The ghosts of Tampa's old-time wiseguys awakened this summer when Mafia scion John "Junior" Gotti came to town in handcuffs, accused of pulling the strings in a bunch of classic mobster crimes.

A Cuban punk rocker known for his raunchy lyrics criticizing Fidel Castro was convicted of public disorder Friday, but freed after a court dismissed a more serious "social dangerousness" charge that could have sent him to prison for four years.

Republican candidate Mike Erickson is calling a six-day visit to Cuba in 2004 a "humanitarian trip" to deliver medical supplies. But those familiar with the trip said it was basically a vacation.

Ailing Fidel Castro said Wednesday that Cuba's president was right to adopt a "dignified silence" over a Moscow newspaper report that Russia may send nuclear bombers to the island, and said Cuba doesn't owe any explanation to Washington about the story.

Former Sen. Jesse Helms, who built a career along the fault lines of racial politics and battled liberals, Communists and the occasional fellow Republican during 30 conservative years in Congress, died on the Fourth of July.

The French film ''The Class,'' a frank tale about classroom life using real students and teachers at a junior high school, won top honors Sunday at the Cannes Film Festival. Italian films won the second-place grand prize and third-place jury prize.

With his epic film biography of Latin American revolutionary Che Guevara, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, Steven Soderbergh defiantly has made the story he wanted to see, one that will prove a very tough sell to some audiences.

Only a month has passed since ordinary Cubans won the right to own computers, and the government still keeps a rigid grip on Internet access. But that hasn't stopped thousands from finding their way into cyberspace.

Nearly 50 years of rule by Fidel Castro ended in Cuba on Sunday as parliament chose his brother Raul to replace him - a transition that leaves the island's communist system unshaken.

Fidel Castro said Friday that he's relieved to be stepping down as Cuba's president, complaining that the process of selecting Cuba's next government "had left me exhausted."

For the first time in nearly fifty years Fidel Castro won't be heart and soul of government in Cuba. University of Oregon Director of Latin American Studies weighs in on the news.

Motorists honked vigorously at police patrol cars and television reporters. Small groups talked on the streets or in local eateries. But many didn't get their hopes up for major changes on the communist island.

President Hugo Chavez sent a soothing message to American motorists on Sunday, saying that Venezuela is not preparing to cut off oil shipments to the United States.

Sen. John McCain won a breakthrough triumph in the Florida Republican primary Tuesday night, edging past former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and seizing precious campaign momentum for next week's string of contests across 21 states.

Fidel Castro revealed Thursday that he thought he was dying when he fell ill in July 2006, and hastily made plans to give up power as doctors fought to save his life.