Zimbabwe opposition asks voters to end Mugabe rule

HARARE, Zimbabwe -- Zimbabwe's opposition leader called on his supporters Friday to challenge President Robert Mugabe's rule in next week's runoff election despite a "wave of brutality" he says the government has unleashed.

Even as Morgan Tsvangirai urged Zimbabweans to have the courage to vote in the face of a violent crackdown, a judge ordered the No. 2 opposition leader held on treason and other charges until after the election.

"The wave of brutality being inflicted upon our people is reminiscent of the worst days of" white rule, Tsvangirai said in an e-mail, one of the few ways he has of reaching voters.

The opposition leader's attempts to tour the country have regularly been stymied by police at road blocks, and the state-controlled media here all but ignore him.

Iraqi oil pipeline sabotage drops sharply

BAGHDAD -- A sharp drop in attacks on pipelines has enabled Iraq to increase oil exports from northern oil fields and profit from the rise in world energy prices, the country's oil minister said Friday.

Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said pipeline attacks fell from an average of 30 a month in 2007 to only four last month. Most of the attacks had been in the north, where Sunni insurgents were active.

Al-Shahristani told Al-Sharqiya television that the reduction in attacks has enabled Iraq to export more oil from the northern oil fields around Kirkuk to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan.

The northern pipeline had been frequently shut down for extended periods during the past four years because of sabotage.

Iraq's oil exports, most of which come from southern oil fields around Basra, have risen above 2 million barrels a day for the first time since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003, the Oil Ministry said this month.

Olympic flame on visit to isolated Tibet

LHASA, China -- The Olympic flame traveled to Tibet's isolated capital Friday, and an official announced that additional sentences have been handed down following anti-government riots that rocked the city three months ago.

The torch relay, which was disrupted during its international stops by anti-China protests -- including demonstrations against Beijing's policies in Tibet -- was scheduled to kick off in Lhasa at 9 a.m. today (9 p.m. EDT Friday).

The 6.8-mile run was scheduled to begin at Norbulingka, the Dalai Lama's former summer palace, and end at the hilltop Potala Palace, the traditional seat of Tibetan rulers, the state-run China Daily newspaper reported. Tight security was expected in light of anti-government rioting on March 14 in Lhasa and subsequent protests throughout Tibetan-inhabited regions of western China.

On Friday, shops were open and people walked around in the center of Lhasa, where banners saying "Go China" and "Go Olympics" were displayed.

Groups of police were visible on virtually every corner and a truckload of riot troops stood watch in the city center. Police stopped an AP Television News cameraman from shooting street scenes and forced him to erase footage of security arrangements.

Thai protesters besiege government compound

BANGKOK, Thailand -- Several thousand protesters besieged Thailand's seat of government Friday, delivering fiery anti-government speeches and singing nationalistic songs as they vowed to stay until the prime minister resigns.

After initially scuffling with the demonstrators, the police offered little resistance as crowds surged toward and pressed up against a fence on two sides of the Government House, a compound of ornate buildings from the 1920s.

The protesters, spearheaded by the People's Alliance for Democracy, claim that Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej's government is a proxy for former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 military coup.

Beijing to restrict traffic during Olympics

BEIJING -- Half of Beijing's 3.3 million vehicles will be pulled off the roads during the Olympics to help clean the city's noxious air for the games.

The auto ban is part of an anti-pollution plan that also will halt construction and heavy industry during the Olympics, which begin in seven weeks.

Under the plan announced Friday, vehicles will be allowed on the roads on alternate days -- according to even or odd car registration numbers -- from July 20 until Sept. 20.

In addition, 300,000 heavy polluting vehicles -- aging industrial trucks, many of which operate only at night -- will be banned from July 1.

New sports venues and $40 billion spent to improve China's infrastructure have not disguised the fact that Beijing's air quality remains a contentious issue for the games.