SOFIA, Bulgaria -- A Russian official said Moscow and Sofia, Bulgaria, could soon sign an agreement on the South Stream pipeline, which will transport Russian gas to Europe. Russian Energy Minister Sergey Shmatko said the text of the agreement was fully correlated between the two sides and it is likely to be signed Monday when Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev visits Moscow, the Russian news agency Itar-TASS said Thursday. The South Stream pipeline, to transport Russian gas ... [full story]

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- An ambush on a security convoy Thursday killed two police officers in Pakistan's Taliban-infiltrated Buner district, police officials said. The police officers, members of Frontier Constabulary, were killed in the Totalai area, just 60 miles from Islamabad, Dawn reported, noting the killings could threaten the viability of a government-backed peace deal with the Taliban in northwest Pakistan. Eight Frontier Constabulary platoons arrived Wednesday in Buner, each platoon containing 30 to 50 officers, said Syed ... [full story]

TEHRAN -- Hard-line conservative Mohsen Rezai says he's entering Iran's presidential race because of mismanagement by the current president. Rezai, head of the Revolutionary Guards from 1981 to 1997, is to run as an independent in the June 12 election against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, The New York Times reported Thursday. Rezai, who has condemned Ahmadinejad's handling of the economy, likely would draw conservative voters who otherwise might vote for Ahmadinejad, the Times reported. Ahmadinejad is expected to have ... [full story]

QINGDAO, China -- China is showing off some of its latest warships, including a nuclear-powered submarine, to celebrate its navy's 60th anniversary in the port city of Qingdao. A naval parade also included 25 Chinese ships and 31 aircraft, as well as 21 vessels showcased from 14 other countries, among them the United States, France and Russia, the BBC said. Chinese sailors laid out a red carpet in front of the Chinese destroyer Shijiazhuang that took the ... [full story]

PRETORIA, South Africa -- South Africa's ruling African National Congress may not gain enough votes for a two-thirds parliamentary majority, analysts said Thursday. While on track to gaining a strong majority in national elections and likely making ANC leader Jacob Zuma the country's next president, early returns indicate the party may fall short of the two-thirds mark, which is necessary in any moves to change South Africa's constitution, The Times of London reported. With 35 percent of ... [full story]

SOFIA, Bulgaria -- Bulgarian police temporarily in Sofia for an international conference complained about what they described as intolerable housing conditions, officials said. Officers dispatched from towns across Bulgaria to boost security measures during a two-day energy summit that opens Friday were placed in a dilapidated barracks of a former army tank brigade in a Sofia suburb, the Bulgarian news agency BGNES said Thursday. The police union filed an official complaint at the Bulgarian Interior Ministry, saying ... [full story]

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- A Canadian Inuit woman has sparked controversy in New Zealand with her complaints of racism over a candy called an "Eskimo Lolly." Seeka Lee Veevee Parsons, 21, has been in New Zealand for two months on a working holiday near Rotorua. She sparked a media firestorm when she denounced the name of the popular marshmallow confection, the Toronto Star's western bureau in Vancouver reported Thursday. "Calling someone an Eskimo is no longer responsible," ... [full story]

BAGHDAD -- An American soldier was killed in an attack during a routine security patrol in east Baghdad, the U.S. military said. The victim was a member of the Multi-National Forces but no other details were immediately released, KUNA news agency said. The death Wednesday brought the toll of U.S. troops killed in Iraq since start of operation Iraqi Freedom in March 2003 to 4,275. Twelve have died this month. Copyright © 2009, by United Press International. All Rights ... [full story]

TORONTO -- A Canadian appeals court has upheld a record $17 million accident award to a Toronto man who ran a red light and was brain-damaged in 2008. The Ontario Court of Appeals rejected a challenge to the award by Ford Motor Credit LLC, which owned the leased truck involved in the June 8, 2000, crash that disabled Robert Marcoccia, then 20, the Toronto Star reported. Court heard Marcoccia accelerated through a red light and struck a ... [full story]

TEHRAN -- A conference of Islamic prosecutors in Iran worked Wednesday to develop an indictment against Israeli leaders, accusing them of war crimes in Gaza. The charges stem from Israel's military offensive into Gaza in December and January against Hamas militants who control the strip. Among other things, the Israeli military has been accused of using excessive and indiscriminate force in civilian areas. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Israel is "a regime that only understands the language ... [full story]

JERUSALEM -- Some 80 percent of both Israelis and Palestinians support the establishment of a Palestinian state in the Middle East, a survey indicates. The poll, commissioned by the non-governmental organization One Voice and published Wednesday by Army Radio, also showed both peoples were strongly opposed to the notion of one bi-national state and indicated there was disagreement over Jerusalem and other holy sites, The Jerusalem Post reported. One Voice is made up of Israelis and Palestinians ... [full story]

WOODSTOCK, Ontario -- Canadian police in Woodstock, Ontario, said Wednesday a witness helped them create a composite sketch of a woman last seen with a missing 8-year-old girl. At an Ontario Provincial Police new conference Wednesday, Detective William Renton said he could offer no details about the witness, who saw the woman walking with Victoria Stafford April 8 after the girl completed school, CTV News reported. A security video shows the woman and girl walking together, but ... [full story]

PERTH, Australia -- Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority says it is investigating the appearance of a model airplane near a jet at a Perth airport, a spokesman says. CASA spokesman Peter Gibson said the remote-controlled airplane incident, which was documented in a video placed on the Web site YouTube, is being investigated to determine what breaches of safety guidelines may have been broken, The Times of London said Wednesday. "There are a number of possible ... [full story]