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Peru PM Replaced in Cabinet Shake-up

Peruvian President Ollanta Humala on Saturday replaced his prime minister with his interior minister -- a former army officer like himself who played a key role in quelling a recent spate of social unrest.

Local media had predicted for several weeks that a cabinet reshuffle was likely, as Humala -- the country's first leftist president in almost four decades, who took office in July -- looks to consolidate his power.

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Major 6.5 Quake Hits Southern Mexico, 2 Dead

A major 6.5-magnitude earthquake struck Mexico on Saturday with officials reporting two deaths, as the quake was strongly felt in the capital Mexico City and southern Guerrero state.

The temblor occurred at 7:47 pm (0147 GMT Sunday) about 166 kilometers (103 miles) southwest of Mexico City, at a depth of about 65 kilometers, according to US Geological Survey.

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Report: Turkey's Gul Spurns Vienna Lunch with Barak

Turkish President Abdullah Gul went sightseeing in Vienna rather than take part in a lunch in the Austrian capital also attended by Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, a report said Saturday.

Both men, in town for the two-day World Policy Conference, were on Austrian President Heinz Fischer's lunch guest list on Friday.

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Argentina's President Kirchner Sworn in for Second Term

Argentine President Cristina Kirchner was sworn in Saturday to a second four-year term at the peak of her popularity but with the country's booming economy shadowed by Europe's financial crisis.

The 58-year-old took the oath of office, invoking her late husband and predecessor Nestor Kirchner, and then received the presidential sash from her daughter Florencia amid cheers and applause in Congress.

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Four Killed in DR Congo Post-Election Violence

Four people were killed in Kinshasa Friday and Saturday in unrest that followed the announcement of DR Congo President Joseph Kabila's re-election, the national police chief said.

The victims were three looters who were shot by security forces and a woman hit by a stray bullet, General Charles Bisengimana told reporters.

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Explosion Hits Mosque in Nigeria's Oil Region

An explosion damaged a mosque early Saturday in a town in Nigeria's southern oil rich Niger Delta, police and a government source said.

"There was an incident in Sapele... several persons were injured, but no deaths," a government official who asked not to be named told Agence France Presse.

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Belgium Government Wins Confidence Vote

Belgium's new government won a parliamentary confidence vote Saturday, the last hurdle in resolving a political crisis in the linguistically divided country that lasted a record-breaking 541 days.

Of 143 deputies present, 89 voted in favor of the six-party administration headed by Elie Di Rupo, a French-speaking socialist, with 54, notably Flemish separatists, against.

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Small Plane Crashes into Philippine School, 13 Killed

A light airplane crashed into a school building Saturday near the Philippine capital after its pilot requested an emergency landing shortly after takeoff, killing at least 13 people, including two children.

The plane burst into flames after hitting the school, said Mayor Florencio Bernabe of suburban Paranaque city.

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Nationwide Vote Protests Hit Putin's Rule

Up to 50,000 people turned out in Moscow on Saturday for a protest against disputed polls that have sparked a rare national show of defiance against Vladimir Putin's 12-year rule.

Hundreds of security trucks blocked off central squares while helicopters patrolled the skies as Moscow authorities deployed more than 50,000 riot police and troops on the biggest day of protest to hit Russia since the turbulent 1990s.

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Radioactive Water Leaks Inside Plant in Japan

Radioactive water leaked inside a nuclear power plant in southwestern Japan but did not escape into the environment, the government said Saturday, the latest problem for the country's nuclear industry amid an ongoing crisis at another plant.

The leak Friday at Kyushu Electric Power Co.'s Genkai plant occurred as Japan continues its attempts to stabilize a tsunami-hit nuclear plant on its northeastern coast where three reactor coresmelted and large amounts of radiation were released into the air and ocean.

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