Rwandan authorities have begun releasing 36,000 inmates, the majority of whom have confessed to taking part in the country's 1994 genocide . The cabinet approved the provisional mass release on Wednesday in a bid to free up the country's overcrowded jails, which are past capacity with more than 80,000 inmates. According to Rwanda's Prosecutor General, [...]

Ugandans voters overwhelmingly endorsed democratic reform in a Thursday referendum on whether to restore multi-party politics after a nearly 20 year absence. The final results were still being calculated Friday, but early returns from 15 percent of polling stations showed more than 90 percent of voters had backed a return to multiple parties. Though a [...]

Army mechanic Sgt. Kevin Benderman was acquitted Thursday of desertion from a unit heading for duty in Iraq, but was convicted of a lesser charge related to intentionally evading deployment. After applying for conscientious-objector status 11 days before his unit deployed, Benderman failed to show up when his Third Infantry Division unit departed. Benderman was [...]

According to two US anti-terrorism officials involved in the arrest, Zambian officials have detained Haroon Rashid Aswat, wanted in the US for allegedly attempting to establish an al-Qaeda training camp in Oregon in 1999, and in the UK for questioning in relation to the recent London bombings , after he crossed the border from Zimbabwe. [...]

Government officials in Zimbabwe said Thursday that the program of demolitions and forced evictions called Operation Murambatsvina has ended, but opposition leaders insist that demolitions and beatings are continuing and claim a top opposition official had been detained. International and domestic criticisms of the program have been widespread, with a report by a UN envoy [...]

London police, reportedly using flash grenades, raided two apartment blocks in Notting Hill Friday making several arrests related to the failed July 21 London subway and bus bombings . Police would not elaborate as to who was arrested, but British news media say that at least two of the three men still being sought for [...]

Senate Judiciary Committee member Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) told reporters Thursday that Senate Democrats will make a "limited and targeted" request for documents pertaining to Supreme Court nomineee John G. Roberts, Jr. . The request reportedly focuses on about 20 of the more than 300 cases Roberts worked on during his tenure as deputy solicitor [...]

The US Department of State backtracked from prior statements Thursday evening and acknowledged that Bush UN ambassador nominee John Bolton provided Congress with inaccurate information about an investigation. The State Department had earlier insisted Bolton's answer in a confirmation process questionnaire "was truthful" when he said he hadn't been questioned or given information to jury [...]

The Vatican said Thursday that not all attacks by Palestinian militants against the Jewish state have received their condemnation because Israel's military response has at times violated international law. The statement came in response to criticism from Israel over Pope Benedict XVI's failure to condemn the July 12 terrorist strikes against Israelis in a speech [...]

The Supreme Court of Honduras held Thursday that the Supreme Electoral Court violated two constitutional provisions in June when it opened the door for religious figures to run for public office. The constitutional ban for political activity by religious leaders is stated in the 1982 Honduran Constitution and is based on a 1830 announcement by [...]