The bodies of Kenyan soldiers killed when Al-Qaeda-linked militants overran their base in Somalia were flown home draped in the national flag as a rescue operation was underway for survivors. (Photo: AP)
Oil facilities in northern Libya were set ablaze as Islamic State group jihadists launched fresh attacks to seize key export terminals, the state oil company and local media said. (Photo: AP)
Islamist Shebab gunmen killed around 20 people in a popular beachside restaurant in Somalia, police said, as neighbouring Kenya mourned soldiers killed by the Al Qaeda-linked group last week. (Photo: AP)
Four people were killed and others injured in a school shooting in a remote part of Saskatchewan and a male suspect is in custody, Canadian police said. (Photo: AP)
Haiti called off its presidential election, two days before it was due, over concerns of escalating violence sparked by the opposition candidate's refusal to take part in a process he said was riddled with fraud. (Photo: AP)
A life-threatening blizzard expected to dump a record 30 inches of snow on the US capital slammed the East Coast, leaving at least eight persons dead nationwide and causing 10 states to declare a state of emergency. (Photo: AP)
In Syria's eastern city of Deir el- Zour, supplies are running so short that desperate residents are selling their gold, valuables and even their homes for food or an exit permit allowing them to escape a siege by both government troops and Islamic State militants. (Photo: AFP)
At least 10 persons, including seven policemen, have been killed and 20 others injured in Egypt in a powerful bomb blast during a raid near the iconic pyramids of Giza. Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility. (Photo: YouTube Video Grab)
Israeli security forces evicted dozens of Jewish settlers from two homes in the heart of the West Bank city of Hebron, a day after they had moved in. (Photo: AFP)
The world's largest Muslim body has backed Saudi Arabia in its weeks-long diplomatic spat with Iran, accusing Tehran of backing terrorism and meddling in other countries' affairs. (Photo: AP)
Australian police have charged a teenage boy for allegedly making threats on social media that led to Sydney's iconic Opera House being evacuated last week in a security scare.(Photo: AP)
More than 1,200 people have been evacuated from their homes to escape a gurgling volcano in eastern Indonesia spewing clouds of ash and toxic gas into the air. (Photo: AFP)
Afghanistan said three of the four multirole Mi-35 helicopters that India donated to it last month have been assembled and are now fully operational to combat terrorism in the war-torn country. (Photo: Twitter)
Myanmar released the first of about 100 prisoners, days before a parliament dominated by democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi's party sits for the first time after an election victory in November. (Photo: AP)
Thailand is waiting to hear if it has dodged a potentially crippling European Union ban on seafood exports, after auditors wrapped up a probe into illegal fishing. Last year, the EU hit Thailand with a \"yellow card,\" warning it faced an outright ban unless the military government took action on illegal fishing and slave labour in the multi-billion dollar seafood industry.(Photo: AP)
Schools have been suspended and emergency workers put on standby in China as the country braces for historically cold weather, including 30-year lows in places, the government and state media said.
EU has highlighted the need to address human rights issues in Sri Lanka as the two sides discussed the full-implementation of the UNHRC resolution on alleged rights abuses during the final phase of the civil war with Tamil rebels.(Photo: AFP)
Pakistan's Supreme Court lifted a ban on hunting of a rare bird, houbara bustard, whose meat is prized among Arab sheikhs as an aphrodisiac. (Photo: AFP)
Afghan forces have arrested eight members of the feared Haqqani militant network who they say carried out a suicide attack this week on journalists working for the country's most-watched television channel. (Photo: AP)
44 people drowned after three refugee boats sank off Greece. Left-wing protest groups in Greece are planning two days of demonstrations at the country's border with Turkey, to call on authorities to ease transit restrictions in the wake of two deadly boat sinkings that left at least 46 migrants and refugees dead.(Photo: AP)
In a sign of improving ties between the two erstwhile adversaries, Russia's military has said it will hold its first ever defence exercises with Pakistan later this year. (Photo: AP)
At least 25 people, including the attackers, died in an armed assault on Bacha Khan university in Pakistan, where witnesses reported two large explosions as security forces moved in under dense fog to halt the bloodshed. Four persons have been arrested in connection with the case.(Photo: AP)