Puppies confiscated
An animal rights group says this pug puppy, along with two other puppies, were confiscated from a Rome pet shop as part of an investigation into illegal trafficking of dog breeds from Eastern Europe.
A lot of pot
In one of the largest marijuana seizures in its history, a U.S. Coast Guard cutter scooped up more than 130 bales of marijuana thrown overboard by a speedboat off the coast of Baja California, officials said Thursday.
Dairy overhaul
Officials in Beijing announced a complete overhaul of its dairy industry Thursday to improve safety at every step — from cow breeding to milk sales — saying its worst food quality scandal in years had revealed “major problems” in quality control.
Ads for peace?
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas took his case for a peace deal directly to ordinary Israelis Thursday, assuring them in Hebrew-language newspaper ads that a withdrawal from the West Bank, Gaza and parts of Jerusalem would bring them full recognition by the Arab world.
School panic death
Emergency officials in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, say a 19-year-old Haitian schoolgirl died of a heart attack after students panicked that their school was collapsing.
Iraq protests
Opposition lawmakers in Baghdad protested in a second day of emotional debate in parliament over a proposed agreement with the U.S. that would allow American forces to stay in Iraq for three more years.
Monk accused of rape
A 17-year-old Cambodian monk was charged with raping a British woman while taking her on a tour of a cave near his Buddhist temple, a court official in Phnom Penh said.
6,500
Archaeologists have discovered the ruins of a 6,500-year-old farming settlement in Vassili, an antiquities-rich area of central Greece. The finds include remains of houses built of wood and unbaked clay, together with pottery vases, ovens and stone tools, the Culture Ministry announced Thursday.
