AFP - Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai said that his country could not become an "honorable" member of the international community until its mammoth drug problem was wiped out.

AP - Furniture maker Ikea plans to hire tens of thousands of new workers as the company continues to expand with dozens of new stores opening around the world, the company's chief executive said in an interview published Monday.

AP - Rivals Hamas and Fatah called off top-level talks Monday on forming a Palestinian unity government that might ease crippling international sanctions, the latest indication of difficulties in bridging their ideological differences.