Islamist forces pulled out of many of their bases in the Somali capital of Mogadishu overnight, government and rebel spokesmen said Saturday.

"The information we are receiving is that there is a retreat from the city. This is a golden victory for the Somali people and we are committed to ensure that peace and order is restored to those areas," said government spokesman Abdirahman Omar Osman.

Activists said Saturday that at least 24 Syrian civilians have been killed as security forces fired on anti-government protesters as part of a nationwide crackdown.

Syria-based rights activist Mustafa Osso said most of the deaths occurred in Damascus suburbs during daytime Friday protests and late night demonstrations following evening Ramadan prayers.

The Japanese city of Hiroshima marked the 66th anniversary of the bombing on Saturday, as the nation fights a different kind of disaster from atomic technology — a nuclear plant in a meltdown crisis after being hit by a tsunami.

The site of the world's first A-bomb attack observed a moment of silence at 8:15 a.m. Saturday (2315 GMT Friday) — the time the bomb was dropped on Aug. 6, 1945, by the United States in the last stages of World War II.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Friday that he has asked legislators to give him permission to return to Cuba for a second round of chemotherapy for his cancer.

The National Assembly's secretariat announced that the body would hold a special session Saturday to vote on authorization for Chavez to leave the country.

An explosion struck an oil pipeline in Iran's oil-rich southwestern province of Khuzestan early Friday, triggering a blaze that took firefighters hours to put out, news agencies reported.

Abdohossein Rezaeizadeh, spokesman for the provinces' branch of the Iranian national oil company, told the official IRNA news agency that the causes of the blast and the subsequent fire were under investigation.

It could have picked London or Hong Kong. Instead, the lingerie retailer that styles itself "the original sex symbol" chose the buttoned-down sheikdom of Abu Dhabi for the launch of its first international store.

Frederick's of Hollywood, famed for its curve-cinching corsets and provocative push-up bras, opened up to little fanfare in the Emirati capital last weekend. Another outpost offering the chain's racy lingerie is set to open soon up the road in more freewheeling Dubai.

British media said Friday that actor Rowan Atkinson, famed for his "Mr. Bean" television shows and films, is recovering in hospital after crashing his supercar.

The 56-year-old comedian, also known for the "Blackadder" historical comedy shows, was expected to be discharged on Friday after treatment for a shoulder injury, the Daily Mirror reported.

China's most decorated Winter Olympic athlete has been expelled from the national team for a drunken brawl with an official, throwing the successful short track speed skating program into disarray.

Wang Meng went out drinking and failed to return to the team hotel before a curfew, China's sports governing body said in a statement released late Thursday. When she was confronted by the team manager Wang Chunlu, she punched her, it said.

Amy Winehouse's final recording, a duet with Tony Bennett, will be released as a charity single for a foundation set up in her name, her family said Thursday.

"Body and Soul" will go on sale in September, with proceeds going to the newly established Amy Winehouse Foundation.

He was on his way back to England after a visit to America, he recalled for reporters on Thursday.

"But out of the window on the right side of the airplane you could see the twin towers," he said. "You could see one plume of smoke. Then you could see two, shortly thereafter. And I said, 'That's just an optical illusion.'"