Lords defy May for a second time

LONDON - Britain's upper house of Parliament voted on Tuesday to give lawmakers more power to reject the final terms of the country's exit from the European Union, ignoring pleas from Prime Minister Theresa May's government not to hamstring their negotiations.

Germany hopes to normalize Turkey ties

BERLIN - Germany's foreign minister expressed cautious optimism on Wednesday that Berlin and Ankara may begin to slowly reel diplomatic relations back to normal, following an escalation of tensions that culminated with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accusing Germany of "Nazi practices".

IS gunmen attack Kabul military hospital

KABUL - Gunmen dressed as doctors stormed Afghanistan's largest military hospital on Wednesday, officials said, in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group as it makes inroads into the war-battered country.

Malaysia: No plan to cut relations with DPRK

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Wednesday his country currently has no plan to cut diplomatic relations with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

New chapter at school for grannies

Literacy rate in India has grown to 74 percent, but not for female

Indian minister's 'hormonal' women comment sparks ridicule

Female students need curfews to protect them from their own "hormonal outbursts", India's women's minister has said, sparking ridicule on social media.

Twin sisters, 97, fall and freeze to death together

BARRINGTON, RHODE ISLAND - Ninety-seven-year-old twins Jean Young Haley and Martha Young Williams left the world as they entered it: together.

Anger over THAAD in peaceful village

SEONGJU, REPUBLIC OF KOREA - When they heard the news that Lotte had signed a contract with the Defense Ministry to exchange its golf course for military land, they fell into great panic. The bad feeling lasted for days, making the naive, old farmers wandering what to do.

Tunnel reveals assault course for IS fighters

SOUTH OF MOSUL, IRAQ - The mouth of the tunnel is hardly visible on a muddy hillside overlooking Mosul, where fighting now rages between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants.

Trump signs new travel order, exempting Iraqis

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump signed a revised executive order on Monday banning citizens from six Muslim-majority nations from traveling to the United States but removing Iraq from the list, after his controversial first attempt was blocked in the courts.

Bill unveiled to replace Obamacare

The US Republican Party on Monday unveiled a healthcare bill that it says will replace the Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act, taking a step further in trashing what former president Barack Obama hoped would be his biggest legacy.