The United States last year slid down the rankings of a global corruption index as America's system of checks and balances faced growing threats on Donald Trump's watch, Transparency International said Tuesday. The US lost four points to score 71 out of 100 on the watchdog's 2018 Corruption...

Around 56 million people are in need of urgent food and livelihood assistance in eight conflict zones around the world, a report said Monday. Yemen, South Sudan, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic are the five zones that experienced...

At least six people were killed and 20 injured late Monday in a bomb attack in southeastern Yemen. An explosive device went off in front of a restaurant near a military vehicle in Al-Maha district in Taiz province, said a military official who requested anonymity because he was unauthorized...

The U.S. and the Taliban have drafted the framework of a deal which could pave the way for peace talks with Kabul, special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad was quoted as saying Monday, but major sticking points including a cease-fire and a withdrawal of foreign forces remain. The comments by Khalilzad to...

Britain risks crashing out of the European Union without a Brexit deal "by accident" because London cannot decide what it wants, a senior EU negotiator warned Monday. In some of her toughest remarks to date, Sabine Weyand, deputy to EU Brexit pointman Michel Barnier, criticised Prime...

Striker Yuya Osako scored twice in 11 second-half minutes to help send four-times champions Japan into the final of the Asian Cup with a 3-0 victory over tournament favourites Iran Monday. The Werder Bremen forward headed the first home in the 56th minute and added his second from the...

The crisis in OPEC member Venezuela could impact the oil market balance, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih told Al-Arabiya news channel Monday. "Of course, developments in Venezuela may have an impact on the [oil] markets ... We are watching developments there and there could be an...

Three heavily armed men attacked a van carrying a jailed criminal on his way to court Monday, firing shots outside the courthouse and striking a guard before making their getaway in the southern French town of Tarascon, officials said. The spectacular escape took place at around 8:30...

The U.N. envoy for Yemen said Monday the expected timeline for a truce in the flashpoint city of Hodeida and a prisoner swap between warring parties had been pushed back. Envoy Martin Griffiths hosted hard-won peace talks between the Yemeni government and Houthi rebels in Sweden last...

A British woman convicted in Egypt of smuggling painkillers has been granted early release after spending more than a year in prison, an Egyptian security source said Monday. Laura Plummer, 34, was arrested at Hurghada airport and sentenced in December 2017 to three years in prison...

Iran is likely to expand its cyber espionage activities as its relations with Western powers worsen, the European Union digital security agency said Monday. Iranian hackers are behind several cyber-attacks and online disinformation campaigns in recent years as the country tries to...

The longtime head of the world's Yazidis, a minority whose Iraqi community was ferociously targeted by Daesh (ISIS), has died in Germany after a long illness, officials said Monday. Prince Tahseen Said Ali died in the KRH Siloah hospital in Hanover at the age of 85, according to the...

Prominent Chinese human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang was sentenced on Monday to four and a half years in prison for state subversion, sealing the fate of another attorney swept up in a 2015 crackdown. Wang, 42, who defended political activists and victims of land seizures, disappeared in...

Panama rolled out the red carpet for Pope Francis for World Youth Day celebrations, but here and across Latin America the Catholic Church is losing ground to a growing evangelical movement. In the gritty barrio of El Chorrillo, a kilometer (half-mile) of dense streets from where Francis...

Bahrain's supreme court, whose verdicts are final, on Monday upheld a life term for Shiite opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman for spying for Gulf rival Qatar, a judicial source said. Salman, who headed the Shiite Al-Wefaq group, was convicted in November of "communicating with Qatari...

Vale, the Brazilian company that owns the dam that burst at one of its mines killing dozens and leaving hundreds missing, is the world's biggest iron-ore miner - and its reputation has taken a harsh blow with the disaster. Brazilian authorities have frozen 11 billion reais -- around $3...

Zimbabwe's widely respected fire brigade usually tackles house fires and traffic accidents, but it became a symbol of the regime during anti-government demonstrations that turned into violent looting and arson. The crews were blocked from reaching blazes by protesters who erected...

Israel on Sunday officially recognised Venezuela's National Assembly chief Juan Guaido as president, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, following close ally Washington in endorsing the opposition leader. Netanyahu announced in an online video that Israel was joining the United States,...

A prominent French anti-government "yellow vest" activist, badly injured in the eye at a protest, was struck with one of the controversial rubber bullets used by police, his lawyer said Sunday. Jerome Rodrigues' lawyer fears he will be "handicapped for life" after he was injured in clashes...

Abu Dhabi's state oil firm said Sunday it had signed partnership deals worth $5.8 billion with Italian oil giant Eni and Austria's OMV, awarding them key stakes in its refining arm. Under the agreements, Eni will own 20 percent and OMV 15 percent of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Co's ADNOC...