WORLD IN BRIEF

ANKARA, Turkey -- Turkish state prosecutors charged nine people, including a journalist who works for the Reuters news agency, with spreading propaganda on behalf of Kurdish separatists.

If found guilty, the nine, who include other journalists and human rights activists, face up to three years in jail.

ASIA

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KATMANDU, Nepal -- Communist rebels in Nepal announced they would end a four-month cease-fire, saying they had to take up arms to defend themselves against government attacks.

Hours after their statement, a series of explosions rocked three towns in Nepal. No casualties were immediately reported.

BEIJING -- Censors have told Chinese media to stop discussing plagiarism claims against the Communist Party's star legal scholar, who is accused of copying parts of his new book from the writings of a once-jailed dissident.

Reporters and scholars involved said propaganda officials last week ordered no more reporting of the claims against Zhou Yezhong, a professor at Wuhan University in central China. Zhou reached the peak of official favor in December 2002, when he lectured Communist Party chief Hu Jintao and the Politburo, the party's inner circle, on constitutional law. His subsequent career has been marked with promotions and accolades.

The Americas

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BOGOTA, Colombia -- Colombia's main rebel group ruled out a proposed prisoner exchange with the government while Alvaro Uribe is president.

The statement appeared aimed at hurting the hard-line leader's reelection bid. It also means that 60 hostages -- including politicians, military personnel and three American contractors -- could remain in captivity until at least 2010, when Uribe's term would end should he be reelected.

MEXICO CITY -- Mexican officials called for an investigation into the death of a man they said was fatally shot while sneaking across the border into California.

Raul Martinez, a spokesman for the Border Patrol in San Diego, acknowledged that an agent fired at an immigrant on Friday near a metal wall separating San Diego from Tijuana, saying the agent feared for his life after the man threw a large rock at him. Martinez said the man fled back into Mexico after the agent fired, and that U.S. investigators were unsure if the victim had been struck.

--From News Services