World News

LONDON - A British newspaper claims leaked government documents show plans for the 2003 invasion of Iraq were drafted more than a year earlier — calling into question Tony Blair's public statements on the military buildup.

BUCHAREST (AFP) - Romanians voted on Sunday in a tight presidential election seen as a chance to resolve a political crisis that has hindered the recent EU member's bid to recover from a deep recession.

BUCHAREST, Romania - Romanians were voting for a new president on Sunday in an election that could help end a leadership crisis that has threatened an international loan aimed at stopping the country's painful recession.

CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is inviting his mentor Fidel Castro to visit Venezuela during the coming months.

CARACAS, Venezuela - President Hugo Chavez is praising Carlos the Jackal, the imprisoned Venezuelan once notorious for a series of Cold War-era bombings, assassinations and hostage dramas, saying he was a "revolutionary fighter" and not a terrorist.

CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuelan authorities have captured a former Colombian official wanted for collaborating with outlawed right-wing paramilitary fighters.

KAMPALA, Uganda - Ugandan officials say they are offended that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has praised former dictator Idi Amin.

UDINE, Italy (AFP) - South Africa coach Peter de Villiers and captain John Smit agreed that the world champions were back on track following their 32-10 win over Italy here.

JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - South Africa plans to create special courts dedicated to handling crimes committed during the World Cup, aiming to speed up the judicial process, especially for cases involving foreigners.

JAKARTA, Indonesia - Rescuers saved more than 230 people aboard an Indonesian passenger ferry that sank Sunday in rough waters off Sumatra island, but at least nine people have died, an official said. An unknown number of passengers were still missing.

JAKARTA (AFP) - Four people were killed and another 292 were plucked to safety after an overloaded ferry sank in heavy seas off Indonesia's Sumatra island on Sunday, a maritime official said.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was due Sunday to start the first US state visit under President Barack Obama, who hopes to show his dedication to the emerging power even as his attention lies elsewhere.

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's ruling Conservatives and the main opposition Liberals both lost ground in a poll published on Friday as the left-leaning New Democrats enjoyed a surprising surge in public support.

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Enough H1N1 flu vaccine for almost half of Canada's population will have been shipped out by the end of the next week, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq said on Friday.

MIAMI (Reuters) - TD Bank was hit with a multimillion-dollar lawsuit on Friday calling it the "financial epicenter" of an alleged Ponzi scheme run by disgraced Florida lawyer Scott Rothstein.

RYLSTONE, Australia (AFP) - Hundreds of residents in eastern Australia were on alert Sunday as out-of-control wildfires fanned by soaring temperatures and windy conditions threatened properties, officials said.

SYDNEY (AFP) - Two executives at a banknote-making firm part-owned by Australia's central bank have been suspended over a police probe into alleged bribery and kickbacks, officials said.

SYDNEY (AFP) - Australia said it was "deeply disappointed" after a fleet of Japanese whaling ships set out to kill hundreds of the giant ocean mammals on their annual hunt.

ROME - A Vatican researcher has rekindled the age-old debate over the Shroud of Turin, saying that faint writing on the linen proves it was the burial cloth of Jesus. Experts say the historian may be reading too much into the markings, and they stand by carbon-dating that points to the shroud being a medieval forgery.

MONTREAL (AFP) - Facebook can be a double-edged sword, a Canadian woman learned when an insurance company cut her health benefits, claiming she was healthy after seeing pictures of her smiling in bikini at the beach.

COCKERMOUTH, England - Raging floods engulfed northern England's picturesque Lake District on Friday following the heaviest rainfall ever recorded in Britain, killing a police officer and trapping dozens in their swamped homes.