The government of Rio de Janeiro state will distribute more than three million condoms free of charge during Brazil's five-day carnival that begins Friday.

State health officials said their "using a condom rates 10 in harmony" campaign aims to prevent AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs, particularly among the young.

French police were investigating Thursday the theft of a diamond-studded dog collar from a grave at the world's oldest pet cemetery, whose most famous tenant is Hollywood canine star Rin Tin Tin.

"The grave of a dog buried with a diamond collar worth 9,000 euros (11,700 dollars) was desecrated on the night February 4 to 5. The investigation is being conducted by the local station," a police official told Agence France Presse.

A Florida man trying to kick the smoking habit was puffing on anelectronic cigarette when a faulty battery caused it to explode in his mouth, taking out some of his front teeth and a chunk of his tongue and severely burning his face, fire officials said Wednesday.

"The best analogy is like it was trying to hold a bottle rocket in your mouth when it went off," saidJoseph Parker, division chief for the North Bay Fire Department. "The battery flew out of the tube and set the closet on fire."

A French man has won custody of a black terrier named Poupette (Dolly) following a legal battle with his ex-girlfriend who asked a court to award her the dog after their break-up.

The man's lawyer, Isabelle Terrin, said Wednesday that a judge near the southern city of Marseille had ruled that Poupette could be considered property and the man's previous possession of the dog entitled him to remain her owner.

A video that seems to show Vladimir Putin going on trial but is in fact a cleverly-edited montage became an Internet hit in Russia on Wednesday ahead of presidential polls with two million views.

The minute-long video appears on first glance to show a packed courtroom with Vladimir Putin standing in the cage-like enclosure for defendants, with his head bowed, facing trial on charges of theft and terrorism.

An Indian woman has been rewarded for her "bold" decision to leave her marital home within days of the wedding to protest the lack of a toilet in the household, an official said on Thursday.

Anita Narre was handed $10,000 by Sulabh International, a non-profit group, for refusing to defecate in the open and sparking a "toilet revolution" in her village in central Madhya Pradesh, according to the district magistrate.

A daredevil will become the first in more than a century to attempt to cross the gorge at Niagara Falls on a tightrope, after the Niagara Parks Commission on Wednesday authorized the stunt.

The Canadian commission reversed its decision in December to deny Nik Wallenda's request to perform the stunt after hearing from the high-wire artist that it could generate significant economic returns for the region.

A teenage Indonesian maid is facing a long jail term after pleading guilty to hitting and strangling an 87-year-old Singaporean widow who called her stupid, a report said Thursday.

Now 19, Vitria Depsi Wahyuno had lied about her age in 2009, saying she was 23 to meet the minimum age requirement, and landed a job in Singapore working for Sng Gek Wah, the Straits Times said.

With its roads cut off by heavy snowfall for days, a village in central Romania received welcome deliveries of food and medical supplies on Wednesday -- from a paraglider.

Marian Ciobanu, a 40-year-old man from Bucharest, decided to fly above the village of Valea Salciei in order to airdrop the supplies, according to an Agence France Presse photographer.

The European Court of Human Rights on Tuesday fined The Netherlands for allowing unknown identity thieves to register 1,737 cars in a single man's name, setting him up for a slew of legal woes.

Anytime one of the cars was involved in an accident or traffic violation, the victim, Steven Benito Romet, faced fines and summonses, eventually landing in debtors' prison for lack of funds.