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KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Afghan and NATO-led forces killed or wounded hundreds of Taliban on Thursday in an offensive to clear the militants from the outskirts of Kandahar city, the provincial governor said.

KAMPALA (Reuters) - Iran said on Thursday it was ready to negotiate over a new package of economic incentives put forward by major powers seeking to persuade Tehran to curb its nuclear work.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Brussels-based journalists' rights group has welcomed criminal charges against three men in the killing of Russian reporter Anna Politkovskaya, but said those who ordered the murder must be held accountable.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has called on investors in the liberalizing power sector not to stuff their "stomachs" with quick profits and pledged harsh treatment for those not respecting national and social interests.

KABUL (Reuters) - Four U.S. helicopter engines worth more than $13 million have been stolen while they were being trucked from Afghanistan to a port in Pakistan to be shipped home, the U.S. military said.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Lured by tax-free jobs and cheap living, foreign workers have long gravitated to wealthy Gulf Arab states to earn a better living, but rising costs are now forcing many to go home.

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.