AP - A senior EU official say the bloc will soon impose harsher sanctions against Syria as it seeks to weaken the regime and end President Bashar Assad's crackdown against political opponents.

AP - Philippine officials conceded Wednesday that there was little hope of finding any survivors among 71 people still buried in landslides set off by a powerful earthquake, as jittery residents stayed away from their homes amid a flurry of aftershocks.

Reuters - Ex-Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed said on Wednesday he was forced to step down at gunpoint on and urged his successor to step down.

AP - Greek coalition leaders are studying a draft deal on further austerity measures demanded to secure a new bailout that will determine whether the country avoids a looming bankruptcy next month.

Reuters - Stock index futures pointed to a slightly higher open for equities on Wall Street on Wednesday, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100 rising 0.2 to 0.3 percent.

AP - Disgruntled police across Brazil are taking aim at the country's iconic Carnival celebration, raising threats to the annual street parties that draw hordes of foreigners as a way to press their demands for pay raises.

Reuters - Yahoo Inc Chairman Roy Bostock and three other directors will step down as the struggling company ploughs ahead with an internal overhaul, including discussions on dealing with its stakes in China's Alibaba Group and Yahoo Japan.

AP - Gov. Jerry Brown's appointee to head the department that oversees banking, financial and consumer regulations in California led a trade association that fought against tighter lending restrictions before the subprime mortgage crisis exploded and was an executive with Washington Mutual when the now-failed bank was among the most aggressive marketers of loans to high-risk borrowers.