The headboard of Michael Jackson's death bed has been withdrawn from an auction of personnel effects, due to family objections, the auctioneer behind the sale said.

But the sale, which comes after doctor Conrad Murray was convicted over Jackson's 2009 death, is expected to include other items from the mansion in Los Angeles' plush Holmby Hills area where Jackson died on June 25, 2009.

A man claiming to be a former candidate for the post of governor of the U.S. state of Arizona has been found homeless and lovelorn in the west of Ukraine, aid workers said on Thursday.

The man, aged 53, carries the passport of Cary Dolego who in 2010 was a minor candidate for the governor of Arizona, said Anastasia Beridze of the social services charity in the western Ukrainian city of Chernivtsi that found him.

France's reputation for chauvinism took a hit Thursday from an opinion poll that revealed that only 27 percent of its people think French culture is better than all others.

In fact, 73 percent of French respondents to the ongoing Pew Research Center survey of U.S. and European attitudes disagreed that "our culture is superior to others," the polling institute reported.

Syria's foreign minister has sent a letter to Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi requesting changes to a proposal to send a 500-strong delegation of observers to Damascus, the Arab body said on Friday.

The pan-Arab body had agreed to send 500 members of human rights groups, media representatives and military observers to Syria, which said it would welcome them to see the situation on the ground and help implement a peace plan.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin Friday called for restraint over the Syria crisis, after talks with his French counterpart who accused President Bashar Assad of being deaf to pressure.

"We are calling for restraint and caution. This is our position," Putin told a news conference, the day after his foreign minister had likened the situation in Syria to a civil war.

"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" raked in $775 million worldwide in its first five days, blowing away the record set by last year's release, publisher Activision said Thursday.

"Life-to-date retail sales for the Call of Duty franchise have exceeded $6 billion worldwide, which makes Call of Duty one of the most valuable entertainment properties in the world," Robert Kotick, chief executive of Activision owner Activision Blizzard, said in a statement.

World oil prices rose on Friday ahead of the weekend, but gains were capped by intensifying concern over the impact of the Eurozone debt crisis on global energy demand.

New York's main contract, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) light sweet crude for delivery in December, added two cents to $98.84 a barrel.

Asian markets slipped again on Friday as traders grew increasingly concerned the Eurozone crisis will soon envelope larger economies after borrowing costs for France and Spain shot higher.

Tokyo finished 1.23 percent, or 104.72 points, lower at 8,374.91 and Sydney fell 1.91 percent, or 81.2 points, to end at 4,177 while Seoul finished 2.00 percent, or 37.50 points, lower at 1,839.17.

Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse plans to close its only bank branch in Taiwan amid the deepening Eurozone debt crisis, reports said Thursday.

The move entails shutting down the bank's fixed-income operations but it will continue to offer brokerage services, said the state Central News Agency, citing Financial Supervisory Commission head Chen Yuh-chang.

The European Union warned Thursday of a sharp rise in deaths across the 27-nation bloc due to bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics.

With some 25,000 Europeans dying each year from infections caused by drug-resistant bacteria, European health commissioner John Dalli said "we need to take swift and determined action if we do not want to lose antimicrobial medicines" for humans and animals.