Dutch girl, 14, allowed to sail

A 14-year-old Dutch sailor will be allowed to launch a risky attempt to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world, a court said Tuesday. The Middelburg family court's decision lifted a guardianship order imposed on Laura Dekker last year after she said she wanted to set sail when she was still just 13.

Troops for Somalia • The African Union has approved plans to send extra peacekeeping troops to Somalia, weeks after Somali rebels launched bomb attacks in the Ugandan capital, Kampala.

2 arrested in death of American • Two foreigners detained in Nicaragua have been identified as the American couple wanted in Panama in the death of a U.S. woman, authorities said. William Adolfo Cortez of Texas and his wife, Jane, are being sought in the death of Lynn Hughes.

7 die in Israeli military copter crash • All seven people aboard an Israeli military helicopter were killed when it crashed into a mountain in central Romania, officials said.

Gypsies face discrimination • Gypsies face widespread discrimination in Europe, Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Baconschi said. There are 9 million Gypsies living in the European Union.

EU population grows • The European Union's population has crossed the half-billion mark and the growth has come mostly from immigration, the Eurostat statistics agency said. As of Jan. 1, the 27-nation bloc had a population of 501.1 million — up 1.4 million from a year earlier, the report said. Eurostat said 900,000 came from immigration over 2009, while 500,000 came from births-minus-deaths population growth.

From news services