Bulgarian diplomat defeats controversial Egyptian in race to lead UNESCO

PARIS — A Bulgarian diplomat on Tuesday became the first woman to lead the U.N.’s agency for culture and education, beating out a controversial Egyptian candidate whose one-time threat to burn Israeli books had galvanized opposition.

Fraud allegations rise as last 2 candidates face off in UNESCO leadership race

PARIS — The U.N.’s cultural agency braced for an unusually suspenseful final round of voting to select its new chief — a race so tight it may come down to a random drawing between a controversial Egyptian and his low-profile Bulgarian rival.

French police clear out then bulldoze camp for immigrants seeking to slip into Britain

CALAIS, France — French police razed a squalid camp used by illegal immigrants in scrubland near the English Channel port of Calais on Tuesday, using backhoes and buzz saws to clear away the precarious dwellings of a fragile population, mostly Afghan minors, who were led away stunned and sometimes sobbing.

French police clear out then bulldoze major camp for migrants seeking to slip into Britain

CALAIS, France — French police cleared out then bulldozed a squalid, sprawling forest camp near the northern city of Calais on Tuesday, detaining hundreds of illegal migrants who had hoped to slip across the English Channel into Britain.

French police clear out major camp for migrants seeking to reach Britain

CALAIS, France — French police on Tuesday cleared out a squalid, sprawling forest camp known as the “jungle” harboring hundreds of illegal migrants dreaming of slipping across the English Channel into Britain.

Tensions rise at Vietnamese pagoda as police question followers of world-famous monk

HANOI, Vietnam — Authorities are intensifying their efforts to oust followers of an internationally known Buddhist monk from a monastery in Vietnam’s Central Highlands and have accused them of trying to “sabotage” Vietnam’s communist government.

Paris catacombs closed to public due to vandalism

PARIS — Paris’ underground bone collection, the catacombs, has been closed to the public indefinitely after being vandalized.

Bulgarian and controversial Egyptian are neck-and-neck in UNESCO race

PARIS — An Egyptian culture minister who once threatened to burn Israeli books will face off against a career diplomat from Bulgaria in the race to lead the U.N.’s agency for learning and culture.

Damaged by deficits, US seeks G-20 commitment to combat global imbalances at Pittsburgh summit

WASHINGTON — With trillion-dollar deficits and a weakening dollar, the United States doesn’t have the clout it once had at economic summits. Now Germany, France and all the new kids at the table — countries like China and Brazil — are pushing their own issues.

International travelers get introduced to Paris life a la francaise thanks to a new network

PARIS — A cure for Parisians’ brusque, haughty reputation may be at hand. Take a Web site, add a hint of anise-based pastis liqueur, a game of petanque and international travelers ready to mingle.

Workers at French heater factory pose nude in calendar in bid to save their jobs

PARIS — Workers at a struggling heater factory in northwest France are taking it all off in a bid to save their jobs: They posed nude for a calendar to call attention to their plight.

Renault handed 2-year suspended ban from F1 in crash scandal; Briatore banned

PARIS — Renault has escaped severe punishment for ordering former driver Nelson Piquet Jr. to deliberately crash, receiving only a suspended two-year ban from Formula One’s governing body.

Sarkozy, Villepin among key players in French slander trial

The key players in a major French trial opening Monday involving allegations of a high-level political smear campaign called the Clearstream affair:

French ex-prime minister Villepin on trial over alleged smear campaign targeting Sarkozy

PARIS — Former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin lashed out at French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Monday at the start of a slander trial involving alleged dirty tricks by top politicians and businessmen.

Hope and misery flourish in squalid French migrants’ camp to be razed by police

CALAIS, France — Hijrat Hotak’s parents sold the family home in Afghanistan, paying a smuggler $15,000 (€10,200.61) to help buy a bright future in Britain for their 15-year-old son.

Rivalry between President Sarkozy and ex-Premier Villepin at heart of French slander trial

PARIS — Two men who reached the pinnacle of French politics after a career-long battle stand at the heart of a slander trial opening in Paris on Monday.

Top Russian military official says negotiations under way on buying French helicopter carrier

MOSCOW — Russia has been negotiating the possible purchase of a military ship built in France, a Russian deputy defense minister said Saturday.

French foreign minister says UN troops should remain in Haiti through 2010 elections

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — France’s foreign minister urged the U.N. to maintain peacekeeping troops in Haiti at least through next year’s planned presidential elections, while acknowledging improved security in the impoverished, politically chaotic country.

Farmers dump more milk across Europe to protest price slump, quota reform

PARIS — Angry French farmers dumped millions of liters of fresh milk next to one of France’s most famous tourist sites on Friday to denounce the slumping cost of milk and an EU plan to end production quotas, which could further drive prices down.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy says EU leaders agree to impose a cap on banker pay.

BRUSSELS — French President Nicolas Sarkozy says that EU leaders have agreed to impose a cap on bankers’ pay.

Media rights group: journalists face increasing threats when reporting on the environment

PARIS — Journalists face increasing threats when they report on companies and governments damaging the environment, a media rights group said Thursday, citing arrests, violence and disappearances of those who denounce deforestation, pollution and other damage.

Debate burns on over ‘book burning’ comment as UNESCO votes for new leader

PARIS — He’s an Egyptian culture minister who once threatened to burn Israeli books — and he might soon become the face of the United Nations’ arm for learning and culture.

Suicide bombers hit Somalia peacekeeping base in Mogadishu; witness says 11 dead

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Islamist insurgents drove two stolen U.N. cars loaded with explosives onto the main base of African Union peacekeepers Thursday and triggered massive blasts that a witness said killed at least 11 people. Islamist insurgents said the attack was in revenge for a U.S. commando raid that killed an al-Qaida operative.

Suicide car bombs hit Somalia peacekeeping base in Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Suicide bombers in explosives-laden cars with U.N. logos drove into the main base of African Union peacekeepers Thursday, detonating two massive blasts that blew out nearby windows and shrouded the sky in black smoke.

Witness says 2 large explosions rock African Union peacekeepers base in Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Two suicide car bombs bearing U.N. logos exploded at the main base of African Union peacekeepers in Mogadishu, sending plumes of black smoke into the air, witnesses and officials said Thursday. There was no immediate word on casualties.

EU Farm Commissioner offers extra dairy help but sticks to plan to phase out milk quotas

STRASBOURG, France — The European Commission on Thursday promised extra steps to combat sinking dairy prices but insisted it would not abandon long-term farm reforms that include phasing out milk quotas after 2015.

Somali insurgents holding French hostage demand France stop supporting Somali gov’t

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Islamic insurgents demanded Thursday that France stop supporting Somalia’s government and withdraw its warships from anti-piracy patrols in exchange for the release of a French security agent — conditions which the French government immediately rejected.

Paris catacombs closed to public after vandals scatter human skulls along underground paths

PARIS — Paris’ underground bone collection, the catacombs, has been closed to the public indefinitely after being vandalized.

Air France crash: Documents show trouble with airspeed sensors dated back at least 7 years

PARIS — Airbus knew since at least 2002 about problems with the type of speed sensor that malfunctioned on an Air France passenger plane that went down in June, the Associated Press has learned. But air safety authorities did not order their replacement until after the crash, which killed all 228 people aboard.

European Parliament gives Jose Manuel Barroso 2nd term as European Commission president

STRASBOURG, France — The European Parliament gave Jose Manuel Barroso another five-year term as European Commission president Wednesday, but its vote reflected lingering misgivings about the conservative ex-Portuguese premier.