PAKISTAN - Pakistan has asked China to build a naval base at its south-western port of Gwadar and expects the Chinese navy to maintain a regular presence there, a plan likely to alarm both India and the US.
USA - Another day, another way for you to pick up malware. Today's scary corner of the Internet? Currency conversion searches on Google. The folks from Sophos Labs report that there appear to be a great deal of malicious links among the results for currency conversion-themed searches on Google.
SPAIN - Spain's governing Socialist party has suffered heavy losses in local and regional elections. With 91% of municipal votes counted, the centre-right Popular Party (PP) had almost a 10-percentage point lead, the interior ministry said.
SCOTLAND - One of the most controversial issues to face the Church of Scotland is due to be debated at its General Assembly. A gay minister was appointed to an Aberdeen church in 2009, a move which threatened to split the Kirk.
INDIA - India's 2011 census shows a serious decline in the number of girls under the age of seven - activists fear eight million female foetuses may have been aborted in the past decade.
ICELAND/UK - Ash from a volcanic eruption in Iceland could begin to drift across the UK towards the end of the week, forecasters have said. Aviation officials said there was no effect on UK airspace at present, but they were "monitoring the situation closely".
USA - As many as 30 people are reported killed after a tornado tore through the city of Joplin in the US state of Missouri, officials say. The town suffered a "direct hit" from the tornado and parts of the city have been devastated, local media says. Missouri Governor Jay Nixon has declared a state of emergency and warned that more storms are on the way.
USA - "You've committed your life to Jesus. You know you're saved. But when the Rapture comes, what's to become of your loving pets who are left behind? Eternal Earth-Bound Pets takes that burden off your mind."
ISRAEL/USA - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bluntly told President Barack Obama on Friday his vision of how to achieve Middle East peace was unrealistic, exposing a deep divide that could doom any US bid to revive peace talks.
UK - Householders could be banned from washing their cars or irrigating their lawns this summer, the Environment Agency has warned, as part of new laws to restrict water use. River levels in some parts of the country are currently lower than they were in the drought year of 1976, with fish rescued from dry river beds this week and farmers banned from irrigating crops in some areas.
USA - The majority of Americans believe same-sex marriage should be legal, for the first time in Gallup polling history. According to the organization, which has been tracking the issue since 1996, 53% of Americans support legalizing same-sex marriage, a 9 point jump from just last year. The increase from 2010 is due to a drastic shift among independents and Democrats.
SPAIN - An order by the Spanish government banning protests after midnight last night was held up to ridicule when tens of thousands of demonstrators continued protesting after the curfew supposedly kicked in.
USA - A controversial, anti-gay pastor was invited by Representative Ernie Leidiger, a Republican from Mayer, Minnesota, to start Friday morning's session with a prayer at the Minnesota House, drawing anger and criticism from both sides of the aisle, MyFox9.com reports.
REYKJAVIK, ICELAND - Iceland's most active volcano has started erupting, scientists said Saturday - just over a year after another eruption on the North Atlantic island shut down European air traffic for days. Iceland's Meteorological Office confirmed that an eruption had begun at the Grimsvotn volcano, accompanied by a series of small earthquakes.
USA - The apocalypse did not arrive at 6pm on May 21st, despite the predictions by Christian doomsday prophet Harold Camping. Given that the end of the world was supposed to be nigh, it perhaps wasn't surprising that Christian doomsday prophet Harold Camping had shown some reluctance to take advance bookings.