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AP International NewsBrief at 3:22 p.m. EST(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) NKorea puts artillery forces at top combat postureSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ North Korea's military warned Tuesday that its artillery and rocket forces are at their highest-level combat posture in the latest in a string of bellicose threats aimed at South Korea and the United States. The announcement came as South Koreans marked the third anniversary of the sinking of a warship in which 46 South Korean sailors died. Seoul says the ship was hit by a North Korean torpedo, while the North denies involvement. Italian court orders new trial for Amanda KnoxROME (AP) _ Italy's highest criminal court ordered a whole new trial for Amanda Knox and her former Italian boyfriend on Tuesday, overturning their acquittals in the gruesome slaying of her British roommate. The move extended a prolonged legal battle that has become a cause celebre in the United States and raised a host of questions about how the next phase of Italian justice would play out. Mortars strike Damascus, killing as many as 4DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) _ Mortar rounds struck several areas of Damascus on Tuesday, killing up to four people, a government official said, while anti-regime activists said Syrian troops seized control of a neighborhood in the central city of Homs that is considered a symbol of opposition to President Bashar Assad's regime. The Syrian military's recapture of Baba Amr came as opposition representatives took the country's seat for the first time at an Arab League summit, a significant diplomatic boost for the rebellion. Cuba cleric: Francis criticized church at conclaveHAVANA (AP) _ Pope Francis issued a strong critique of the church before the College of Cardinals just hours before it selected him as the new pontiff, according to comments published Tuesday by a Roman Catholic magazine in Cuba. According to Havana Cardinal Jaime Ortega, then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio urged the Vatican to eschew self-absorption and refocus its energies outward. Kerry in Paris to talk Syria with FrenchPARIS (AP) _ U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in Paris for talks with French officials about aid to the Syrian opposition and the situation in Mali. Kerry arrived in the French capital Tuesday on the last leg of a five-nation trip that also took him to Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan with President Barack Obama and then on his own to Iraq and Afghanistan. Arab League summit showcases Qatar's swaggerDOHA, Qatar (AP) _ Qatar's emir looked over an assembly of Arab leaders Tuesday as both cordial host and impatient taskmaster. His welcoming remarks to kings, sheiks and presidents across the Arab world quickly shifted to Qatar's priorities: Rallying greater support for Syrian rebels and helping Palestinians with efforts such as a newly proposed $1 billion fund to protect Jerusalem's Arab heritage. No one seemed surprised at the paternal tone or the latest big-money initiative. In a matter of just a few years, hyper-wealthy Qatar has increasingly staked out a leadership role once held by Egypt and helped redefine how Arab states measure influence and ambition. Chimps, gorillas, other apes being lost to tradeBANGKOK (AP) _ The multibillion-dollar trade in illegal wildlife _ clandestine trafficking that has driven iconic creatures like the tiger to near-extinction _ is also threatening the survival of great apes, a new U.N. report says. Endangered chimpanzees, orangutans, gorillas and bonobos are disappearing from the wild in frightening numbers, as private owners pay top dollar for exotic pets, while disreputable zoos, amusement parks and traveling circuses clamor for smuggled primates to entertain audiences. In Russia, teen complains of adoptive US parentsMOSCOW (AP) _ A teenager adopted by an American couple has returned to Russia after five years, claiming that his adoptive family treated him badly and that he lived on the streets of Philadelphia and stole just to survive, according to Russian state media reports. The allegations by Alexander Abnosov, now 18, will likely fuel outrage here over the fate of Russian children adopted by Americans. It's an anger that the Kremlin has carefully stoked to justify its controversial ban on U.S. adoptions. Politics rule everyday govt in VenezuelaCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) _ A sea of marchers in red and yellow T-shirts flowed through the capital's main downtown boulevard, paralyzing traffic while state TV cameras stood ready to record every second. The crowd had come out to show their support for the late President Hugo Chavez and his successor Nicolas Maduro, but they weren't student activists or community organizers. The march had been launched by state-run telecommunications company CANTV, and the hundreds of employees were heading for the presidential palace to "deliver" the company's 2012 dividends to Maduro, Venezuela's acting leader and the official candidate to replace Chavez. Gypsies flock to bridal fair as parents negotiateSTARA ZAGORA, Bulgaria (AP) _ Donka Hristova lets her mother pull her skintight mini-dress a half-inch down her leg. Checking her makeup one last time, she joins her two younger sisters in a provocative dance. The Gypsy girl knows she has to look her best. She is, after all, on an important life mission: catching the eye of one of the hundreds of young Gypsy guys prowling around what locals have dubbed the "bridal market" to initiate a complex ritual of haggling that could lead to marriage. (c) 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |