World

Need a Christmas playlist? 10 seasonal songs from Sufjan Stevens
Ten of the best Advent and Christmas songs from the man who's recorded over 100 of them...

ISIS armed with huge arsenal of weapons, mostly from captured stockpiles in Iraq and Syria â Amnesty International
The Islamic State (ISIS) is armed with more than 100 weapons indirectly supplied by countries trying to fight them, according to a new report released by Amnesty International.

Was CS Lewis really Secret Agent Lewis?
The world of Lewis studies has been shaken and stirred by a discovery that seems to show he worked for British Intelligence.

Russian sub joins campaign against ISIS, fires cruise missiles that Putin says could be fitted with nuke warheads
The Russia's Ministry of Defence announced Tuesday that it launched missile strikes in Syria for the first time from a navy submarine fleet stationed in the Mediterranean Sea.

Syrian rebels unite in 'big change' to peace process
Syrian rebel groups have joined forces and agreed to work together in preparation for peace talks with President Bashar al-Assad's government.

Football star Steven Naismith buys Christmas meal for 300 homeless people
Naismith, who is a striker for Everton and his national team, Scotland, paid for the meal put on by the charity Loaves and Fishes whose work he described as "humbling and inspiring".

Church blown up in Yemen - latest outrage in 'forgotten war'
The Immaculate Conception Church built during the British colonial era in the 1960s was already severely damaged after a Saudi-led coalition air strike in May

Norway tries to ease migrant crisis by offering refugees cash, free flights home
Asylum seekers in Norway are being offered cash and free flights to leave the country, which is struggling to cope with the worsening migrant crisis that rooted mostly from the four-year civil war in Syria.

Richard Dawkins defends Donald Trump's right to free speech
The atheist biologist Richard Dawkins has defended the right of Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump to say that Muslims should be banned from entering the US.

Christian Lib Dem leader Tim Farron backs Salvation Army in fighting cuts
The leader of the Liberal Democrats has called for homeless shelters to be protected from Government welfare reforms and "punishing" cuts.
'Significant blow' to 2 terror groups: U.S. airstrikes kill ISIS head in Libya, al-Qaeda leader in Somalia
Pentagon officials announced Monday that two senior leaders of the Islamic State (ISIS) and of Al Qaeda group have been killed in separate airstrikes carried out by the U.S. coalition last month.

Arkansas: Same-sex parents can't be named on birth certificates
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday temporarily blocked a lower court order .

Vatican treasurer George Pell too ill to travel to Australia child abuse inquiry
Catholic Cardinal George Pell was scheduled to give evidence on December 16.

Donald Trump controversy: Trip to Israel postponed amid Muslim ban fallout
Trump has said he will meet Israel's Prime Minister after he becomes US President.

Iran defies U.N. anew, test-fires mid-range ballistic missile that has capability to carry a nuke warhead
The Islamic Republic has once again defied international agreements and the United Nations (UN) council resolution when it carried out another mid-range ballistic missile test, just barely over a month since it launched the first one.

'Open borders or die': Muslim migrants send chilling message at Macedonian border
More than 200 Muslim migrants who attempted to cross the Macedonia border have been stopped in their tracks after displaying an "Open borders or Die'' banner during confrontation with policemen and border guards.