An aide to the Japanese premier returned home from a controversial trip to North Korea on Saturday, reportedly saying he had demanded Pyongyang's act swiftly on its kidnapping of Japanese nationals. More »Aide to Japanese PM returns from North Korea
Sri Lanka's main opposition Tamil party Saturday defied a military ban and staged a commemoration of their war dead as the government celebrated the fourth anniversary of defeating Tamil Tiger rebels. More »Sri Lanka Tamils defy ban on rebel memorial
A man was arrested on Friday after causing a scare at the Cannes Film Festival, where he attacked a TV studio with a gun loaded with blanks and a dummy grenade, police and witnesses said. More »Cannes Festival: Man held after scare at TV studio
Nigeria's military on Friday attacked Boko Haram Islamist strongholds across the northeast, launching air strikes on insurgent camp with dozens of militants killed in the fighting, the military said. More »Air strikes, dozens dead in Nigeria assault on Islamists
The Tunisian government on Friday banned hardline Salafist group Ansar al-Sharia from holding its annual congress at the weekend, saying it posed a threat to public order and setting the scene for a possible showdown. More »Tunisia bans Salafist congress in possible showdown
Jewellery worth $1.4 million due to be loaned to stars at the Cannes Film Festival was stolen from a local hotel in a pre-dawn heist on Friday but the coveted Palme d'Or trophy was safe, officials said. More »Cannes Festival rocked as Chopard jewels are stolen
Thousands of Georgian ultra-conservative Orthodox supporters led by priests Friday thwarted an attempt to hold a gay rights rally in the deeply religious ex-Soviet state, smashing through police cordons and forcing activists to flee in fear. More »Church supporters disrupt Georgia gay rights rally
Twin bomb attacks on Friday killed at least 13 people outside mosques in northwest Pakistan, where the party of cricket star Imran Khan is forming a coalition government, officials said. More »Pakistan mosque bombs kill 13: officials
Over 60 people were injured when a two-car train derailed on Hong Kong's light railway in the north of the city, throwing passengers onto the floor, police said Friday. More »Hong Kong train accident: 62 injured
The woman alleged to have had sex for money with then prime minister Silvio Berlusconi when she was just 17 testified in court for the first time on Friday at a trial of three friends accused of pimping for him. More »Berlusconi alleged call-girl testifies for first time
Lawyers for the founder of French firm PIP whose faulty breast implants sparked a global health scare denied wrongdoing Friday as the court said it would deliver a verdict in December. More »French firm denies fraud over faulty breast implants
UN chief Ban Ki-moon and Russia agreed Friday that a peace conference on Syria should be held "as soon as possible", even as Moscow defied growing global pressure over its arms supplies to the Damascus regime. More »UN, Russia call for urgent Syria conference
Women can not contest Iran's June 14 presidential election, a member of the Islamic state's electoral watchdog said in media reports on Friday, dashing the hopes of some 30 female candidates. More »Iran women cannot stand for presidency: cleric
Nelson Mandela did not want his daughters to be involved in his financial affairs, one of his lawyers has claimed in court papers linked to a legal fight over his assets. More »Mandela did not want daughters to manage funds: lawyer
South African police said Friday they had launched a series of murder inquiries after 23 males died while undergoing circumcision during traditional rites of passage into manhood. More »Ritual circumcision kills 23 males in South Africa
A map of China made from more than 1,800 cans of baby formula created by dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei went on show in Hong Kong Friday, reflecting the controversy over mainland demand for milk powder. More »Ai Weiwei creates giant map of China from baby formula
Syrian rebels seized three UN peacekeepers in the Golan Heights in the third abduction in two months in the ceasefire zone between Syria and Israel, the UN said Thursday. More »Golan peacekeeping force suffers third abduction
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has pushed out a high-profile military figure who once played a key role under his late father -- the latest in a series of top-level personnel changes. More »N. Korea leader removes high-profile military figure
Bangladesh and Myanmar cleaned up on Friday after a killer cyclone wrecked thousands of homes, relieved that the damage was not much worse after the storm weakened as it made landfall. More »Bangladesh cleans up after killer cyclone
Two distraught Australian children who saw their mother drown and their father disappear at sea were reunited with relatives as police Friday continued to scour the ocean for the missing man. More »Rescuers search for Australian father in snorkel tragedy
Football megastar David Beckham announced he is to retire after a glittering 20-year playing career in which he became one of the most widely recognised figures in world sport. More »Beckham calls time on stellar career
Amid a flurry of moves to organize peace talks to end Syria's bloody civil war, US President Barack Obama and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan insisted Bashar al-Assad must step down. More »Obama and Erdogan demand Assad step down
A US soldier convicted of killing five of his colleagues in Iraq in May 2009 was sentenced to life behind bars and dishonorably discharged. More »US soldier gets life for 2009 killings in Iraq
Boston bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev wrote a note before his capture in which he called the victims "collateral damage" for US action in Afghanistan and Iraq, local media reported. More »Boston suspect wrote note before capture: report
Having kept silent for nearly two years since returning from exile, recent public appearances by Jean-Bertrand Aristide have fueled speculation the former Haitian leader is eyeing a comeback. More »Aristide reappearance in Haiti fuels comeback talk