AP - Even for a nonconformist, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has defied political logic with her sudden, stunning announcement to leave office more than a year early.

AP - North Korea fired seven ballistic missiles off its eastern coast Saturday, South Korea said, a violation of U.N. resolutions and an apparent message of defiance to the United States on its Independence Day.

AP - Questions about Michael Jackson's use of prescription drugs are intensifying after a powerful sedative was found inside his home.

AP - The first visitors allowed into the Statue of Liberty's crown in nearly eight years began the arduous climb Saturday on an Independence Day journey laden with symbolism of freedom and national pride.

AP - A top aide to Iran's supreme leader called the country's main opposition figure a U.S. agent and said in an editorial Saturday that he should be tried for committing crimes against the nation.

AP - Taliban militants fired rockets and mortars at a U.S. coalition base in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, killing two American troops and wounding several more in a two-hour battle, officials said.

AP - President Barack Obama sought to rally support for his domestic initiatives, while Sen. John McCain called for Americans to support Iranian election protesters. The one-time presidential rivals both cited the spirit of the nation's founders in their Fourth of July radio and Internet addresses.

AP - A terrified rural South Carolina community hunkered down over the Fourth of July after the sheriff said a serial killer was on the loose, and longtime residents were reminded of a murderer who terrorized the town in the 1960s.

AP - Michelle Obama brings her superstar glamor to Moscow this weekend as she accompanies her husband on his summit with the Russian president.

AP - Venus Williams is just about the perfect older sibling: She supports Serena endlessly, protects her fiercely and even lets her pick which bedroom she wants when they're on the road. Where does Venus draw the line? At Grand Slam championships. The sisters face each other again in a major final, meeting Saturday for the Wimbledon title for the fourth time.

AP - Taliban militants fired rockets and mortars at a U.S. coalition base in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, killing two American troops and wounding several more in a two-hour battle, officials said.

AP - Vice President Joe Biden celebrated the Fourth of July with his son and other American troops in Iraq on Saturday, a day after warning Iraqi leaders that U.S. assistance will be jeopardized if the country reverts to ethnic and sectarian violence.

AP - North Korea fired seven ballistic missiles off its eastern coast Saturday, South Korea said, a violation of U.N. resolutions and an apparent message of defiance to the United States on its Independence Day.

AP - A top aide to Iran's supreme leader called the country's main opposition figure a U.S. agent and said in an editorial Saturday that he should be tried for committing crimes against the nation.

AP - Pakistani fighter jets pounded Taliban positions in the country's volatile northwest on Saturday, killing at least 12 suspected insurgents, security officials said, as the government kept up pressure on Islamist militants along the Afghan border.

AP - Honduras' refusal to restore ousted President Manuel Zelaya despite an appeal by the top envoy for the Americas has put the impoverished nation on a collision course with the world community that could lead to its isolation.

AFP - Nigerian armed group MEND threatened Saturday to thwart a 10-billion-dollar trans-Saharan gas pipeline project linking vast reserves in Nigeria to Europe.