Thirteen people were killed in a fireworks explosion in southern China, and more than 30 were injured.
A police official in Puning city in the southern province of Guangdong confirmed the explosion and deaths and said police are investigating.
China is celebrating the Lunar New Year, which is its biggest holiday, and fireworks are a large part of the celebrations. The holiday ends today.
The state-run Xinhua News Agency said the explosion occurred when villagers were setting off fireworks in front of a house.
China's public security ministry said fireworks-related accidents killed 11 people throughout the country during the first week of the 15-day holiday. (PA)
White House departure
Desiree Rogers is stepping down from her post as social secretary, effective next month, two White House aides said.
A friend of President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama from their days together in Chicago, Ms Rogers was criticised for her handling of the administration's first state dinner for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.(PA)
Fatal plane crash
Mexican marines found the wreckage of a small military anti-drug patrol plane reported missing earlier last week in the north of the country.
The local military base said all three occupants were found dead at the scene, just south of the Baja California city of Ensenada.
The marines and army conduct joint operations in the region, and it was not immediately clear which branch of the armed forces the victims belonged to. (PA)
Soldiers get malaria
A US military spokesman in Haiti said six American soldiers involved in the aid mission came down with malaria.
US Army Colonel Billy J. Buckner said one of the soldiers was evacuated for treatment. Col Buckner said: "At last update, the soldier was improving."
The spokesman said the other five soldiers were recovering and all were scheduled to return to their duties. (PA)
Church paintings recovered in Mexico
Mexican authorities found two 18th century paintings stolen from a church two years ago.
The National Anthropology Institute said the paintings - The Adoration of the Three Kings and The Birth of the Virgin - were found in an art gallery in Tlaquepaque, a town near the northern city of Guadalajara.
They were on sale for $35,000. The paintings were stolen on September 5, 2008. (PA)
UN peacekeepers deployed in Liberia
The UN deployed peacekeepers to a northern Liberian town where sectarian violence left at least three people dead and forced hundreds to flee.
Local government official George Tengbeh said the violence in Voinjama was sparked after unconfirmed rumours that a mosque had been attacked by residents in another town in the region.
He said Muslim residents in Voinjama went on a rampage, burning down two churches, a clinic, shops and the mayor's residence. Authorities imposed a daytime curfew. (PA)
Milk samples tested
Dominican authorities were testing milk samples after 40 elementary school students who ate a subsidised breakfast became intoxicated.
Education Minister Melanio Paredes said crews are investigating the Angel Rosario school in the country's northern region to ensure the quality of future meals.
He said officials found the food storage room in deteriorated condition and that it likely led to the contamination. He did not provide further details. (PA)
Colombian police capture guerrilla
Authorities in Colombia said they captured a guerrilla convicted in absentia in the kidnapping and killing of former President Cesar Gaviria's younger sister.
The director of investigations for the prosecutor's office says Beatriz Villalba was arrested in a house in southern Bogota. The 25-year-old was sentenced in absentia to 60 years in prison.
Marilu Mendez said Vallalba had been "in charge of acquiring the building, the oxygen tanks and modifying the vehicle in which" Liliana Gaviria Trujillo was transported after being abducted in April 2006. The rebel allegedly posed as a nurse. (PA)