World datelines

Argentina: Ship runs aground

BUENOS AIRES — A cruise ship carrying 122 people is taking on water after running aground in the Antarctic on Thursday but is in no danger of sinking, the Argentine Navy said.

The Panamanian-flagged Ushuaia — with 89 passengers and 33 Argentine crew members — sent out an alarm around midday after it suffered two cracks and started leaking fuel and taking on water, the Navy said in a statement. Another passenger ship in the area was helping the Ushuaia, which is named after the Tierra del Fuego port where the ship is based.

A Chilean Navy ship was on its way to help the Ushuaia and rescue its passengers. It was expected to arrive Friday morning.

Mexico: 13 bodies found

CULIACAN — Thirteen bullet-riddled bodies were found along a dirt road Thursday in Mexico's Sinaloa state, home to the powerful cartel of the same name.

The victims, whose hands were bound, were found near the town of Coyotitlan along with 80 bullet shells, federal police agent Juan de Dios Beltran said.

Mexico has been suffering from escalating drug violence amid a national crackdown on traffickers. Homicides have grown increasingly gruesome, with piles of bodies dumped in public, sometimes beheaded.

El Universal newspaper reported Wednesday that, according to its count, more than 5,000 people have died in drug-related violence this year. The government only sporadically releases nationwide homicide figures.

Norway: Cluster-bomb treaty

OSLO — Ninety-three countries signed a treaty banning cluster bombs Thursday, as diplomats accepted the wishes of victims who begged them to bar the weapons that kill and maim civilians long after the conflicts end.

Some of the world's top military powers — including the U.S., Russia and China — refused to attend, arguing cluster bombs have legitimate military uses, such as repelling advancing troop columns.

"We're, of course, disappointed by the states that did not show up here in Oslo," said Steve Goose, the arms director of Human Rights Watch. "They're on the wrong side of history. Some of them are clinging to what is now a widely discredited weapon."

Russia: Putin insults leader

MOSCOW — Reveling in his reputation for earthy language, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin unabashedly confirmed a crude outburst against Georgia's president and even took the tirade a step further Thursday.