.

AFP - BEIJING (AFP) - China dispatched large numbers of soldiers and armed riot police to quell two major protests, officials and a rights group said Friday, in the latest public discontent to rock the communist nation.

AFP - LUANDA (AFP) - Angola is staging its first peacetime election but European Union observers said Friday that the organisation of the poll in Africa's new oil boom nation is a "disaster".

AFP - ST PAUL, Minnesota (AFP) - John McCain vowed to fight for America as long as he draws breath, in a patriotic pledge to bring political change as he accepted the Republican presidential nomination.

AFP - NEW DELHI (AFP) - India on Friday asserted its credentials as a "responsible" nuclear weapons state in last-minute lobbying for international backing for its atomic energy deal with the United States.

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - The mother of schoolgirl Shannon Matthews, who went missing for 24 days earlier this year until she was found safe and sound, pleaded not guilty to kidnapping charges on Friday.

AFP - MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (AFP) - Three children and two women were killed when missiles fired by a suspected unmanned US aircraft hit a Pakistani tribal village Friday in the third such attack in as many days, officials said.

Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi -- once reviled as a "mad dog" by a U.S. president -- on Friday on a historic visit which she said proved that Washington had no permanent enemies.

Reuters - SRINAGAR, India (Reuters) - Thousands of Muslims staged sit-in protests in parts of Indian Kashmir on Friday, resuming demonstrations against New Delhi's rule in the disputed Himalayan region after a three-day break, witnesses said.

Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi -- once reviled as a "mad dog" by a U.S. president -- on Friday on a historic visit which she said proved that Washington had no permanent enemies.

Reuters - LISBON (Reuters) - Condoleezza Rice hailed as "historic" her trip to Libya later on Friday, the first by a U.S. secretary of state to the former pariah nation in 55 years and a visit aimed at erasing decades of enmity.

Reuters - HERAT, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A U.S.-led coalition air strike killed a woman and child and eight Taliban fighters in western Afghanistan on Friday, a top Afghan army official said.

Reuters - ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Asif Ali Zardari, the widower of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto, was poised on Saturday to win an election to become president.

AFP - TOKYO (AFP) - Flamboyant front-runner Taro Aso formally announced his bid to become Japan's next prime minister on Friday as younger rivals called for generational change in the ailing ruling party.

AFP - MIAMI (AFP) - Tropical Storm Hanna closed in on the US east coast Friday on the verge of hurricane strength after leaving 136 dead in Haiti, as powerful Hurricane Ike threatened Caribbean islands and the United States.

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - London shares were falling Friday on a weak outlook for the global economy following further disappointing US and European data.

AFP - OSLO (AFP) - Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus may launch legal proceedings against Telenor to force the Norwegian telecom operator to honor a deal concerning their joint subsidiary in Bangladesh, GrameenPhone, he said.

AFP - TRIPOLI (AFP) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi on a landmark visit to Tripoli Friday, heralding a new chapter in Washington's reconciliation with the former enemy state.

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - A 17-year-old girl was killed as floods struck Britain on Friday, forcing evacuations from homes as severe weather warnings were issued.

AFP - TEHRAN (AFP) - Iran on Friday dismissed as baseless remarks by French President Nicolas Sarkozy that Tehran was pursuing its controversial nuclear programme for military purposes.

AFP - LAGOS (AFP) - Nigeria has set up a 40-member technical committee on peace talks to end the crisis in the oil-rich Niger Delta, the government said Friday.

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - Heavy metal fans and lovers of classical music have more in common than they like to think, according to research published Friday by a university in Edinburgh.

Reuters - BANGKOK (Reuters) - Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej has bought some time with a referendum aimed at defusing street protests, but it will do nothing to resolve Thailand's fundamental political conflict, analysts say.

AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - Iraq's government wants to buy 36 advanced F-16 fighters from the United States, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing US military officials.

AFP - MIAMI (AFP) - Tropical Storm Hanna closed in on the southeastern US coast on Friday after leaving 136 dead in Haiti, as a powerful hurricane swept across the Atlantic, posing a potential threat to Caribbean islands and the United States.

The Canadian Press - POTI, Georgia - The flagship of the U.S. navy's Mediterranean fleet anchored Friday outside this key Georgian port, defiantly delivering humanitarian aid to the war-ravaged U.S. ally in a slap at Moscow.

AFP - LUANDA (AFP) - Voting was set to go into a second day Saturday in Angola's first peacetime elections, after chaos at the start of ballot-casting on Friday led the opposition to cry foul and demand new polls.

Reuters - ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's new president, almost certain to be the widower of Benazir Bhutto, will have to contend with a host of critical problems including militant violence and an economy in crisis.

AFP - KIEV (AFP) - US Vice President Dick Cheney on Friday pledged support for Ukraine and pointed to Russia as the reason for the country's woes as he held talks with the squabbling president and prime minister.

AFP - GUATEMALA CITY (AFP) - Guatemalan police discovered a breakout plan in which a look-alike was due to replace the suspected deputy leader of a Mexican drug gang in jail, local media reported Friday.

Reuters - LISBON (Reuters) - Condoleezza Rice travels to Libya on Friday, the first trip there by a U.S. secretary of state in 55 years, signaling improved ties between the two countries.

AFP - DETROIT, Michigan (AFP) - The US presidential election campaign went into full swing Friday under the shadows of a struggling economy, with unemployment figures soaring to a five-year high and triggering recession fears.

AFP - LAGOS (AFP) - Nigeria has set up a 40-member technical committee on peace talks to end the crisis in the oil-rich Niger Delta, the government said Friday.

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - Heavy rain and strong winds are pounding parts of Britain as the first major storm of the autumn pushes in from the Atlantic.

Reuters - ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's new president, almost certain to be the widower of Benazir Bhutto, will have to contend with a host of critical problems including militant violence and an economy in crisis.

AFP - LUANDA (AFP) - Chaos at the start of Angola's first peacetime elections Friday prompted opposition calls for fresh polls, as the ruling party looked set to keep its grip on power in Africa's leading oil producing nation.

Reuters - LUANDA (Reuters) - Angola's first election for 16 years will go into an unscheduled second day on Saturday, the official in charge said after opposition parties had condemned the vote as chaotic and demanded a re-run.

AFP - JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israeli security forces detained 12 Palestinians near the occupied West Bank city of Hebron overnight, a military spokeswoman said on Friday.

AFP - KIEV (AFP) - Vice President Dick Cheney looked to heal wounds over Russia in Ukraine's ruling coalition on Friday as he wrapped up a regional tour aimed at bolstering key US allies following the conflict in Georgia.

Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - U.S. and Libyan relations are "off to a good start," Condoleezza Rice said on Friday as she became the first U.S. secretary of state to visit the North African country in 55 years.

Reuters - HARARE (Reuters) - South African President Thabo Mbeki is expected in Harare on Monday to continue mediation efforts to break a deadlock in power-sharing talks, a Zimbabwean official said on Friday.

AFP - ABIDJAN (AFP) - Ivory Coast's cocoa sector needs to be comprehensively modernised to deliver its full potential, the deputy chief of the World Bank for Africa, Obiageli Ezekwesili, said here Friday.

Reuters - PURNEA, India (Reuters) - Authorities battling a massive deluge in eastern India issued public warnings on Friday of more floods to come and asked villagers not to return home from temporary shelters yet.

AFP - DETROIT, Michigan (AFP) - The US presidential election campaign went into full swing Friday under the shadows of a struggling economy, with unemployment figures soaring to a five-year high and triggering recession fears.

The Canadian Press - MIAMI - The National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Ike has weakened to a Category three storm in the Atlantic.

AFP - MIAMI (AFP) - Tropical Storm Hanna closed in on the southeastern US coast on Friday after leaving 136 dead in Haiti as a powerful hurricane swept across the Atlantic, posing a potential threat to Caribbean islands and the United States.

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - A hotel in Surrey was forced to apologise Friday for turning away an injured soldier on leave from Afghanistan, after it provoked public outrage and an intervention from a government minister.

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - League Managers' Association (LMA) chief executive Richard Bevan on Friday called on Newcastle to sort out their structural problems to ensure their next manager does not suffer the same fate as Kevin Keegan.

Reuters - VIENNA (Reuters) - Forty-five countries resumed crunch talks on Friday on whether to drop a ban on nuclear trade with India, amid efforts by Washington to allay fears the move could be at odds with non-proliferation principles.

Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi -- once reviled as a "mad dog" by a U.S. president -- on Friday on a historic visit which she said proved that Washington had no permanent enemies.

Reuters - HERAT, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Seven people, including two children, were killed in an air strike in western Afghanistan on Friday that was aimed at the house of a Taliban commander, a district official said.

AFP - LUANDA (AFP) - Angola President Jose Eduardo dos Santos on Friday voted at a Luanda polling station in the country's first elections after a decades-long civil war.

Reuters - BANGKOK (Reuters) - Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej has bought some time with a referendum aimed at defusing street protests, but it will do nothing to resolve Thailand's fundamental political conflict, analysts say.

AFP - ST PAUL, Minnesota (AFP) - John McCain vowed to fight for America as long as he draws breath, in a patriotic pledge to bring political change as he accepted the Republican presidential nomination.

The Canadian Press - BAGHDAD - The Iraqi government reacted sharply Friday to published allegations that the United States spied on Iraq's prime minister, warning that future U.S. ties could be in jeopardy if the report were true.

AFP - LUSAKA (AFP) - Zambia's ruling MMD party is set to choose a presidential candidate to fight forthcoming elections following the death of President Levy Mwanawasa, a party official said Friday.

The Canadian Press - CHICAGO - Rev. Jesse Jackson has been released from a Chicago hospital, two days after he was admitted for severe stomach pains.