Ukraine deaths double in 2 weeks

The estimated death toll in the Ukraine conflict nearly doubled to at least 2,086 as of Aug 10 from 1,129 on July 26, the United Nations human rights office said on Wednesday.

Obama promises investigation into shooting death

US President Barack Obama called the police shooting death of an unarmed black teenager a tragedy on Tuesday and urged a thoughtful response after two nights of violent protests, looting and arrests in the northern St. Louis suburb where the shooting took place.

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

A life dedicated to entertaining others

Robin Williams, a brilliant shape-shifter who could channel his frenetic energy into delightful comic characters like Mrs. Doubtfire or harness it into richly nuanced work like his Oscar-winning turn in Good Will Hunting, died on Monday in an apparent suicide. He was 63.

Obama offers his sympathy to family

US President Barack Obama called Robin Williams "one of a kind" who shared his talent "freely and generously with those who needed it most".

Career at a glance

Robin Williams' most distinctive roles

Italians learn to recognize corruption

Is helping a pal win a contract just being friendly? What's wrong with taking the kids to the beach in the office car? And why not linger over lunch at the trattoria if things aren't too hectic at work? These are the kinds of questions that city bureaucrats pondered recently in Florence in what has been billed as Italy's first anti-corruption class for public officials.

In Syria's starving Yarmuk camp, a pianist conjures hope

In the Yarmuk camp in southern Damascus, the notes escape a piano set in a scene of destruction, and the children in Ayham al-Ahmed's little group sing of hunger and suffering.

Palestinians, Israelis face Day 2 of talks

Palestinian and Israeli delegations on Tuesday were to resume "grueling" negotiations in Cairo aimed at ending the Gaza conflict as Egyptian mediators raced to narrow gaps between the warring sides.

Iraqi prime minister resists change in government

Iraqi incumbent Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki appeared more isolated on Tuesday as he pressed his battle to remain in power while Iraqi politicians and the international community rallied behind a Shiite prime minister-designate who could be a more-unifying figure, badly needed if the nation is to confront a spreading Sunni insurgency.

Iraq's Yazidis haunted by horrors they escaped on Mount Sinjar

Exhausted and terrorized, many of the Yazidis of northern Iraq who straggled into the Kurdish town of Dohuk after escaping the Islamic State deathtrap of Mount Sinjar recalled the agony of leaving relatives exposed on the mountain.

Afghan youths struggle for survival

"Do you need a car washer? Do you need a car washer?" This was the voice of Rashid, an 8-year-old Afghan boy, as he roamed around the streets of Kabul in search for work to support his family.