BEIJING (AP) — Thousands of Tibetans gathered to mourn a farmer who died after dousing himself in kerosene and setting himself on fire to protest Chinese rule in Tibetan areas, a U.S. broadcaster said. A London-based rights group said Saturday’s funeral turned into a protest march, with thousands calling for freedom and the return to Tibet of the Dalai Lama, their exiled spiritual leader. The incident, as with most reported unrest in Tibetan areas, could not be independently verified. Nearly... Read more

CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago dyed its river green, bagpipes sounded on New York’s 5th Avenue, and in Georgia, crowds waited for 30 minutes to buy beer for breakfast before watching Savannah’s 188-year-old St. Patrick’s Day parade. Thousands gathered Saturday morning along the Chicago River, some in shamrock-shaped sunglasses and others dressed as leprechauns with fake orange beards. Applause erupted as a motorboat sped in circles and a man on board dumped a secret dye in the water, quickly turning it... Read more

BAGHDAD (AP) — Wearing a U.S. Army uniform and flanked by Iraqi lawmakers, an American citizen announced Saturday that he was being released from more than nine months of imprisonment by a Shiite militia that for years targeted U.S. troops. The man did not identify himself. But at a bizarre press conference outside the Green Zone in Baghdad, lawmakers showed U.S.-issued military and contractor ID cards that identified him as Randy Michael Hultz. Speaking calmly and tripping over Arabic names... Read more

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) — At the last Christmas service he presided over, Pope Shenouda III praised the unusual guests seated among the faithful at his Cairo cathedral. Leaders from the conservative Muslim Brotherhood, generals from the ruling military. “For the first time in the history of the cathedral, it is packed with all types of Islamist leaders in Egypt,” Shenouda told the gathering. “They all agree … on the stability of this country and in loving it, and working for... Read more

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) — Pope Shenouda III, the patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church who led Egypt’s Christian minority for 40 years during a time of increasing tensions with Muslims, has died. He was 88. The state news agency MENA said Shenouda died Saturday after battling liver and lung problems from several years. A Coptic Church TV station ran a picture of the pope, with a running feed reading, “The Coptic Church prays to God that he rest in peace... Read more

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s state news agency says Pope Shenouda III, head of Coptic Christian church, has died. Read more

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Benedict XVI has launched an internal investigation into the leaks of confidential documents that alleged corruption and financial mismanagement and exposed purported power struggles among top church officials. Monsignor Angelo Becciu, undersecretary in the Vatican’s Secretariat of State, warned in Saturday’s Vatican newspaper that Holy See prosecutors would take all necessary penal and administrative measures to punish “disloyal” and “cowardly” officials who leaked the memos. In addition, Becciu told L’Osservatore Romano, Benedict himself has set... Read more

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s Islamist-dominated parliament has overwhelmingly voted in favor of ensuring that its own lawmakers will comprise the bulk of a panel that will write the country’s constitution. Lawmakers Saturday voted on the criteria for the makeup of a 100-member panel drafting the document. The Islamists, who dominate the parliament, want a formidable presence on the panel to ensure a strong voice in the process. Many Christian and liberal lawmakers are wary of Islamists taking too prominent a... Read more

CHEYENNE, Wyoming (AP) — Members of a Wyoming American Indian tribe that recently received a federal permit allowing the killing of bald eagles for religious purposes say it’s a victory for Indian sovereignty. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service earlier this month granted a permit to the Northern Arapaho Tribe allowing it either to kill or capture and release two wild bald eagles this year. Harvey Spoonhunter is a tribal elder and former chairman of the Northern Arapahoe Business Council.... Read more

NEW YORK (AP) — There was a verdict in the wrenching Rutgers webcam spying case, but no resolution to a broader question that hovered over it: To what extent are hate crime laws a help or a hindrance in the pursuit of justice? The gist of the verdict: Former Rutgers University student Dharun Ravi was convicted Friday of anti-gay intimidation for using a webcam to spy on his gay roommate’s love life. The roommate, 18-year-old Tyler Clementi, threw himself to... Read more