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SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea's embattled president apologized on Thursday for a U.S. beef import deal that sparked street protests and said he will sack top aides but analysts said that might not be enough to reverse a slide in public support.

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (Reuters) - Gunmen have killed the police administrative director in the violent Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez, the latest high-profile killing in Mexico's drug war, police said on Wednesday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - China promised to make improvements to human rights ahead of the Olympic Games but its record may have actually deteriorated in the run-up to the events in August, a human rights activist and writer says.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives struck a deal on Wednesday on legislation to provide $162 billion in new funds for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, ending a long standoff with the White House.

FENGKAI, China (Reuters) - When the people of Fengkai were warned that the rivers in their south China town were going to overflow, they knew what to do.

SPRINGFIELD, Missouri (Reuters) - Republican John McCain promised on Wednesday to put the United States on course to build 45 new nuclear reactors by 2030 if elected president as part of a plan to move the country toward energy independence.

HONG KONG (Reuters) - China's grip on dissent in Tibet remains tight after deadly riots there in March, with more than 1,000 people still detained without charge, human rights group Amnesty International said in a new report on Thursday.

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - The sister of indicted Democratic Rep. William Jefferson pleaded guilty to concealing a crime on Wednesday, the fourth relative of the Louisiana lawmaker to become entangled in the family's legal troubles.

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - A Brazilian judge ordered army patrols out of a Rio de Janeiro slum on Wednesday after 11 soldiers were accused of involvement in the gangland killing of three youths in a neighboring shantytown.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sen. Joseph Lieberman on Wednesday unveiled three draft legislative proposals aimed at limiting speculation in crude oil futures markets, including one that would ban participation by big institutional investors.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate will begin debate on a major housing market rescue bill on Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on Wednesday, spurning calls for delay by Republicans who cited concerns about a controversy involving two Democrats and a mortgage lender.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Senate panel on Wednesday approved legislation to strengthen U.S. sanctions on Iran in an effort to get that country to drop its nuclear program.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama says if Osama bin Laden is captured alive, the United States should bring him to justice but in a way that avoids turning the al Qaeda leader into a martyr.

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (Reuters) - Gunmen have killed the police administrative director in the violent Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez, the latest high-profile killing in Mexico's drug war, police said on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to overturn President George W. Bush's second veto of the 2008 farm law, a step that would enact 35 pages on trade programs accidentally omitted from the original bill in May.

SPRINGFIELD, Missouri (Reuters) - Republican John McCain would put the United States on course to build 45 new nuclear reactors by 2030 if elected president, the Arizona senator said on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. phone companies would be shielded from potentially billions of dollars in lawsuits under an anti-terror spy measure that appears headed toward approval, congressional sources said on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers considering new funding for the World Bank on Wednesday sought assurances that the development agency will not provide loans to Iran, which Washington accuses of seeking to develop nuclear bombs.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - North Korea will soon produce a long-overdue declaration of its nuclear programs, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Wednesday.

HAVANA (Reuters) - Former Cuban President Fidel Castro's appearance in a televised video on Tuesday night put to rest the latest rumors of his imminent demise and suggested he still plays a significant role in Cuba's government.