Saudi king ousts nephew, names son as first heir

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - King Salman on Wednesday appointed his 31-year-old son Mohammed bin Salman as crown prince, placing him first-in-line to the throne and removing his nephew, the country's counterterrorism chief and a figure well-known to Washington from the line of succession.

Iran-made drone downed in Syria

AMMAN - The US military said it had shot down an armed, Iranian-made drone that had been bearing down on its forces near a garrison in Syria's southeast on Tuesday, in the latest sign of increasingly frequent confrontation with Damascus and its allies.

Queen outlines UK government agenda

Queen Elizabeth opened an unusual two-year session of the Parliament on Wednesday which will be dominated if not overwhelmed by groundwork for negotiations for the United Kingdom's planned exit from the European Union.

Belgium avoided attack in station blast

BRUSSELS - Belgium has avoided a serious attack, its interior minister said on Wednesday, after a suspected suicide bomber planning to explode a large bomb caused only a minor explosion in Brussels' central station on Tuesday.

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

PM Abe pledges to regain public trust

TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, his ratings battered by suspicion he helped a friend get favorable treatment for a business, and criticism that he used strong-arm tactics in parliament, has vowed to regain the people's trust.

Military vows to recapture Marawi

MARAWI CITY, Philippines - Philippine aircraft and troops launched a renewed push against Islamist militants in a southern city on Tuesday, and a military spokesman said the aim was to clear the area by the weekend Eid festival, although there was no deadline.

US bombers to conduct joint drill over Korean Peninsula

SEOUL - Two US strategic bombers plan to conduct a joint drill with fighter jets from the Republic of Korea on Tuesday over the Korean Peninsula, local media reported.

Refugee from Syria named as UNICEF goodwill ambassador

NEW YORK - The UN Children's Fund on Monday announced the appointment of a 19-year-old female education activist and Syrian refugee as its youngest goodwill ambassador.

Russia warns US after Syrian warplane downed

MOSCOW - Russia has warned it would track US-led coalition aircraft in Syria as potential "targets" and halted a military hotline with Washington after US forces downed a Syrian jet.

Data of nearly 200m US voters exposed

WASHINGTON - The detailed data of nearly 200 million US registered voters were leaked online, local media reported on Monday. The leak was discovered by the security company UpGuard, which said the data came from three analytics companies hired by the Republican Party.

Qatar: No talks until trade boycott is lifted

DOHA/PARIS - Qatar will not negotiate with its neighbors to resolve the Gulf dispute unless they first lift the trade and travel boycott they imposed two weeks ago, its foreign minister said, but added Doha still believed a solution was possible.