ATHENS(AP) ― Furious Greeks punished the two parties that have dominated politics for decades in the crisis-battered country Sunday, leaving its multibillion dollar international bailout ― and even its future in the euro currency ― hanging in the balance.With more than 83 percent of the vote counted, Greece appeared to be heading toward political stalemate. Nobody won enough votes to form a government, and the two parties that backed the bailout ― the conservative New Democracy and socialist PAS

BEIJING (AFP) ― Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng, isolated in a Beijing hospital, on Sunday appealed for official help to leave the country after a U.S.-brokered diplomatic solution paved the way for his departure.Chen is at the centre of a major diplomatic wrangle between China and the United States after he dramatically escaped harsh house arrest in the eastern province of Shandong and sought refuge at the U.S. embassy in Beijing.He has been offered a fellowship from New York University but in

An elderly Massachusetts man who was accused of killing and eating part of his wife died at a Boston hospital, authorities said.Jiemieng Liu, 79, died of natural causes Saturday at Lemuel Shattuck Hospital under the supervision of corrections officers, the Boston Herald reported.Liu, who was charged with murder in the April 5 death of his wife, 73-year-old Yuee Zhou, was found next to her body in

About 8,000 people gathered in central Moscow to rally for fair elections, the day before Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is sworn in for a third term as Russia’s president, according to police estimates.That’s more than the 5,000 people that organizers and city officials agreed would participate in a deal was reached after protests peaked at tens of thousands in February.Putin, who has been prime m

BANGKOK (AP) -- Explosions and a fire in one of the world's largest petrochemical plants have killed 12 and injured more than 100 people in eastern Thailand.The blaze at a factory belonging to Bangkok Synthetics, a synthetic rubber manufacturer, forced an evacuation of workers and more than 1,000 residents Saturday in Rayong province, 180 kilometers (110 miles) southeast of Bangkok.Rayong governor

Scott Thompson’s job on the line amid uproar over claim of bogus college degree in computer scienceSAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― Scott Thompson’s reign as Yahoo’s CEO is in jeopardy after just four months on the job because he allowed an inaccuracy about his academic credentials to recur for years. A major Yahoo shareholder who exposed the fabrication is now leading the charge to oust Thompson for unethical conduct. In a letter Friday, activist hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb demanded that the board of th

Canada minted its final penny Friday as Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said the coin was too expensive to produce and no longer needed for business. “The real issue was that people weren’t using them, they were putting them in jars at home, and we were doing the same thing at my house,” Flaherty said. He spoke Friday at the Royal Canadian Mint in Winnipeg, Manitoba, before pushing a button that stamped the last one-cent coin. The longest-serving finance minister in the Group of Seven nations prom

BERLIN (AFP) ― Germany said on Saturday it was prepared to promote growth in the eurozone, a wish dear to Francois Hollande, the front-running candidate in this weekend’s French presidential election.“I am confident our two countries will initiate good solutions for Europe and our common currency,” German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle told Sunday newspaper the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.After the French election “we will quickly get to work on adding a growth pact to the budget

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Two of the U.S. hikers imprisoned in Iran on spying charges after straying across the border in July 2009 are set to marry over the weekend, a lawyer and friend of the couple said Friday.Shane Bauer and Sarah Shourd -- who became engaged during their time in captivity, with a ring Bauer made from the threads of his shirt -- plan to tie the knot on Saturday at an undisclosed location in California.The two will marry in a private ceremony with only friends and family present, a