BEIRUT – The Latest on developments in Syria as it marks seven years of war this week (all times local): 10:35 a.m. Syrian activists and monitoring groups say government and Russian forces are blanketing the besieged rebel-held eastern Ghouta region…
STOCKHOLM – North Korea's foreign minister is visiting Sweden, a move that can be seen as a first step toward the Scandinavian country hosting a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The Swedish…
BANGKOK – Thailand's slow move from military to civilian governance has attracted dozens of new political parties to register in barely two weeks, including one by an internet-famous billionaire who says he embraces democracy and wants to challenge the country's…
NIZHNY TAGIL, Russia – Vladimir Putin walks briskly to a group of factory workers, who ask him for a water treatment facility, new equipment to reduce toxic emissions and a sports arena for their children in this Ural mountains city.…
MOSCOW – The Russian military says it has extended a "humanitarian pause" in fighting for two days in a part of Syria's embattled eastern Ghouta enclave, just outside of Damascus. The Russian Defense Ministry says the pause on Thursday and…
Nicaragua National Police arrested Orlando Tercero on Tuesday and transferred him to a prison 40 miles southwest of Managua, the capital. (Reuters) The Nicaragua National Police on Wednesday released a photo of the suspect in the killing of a New…
MANILA, Philippines – Human rights groups say Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and his officials could still be prosecuted at the International Criminal Court for killings in his anti-drug war until his decision to withdraw from the tribunal takes effect after…
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – A flight attendant for the Mideast long-haul carrier Emirates has been hospitalized in Uganda after falling out of an open emergency door on a Boeing 777 that was parked on the tarmac. Civil aviation authorities…
MANAMA, Bahrain – A U.S. military official says Iranian naval forces appear to have deliberately halted their provocations of U.S. Navy ships in the Persian Gulf in recent months. Navy Cmdr. William Urban, spokesman for U.S. Naval Forces Central Command,…
MELBOURNE, Australia – The father of a man who alleges he was sexually abused by a senior Vatican cleric during a waterskiing outing has told an Australian court that he is insulted to be accused by a defense lawyer of…
PYEONGCHANG, South Korea – Away from the stadiums, it's the most hectic place at the Paralympic Games — a white warehouse on a corner of Pyeongchang's athletes' village, where a team of technicians hustle around the clock to carve, weld…
Just days after the poisoning of a Russian double agent and his daughter in Salisbury with a military-grade nerve agent, the United Kingdom on Thursday will reportedly announce plans to construct a nearly $70 million chemical weapons defense center. In…
MY LAI, Vietnam – The shudder of artillery fire woke the boy at 5:30 a.m. Three American soldiers appeared at his family's home a couple of hours later and forced the mother and five children into their bomb shelter, a…
HONG KONG – Hong Kong's notoriously expensive housing makes owning an affordable home a pipe dream for many residents. A local architect has proposed a novel idea to help alleviate that problem: building stylish micro-apartments inside giant concrete drainage pipes.…
RIO DE JANEIRO – A police official in Rio de Janeiro says a city council member and her driver have been shot to death by two unidentified attackers in the Brazilian city's downtown. The official tells The Associated Press that…
UNITED NATIONS – The sons of an Iranian-Canadian university professor who died in a Tehran prison last month are urging Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau to speak out publicly and pressure Iran to release their mother and seriously investigate their…
PYONGYANG, North Korea – Is North Korea's air force selling canned soup and taxi rides to upgrade runways and airstrips? Amid the tough sanctions against the North because of its nuclear weapons, the answer may well be yes. The explanation…
UNITED NATIONS – France's gender equality minister says fighting violence against women isn't just a top priority for French President Emmanuel Macron — it's the top priority. And one of the first targets is street harassment. In an interview at…
LJUBLJANA, Slovenia – Slovenia's prime minister says he is resigning after the country's top court annulled last year's referendum on a key railway project and ordered a new vote. Miro Cerar says that he has sent his resignation to parliament.…
BUDAPEST, Hungary – A Hungarian court has sentenced a Syrian man to seven years in prison after convicting him in a retrial of entering Hungary's illegally and committing an act of terror by throwing rocks at police during a 2015…
MEXICO CITY – Gangs have blocked roads with burning vehicles in the western Mexico state of Michoacan. The scenes are reminiscent of a 2013-2014 fight between vigilantes and drug cartels in Michoacan. The state police department said Wednesday that at…
NAIROBI, Kenya – The Kenya Red Cross says more than 8,500 Ethiopians have crossed the border into Kenyan territory seeking asylum from conflict after government troops mistakenly killed civilians. The Red Cross said in a statement Wednesday that the number…
Australia’s Immigration and Border Protection Minister Peter Dutton speaks to reporters at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia (AP) CANBERRA, Australia -Australian Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has announced he plans to examine ways to fast-track a visa program for white…
PRISTINA, Kosovo – A court established to prosecute crimes committed during and immediately after Kosovo's war for independence has issued the list of lawyers who will represent suspects, victims and others appearing before the tribunal. The Kosovo Specialist Chambers on…