LISBON, Portugal – A judge has ruled that former Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates must remain in prison after refusing an offer of house detention requiring him to wear an ankle bracelet monitoring device. Socrates is being investigated on suspicion of corruption, money-laundering and tax fraud. Socrates was Portugal’s center-left …

MANILA, Philippines – Muslim guerrillas in the Philippines will begin turning over their weapons as part of a peace deal even as lawmakers are still debating a law creating a new autonomous Muslim region in the country’s south. Chief government negotiator Miriam Coronel Ferrer said Thursday that President Benigno Aquino …

A Washington state company is recalling more than 100 tons of dried egg products over concerns about salmonella contamination. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the products from Nutriom LLC of Lacey, Wash., were shipped nationwide and to American military bases abroad as well as to Canada, mostly under the …

CHISINAU, Moldova – Near-final results in Moldova’s local elections show Chisinau’s incumbent mayor, pro-European Dorin Chirtoaca, slightly ahead but without enough votes to win outright. The ballot on Sunday was seen as a test of whether Moldova would remain committed to European integration or choose to move closer to Russia. …

BUCHAREST, Romania – Romania’s president says he needs to closely examine legislation approved by Parliament granting supplementary pensions to lawmakers, following criticism of the proposal. Parliament voted 303-124 on Tuesday approving extra pensions based on time lawmakers serve in the legislature. President Klaus Iohannis said Wednesday he will review the …

SKOPJE, Macedonia – Macedonia has changed its asylum law to let migrants entering the country illegally avoid jail if they leave within three days. Thursday’s move follows a series of fatal accidents involving migrants traveling through Macedonia on the way to more prosperous European countries, following dangerous routes to avoid …

The census currently underway in India isn’t the world’s largest — that distinction goes to China — but it is likely to be the most comprehensive population count ever undertaken. The Indian government has hired 2.5 million census workers and given them the mammoth task of visiting every settlement in …

WASHINGTON – The Treasury Department announced plans Tuesday to unload over the next several weeks warrants it received in insurers Hartford Financial (NYSE:HIG) and Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) as part of the controversial TARP bailout. If completed, the sales would complete the government’s exit of its holdings in these financial institutions, …

Would you consider swallowing a sponge on a string to help detect cancer in your stomach? Or propping open blood vessels in your brain — with corn, so the prop can dissolve within two years? These cutting edge science ideas are real — and may someday save your life. 1. …

Moon, we just can’t quit you. NASA has shifted its goals from returning to the moon to visiting an asteroid or even Mars, but not everyone has given up on going back. The space agency’s attention deficit has sparked a race among private companies eager to return to Earth’s satellite. …