Danish police arrest two more in terror probe

COPENHAGEN, Denmark -- Two more people suspected of belonging to a terrorist network planning a suicide attack in Europe were arrested Friday in Denmark, police said Saturday. The man and woman, who were not identified, are suspected of assisting four Muslims who were arrested Thursday in Copenhagen on charges of planning an "imminent" terror attack. A court on Saturday ordered the man and woman held until Nov. 16 while police investigate the allegations, police said.

Car bomb explodes in center of Shiite village

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- A bomb hidden in a truck loaded with dates exploded Saturday evening in the center of a Shiite farming village northeast of Baghdad, killing 26 people and injuring at least 34. The blast occurred in Huweder, a village near Baqouba, just before sunset when Muslims would have been breaking their daily Ramadan fast. Police Lt. Ahmed Abdul Wahab, who gave the casualty figure, said the number of deaths could increase because several survivors were critically wounded.

Eight martyrs beatified at Vatican ceremony

VATICAN CITY -- Seven priests and a nun who were killed during the Spanish Civil War were beatified as martyrs Saturday at a Mass in St. Peter's Basilica, praised for having refused to betray their faith when faced with death. Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, prefect of the Congregation for Saints, presided over the late afternoon ceremony. He said in an opening prayer that the eight had "sacrificed their lives for the Gospel." All eight were killed in 1936. Pope John Paul II had approved the beatification of the eight before he died.

Big Ben falls silent for maintenance work

LONDON -- London landmark Big Ben fell silent Saturday to undergo 32 hours of essential maintenance -- its longest shutdown in 22 years. The clock, in the tower of Westminster Palace, London's Houses of Parliament, stopped Saturday morning, and is not expected to be back in action until this evening. Specialist engineers are examining the clock while workers from the Whitechapel Bell Foundry will be replacing the rubber hammer buffers on three of the four quarter bells, the Westminster chimes, and on Big Ben, the 13-ton bell which tolls the hour. After the buffers are replaced, the bells must be retuned, which takes several hours.

-- From wire reports