MOSCOW - Russia granted asylum to the widow and son of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic when he died during his war crimes trial, an official said Friday.An official with the Russian Federal Migration Service confirmed reports in a Serbian newspaper, the Novosti news agency reported."Refugee status was granted to the ex-president's widow Mirjana Markovic and son Marko Milosevic in March 2006 in accordance with a U.N. convention," Konstantin Poltoranin said.Both mother and son are ... [full story]

ELDORET, Kenya - The slaying of an Orange Democratic Movement politician in Elderot, Kenya, touched off riots in opposition forts as post-election tension persisted in Kenya.Police said the deaths of Ainamoi MP David Kimutai, 40, and policewoman Eunice Chepkwony were a "crime of passion," The Daily Nation reported Friday."I saw the officer chasing the car at a high speed. I thought the car had been hijacked, but when the car halted, I heard the man ... [full story]

BERLIN - Germany will not send more soldiers or allow its troops to be deployed in southern Afghanistan, Defense Minister Franz-Josef Jung said Friday.Jung told reporters the country will continue its mission to Afghanistan at its current level, Deutsche Welle reported. There are 3,200 German soldiers in Afghanistan, most of them deployed in the north, which is relatively safe, or in Kabul.U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said last week that European countries should add 3,200 ... [full story]

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Sheikh Hamdan Bin-Mohammed Bin-Rashid Al Maktoum, son of the ruler of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, was named crown prince Friday.Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice president of the United Arab Emirates as well as the ruler of Dubai, also appointed his son and his brother co-rulers, the Kuwaiti news agency KUNA reported.Hamdan, 25, chairs the executive council of Dubai as well as the Dubai Sports Council and ... [full story]

MEXICO CITY - Tens of thousands of farmers filled the streets of the Mexican capital to protest the import of U.S. and Canadian corn, El Universal reported Friday.The protesters said that subsidized corn from its northern neighbors was making it impossible for them to compete in the Mexican market. They called for the renegotiation of the 1994 free-trade agreement including Mexico, the United States and Canada that removed many of the trade barriers among them. © ... [full story]

JERUSALEM - Israel has announced a halt in the construction of a new neighborhood in a West Bank settlement north of Jerusalem.The government cited an order by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak two weeks ago barring any new construction in the West Bank, Haaretz reported.Plans to build the Agan Ayalot neighborhood in Givat Ze'ev are almost a decade old. The Housing Ministry and Israeli Lands Administration began selling lots there in ... [full story]

ORANJESTAD, Aruba - Officials are studying new evidence about the disappearance of a U.S. teen who went missing while vacationing in Aruba, a report said.Dutch crime reporter, Peter R. de Vries, has provided the new evidence for the Natalee Holloway case, Radio Netherlands reported Friday.The new evidence was described by prosecutor Hans Mos as "impressive and convincing" and "an essential part that was lacking in the investigation."Holloway was seen with Jordan van der Sloot, and ... [full story]

LONDON - The survival rate for very premature babies at a major London hospital increased from 32 percent to 71 percent between 1981 and 2000, a study finds.The results are expected to become part of the debate on British abortion law, The Telegraph reported. Parliament is considering changing the 24-week limit in England, Scotland and Wales that was set almost 20 years ago.Researchers examined the survival rate for infants in the neonatal unit at University ... [full story]

WASHINGTON - The liberal group MoveOn has backed U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois for the Democratic nomination for president.The group said Obama was the choice of 70.4 percent of its members who cast votes online, Politico.com reported. About 300,000 people, roughly 10 percent of the membership, participated."In just a few years, the members of MoveOn have once again demonstrated that real change comes not from the top-down, but from the bottom-up," Obama said as ... [full story]

BUSHEHR, Iran - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said programs in Tehran are nearing their goal of developing nuclear energy, a report said.U.S. President George W. Bush has been working to toughen sanctions on Iran's nuclear programs, including their ability to enrich uranium for fueling nuclear power plants, Fars News Agency reported Friday."We are moving towards the summit on the nuclear path. Iranians ... will not back down one iota in defense of their rights," Ahmadinejad ... [full story]