Myanmar court convicts Muslims over violence YANGON, Myanmar (AP) -- Authorities in Myanmar say a court has found two Muslim women guilty of sparking a recent outbreak of sectarian violence in the country, one of them by bumping into a novice monk....China, Vietnam agree to set up hotline BEIJING (AP) -- China and Vietnam agreed on Wednesday to set up a hotline to resolve fishing incidents in disputed South China Sea waters that have been a frequent source of tensions between the two ideological allies....Markets drift as investors ready for Fed LONDON (AP) -- Markets drifted lower Wednesday ahead of a keenly awaited policy statement from the U.S. Federal Reserve....Monsoon floods kill 102 in India, strand pilgrims LUCKNOW, India (AP) -- India's prime minister said Wednesday that the death toll from flooding this week in the northern state of Uttrakhand had surpassed 100 and could rise substantially....Afghan leader backs away from Taliban talks KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Afghanistan's president said Wednesday he will not pursue peace talks with the Taliban unless the United States steps out of the negotiations, while also insisting the militant group stop its violent attacks on the ground after it claimed responsibility for a rocket attack that killed four Americans....China's Xi harks back to Mao in party 'cleanup' BEIJING (AP) -- China's new leader Xi Jinping is commanding wayward Communist Party cadres to purify themselves of corruption, and he's summed it up in a pithy slogan as Mao Zedong might have done: Look in the mirror, take a bath....UN, US ask Filipinos not to leave Golan Heights MANILA, Philippines (AP) -- The United Nations and the U.S. have separately asked the Philippines not to withdraw its more than 300 peacekeepers from the Golan Heights, warning of "maximum volatility" in the region after several other countries decided to pull out their peacekeeping forces amid escalating violence, the Philippines' top diplomat said Wednesday.... KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Afghan president: No peace talks with the Taliban unless only Afghans involved, violence stops....UN chief warns of new peacekeeping threats BEIJING (AP) -- U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday the world body's peacekeeping efforts face growing dangers from non-traditional threats such as suicide bombers and improvised explosive devices....Malaysia budget airport launch pushed to May 2014 KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) -- The opening of a new airport to accommodate budget carriers has been delayed until next year because of design changes and other construction setbacks, Malaysia's airport operator says....
