BEIRUT - Fighting in Syria killed several people on Friday as a ceasefire brokered by international peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi to mark a holy Muslim day frayed almost before it had begun.
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MAZAR-E-SHARIF, Afghanistan - A suicide bomber killed at least 40 people in a mosque in Afghanistan's relatively peaceful north on Friday as worshippers gathered for prayers marking the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday, police officials said.
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NASSAU - Hurricane Sandy pounded the Bahamas with battering winds and rain on Friday, sweeping over the island chain after killing 21 people across the Caribbean and posing a menacing threat to the U.S. East Coast.
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KYAUKTAW, Myanmar - The number of people killed in six days of unrest in western Myanmar reached at least 112 on Friday as security forces used deadly force to break up the worst sectarian violence between Buddhists and Muslims in years.
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JERUSALEM - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's tie-up with far-right coalition partner Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman could backfire by eroding their lead ahead of Israel's Jan. 22 ballot, a poll said on Friday.
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BIRMINGHAM, England - The father of a Pakistani girl shot in the head by the Taliban for advocating girls' education said on Friday she would ``rise again'' to pursue her dreams after hospital treatment.
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SAO PAULO - A blackout left as many as 53 million Brazilians without power late Thursday and early Friday, the latest in a string of energy shortages that have raised questions about whether Brazil's infrastructure is keeping pace with economic growth.
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LONDON - Former UBS trader Kweku Adoboli wept on Friday as he told a jury that his ``off-book trades'' were done for the benefit of a bank that meant everything to him.
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NEW YORK - The family of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, a leader known for his humble roots and compassion for ordinary people, has accumulated massive wealth during his time in power, the New York Times reported on Friday.
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TOKYO - Japan unveiled plans on Friday to list shares of state-owned Japan Post Holdings Co, which runs the country's biggest savings institution, within three years to raise money to rebuild areas devastated by last year's quake, tsunami and nuclear crisis.
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