Battle of the beauties at Miss World

SANYA, China (AFP) - Two billion people around the globe were expected to tune in Saturday when more than 100 of the world’s most beautiful and talented women vie to become Miss World 2007.

World AIDS Day marked amid signs of progress

PARIS (AFP) - Activists sought Saturday to keep the battle against HIV in the public eye on World AIDS Day in the face of growing complacency amid progress in treating and slowing the spread of the disease.

Hostage-taker at Clinton office surrenders

ROCHESTER, New Hampshire (AFP) - A man claiming to be armed with a bomb took over one of US presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton’s campaign offices for more than five hours Friday before surrendering to police.

Wall Street regains mojo from friendly Fed

NEW YORK (AFP) - Upward momentum is back on Wall Street as stocks regained ground at the end of a horrid November, with hopes mounting that the Federal Reserve will cut rates and help the US economy avert a downturn.

Chavez threatens to stop oil exports to US if poll violence

CARACAS (AFP) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez threatened Friday to stop oil exports to the United States if violence he claims it is plotting breaks out after a hotly contested weekend referendum aimed at expanding his powers.

Russia prepares to vote with all eyes on Putin

MOSCOW (AFP) - Final preparations were underway in Russia on Saturday for parliamentary elections expected to hand a sweeping victory to President Vladimir Putin’s party, just three months before presidential polls.

R.I.P, Evel Knievel

An appreciation of the man who was a mix of Elvis and Captain America

Israeli airstrike kills 4 militants in Gaza

An Israeli airstrike killed four Palestinian militants early Saturday in the southern Gaza Strip, Palestinian witnesses and officials …

News Analysis: A Fuller Picture: U.S. Looks to Iraqi Data

As the United States military begins to remove troops from Iraq, it plans to draw increasingly on Iraqi government data to gauge the level of violence.

Abroad: Putin’s Last Realm to Conquer: Russian Culture

The fight is long over in Moscow for authority over the security services, the oil business and mass media. Now there is concern that the Kremlin is setting its sights on Russian culture.

The Saturday Profile: A Pygmy Traveler Gives Voice to a Marginalized People

While most Pygmies still live in the forest, they are being displaced and driven out by the relentless encroachment of the modern world.

Challenges ahead for Bono’s brand

Product Red, the rock star’s start-up that raises funds to fight Aids, has seen growth but faces difficulty increasing its prominence amid competing ethical ventures

Challenges ahead for Bono’s brand

Product Red, the rock star’s start-up that raises funds to fight Aids, has seen growth but faces difficulty increasing its prominence amid competing ethical ventures

World Briefing | The Americas: Venezuela: ChÁvez Ready to Rule Until 2050

President Hugo Chávez delivered a speech threatening the moneyed elite, investors from Spain, foreign correspondents, the United States and “pitiyanquis,” a term loosely translated as “Yankee lovers.”

World Briefing | Africa: Chad: Rebels Declare War on France

One of the biggest rebel groups, United Forces for Democracy and Development, declared war on France, saying the former colonial power was working to help prop up Chad’s president, Idriss Déby.

World Briefing | Middle East: Israeli Court Upholds Gaza Fuel Cuts

Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that the government could continue cutting fuel supplies to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, which it has done since Oct. 28.

Strike Halts Trains, Planes and Buses in Italy

ROME, Nov. 30 — Italy struggled through a transportation meltdown today, a reminder of the disruptions to daily life that crop up regularly in this beautiful nation and that can make getting about decidedly unpleasant.

World Briefing | Europe: Russia Suspends NATO Arms Pact

President Vladimir V. Putin signed a law suspending Russia’s participation in a NATO treaty limiting conventional forces in Europe, European diplomats said.

World Briefing | Middle East: U.S. Pulls U.N. Resolution Disliked by Israel

In an embarrassing about-face, the United States withdrew a draft Security Council resolution endorsing the agreement reached this week in Annapolis, Md., on starting Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations.

Iraq Seeks to Execute 3 Former Officials

Iraqi government officials said they had demanded that President Bush hand over Iraq’s former defense minister, arguing that it was a matter of national sovereignty.

As Talks With Europe End, Iran Gives No Sign of Concession on Nuclear Program

After 18 months of unproductive talks between the Europeans and the Iranians, the London meeting was a last-ditch attempt to persuade Iran to compromise.

Lawyer Says Pakistan Heading Toward ‘Rigged’ Vote

Stories of rough prison treatment of lawyers, who led opposition to Mr. Musharraf and were arrested after Nov. 3, are emerging through relatives.

Two Secrets of Chief Spook Michael Hayden

His job title should be warning enough not to mess with him. But when it comes to pro-football betting and running, be especially wary of CIA Director Michael Hayden. As you would expect of the nation’s top spook, the Air Force general has a few tricks up the sleeve of his well-pressed dress blue uniform. Let’s start with the simple issue of running. Aides say he’s a jogger who likes to clear his mind with a solitary 5-mile run around Langley. But those three pairs of Adidas Supernovas he keeps around should tell you something: He’s a past Pittsburgh marathoner who is known to sneak in a few miles on the treadmill with his wife, Jeanine. "Whatever good it does for the body, it does much more for the mind," says Hayden, who changes into a T-shirt, sneaks, and shorts for a jog about three or four times a week. He was even the first spy chief to run in the agency’s annual 5K.

As for betting in the office pool, fellow spooks shouldn’t test his football knowledge, either. His grade-school football coach at Pittsburgh’s St. Peter’s? Steelers owner Dan Rooney—which explains the Steelers helmet signed by all Super Bowl Xl winners on his bookcase. Hayden nearly won last year’s Scripps-Howard Celebrity Super Bowl Poll. The prognosticator saw the Colts beating Da Bears 27-14. The score: Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17.

Justice Thomas, Not Big on News

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas says he’s shocked when he sees judges reading editorials. "I think that our job is not to be influenced by the media," he says. He isn’t. "It is rare, extremely rare, that I ever read about anything that we do in the media," says Thomas, who was roughed up during his 1991 confirmation hearings. "I don’t think it is a requirement to do the job," he says. "Your role is to be a judge."

What Is It About Dennis Kucinich?

If he doesn’t win the Democratic presidential nomination, Rep. Dennis Kucinich might have a future in modeling—or perhaps Playgirl. Why: Chicks dig him, and not just his British wife, some 30 years younger. Add Hollywood beauty Mira Sorvino." Dennis Kucinich is an amazing person," the Darfur advocate tells us. "He’s done great things on all levels," she gushes. A crush, maybe, but Sorvino isn’t ready to endorse, though she says her pick will "probably be a Democratic candidate."

Biden Still Loves His Newspapers

We’ve listened to all the hullabaloo about the new online political order. But long-shot Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has taken a decidedly old school tack in the run-up to the January 3 Iowa caucuses: full-page black-and-white newspaper ads. His latest quotes opponents like Sen. Hillary Clinton saying, "Joe is right." By plowing $50,000 into the ads, the garrulous Delaware senator may be on to something. The venerable Iowa Poll found that 82 percent of likely Democratic caucus-goers read newspapers to get campaign information. Says Biden senior strategist John Marttila: "Caucusgoers are high news consumers. They read print."

Surprise: Not Enough Lawyers

In a city filled with government lawyers, there apparently isn’t any obvious choice to be the top legal brain for the Federal Housing Finance Board, the group that oversees the Federal Home Loan Banks. We hear that the board is spending some $75,000 to have headhunter firm Korn/Ferry International collect some names for the post of general counsel. Word is nobody inside wants the job. But Democrats on the Republican-led board say it’s a waste of money because there are good insiders—apparently unwanted Democratic lawyers—eager for the job.

Clinton Country Trained Huckabee

GOP presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee says he knows the trick to beating Sen. Hillary Clinton. It’s the experience of taking on the Clinton political machine back home in Arkansas, where he was governor for more than a decade. "That means something," he tells us. "To do that as a Republican in a very Democrat state that had been dominated by their political machinery is even more significant than playing against it in the national realm," he says. The lesson of those battles: "They are never going to make the same mistake twice. They are going to be ruthless."

This Dynasty Starts in Sixth Grade

He left office in 2003, but former Indiana Rep. Tim Roemer says the political itch remains. Last year, Roemer, who heads the Center for National Policy, found himself outside a Northern Virginia school at 7:30 a.m. distributing political pamphlets. The candidate? His son, Matthew, then a sixth grader running for class president. Matthew won. Then he guided his fifth-grade daughter, Sarah, to victory for school secretary." James Carville, watch out," Roemer warns. His own political ambitions are modest, and he rejects rumors that he’d challenge GOP Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels in 2008. But, he says, "if I ever decide to run for office again, maybe [the school wins] will rub off."