Philippine troops were clearing out the last remaining Muslim rebels after a six-day operation in the south that killed dozens of militants and allowed scores of hostages to flee, officials said Saturday.

Police estimated the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) gunmen were now holding as few as seven civilian hostages in the southern port city of Zamboanga, compared to more than 100 a day earlier, Interior Secretary Mar Roxas said.

Cambodia's strongman Premier Hun Sen met his main political rival Saturday in an effort to break the country's political deadlock following a disputed election, but the two sides apparently failed to reach a breakthrough.

The talks, hosted by King Norodom Sihamoni, had raised hopes of an end to the political stalemate that has gripped the kingdom since July polls that handed victory to Hun Sen amid allegations of electoral fraud.

British Foreign Office minister Hugo Swire said Hong Kong's progress towards universal suffrage was "vital to its future stability" and that electoral reforms must offer voters a "genuine choice", in remarks likely to anger Beijing.

China has promised the former British colony it will see a transition to universal suffrage by 2017, though critics say little or no progress has been made on the prickly issue as the deadline draws closer.

The leader of Muslim rebels locked in a deadly stand-off with Philippine forces in a key southern city has agreed to discuss a ceasefire, a spokesman for Vice President Jejomar Binay said Saturday.

About 180 gunmen from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) infiltrated six coastal districts of Zamboanga city before dawn on Monday in a siege which has left at least 22 people dead and 52 wounded.

The Dalai Lama said Friday he believed China was being "more realistic" about Tibet after decades of what he termed failed hardline policy.

Beijing has long accused Tibet's exiled spiritual leader of encouraging separatism and violence, but the Nobel Peace laureate said Friday he is only seeking "meaningful autonomy" for Tibetans within China and accepts Chinese rule.

Barack Obama will pay the first visit by a U.S. president to Malaysia in a half-century on a four-nation Asia tour next month, the White House said Friday.

Obama will attend summits in Indonesia and Brunei and also visit longtime U.S. ally the Philippines during the October 6-12 trip.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, known as being prone to gaffes now and then, has compared some Republican lawmakers to Neanderthal cavemen.

Biden was speaking Thursday night at a reception marking the anniversary of a law designed to fight violence against women.

Central Africa Republic's new President Michel Djotodia said Friday he is dissolving the Seleka rebel group that overthrew the country's former leader and brought him to power.

From today, the Seleka rebel coalition "no longer exists," said Djotodia, who was sworn in as president in August after seizing power in the violence-wracked country.

Three friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev will be arraigned on Friday on charges of lying to investigators and conspiring to obstruct justice.

Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazhayakov, both 19-year-olds from Kazakhstan, had previously pleaded not guilty to charges of impeding the investigation into the April 15 attack that left three dead and scores injured.

India's main opposition named hardline Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi on Friday as its prime ministerial candidate for elections due next year, overriding doubts in the party about his polarizing character.

The decision caps the ascent of 62-year-old Modi in the party, which has spent nearly a decade in the political wilderness.