NEW DELHI - Arun Kumar was born to disabled parents, beaten by his grandparents, ran away from home, got a job in a garment factory and had all his savings stolen by the police.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - A group of volunteer Santa Claus "elves" in Alaska's frigid interior is determined to save a popular holiday letter service featuring the North Pole's most beloved icon.

ROME - A Vatican researcher has rekindled the age-old debate over the Shroud of Turin, saying that faint writing on the linen proves it was the burial cloth of Jesus.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Pakistan expressed fear Friday that a large increase in foreign troops in Afghanistan could push militants across the border into its territory and called on the U.S. to factor in that concern as part of its new war strategy.

KABUL, Afghanistan - A suicide bomber killed 16 people and wounded at least 23 others Friday in a busy city square in western Afghanistan, while near Kabul a powerful former warlord narrowly escaped an assassination attempt, officials said.

OTTAWA - Members of Parliament are scrambling to climb aboard the Twitter bandwagon - and getting elbowed by controversial, satirical and even phoney postings.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - A group of volunteer Santa Claus "elves" in Alaska's frigid interior is determined to save a popular holiday letter service featuring the North Pole's most beloved icon.

CAIRO, Egypt - Egypt on Thursday recalled its ambassador to Algeria for consultations as part of a growing diplomatic row caused by a bitter soccer rivalry between the two Arab nations that has sparked violence among fans.

BRUSSELS - The EU says it has solved an old problem for Washington.

OTTAWA - Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is proposing a voluntary code of conduct for credit-and debit-card companies that he says will "level the playing field" for consumers and small businesses alike.