AFP - US President George W. Bush will attend the August 8 opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympic Games despite appeals from human rights activists that he boycott the gala, the White House said Thursday.

Reuters - Israel's Kadima and Labour parties are close to a deal on a coalition government led by Tzipi Livni, a move that sets her on course to form a new centrist administration, Army Radio said on Sunday.

AP - Jason Elam made the most of his second chance, kicking a 48-yard field goal on the final play to give the Atlanta Falcons a stunning 22-20 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve on Sunday gave its stamp of approval to the takeover of Wachovia Corp by Wells Fargo & Co of San Francisco, which had battled New York-based Citigroup for ownership of the wounded bank.

AP - Firefighters backed by water-dumping helicopters and planes gained ground Sunday on a wildfire that destroyed two homes and forced the evacuation of about 1,200 people in a rugged area 20 miles north of downtown.

AFP - European Union leaders hammered out a plan Sunday to confront the financial crisis which will involve hundreds of billions of dollars of new initiatives to head off a feared "meltdown".