Corey Flintoff

The tumult of Iran's presidential election is just the most visible part of a power struggle with deep roots in the country's theocratic government. Here's a look at the inner circles of Iranian political power.

Somali pirates in the waters off the Horn of Africa nation have hijacked more than 40 ships this year, demanding — and often getting — millions of dollars in ransom. The European Union has launched an effort to protect ships in the area.

Barack Obama's victory came as no surprise to most people in Iraq. News media there have been covering the campaign closely and reporting Obama's lead in the polls. People who support Obama tend to see him as an agent of change who is likely to withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq more quickly than McCain.

The former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, most recently an administrator of alternative medicine, is accused of ordering the so-called "ethnic cleansing" of Bosnian Muslims. He faces charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

The former driver for Osama bin Laden has pleaded not guilty at his terrorism trial in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Salim Ahmed Hamdan's defense lawyers say he was a low-level driver and was not part of any conspiracy against the U.S.

Jacob Zuma, the new head of South Africa's ruling party, the African National Congress, wore a broad smile recently as he accepted congratulations from his main rival for the job, South African President Thabo Mbeki. But it's unclear whether the civility will continue.

The African National Congress is undergoing a fierce power struggle, as veterans of the fight against apartheid vie for control of the party and of the South African government. The group led black resistance to the country's white-minority government throughout much of the 20th century.

The new National Intelligence Estimate is raising questions about what the White House knew — and when. The estimate judged that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003. President Bush has recently portrayed Iran as a nuclear threat and pressed for international sanctions.

When the House Foreign Relations Committee approved a measure that would officially declare the deaths of as many as 1.5 million Armenians in the early 19th century genocide, it revived a political debate.

Condemnation from the United States and other nations may be just what the Iranian president needs to shore up a shaky political position at home.

Hundreds of thousands of Shiite pilgrims are fleeing the holy city of Karbala amid clashes between rival Shiite factions that have left at least 24 dead and dozens wounded. The fighting broke out late Monday.

Thousands of Shiite pilgrims are fleeing the Iraqi city of Karbala, where fierce clashes between rival factions have left at least 24 dead. Clashes at the holy city south of Baghdad erupted as thousands of pilgrims came from around the country for a Shiite religious festival.