Kissing Filipino couples just can’t wait

Manila, Philippines Thousands of couples got Valentine’s Day celebrations going early, locking lips at midnight Saturday in what organizers dubbed “Lovapalooza 2.”

More than 5,300 couples kissed for at least 10 seconds last Valentine’s Day in Manila for an event known as “Lovapalooza,” breaking Chile’s record of 4,445 in the Guinness World Records book.

This year’s event was aimed at “a million kisses, a million heartbeats, and probably a million people falling in love for the second time around,” said a statement from toothpaste maker Unilever Philippines, one of the event’s organizers.

The kissing festival was held simultaneously in at least four cities nationwide. Despite the large crowds, the figures appeared to be well below the target.

Fire ravages high-rise office building in Madrid

Madrid, Spain A raging fire swept through the upper levels of a 32-story office building in downtown Madrid early today, causing no injuries but collapsing the top floors in a shower of flaming debris.

Bright orange flames shot out the sides of the Windsor Building, which is believed to be empty and is near one of Madrid’s main boulevards.

The fire started about 11:30 p.m. Saturday and was still burning out of control nearly three hours later. At least nine upper stories were on fire and muffled explosions could be heard in the building.

The cause of the blaze was not immediately known, but emergency services spokesman Javier Ayuso said it might have been a short circuit.

City officials were afraid the building might collapse entirely.

“At this point the fire can’t be fought and we have to wait,” said Pedro Calvo, the official in charge of the fire department and other emergency services.

Firefighters and police evacuated nearby buildings and streets for fear of a total collapse. Firefighters also started hosing down neighboring office buildings to keep the fire from spreading.

Kissinger calls on Putin ahead of Bush visit

Moscow Henry Kissinger met President Vladimir Putin on Saturday during a private visit at the Kremlin the former U.S. Secretary of State said was aimed at strengthening ties between the two nations, whose presidents are to meet for a summit this month.

Kissinger described Putin as “a very good friend” of President Bush and added, “I know the importance he attaches to his relationship with you and the relationship between the United States and Russia.”

Putin replied, “We have friends in common.”

Both Putin and Bush have made much of what they say is a warm personal relationship, but ties between the United States and Russia have soured considerably since reaching a peak in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Relations were damaged by the war in Iraq, which Putin adamantly opposed, and by Putin’s rollback of democratic reforms and the rule of law in Russia, including ending regional elections for governors and a campaign against the Yukos oil company and its founders.

Bush and Putin are slated to meet in Slovakia on Feb. 24.

Syria frees members of banned Muslim group

Damascus, Syria Authorities on Saturday released 55 members of the banned Muslim Brotherhood who had spent up to 20 years in jail, a human rights group said.

The Human Rights Association in Syria issued a statement welcoming the releases and urging the government to free “all political prisoners and detainees and stop detentions outside the law.”

Those released were 46 Syrians, five Palestinians, two Lebanese, an Iraqi and a Tunisian, said Anwar al-Bunni, a lawyer and human rights activist.

Al-Bunni said all were charged with belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood, which Syria banned in 1982 after the late President Hafez Assad cracked down on a violent anti-government insurgency blamed on the brotherhood.

The 55 prisoners had spent from three to 20 years in jail and their release followed the Dec. 7 freeing of 112 political prisoners, the largest single amnesty in three years.