The 118-nation Non-Aligned Movement on Friday demanded Israel release a "substantial number" of Palestinian political prisoners as a "positive step" towards peace.

A bomb blast at a bus stop in central Istanbul on Thursday left seven people injured including a police officer, officials said.

Myanmar's President Thein Sein arrived in China on Thursday for a visit aimed at improving his impoverished country's commercial ties with its key ally, the world's second-largest economy.

An ammunition store belonging to the powerful Al-Ahmar tribe has exploded in the Yemeni capital Sanaa killing 28 people, the defence ministry's 26sep.Net news website said on Thursday.

A French junior minister suing for slander over sexual harassment claims got hit by a further charge on Thursday when a far-right leader said she would sue him for hinting she was behind the allegations.

India and Russia are mulling closer cooperation between their air forces, operating similar aircraft and preparing to jointly develop futuristic fifth generation fighter jet, officials said, amid the ongoing visit of Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon proposed a new UN mission for South Sudan after it becomes independent on July 9, requesting 7,000 troops to protect civilians and a mandate to help the new government prevent conflict and consolidate peace.

Echoing the chorus for "overhauling" of the UN Security Council, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has suggested the need to reshuffle the membership position in the Council "so that it reflects the reality of the world today".

England captain Andrew Strauss insisted there were no cracks in his relationship with Kevin Pietersen after he suggested the batsman wanted "desperately to be liked but does not know the best way go about it".

Belarusian cash exchange bureaus ran out of foreign currency on Tuesday after the sudden devaluation of the national currency and a surge in exchange rates.