Palestinian militants sent a deadly barrage of missiles flying deep into Israel on Monday, demonstrating that Hamas still had firepower three days into Israel's punishing air offensive in Gaza. ...more

December 29, 2008

The Iraqi parliament will vote Wednesday on a pact that would allow U.S. troops to stay in Iraq for three more years, but the government's hopes of winning a wide margin of approval to ensure the deal's legitimacy appeared to be fading. ...more

November 23, 2008

Iran said it successfully test-fired a new generation of long range surface-to-surface missile on Wednesday, one that could easily strike as far away as southeastern Europe with greater precision than earlier models. ...more

November 13, 2008

A 62-year-old lawmaker held captive eight years by leftist rebels walked to freedom in a western Colombia jungle on Sunday along with the young guerrilla commander who had been his jailer. ...more

October 27, 2008

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni of Israel ran out of options in her efforts to form a government and decided her only choice would be to press for early elections, now likely to be scheduled for February, party officials said Saturday night. ...more

October 26, 2008

A Japanese sailor dropping out of an elite navy training program died in an unofficial farewell ritual requiring him to fight 15 classmates, the Defense Ministry said Wednesday. ...more

October 23, 2008

Tzipi Livni, Israel's foreign minister, emerged last week as the leader of the governing Kadima Party and the favorite to succeed Ehud Olmert as prime minister. She is steely enough, no doubt, for the proverbial 3 a.m. phone call. ...more

September 22, 2008

Pakistan's government eased its rhetoric Saturday against unilateral U.S. attacks on militant havens near the Afghan border, saying it hopes quiet diplomacy will persuade Washington that the raids only inflame sentiment against leaders of both countries. ...more

September 14, 2008

Brazil will spend $160 million by the end of next year on the development of a nuclear-propelled submarine to protect the oil reserves found recently off its coast, the defense minister said Friday. ...more

August 30, 2008

Although the U.S. government was supposed to have final say on any plan to rescue three U.S. contractors held by guerrillas, it was kept in the dark by the Colombian military until a week before the July 2 operation to lessen the chances the Bush administration would veto the effort, said a top official close to the operation. ...more

July 14, 2008