A chill wind is blowing through Mitte, the once drab district in central Berlin that is fast becoming hangout central for the world's creative types. Davide Grazioli, used to warmer climes, pulls his black woolly hat over his head and strides up Kastanien Allee — now dubbed Casting Alley because of all the wannabe film directors and actors who frequent its cafs. Grazioli is an Italian artist whose work includes unraveled embroideries from India and skulls made of organic ...

At least 65 people were killed and 420 wounded in a double bombing in central Baghdad on Sunday morning, officials said.

China's long simmering battle against corruption has come to a boil, this time in Chongqing, the largest megalopolis in the world. A massive crackdown has implicated millionaires, gangsters, and even police officers. Known as "dahei" (combat triads), the campaign has put the spotlight on organized crime and how it has infested local bureaucracy and businesses through bribery, extortion, blackmail and violence. Criminal trials are underway following months of police investigation. Details of murky cases are trickling out. Among those ...

China's GDP increased 8.9 percent for the third quarter, moving closer toward the goal of 8 percent growth for the year. Criminal trials are underway following months of police investigation. Details of murky cases are trickling out. Among those on the dock is Xie Caiping, a portly woman believed be the "mama san" of one of Chongqing's notorious triads. Xie is accused of operating gambling dens, drug trafficking, giving and collecting bribes and terrorizing people, including policemen who had tried ...

Afghan heroin kills more people from NATO countries every year than Afghan insurgents have killed in the eight years since the fall of the Taliban regime, the United Nations said Wednesday. About 15 million people around the world use heroin, opium or morphine, fueling a $65 billion market, warned Antonio Maria Costa, head of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime. The trade is fueling terrorism and insurgencies: The Taliban raised between $450 million and $600 million in the past ...

Thousands flocked to Spain's capital Saturday to protest the Socialist government's move to make it easier to get an abortion. The anti-abortion protest, themed "each life is important," began at 5 p.m. in central Madrid and many leading conservative politicians attended, including former Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar. Local media estimated the crowd in the tens of thousands. The protest was prompted by a proposed law that would ease restrictions on obtaining an abortion. Since 1985, abortion has ...

The Rev. Franklin Graham has arrived in North Korea bearing a gift for North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, the country's official news agency reported Wednesday. Graham handed the present, which was not identified, to a high-ranking official Wednesday to give to Kim, the Korean Central News Agency reported. Graham, the son of the Rev. Billy Graham and the president of Samaritan's Purse, arrived Tuesday in North Korea's capital, Pyongyang, KCNA said. On its Web site, Samaritan's Purse said Franklin ...

British singer Leona Lewis was "understandably shaken" after a man attacked her during a book signing in central London Wednesday afternoon, a spokeswoman for her record label said. A 29-year-old man was arrested after he punched Lewis at the Waterstones bookstore in Piccadilly Circus at 4:36 p.m. (10:36 a.m. ET), according to a Scotland Yard statement. She was signing copies of her new autobiography "Dreams" when the "unprovoked attack" happened, said Sarah Weinstein Dennison of the RCA Music Group. "The ...

The brother of a convicted British drug smuggler facing imminent execution in China has pleaded for authorities to show compassion amid concerns over the man's mental health at the time of his arrest. Akmal Shaikh was arrested carrying a suitcase containing 4 kilograms of heroin at Urumqi airport in northwestern China after arriving on a flight from Tajikistan in September 2007. The 53-year-old claimed he was given the suitcase to carry by another man who had duped him into believing ...

Three days after the Reserve Bank of Australia unexpectedly raised interest rates, the monetary policy committee of South Korea's central bank held a meeting. The Oct. 9 gathering was closely followed because the Australian move raised expectations that other central banks will also tighten. Korea held the line. Citing "uncertainty as to the economic growth path," the Bank of Korea kept interest rates at an ultra-low 2%, the result of six rate cuts over the past year. ...