WASHINGTON (AFP) ― A dissident at the center of a standoff between Beijing and Washington on Tuesday accused Chinese authorities of a pattern of abuse against his family as he again took his case to U.S. lawmakers.Chen Guangcheng, a blind self-taught lawyer who last month dramatically escaped house arrest for the safety of the U.S. embassy, telephoned a hearing of the U.S. Congress for the second time this month from a hospital bed in Beijing.Unlike in the previous hearing, Chen did not voice co

Prosecutors in Sweden said an attempted thief who was foiled by a 101-year-old woman wielding a stick has been charged with aggravated theft and fraud.Police said the 44-year-old man, who allegedly stole from 16 households of elderly people in December and January by posing as a police officer, entered Barbro Bostrom's Umea home in January, claimed to be an officer and roughly pushed his way into

Police in New York state said they arrested a man accused of agreeing to do a favor for a friend and shoot him in the leg.State Police said Shawn Mossow, 25, of Norfolk allegedly shot a 24-year-old friend in the leg with a .22-caliber rifle Sunday in Stockholm because the other man was curious about what it would feel like and asked him to take the shot, the Potsdam, N.Y., publication North County

BEIJING (AP) _ China criticized British Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday for meeting with the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, saying it amounts to support for Tibet's independence from Chinese rule.The British government ignored Beijing's objections in going ahead with Monday's meeting in London, and doing so "hurts the feelings of the Chinese people," meddles in China's aff

NEW YORK (AFP) - Disgraced ex-IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn is countersuing the New York hotel maid whose accusation of sexual assault last year brought down his glittering political career.The countersuit, signed Monday and made public Tuesday, seeks at least $1 million plus undetermined punitive damages from the maid, Nafissatou Diallo, who is accused of "falsely and maliciously asserting" sh

ISLAMABAD (AFP) -- NATO on Tuesday invited the Pakistani president to next week's summit in Chicago, as Islamabad looked poised to end a nearly six-month blockade on NATO supplies for Afghanistan, officials said.NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said President Asif Ali Zardari would take part in the second day of the summit which will focus on Afghanistan, where coalition combat troops are planning t

LONDON (AFP) - Britain's government on Tuesday defended plans to let civil servants work from home during the London Olympics, insisting staff will not use it as an opportunity to shirk their normal duties.From July 21 -- six days before the opening ceremony -- until the Paralympic closing ceremony on September 9, ministries will allow staff to work from home to avoid the widely anticipated bottle

OSLO (AFP) - A man set himself on fire on Tuesday outside the Oslo courthouse where Anders Behring Breivik is on trial for killing 77 people in twin attacks last July, police said.The man, whose identity was not revealed, suffered serious injuries, Norwegian police said."The man crossed the street and set himself on fire," Kjell Jan Kvarme, head of police security operations outside the courthouse

Palestinian prisoners reached a deal with Israel to end a mass hunger strike in exchange for better conditionsJERUSALEM (AFP) ― Israel is bracing for possible unrest on Tuesday, when Palestinians commemorate the exodus of hundreds of thousands of their kin following the foundation of the Jewish state in 1948.Nakba Day, marked annually on May 15, is normally marked by protest, and often by clashes with Israelis in the Palestinian territories.“We are coordinating with the military and border polic

PARIS (AFP) -- Socialist leader Francois Hollande was sworn in as president of France on Tuesday at a solemn ceremony overshadowed by the catastrophic debt crisis threatening to unravel the eurozone.After brief ceremonies in Paris, the 57-year-old career politician was to dash to Berlin to confront Chancellor Angela Merkel over their very different visions as to how to save the single currency bloc.“Power will be exercised at the summit of the state with dignity and simplicity,” Hollande declare

NEW YORK (AP) ― President Barack Obama on Monday defended his view that gay couples should have the right to marry, saying that the country has never gone wrong when it “expanded rights and responsibilities to everybody.”“That doesn’t weaken families. That strengthens families,” he told gay and lesbian supporters and others at a fundraiser hosted by singer Ricky Martin and the LGBT Leadership Council. “It’s the right thing to do.”The remarks were his first to such an audience since he announced

An 18-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of burglary after police say he left his homework at the crime scene.Police in Orem, Utah, say they tracked a USB drive found at the burglarized home to Dallas Naljahih. They say the computer hard drive contained his homework and was in a backpack abandoned in the backyard.A 75-year-old man and his wife reported their home had been burglarized early Sat