Fans eager to see football superstar David Beckham stormed a police cordon Thursday in a stampede at a Shanghai university that injured seven people including five security personnel.

Three police officers, two university security guards and two students — including a Japanese student — were injured, Shanghai police said on its official microblog.

A cat caring for four newborn kittens is nursing an orphaned week-old pit bull puppy in Cleveland.

Sharon Harvey of the Cleveland Animal Protective League said Wednesday that Lurlene the cat welcomed Noland the puppy to her "unusual little family." The puppy was dropped off at the animal shelter last week when he was a day old.

Neymar made the difference for Brazil again on Wednesday, scoring in the ninth minute and setting up Jo's injury-time goal to give the hosts a 2-0 win over Mexico and a spot in the semifinals of the Confederations Cup.

The Brazilian striker scored his second goal of the tournament with a left-footed volley from just inside the penalty box after Mexican defenders failed to clear a cross, then slipped past two defenders at once to set up Jo for an easy goal in the final move of the game.

The hearing to determine whether Mercedes and Pirelli broke Formula One rules by holding in-season tire tests has opened in Paris.

The International Automobile Federation (FIA) convened the international tribunal hearing to determine whether Mercedes gained a competitive advantage from the testing session in Barcelona last month.

The confetti has been swept away, the hangovers from the street parties have been slept off, and now that the Asian teams for the 2014 World Cup have been decided, observers are fretting over slipping standards and how the sides will be able to compete with powerful rivals in Brazil.

Australia, Iran and South Korea all sealed qualification for Brazil this week but in less than convincing fashion. They completed the four automatic qualifying berths from Asia. Japan had earlier sealed its place in much more impressive style and looks like the only realistic Asian threat to the big teams in Brazil.

On a hot and humid tropical evening, Italy sweated out a 4-3 victory over Japan.

And by their own account, the Azzurri were fortunate to come out on top.

The Afghan Taliban said Thursday they are ready to hand over a U.S. soldier held captive since 2009 in exchange for five of their senior operatives being held at the Guantanamo Bay prison.

A Taliban spokesman, Shaheen Suhail, said U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl "is as far as I know in good condition."

Liverpool took a huge financial hit on Andy Carroll on Wednesday by selling the towering England striker to fellow Premier League side West Ham, ending his disappointing two-and-a-half-year spell at Anfield.

Carroll joined Liverpool from Newcastle on deadline day in January 2011 for a staggering 35 million pounds (then $56 million), making him Britain's most expensive footballer, but he struggled under the weight of expectation and didn't fit into the club's style of play.

Former World Cup winner Gennaro Gattuso has been hired to coach Serie B club Palermo.

The Sicilian club announced Wednesday that it has hired the former midfielder to a one-year deal with the option of a two-year renewal.

An explosion at a military depot outside Syria's coastal city of Latakia left six people lightly injured on Wednesday, state television said.

State TV said a "technical error" caused the explosion at a base used by the army corps of engineers. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a number of activists on the ground, said it did not know the cause of the explosion in what it described as an ammunition warehouse. It said 13 people were injured, including some in critical condition.