Scott Neuman

The self-declared Islamic State has released a group of some 200 elderly members of the Yazidis religious minority, allowing them to cross out of territory controlled by the extremists.

It is not clear why the militants released the men and women, many infirm, but The Associated Press quotes Gen, Shirko ...

At least 6 million people in the predominately Catholic Philippines thronged a rain-drenched Rizal park in the capital, Manila, to catch a glimpse of Pope Francis as he presented Sunday Mass at the end of a four-day visit to the islands nation.

Speaking to poncho-clad Filipinos standing in the pelting ...

Greek authorities have detained four terrorism suspects including a man thought to have links to a foiled terror plot in Belgium.

The Associated Press quotes a Greek police official as saying the four were arrested separately in Athens. One of the suspects matches the description of 27-year-old Moroccan-born Abdelhamid ...

French authorities have approved secret burials for the two brothers who were killed by police following their attack on the offices of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Mayors in two French cities "begrudgingly" agreed to secret burials of Said and Cherif Kouachi who carried out a shooting spree at ...

French President Francois Hollande says people protesting the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo do not understand the French attachment to freedom of speech.

His statement comes amid protests over the publication's depiction of the Prophet Muhammad on its latest cover that went to press just days after 10 of its journalists ...

The undersea train tunnel that connects England and France has been closed until further notice after a fire broke out on a truck that was being transported through the Channel Tunnel, triggering an alarm and suspending all passenger and freight service.

There were no reports of injuries.

"Rail passengers are ...

Gunmen in Yemen have abducted the president's chief of staff from his vehicle in the center of the capital, Sanaa, according to security officials who blame Shiite Houthi rebels for the kidnapping.

Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak and two of his body guards were seized early Saturday, officials say. The Associated ...

A storm forced Pope Francis to cut short a visit to the Philippine city of Tacloban, where Typhoon Haiyan made a devastating landfall last year, killing at least 6,300 people in the predominately Catholic country.

The bad weather also forced a plane carrying Philippine officials accompanying the pope, ...

As we reported last week, the latest SpaceX resupply mission successfully lifted off from Cape Canaveral and later made a rendezvous with the International Space Station. But a secondary goal of the flight -– to test landing a spent booster from the Falcon 9 rocket on a floating platform ...

One of China's top spymasters has reportedly been retained after apparently running afoul of President Xi Jinping's aggressive anti-corruption drive.

Beijing confirmed that Ma Jian, vice-minister in the Ministry of State Security, is being investigated on suspicion of "serious violations" of the law, according to the BBC, which says: ...

The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has become the 12th U.S. diocese forced into bankruptcy by claims from alleged victims of clergy sexual abuse.

A letter posted Friday on the archdiocese's website, Archbishop John Nienstedt acknowledged the devastating impact of the stories of abuse by priests and ...

What year was the Constitution written?

Who was president during World War I?

If you couldn't answer one or both of the above, you might not be able to pass a civics test given to candidates for U.S. citizenship. Or (starting in 2017) graduate from high school in Arizona.

On ...

Speaking to one of Asia's fastest-growing populations, Pope Francis issued what is being described as his strongest defense yet of the Catholic Church's opposition to artificial contraception, urging that Philippine families be "sanctuaries of respect for life."

Francis, on the second day of his visit to the region's only ...

When we brought you the news last week that Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa had been defeated in a nationwide elections, reports were that Asia's longest serving leader willingly handed over the reins to his rival.

Rajapaksa, who had ruled since 2005, even tweeted that he looked forward to ...

One day in 1990, A.K. Verma went on what you might call "extended" leave from his job as a senior bureaucrat at India's Central Public Works Department.

He's been a no-show ever since. And it finally caught up to him: Verma was sacked for his absence — on Jan. 8.

Update at 11:50 p.m. ET

Divers have retrieved the flight data recorder from AirAsia QZ8501's "black box," Reuters reports.

Efforts continue to find the cockpit voice recorder, says Bambang Soelistyo, the head of Indonesia's search and rescue agency.

Our previous post continues:

An official from the Indonesian search team recovering ...

Swedish-born actress Anita Ekberg, who became an international sex symbol best known for her role as Sylvia in the 1960 Federico Fellini film La Dolce Vita, died in Italy today at age 83, her lawyer confirmed.

The one-time 'Miss Sweden' went on to model for men's magazines Playboy and Confidential ...

Updated at 1:40 p.m. ET

A video has surfaced of the now-dead suspect in the attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris claiming allegiance to the self-declared Islamic State.

In the video, what appears to be Amedy Coulibaly, 32, is seen seated next to a Kalashnikov rifle with the ...

George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer acquitted in the 2013 shooting death of Trayvon Martin, was arrested in Florida late Friday and has been charged with aggravated assault with a weapon.

Zimmerman, 31, was accused of throwing a wine bottle at a woman at his home, according to ...

Hundreds of thousands of people participated in vigils and rallies around France today to voice support for the 17 victims of days of violence this week that began with a deadly attack on the offices of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Agence France-Presse reports: "From Nice and Marseilles ...