Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday said his government would ask parliament to consider reintroducing the death penalty as a punishment for the plotters behind the July coup bid. “Our government will take this (proposal on capital punishment) to parliament. I am convinced that …

Rajoy, the under-estimated survivor who wore his rivals down Madrid, Spain | AFP | Spain’s conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy won back power Saturday, at the age of 61, after a war of attrition against younger rivals who under-estimated his resistance after 35 years in politics. Just like in 2005 …

Daytona Beach, United States | AFP |  US presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton declared Saturday that the FBI’s decision to announce a renewed probe into her use of email just ahead of voting was “unprecedented” and “deeply troubling.” “It’s pretty strange to put something like that out with such little information …

Paris, France | AFP |  Protestants form a branch of the Christian faith that broke away from the Roman Catholic Church during the Reformation 500 years ago. Pope Francis has nonetheless strengthened ties with several Protestant denominations, and his trip to Sweden to take part in events marking the anniversary …

Jérusalem, Undefined | AFP | Preservation experts have opened for the first time in at least two centuries what Christians believe is Jesus’s tomb inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. Some of the historic work was witnessed by AFP photographer Gali Tibbon who captured images of the …

Paris, France | AFP |  Young women in Western countries have caught up with their male counterparts in drinking habits, according to research published this week. Women aged 18-27 years old have almost reached parity with men of their age group in three categories of drinking — the likelihood of …

United Nations, United States | AFP | Russia on Friday failed to win re-election at the United Nations Human Rights Council in a vote rights groups said reflected international disapproval of Moscow’s involvement in the war in Syria. The UN General Assembly elected Hungary and Croatia instead to represent eastern …

Los Angeles, United States | AFP | Sex, drugs and death are the star attractions of the November 8 elections in California, there being little doubt that Hillary Clinton will carry the heavily Democratic state. Should actors in porno movies be required to wear condoms? Abolish the death penalty or …

Beijing, China | AFP | Chinese Communist chief Xi Jinping’s ascension to the highest title in the party hierarchy formalises his position as its pre-eminent figure, analysts said, making him the country’s most powerful leader in a generation and inviting comparisons with Mao Zedong. The ruling party’s declaration that Xi …

The Hague, Netherlands | AFP |  The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor has described decisions by three African countries to withdraw as a “setback”, as she vowed that the tribunal will continue its work on the continent. “You could expect a setback as the ICC started to make more progress,” …