• Anti-Islam party pulls out of coalition talks 3/18/2010, 10:09 a.m. EDT
(AP) — THE HAGUE, Netherlands - The anti-Islam Freedom Party of maverick Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders has abandoned attempts to form a majority coalition in the town of Almere after it emerged the largest party in municipal elections March 3.

• WHO: Not sure if drug-resistant TB is worsening 3/18/2010, 8:59 a.m. EDT
(AP) — LONDON - The World Health Organization says it doesn't have enough information to know if it is winning the fight against drug-resistant tuberculosis.

• Holocaust survivor Veil joins Academie Francaise 3/18/2010, 8:40 a.m. EDT
(AP) — PARIS - Simone Veil, a French political icon who survived Nazi death camps and went on to lead Europe's joint parliament, is joining the prestigious Academie Francaise.

• China probes vaccines after child deaths reported 3/18/2010, 8:38 a.m. EDT
(AP) — BEIJING - China's Health Ministry is investigating the safety of inoculations in a northern province after a report that defective vaccines possibly killed four children and seriously sickened dozens.

• Pope letter on Irish abuse released Saturday 3/18/2010, 7:41 a.m. EDT
(AP) — VATICAN CITY - The Vatican says the pope's letter to Irish Catholics on the clerical sex abuse crisis will be released Saturday.

• Belgian king to attend Congo independence events 3/18/2010, 6:59 a.m. EDT
(AP) — BRUSSELS - Belgium's Royal Palace says King Albert II will attend Congo's celebrations marking 50 years of independence from its former colonial ruler.

• EU Court: Sex shops must charge normal sales tax 3/18/2010, 6:49 a.m. EDT
(AP) — BRUSSELS - Sex shops that show movies in cubicles are not entitled to charge their customers at a lower sales tax rate meant for cinemas, the EU high court ruled Thursday.

• Israeli medics: Man killed by Gaza rocket 3/18/2010, 6:13 a.m. EDT
(AP) — JERUSALEM - Palestinian militants fired a rocket at Israel from the Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing a Thai farm worker, Israeli medics said, in the first death from a rocket attack since Israel's Gaza offensive last year.

• Sudan and Darfur rebel group sign cease-fire 3/18/2010, 5:59 a.m. EDT
(AP) — DOHA, Qatar - Sudan's government and a collection of Darfur rebel groups have signed a cease-fire, opening the way for political negotiations ahead of a full peace agreement.

• Bavarian bishops pray for abuse victims 3/18/2010, 5:58 a.m. EDT
(AP) — BAD STAFFELSTEIN, Germany - Bishops from the heavily Roman Catholic German state of Bavaria say they are "ashamed and shocked" at the extent of sexual abuse in the church and are calling for prayers for the victims.

• Austrian priest criticizes pope 3/18/2010, 5:45 a.m. EDT
(AP) — VIENNA - An Austrian priest has criticized the pope's silence on the abuse allegations that have hit the Catholic church across Europe.

• Cyprus president won't seek 2nd term if talks fail 3/18/2010, 5:31 a.m. EDT
(AP) — NICOSIA, Cyprus - Cyprus' president said Thursday that he would not seek re-election in 2013 if ongoing talks to reunify the ethnically split island fail.

• Ruling coalition, Komeito propose 23 bil. yen settlement for JR dispute+ 3/18/2010, 4:40 a.m. EDT
(AP) — TOKYO, March 18 (Kyodo)-(EDS: TO BE LED)

• Australia concerned about Rio Tinto trial 3/18/2010, 4:01 a.m. EDT
(AP) — SYDNEY - Australia expressed disappointment Thursday that charges of stealing business secrets against one of its citizens would be tried in a closed court in China, and some lawmakers doubted the mining executive involved would get a fair hearing.

• New counterterror laws enter Australian parliament 3/18/2010, 3:40 a.m. EDT
(AP) — CANBERRA, Australia - Police would be allowed to enter a building without a warrant to prevent a terrorist attack under new laws introduced into parliament on Thursday.

• Australian Senate rejects Scientology inquiry call 3/18/2010, 12:59 a.m. EDT
(AP) — CANBERRA, Australia - Australia's Senate on Thursday overwhelming rejected a call for an inquiry into allegations against the Church of Scientology made by former members who claim to have been abused, harassed or coerced into having abortions.

• Australian Senate rejects Scientology inquiry call 3/18/2010, 12:59 a.m. EDT
(AP) — CANBERRA, Australia - Australia's Senate on Thursday overwhelming rejected a call for an inquiry into allegations against the Church of Scientology made by former members who claim to have been abused, harassed or coerced into having abortions.

• Clinton in Moscow for Mideast, nuclear arms talks 3/18/2010, 12:46 a.m. EDT
(AP) — MOSCOW - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Thursday opened two days of talks with Russian leaders on nuclear arms control and other security issues, and separately with top international diplomats on the outlook for bringing Israel and the Palestinians back to peace talks.

• Report: North Korean executed over currency reform 3/18/2010, 12:00 a.m. EDT
(AP) — SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea executed a former senior official last week as punishment for the country's botched currency reform, a news report said Thursday.

• Thai PM says he's open to talks with protesters 3/17/2010, 11:55 p.m. EDT
(AP) — BANGKOK - Thailand's prime minister said Thursday the government was ready to hold talks with protesters, who want him to call new elections, but only if they stop throwing blood, blocking government offices and remain peaceful.

• Thai anti-government protesters to wage "class war," plan for demonstrations 3/17/2010, 11:40 p.m. EDT
(AP) — BANGKOK - Thousands of demonstrators remain encamped in the historic heart of the Thai capital, vowing to engage in "class war" until the government is ousted.

• Life sentence upheld for China supreme court judge 3/17/2010, 10:20 p.m. EDT
(AP) — BEIJING - A court in northern China has upheld a life sentence for a former supreme court judge convicted of embezzlement and bribery, a state-run newspaper reported.

• Life sentence upheld for China supreme court judge 3/17/2010, 10:20 p.m. EDT
(AP) — BEIJING - A court in northern China has upheld a life sentence for a former supreme court judge convicted of embezzlement and bribery, a state-run newspaper reported.

• Reports to Net watchdog on illegal content up 95.3% in 2009+ 3/17/2010, 9:20 p.m. EDT
(AP) — TOKYO, March 18 (Kyodo)-A nongovernmental Net watchdog received 27,751 reports of illegal and harmful content in Internet sites from Net users in 2009, up 95.3 percent from the previous year, the National Police Agency said Thursday.

• Domestic violence cases hit record 28,000 in 2009+ 3/17/2010, 9:20 p.m. EDT
(AP) — TOKYO, March 18 (Kyodo)-The number of domestic violence cases police recognized in 2009 soared 11.7 percent from the previous year to 28,158, the highest since an annual survey began in 2002, the National Police Agency said Thursday.

• Fiji cyclone damage overwhelming, leader says 3/17/2010, 8:30 p.m. EDT
(AP) — SUVA, Fiji - A powerful cyclone destroyed more than half the houses in many villages in northern Fiji, but only one death has been reported, officials said Thursday.

• Today In History 3/17/2010, 8:00 p.m. EDT
(AP) — Today is Thursday, March 25, the 84th day of 2010. There are 281 days left in the year.

• Antonio Banderas appointed UN Goodwill Ambassador 3/17/2010, 7:40 p.m. EDT
(AP) — UNITED NATIONS - Spanish actor Antonio Banderas has been named a U.N. Goodwill Ambassador for the fight against poverty, the United Nations Development Program announced Wednesday.

• East Jerusalem neighborhood shows no sign of furor 3/17/2010, 5:24 p.m. EDT
(AP) — JERUSALEM - The sleepy Ramat Shlomo neighborhood at the center of the debate over Israeli construction in east Jerusalem shows no signs of the political furor.

• AP Top Extended International Headlines At 5:40 a.m. EDT 3/17/2010, 5:20 p.m. EDT
(AP) —

• Yemen-American imam calls for US Muslim revolt 3/17/2010, 5:03 p.m. EDT
(AP) — CAIRO - A Yemeni-American Muslim preacher known for his ties to extremists operating in the U.S. called on American Muslims in a new audio message to turn against their government because of its actions against Muslims around the world.

• The hour's top news from The Associated Press 3/17/2010, 5:00 p.m. EDT
(AP) — Obama says new Israeli settlement homes "weren't helpful" for peace

• AP Top International News At 5:40 a.m. EDT 3/17/2010, 4:12 p.m. EDT
(AP) —

• Iraq PM back in the lead in vote count 3/17/2010, 4:07 p.m. EDT
(AP) — BAGHDAD - The Iraqi prime minister's coalition has retaken the lead from his secular challenger in a preliminary tally of votes in Iraq's parliamentary elections, the country's election commission said Wednesday.

• Iraqi PM fights for survival as votes are counted 3/17/2010, 4:06 p.m. EDT
(AP) — BAGHDAD - The man who has led Iraq for the past four years is battling for his political survival just as U.S. troops are getting ready to pack up and go home.

• Kyrgyzstan unveils US military training base plan 3/17/2010, 3:00 p.m. EDT
(AP) — BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan - Officials in the impoverished Central Asian nation of Kyrgyzstan say the United States plans to build a $5 million military base for training local troops to assist in the fight against international terrorism.

• Wrong religion: Israeli ruins re-identified 3/17/2010, 2:34 p.m. EDT
(AP) — JERUSALEM - Israeli archaeologists have announced that ruins long thought to be of an ancient synagogue are actually the remains of a palace built by Arab caliphs 1,300 years ago.

• Italy sees self as resilient to economic collapse 3/17/2010, 2:24 p.m. EDT
(AP) — MILAN - As Greece wins at least temporary respite from its debt troubles, will Italy be the next to face a crisis?

• Priests with love lives speak out against celibacy 3/17/2010, 2:19 p.m. EDT
(AP) — PARIS - Leon Laclau shared his life, and often, his bed, with Marga over 20 years-all while serving as a Catholic priest in a town in the French Pyrenees.

• UN rejects export ban on Atlantic bluefin tuna 3/17/2010, 2:00 p.m. EDT
(AP) — DOHA, Qatar - A proposal to ban the export of Atlantic bluefin tuna prized in sushi has been rejected by a U.N. wildlife meeting.

• Obama celebrates St Patrick's Day with Irish prime minster 3/17/2010, 1:48 p.m. EDT
(AP) — Washington (dpa)-US President Barack Obama held his annual meeting with the prime minister of Ireland to celebrate Saint Patrick's Day.

• Brazil ruling party candidate gets legal boost 3/17/2010, 1:40 p.m. EDT
(AP) — BRASILIA, Brazil - Brazil's attorney general's office says the nation's popular president will be able to campaign for his chosen successor during his free time.

• Swiss priest resigns after confessing sexual abuse 3/17/2010, 1:29 p.m. EDT
(AP) — CHUR, Switzerland - An eastern Swiss diocese says a priest has resigned after admitting to sexually abusing children in the 1970s.

• French polemic over fake game show electrocutions 3/17/2010, 1:16 p.m. EDT
(AP) — PARIS - A state-run TV channel is stirring controversy with a documentary about a fake game show in which credulous participants obey orders to deliver increasingly powerful electric shocks to a man, who is really an actor, until he appears to die.

• French polemic over fake game show electrocutions 3/17/2010, 1:15 p.m. EDT
(AP) — PARIS - A state-run TV channel is stirring controversy with a documentary about a fake game show in which credulous participants obey orders to deliver increasingly powerful electric shocks to a man, who is really an actor, until he appears to die.

• Nigeria: Acting president dissolves cabinet 3/17/2010, 1:09 p.m. EDT
(AP) — ABUJA, Nigeria - Nigeria's acting president has dissolved this West African nation's cabinet, a month after assuming the young democracy's highest office.

• UK can't guarantee allies don't torture detainees 3/17/2010, 1:00 p.m. EDT
(AP) — LONDON - Britain's government can't completely rule out that its allies torture detainees while seeking to tackle the threat from terrorism, according to an official report released Wednesday.

• Taliban fight in Afghan town with fear campaign 3/17/2010, 12:33 p.m. EDT
(AP) — MARJAH, Afghanistan - A month after losing control of their southern base in Marjah, the Taliban have begun to fight back, launching a campaign of assassination and intimidation to frighten people from supporting the U.S. and its Afghan allies.

• SKorean women caught in abortion limbo 3/17/2010, 12:15 p.m. EDT
(AP) — SEOUL, South Korea - Having a third child wasn't in Mrs. Kim's plans. She and her husband are already struggling to get by.

• South Korean women caught in abortion limbo 3/17/2010, 12:15 p.m. EDT
(AP) — SEOUL, South Korea - Having a third child wasn't in Mrs. Kim's plans. She and her husband are already struggling to get by.