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There are no clear favorites and few goals as the Copa Libertadores prepares this week for its second-leg quarterfinals in Latin America's most prestigious club tournament. If one club has a slight edge it may be Argentina's Boca Juniors, which take a 1-0 lead into the second leg on Wednesday at Brazil's Fluminense. Boca has won the title six times, surpassed only by Independiente of Argentina with seven. Also on Wednesday, Corinthians is home against fellow Brazil side Vasco da Gama after a...

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishers Inc. has filed for bankruptcy protection after reaching an agreement to eliminate $3.1 billion of its debt. The textbook publisher's move Monday came as little surprise as it announced earlier in the month that it was planning to reorganize under a prepackaged bankruptcy plan. Such plans are made with creditors and shareholders ahead of the filing for bankruptcy to speed the process. Houghton Mifflin said Monday that its plan is supported by the vast majority...

Manchester City coach Roberto Mancini has downplayed rumors he is interested in signing AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Mancini met with Milan Vice President Adriano Galliani at the Italian club's headquarters on Monday, but the former Inter Milan coach says it was simply a courtesy visit. Mancini says, "Milan fans can stay calm" but added that "Ibrahimovic is a great champion." The pair spent two years together at Inter after Mancini signed Ibrahimovic in 2006. Ibrahimovic was Serie...

Officials say that Poland's best hope for an Olympic medal in judo has been injured in a motorcycle accident and may have to skip the London Games. Polish Judo Association President Wieslaw Blach says that 24-year-old Tomasz Kowalski and 30-year-old teammate Tomasz Adamiec hit a car Sunday while riding on a motorcycle in northern Poland. Kowalski, who won a silver medal at this year's European Judo Championships, suffered serious injuries to his pelvis and lower leg. Blach says Kowalski's chances...

A stand of 132 between Alastair Cook and Ian Bell steered England to a five-wicket win over West Indies in the first test at Lord's on Monday. Cook's 79, with 10 fours from 127 balls, and Ian Bell's unbeaten 63 from 103 balls with 10 fours clinched an ultimately comfortable victory on day five. Kemar Roach took 3-60, Darren Sammy 1-25 and Shannon Gabriel 1-26, leaving England briefly in trouble early in the morning session but Cook and Bell's partnership gave the home side a 1-0 lead in the...

Which `bots are in, and which are out? That's the question the special-effects gurus at Universal Studios and Industrial Light and Magic, as well as "Transformers" director Michael Bay, first asked themselves five years ago when they started developing a $100 million theme park attraction based on the popular franchise. Much like the robots themselves, the answer changed shape. "We knew we had to have Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and Megatron," said Universal Studios producer Chick Russell. "Beyond...

The head of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Monday that he will resign as soon as a successor is confirmed to lead the country's nuclear safety agency, a decision that comes after fellow commissioners publicly rebuked Jaczko and accused him of acting like a bully. Jaczko said in a written statement that he will continue efforts to protect public safety "in a different forum." He did not offer any additional details on his future plans. "This is the right time to pass along the...

Still struggling to overcome the effects of mononucleosis, two-time Grand Slam finalist Robin Soderling said Monday he will miss the French Open, Wimbledon and the Olympics. The 27-year-old Swede said he is trying to regain his fitness after being sidelined with mononucleosis last year. "I really want to come back. I haven't turned 28 yet and hopefully I have many years left," Soderling said. "Hopefully, I'll get back into shape fairly quickly." The two-time French Open finalist hasn't played...

An audit shows that U.K. police are holding on to nearly 500 body parts they no longer need to keep for criminal justice reasons. The Association of Chief Police Officers said Monday that an investigation had determined that forces across the country are holding on to 492 organs or other body parts relating to historical cases stretching as far back as 1960. Much of the tissue was located in storage facilities at crime scene offices and specialized mortuaries. Police forces across the world...

The U.S. Defense Department says three civilian contractors helping train Yemen's coast guard were attacked in Yemen. Cmdr. Bill Speaks, a Defense Department spokesman, said Monday that injuries to the party were minor. The three were traveling in a car in the Red Sea port city of Hodeida on Sunday, when they were shot at by militants in another vehicle. It was first incorrectly reported that the workers were members of the U.S. Coast Guard.

After upsetting the odds to the win the French league title for the first time, Montpellier's next task is keeping its tight-knit squad of players together as rival Paris Saint-Germain prepares for another massive spending spree. For PSG, the humiliation of failing to win its first league title since 1994 _ despite spending more than (EURO)100 million ($132 million) on players _ will be somewhat softened by Champions League football and the arrival of more big names. Montpellier's title-winning...

Britain's Barclays Bank PLC said Monday it intends to dispose of its entire 19.6 percent stake in the U.S. asset management company BlackRock Inc., valued at $6.1 billion. The bank said it will sell its holding through a registered offering and a $1 billion share buyback by BlackRock. Barclays acquired the stake when it sold its asset management division, Barclays Global Investors, to BlackRock in 2009. Analysts at Investec Securities said the deal makes sense in that Barclays gets little advantage...

Russian President Vladimir Putin named a new Cabinet on Monday that retained some of the outgoing government's key figures but added a few fresh faces, cementing his grip on power as he begins his third presidential term. Putin, who has ruled Russia for more 12 years, kept the foreign, defense and finance ministers, but replaced some of the most unpopular Cabinet members. The dismissals, however, do not necessarily mean that they have been completely purged from officialdom. Russian media are...

A dinosaur dispute is brewing between the Mongolian government and an American auction house, which sold a fossil of a fearsome T. Rex relative despite a court order not to. The 8-foot (2.4-meter) tall, 24-foot (7.3-meter) long skeleton of a Tyannosaurus bataar _ or tarbosaurus, a name that means "alarming lizard" _ went for $1,052,500 Sunday at a New York auction, says Heritage Auctions. The auction house did not identify the buyer or seller. But the sale is contingent on the outcome of the...

Italy coach Cesare Prandelli has warned controversial striker Mario Balotelli to avoid controversy. Balotelli has been included in Italy's provisional 32-man squad for the European Championship and joined his teammates Monday at the Azzurri's training ground near Florence. Prandelli says the tournament is "an extraordinary chance" for Balotelli "to make people talk about him only for what he does on the pitch." Prandelli, who introduced a code of ethics when he became coach after the 2010...

A German football federation tribunal on Monday rejected Hertha Berlin's attempt to secure a replay of the second leg of its relegation playoff against Fortuna Duesseldorf. Hertha, which finished third from bottom of the Bundesliga, drew 2-2 last week with Fortuna _ the third-placed team in the second division _ after fan interference forced the referee to halt the game three times and fans invaded the pitch with two minutes still to play. That meant Hertha was relegated after losing 2-1 at home...

The Cannes Film Festival received a dose of theater Monday in the form of French director Alain Resnais' new film. "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" is a love letter to the acting profession that shows a troupe of thespians performing a play based on the Greek myth of lovers Orpheus and Eurydice. There are several plays-within-a-play in the drama, which features a who's who of French dramatic talent, including Lambert Wilson, Michel Piccoli and Mathieu Amalric. The 89-year-old Resnais told reporters...

Bahraini officials defended the Gulf kingdom's record before the U.N.'s top human rights body Monday by insisting that the government has moved to investigate alleged abuses and compensate victims during the 15-month uprising by majority Shiites against the ruling Sunni monarchy. The U.N. Human Rights Council's review of Bahrain's human rights record, part of a routine assessment that all 193 U.N. member nations undergo every four years, comes at a particularly sensitive time following widespread...

The founder of the environmental activist group Sea Shepherd has left a German jail after a court ordered him freed on bail pending a decision on whether he will be extradited to Costa Rica. Paul Watson told reporters he was relieved to be free, a week after his detention at Frankfurt Airport on a Costa Rican warrant. He said Monday: "I didn't expect something that happened 10 years ago to sneak up on me in Germany." Costa Rica claims that Watson, a 61-year-old Canadian, endangered a fishing...

Bankia, the nationalized Spanish bank which had to reassure savers last week to fend off a reported run on its deposits, needs to strengthen its capital defenses by as much as (EURO)7.5 billion ($9.56 billion), the country's economy minister said Monday. The minister, Luis de Guindos, said Bankia needed to find around (EURO)7 billion to (EURO)7.5 billion to meet the Spanish government's new provisioning requirements designed to strengthen the country's banking industry against further economic...

Scoreboard Monday at stumps on day five of the first test between England and West Indies at Lord's: West Indies 1st Innings: 243 England 1st Innings: 398 West Indies 2nd Innings 345 England 2nd Innings (Overnight: 10 for two) Andrew Strauss c Powell b Roach 1 Alastair Cook c K Edwards b Sammy 79 James Anderson c Ramdin b Roach 6 Jonathan Trott c Sammy b Roach 13 Kevin Pietersen c Ramdin b Gabriel 13 Ian Bell not out 63 Jonny Bairstow not out 0 Extras: (4b, 3lb, 11nb) 18 TOTAL: (for...

Actor Gary Sinise, known for playing Vietnam War amputee Lt. Dan in the film "Forrest Gump," is keeping his promise to raise money for a southwest Virginia Marine who lost his limbs while on a mine sweep in Afghanistan. After canceling a March benefit concert due to a car accident, the star of TV's "CSI: New York" is set to perform with his band, named after his fictional Lt. Dan character, in Martinsville on Thursday. The cover band's performance is part of a fundraiser to help build a specially...

England beat West Indies by five wickets in the first test at Lord's: ___ Scores: West Indies 1st Innings: 243 (Shivnarine Chanderpaul 87 not out, Adrian Barath 42; Stuart Broad 7-72, James Anderson 2-59). England 1st Innings: 398 (Andrew Strauss 122, Ian Bell 61, Jonathan Trott 58; Shannon Gabriel 3-60, Kemar Roach 3-108, Darren Sammy 2-92). West Indies 2nd Innings: 345 (Shivnarine Chanderpaul 91, Marlon Samuels 86; Stuart Broad 4-93, Graeme Swann 3-59). England 2nd Innings: 193-5 (Alastair...

Tired of seeing their country criticized as greedy and unfriendly, a group of Ukrainians on Monday announced a project to provide free accommodation, translation and other services to foreign football fans attending next month's European Championship. The Friendly Ukraine initiative unites several Web sites and offers such things as rooms, airport pickups and guided tours to football fans free-of-charge. Organizers say accommodation may be modest, but it will come from the heart and will be free....

Former Red Star Belgrade and Inter defender Sinisa Mihajlovic has been named new Serbia coach. The 43-year-old takes over from Vladimir Petrovic, who was sacked after Serbia failed to qualify for the European Championship. Mihajlovic says he is "honored" to become Serbia's coach. Mihajlovic signed a two-year contract on Monday for a reported (EURO)300,000 ($382,500). Mihajlovic takes charge more than six months after being sacked by Fiorentina in Italy's Serie A. Prior to his spell as Fiorentina...

Lucio Adan Nelson dozed on a riverboat ferrying him home from a visit with his mother when helicopters appeared overhead and started shooting. He and about a dozen other passengers traveling in the middle of the night jumped into the water for cover. The young Honduran man was hit in the arm and back, but says he couldn't seek help. "I had to stay in the water for some time because they kept shooting," he said Sunday from a hospital bed. Honduran police, who with DEA agents were aboard U.S....

Iraq's central government warned authorities in the semiautonomous Kurdish region on Monday that their oil deals with Turkey must have Baghdad's approval. The statement came a day after Iraqi Kurds announced a deal with Ankara that would allow them to export oil through Turkey to the international market, bypassing Baghdad. "We have no problem with any deals, but they have to be according to the Iraqi constitution and laws that govern relations between Baghdad and the Kurdish region," said Ali...

People in this central Greek city are rejecting the euro before it rejects them. Apostolos Arabatzis keeps bees on his farm outside Volos, and the honey from his hives helps him make ends meet. What's remarkable about this picture isn't the farmer's honey _ it's the money that he gets for it. Instead of euros Arabatzis takes TEMs, a Greek abbreviation for Local Alternative Unit. A small but growing minority in about a dozen Greek towns are using an alternative exchange system to help them survive...

Demonstrations continued in Montreal despite the introduction of a new law aimed at ending three month of protests against proposed tuition hikes, while the protest movement gained some high-profile supporters. Montreal police arrested at least 300 people and 20 were injured overnight Sunday, including 11 police officers. Quebec's provincial government passed an emergency law Friday restricting protests, including a requirement that police be informed eight hours before and told the route of...

U.S. stock futures rose Monday with a new survey suggesting that economists are a bit more optimistic about housing and employment. Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 51 points at 12,386. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures gained 5.2 points to 1,296. Nasdaq composite index futures rose 12.75 points to 2,481. However, a dimmer outlook from the world's second largest home improvement chain, Lowe's Cos., may have cooled some of the enthusiasm about the report. The most recent report...

Greece's newly installed caretaker prime minister began talks with party leaders Monday ahead of this week's European Union summit that's expected to focus on ways of kick starting economic growth across the continent. Panagiotis Pikrammenos, a senior judge who has no power to make any binding decisions, is holding successive meetings with all party leaders as campaigning gets underway for the country's crucial June 17 elections. The elections are seen as a choice on whether debt-stricken Greece...

One day after he succumbed to cancer, Bee Gee Robin Gibb was hailed in his native Britain Monday as a master musician whose interests went far beyond the recording studio. The distinctive singer, who wrote and arranged numerous hits for other major artists, was also recognized for his work on behalf of British veterans and his interests in politics, history and the Titanic. Former Prime Minister Tony Blair, a longtime friend of Gibb, said the singer had a "wonderful open and fertile mind" and...

The British Parliament's commissioner for standards has opened an investigation into Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who has faced calls for his resignation over his office's dealings with Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. John Lyon confirmed on Monday that he is looking into allegations that Hunt failed to register donations from several media companies. Lyon said the investigation is in response to a complaint from an opposition member of Parliament that Hunt had failed to disclose his participation...

The Cannes Film Festival has received a dose of theater in the form of French director Alain Resnais' new film. "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" is a love letter to the acting profession that shows a troupe of thespians performing a play based on the Greek myth of lovers Orpheus and Eurydice. There are several plays-within-a-play in the drama, which features a who's who of French dramatic talent, including Lambert Wilson, Michel Piccoli and Mathieu Amalric. The 89-year-old Resnais says he was trying...

Results Monday from the Italian Open, a (EURO)2.95 million ($3.82 million) ATP event on red clay at the Foro Italico (seedings in parentheses): Men Final Rafael Nadal (2), Spain, def. Novak Djokovic (1), Serbia, 7-5, 6-3.

Bastian Schweinsteiger has apologized to Germany's president for failing to notice his outstretched hand during a ceremony after Bayern Munich's loss to Chelsea in the Champions League final. Schweinsteiger missed Bayern's last penalty in Saturday's shootout, and Didier Drogba then stepped up to score with Chelsea's final shot. Photos showed Schweinsteiger walking past as German President Joachim Gauck held out his hand. The player says he didn't refuse the handshake. Schweinsteiger says in...

When Kohei Uchimura imagines himself collecting a gold medal at the London Olympics, he thinks about collecting one for the team. An overwhelming favorite to win the all-around gold, the most prestigious event in gymnastics, Uchimura is heading to the Olympics aiming to put Japan first. Since winning the silver medal at the Beijing Olympics, the stylish Uchimura has been unbeatable. He won his third straight title at the world championships last fall in Tokyo, joining Svetlana Khorkina as the...

New Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic is a veteran ultranationalist who claims to have transformed himself into a pro-EU populist. The 60-year-old former cemetery manager _ nicknamed Toma The Gravedigger _ had lost twice before winning against liberal Boris Tadic on Sunday. During the 1990s Balkan wars, Nikolic was the deputy leader of the extremist Serbian Radical Party, which was even more hardline than late strongman Slobodan Milosevic _ who plunged the region into its ethnic conflagration....

Scores Monday at lunch on day five of the first test between England and West Indies at Lord's: ___ West Indies 1st Innings: 243 (Shivnarine Chanderpaul 87 not out, Adrian Barath 42; Stuart Broad 7-72, James Anderson 2-59). England 1st Innings: 398 (Andrew Strauss 122, Ian Bell 61, Jonathan Trott 58; Shannon Gabriel 3-60, Kemar Roach 3-108, Darren Sammy 2-92). West Indies 2nd Innings: 345 (Shivnarine Chanderpaul 91, Marlon Samuels 86; Stuart Broad 4-93, Graeme Swann 3-59). England 2nd Innings:...

Coach Vicente del Bosque recalled Fernando Torres along with fellow Chelsea teammate Juan Mata for Spain's warm-up matches ahead of the upcoming European Championship. The struggling Torres had been dropped for Spain's most recent friendly, but the striker managed to make the squad after Chelsea won the Champions League on Saturday. The defending European champion began training on Monday for the tournament in Poland and the Ukraine without players from Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao, which will...

The town made infamous by comedian Sacha Baron Cohen's Ali G character has changed its name. The sleepy London commuter settlement of Staines has upgraded its name to the more majestic-sounding "Staines-upon-Thames." Staines' history stretches back to Roman times but the town gained international notoriety as the home of the fictional Ali G, Baron Cohen's hopelessly stupid hip-hop wannabe. Ali G's adventures cast the town of 45,000 as a cultural wasteland whose star sights included a traffic...

Through May 21 Singles 1. Victoria Azarenka, Belarus, 9,020 points. 2. Maria Sharapova, Russia, 8,390. 3. Agnieszka Radwanska, Poland, 7,080. 4. Petra Kvitova, Czech Republic, 6,275. 5. Serena Williams, United States, 5,695. 6. Samantha Stosur, Australia, 5,440. 7. Li Na, China, 4,965. 8. Marion Bartoli, France, 4,870. 9. Caroline Wozniacki, Denmark, 4,586. 10. Angelique Kerber, Germany, 3,560. 11. Vera Zvonareva, Russia, 3,440. 12. Sabine Lisicki, Germany, 3,012. 13. Ana Ivanovic,...

A new survey shows U.S. economists are growing slightly more optimistic about recovery in the job and housing markets but expect other pillars of the economy to remain weak. The National Association for Business Economists says in a report issued Monday that its forecasters expect modest growth for the remainder of the year, with the pace picking up in 2013. Still, the 54 economists NABE surveyed expect consumer spending, business investment and gross domestic product to remain below historic...

With his carefully tended hair, tight trousers and perfect harmonies, Robin Gibb, along with his brothers Maurice and Barry, defined the disco era. As part of the Bee Gees _ short for the Brothers Gibb _ they created dance floor classics like "Stayin Alive," `'Jive Talkin'," and "Night Fever" that can still get crowds onto a dance floor. The catchy songs, with their falsetto vocals and relentless beat, are familiar pop culture mainstays. There are more than 6,000 cover versions of the Bee Gees...

From a park near Albuquerque, to the top of Japan's Mount Fuji, to the California coast the effect was dramatic: The moon nearly blotting out the sun creating a blazing "ring of fire" eclipse. Millions of people across a narrow strip of eastern Asia and the Western U.S. turned their sights skyward for the annular eclipse, in which the moon passes in front of the sun leaving only a golden ring around its edges. The rare lunar-solar alignment was visible in Asia early Monday before it moved...

A Chinese conglomerate announced Monday it will buy a major U.S. cinema chain, AMC Entertainment Holdings, for $2.6 billion in China's biggest corporate takeover in the United States to date. Dalian Wanda Group Co.'s purchase reflects the global ambitions of a wave of cash-rich Chinese companies that are using acquisitions to speed their expansion by obtaining foreign skills and brand names. Wanda said the deal will create the world's biggest movie theater operator. The Beijing-based company...

Dutch judges on Monday handed down an 18- year sentence, plus involuntary psychiatric treatment for an indefinite period of time, to a pedophile who molested dozens of extremely young children in Amsterdam preschools and then shared videos and images of the acts on the Internet. The Latvian-born Dutch defendant, identified under the Netherlands' privacy laws only as Robert M., has been dubbed "The Monster of Riga" by the national press. He was convicted of abusing 67 victims, though he confessed...

Result of Monday's 11th-round match in Australia's National Rugby League: Canterbury Bulldogs 26, Cronulla 6 Previous 11th-Round Results Manly 18, Sydney Roosters 10 South Sydney 19, St. George Illawarra 18 North Queensland 30, Penrith 28 Wests Tigers 24, New Zealand Warriors 22 Byes: Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Newcastle, Gold Coast, Parramatta. Playing Wednesday: 1st State of Origin, New South Wales vs. Queensland at Melbourne.

Police in northern Italy say a father has thrown his two young children to their deaths from a sixth floor apartment balcony before jumping to his death. Brescia police spokeswoman Nicoletta Di Maio says the mother, who was home at the time, is currently in the hospital under sedation. Italian news agency ANSA said the 41-year-old man had lost his job a year ago, but it wasn't clear if economic difficulties were to blame. Italy, which is back in recession, has seen a rash of suicides in recent...

Millions of early risers in Asia turned their attention skyward to view a rare "ring of fire" eclipse as it crossed their skies Monday morning. The annular eclipse, in which the moon passes in front of the sun leaving only a golden ring around its edges, was visible to wide areas across China, Japan and elsewhere in the region before moving across the Pacific to be seen in parts of the western United States. Here is a gallery that showcases AP photos of the eclipse.

The European Union has urged newly elected Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic to pursue the course of European Union membership and to continue to seek reconciliation with Kosovo. EU Presidents Herman van Rompuy and Jose Manuel Barroso said in a joint statement Monday that the elections signified that Serbia clearly wants to get closer to the 27-nation EU. Observers said however that Sunday's victory of Nikolic could actually slow down attempts to join. The two EU leaders said: `'it will be essential...

Australia flyhalf James O'Connor won't play in the team's four tests in June against Scotland and Wales because he hasn't recovered from a lacerated liver suffered in a match in late April. O'Connor's Super 15 team, the Melbourne Rebels, said Monday that he must wait four weeks before returning to contact training, ruling him out of Australia's match against Scotland on June 3 in Newcastle, north of Sydney, and a three-test series against Wales finishing on June 23. He suffered the injury in...

The French oil company Total says it is preparing to put staff back on a North Sea platform after confirming that a gas leak has been stopped. All 238 workers aboard the Elgin platform, 240 kilometers (150 miles) from Aberdeen, Scotland, were evacuated shortly after the leak was detected on March 25. Total said Monday that it will be sending workers back to restart a drilling rig to set cement plugs in the well which was the source of the leak. Initially, the leak was pouring about 7 million...

As the torch relay traverses Britain ahead of the July 27 opening of the London Games, the IOC is looking much further ahead: Where will the Olympic flame burn eight years from now? Against a backdrop of global financial turmoil and political uncertainty, International Olympic Committee leaders meet in Quebec City this week to select a shortlist of finalists for the 2020 Summer Games. It boils down to a risk assessment of the five cities in contention _ Istanbul, Madrid, Tokyo, Doha and Baku,...

Taiwanese prosecutors say they have indicted former President Chen Shui-bian for making off with 17,000 government documents during his last days in office. Prosecutors say many of the documents were classified, and on Monday charged Chen with endangering national security. Chen was president between 2000 and 2008. He said he took the documents to prepare writing a memoir that was never finished. But prosecutors say he also took away many personal documents belonging to his political rivals....

Angolan security forces have raped women and girls from neighboring Congo who came to Angola's diamond fields in search of work, Human Rights Watch charged in a report Monday. The rights group said its investigators interviewed more than 100 victims and witnesses in 2009 and 2011, hearing story after story of "sexual violence, torture, and degrading and inhumane treatment." Most of the alleged abuse took place in grim detention facilities where migrants who entered Angola illegally are held before...

He was the embodiment of one of modern Libya's darkest chapters _ a man synonymous with horrifying scenes of wreckage, broken families and a plane that fell out of the sky a generation ago. His name, Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, was little known compared to the single word that his deeds represented: Lockerbie. Seven months after his patron dictator Moammar Gadhafi was slain in a revolution that began a new chapter for his homeland, al-Megrahi died Sunday of cancer, leaving behind countless unanswered...

Stephen Strasburg hit his first major league home run and struck out eight batters in five innings to carry the Washington Nationals past the Baltimore Orioles 9-3 in interleague play Sunday. Strasburg sent an 0-2 pitch from Chen Wei-yin into the Baltimore bullpen in the fourth inning to put the Nationals ahead 5-3. After dusting off his home run trot and returning to the dugout, Strasburg responded to a curtain call by waving to the crowd of 41,918. The hard-throwing Strasburg singled and scored...

Former Iraq international Ali Abbas has signed a two-year contract with Sydney FC in Australia's A-League football. Sydney FC said in a statement that the attacking midfielder, a member of the Iraqi national team that won the Asian Cup in 2007, had agreed to terms over the weekend and trained for the first time with the team on Monday. Abbas, who has spent the last three years playing for the A-League's Newcastle Jets, fled Iraq after playing an under-23 international against Australia north...

A man has been arrested after attacking an off-duty policeman who was refereeing a rugby match between teams of under 10-year-old players from the same club. Witnesses said the man, whose son was playing in the match, shouted "why don't you referee the game properly?" before grabbing the referee by the throat. The referee's son was also among the players. Senior Sergeant Ian Brenchley of Counties Manukau police confirmed Monday a man had been arrested but could not say what charges might be laid....

An Australian lawmaker has claimed in Parliament that his enemies had framed him to make it appear that he had misused a union credit card to pay prostitutes and cover personal expenses. Craig Thomson was suspended from the ruling Labor Party last month over allegations first raised in the media in 2009 that he had misused union money while he was head of the Health Services Union before he entered Parliament in 2007. Thomson spoke Monday after the opposition demanded he make a statement to Parliament...

Profiles of Egypt's main presidential candidates: AMR MOUSSA Former head of the Arab League, he is tainted for serving Mubarak as foreign minister but popular for his criticism of Israel which he says got him fired by Mubarak. Of secular background and West-friendly, 75-year-old Moussa benefits from image as experienced and able to fix the economy. Campaigned in poor and rural areas, promising to help them. AHMED SHAFIQ The former Air Force commander and civil aviation minister was Mubarak's...

They say their M16s are dust-prone antiques. Their boots fall apart after a couple of months, they complain, and many of their helmets are cracked and patched. Yet they set out on patrol. They are the men of the Afghan National Army, the critical part of the huge machine being built to protect Afghanistan's security after the NATO alliance is gone in less than three years. With Afghanistan topping the agenda at a gathering of NATO leaders in Chicago on Sunday and Monday, an Associated Press reporter...

On the surface, a big Wal-Mart store might seem out of place in the midst of the old-fashioned curio shops, the little dim sum eateries and the colorful lanterns and pagodas that make up one of the oldest Chinatowns in the United States. But then so does the Catholic church that offers Sunday Masses in Croatian. Or the one that performs them in Italian. Not to mention the imposing statue of French hero Joan of Arc that stands just a stone's throw from the one of modern China's founding father,...

On paper at least, European leaders agree: They need stronger growth measures to help their economies expand out of their 2 1/2-year-old government debt crisis. Figuring out exactly what those new steps might be will be the hard part. Persistent political divisions _ neatly bridged by a Group of Eight summit statement that advocates a mix of austerity and growth promotion _ and lack of money stand in the way of a comprehensive European growth strategy. Analysts said markets were likely to look...

Daniel Luduena and Oribe Peralta scored either side of halftime as Santos Laguna beat Monterrey 2-1 to claim the Mexican first-division title Sunday. Santos won the two-legged finals series 3-2 on aggregate after a 1-1 draw last week at Monterrey. The playoff decided the second half of Mexico's split season, called the Clausura. The first half title _ the Apertura _ was won by Tigres. Luduena opened the scoring in the 6th minute and Oribe Peralta extended the lead in the 65th. Aldo de Nigris...

Today is Monday, May 21, the 142nd day of 2012. There are 224 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On May 21, 1932, Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean as she landed in Northern Ireland, about 15 hours after leaving Newfoundland; Earhart's achievement came on the fifth anniversary of Charles Lindbergh's solo flight to France. On this date: In 1471, King Henry VI of England died in the Tower of London at age 49. In 1542, Spanish explorer...

A long-time governing party official took the lead late Sunday in vote counting from the Dominican Republic's presidential election, leading a brash ex-president whose last term ended with the deepest economic crisis in the country's modern history. With 60 percent of the vote counted, Danilo Medina of the ruling Dominican Liberation Party led with 51 percent, while former President Hipolito Mejia and his Dominican Revolutionary Party had nearly 47 percent. The winner needed more than 50 percent...

INTERLEAGUE Miami 101 000 030_5 10 1 Cleveland 000 010 002_3 7 0 Jo.Johnson, Choate (8), Bell (9) and Hayes D.Lowe, Hagadone (7), Accardo (8), Asencio (9) and Marson, C.Santana. W_Jo.Johnson 2-3. L_D.Lowe 6-2. Sv_Bell (5). ___ Cincinnati 000 000 302_5 10 1 New York 000 002 000_2 8 1 Cueto, Marshall (8), Ondrusek (8), Chapman (9) and Hanigan Sabathia, Wade (8), Logan (9), R.Soriano (9) and C.Stewart. W_Cueto 5-1. L_Sabathia...

NATIONAL LEAGUE BATTING_DWright, New York, .412; Kemp, Los Angeles, .359; Ruiz, Philadelphia, .355; MeCabrera, San Francisco, .353; Furcal, St. Louis, .352; Lucroy, Milwaukee, .342; McCutchen, Pittsburgh, .336. RUNS_Freeman, Atlanta, 29; Furcal, St. Louis, 29; CGonzalez, Colorado, 29; Kemp, Los Angeles, 29; Uggla, Atlanta, 29; DWright, New York, 29; 5 tied at 28. RBI_Ethier, Los Angeles, 37; Beltran, St. Louis, 33; Freeman, Atlanta, 32; CGonzalez, Colorado, 32; LaRoche, Washington, 31; Freese,...

Three young men were arraigned Sunday in the assault and carjacking of popular Detroit pastor and gospel singing icon Marvin Winans. The office of Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy identified the suspects as Detroit residents Montoya Givens and Christopher Moorehead, both 20, and Brian K. Young, 18, of Macomb County's Clinton Township. They are charged with carjacking, unarmed robbery and conspiracy, said Maria Miller, Worthy's spokeswoman. The charges carry up to life in prison. The men appeared...

East Division W L Pct GB Atlanta 26 16 .619 _ Washington 24 17 .585 1 1/2 Miami 22 19 .537 3 1/2 New York 22 19 .537 3 1/2 Philadelphia 21 21 .500 5 Central Division W L Pct GB St. Louis 22 19 .537 _ Cincinnati 21 19 .525 1/2 Pittsburgh 19 22 .463 3 Houston 18 23 .439 4 Milwaukee 17 24 .415...

Millions of early risers in Asia turned their attention skyward to view a rare "ring of fire" eclipse as it crossed their skies Monday morning. The annular eclipse, in which the moon passes in front of the sun leaving only a golden ring around its edges, was visible to wide areas across China, Japan and elsewhere in the region before moving across the Pacific to be seen in parts of the western United States. Here is a gallery that showcases AP photos of the eclipse.

Millions in Asia and the western United States watched as a rare "ring of fire" eclipse crossed their skies. The annular eclipse, in which the moon passes in front of the sun leaving only a golden ring around its edges, was visible to wide areas across Asia early Monday. It then moved across the Pacific and was also seen in parts of the western United States Sunday afternoon. Viewing parties were held in Reno, Nevada, Oakland, California, and elsewhere. In some parts of the U.S., special camera...

Wet weather will continue Tuesday in Japan as a low pressure system south of Kyushu lifts northeastward. Winds wrapping around the system and an associated warm front will spread light to moderate rain showers across much of northern Honshu. Heightened instability throughout the northern portion of the island may also stir up clusters of thunderstorms during the afternoon and evening. Behind the departing system, drier air will spread into Kyushu and Shikoku. To the west, high pressure will continue...

With his carefully tended hair, tight trousers and perfect harmonies, Robin Gibb, along with his brothers Maurice and Barry, defined the disco era. As part of the Bee Gees _ short for the Brothers Gibb _ they created dance floor classics like "Stayin Alive," `'Jive Talkin'," and "Night Fever" that can still get crowds onto a dance floor. The catchy songs, with their falsetto vocals and relentless beat, are familiar pop culture mainstays. There are more than 6,000 cover versions of the Bee Gees...

A baseball jersey worn by Babe Ruth has sold for more than $4.4 million, a record for any item of sports memorabilia, according to the buyer and seller. SCP Auctions says the circa 1920 New York Yankees uniform top is the earliest known jersey worn by The Bambino and it fetched $4,415,658 at the company's April auction, which ended Sunday. SCP Auctions says that price broke the previous record of $4,338,500 set in 2010 for James Naismith's founding rules of basketball. Lelands.com says it submitted...

Even Colombians accustomed to treachery and deceit after more than a half-century of civil conflict and drug violence were stunned by the arrest of a one-time provincial lawmaker for allegedly helping plan the mass kidnapping of 11 colleagues later slain by leftist rebels. Even more remarkable, the alleged traitor was among the kidnapped, and "miraculously" survived seven years later when the others were killed in murky circumstances. "I can't get it in my head that this could actually have been...

P _ Lineup after Sunday qualifying for the May 27 IndyCar-Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (with rank, car number, driver, chassis-engine, time and speed in parentheses): 1. (2) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Chevrolet, 2:38.9514 (226.484 mph; 364.491 kph). 2. (27) James Hinchcliffe, Dallara-Chevrolet, 2:38.9537 (226.481). 3. (28) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Chevrolet, 2:39.1233 (226.240). 4. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara- Chevrolet, 2:40.6766 (225.456). 5. (12) Will Power, Dallara-Chevrolet, 2:39.7004...

Nine cars made the field on their first qualifying attempts, ending any potential last-minute drama and assuring the May 27 Indianapolis 500 will start with a full field of 33 cars for 64th consecutive year. Things went almost as smoothly Sunday as race organizers could have expected. "We're happy to see it," Indianapolis Motor Speedway CEO Jeff Belskus said. "There was very little doubt in my mind that we wouldn't. To put it another way, I was confident we would end up with 33 cars." For the...

Yahoo Inc. may finally be nearing a deal to sell half of its prized stake in the major Chinese e-commerce provider Alibaba. The struggling U.S. Internet company has been negotiating on and off for at least a year to sell a portion of its 40 percent stake in the Alibaba Group. Citing unnamed sources, Bloomberg Businessweek said Sunday that an announcement could be imminent. AllThingsD, the Wall Street Journal's technology blog, also reported last week that the Internet company was close to selling...

The CEO of NASDAQ says the stock exchange is "humbly embarrassed" by its bungling of Facebook's hugely anticipated debut as a public company on Friday. Robert Greifeld tells news media there's no indication the delay contributed to the underwhelming performance of Facebook's stock, which ended at $38.23 _ 23 cents above where it began. Facebook's stock was expected to start trading at 11 a.m. but didn't open until 11:32 a.m., and some investors didn't learn for hours whether their orders went...

"The Avengers" continues to muscle out everything else Hollywood throws at it, easily sinking naval rival "Battleship" and other new releases. With $55.1 million domestically, Disney's superhero sensation remained No. 1 for a third-straight weekend and took in more than the three big newcomers combined. Overseas, "The Avengers" added an additional $56 million. The film is approaching the $1.2 billion mark worldwide, totaling $457.1 million domestically and $723.3 million internationally. "`The...

Tropical Storm Alberto hovered off the South Carolina and Georgia coasts on Sunday, canceling tourist cruises, producing showers along the coast and serving as a reminder that the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season is just around the corner. The first storm of the season that officially begins June 1 was not expected to approach landfall on the Carolinas' coast, but it had prompted a tropical storm watch and forecasters warned that it could produce high winds, heavy surf, rip currents and scattered...

Eric Brunner's goal in the 19th minute broke a three-match scoring drought as the Portland Timbers went on to defeat the Chicago Fire 2-1 on Sunday. An own-goal in the 52nd minute proved to be the winner for the Timbers, who had played to scoreless draws in their last two matches. Jalil Anibaba scored the lone goal for the Fire. The loss ended a two-game winning streak on the road for Chicago. The Timbers were coming off a 0-0 draw at Houston on Tuesday. That followed a scoreless match at home...

A handful of protesters briefly interrupted a Maine college graduation speech by former British Prime Minister Tony Blair calling for world unity. Blair addressed more than 400 Colby College graduates and their guests Sunday morning at the school's 191st commencement in Waterville. Police say the protesters shouted phrases such as "warmonger" and "war criminal" during Blair's speech. One person was arrested. In his address, Blair appealed for international cooperation and for people to try...

At the tender age of 11, Cecilia Moseley already appears versed in the virtues of fitness. But she was left star-struck Sunday after first lady Michelle Obama and an audience of global leaders reinforced the message in person. The sixth-grader beamed after chatting about exercise with Obama at south Chicago's Gary Comer Youth Center, where the first lady led a handful of dignitaries or significant others of European leaders here for the NATO summit on a tour. The youth center is just minutes from...

EASTERN CONFERENCE W D L GF GA Pts New York 8 1 3 25 17 25 D.C. 7 3 4 25 17 24 Sporting Kansas City 7 1 3 15 9 22 Chicago 4 3 3 13 11 15 New England 4 1 6 14 15 13 Houston 3 4 3 10 11 13 Columbus 3 3 4 9 12 12 Montreal 3 3 6 13 18 12 Philadelphia 2 2 6 8 13 8 Toronto FC 0 0 9 7 21 0 WESTERN CONFERENCE...

AMERICAN LEAGUE BATTING_Hamilton, Texas, .389; Konerko, Chicago, .367; Jeter, New York, .347; Ortiz, Boston, .335; AJackson, Detroit, .331; Andrus, Texas, .325; Sweeney, Boston, .311. RUNS_Kinsler, Texas, 35; Hamilton, Texas, 33; AdJones, Baltimore, 32; De Aza, Chicago, 30; AJackson, Detroit, 29; Ortiz, Boston, 29; Pedroia, Boston, 28; Reddick, Oakland, 28. RBI_Hamilton, Texas, 47; MiCabrera, Detroit, 34; Encarnacion, Toronto, 34; ADunn, Chicago, 32; Butler, Kansas City, 31; AdJones, Baltimore,...

One couple lost their teenage son to suicide in the days after his college roommate used a webcam to see him kiss another man in September 2010; the other fears their son will be sent to prison this week for doing the spying. The parents of Tyler Clementi and Dharun Ravi, on opposite sides of a tragedy that would horrify any parents, have been in the public eye throughout the criminal case, but they've remained circumspect when choosing their public words about their predicaments and their sons....

Nationalist candidate Tomislav Nikolic won the Serbian presidency, a result that adds to the political turmoil in the Balkan country and could slow down its attempts to join the European Union. The Center for Free Elections and Democracy, an independent polling group, said Monday that Nikolic won 49.4 percent of the vote, while pro-European Union incumbent Boris Tadic received 47.4 percent. Tadic conceded defeat, saying, "I wish Nikolic the best of luck." The results are expected to be officially...

A magnitude-6.0 earthquake shook several small towns in northeast Italy, killing four people, knocking down a clock tower and other centuries-old buildings and causing millions in losses to the region known for making Parmesan cheese. The quake struck at 4:04 a.m. Sunday, with its epicenter about 35 kilometers (22 miles) north of Bologna at a relatively shallow depth of 5 kilometers (3.2 miles), the U.S. Geological Survey said. Civil protection agency official Adriano Gumina described it as...

Eight months after breaking his leg in a training accident, Dutchman Robert Gesink sealed his overall race title Sunday with a main field finish in the eighth stage of the Amgen Tour of California. Peter Sagan of Slovakia won the final leg. The 22-year-old Sagan claimed the 42.6-mile road race from Beverly Hills to downtown Los Angeles with a late burst to take his fifth win of the eight-stage event. The 25-year-old Gesink, who rides for Rabobank, was victorious over American rider Dave Zabriskie...

Seimone Augustus scored 19 points to lead the Minnesota Lynx before leaving with an injury to her ribs as the defending WNBA champions didn't let up in a 105-83 season-opening victory over the Diana Taurasi-less Phoenix Mercury on Sunday. Augustus was hurt late in the third quarter when she leaped to save a loose ball and landed with her midsection on top of a courtside seat. After walking off on her own, she prompted a hearty cheer when she came back to the bench in the fourth quarter with the...

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay arrived Sunday in Zimbabwe on the first mission to the troubled southern African nation by the world rights chief. Officials said Pillay's weeklong trip is at the invitation of the three-year coalition government formed in 2009 after disputed, violent elections plagued by rights abuses blamed mainly on militants of President Robert Mugabe's party and loyalist police and troops. "I am here to assess the human rights situation," Pillay told reporters...

NATO says that its European missile shield is up and running with a basic capability to shoot down incoming missiles. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Sunday the declaration of "interim capability" at the alliance's summit in Chicago is a first step toward a goal of establishing full coverage of Europe by 2018. A final stage is planned for 2022 that would also provide coverage of the United States from Europe. The Obama administration has touted the progress as a sign of alliance...

The Brazilian league kicked off Sunday with defending champion Corinthians losing 1-0 to Fluminense at home and Argentine striker German Herrera scoring a hat trick in Botafogo's 4-2 win over Sao Paulo. Defender Leandro Euzebio gave Fluminense the win in Sao Paulo with a header in the 72nd minute of a match in which both teams played without regular starters because of the Copa Libertadores. Herrera came off the bench and scored all his goals in the second half at the Engenhao stadium in Rio...

Boca Juniors defeated Racing Club 2-0 on Sunday to take sole possession of first place in Argentina's first division. Second-half substitute Lucas Viatri scored a spectacular goal in the 69th minute, receiving a pass with a back heel and flicking it instantly over his shoulder _ then chasing it down and pounding home a 15-meter (yard) volley. Nicolas Blandi added another in the 82nd on a rising, 15-meter (yard) shot. Boca has 29 points in 15 matches, one better than Tigre and Newell's. Boca...

United States and NATO officials say the North Atlantic alliance has no intention of intervening militarily to quell violence in Syria. NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and U.S. Ambassador to NATO Ivo Daalder said members of the alliance continue to seek ways to pressure Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime so it abides by a peace plan brokered by special envoy Kofi Annan. Last year, NATO conducted air strikes in Libya that helped topple strongman Moammar Gadhafi. But Daalder said...

Results from the first round of the Brazilian first-division football championship (home teams listed first): Saturday's Games Palmeiras 1, Portuguesa 1 Sport 1, Flamengo 1 Figueirense 2, Nautico 1 Sunday's Games Botafogo 4, Sao Paulo 2 Corinthians 0, Fluminense 1 Interncional 2, Coritiba 0 Ponte Preta 0, Atletico Mineiro 1 Vasco da Gama 2, Gremio 1 Cruzeiro 0, Atletico Goianiense 0 Bahia 0, Santos 0 Saturday, May 26 Flamengo vs. Internacional Portuguesa vs. Vasco da Gama Atletico...