MULTAKA, Iraq -- A soccer game on a dirt field between two amateur teams -- one U.S. Army soldiers, one local Iraqis -- may not seem like a big deal in the scope of the wider war.

But the recent match between members of the 87th Infantry's 1st battalion and several young men from the Sons of Iraq meant much more than the 9-0 score.

For one thing, it was the third time in recent days when American soldiers donned shorts and "Salute to Our Fallen Heroes" T-shirts to go head-to-head and foot-to-foot with teams of opponents who, only months ago, may have been trying to kill them.

For another, the soldiers were playing without body armor-a sign of improved security in the sandy Hawijah District patrolled by units of the 10th Mountain Division from Fort Drum, N.Y.

TOKYO -- The Defense Ministry has decided to start procuring new weapons, including new types of cluster bombs, from next fiscal year to replace its stockpile of cluster bombs, whose production and use will be banned after a treaty outlawing such munitions takes effect, sources said Saturday.

Last month, the government endorsed a draft treaty banning cluster munitions that was adopted at an international conference in Dublin attended by representatives of more than 100 nations.

Its decision prompted the ministry to find alternative weapons to cluster bombs, which were regarded as effective in defending this nation due to its long coastline.

Cluster munitions, which contain several to hundreds of bomblets, can be used to bombard wide areas. But they pose lingering risks to civilians.

Many people have been killed or maimed by unexploded ordnance after the end of armed conflicts.

New types of cluster bombs, however, will not be subject to the ban as they have fewer than 10 bomblets, which are equipped with self-destruct mechanisms, sharply reducing the risk of bomblets failing to explode.

LAGOS, Nigeria -- Nigeria's main militant group says it is declaring a unilateral cease-fire.

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta said in a statement Sunday that it would halt attacks starting midnight Tuesday and would launch no more attacks until further notice.

The group behind two years of crippling attacks on Nigeria's oil infrastructure said it was heeding calls by elders in the restive southern oil region for the militants to give peace efforts another try.

BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Fighting broke out in northern Lebanon on Sunday between pro- and anti-government factions leaving at least four people dead and 29 wounded, security and medical officials said.

Tensions have been on the rise for several days between government supporters in Tripoli's Bab el-Tabaneh district and the opposition in neighboring Jabal Mohsen, according to the security officials.

Machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades were used in the clashes, which started around 4 a.m., according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak to the media.

Three civilians were killed along with a policeman who was on his way to work when he was hit with a bullet in the head, officials said.

The latest deaths raise the number of people killed in violence since last month to 87. More than 200 have been wounded.

A military official said the fighting had eased before noon Sunday and the army was sending reinforcements.

MANILA, Philippines -- Rescuers battled huge waves and strong winds Sunday to reach a ferry that capsized during a deadly typhoon in the Philippines a day earlier, but found no immediate signs of the more than 740 passengers and crew.

Coast guard frogmen who managed to get to the stricken ship got no response when they rapped on the hull with metal instruments, then had to give up for the night due to the strong waves.

"They haven't seen anyone. They're scouring the area. They're studying the direction of the waves to determine where survivors may have drifted," coast guard spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Arman Balilo said.

Rescuers hoped to get inside on Monday, likely with U.S. assistance requested by the Philippine Red Cross. Typhoon Fengshen has killed at least 137 people across the sprawling archipelago, setting off landslides and floods, and knocking out electricity. So far, 10 people from the ferry are known to have made it to land. Six bodies, including those of a man and woman who had bound themselves together, have washed ashore, along with children's slippers and life jackets.

Officials were checking reports that a large number of survivors might have reached one nearby island and that a life raft was spotted off another, coast guard spokesman Cmdr. Antonio Cuasito said.

"We can only pray that there are many survivors so we can reduce the number of casualties," he said.

About two dozen relatives went to the Manila office of ferry owner Sulpicio Lines. Some wept as they waited for news.

"I'm very worried. I need to know what happened to my family," said Felino Farionin, his voice cracking. His wife, son and four in-laws were on the ferry, which was going from Manila to Cebu.

Zimbabwe opposition leader pulling out of election

HARARE, Zimbabwe -- Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai pulled out of Zimbabwe's violence-wracked presidential runoff Sunday, declaring that the election was no longer credible and the loss of life among his supporters was simply too high.

The announcement cleared the way for President Robert Mugabe to continue his 28-year rule, despite mounting condemnation from even loyal African allies that the former independence hero has become a despot who has bankrupted the country's once thriving economy.

"We can't ask the people to cast their vote on June 27 when that vote will cost their lives. We will no longer participate in this violent sham of an election," Tsvangirai said.

He addressed a news conference in Zimbabwe's capital after thousands of militants loyal to Mugabe prevented opposition supporters from gathering for its main campaign rally.