National-World

By Angus Watson, CNN Sydney, Australia (CNN) — A series of smiling Instagram photos of diplomats wearing purple and enjoying cupcakes has caused a spat between Iran and Australia, with the Australian ambassador summoned to explain the “disrespectful” behavior. The Australian Embassy in Tehran posted photos on Monday to mark Wear It Purple Day, an

By Rebecca Wright, Anna Coren, Salman Saeed and Mark Phillips, CNN Dhaka, Bangladesh (CNN) — The banging on the door started just after sunrise, when law student Iftekhar Alam was still sleeping in his fifth-floor apartment. Around half a dozen armed police officers pushed inside, shouting obscenities and telling him he had wronged the nation

By Simone McCarthy, CNN Beijing (CNN) — Delegations from dozens of African countries are gathering in Beijing for a three-day summit set to see China showcase itself as a lead partner for the continent, despite slowing lending for its development – and as it faces rising frictions with the West. A procession of African leaders have

By Stefano Pozzebon, CNN (CNN) — Christmas will start next month in Venezuela, authoritarian leader Nicolas Maduro has decreed – even as thousands of Venezuelans look set to pass the holidays behind bars amid his government’s crackdown on political unrest. “September smells like Christmas!” Maduro said in his weekly television show on Monday, to the

By Sharon Braithwaite, CNN (CNN) — Uganda’s main opposition leader Bobi Wine has been “seriously injured” in a confrontation with police, his party the National Unity Platform (NUP) said Tuesday. The NUP said in a post on social media that Wine was shot in the leg in an attempt on his life, just outside the

By Camille Knight, Emmanuel Miculita and Caroline Baum, CNN (CNN) — A man is on trial accused of repeatedly drugging and raping his wife, as well as encouraging dozens of other men to rape her in their home while she was unconscious, court documents show. The alleged victim, Gisèle, 72, appeared in a courtroom in

By Christian Edwards, CNN (CNN) — With its announcement that militants guarding Israeli hostages in the buildings and tunnels of Gaza had “new instructions” to kill them if Israeli troops closed in, Hamas signaled the opening of a chilling new chapter in an already brutal war. Seizing on a spasm of public outrage in Israel

By Emmanuel Miculita and Chris Liakos, CNN (CNN) — At least 12 people died, most of them women and children, when a migrant boat capsized off the coast of northern France on Tuesday, according to French authorities. Nearly 70 people were on board the vessel, according to Boulogne-sur-Mer mayor, Frédéric Cuvillier. The exact number is unclear. Emergency

CNN By Alexandra Banner, CNN (CNN) — Costco’s first membership price hike in 7 years went into effect this week. The big-box retailer increased most of its plans by $5 to $65 a year to help offset expenses and keep its prices down. Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and

CNN By Hilary Whiteman, CNN Brisbane, Australia (CNN) — Two people have been rescued after a terrifying night at sea as six-meter (20-foot) waves tossed their stricken yacht nearly 200 miles (322 kilometers) off Australia’s eastern coast as they drifted at speed towards New Zealand. Authorities were first alerted to the crew’s crisis around 1

By Niamh Kennedy and Nimi Princewill, CNN (CNN) — More than 120 people have been killed in an attempted mass breakout from the largest prison in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the latest in a series of violent attacks on jails in the central African nation. Prisoners tried to break out en masse from the