Tens of thousands of Sunni protesters blocked a major highway in western Iraq on Friday, as an al-Qaida-affiliated group called on Sunnis to take up arms against the Shiite-led government.

The protest comes at a time of mounting sectarian tensions in Iraq. Minority Sunnis complain of official discrimination against them, and the arrests of bodyguards of a senior Sunni politician in December have sparked weekly anti-government demonstrations.

Israeli warplanes flew over southern Lebanon Friday, two days after an airstrike near Damascus, as Syria's army chief of staff warned against testing his country's capabilities.

Gen. Ali Abdullah Ayoub made his comments Thursday during a visit to some military units in the country. The al-Baath newspaper, the mouthpiece of President Bashar Assad's ruling party, quoted Ayoub as saying Syria will never change its stance "no matter how much the enemy carries out provocative and hostile acts."

Israeli media on Friday warned that an alleged air strike on a convoy carrying arms from Syria to Hizbullah could set off a chain reaction, and reported troops on high alert in the country's north.

There was still no official Israeli comment on Syrian claims that Israeli warplanes bombed a military site near Damascus on Wednesday or on separate reports that its aircraft struck a weapons convoy along the Syria-Lebanon border.

Add those cute little hedgehogs to the list of pets that can make you sick.

In the last year, 20 people were infected by a rare but dangerous form of salmonella bacteria, and one person died in January. The illnesses were linked to contact with hedgehogs kept as pets, according to a report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Chinese automaker that bought Sweden's Volvo Cars in 2010 has acquired the British manufacturer of the distinctive London cab.

Geely Holding Group said Friday it bought Manganese Bronze Holdings out of bankruptcy court administration. Geely said it paid just over 11 million pounds ($17.5 million).

Official figures show unemployment across the 17 European Union countries that use the euro steady at 11.7 percent in December.

The rate reported by Eurostat, the EU's statistics office, is a record high for the eurozone after November's original 11.8 percent estimate was revised down. Unemployment in the eurozone has been 11.7 percent now for three months.

Cape Verde coach Lucio Antunes pretended to be on the phone with Jose Mourinho on Friday after telling reporters the Real Madrid coach would help him in the African Cup quarterfinals.

Antunes could have been joking and engaging in Mourinho-like mind games when he smiled widely when answering a question on whether his good friend Mourinho had helped him guide the underdog team to the last eight.

Diego Costa scored two penalties to give 10-man Atletico Madrid a 2-1 home win over nine-man Sevilla on Thursday in an incident-packed first leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal that featured three penalties from handballs.

The Brazilian forward filled in nicely for injured top scorer Radamel Falcao, who has been out since January 20, by triggering both of Sevilla's dismissals in addition to taking his brace.

David Lee finished an assist short of a triple-double and Klay Thompson scored 27 points as the Golden State Warriors beat the Dallas Mavericks 100-97 Thursday.

Lee had 15 points, a season-high 20 rebounds and nine assists, while Jarrett Jack scored 13 points, including two free throws with 2 seconds left to help the Warriors win their third straight. Harrison Barnes also had 15 points.

David Beckham lit up a subdued transfer deadline day in Europe by securing perhaps the final move of his globetrotting career, a surprise short-term deal with ambitious French club Paris Saint-Germain.

Mario Balotelli, a headline-grabber at the opposite end of his football career, finalized his switch from Manchester City to AC Milan for €20 million ($27 million). Otherwise, there was plenty of speculation but precious little activity as another January window closed for business on Thursday.