A long-simmering volcano exploded with a series of powerful eruptions outside one of Guatemala's most famous tourist attractions on Thursday, hurling thick clouds of ash nearly two miles (three kilometers) high, spewing rivers of lava down its flanks and prompting evacuation orders for more than 33,000 people from surrounding communities.Guatemala's head of emergency evacuations, Sergio Cabanas, s

North Korea's satellite program appears to have made steady progress, though it remains primitive, and the communist country may try for another launch in 2015, according to an analysis by a U.S.-based researcher Friday. North Korea's much-hyped rocket launch ended in failure in April. Pyongyang claims the launch was aimed at putting a satellite into orbit, but Seoul, Washington and other nations

Chanting “death to America” and “death to Israel,” hundreds of protesters angered by an anti-Islam film stormed the U.S. Embassy compound in Yemen's capital and burned the American flag on Thursday, the latest in a series of attacks on American diplomatic missions in the Middle East.The string of assaults this week, in Yemen, Egypt and the storming of a U.S. consulate in Libya that killed four Ame

The Federal Reserve announced bold steps Thursday to stimulate the still-weak U.S. economy and reduce high unemployment, saying it will spend $40 billion a month to buy mortgage-backed securities for long as necessary. The central bank also extended a plan to keep short-term interest rates at record lows -- close to zero -- through mid-2015, or six months longer than it had planned. And it said it

A Great Dane who towers 2.2 meters on his hind legs is named the tallest dog ever recorded in the latest Guinness Book of World Records launched on Thursday.The giant canine from Michigan in the United States eats an entire 14-kilogram bag of food every day and weighs in at 70.3 kilograms, the 57th edition of the global records book says.Measuring 1.12 meters from paw to withers -- the point betwe

South Korea's central bank unexpectedly froze the key interest rate for the second straight month on Thursday in an apparent bid to save ammunition for any worsening of economic conditions.Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Kim Choong-soo and his fellow policymakers unanimously left unchanged the benchmark 7-day repo rate at 3 percent for September. The decision surprised the market as most analysts had pre

Former James Bond actor Roger Moore has claimed he was a victim of domestic violence during his first two marriages, it emerged on Wednesday.The 84-year-old British star, who first played agent 007 in 1973's "Live and Let Die", said his former wives Doorn Van Steyn and Dorothy Squires subjected him to a string of attacks in both of their doomed marriages.Van Steyn, an ice skater who married Moore

South Korean stocks started lower Thursday as investors sat on the sidelines ahead of a key decision by the U.S. central bank, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 9.96 points, or 0.51 percent, to 1,940.07 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Most shares traded bearish, with top shipyard Hyundai Heavy Industries falling 0.61 percent and steelmaker POSCO sliding