President Bashar al-Assad said he is confident his troops will win the conflict ravaging Syria, as new calls were made on Monday for the International Criminal Court to launch a probe into war crimes.
A lucky player in Arizona, a married man in his 30s, has claimed the second winning ticket in the US Powerball lottery's near-record jackpot of $587.5 million.
Dissident Martha Beatriz Roque called it "a victory for the Cuban people ... and democracy" when the communist government bowed to the demands of hunger strikers Tuesday and freed a political prisoner.
Separatists in Canada's Quebec province scored an election win Tuesday, with Premier Jean Charest losing his seat as his unpopular Liberals were ousted from power.
Kazakhstan's Serik Sapiyev won the men's Olympic welterweight gold on Sunday with a crushing 17-9 win over Britain's Freddie Evans, making up for his shattering quarter-final loss four years ago.