LA lightning kills 1, injures 13

A 20-year-old man died after lightning struck 14 people at a popular Los Angeles beach and a golf course, a coroner's official said on Sunday.

Smashing glass ceiling at a Parisian 'palace'

As new chief concierge at a top "palace" hotel in Paris, Sonia Papet is part of a tiny elite of women who have entered the traditionally male realm.

Teens describe being left to escape sinking ferry

Six teenagers who survived South Korea's worst maritime disaster in 44 years told on Monday how classmates helped them float free as water flooded their cabins despite crew instructions to stay put even as their ferry sank, killing more than 300 people.

Splintering Iraq reaches breaking point

Salman Khaled has lived through Baghdad's sectarian disintegration; with Iraq now splintering into Shiite, Sunni Arab and Kurdish regions, he says this time the survival of the country is at stake.

Asylum seekers in limbo could sue Australia govt

The fate of 157 Sri Lankan asylum seekers held at sea for almost a month before being brought to a detention center in Australia was stuck in limbo on Monday, as lawyers for the detainees said they might sue the government for illegal imprisonment.

Abu Sayyaf gunmen kill 21 Filipinos in road attack

Abu Sayyaf gunmen attacked Filipino civilians traveling to celebrate the end of Ramadan with their families on Monday, killing 21, including six children, in a brazen road attack that was the bloodiest in recent years by the violent militant group, police and military officials said.

Israeli jets strike Gaza at start of Muslim holiday

Israeli jets struck three sites in Gaza on Monday after a rocket was launched at Israel, the military said, disrupting a relative lull in the war-torn territory at the start of a major Muslim holiday.

Eid revelry muted amid crash, clashes

Muslims in Asia marked a grim Eid al-Fitr on Monday, overshadowed by several air tragedies, including the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, and conflicts in Gaza and Pakistan.

Kiev claims more territory

Ukraine said its troops had taken more territory from rebels near the site where Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 was brought down, as international investigators said fighting was preventing them from reaching the crash location.

Hardships mount as Gazans toil in war-torn city

Caught in the fighting between Israel and Hamas, Gaza's civilians are increasingly struggling to get by. There is no electricity 21 hours a day because power lines have been hit. Water taps have run dry because there's no power to their fuel pumps and tens of thousands of displaced sleep on the floors of schools and hospitals.

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Hamas accepts Gaza lull

Earlier humanitarian truce fell apart after rockets fired at southern Israel