South Korea suspended its third attempt to send a satellite into orbit by at least three days Friday, after a helium leak was detected in the rocket just hours before scheduled launch time.

With only a five-day launch window that ends October 30, any further delay could result in a much lengthier postponement, officials at the Naro Space Center told reporters.

High-ranking foreign diplomats agreed on Friday that stability in Lebanon is “crucial” for the Lebanese people and the international community as they reached consensus over the importance of the stepping down of Prime Minister Najib Miqati's cabinet and the formation of a neutral government.

“Miqati's government can't contribute to maintaining Lebanon's stability, it became part of the crisis, in particular, after the assassination of (Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau head Brigadier General Wissam) al-Hasan last week,” U.S. Sources said in comments published in the Kuwaiti daily al-Rai.

Former U.S. secretary of state Colin Powell endorsed President Barack Obama's re-election bid on Thursday, giving him a symbolic boost in the neck-and-neck White House race days ahead of the vote.

"I voted for him in 2008 and I plan to stick with him in 2012, and I'll be voting for he and for Vice President Joe Biden next month," the Republican heavyweight told CBS television's "This Morning."

People around the world overwhelmingly favor U.S. President Barack Obama over his Republican challenger Mitt Romney, a poll carried out for the BBC World Service has found.

An average of 50 percent favored Obama, against nine percent for Romney, with Pakistan the only one of the 21 countries questioned indicating they would prefer to see Romney win the election in November.

The United States said Tuesday it backs efforts to form a new governing coalition in Lebanon, after last week's deadly bomb blast in Beirut plunged the country into political crisis.

"We support the efforts of President (Michel) Suleiman and other responsible leaders in Lebanon to build an effective government and to take the necessary next steps in the wake of the October 19th terrorist attack," said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.

The United States will send a Federal Bureau of Investigation team to help Lebanon probe Ashrafiyeh car bombing that killed Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau head Brigadier General Wissam al-Hasan, officials said Monday.

But U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stressed Washington's support for Lebanon's sovereignty, in a phone call with Prime Minister Najib Miqati, State Department spokesman Mark Toner said.

Iran's foreign ministry on Saturday rejected a guilty plea by an Iranian-American man that he conspired with Iranian officials to kill the Saudi ambassador in Washington.

Manssor Arbabsiar pleaded guilty on Wednesday at the New York federal court to attempting to hire a Mexican drug gang for $1.5 million to blow up the Saudi envoy in a restaurant he frequented in Washington.

U.S. special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan Marc Grossman arrived in Islamabad on Saturday for talks with political and military leaders on "issues of bilateral and mutual concern", officials said.

Pakistani and U.S. officials were tight-lipped about the discussions that Grossman will have with officials, but the visit takes place amid growing opposition in the country to continued U.S. drone strikes.

The United States condemned Friday's deadly car bombing that killed Intelligence Bureau chief Brig. Gen. Wissam al-Hasan as an act of terrorism.

"There is no justification for such violence," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. "It was a car bomb. We have no reason to believe it was not terrorism. We condemn this act of terrorism."

The United States posted a reward of up to $12 million on Thursday for help in tracking down two Iran-based al-Qaida financial backers, accused of funneling money to extremists in Syria.

The State Department named the men as Muhsin al-Fadhli and his deputy Adel Radi Saqr al-Wahabi al-Harbi, saying both "facilitate the movement of funds and operatives through Iran on behalf of the al-Qaida terrorist network."