The opposition Syrian National Council called on U.N. observers on Saturday to visit the Damascus neighborhoods of Kfar Sousa and Tadamon where nine people died during demonstrations and funerals a day earlier.

In a statement, the SNC urged the observers to visit "where the funerals of the martyrs killed Friday will be held."

London's comic and outspoken mayor Boris Johnson won re-election Friday, triumphing in a closer-than-expected vote to secure a second term and his status as the unvarnished and unpredictable host of the 2012 Olympics

Johnson's victory, in election results confirmed late Friday, was a bright spot on a rough day for his colleagues in Prime Minister David Cameron's governing Conservative Party, who took a drubbing in local elections.

Air France-KLM posted a net loss of €368 million ($483 million) in the first quarter of the year, saying Friday that high fuel costs and a continued drop in cargo cut into its profits.

The Franco-Dutch airline said revenue grew 6 percent to €5.6 billion, but that was not enough to offset the continued slide in the income column. The group made a net loss of €367 million in the first quarter of last year.

Venus Williams thinks it's a fashion statement. A Canadian player describes it as "Smurf clay." Rafael Nadal calls it a mistake.

The Madrid Open is receiving extra attention this year as the Masters Series event for men and women will be the first top-level tournament played on blue clay instead of the traditional red surface.

More U.S. teenagers are postponing sex than in 1995, and hormonal contraceptive use is up among those who are sexually active, said U.S. health authorities on Thursday.

However, disparities in safe sex practices remain, with white teenagers more likely to regularly use contraception than African-Americans or Hispanics, said the report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Mick Jagger will test his comic chops later this month as host of the "Saturday Night Live" season finale.

The Rolling Stones front man has been a musical guest twice before on the long-running NBC show, and the network said Thursday he will perform musically on the May 19 finale. But he has never been host before, a job that usually requires participation in several comic skits.

Hollywood actor Gary Sinise is helping promote a summer concert in suburban Chicago that will benefit veterans.

The "Forrest Gump" star helped kickoff ticket sales for "Rockin' for the Troops" on Thursday at the Navistar headquarters in Lisle.

A blind Chinese activist at the center of a diplomatic standoff between the United States and China said Friday his situation is "dangerous," and that American officials have been blocked from seeing him for two days and friends who have tried to visit have been beaten up.

Chen Guangcheng sounded anxious as he spoke to The Associated Press by telephone from his hospital bed Friday, saying he was very worried about his safety. He is now seeking U.S. help to leave the country after he fled house arrest and sought refuge at the U.S. Embassy.

An online ad featuring Ashton Kutcher as an Indian man has been pulled offline after viewers called it racist.

The images and video for Popchips feature the 34-year-old "Two and a Half Men" star in brown makeup portraying a Bollywood producer named Raj who is "looking for love." They were removed from YouTube and Facebook after being criticized online.

One of the last studio recordings by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Levon Helm was also one of the closest to his heart.

Helm, his longtime friend and producer Larry Campbell and a crew of musicians and technicians recorded the rhythm track for the new Amnesty International 50th anniversary commemorative song "Toast to Freedom" last summer and helped recruit stars like Ewan McGregor, Kris Kristofferson, Warren Haynes, Keb Mo, Carly Simon, Taj Mahal, Marianne Faithfull, Rosanne Cash and many others to join the effort.