Mauritania called the killing in Mali of 16 preachers from a moderate Muslim sect a "barbaric massacre" and an "odious crime," in comments that underscore heightened tensions between the two neighboring nations.

The outer bands of Tropical Storm Leslie are pelting Bermuda with rain and gusty winds.

Afghan authorities say two bomb blasts near the governor's compound in a western province have killed a 12-year-old boy and wounded 16 other civilians.

A Jordanian militant leader linked to al-Qaida has warned that his extremist group will launch "deadly attacks" in neighboring Syria to topple President Bashar Assad.

Al-Jazeera says hackers have targeted the Qatar-based TV satellite channel for the second time in a week, sending out false news reports on its mobile phone alert service.

An Iraqi court has found the nation's Sunni vice president guilty of running death squads against security forces and Shiites, and has sentenced him to death in absentia.

A wave of attacks targeting security forces in Iraq has left more than 40 people dead and nearly 240 injured.

France's Elysee Palace says former Beatle Paul McCartney has been decorated with the legion of honor for services to music

Russia has soundly rejected U.S. calls for increased pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad to relinquish power.

The EU's foreign policy chief says more sanctions against Syria and Iran are being weighed.

Sen. John McCain says he is disappointed with his party's presidential candidate for sidestepping world affairs in his campaign for the White House.

Looking for true love? Fall asleep in Ukraine's top museum and wait for a kiss.

Gambia's highest Islamic body has endorsed President Yahya Jammeh's recent decision to execute nine death row inmates.

French investigators say they still don't know the reasons for the killings of what appears to be a family of British vacationers found in a car in the French Alps.

The lawyer for a British hacker wanted in America for breaking into sensitive computer networks at U.S. military and space installations says that officials will rule on the case by next month.

Officials say the death toll in the sinking of a boat carrying illegal immigrants off the coast of Turkey has risen to 39 and is expected to increase further.

A powerful, magnitude-7.6 earthquake shook Costa Rica on Wednesday. There were no immediate accounts of damage or injuries.

A journalists' watchdog group urged the Tanzanian government to launch an independent probe into the death of a journalist over the weekend who was killed by police, according to witnesses.

A lawyer for an American businessman fighting corruption charges in Dubai says he is seeking information on who is holding his client after he was caught in Yemen trying to flee and returned to the United Arab Emirates.

The area around the U.S. embassy in Brussels and the Belgian defense ministry was temporarily sealed off as bomb squad assessed a suspicious vehicle.

Police say there is a good possibility that a murder victim's torso found floating near Niagara Falls last week could have come from the U.S.

Police in Colombia say an unidentified gunman has fatally shot a convicted drug trafficker once known as the "Queen of Cocaine."

Rio de Janeiro police say an armed man suspected of stealing a car hijacked a bus carrying several children on a field trip and forced it to take him to a nearby slum.

Afghan officials say a suicide bomber killed at least 25 civilians and wounded dozens at a funeral for a village elder in a remote part of eastern Afghanistan.

The latest hero for DC Comics was inspired by the diverse background of its creator.