World News

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates - The United Arab Emirates canceled all its Iraqi debt Sunday and moved to restore a full diplomatic mission in Baghdad by naming a new ambassador.

JERUSALEM - Israel has opened its border crossings with the Gaza Strip after closing them once again because of Palestinian rocket fire.

The last major remnant of Saddam Hussein's nuclear program — a huge stockpile of concentrated natural uranium — reached a Canadian port Saturday to complete a secret U.S. operation that included a two-week airlift from Baghdad and a ship voyage crossing two oceans.

BERLIN (AFP) - The German government wants to build up to 30 offshore windfarms in a bid to meet its renewable energy targets, Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee said in an interview published Sunday.

GENEVA (AFP) - Swiss banks UBS and Credit Suisse would have to set aside 70 billion Swiss francs (43.5 billion euros, 68.3 billion dollars) more in company capital as Switzerland's banking watchdog moves to prevent a repeat of the subprime crisis, a Swiss newspaper reported Sunday.

GENEVA (AFP) - Swiss banks UBS and Credit Suisse need to set aside 70 billion Swiss francs (43.5 billion euros, 68.3 billion dollars) more in capital as Switzerland's banking watchdog moves to prevent a repeat of the subprime crisis, a Swiss newspaper reported Sunday.

BOGOTA, Colombia - President Alvaro Uribe was master of ceremonies the night Colombian military intelligence agents disguised as humanitarian workers airlifted Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages to freedom.

MEXICO CITY - The National Hurricane Center says a tropical depression is hovering hovered close to Mexico and threatens to strengthen into a tropical storm over the next day.

AUTLAN, Mexico - Inspectors are collecting soil, water and produce samples, reviewing export logs and combing packing plants in three major tomato-growing states in Mexico.

CAIRO (AFP) - The family of former Egyptian president Anwar Sadat has threatened to sue the Iranian producers of a documentary film portraying his 1981 assassination as the killing of a traitor by a martyr.

OIL WELL NO. 1, Nigeria - Three decades after pumping its last drop, the first oil well in Nigeria is marked by a decrepit signboard bearing what would seem an uncontroversial statement:

CAIRO (AFP) - Archaeologists have uncovered ancient wooden coffins in what appears to be a royal burial ground near the necropolis of Abydos in southern Egypt, the state-run MENA news agency reported on Saturday.

YANGON (AFP) - The victory by democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's party in 1990 elections is "no longer legal," Myanmar state media said Sunday, urging her supporters to prepare for new polls.

DHARAMSHALA, India (AFP) - Exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama marked his 73rd birthday Sunday with a small function, but with the mood dampened by a lack of progress in talks with China.

CHITTAGONG, Bangladesh (AFP) - At least 20 people have died and more than 20,000 left marooned as heavy rains over the past week triggered landslides and floods in southeast Bangladesh, an official said Sunday.

LONDON (Reuters) - Second seeds Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic defeated Jonas Bjorkman and Kevin Ullyett 7-6 6-7 6-3 6-3 to win their first Wimbledon doubles title on Saturday.

TORONTO (Reuters) - Announcing what it said were "essential milestones" allowing the world's largest leveraged buyout to go ahead, BCE Inc said on Friday that its buyers had finalized funding and were sticking to their C$34.8-billion ($34.1 billion) purchase price.

TORONTO (Reuters) - The number of vehicles imported into Canada from the United States in 2008 is well on pace to break last year's record high, according to data compiled by the North American Automobile Trade Association.

SYDNEY (AFP) - The United States military wanted to test deadly nerve gases on Australian troops in a remote area of far north Queensland in the 1960s but Canberra refused, a report said Sunday.

SYDNEY (AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI has chosen a retreat centre on Sydney's north-western outskirts for his three-day holiday in Australia, the Sunday Telegraph reported Sunday.

SYDNEY (AFP) - Australia is one of the least religious nations in the western world, research showed Friday, as the country prepares to host Pope Benedict XVI and Catholic World Youth Day celebrations this month.

The last major remnant of Saddam Hussein's nuclear program — a huge stockpile of concentrated natural uranium — reached a Canadian port Saturday to complete a secret U.S. operation that included a two-week airlift from Baghdad and a ship voyage crossing two oceans.

OIL WELL NO. 1, Nigeria - Three decades after pumping its last drop, the first oil well in Nigeria is marked by a decrepit signboard bearing what would seem an uncontroversial statement:

BANGKOK, Thailand - Orangutan numbers have declined sharply on the only two islands where they still live in the wild and they could become the first great ape species to go extinct if urgent action isn't taken, a new study says.