Syrian troops pursued a scorched earth campaign in the northern mountains, but refugees who had fled to Turkey said some soldiers had revolted in a bid to defend civilians.

Security forces patrolled the streets and manned roadblocks Tuesday in a southern Chinese city where rioting factory workers attacked police stations and torched vehicles over the weekend, residents said.

China's inflation rose to its highest level in nearly three years in May, due largely to stubbornly high food prices, adding to economic and social strains that have fanned recent protests.

Cloud of ash spewing from a Chilean volcano caused chaos for air travelers in South America again on Monday and grounded flights as far away as New Zealand and Australia, stranding thousands of passengers.

Attackers set off two car bombs outside a government compound east of Baghdad Tuesday, then stormed into the building and took an unknown number of hostages, Iraqi officials said.

Senators Jim Webb and James Inhofe, the chair and ranking member of the US Senate Foreign Relations East Asian and Pacific Affairs Subcommittee on June 13 introduced a Senate resolution condemning China’s repeated use of force in the East Sea.

Libyan rebels edged slowly beyond their western stronghold of Misrata toward Tripoli, but faced supply shortages after shelling from Muammar Gaddafi forces hit a key refinery in the city.  

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has shortlisted two candidates to take over as its managing director.  

Seven Republican presidential contenders meet face-to-face in their first major debate on June 13, with former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney shaping up as the front-runner for the 2012 race.

A pair of earthquakes with magnitudes of at least 5.0 struck within 90 minutes of each near Christchurch, New Zealand, on June 13, the US Geological Survey reported, reviving vivid memories of a deadly quake that killed more than 180 people in February.