Breaking International News Headlines

Zhao Gang and Liu Rui were thrilled upon receiving their marriage certificate on Aug. 8, 2008: China's auspicious triple-eight date. At least 16,400 couples have followed in their footsteps, hoping to tie the knot at 8:08 a.m.

AP - Russia sent columns of tanks and reportedly bombed Georgian air bases Friday after Georgia launched a major military offensive Friday to retake the breakaway province of South Ossetia, threatening to ignite a broader conflict.

AP - Iraqi police say at least 16 people have been killed and 20 wounded when a car bomb struck a market in the northern city of Tal Afar.

AP - The National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Hernan has formed far off Mexico's Pacific coast and is expected to remain far from land.

AFP - Humanitarian body Doctors Without Borders Friday urged South Africa to provide "viable options" for thousands of displaced foreigners whose camps are due to be closed next week.

AFP - Chinese authorities Friday announced stepped up controls on religious figures and potential "trouble-makers" in the Muslim city of Kashgar as the Olympic Games opened in Beijing.

AP - Once-reclusive China commandeered the world stage Friday, celebrating its first-time role as Olympic host with a stunning display of pyrotechnics and pageantry — topped by the unworldly sight of a flying gymnast, traversing the heights of the stadium to light the flame and begin the Summer Games.

AP - An anti-China protester set himself on fire outside the Chinese Embassy in the Turkish capital and demonstrators raised the Tibetan flag Friday in defiance in London in protests worldwide timed to coincide with the start of the Beijing Olympics.

AP - Police shut down a bustling bazaar in the capital of China's restive Muslim region of Xinjiang Friday, tightening security there after an Islamic group seeking independence for the area threatened to attack buses, trains and planes during the Olympics.

AP - President Bush, the first U.S. president to attend an Olympics abroad, blended political messages for China and Russia with high fives and hugs for American athletes Friday.