Congo
KINSHASA - Twenty-four soldiers were sentenced at a military tribunal in Kinshasa Friday to prison terms of between 10 and 15 years with hard labor for their involvement in a shooting spree.
Mexico
GUADALAJARA - Police said Friday they had arrested the suspected hitman for a Mexican drug cartel who was linked to several high-profile killings, including that of a Catholic cardinal.
Poland
WARSAW - Former Polish President Lech Walesa celebrated his 54th birthday Friday, still playing an active if supporting role on Poland's dynamic political stage.
Iran
TEHRAN - Bahrain has agreed to restore top-level diplomatic relations with Iran after the two Persian Gulf countries withdrew ambassadors in a row last year, the official Iranian news agency IRNA said Friday.
Sicily
CALTANISSETTA - A court convicted 24 mobsters - nearly the entire ruling council of Cosa Nostra - and sentenced them to life imprisonment Friday for the 1992 highway bombing that killed Italy's top anti-Mafia prosecutor. Seven others received sentences ranging up to 26 years.
Chile
SANTIAGO - Gen. Augusto Pinochet, a former president of Chile, confirmed Friday that he plans to be a senator for life after leaving his post as chief of the Chilean army.
Ireland
DUBLIN - The Irish government released five IRA prisoners nearly a year early Friday as a reward for the group's continuing cease-fire ahead of peace talks.
Turkey
HAKKARI - Six soldiers and 44 rebels have been killed as thousands of Turkish troops chased Kurdish rebels in a cross-border operation inside northern Iraq, news reports said Friday.
Montserrat
ST. JOHN'S - Residents in the northern "safe zone" of this Caribbean island swept up ash and gravel Friday after five consecutive days of eruptions by the smoldering Soufriere Hills volcano.
Philippines
MANILA - A lawyer accused the Philippines' state oil company Friday of laundering money from the sale of gold owned by the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos and depositing it in a Swiss bank account.
Canada
OTTAWA - Five women convicted of homicides will get their sentences reduced or reviewed because an inquiry determined they were defending themselves against abusive partners.
TOFINO, British Columbia - Three tourists drowned after a wave swept one of them off rocks at a beach and the other two attempted a rescue, police said Friday.
Colombia
BOGOTA - Suspected rebels blasted a hole in Colombia's main oil pipeline Friday, forcing pumping to be suspended for the second time in a week, the state oil company Ecopetrol said.
England
LONDON - Police charged a 77-year-old man Friday with Nazi war crimes for allegedly killing five people in German-occupied Belarus during World War II.
UNITED NATIONS - After meeting with his Saudi counterpart, the British foreign minister said Friday he was "hopeful" he could prevent the beheading of one British nurse and the flogging of another for the murder of an Australian nurse.