UN: Up to 1 million flee Ivory Coast violence

With possessions balanced on their heads, about 1,000 people frantically crowded around buses rented by Mali to evacuate its citizens Friday from Ivory Coast, as the U.N. said up to 1 million have fled their homes amid fears of civil war.

More than 2 million Malians live in neighboring Ivory Coast, and human rights groups say the foreigners are facing growing threats of violence as the Ivorian political crisis intensifies. Evacuation efforts have been hampered by a lack of buses so far.

"700 today. 700 tomorrow. Everyone who wants to leave will be able to as long as I'm here," said Hamet Diawara, president of the council of Malians in Ivory Coast.

Incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo has refused to cede office despite his rival Alassane Ouattara being recognized by the international community as the rightful winner of November's presidential election. Pro-Gbagbo forces have attacked foreigners from the region whose countries have supported Ouattara.

At least 33 citizens of Burkina Faso have been killed while another 35 are missing, said Albert Ouedraogo, the chairman of the Tocsin, the main diaspora association, from the Burkinabe capital.

Making sure 'motel kids' don't go hungry

In the shadows of Disneyland, often referred to as the "happiest place on Earth," many children are living a reality that's far from carefree.

They are living in cheap motels more commonly associated with drug dealers, prostitutes and illicit affairs.

It's the only option for many families that are struggling financially and can't scrape together a deposit for an apartment. By living week to week in these cramped quarters, they stay one step ahead of homelessness.

"Some people are stuck, they have no money. They need to live in that room," said Bruno Serato, a local chef and restaurateur. "They've lost everything they have. They have no other chance. No choice."

While "motel kids" are found across the United States, the situation is very common in Orange County, California, a wealthy community with high rents and a large number of old motels. In 2009, local authorities estimated that more than 1,000 families lived in these conditions.

When Serato learned that these children often go hungry, he began serving up assistance, one plate at a time. To date, he's served more than 270,000 pasta dinners -- for free -- to those in need.

"Kids should not be suffering," Serato said. "[I had] to do something."

Serato, 55, has always given back to the community where he achieved his American dream. When the Italian immigrant arrived in the U.S. 30 years ago, his poor English skills forced him to settle for a job as a dishwasher. But within five years, he had become chef and owner of the Anaheim White House, an Italian restaurant that is now a local hot spot.

Zimbabwe prime minister's ally arrested a 2nd time

A Zimbabwean court on Friday ordered a top political ally of the prime minister to be held in jail after his second arrest this month, attorneys said, arrests that have been criticized by the prime minister's party as being politically motivated.

Energy Minister Elton Mangoma, a founder of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's former opposition party, was arrested Friday over allegations that he interfered in a deal to buy equipment for the state electricity utility, said defense attorney Beatrice Mtetwa.

He was first arrested March 10 on charges he bypassed official procedures to buy gasoline from neighboring South Africa.

Mangoma denies any wrongdoing in both cases that carry a penalty of imprisonment or a fine. After his last arrest, Tsvangirai threatened to pull out of the nation's shaky two-year power sharing coalition.

Tsvangirai was scheduled to fly to South Africa on Friday for talks with South African President Jacob Zuma, the chief regional mediator on Zimbabwe, over bitter disputes still dogging the coalition.

Mangoma, a former corporate executive, argued the fuel deal was signed in January to ease acute gasoline shortages after being approved by ministerial colleagues at a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Robert Mugabe.

After four nights in jail, he was freed on bail to face trial scheduled March 28.

Mtetwa on Friday described his second arrest as a deliberate attempt to return him to jail in violation of bail conditions granted by the Harare High Court on the first charges.

She said police Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri had opposed Mangoma's bail and afterward wrote to Mugabe's Cabinet office demanding Mangoma be stripped of his ministerial duties.

Tsvangirai described Mangoma's first arrest as the act of "a barbaric and senseless dictatorship."

Powerful quake in NE Myanmar kills more than 70

A powerful earthquake that toppled homes in northeastern Myanmar has killed more than 70 people, and there were fears Friday the toll would mount as conditions in more remote areas became known.

The Thursday night quake, measured at magnitude 6.8 by the U.S. Geological Survey, was centered just north of Tachileik town in Shan State near the Thai border. It was felt hundreds of miles (kilometers) away in the Thai capital, Bangkok, and Vietnamese capital, Hanoi.

Myanmar state radio announced Friday that 74 people had been killed and 111 injured in the quake, but was updating the total frequently. It said 390 houses, 14 Buddhist monasteries and nine government buildings were damaged.

An official from the U.N.'s World Food Program said there were many casualties and serious damage in Mong Lin village, five miles (eight kilometers) from Tachileik. State radio said 29 were killed there and 16 injured.

The state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported that 15 houses collapsed in the town of Tarlay, where state radio said 11 were killed and 29 injured. Another U.N. official said a small hospital there was damaged as well as a bridge, making it difficult to access the town. The private relief agency World Vision said water tanks and wells were also damaged, hindering water supplies.

The newspaper said two other people were killed in Tachileik, including a 4-year-old boy. It said six people were injured in the town, which is just across the border from Mae Sai in Thailand's Chiang Rai province.

In Mae Sai, one woman was killed when a wall fell on her, according to Thai police, but damage was otherwise minimal.

Fighting's effect on Libya civilians remains murky

Moammar Gadhafi's government accused U.S.-led forces of ignoring civilian casualties on Friday, showing journalists a Tripoli neighborhood that has come under attack for at least two nights. U.S. and British officials insisted civilians have been spared and retort that the Libyan leader has engineered his own atrocities.

At the heart of the dispute is the difficulty separating rhetoric and stage-management from the pain of people who may have lost family, homes and sometimes livelihoods. Or maybe not.

On Friday, Libyan officials took foreign journalists to Tripoli's Tajoura neighborhood, on the outskirts of the city. Two military bases on the way had clearly been hit, their buildings twisted and damaged. Black smoke still rose from one.

The small farm where the bus finally stops was a wreck: The windows were smashed in, the television toppled over. Plaster was everywhere on the floor, but the painted walls were intact. It's the home of Rajab Mohammed, who said the bomb hit at the base of the palm just outside. Next to the palm was a pit, the size of a large beach ball.

"There were bullets everywhere," said Mohammed, struggling to explain the source of bullet holes on the outside of the house.

A U.S. official said ships in the Mediterranean launched 15 more Tomahawk cruise missiles overnight, targeting garrisons near Tripoli. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the record.