AP - Thousands of people rallied across Russia Saturday to denounce the government's economic policy and demand more freedom in a new challenge to the Kremlin reflecting increasing disillusionment and a growing potential for protests.

AP - Pope Benedict XVI's unprecedented letter to Ireland apologizing for chronic child abuse within the Catholic Church failed Saturday to calm the anger of many victims, who accused the Vatican of ducking its own responsibility in promoting a worldwide culture of cover-up.

AP - Visiting U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon said Saturday that Israeli settlement building anywhere on occupied land is illegal and must be stopped, while a Palestinian teenager was killed in clashes with Israeli troops elsewhere in the West Bank.

AP - More Americans in Mexico are falling victim to a wave of drug violence sweeping the country, a change driven home by the recent killing of a U.S. Consulate employee and her husband who were gunned down after leaving a children's birthday party.

AP - The earthquake not only smashed markets, collapsed warehouses and left more than 2.5 million people without enough to eat. It may also have shaken up the way the developing world gets food.

AFP - Controversial Irish jockey Kieren Fallon was back in the spotlight on Saturday when he was allegedly attacked by an owner at Lingfield Racecourse.

AP - Iranian news agencies say authorities have released a prominent pro-reform activist two days after security forces took him into custody.

AFP - Franco-British former hostage Gauthier Lefevre on Saturday described the "daily struggle" of staying positive for five months as the kidnap victim of a criminal gang in Sudan's war-torn Darfur.

AFP - Girija Prasad Koirala, the former prime minister who brokered Nepal's peace agreement and led a protest movement against his country's autocratic king, died Saturday aged 85.

AFP - Pakistan has appealed against its Davis Cup Asia Oceania tie being switched to New Zealand over security fears, demanding it should be played at a neutral venue, officials said Saturday.