AP NewsBreak: China holds, mistreats US geologist for 2 years on state secrets charges. Sometime into his long detention by China's feared state security agents, American geologist Xue Feng had something to show U.S. consular officials on their monthly visit. He rolled up his sleeve, revealing the burns where his interrogators pressed lit cigarettes into his arm.

BUTLERVILLE, Indiana (Reuters) - They arrive at the meeting by U.S. military helicopter, politely accept a cup of tea and haggle over a U.S.-funded water project gone awry.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Honduras' de facto leader should make good on an offer to step aside for a week so voters can focus on November 29 polls and resolve the country's political crisis, the U.S. State Department said Friday.

The United States on Friday welcomed a move by interim Honduran leader Roberto Micheletti to step down briefly, saying it boosted chances for ending the months-long political showdown.

Diplomats from 6 world powers urge Iran to accept UN nuclear plan. Representatives of six world powers urged Iran on Friday to accept a U.N. plan aimed at delaying its ability to build a nuclear weapon, as the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency warned Tehran not to miss the opportunity to resolve the dispute.

UN committee targets Iran's human rights violations and crackdown on election opponents. A key U.N. committee approved a resolution Friday urging Iran to halt the persecution of political opponents following the country's disputed presidential election and release those still detained.

An elderly US couple charged with spying for Cuba for almost 30 years pleaded guilty in the conspiracy Friday, with the husband agreeing to serve a life sentence, the US Justice Department said.

AP News in Brief. Three Democratic moderates to decide fate of health bill ? for now ? in crucial Saturday vote

Retired State Department worker and wife plead guilty to plotting to spy for Cuba. A retired State Department worker and his wife accused of a decades-long plot to spy for Cuba pleaded guilty Friday in a deal that will leave him behind bars for the rest of his life but gives her a chance at freedom in six years.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A former U.S. State Department official and his wife pleaded guilty on Friday to charges that they spied for almost three decades for the Communist-led Cuban government.

Hailed as a hero for ending decades of civil war, Sri Lanka's most decorated general now looks set to challenge for the presidency -- a move that some analysts view with deep foreboding.

North Korea is unlikely to give up its nuclear weapons in the foreseeable future despite the upcoming talks with Washington, a former senior US diplomat who recently visited Pyongyang said Monday.

President Barack Obama's drawn-out decision-making on Afghanistan is sending messages. To the Afghan government: Clean up your act. To the Pentagon: I'm no rubber stamp. To the American public: More troops can't be the sole answer.

Israel on Monday warned Palestinians against seeking recognition of an independent state, while dismissing the move as a political manoeuvre amid frustration over the stalled peace process.

The United States voiced its opposition on Monday to unilateral Palestinian moves to seek recognition for an independent state, saying negotiations with Israel were the best way forward.

The United States voiced opposition Monday to unilateral Palestinian moves to seek recognition for an independent state, saying negotiations with Israel were the best way forward.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel warned the Palestinians Monday that declaring a state without concluding a peace agreement would lead to Israeli counter-measures that could include annexation of more of the occupied West Bank.

Iranian construction of a previously secret uranium enrichment site is at an advanced stage, with high-tech equipment already in place at the fortified facility ahead of its 2011 startup, the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a report Monday.

The UN atomic watchdog demanded Monday more information from Iran about the purpose of a previously secret nuclear site and indicated the Islamic republic could be hiding other facilities.

The United States and Cuba will hold a second round of talks on migration issues in Havana at a yet undetermined date, a State Department spokesman said Monday.