The White House says it believes Israel "has the right to defend itself" against attack and that the Israelis will make their own decisions about their "military tactics and operations."

William Turnbull, a highly regarded British sculptor who drew inspiration from primitive forms, has died at age 90.

The Israeli military says its "Iron Dome" rocket-defense system has shot down an incoming projectile bound for Tel Aviv.

The head of Germany's central bank says Greece will eventually need another debt write-off - but it can't be offered one now and must first work though a long list of reforms.

U.S. officials say a Texas truck driver who says he made a wrong turn into Mexico with a trailer full of ammunition has been released from prison but remains in the custody of immigration authorities.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin says his sacked former defense minister isn't facing charges and may get a new official job.

Britain's High Court has ruled that a Christian was unfairly demoted for posting his opposition to gay marriage on Facebook.

Indonesia has asked Southeast Asian countries and China to establish emergency communication lines to allow officials to rapidly contain any outbreak of violence in disputed South China Sea territories as a solution to the long-unresolved conflicts remains elusive.

A British radio station has suspended the radio program of a disc jockey who has been arrested as part of a national child sex abuse scandal.

The French-speaking city of Montreal has elected an English-speaking mayor for the first time in 100 years.

Organizers of the annual bullfighting festival in Ecuador's capital are calling it quits a year after it stopped killing bulls in accordance with the will of voters.

The U.N. nuclear agency says Iran is poised to double output of higher-enriched uranium that can be turned easily into the core of a nuclear warhead.

Ikea "deeply regrets" use of forced prison labor by suppliers in communist East Germany.

Uruguay's president has canceled his trip to the Ibero-American Summit in Spain, saying doctors have ordered bed rest after a painful blood clot was found in his lower right leg.

The search for three European hikers on a snowy volcano in southern Chile now has high-tech help and a fresh group of volunteers, but heavy clouds are setting them back.

Southeast Asian leaders plan to adopt a human rights declaration aimed at fighting torture and illegal arrests in a region notorious for violations, despite calls for a postponement by the U.N. rights chief, who says the pact falls short of international standards.

The second annual Solar Challenge has begun in Chile's Atacama desert, where 15 solar-powered cars rolled out of an old salt mine Thursday.

Brazilian researchers are turning to cloning to help fight the perilous decline of several animal species.

Press freedom groups are demanding that Mexico investigate the shooting death of a freelance journalist just after he reportedly witnessed a confrontation at a highway checkpoint.

Israel has begun moving troops toward the Gaza Strip and authorized the call-up of reservists for a possible ground invasion of the Palestinian territory.

Tel Aviv residents say they heard an explosion following an air-raid alert across the city, raising fears of a Gaza rocket strike on Israel's commercial capital.

France's foreign minister raised the prospect Thursday of sending "defensive weapons" to Syrian rebels, saying his country will ask the European Union to consider lifting its arms embargo on the Middle East nation.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has arrived in Bangkok for talks with senior Thai officials in advance of President Barack Obama's visit this weekend.

Israel has been hitting dozens of targets in Gaza, in the most intense attack since an Israeli offensive four years ago.

A senior Russian diplomat is urging convening of new talks over Iran's nuclear program to break a months-long standoff.