28 March 2017

3 Kashmir civilians killed in protests against Indian rule

An Indian paramilitary soldier fires at Kashmiri protesters near the site of a gun battle in Chadoora town, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) south of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Tuesday, March 28, 2017. Three civilians were killed and 28 other people were injured in anti-India protests that erupted Tuesday following a gunbattle between rebels and government forces that killed a rebel in disputed Kashmir, police and witnesses said. Witnesses said intense clashes between rock-throwing protesters and government forces erupted just a few hundred meters (yards) from the besieged house, with police and paramilitary soldiers firing shotgun pellets and tear gas to stop the protest. Later, government forces fired into the crowd, police said.
Three civilians were killed and 28 other people were injured in anti-India protests that erupted Tuesday following a gunbattle between rebels and government forces that killed a rebel in disputed Kashmir, police and witnesses said.

The gunbattle began after police and soldiers cordoned off the southern town of Chadoora following a tip that at least one militant was hiding in a house, said Inspector-General Syed Javaid Mujtaba Gillani.

As the fighting raged, hundreds of residents chanting anti-India slogans marched near the area in an attempt to help the trapped rebel escape.

27 March 2017

Avalanche kills 7 students, instructor in Japan

Firefighters make rescue operation at a ski resort following an avalanche in Nasu, Tochigi prefecture, Monday, March 27, 2017. Several high school students are feared dead after being caught in an avalanche Monday during a mountain climbing outing at a ski resort.
An avalanche killed seven Japanese high school students and an instructor Monday during a mountaineering field trip at a ski resort north of Tokyo, authorities said.

Nearly 50 students and instructors were caught by the morning avalanche in the town of Nasu in Tochigi prefecture, about 190 kilometers (120 miles) from the Japanese capital.

Police confirmed the death of the eight people late Monday, the prefecture said. Forty other people were injured, including two who were in serious condition, a prefecture report said.

Crackdown creates meat shortage in most populous India state

In this Sunday, March 26, 2017 photo, workers stand at a slaughter house where they used to work after the same was shutdown by authorities in Allahabad, India. India's most populous state is running out of meat. After the Hindu right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in Uttar Pradesh this month on the back of a resounding electoral victory and named a Hindu priest-cum-politician as the state's chief minister, the government began cracking down on illegal slaughterhouses and meat shops.
India's most populous state is running out of meat.

After the Hindu right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in Uttar Pradesh this month on the back of a resounding electoral victory and named a Hindu priest-cum-politician as the state's chief minister, the government began cracking down on illegal slaughterhouses and meat shops.

The new chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, is a strong supporter of laws protecting cows, which are revered by devout Hindus, and has publicly opposed beef consumption. The slaughter of cows and the consumption of beef are taboo for most Hindus. Their slaughter is barred by law in most Indian states, including Uttar Pradesh.

Nationwide protests bring thousands to Russia's streets

Protesters gather at Marsivo Field in St.Petersburg, Russia, Sunday, March 26, 2017. Thousands of people crowded in St.Petersburg on Sunday for an unsanctioned protest against the Russian government, the biggest gathering in a wave of nationwide protests that were the most extensive show of defiance in years.
Russia's opposition, often written off by critics as a small and irrelevant coterie of privileged urbanites, put on an impressive nationwide show of strength Sunday with dozens of protest across the vast country. Hundreds were arrested, including Alexei Navalny, the anti-corruption campaigner who is President Vladimir Putin's most prominent critic.

It was the biggest show of defiance since a 2011-2012 wave of demonstrations rattled the Kremlin and led to harsh new laws aimed at suppressing dissent. Almost all of Sunday's rallies were unsanctioned, but thousands braved the prospect of arrest to gather in cities from the Far East port of Vladivostok to the "window on the West" of St. Petersburg.

26 March 2017

No surprise: Beijing's pick Lam chosen as Hong Kong's leader

Former Hong Kong Chief Secretary Carrie Lam declares her victory in the chief executive election of Hong Kong in Hong Kong, Sunday, March 26, 2017. A Hong Kong committee has chosen the government's former No. 2 official Lam to be the semiautonomous Chinese city's next leader.
The candidate favored by China's Communist leadership was chosen as Hong Kong's new leader on Sunday, in the first such vote since huge pro-democracy protests erupted over the semiautonomous Chinese city's election system in 2014.

A committee dominated by pro-Beijing elites selected Carrie Lam, Hong Kong's former No. 2 official, as the financial hub's chief executive even though she was far less popular than her main rival. Lam received 67 percent of the votes cast by the 1,194-member committee.

25 March 2017

Belarus police arrest over 400 protesters; many are beaten

Belarus police push a woman down while detaining an activist during an opposition rally in Minsk, Belarus, Saturday, March 25, 2017. A cordon of club-wielding police blocked the demonstrators' movement along Minsk's main avenue near the Academy of Science. Hulking police detention trucks were deployed in the city center. 
Police in Belarus cracked down hard Saturday on opposition protesters who tried to hold a forbidden demonstration in the capital — a human rights group said more than 400 people were arrested and many were beaten.

The demonstrators had hoped to build on a rising wave of defiance of the former Soviet republic's authoritarian government, led by President Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled since 1994.

EU puts pen to paper, signs unity pledge on 60th anniversary

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker gets ink on his hands as he signs a declaration with the original 1957 pen of the Rome Treaty during an EU summit meeting at the Orazi and Curiazi Hall in the Palazzo dei Conservatori in Rome on Saturday, March 25, 2017. European Union leaders were gathering in Rome to mark the 60th anniversary of their founding treaty and chart a way ahead following the decision of Britain to leave the 28-nation bloc.
With Britain poised to start divorce proceedings, the 27 remaining European Union nations put pen to paper Saturday in Rome to renew their vows for continued unity in the face of crises that are increasingly testing the bonds between members.

The EU nations marked the 60th anniversary of their founding treaty as a turning point in their history, as British Prime Minister Theresa May will officially trigger divorce proceedings from the bloc next week — a fact that European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called "a tragedy."

24 March 2017

Ex-Russian lawmaker shot dead in Kiev; Ukraine blames Russia

A former Russian lawmaker who became a vociferous critic of Moscow following his recent move to Ukraine was shot and killed Thursday in Kiev, prompting harsh words between the two neighboring countries.

Denis Voronenkov, who had testified to Ukrainian investigators and criticized Russian policies after his move to Kiev last fall, was shot dead by an unidentified gunman near the entrance of an upscale hotel in the Ukrainian capital.

23 March 2017

5 dead in vehicle, knife attack at British Parliament

An attacker is treated by emergency services outside the Houses of Parliament London, Wednesday, March 22, 2017. London police say they are treating a gun and knife incident at Britain's Parliament "as a terrorist incident until we know otherwise." The Metropolitan Police says in a statement that the incident is ongoing. It is urging people to stay away from the area. Officials say a man with a knife attacked a police officer at Parliament and was shot by officers. Nearby, witnesses say a vehicle struck several people on the Westminster Bridge.
A knife-wielding man went on a deadly rampage in the heart of Britain's seat of power Wednesday, plowing a car into pedestrians on London's Westminster Bridge before stabbing a police officer to death inside the gates of Parliament. Five people were killed, including the assailant, and 40 others were injured in what Prime Minister Theresa May condemned as a "sick and depraved terrorist attack."

Lawmakers, lords, staff and visitors were locked down after the man was shot by police within the perimeter of Parliament, just yards (meters) from entrances to the building itself and in the shadow of the iconic Big Ben clock tower. He died, as did three pedestrians on the bridge, and the police officer.

22 March 2017

Israeli archeologists dig up liquor bottles of WWI troops

This undated photo provided by the Israel Antiquities Authority on Wednesday, March 22, 2017, shows century-old liquor bottles that belonged to British soldiers in World War I. The Israel Antiquities Authority said Wednesday it was excavating 250,000-year-old flint tools when the archaeologists stumbled upon hundreds of liquor bottles near a building where British soldiers were garrisoned in 1917.
In a search for antiquities, Israeli archaeologists have unearthed a far more modern find — century-old liquor bottles that belonged to British soldiers in World War I.

The Israel Antiquities Authority said Wednesday it was excavating 250,000-year-old flint tools when the archaeologists stumbled upon hundreds of liquor bottles near a building where British soldiers were garrisoned in 1917.

21 March 2017

India gives Ganges, Yamuna rivers same rights as a human

In this Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016 file photo, a giant Idol of Hindu goddess Durga suspends from a crane before it is immersed in the River Yamuna during Durga Puja festival in New Delhi, India. A court in northern India has granted the same legal rights as a human to the Ganges and Yamuna rivers, considered sacred by nearly a billion Indians. The Uttaranchal High Court in Uttarakhand state ruled Monday, March 20, 2017, that the two rivers be accorded the status of living human entities, meaning that if anyone harms or pollutes the rivers, the law would view it as no different from harming a person.
Two of India's most iconic rivers, considered sacred by nearly a billion Hindus in the country, have been given the status of living entities to save them from further harm caused by widespread pollution.

The High Court in the northern state of Uttarakhand ruled Monday that the Ganges and the Yamuna rivers be accorded the status of living human entities, meaning that if anyone harms or pollutes either river, the law would view it as no different from harming a person.

20 March 2017

Iran's top leader faults government's progress on economy

In this picture released by official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader on Monday, March 20, 2017, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei sits in a session to deliver his message for the Iranian New Year, Iran. Nowruz, a festival to celebrate the new Persian year starts with the spring. Iranians follow the Persian solar year, and this year, they begin the year 1396. A portrait of the late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini is placed at right.
Iran's supreme leader has suggested Monday that the government has fallen short in its efforts to improve the economy as moderate President Hassan Rouhani prepares to campaign for re-election in May.

"There is a large gap between what has been carried out, and what the people and what we expect," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a televised address in honor of the Persian New Year, known as Nowruz.

Pakistan and India discuss water dispute

A delegation of Indian experts, headed by P K Saxena, left, holds talks with his Pakistani counter part Mirza Asif Saeed, right, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Monday, March 20, 2017. Pakistani and Indian experts on Monday opened round-table talks in Islamabad over water disputes between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, even as tensions over competing claims to Kashmir remain high.
Pakistani and Indian experts on Monday opened round-table talks in Islamabad over water disputes between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, even as tensions over competing claims to Kashmir remain high.

Pakistan's minister for water and power, Khawaja Asif, welcomed the Indian delegation for the two-day talks, saying he hoped the discussions will move forward in anticipation of continued talks on April 12 in Washington.

Vodafone's Indian telecom unit merges with local company

British telecom company Vodafone's Indian unit on Monday announced a merger with Idea Cellular, a local company, creating India's largest telecom operator, with around 400 million customers.

Vodafone will own 45.1 percent of the combined company and Idea will have a 26 percent stake, while the rest will be owned by public shareholders after the merger, which is expected to be completed next year, the companies said in a joint statement.

East Timor votes for president in test for young nation

People queue up to give their vote during the presidential election at a polling station in Dili, East Timor, Monday, March 20, 2017. East Timorese went to vote Monday in the first presidential election since the U.N. officially ended the peacekeeping mission in the country in 2012.
East Timor voted for a new president Monday in an election that will test Asia's newest and poorest nation.

Francisco "Lu Olo" Guterres, a former guerrilla leader from the leftist Fretilin party, was up against seven other candidates. He and the Democratic Party's Antonio da Conceicao, the minister of education and social affairs, were the front-runners.

While East Timor's president has a mostly ceremonial role, the prime minister heads the government.

19 March 2017

Hindu hard-liner sworn in as leader of India's largest state

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left watches as Yogi Adityanath, standing right takes oath as Uttar Pradesh state chief minister in Lucknow, India, Sunday, March 19, 2017. Administering the oath of office is state Governor Ram Naik, standing left.
A hard-line Hindu religious leader was sworn in Sunday as the chief minister of India's most populous state.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders of India's ruling party attended a ceremony in the Uttar Pradesh state capital of Lucknow, where Yogi Adityanath took the oath of office.

Adityanath is a five-time member of Parliament who has offended many in the country with his polarizing statements attacking the Muslim community.

13 autoworkers get life in prison for 2012 factory riots

In this July 19, 2012, file photo, security guards stand near a burnt down reception block of Maruti Suzuki factory in Manesar, near New Delhi, India. A court in north India has sentenced 13 factory workers to life imprisonment for taking part in violence at the country's largest automobile factory that led to the death of a manager nearly five years ago.
A court in north India has sentenced 13 factory workers to life imprisonment for taking part in violence at the country's largest automobile factory that led to the death of a manager nearly five years ago.

Four other workers were sentenced to five years in prison for the rioting that broke out at the Maruti Suzuki manufacturing unit in Manesar in Haryana state in July 2012 following a dispute between workers and management at the factory.

Rock 'n' roll legend Chuck Berry dies at 90

In this Oct. 17, 1986 file photo, Chuck Berry performs during a concert celebration for his 60th birthday at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis, Mo. On Saturday, March 18, 2017, police in Missouri said Berry has died at the age of 90.
Chuck Berry, rock 'n' roll's founding guitar hero and storyteller who defined the music's joy and rebellion in such classics as "Johnny B. Goode," ''Sweet Little Sixteen" and "Roll Over Beethoven," died Saturday at his home west of St. Louis. He was 90.

Emergency responders summoned to Berry's residence by his caretaker about 12:40 p.m. found him unresponsive, police in Missouri's St. Charles County said in a statement. Attempts to revive Berry failed, and he was pronounced dead shortly before 1:30 p.m., police said.

18 March 2017

Syrian rebels begin evacuation from besieged Homs

Gunmen and family members leave the al-Waer neighborhood bound for a town on the Turkish border, in Homs, Syria, Saturday, March 18, 2017. Scores of Syrian opposition fighters and their families have begun leaving al-Waer, the last rebel-held neighborhood in the central city of Homs as part of a Russian-backed evacuation deal signed earlier this week. The city was once known as the epicenter of the 2011 uprising against President Bashar Assad.
Scores of Syrian opposition fighters and their families began leaving the last rebel-held neighborhood in the central city of Homs on Saturday as part of a Russian-backed evacuation deal signed earlier this week.

By sunset, 344 fighters and their families had left the city — once a center of protest during the 2011 uprising — completing the evacuation for the day. They were bound for a town on the Turkish border after the latest in a series of local agreements in which insurgents have relocated to the rebel-held north after months or years under siege in the country's major cities.

Death toll in Peru climbs to 67 from El Nino rains, floods

A woman is pulled to safety in a zipline harness in Lima, Peru, Friday, March 17, 2017. Intense rains and mudslides over the past three days have wrought havoc around the Andean nation and caught residents in Lima, a desert city of 10 million where it almost never rains, by surprise.
The number of people killed in Peru following intense rains and mudslides wreaking havoc around the Andean nation climbed to 67 Friday, with thousands more displaced from destroyed homes and others waiting on rooftops for rescue.

Across the country overflowing rivers caused by El Nino rains damaged 115,000 homes, collapsed 117 bridges and paralyzed countless roadways.

"We are confronting a serious climatic problem," President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski said in a statement broadcast live Friday afternoon. "There hasn't been an incident of this strength along the coast of Peru since 1998."

Activist: Basque separatist group ETA to disarm by April 8

In this file image made from video provided on Oct. 20, 2011, masked members of the Basque separatist group ETA hold up their fists in unison following a news conference at an unknown location. Spanish media are reporting that ETA are set to announce Friday March 17, 2017 its new initiative to lay down weapons aimed at speeding the stalled process of disbanding.
Basque civil society groups will fully disarm the separatist group ETA by April 8, a French environmental activist with ties to the Basque community promised Friday.

The militants announced a permanent cease-fire in 2011, but the governments of Spain and France have so far refused to take part in its disarmament because ETA tied it to the future of its militants, both in and out of jail. The two countries have demanded that ETA lay down its weapons without conditions and disband.

17 March 2017

Somali pirates release oil tanker and crew, officials say

In this photo taken Monday, Oct. 27, 2014, the Aris 13 oil tanker is seen from a helicopter in the harbor of Gladstone, Australia. Pirates have hijacked the Aris 13 oil tanker off the coast of Somalia, officials and piracy experts said Tuesday, March 14, 2017, the first such seizure of a large commercial vessel on the crucial global trade route since 2012.
Somali pirates who seized a Comoros-flagged oil tanker earlier this week after five years without a major hijacking in the region have released the ship and its crew without conditions, officials said late Thursday.

Security official Ahmed Mohamed told The Associated Press the pirates disembarked the ship, which was heading to Bossaso port, the region's commercial hub, with its eight Sri Lankan crew members aboard.

10 injured by volcanic explosion on Italy's Mount Etna

Snow-covered Mount Etna, Europe's most active volcano, spews lava during an eruption in the early hours of Thursday, March 16, 2017. A new eruption which began on March 15 is causing no damages to Catania's airport which is fully operational.
Sicily's Mount Etna volcano unleashed an explosion Thursday, hurling molten rocks and steam that rained down on tourists, journalists and a scientist who scrambled to escape the barrage. Ten people were reported injured.

The tourists, who were drawn to Etna to observe the spectacle of the active volcano erupting, were caught by surprise when its flowing magma hit thick snow, causing a phreatic explosion that rained rock and other material down upon them.

15 March 2017

Somali pirates demand ransom for oil tanker, EU force says

In this Sunday, Sept. 23, 2012 file photo, masked and armed Somali pirate Hassan stands near a Taiwanese fishing vessel washed ashore after the pirates were paid a ransom and the crew were released in the once-bustling pirate den of Hobyo, Somalia. Pirates have hijacked an oil tanker off the coast of Somalia, Somali officials and piracy experts said Tuesday, March 14, 2017, in the first hijacking of a large commercial vessel there since 2012.
Armed men are demanding a ransom for the release of an oil tanker they have seized off the coast of Somalia and the crew is being held captive, the European Union anti-piracy operation in the region announced late Tuesday.

An EU Naval Force statement said the operation had finally made contact with the ship's master, who confirmed that armed men were aboard the Comoros-flagged tanker Aris 13.

13 March 2017

Scotland seeks new independence referendum amid Brexit spat

In this Monday, May 23, 2016 file photo, Scottish First Minster Nicola Sturgeon talks to journalists after meeting in London. Scotland's leader Nicola Sturgeon will seek authority to hold a new independence referendum in the next two years because Britain is dragging Scotland out of the European Union against its will, she said Monday March 13, 2017.
Scotland's leader delivered a shock twist to Britain's EU exit drama on Monday, announcing that she will seek authority to hold a new independence referendum in the next two years because Britain is dragging Scotland out of the EU against its will.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she would move quickly to give voters a new chance to leave the United Kingdom because Scotland was being forced into a "hard Brexit" that it didn't support. Britons decided in a June 23 referendum to leave the EU, but Scots voted by 62 to 38 percent to remain.

Hungary's president re-elected for 5-year term

Hungarian President Janos Ader delivers his speech during the plenary session of the unicameral Hungarian Parliament in Budapest, Hungary, Monday, March 13, 2017, when the deputies elect the President of Hungary for the next term of five years. Janos Ader is up against the candidate of the opposition coalition Laszlo Majtenyi for the post.
Hungarian lawmakers re-elected President Janos Ader to his largely ceremonial post on Monday, ensuring another five-year term for a supporter of populist Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government.

Ader, nominated by Orban's governing Fidesz party, defeated Laszlo Majtenyi, a former ombudsman for data protection nominated by the left-wing opposition. Ader won by 131 votes to 39, with 29 abstentions.

A second round was needed because Ader fell two votes short of the 133 votes needed for a two-thirds majority in the first round. Only a simple majority was needed to win in round two.

46 killed, dozens missing in Ethiopia garbage dump landslide

Police officers secure the perimeter at the scene of a garbage landslide, as excavators aid rescue efforts, on the outskirts of the capital Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Sunday, March 12, 2017. Officials and residents say more than a dozen people have been killed in a landslide at a massive garbage dump on the outskirts of Ethiopia's capital, and several dozen people are missing.
A mountain of trash gave way in a massive garbage dump on the outskirts of Ethiopia's capital, killing at least 46 people and leaving several dozen missing, residents said, as officials vowed to relocate those who called the landfill home.

Addis Ababa city spokeswoman Dagmawit Moges said most of the 46 dead were women and children, and more bodies were expected to be found in the coming hours.

12 March 2017

Freed Jordanian who killed 7 Israeli girls shows no remorse

In this Sunday, March 16, 1997 file photo, King Hussein of Jordan shakes the hand of members of the Badayev family in Beit Shemesh who are in mourning after their daughter Shiri was killed by a Jordanian soldier. King Hussein came to Israel to offer condolences to the seven families who had lost their daughters in an attack on a class trip. The Jordanian soldier who killed seven Israeli schoolgirls in a 1997 shooting rampage was released Sunday, March 12, 2017, after serving 20 years in prison.
A Jordanian soldier who killed seven Israeli schoolgirls in a 1997 shooting rampage was unrepentant after his release from prison Sunday, lashing out at Israelis with harshly derogatory remarks.

Ahmed Daqamseh, who had spent 20 years in prison, was given a rousing welcome in his home village in northern Jordan after his release. He was greeted by chanting supporters who kissed him on the cheek and raised a photo of him with the caption, "Welcome to the hero Daqamseh."

Chawrasia successfully defends Indian Open title

S.S.P. Chawrasia successfully defended his Indian Open title on Sunday, finishing with a 10-under-par 278 for a comfortable seven-stroke victory.

Chawrasia held a two-shot lead when he completed his weather-delayed third round on Sunday morning and continued his fine form before signing off with 71 in the last round.

11 March 2017

Indian PM Modi's party wins landslide in key state elections

Bharatiya Janata Party supporters celebrate winning seats in the state legislature during elections in Utar Pradesh, Lucknow, India, Saturday, March 11, 2017. India's governing Hindu nationalist party is heading for major victories in key state legislature elections that are seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nearly 3-year-old rule.
India's ruling Hindu nationalist party won landslide victories in results announced Saturday from key state legislative elections that are seen as a referendum on the performance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nearly 3-year-old government.

Leaders from Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party said the party's victory in Uttar Pradesh, India's largest state, would boost Modi's chances of winning another term as India's prime minister in 2019 elections.

The Election Commission said the BJP won 311 out of 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh's legislature. The party's president, Amit Shah, described it as "a historic verdict."

Indian PM Modi's party headed for landslide in state polls

Bharatiya Janata Party supporters celebrate winning seats in the state legislature during elections in Utar Pradesh, Lucknow, India, Saturday, March 11, 2017. India's governing Hindu nationalist party is heading for major victories in key state legislature elections that are seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nearly 3-year-old rule.
India's governing Hindu nationalist party was headed to landslide victories Saturday in key state legislature elections that are seen as a referendum on the performance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nearly 3-year-old government.

Leaders from Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party said the party's victory in Uttar Pradesh, India's largest state, would boost Modi's chances of winning another term as India's prime minister in 2019 elections.

The Election Commission said the BJP won 216 out of 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh's legislature and was leading in another 93 voting districts in the state. The party's president, Amit Shah, described it as "a historic verdict."

Maoist rebel attack kills 11 paramilitary soldiers in India

Maoist rebels on Saturday shot and killed at least 11 Indian paramilitary soldiers in an ambush in central India, police said.

The attack also left three soldiers wounded in the rebel-infested Sukma forest area in Chattisgarh state, top police officer R.K. Vij said. It wasn't clear if any rebels were killed or injured when the Central Reserve Police Force soldiers returned fire, he said.

9 March 2017

IS gunmen in white lab coats kill 30 in Kabul hospital

Security forces block the main road to a military hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, March 8, 2017. Gunmen stormed the military hospital Wednesday in a neighborhood in the Afghan capital that is also home to a number of embassies.
Gunmen wearing white lab coats stormed a military hospital in Afghanistan's capital on Wednesday, killing at least 30 people and wounding dozens in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group.

The attack on the 400-bed military facility, located near two civilian hospitals in Kabul's heavily-guarded diplomatic quarter, set off clashes with security forces that lasted several hours.

The brazen assault reflected the capability of militant groups in Afghanistan to stage large-scale and complex attacks in the heart of Kabul, underscoring the challenges the government continues to face to improve security for ordinary Afghans.

'Fearless Girl' statue stares down Wall Street's iconic bull

People stop to photograph the "Fearless Girl" statue, Wednesday, March 8, 2017, in New York. The statue was installed by investment firm State Street Global Advisors. An inscription at the base reads, "Know the power of women in leadership. She makes a difference."
A new statue of a resolute young girl staring down Wall Street's famous Charging Bull was erected by a major asset managing firm for International Women's Day to make a point: There's a dearth of women on the boards of the largest U.S. corporations.

State Street Global Advisors, the Boston-based investment giant, had the statue created to push companies to increase the number of women directors.

8 March 2017

Iconic rock arch from 'Game of Thrones' falls into Malta sea

This is a April 2014 image of the landmark the Azure Window located just off Malta. The natural rock arch jutting off the Maltese island of Gozo, has collapsed into the sea during a storm. Malta’s prime minister called the loss on Wednesday March 8, 2017, of the iconic limestone formation “heartbreaking.” No one was injured by the fallen arch, which was also a TV and film backdrop.
The Azure Window, a natural rock arch which jutted onto the sea off Malta and was a backdrop for the "Game of Thrones" TV series, has collapsed in a storm.

Malta Prime Minister Joseph Muscat tweeted his "heartbreaking" sadness at the loss Wednesday of one of the main tourist attractions on the island of Gozo.

In world first, Iceland to require firms to prove equal pay

This is a Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016 file photo of people looking at the Icelandic parliament the Althing in Reykjavik. Iceland will be the first country in the world to make employers prove they offer equal pay regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexuality or nationality, the Nordic nation's government said on International Women's Day , Wednesday March 8, 2017.
Iceland will be the first country in the world to make employers prove they offer equal pay regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexuality or nationality, the Nordic nation's government said Wednesday — International Women's Day.

The government said it will introduce legislation to parliament this month, requiring all employers with more than 25 staff to obtain certification to prove they give equal pay for work of equal value.

Acid victims redefine beauty in Bangladesh fashion show

In this March 7, 2017 photo, a Bangladeshi acid attack survivor gets her make up applied during the event 'Beauty Redefined' in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Organizers said they hoped to highlight the fact that acid victims, too often overlooked, are a vital part of society. They deliberately chose to hold the event on the eve of International Women’s Day.
Teen model Shonali Khatun strutted the catwalk as the audience cheered at a fashion show in Bangladesh's capital.

But Shonali is no ordinary model, and this was no ordinary show.

She and the 14 other models are survivors of acid attacks, common in this South Asian country, where spurned lovers or disgruntled family members sometimes resort to hurling skin-burning acid at their victims.

WikiLeaks reveals CIA files describing hacking tools

This is Thursday, Jan. 12, 2017 file photo of the new CIA Director Michael Pompeo, as he testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. WikiLeaks has published thousands of documents that it says come from the CIA's Center for Cyber Intelligence, a dramatic release that appears to give an eye-opening look at the intimate details of the agency's cyberespionage effort. 
WikiLeaks published thousands of documents Tuesday described as secret files about CIA hacking tools the government employs to break into users' computers, mobile phones and even smart TVs from companies like Apple, Google, Microsoft and Samsung.

The documents describe clandestine methods for bypassing or defeating encryption, antivirus tools and other protective security features intended to keep the private information of citizens and corporations safe from prying eyes. U.S. government employees, including President Donald Trump, use many of the same products and internet services purportedly compromised by the tools.

Hungary blasted for rule detaining refugees in containers

In this Sept. 21, 2016 file photo a Hungarian soldier patrols at the transit zone at Hungary's southern border with Serbia near Tompa, 169 km southeast of Budapest, Hungary. Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, an early supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, has ordered the reinforcement of fences on Hungary’s southern borders to keep out migrants, many of whom are Muslims.
Hungary adopted tough new rules on Tuesday allowing authorities to detain all asylum-seekers, including women and children fleeing war and poverty, in border camps built from shipping containers. Human rights groups said the decision was a "flagrant violation of international law."

In the eyes of Hungary's combative prime minister, Viktor Orban, an early supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, migrants are a "Trojan horse of terrorism," putting his country under siege. He considers the migrants, many of whom are Muslims, as a threat to Europe's Christian identity and culture.

6 March 2017

Surgeons remove 915 coins swallowed by Thai sea turtle

In this Friday, March 3, 2017 photo, the female green green turtle nicknamed "Bank" swims in a pool at Sea Turtle Conservation Center n Chonburi Province, Thailand. Veterinarians operated Monday, March 6, 2017, on "Bank," removing less than 1,000 coins from the endangered animal. Her indigestible diet was a result of many tourists seeking good fortune tossing coins into her pool over many years in the eastern town of Sri Racha.
Tossing coins in a fountain for luck is a popular superstition, but a similar belief brought misery to a sea turtle in Thailand from whom doctors have removed 915 coins.

Veterinarians in Bangkok operated Monday on the 25-year-old female green sea turtle nicknamed "Bank," whose indigestible diet was a result of many tourists seeking good fortune tossing coins into her pool over many years in the eastern town of Sri Racha.

Many Thais believe that throwing coins on turtles will bring longevity.

Sikhs respond to shooting near Seattle with fear, disbelief

A man wears a head covering with the stars and stripes of a U.S. flag as he attends Sunday services at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017, south of Seattle. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in the driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith.
Fear, hurt and disbelief weighed on the minds of those who gathered at a Sikh temple Sunday after the shooting of a Sikh man who said a gunman approached him in his suburban Seattle driveway and told him "go back to your own country."

"Everybody who is part of this community needs to be vigilant," Satwinder Kaur, a Sikh community leader, said as several hundred people poured into a temple in Renton for worship services about one mile from Friday night's shooting.

5 March 2017

China trims 2017 growth target, warns against trade controls

Bus ushers in ethnic minority costumes walk on Tiananmen Square during the opening session of the annual National People's Congress in Beijing, Sunday, March 5, 2017. China's top leadership as well as thousands of delegates from around the country are gathered at the Chinese capital for the annual legislature meetings.
China's top economic official trimmed the country's growth target and warned Sunday of dangers from global pressure for trade controls as Beijing tries to build a consumer-driven economy and reduce reliance on exports and investment.

In a speech to the national legislature, Premier Li Keqiang promised more steps to cut surplus steel production that is straining trade relations with Washington and Europe. He pledged equal treatment for foreign companies, apparently responding to complaints Beijing is trying to squeeze them out of technology and other promising markets.

Somalia: 110 dead from hunger in past 48 hours in drought

In this Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017 file photo, malnourished baby Ali Hassan, 9-months-old, left, is held by his mother Fadumo Abdi Ibrahim, who fled the drought in southern Somalia, at a feeding center in a camp in Mogadishu, Somalia. Somalia's prime minister said Saturday, March 4, 2017 that 110 people have died from hunger in the past 48 hours in a single region as a severe drought threatens millions of people.
Somalia's prime minister said Saturday that 110 people have died from hunger in the past 48 hours in a single region — the first death toll announced in a severe drought threatening millions of people across the country.

Somalia's government declared the drought a national disaster on Tuesday. The United Nations estimates that 5 million people in this Horn of Africa nation need aid, amid warnings of a full-blown famine.

Malaysia expels North Korean ambassador over Kim probe

In this Monday, Feb 20, 2017 photo, North Korea's Ambassador to Malaysia Kang Chol speaks to the media outside the North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Malaysia’s foreign minister said Saturday, March 4, 2017 that the government has expelled North Korea’s ambassador for refusing to apologize for criticizing investigations into the murder of the exiled half-brother of Pyongyang's leader.
Malaysia said it expelled North Korea's ambassador on Saturday for refusing to apologize for his strong accusations over Malaysia's handling of the investigation into the killing of the North Korean leader's half brother.

Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said a notice was sent to the North Korean Embassy at around 6 p.m. declaring Ambassador Kang Chol persona non grata. The notice said Kang must leave Malaysia within 48 hours.

4 March 2017

Jordan hangs 10 for attacks linked to Islamic extremism

In this Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2016, file photo, relatives and activists of Jordanian writer Nahed Hattar, who was shot dead, takes a farewell look during his funeral in the town of Al-Fuheis near Amman, Jordan. Nahad Hattar, the writer, had been on trial for posting a cartoon deemed offensive to Islam on social media when an assailant killed him outside the courthouse. The shooter was a former mosque prayer leader motivated by anger over the cartoon, officials said at the time.
Jordan on Saturday executed 10 prisoners with ties to Islamic extremism who carried out five shootings and a bombing since 2003, the government spokesman said. It was the largest round of executions in the kingdom in at least a decade.

Among those killed in the attacks were a British tourist, an outspoken Jordanian critic of Islamic extremism and members of the Jordanian security forces.

3 March 2017

Rare comic books with Superman, Batman debuts go to auction

This undated photo provided on March 2, 2017 by Metropolis Collectibles in New York shows a copy of a rare 1941 No. 1 Captain America Comics. The comic book is among those owned by Hartford, Conn., attorney John Berk to be auctioned on May 15.
By day, Jon Berk is a mild-mannered civil attorney in Connecticut.

But by night (well, really during most of his spare time for the past 45 years) he is known by some as a comic book-collecting super hero.

Berk's collection of more than 18,000 books and 300 pieces of comic-book art goes on display March 11 at the Metropolis Gallery in New York City. He will then sell it off during an online auction at ComicConnect.com that begins May 15.

"The time is just right to move them along and let someone else experience them," said Berk, 66.

Egypt's Mubarak acquitted in final ruling on 2011 deaths

Ousted former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is escorted by medical and security personnel into a helicopter ambulance from Maadi Military Hospital, where he is hospitalized, to be taken to the Cairo Police Academy--turned--court, in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, March 2, 2017. Mubarak is standing retrial in charges of complicity in the killings of protesters during 2011 Egyptian uprising.
Egypt's top appeals court issued a final ruling Thursday that effectively acquits former President Hosni Mubarak on charges of killing protesters during the 2011 uprising that ended his nearly three-decade reign.

The Court of Cassation rejected an appeal by prosecutors, allowing an acquittal verdict from 2014 to stand. The judge also rejected a civil petition for compensation from families of some of the hundreds of protesters killed during the 18-day Arab Spring uprising.

2 March 2017

8 miners killed by Ukraine coal mine blast, 6 miners injured

An explosion at a coal mine in western Ukraine left eight people dead Thursday, the state emergencies agency said.

The blast took place in the Stepovaya mine in the Lviv region, 460 kilometers (285 miles) west of the capital Kiev, about 550 meters (1,800 feet) underground. The agency said six miners were injured by the explosion.

3 skiers killed, 5 hurt in avalanche in Italian Alps

Italian alpine rescuers say three skiers have been killed in avalanche in the northern Italian Alps near the French border that injured another five people.

Milan Walter of the national alpine rescue corps says the group was back-country skiing when the avalanche was triggered at Plan de la Gabba, 5 kilometers (3 miles) southwest of Courmayeur, around midday. The dead included an Italian, a German and a Belgian, according to police.

At least 57 al-Shabab extremists killed in Somalia assault

In this Oct. 30, 2009 file photo, al-Shabab fighters sit on a truck as they patrol in Mogadishu, Somalia. The African Union (AU) peacekeeping mission in Somalia says at least 57 members of the al-Shabab extremist group have been killed Thursday, March 2, 2017 after AU and Somali forces attacked one of its camps.
At least 57 members of the al-Shabab extremist group were killed Thursday as African Union and Somali forces attacked one of its camps, the AU peacekeeping mission in Somalia announced. It was one of the deadliest assaults on the al-Qaida-linked group by the joint forces.

The multinational force said on Twitter that vehicles and equipment were destroyed in the morning assault on the al-Shabab camp outside Afmadhow and "a large cache of weapons" was captured. The statement said helicopter gunships supported the attack.

AP Explains: What to know about China's legislative sessions

In this March 12, 2015 file photo, a delegate takes a photo before a plenary session of the National People's Congress in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Democracy Chinese-style will go on display when the country's rubberstamp legislature, the National People's Congress opens its annual sessions in Beijing on Sunday, March 5, 2017.
Governing Chinese-style will go on display when the country's rubberstamp legislature, the National People's Congress, and its advisory body open their annual sessions in Beijing over the next few days.

The largely ceremonial events come months ahead of an even more momentous gathering, the twice-a-decade national congress of the ruling Communist Party that will usher in changes to the top leadership as president and party chief Xi Jinping embarks on his second five-year term in office.

Tiny tubes in Canadian rock may be oldest known fossils

This microscope image made available by Matthew Dodd in February 2017 shows tiny tubes in rock found in Quebec, Canada. The structures appear to be the oldest known fossils, giving new support to some ideas about how life began, a new study says.
Tiny tubes and filaments in some Canadian rock appear to be the oldest known fossils, giving new support to some ideas about how life began, a new study says.

The features are mineralized remains of what appear to be bacteria that lived some 3.77 billion to 4.28 billion years ago, the scientists said. That would surpass the 3.7 billion years assigned to some other rock features found in Greenland, which were proposed to be fossils last August.

1 March 2017

10-country summit in Pakistan ends on call for closer ties

Pakistani police officers stand guard at a barricaded road leading to the venue of the Economic Cooperation Organization summit in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, March 1, 2017. Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has opened a key economic summit aimed at improving trade ties amid unprecedented security. Islamabad is hosting 13th Economic Cooperation Organization summit consisting 10 countries to finalize a plan for expanding trade and prosperity among member nations.
A regional economic summit in Pakistan on Wednesday concluded with participants pledging to collectively fight the "challenge of terrorism" and push for greater collaboration in areas of trade, energy and infrastructure development.

Islamabad hosted the day-long 10-nation Economic Cooperation Organization summit that finalized a "Vision 2025" plan for expanding trade and prosperity among member nations.

From LOL shirt to bulletproof vest, hit suspects go to court

Vietnamese suspect Doan Thi Huong, second from right, in the ongoing assassination investigation, is escorted by police officers out from Sepang court in Sepang, Malaysia on Wednesday, March 1, 2017. Appearing calm and solemn, two young women accused of smearing VX nerve agent on Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half brother of North Korea's leader, were charged with murder Wednesday.
Because of a grainy security camera photo that went viral online, she is now known to many as the LOL assassin.

But as Doan Thi Huong left a courthouse in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, after being formally charged with the murder of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's estranged half brother two weeks ago, she had a very different look — red, puffy eyes and a bulletproof vest.

The strange life, and sudden death, of a North Korean exile

In this June 4, 2010, file photo, dressed in jeans and blue suede loafers, Kim Jong Nam, the eldest son of then North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, waves after his first-ever interview with South Korean media in Macau. Kim Jong Nam had spent years in exile, gambling and drinking and arranging the occasional business deal as he traveled across Asia and Europe. His fortunes had apparently declined in recent years, and he’d moved his family from a luxurious seafront condominium complex in Macau to a more affordable apartment building.
The heavy-set man got out of a taxi one night last September and headed for the lobby bar of the swank Wynn Macau — a quiet place, where women are often in evening dresses and gamblers can relax with $300 Cuban cigars. He was dressed casually. There were no bodyguards, no flashy women.

It wasn't what you'd expect of a man once tipped to be the next dictator of North Korea.

Crowds greet Saudi king on rare visit to Indonesia

Saudi King Salman, left, listens to Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak during the MOU signing ceremony in Putrajaya, Malaysia, Monday, Feb. 27, 2017. Salman arrived in Malaysia on Sunday to kick off a multi-nation tour aimed at boosting economic ties with Asia.
The first Saudi monarch to visit Indonesia in nearly half a century arrived Wednesday to an elaborate official welcome and crowds of thousands.

King Salman exited his plane at Halim airport in Jakarta using an escalator, with a portable lift carrying him the final meter or so to the ground.

Early bird special: Spring pops up super early in much of US

Tulip Magnolia trees bloom in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017. Crocuses, cherry trees, magnolia trees are blooming several weeks early because of an unusually warm February. Some climate experts say it looks like, because of an assist from global warming, spring has sprung what may be record early this year in about half the nation.
Spring has sprung early — potentially record early — in much of the United States, bringing celebrations of shorts weather mixed with unease about a climate gone askew.

Crocuses, tulips and other plants are popping up earlier than usual from Arizona to New Jersey and down to Florida. Washington is dotted with premature pink blossoming trees. Grackles, red-winged blackbirds and woodpeckers are just plain early birds this year.

The unseasonably warm weather has the natural world getting ahead of — even defying — the calendar, scientists said Tuesday.