In the World
U.S. set to unveil N. Korea donation
The United States is poised to announce a significant donation of food aid to North Korea this week, the first concrete accomplishment after months of diplomatic contacts between the two wartime enemies. An agreement by North Korea to suspend its uranium enrichment program will likely follow within days.
A broad outline of the emerging agreement has been made known to the Associated Press by people close to the negotiations.
Discussions have been taking place since summer. They already have yielded agreements by North Korea to suspend nuclear and ballistic missile testing, readmit international nuclear inspectors expelled in 2009, and resume a dialogue between North Korea and South Korea, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations. - AP
Challenger says he won in Congo
KINSHASA, Congo - Congo's opposition leader declared himself winner of the presidential vote, despite placing second in official election results.
The country's supreme court upheld incumbent President Joseph Kabila's victory a little over a week ago, even after international observers expressed concerns about irregularities.
Etienne Tshisekedi said Sunday at a news conference at his home that Kabila's government "is dismissed starting today." Government spokesman Lambert Mende said he had no comment on Tshisekedi's declaration.
Observers fear unrest if Tshisekedi, 79, a longtime opposition leader who is enormously popular with the country's impoverished masses - orders his supporters to take to the streets. - AP
Rescuers search for rig workers
MOSCOW - Rescue workers searched for 49 men in freezing, remote waters off Russia's east coast after their oil rig capsized and sank during storms on Sunday.
By nightfall, four men had been confirmed dead, and 14 others had been plucked alive from the waters by the ship that had been towing the Kolskaya drilling platform. But the search for the remaining men was hampered by freezing temperatures, a driving blizzard, and strong winds.
The Emergencies Ministry said that 67 people had been aboard the platform as it was being towed about 120 miles off the coast of Sakhalin, a large island just north of Japan. - AP
Pakistan Islamists rally against U.S.
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - More than 30,000 Islamists rallied against the United States in the Pakistani city of Lahore after NATO air strikes last month that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.
Sunday's protest was organized by Jamaat-ud-Dawa, widely believed to be a front group for the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba militant organization. Hafiz Saeed, the head of Jammat-ud-Dawa, demanded that Pakistan cut off ties with the United States, which has provided billions of dollars to Islamabad over the last decade to fight Islamist militants. - AP