Australia's Barrier Reef slips into 'poor' health
Australia hailed "solid" progress on water quality at the Great Barrier Reef Wednesday but admitted that overall conditions were now "poor" as it battles UNESCO threats to downgrade its heritage status.
Church begins final Philippine birth control battle
A relentless Catholic Church campaign to derail a birth control law in the Philippines begins its final phase at the Supreme Court on Tuesday, with the verdict to have monumental impacts for millions of poor Filipinos.
10 July 2013
Russia fires Bolshoi Theatre director after scandals
Russian officials on Tuesday announced the sacking of Bolshoi Theatre director Anatoly Iksanov following a series of scandals including the horrific January acid attack on its artistic director.
09 July 2013
Nazarbayev cuts 600kg cake on Astana Day
Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev took part in the cutting of the 600kg Astana birthday cake baked specially for the anniversary.
Pope visits Italy refugee island
Pope Francis arrived on the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa, a key destination of tens of thousands of would-be immigrants from Africa, in a visit the Vatican hopes will raise awareness of their plight.
09 July 2013
New gene sequencing yields healthy baby
Scientists said Monday they had used a new-generation gene sequencing technique to select a viable embryo for in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) that yielded a healthy baby boy.
Art collector Saatchi divorcing TV chef wife after row
British art collector Charles Saatchi told a newspaper on Sunday that he is divorcing his wife, celebrity chef Nigella Lawson, following an incident in which he grabbed her by the neck outside a London restaurant.