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From Agence France-Presse
Retired Japanese policeman on mission to prevent suicides Retired policeman Yukio Shige is still on patrol, walking daily along the Tojinbo cliff, one of the best-known suicide spots in Japan where he pursues a private mission to prevent people leaping.
5 January 2009 - 10:30 p.m. EST
Pink iguanas discovered on Galapagos Islands A team of Ecuadoran and Italian researchers have discovered a unique species of pink land iguanas living on the Galapagos Islands, the scientist who wrote the report told AFP.
5 January 2009 - 9:09 p.m. EST
New Year hangover? Sorry, scientists debunk detox claims As people trudged back to work on Monday bloated from the excesses of Christmas and New Year partying, British scientists warned that buying "detox" products may do nothing to help them recover.
5 January 2009 - 8:12 a.m. EST
China aiming to lure three million tourists to Tibet: state media China has launched a campaign to attract three million tourists to Tibet this year, after deadly unrest saw a huge drop-off in visitors in 2008, state media reported on Monday.
5 January 2009 - 3:22 a.m. EST
Japan races to build a zero-emission car As mass-produced electric cars come closer to reality, their makers are trying to polish the image of what experts say could be a hard sell in the current recession.
5 January 2009 - 3:30 a.m. EST
Vilnius, a 2009 European capital of culture Lithuania's capital Vilnius has rung in 2009 as a European Capital of Culture, sharing the title this year with the Austrian city of Linz, with plans for 12 months of concerts, art and multi-media events.
4 January 2009 - 2:37 a.m. EST
Dubai dream turns sour as job losses mount Dubai's rapid expansion in recent years provided jobs for millions. But the global financial meltdown has abruptly ended the dream for many people as more and more firms sack staff to cut costs.
4 January 2009 - 1:21 p.m. EST
Tourism in tiny Gambia takes a hit from financial crisis The young waitress waved at the empty tables as a clutch of idle cooks bided time in a corner of one of the Gambian capital's trendy restaurants, all eyes fixed on the front door.
30 December 2008 - 12:38 p.m. EST
Armenians, Georgians in unholy row over disputed church Amidst the rambling homes and cobble-stoned streets of the Georgian capital Tbilisi's old town, two stone churches stand side-by-side, sharing a snow-covered courtyard.
30 December 2008 - 12:04 p.m. EST
Two Titanic passengers' letters to be auctioned Two letters from Titanic passengers are to be auctioned in New York this month, one of them featuring an excited description of the doomed ship just moments before setting sail.
30 December 2008 - 7:58 p.m. EST
Peace and calm for 2009, but not economic recovery: soothsayers The world can look forward to peace and harmony in 2009, but Chinese soothsayers warned that the road to economic recovery will be long.
31 December 2008 - 6:17 a.m. EST
Huge dinosaur discovery in China: state media Paleontologists in east China have dug up what they believe is one of the world's largest group of dinosaur fossils including the remains of an enormous "platypus", state press said Tuesday.
30 December 2008 - 3:47 a.m. EST
Japanese tourist spends 3 months in Mexico City airport A distinguished-looking Japanese tourist lingered more than three months at Mexico City's airport, sleeping on the ground and eating in pricey restaurants, until he left with a woman in a taxi, witnesses said.
30 December 2008 - 3:46 a.m. EST
Church of England drafts women bishops legislation The Church of England published draft legislation Monday that could allow the ordination of women bishops — an issue that has provoked deep splits among Anglicans.
29 December 2008 - 6:13 p.m. EST
Topless tanning sparks Aussie beach row Topless tanning on Australia's iconic beaches could soon be outlawed if a conservative lawmaker wins a battle to force women to keep their breasts under wraps.
30 December 2008 - 1:41 a.m. EST
Japan's Cat Island fights not to go to dogs The elderly residents of a small Japanese island swarming with cats are hoping that their trademark animals will attract something they've been missing for years -- people.
29 December 2008 - 10:37 p.m. EST
Wave of layoffs dashes Japanese myth of job for life Temporary workers like Toshie Helena Oguihara were a driving force behind Japan's economic recovery in recent years, but when the recession returned they found themselves first in the firing line.
28 December 2008 - 1:33 p.m. EST
Taiwan home-grown food firms get boost after China scandal Scandals surrounding poisoned Chinese foods have taken a heavy toll on Taiwan's bakeries and makers of dairy products in recent months, but could provide a long-term boost for local food makers.
28 December 2008 - 12:05 p.m. EST
Sour grapes for French wine in 2008 2008 has been all sour grapes for French wine, a once proud symbol of the nation's identity now swirling in a cocktail of alcohol abuse legislation.
28 December 2008 - 3:03 p.m. EST
Tourism trouble on Thailand's tropical island of Phuket As Thai women in tartan schoolgirl outfits writhe listlessly around poles on the bar top, Dawan Blades scribbles in a black ledger and shakes her head. The numbers simply don't add up.
29 December 2008 - 3:58 a.m. EST
Natural disasters 'killed over 220,000' in 2008 Natural disasters killed over 220,000 people in 2008, making it one of the most devastating years on record and underlining the need for a global climate deal, the world's number two reinsurer said Monday.
29 December 2008 - 8:39 a.m. EST
Amid tears, Chinese pandas take off for Taiwan Two pandas left China Tuesday on a historic mission to Taiwan, seemingly unperturbed by the outpouring of emotion triggered by their departure.
23 December 2008 - 3:07 a.m. EST
Rare rhino calves found in Indonesian jungle Four calves of the world's rarest species of rhino have been found in remote jungle on Indonesia's Java island, giving hope to efforts to save them from extinction, an official said Tuesday.
23 December 2008 - 7:26 a.m. EST
In central Jakarta, ruins of Indonesia's colonial past In the middle of Jakarta there is a place more reminiscent of the ruins of Cambodia's Angkor than the heart of a historic capital seeking to promote itself to the world.
22 December 2008 - 10:54 p.m. EST
Philippines tribe on the edge as development comes to highlands Goats and oxen graze among the ruins of a paper mill by the Abra River, a big-ticket project which brought war on the Tingguian tribal people of the northern Philippines highlands.
22 December - 9:59 p.m. EST
"Silent Night" for small Austrian village, 190 years later Born on a cold night in the chapel of a small Austrian village, "Silent Night," the most famous Christmas carol in the world, celebrates this year its 190th anniversary.
21 December 2008 - 1:00 a.m. EST
The end of India's love affair with facial hair The extravagant beards and moustaches proudly sported by generations of Indian men are under threat, according to a new book that celebrates the country's finest facial hair.
21 December 2008 - 2:45 a.m. EST
Lebanon caves vie to be an official wonder of nature Lebanese are lobbying for a majestic cave complex to be named one of the new Seven Wonders of the World in an online competition that has drawn natural attractions from across the globe.
21 December 2008 - 1:09 a.m. EST
Look out, Santa! Chocolate-wielding Germans target Xmas hero Santa beware! Activists in Germany are waging an international campaign to do away with old Father Christmas and say they are gaining ground thanks to the global economic meltdown.
21 December 2008 - 12:53 a.m. EST
Hungover? Take two eels and call me in the morning The French call it "la gueule de bois," or wooden mouth. For Germans, it's "Kater," or a tomcat. Japanese know it as "futsukayoi," or "two-days drunk."
21 December 2008 - 4:53 a.m. EST
Paris woos art lovers with all-night Picasso show Art lovers and night-owls will be offered a round-the-clock chance to see a major Picasso exhibition in Paris next month, when it stays open all night for three days.
21 December 2008 - 3:02 p.m. EST
Russia considers night curfew for under 14s Russia's parliament is studying a bill to impose a night-time curfew on under 14-year-olds in a bid to reduce juvenile delinquency, documents released Thursday showed.
18 December 2008 - 1:59 p.m. EST
Field of evergreens: Americans go back to roots of Christmas Christmas, in the minds of many Americans, means a trip to the mall to load up with gifts, and a tree bought in a car park or taken out of a box and assembled before it is decorated with store-bought ornaments.
18 December 2008 - 12:08 p.m. EST
Coalition asks UN to decriminalize homosexuality Sixty-six countries Thursday called on the United Nations to urge members to decriminalize homosexuality, a position rejected by several Arab countries and the Vatican.
18 December 2008 - 6:00 p.m. EST
Slowdown leaves mark on mink market as sales tumble The global economic crisis dealt a heavy blow to sales of mink furs at a sale held by the world's biggest auction house for furs, Kopenhagen Fur of Denmark, its director said Wednesday.
17 December 2008 - 1:31 p.m. EST
Deep Throat, Watergate's secret informant, dies at 95 The man known as Deep Throat, the secret informant in the Watergate scandal that led to the downfall of president Richard Nixon in 1974, has died, his family said Friday. He was 95.
19 December 2008 - 8:02 a.m. EST
Indian jewelers seek help to regain lost luster India's gem and jewelery sector has appealed for urgent government help to prevent substantial job losses, as the knock-on effects of the global economic slowdown bites.
17 December 2008 - 12:37 p.m. EST
Migratory birds face peril in Lebanon sanctuary Lebanon, one of the world's key migratory bird corridors, has turned into a death trap for the avian population due to illegal hunting of increasingly rare species.
18 December 2008 - 1:30 a.m. EST
Afghans from north and south fight it out with dogs The crowd surges forward as two huge mastiffs launch themselves at each other in the ring, before one ends the bout by grabbing the other's throat, and is then paraded in triumph.
17 December 2008 - 10:51 p.m. EST
Heavy-metal headbangers are twixt rock and a neck brace WARNING: Headbanging to Metallica, Motorhead or Megadeth could be hazardous to your health.
17 December 2008 - 9:43 p.m. EST
New Zealand turning possum pest into luxury business The Australian brushtailed possum is an ecological disaster in New Zealand but these days it can be found in Washington and Hollywood as well.
17 December 2008 - 10:38 p.m. EST
Bollywood's boys bulk up, add brawn to brooding Bollywood's leading actors are hitting the gym as never before, adding brawn and biceps to their on-screen repertoires and winning a legion of new fans in the process — including other men.
16 December 2008 - 10:07 p.m. EST
Australian pet ambulance finds a growing niche When veterinary nurse Niccole George heard the sobs on the phone, she felt incapable of doing her job because the collapsed Great Dane's owner was too frail to bring the dog to her.
17 December 2008 - 1:08 a.m. EST
Future looks rose for US wine in Britain Britons for the first time are drinking more American wine than French, thanks to slick marketing and a growing British penchant for Californian rose, a market study revealed Tuesday.
16 December 2008 - 2:33 p.m. EST
Bangladeshi 'Taj Mahal' owner slams critics The owner of Bangladesh's newly opened replica of the Taj Mahal has defended the building after visitors said it was shoddily designed and constructed of cheap materials.
16 December 2008 - 12:34 p.m. EST
Santa village in Finnish Arctic awaits crisis crunch -- next year A Santa village in Finnish Lapland that each December draws throngs of tourists seeking Christmas cheer expects to weather this season well but is worried the global economic downturn could make next year's holidays anything but merry.
16 December 2008 - 12:35 p.m. EST
Bethlehem gears up for a busy Christmas The traditional birthplace of Jesus is preparing to welcome a record number of tourists in its first year of relative calm in the West Bank since 2000, Bethlehem's mayor said on Monday.
15 December 2008 - 4:42 p.m. EST
Egypt: no country for old maids Exasperated by the pressures of a society obsessed with marriage and the production of children, a young Egyptian woman has come to the rescue of her country's stigmatized spinsters.
16 December 2008 - 1:43 a.m. EST
Goa's party season low-key after Mumbai attacks The Mumbai attacks have cast a shadow over the Indian resort state of Goa, with its famous end-of-year party season likely to be hit as foreigners stay away and security is tightened.
15 December 2008 - 10:28 p.m. EST
Nicole Kidman warned after breaking Aboriginal taboo: report Australian Hollywood star Nicole Kidman will have no more children after breaking a taboo against women playing the didgeridoo, an Aboriginal cultural leader has warned.
16 December 2008 - 1:08 a.m. EST
Rush on Denmark's prized Christmas tree expected despite crisis Poul Norup smiles broadly as he supervises a final shipment of Christmas trees to Germany: every last one of his Nordmann evergreens has been sold, and at a higher-than-usual price, despite the global financial crisis.
16 December 2008 - 12:20 a.m. EST
Tricks of the trade: the illusion of the costume Lavish costumes are an intrinsic part of the magic of ballet, opera and theatre, but they are every bit as much of an illusion as the performance.
15 December 2008 - 12:33 a.m. EST
More than 1,000 species discovered in Mekong: WWF Scientists have discovered more than 1,000 species in Southeast Asia's Greater Mekong region in the past decade, including a spider as big as a dinner plate, the World Wildlife Fund said Monday.
15 December 2008 - 8:22 a.m. EST
Three years after beach race riots, art bridges Sydney divide An Australian artist has combined his love of the surf with that of the Middle East, producing surfboards adorned with Islamic art in a fusion he hopes will help broaden understanding.
14 December 2008 - 5:17 p.m. EST
No easy fix for US newspaper industry Circulation is dropping, print advertising revenue is falling and readers are going online to get news for free, leaving the US newspaper industry awash in red ink and threatening some of the biggest names in journalism.
13 December 2008 - 9:53 p.m. EST
Chile opens museum of Pinochet memorabilia Medals, uniforms and even toy soldiers belonging to late dictator Augusto Pinochet went on permanent exhibition Friday at the Pinochet foundation in Santiago.
13 December 2008 - 2:52 p.m. EST
Hidden drugs and gangster bling in lesson for Mexican soldiers Gold-incrusted weapons, children's clothes decorated with LSD-laced stickers, and religious paintings packed with cocaine offer a glimpse into Mexico's growing drug culture in a unique museum.
12 December 2008 - 1:31 a.m. EST
One year after ban, French smoke just as much One year after a ban on smoking in cafes and restaurants, French people still smoke as much as ever, the agency charged with stopping them complained Thursday.
11 December 2008 - 3:05 p.m. EST
World launch of Japan's new "kansei" design offensive Faced by competition in Asia, Japan's industrial design supremos geared up for a global counter-offensive Friday with a Paris show introducing the planet to Tokyo's latest designer concept -- "kansei".
11 December 2008 - 8:54 p.m. EST
Women in Baghdad take to the road again The last time Manal Hakim was in the driving seat she was pistol-whipped by armed Islamists. Two years later, the 38-year-old Iraqi teacher is behind the wheel again, but now with a smile on her face.
11 December 2008 - 12:22 p.m. EST
Harry Potter props, costumes head to Chicago museum Harry Potter is heading to a Chicago museum where fans will get a glimpse of props and costumes from the blockbuster films in a massive exhibit set to open in April, organizers announced Thursday.
11 December 2008 - 9:03 p.m. EST
World looks to EU for leadership on climate change: UN chief The European Union summit in Brussels holds "great consequences for the whole world," which looks to the EU for leadership on climate change, UN chief Ban Ki-moon warned on Thursday.
11 December 2008 - 5:20 a.m. EST
Not credit crunched: Royal diamond fetches record price Defying the economic gloom, a diamond with a rich royal pedigree went under the hammer at Christie's auction house Wednesday for a record 16.4 million pounds (24.3 million dollars, 18.7 million euros).
10 December 2008 - 1:56 p.m. EST
Matchmaking booms in SKorea due to economic crisis Matchmaking is booming in South Korea amid the global economic crisis, as fathers facing redundancy rush their children into marriage and jobless women find financial security in married life.
10 December 2008 - 12:16 p.m. EST
China's next 30 years: Building the world's biggest cities China's past 30 years of reforms planted seeds that will in the coming decades produce future coastal megacities, an urban population of one billion and possibly the world's biggest economy.
10 December 2008 - 12:14 p.m. EST
Frenchwoman abandons trans-Pacific 'kite-surfing' bid A French adventurer aiming to become the first person to make a kite-powered crossing of the Pacific Ocean has abandoned her bid after becoming stuck in the Doldrums.
10 December 2008 - 2:41 p.m. EST
First Muslim-friendly virtual world goes online A trial version of the world's first Muslim-friendly virtual world has gone online where users can create their own persona, design their own rooms, buy virtual items and interact with others.
10 December 2008 - 5:23 a.m. EST
Monaco ditches plan to expand into sea: prince The Mediterranean city state of Monaco has shelved a multi-billion-dollar scheme to expand into the sea because of the global economic crisis, its ruler Prince Albert II said Tuesday.
9 December 2008 - 1:52 p.m. EST
Mumbai embroidery firm stitches India's racial groups together Perveez Aggarwal is a living symbol of Mumbai's melting pot. A member of India's tiny but wealthy Parsee community, she is married to a Hindu and employs rural Muslim craftsmen to recreate ancient Persian designs on embroidered clothing she sells worldwide.
10 December 2008 - 2:48 a.m. EST
Amsterdam's dare: balancing chic and shady in red light district In the shadow of a 14th-century Gothic church and a stone's throw from a day care center, prostitutes flaunt their bodies in red neon-lit windows that Amsterdam city fathers now plan to shutter.
10 December 2008 - 1:56 a.m. EST
Fifth of world's corals already dead, say experts Almost a fifth of the planet's coral reefs have died and carbon emissions are largely to blame, according to an NGO study released Wednesday.
10 December 2008 - 6:53 a.m. EST
30 years after reform, China farmers once again hope for change Thirty years ago, 18 farmers in this rural backwater of east China entered a pact to carry out a bold economic experiment, and became heroes of reform almost overnight.
9 December 2008 - 1:21 a.m. EST
Babylon's history swept away in US army sandbags Fragments of bricks, engraved with cuneiform characters thousands of years old, lie mixed with the rubble and sandbags left by the US military on the ancient site of Babylon in Iraq.
9 December 2008 - 2:15 a.m. EST
LA gun amnesty sees record spike as economy bites An annual "guns for gifts" amnesty scheme in the crime-ridden Los Angeles district of Compton saw a record spike in yet another sign of the ailing US economy, official figures showed Monday.
8 December 2008 - 2:13 p.m. EST
Hard times hit Iraq's Feast of the Sacrifice At a time of year when Muslims sacrifice animals to mark the feast of Eid al-Adha at the end of the hajj, sheep in Iraq are almost worth their weight in gold because of drought and poor pastures.
8 December 2008 - 9:05 a.m. EST
Indonesian porn law threatens Papua traditions Wearing nothing but feathers and a long, tapering gourd jutting from his groin, Papuan tribesman Suroba says the Indonesian government cannot force him to wear pants.
8 December 2008 - 3:15 p.m. EST
Croatia's olive oil producers fight quantity with quality Croatian olive farmer Sandi Chiavalon has high hopes of taking on the might and quantity of Greece, Italy and Spain with the quality of oil from his groves.
7 December 2008 - 5:39 p.m. EST
Six decades on, German-Russian war booty disputes still rage More than 60 years after the end of World War II, disputes over war booty rage on as Germany seeks, with mixed success, the return of treasures looted by the victorious Red Army.
7 December 2008 - 11:10 p.m. EST
Plastic jeans, denim paper, thanks to fashion's eco-warriors Take a load of empty plastic water bottles to manufacture jeans, or turn waste denim into paper: as eco-consciousness spreads, makers of the planet's most popular item of clothing are increasingly resorting to recycling.
8 December 2008 - 5:48 a.m. EST
Iconic Palestinian headdress brings colorful clash to Beirut The iconic black and white keffiyeh, or Arab headdress, famously donned by late Palestinian president Yasser Arafat has hit the streets of Beirut in a rainbow of colors — much to the chagrin of older Palestinians.
7 December 2008 - 9:13 p.m. EST
Solar panels to 'intelligent' barrels, winemakers on new course From solar panels to "intelligent" barrels, climate change and economic slowdown are pushing winemakers to seek new ways of getting grapes into the glass.
6 December 2008 - 11:09 p.m. EST