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TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's foreign minister said on Saturday he believed neither the United States nor Israel would want to get entangled in a new Middle East crisis and attack the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program.

KABUL/ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - NATO-led peacekeepers in Afghanistan on Saturday blamed militants for a mortar attack two nights earlier that wounded Pakistani soldiers and Afghan police on either side of the border and led to a Pakistani protest.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Saturday that sanctions against Zimbabwe's government would "complicate", rather than ease, conflict in the troubled African country, defending its decision to veto a proposed U.N. resolution.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China has executed two Uighurs and sentenced another 15 to jail for alleged terrorist links, the U.S. government-funded Radio Free Asia said in a report just days after Beijing warned of attacks aimed at the Olympics.

PUNTO FIJO, Venezuela (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Colombian President Alvaro Uribe said they repaired ties at a summit on Friday that showcased their renewed personal cooperation after months of bickering.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Russia and China vetoed on Friday a Western-backed U.N. Security Council resolution to impose sanctions on Zimbabwe for holding a violent presidential poll that was boycotted by the opposition candidate.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush would veto Senate housing legislation if it includes $4 billion in block grants to states to buy foreclosed homes, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said on Friday.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Russia and China vetoed on Friday a Western-backed U.N. Security Council resolution to impose sanctions on Zimbabwe for holding a violent presidential poll that was boycotted by the opposition candidate.

YENAGOA, Nigeria (Reuters) - The Nigerian navy has arrested 15 Filipinos after intercepting a vessel carrying a significant quantity of stolen crude oil off the coast of the Niger Delta, a senior military official said on Friday.

HUDSON, Wisconsin (Reuters) - Republican presidential contender John McCain said on Friday that government assistance would likely be needed for Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae because a failure of the two mortgage giants would have a ripple effect through the entire U.S. economy.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico City police are investigating classified advertisements posted on the Internet by people offering their services as hired killers for as little as $6,000, police said on Friday.

GENEVA (Reuters) - Two of the main rebel groups in Darfur pledged on Friday to protect civilians and aid workers in the western Sudanese region where a dire humanitarian situation has worsened amid escalating insecurity, a joint statement said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Pakistan's Foreign Minister sought to reassure Washington on Friday his country was doing all it could to fight militants on the border with Afghanistan and that Islamabad would not tolerate U.S. interference there.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government turned in a $50.7 billion budget surplus for June, beating expectations, but the deficit for the year-to-date was the third highest on record, the Treasury said on Friday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress must move quickly to put a stronger regulator in place for government-sponsored entities Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a senior aide to Republican Sen. Richard Shelby said on Friday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The top U.S. environmental regulator on Friday declined to make rules to regulate planet-warming emissions under existing pollution laws despite a Supreme Court decision that has pressured his agency to act.

BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombia's biggest guerrilla force said on Friday it was betrayed by its own men in last week's military rescue of Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages that added to a string of recent setbacks.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's Defence Ministry on Friday denied any Israeli air force drills had taken place in its airspace after a report that the Israelis were preparing there for a possible strike on Iran.

DAYTON, Ohio (Reuters) - Barack Obama raised well over $30 million in June, a top aide indicated on Friday, outpacing Republican rival John McCain again as the Democratic White House hopeful's fundraising picked up after a lull in May.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush urged Congress on Friday to act before its August break to open new areas for oil exploration in the United States to help ease record high oil prices.