AP - The leader of a tiny church on Thursday backed off his threat to burn the Quran, saying he gave up the plan in exchange for a deal to move a planned Islamic center and mosque away from New York's ground zero. The imam planning the center, however, quickly denied any such deal.

AP - Iran said Thursday it will free Sarah Shourd, one of three Americans jailed for more than 13 months, as an act of clemency to mark the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

AP - The government may resume funding of embryonic stem cell research for now, an appeals court said Thursday, but the short-term approval may be of little help to research scientists caught in a legal battle that has just begun.

AP - Neighborhoods once filled with million-dollar homes and scenic mountain cabins have become piles of smoking rubble. On one lot, all that survived was a tennis court. On others, all that's left are crumbling, ash-covered foundations.

AP - No, the economy isn't roaring ahead. And no, companies aren't making lots of job offers. But a fresh batch of economic data Thursday at least eased summertime fears that the economy might be on the brink of another recession.

AP - "Advocate tolerance, and disregard the ignorant," one book counsels. Advises the other, "Be gentle towards all, ... forbearing."

AP - Apple Inc. on Thursday gave software developers the guidelines it uses to determine which programs can be sold in its App Store, yet it reserved for itself broad leeway in deciding what makes the cut.

AP - Britney Spears denied a bodyguard's accusations that she sexually harassed him and abused her children, saying Thursday in a statement on her website that authorities looked into his claims but found no reason to act.

AP - John Travolta was onto something. Women are most attracted to male dancers who have big, flamboyant moves similar to the actor's trademark style, British scientists say in a new study.

AP - New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was in a two-vehicle accident near his home Thursday morning but was unhurt and hours later practiced as usual with his team just days before the season opener.

Reuters - A Christian pastor on Thursday canceled a plan to burn copies of the Koran at his obscure Florida church, which had drawn international condemnation and a warning from President Barack Obama that it could provoke al Qaeda suicide bombings.

Reuters - New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week to a two-month low, while the trade deficit narrowed sharply in July, hopeful signs for the stuttering economic recovery.

Reuters - A set of U.N. goals aimed at drastically reducing poverty and hunger worldwide by 2015 are achievable, despite setbacks caused by the global financial and economic crises, a draft document said.

Reuters - Iran will soon release Sarah Shourd, one of three detained American citizens accused of espionage, an Iranian official at the United Nations told Reuters Thursday.

Reuters - Gunmen stormed the house of a Sunni cleric Thursday and cut his head off before setting him alight in an attack that bore the hallmark of insurgents, a police spokesman said.

AFP - A Florida pastor Thursday abandoned plans to burn hundreds of Korans, saying Muslim leaders had vowed to relocate a mosque due to be opened close to the Ground Zero site in New York.

AFP - Iran will soon free Sarah Shourd, one of three US hikers the Islamic republic detained more than a year ago, an Iranian diplomat announced on Thursday.