· Iraqi Shiites burn Bush effigy to protest US pact (AP)

A protester uses his shoe to strike an effigy of U.S. President George. W. Bush, in an expression of contempt, as thousands of followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr converged on Firdous Square in central Baghdad, Iraq for a mass prayer to protest a proposed U.S.-Iraqi security pact on Friday, Nov. 21, 2008.(AP Photo/Karim Kadim)AP - Thousands of followers of a radical Shiite cleric protested a proposed U.S.-Iraqi security deal Friday, burning an effigy of President George W. Bush in the same square where Iraqis beat a toppled Saddam Hussein statue five years ago.


· Myanmar court hands comedian 45-year prison term (AP)
AP - Myanmar's courts continued a crackdown on activists Friday, handing out a 45-year prison sentence to a comedian who went to the delta to help cyclone victims and criticized the junta's slow relief response.
· Islamists say they'll fight Somali pirates (AP)

Local women sit on the banks of the Suez canal as a Suez Canal Authority pilot boat passes by in Ismailia, Egypt, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2008. Major shipping companies said that they are considering other options including avoiding the passage through the Suez Canal to avoid having to go through the Gulf of Aden due to increasing piracy risks - meaning longer, costlier trips around the southern tip of Africa. (AP Photo)AP - A radical Islamic group in Somalia said Friday it will fight the pirates holding a Saudi supertanker loaded with $100 million worth of crude oil.


· Blast kills 8 mourners at Pakistani funeral (AP)

People stand near the dead body of a blast victim at a local hospital in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan on Friday, Nov 21, 2008. A blast killed at least six mourners Friday at the funeral of a Shiite cleric in northwest Pakistan who was gunned down hours earlier, police said.(AP Photo/Ishtiaq Mehsud)AP - Police said a bomb killed eight mourners at the funeral of a Shiite cleric in northwestern Pakistan on Friday, stoking sectarian tension in a region already beset by militant violence.


· Rocket hits Israeli town, Gaza still sealed (AP)

A Jewish settler, left, and an Israeli police officer walk the West Bank town of Hebron, Friday, Nov. 21, 2008. A court-ordered deadline expired Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008 for Jewish settlers to leave a four-storey building in the volatile West Bank city of Hebron. The settlers ignored the ruling, which also said they must be evicted within 30 days if they don't leave voluntarily. (AP Photo/Dan Balilty)AP - Israeli police say Palestinian militants have fired a rocket at an Israeli town near the Gaza Strip. No casualties have been reported.


· Germany's LBBW to receive euro5 billion injection (AP)
AP - Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany's largest state bank, said Friday it will receive a euro5 billion ($6.3 billion) cash injection from its shareholders.
· Lebanese soldiers clash with gunmen, killing 1 (AP)

Lebanese soldiers check passing cars as they stand at a checkpoint near their armored vehicle in the northern city of Tripoli, Lebanon, Friday, Nov. 21, 2008. A security official says a shootout between Lebanese soldiers and a group of gunmen in the northern port city of Tripoli has left one of the gunmen dead and two wounded. (AP Photo)AP - Lebanese soldiers clashed with gunmen in a northern port city on Friday, killing one and wounding others, the army said.


· Mexico: Former drug czar took cartel money (AP)
AP - Mexico's former drug czar was accused Friday of taking $450,000 from a powerful cartel, further evidence the country's drug gangs are being protected by the highest levels of government.
· Former goalie Arendse sees hope for struggling 'Bafana' (AFP)

Then South Africa goalkaeper Andre Arendse celebrates after his team scored at the Olympic stadium in Sousse, Morocco, during their 2004 African Nations Cup match, February 2004. Arendse sees a glimmer of hope for struggling hosts South Africa ahead of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup.(AFP/File/Franck Fife)AFP - Former star Andre Arendse sees a glimmer of hope for struggling hosts South Africa ahead of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup.


· Philippine leader's plane makes emergency landing (AP)
AP - Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's plane made an emergency landing in Japan on Friday after her husband fell ill on board, airport police said.
· Aussie mayor wins sexist 'award' for inviting ugly women to town (AFP)

A view of Australian outback mining town of Mount Isa. The mayor of the town has won the top AFP - An Australian mayor who invited ugly women to move to his outback mining town, saying even they would find a man there, has won the top "award" for the most sexist public comment of the year.