Rescuers race to drain water to save 12 trapped boys, coach in Thailand

With more rain coming, rescuers are racing against time to pump out water from a flooded Thailand cave before they can extract 12 boys and their soccer coach with minimum risk, officials said on Thursday.

Kim Dotcom loses latest extradition appeal

WELLINGTON - Internet entrepreneur and Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom can be extradited to the United States to face racketeering and criminal copyright charges, New Zealand's Court of Appeal ruled on Thursday.

Experts: BRICS members could use good governance to fight social ills

JOHANNESBURG - BRICS members could use good governance to alleviate social ills, including grinding poverty and inequality between the rich and the poor, according to experts.

Tensions flare up despite global efforts

Tensions between the United States and Iran further escalated ahead of a key diplomatic meeting in Vienna on Friday, with the Iranian leader threatening to block the Strait of Hormuz and the US vowing to keep the waterway open.

Kremlin denies involvement in 2nd UK poisoning

The Kremlin said on Thursday that Russia is concerned over a second case of nerve agent poisoning in England, emphasizing that Russia has nothing to do with either case.

Scandal-hit US agency chief could face ax

WASHINGTON - Facing scandals over the spending and behavior of his environment agency chief, Scott Pruitt, US President Donald Trump appears close to firing the man he appointed to dismantle Barack Obama's green legacy.

Trump pressed aides on Venezuela invasion

BOGOTA, Colombia - As a meeting last August in the Oval Office to discuss sanctions on Venezuela was concluding, US President Donald Trump turned to his top aides and asked an unsettling question: With a fast unraveling Venezuela threatening regional security, why can't the United States just simply invade the troubled country?

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Iran seeks incentives to save accord

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's meeting with Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen on Wednesday is being hailed by European analysts as "critical" in saving a landmark nuclear deal signed in the Austrian capital in 2015, which risks falling apart after the withdrawal of the United States in May

Allies defend military spending

BRUSSELS - NATO allies are pushing back against US criticism that they are not spending enough on defense as President Donald Trump ratchets up pressure ahead of a summit next week.

41 still missing after ferry tips over

JAKARTA - Passengers trapped for a night on a stricken ferry off the Indonesian island of Sulawesi were rescued early on Wednesday, an official said, as the death toll rose to 29.

Hard Brexit will make people worse off

Britain's Institute for Public Policy Research has found that a hard Brexit would have an adverse impact on lower-income groups and all those outside London, because household spending involved goods and services that will be hit by price rises.