WORLD briefs

MEXICO. Mexico decriminalized small amounts of marijuana, cocaine and heroin on Friday — a move that prosecutors say makes sense even in the midst of the government's grueling battle against drug traffickers. Prosecutors said the new law sets clear limits that keep Mexico's corruption-prone police from shaking down casual users and offers addicts free treatment to keep growing domestic drug use in check.

CARACAS. Venezuela says its collaboration with US authorities led to the seizure of about a ton of cocaine aboard a ship in the Caribbean Sea. Justice Minister Tareck El Aissami says the US Coast Guard discovered the cocaine on a boat off Venezuela's coast after Venezuelan officials gave them permission to board the vessel on Wednesday. Two Venezuelans and a Colombian were arrested.

NEW ZEALAND.New Zealanders voted overwhelmingly to overturn a law that prohibits parents from hitting children, according to the results of a nationwide referendum released Friday, but the government says the law is working and won't be changed. Opponents of the 2007 law claim it is overly intrusive and could turn thousands of good parents into criminals.

KABUL.President Hamid Karzai's campaign and chief rival Abdullah Abdullah both said on Friday they had won Afghanistan's election, with US officials warning the candidates to keep a lid on simmering tensions. Both camps said unofficial counts by campaign workers showed they had won enough votes from Thursday's election, which went ahead despite Taliban threats of violence, to avoid a potentially destabilizing second round of voting in October