Uruguay's unprecedented plan to create a legal marijuana market won its critical first step Wednesday in the lower house of Congress.

All 50 members of the ruling Broad Front coalition approved the proposal just before midnight Wednesday in a party line vote, keeping a narrow majority of the 96 lawmakers present after more than 13 hours of passionate debate.

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel warned Wednesday that the Pentagon may have to stop using up to three Navy aircraft carriers and order additional sharp reductions in the size of the Army and Marine Corps if Congress doesn't act to avoid massive budget cuts beginning in 2014.

Hagel told reporters that the sweeping budget cuts over the next 10 years could leave the nation with an ill-prepared, under-equipped military doomed to face more technologically advanced enemies.

Christian Benitez died of heart failure, Qatari club El Jaish said Wednesday without providing further details.

The Ecuador striker died Monday, a day after playing his first match for his new club.

The days of buying pornographic videos with names based on Ben & Jerry's ice cream flavors are over.

Caballero Video has agreed to stop marketing "Boston Cream Thigh," ''Peanut Butter D-Cup" and other films spoofing the names of the venerable Vermont ice cream maker's products.

FC Barcelona with Lionel Messi and debuting Neymar surprisingly drew 2-2 with Lechia Gdansk of Poland's premier league in a friendly match Tuesday.

Poland's Jaroslaw Bieniuk opened the scoring in the 16th minute, then Roberto Sergi made it even 10 minutes later with a goal for Barcelona.

Oscar "Ossie" Schectman, the former New York Knicks guard who scored the first basket in NBA history, died Tuesday. He was 94.

Schectman's son Peter confirmed his father's death, which was also announced by the Knicks. Peter says his dad died of complications from respiratory failure.

Brazil champion Fluminense hired coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo on Tuesday to try to put the team back on track after five straight losses in the Brazilian league.

The signing of the former Brazil and Real Madrid coach was announced a day after Abel Braga was fired following a 2-0 loss to Gremio, a result that left the team in the relegation zone with only nine points from as many matches.

Indian Grand Prix organizers say the removal of the race from next year's Formula One calendar is part of a switch in schedule and not because of teams' unhappiness with the country's taxation regulations.

The third edition of the Indian Grand Prix is scheduled for Oct. 27 at the Buddha International Circuit near New Delhi but organizers have been told there will be no race in 2014 as part of an expected switch to being an early-season race in March 2015.

Blasts echo in the distance as two longtime friends and neighbors sit along a narrow street in old Damascus chatting about Syria, when one of them calls the civil war raging in their home country a "crisis."

"It is called a revolution!" the other shouts. "If you are one of those who believe in a foreign conspiracy, then move away from here," roars the man, whose son has been detained by regime forces for nine months for taking part in pro-democracy protests.

An entire province in the Philippines has been plunged into darkness after the national power grid operator cut off supply because of accumulated debt of $93 million.

The blackout that started Tuesday surprised residents of Albay province in the central Philippines, which is home to 1.2 million people.