The Russian government said on Monday that it will send two planes to Lebanon to evacuate Russian citizen from war-torn Syria, the first such effort since the uprising against Syrian President Bashar Assad began in March 2011.

The Emergency Situations Ministry said two of its planes will fly to Beirut on Tuesday to carry more than 100 Russians from Syria.

The toughest sides of the men's and women's draws at the Australian Open are progressing true to form. A consequence of that smooth sailing is the likelihood now of some semifinals worthy of any Grand Slam title matches.

Second-seeded Roger Federer and Andy Murray stayed on course Monday for a semifinal in their half of the draw, with No. 1 and defending champion Novak Djokovic possibly waiting for the victor in next Sunday's final.

Sniffling, groggy and afraid she had caught the flu, Diana Zavala dragged herself in to work anyway for a day she felt she couldn't afford to miss.

A school speech therapist who works as an independent contractor, she doesn't have paid sick days. So the mother of two reported to work and hoped for the best — and was aching, shivering and coughing by the end of the day. She stayed home the next day, then loaded up on medicine and returned to work.

Talk about whisky on ice: Three bottles of rare, 19th century Scotch found beneath the floor boards of Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackelton's abandoned expedition base were returned to the polar continent Saturday after a distiller flew them to Scotland to recreate the long-lost recipe.

But not even New Zealand Prime Minister John Key, who personally returned the stash, got a taste of the contents of the bottles of Mackinlay's whisky, which were rediscovered 102 years after the explorer was forced to leave them behind.

Music fans will soon get to hear the symphonic-like shrieking that Victoria Azarenka brings to her tennis.

The No. 1-ranked player and reigning Australian Open champion is known as one of the more vocal players on the women's tour, accompanying almost every whack of the ball with a high-pitched "Ooooooouuuuuuuuuuuu."

Oklahoma City Thunder dropped into a tie for the NBA's best record when they lost 121-118 at the Denver Nuggets in overtime on Sunday.

Kenneth Faried scored the go-ahead layup in overtime, dropping the Thunder equal with the Los Angeles Clippers on 32-9 records.

Alberto Contador, a two-time winner of the Tour de France who was stripped of a third title for using a banned substance, says cycling needs to take something positive from the Lance Armstrong scandal and move forward.

Contador spoke to reporters on Sunday on the eve of the Tour de San Luis in Argentina.

The African Cup of Nations returned to something more like its normal order on Sunday when sunshine, empty stands, reckless yet eye-catching football and politics were all thrown in at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

Seydou Keita ensured Mali was the first team to win at the tournament then called attention to his conflict-torn country by wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with a slogan calling for peace.

Opportunity, NASA's other Mars rover, has tooled around the red planet for so long it's easy to forget it's still alive.

Some 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometers) away from the limelight surrounding Curiosity's every move, Opportunity this week quietly embarks on its tenth year of exploration — a sweet milestone since it was only tasked to work for three months.

It has the makings of a science fiction movie: Zap someone's brain with mild jolts of electricity to try to stave off the creeping memory loss of Alzheimer's disease.

And it's not easy. Holes are drilled into the patient's skull so tiny wires can be implanted into just the right spot.