AFP - Iraqi security forces freed a British journalist kidnapped two months ago in the main southern city of Basra on Monday after a fierce firefight with his abductors, Iraqi officials said.

AP - Democratic Sen. Barack Obama on Monday questioned rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's opposition to free trade agreements that some voters contend has eliminated thousands of U.S. jobs and mocked her weekend visit to an Indiana bar as pandering to the working class.

Reuters - Chinese forces found firearms hidden throughout a Tibetan temple in an ethnic Tibetan area of southwestern China which has been the scene of anti-Chinese riots in recent weeks, state television said.

AP - As a court takes up the plight of more than 400 children removed from a polygamist compound, parents say the children have been traumatized in state care and are staying in deplorable conditions.

AP - Cate Blanchett has given birth to her third son.

Reuters - Wachovia Corp posted a surprising first-quarter loss on Monday as credit problems from mortgages and other debt soared, prompting the bank to lower its dividend, raise $7 billion in capital and cut jobs.

AP - Blockbuster Inc. said Monday it will take an unsolicited $1 billion-plus bid for Circuit City Stores Inc. directly to shareholders of the nation's second biggest consumer electronics chain, saying the struggling retailer has not responded to repeated offers.

AFP - The Zimbabwe high court on Monday rejected an opposition bid to force the release of presidential election results in a judgment that could plunge the country into a general strike.

Reuters - Al Qaeda and Taliban militants on the Afghan-Pakistani border are increasingly facing pressure on two fronts and they can be squeezed with more coordination between the neighbors, a U.S. official said on Monday.

Reuters - U.S. retail sales unexpectedly rose 0.2 percent in March, pushed up by a jump in gasoline sales, a government report released on Monday showed.

AP - A kidnapped British journalist was rescued by Iraqi troops on Monday after two months in captivity in the southern city of Basra, the Iraqi military said.

Reuters - Israel's secret service has declined to assist U.S. agents guarding former U.S. President Jimmy Carter during a visit in which Israeli leaders have shunned him, U.S. sources close to the matter said on Monday.

AP - Former President Jimmy Carter deplored Palestinian militant attacks on Israel as a "despicable crime" as he toured a rocket-battered town on Monday.

AP - Trevor Immelman won the Masters with relative ease, completing a wire-to-wire victory for his first Major title. Immelman closed with a 3-over 75 yesterday following three straight rounds under 70, leaving him three shots ahead of Tiger Woods.

AP - Taliban militants attacked a group of police officers sleeping on the mud floor of an isolated roadside checkpoint early Monday in southern Afghanistan, killing 11 in the latest assault against the nation's vulnerable police force.

Reuters - Iraq will seek parliamentary approval for a strategic agreement being negotiated with the United States even though it expects heated debate over the deal, Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari said.

Reuters - Pope Benedict and President George W. Bush disagree on the Iraq war and other foreign policy issues, but their White House meeting this week may focus more on areas of agreement like abortion.

Reuters - Republican presidential candidate John McCain is attempting to reassure Americans that "I detest war" even as he strongly backs the current U.S. war strategy in Iraq.