BOGOTA (Reuters) - A gunman killed a Colombian journalist who had received threats and reported on politicians linked to paramilitary death squads, police and the victim's family said on Saturday.

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy's center-right party faces heavy losses in regional elections Sunday that could affect the pace of reform as maneuvering begins before the 2012 presidential campaign.

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict apologized on Saturday to victims of child sex abuse by clergy in Ireland and ordered an official inquiry there to try to stem a scandal gripping the Catholic Church which has swept across Europe.

NABLUS, West Bank (Reuters) - A Palestinian youth was killed by Israel troops and another was seriously wounded on Saturday during a clash in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian hospital officials said.

BAOMAHUN (Reuters) - Gold mines around the remote Sierra Leone town of Baomahun showed no evidence of a collapse on Saturday, a Reuters television crew said, corroborating an official denial that a mining disaster had occurred there.

BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombian FARC guerrillas kidnapped five local oil contractors near a U.S.-operated oilfield, whisking them into a mountainous area close to Venezuela with troops in pursuit, officials said on Saturday.

HAVANA (Reuters) - A 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck near Guantanamo city in eastern Cuba on Saturday, sending residents fleeing into the streets but a local government official said there were no casualties.

ZURICH (Reuters) - The Swiss Catholic Church is investigating around 10 allegations of abuse by clergy, including some acts committed since 2001, making Switzerland the latest country to be hit by a wave of scandal sweeping Europe.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has suggested holding a referendum to approve subsidy cuts that the Islamic Republic's parliament has repeatedly blocked, a news agency said Saturday.

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Former Nepali Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, a leading figure in Nepal's transition from monarchy to republic, died on Saturday in what the Maoists called a loss for the fragile peace process.