AP - Aruban prosecutors said Tuesday their investigation into the 2005 disappearance of U.S. teenager Natalee Holloway is nearing the end and appealed for anyone with information to come forward.
Reuters - An Australian man broke into three adult shops, had sex with blow up dolls named "Jungle Jane" and then dumped his plastic conquests in a nearby alley, local media reported on Wednesday.
AP - Al-Qaida's No. 2 leader lashed out at President-elect Barack Obama in a new audio message Tuesday, accusing him of not doing anything to stop Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip, according to an intelligence monitoring center.
Reuters - Communist North Korea announced on Wednesday it will elect new delegates to its rubber stamp parliament in March, marking another step in a leadership shakeup that has already included a cabinet reshuffle.
AP - France and Egypt announced an initiative to stop the fighting in Gaza late Tuesday, hours after Israeli mortar shells exploded near a U.N. school sheltering hundreds of people displaced by the onslaught on Hamas militants. At least 30 Palestinians died, staining streets with blood.
AP - The presidents of Egypt and France have proposed a plan to end the escalating Israeli-Hamas conflict in Gaza, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Tuesday.
AP - A Palestinian working for an Iranian television station was held for questioning by Israeli police Tuesday on suspicion of violating censorship rules.
AP - Venezuela ordered the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and some embassy staff on Tuesday to protest Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip.