South Koreans walk by North Korean mock Scud-B missile(l) and other South Korean mock missiles at Korea War Memorial Museum in Seoul, 04Jul 2009

NOKOR - NUCLEAR:  South Korea's Defense Ministry says North Korea has launched a series of missiles off its eastern coast, following similar tests earlier this week. The missiles were fired over several hours beginning Saturday morning. The Yonhap news agency quotes military officials as saying the missiles appeared to be a type of short-range Scud missile. The latest missile tests are taking place as the United States begins to celebrate its July 4 Independence Day holiday. North Korea has conducted other missile and nuclear tests on U.S. holidays.

People against ousted Honduras President Manuel Zelaya gather outside of presidential residence in support of interim government in Tegucigalpa, 03 Jul 2009

HONDURAS:  Honduras' new government says it no longer recognizes the charter of the Organization of American States and is withdrawing its membership from the group. Honduras made the announcement late Friday, a day before the OAS was due to vote on suspending the Central American country, following its refusal to adhere to demands by OAS to return toppled President Manuel Zelaya to office. The OAS has called an emergency meeting in Washington on Saturday.

US Marines patrol through a village in Nawa district in Afghanistan's Helmand province, 04 Jul 2009

AFGHANISTAN:  Fighting in eastern Afghanistan Saturday left two U.S. soldiers and 30 suspected Taliban insurgents dead. Local authorities say the fighting began in Paktika province, when a truck exploded near a government base in Zirok district, killing the two American soldiers and wounding four others. Officials say Taliban insurgents began firing on the base, prompting U.S.-led forces to call in airstrikes that killed 30 militants. In southern Helmand province Saturday, the United States is pressing forward with a major offensive to drive out Taliban insurgents and secure the area ahead of a presidential vote in Afghanistan in August.

Palin did not venture into the media spotlight alone. Her family did, too

PALIN RESIGNING:  Alaska Governor and former Republican U.S. vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin says she will resign from office later this month and will not seek re-election. Palin spoke Friday at a news conference outside her home in the small town of Wasilla, Alaska. Her surprise announcement raised speculation that she would seek to be the Republican Party's presidential candidate in 2012. Palin -- who is seen by many as a rising star in the party -- was U.S. Senator John McCain's running mate in the 2008 US presidential election, which they lost to Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Map of Chechnya and Ingushetia

CHECHNYA POLICE:  Nine Chechen police officers were killed in a roadside ambush in the Russian republic of Ingushetia on Saturday. Ingush officials say the policemen were traveling in a convoy when they were fired on by machine guns and grenade launchers. Nine other policemen in the convoy were wounded. The Chechen police officers were in neighboring Ingushetia in a joint operation with their Ingush colleagues against militants there. The operation began after a June 22 suicide attack that seriously wounded the Moscow-appointed president of Ingushetia.

UN General-Secretary Ban Ki-moon briefs journalists outside Bayint Naung Yeiktha, in Naypyidaw, Burma, 03 Jul 2009

UN - BURMA:  U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says Burma's military government has again rejected his request to meet with jailed democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. After a 30-minute meeting Saturday with Burma's military ruler General Than Shwe, Mr. Ban told reporters that he was deeply disappointed. Mr. Ban met Saturday for a second time with the senior general in the country's remote administrative capital, Naypyitaw, to push for the release of political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, and for a national reconciliation ahead of next year's elections.

Australia

AUSTRALIA - TIBET:  China has expressed anger over this week's meeting between a group of Australian lawmakers and Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. The Chinese Embassy in Canberra has called the visit a gross interference in China's internal affairs. The six-member delegation visited the Dalai Lama at his home in exile, in Dharamsala, India. In a statement Friday, the all-party parliamentary group thanked the Dalai Lama and his aides for providing an insight into the challenges facing the Tibetan people. The group says it hopes to visit Tibet during an official visit to China later this year.

Fireworks will light up the sky in Lowell this year, thanks to local businesses, which chipped in to fund the celebration

US  INDEPENDENCE DAY:  Americans are gearing up to celebrate the July 4 Independence day holiday with fireworks, parades and concerts. Washington and New York are among the cities that will have spectacular fireworks displays Saturday night. Many small towns have been forced to scrap or dramatically scale back their celebrations because of the economic crisis. In his weekly Saturday radio and video address, U.S. President Barack Obama encouraged Americans to "kick back" and "enjoy a little time off."

Sen. John McCain (file photo)

REPUBLICANS - IRAN:  U.S. Senator John McCain Saturday repeated his party's calls for stronger support of Iran's protesters from the U.S. government. Speaking on behalf of the Republican party for the weekly radio and Internet address, McCain said "we stand with" the Iranians who are protesting a disputed presidential election in the face of a heavy government crackdown. He said the Iranians ask for nothing besides "public declarations of solidarity, and public denunciations of the tyrants who oppress them," and he said the United States has a "moral obligation" to do so. (News Updates)

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