Head of Miss California pageant who fought with Prejean donates ad time to gay rights group. The Miss California USA pageant director who became embroiled in a war of words with former title holder Carrie Prejean has donated 30-seconds of free ad time to the state's largest gay rights group.

BEIJING (Reuters) - Two Chinese rights activists who sought a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama hours before he left Beijing said on Friday they were briefly detained by police, and one said Washington's sway over rights in China had eroded.

Sri Lanka's former top military officer who resigned last week promised on Friday to "fight for democracy" amid reports he will challenge the president at upcoming elections.

South African police said Friday that 22 people were arrested for public violence after 3,000 mainly Zimbabwean migrants fled their homes due to tensions with locals over competition for farm jobs.

Meals on Wheels study shows 6 million seniors are at risk of hunger. A new study by the Meals on Wheels Association of America shows roughly six million seniors are at risk of being hungry.

Jabulisile works the streets in Hillbrow, a rough area normally avoided by tourists, but just a stone's throw from one of the World Cup stadiums that she hopes will bring in visitors looking for sex.

Indianapolis man convicted in slayings of 7 gets life sentence, compares self to Christ. An Indianapolis man convicted of killing three children and four adults during a home invasion robbery three years ago has been sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore, who is mediating in Guinea's crisis, has recommended that junta leader Captain Moussa Dadis Camara stay in power during a transition government, in a document seen by AFP Friday.

Key player of 1990s anti-government movement resurfaces, as citizen militias rise again. Norm Olson's genial tone belies his reputation as a radical militiaman, yet here he is, at 63, an affable grandfather explaining why Americans should arm themselves against their government.

Yemeni coast guard says Somali pirates have hijacked Panamanian cargo ship in Gulf of Aden. Yemen's coast guard says Somali pirates have hijacked a Panamanian cargo ship in the treacherous Gulf of Aden between the Arabian peninsula and the Horn of Africa.

A UN panel on Friday blasted Iran for "serious, ongoing and recurring" human rights violations, including violence against protesters after the disputed June presidential elections.

US commanders have authority to discipline soldiers promoting Islamist extremism even though military regulations do not mention "jihadist" militancy, a Pentagon spokesman said on Friday.

Ex-NBA star Williams won't enter plea Friday in shooting; hearing delayed over travel issues. Retired NBA star Jayson Williams will not be in a New Jersey courtroom Friday to enter a plea in the 2002 shooting death of a hired driver. State Superior Court Judge Edward M. Coleman indefinitely delayed a hearing in Somerville in which Williams was expected to plead guilty. A person with direct knowledge of the situation, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of a gag order imposed by Coleman, told The Associated Press that the delay was partly because of travel problems Williams experienced getting to New Jersey from his home in South Carolina.

Efforts to end Guinea's political deadlock following a massacre at a political rally stalled on Friday with the opposition's rejection of an international mediator's proposals.

Guinea's opposition on Friday rejected proposals to end political deadlock made by the mediator, President Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso, on the grounds that they ignored the will of Guinea's people.

An African American has been executed after Texas governor Rick Perry refused a last-minute recommendation to spare him because it was his accomplice who killed a store worker in an armed hold-up.

Minnesota House tells court that Gov. Pawlenty misused law with solo budget cuts. Lawyers for the Minnesota House spell out in a 34-page brief why they believe Gov. Tim Pawlenty misused a state law to enact budget cuts without legislative consent.

Missouri jury deliberates on case of black school teacher who says white police assaulted her. A jury is deliberating the fate of a black school teacher charged with assaulting white police officers in Missouri

LA jurors noted for anti-police leanings a concern for former transit officer's murder trial. A judge's decision to move Johannes Mehserle's murder trial to Los Angeles County is a setback for the former transit police officer charged with gunning down an unarmed man on New Year's Day.

Suburban Denver billboard links Obama with jihadists. A billboard showing President Barack Obama wearing a turban has sparked a lot of attention at the suburban Denver used car dealership that put it up.