At least 16 people are killed as a police headquarters in the Iraqi city of Kirkuk is attacked by a suicide bomber and gunmen, medical sources say.

Twelve people were injured after a powerful earthquake shook northern Japan, on Saturday night.

Experts claim changes in wind direction could kill many more seabirds that have come into contact with an oily substance.

Actor Sylvester Stallone has joined the US debate on gun violence, following a number of mass shootings there.

Justice Secretary Chris Grayling says he smacked his own children when they were young and defends the right of parents to smack.

England pair Matt Prior and Ravi Bopara fail to attract bids at the auction for this year's Indian Premier League.

The Bolshoi Ballet's artistic director Sergei Filin tells the BBC he is "absolutely certain" he knows who is behind last month's acid attack on him.

The inventor of the classic toy Etch A Sketch, former electrical technician Andre Cassagnes, dies in France at the age of 86.

More than half of nurses believe their NHS ward or unit is dangerously understaffed, according to a survey by the Nursing Times.

Police in Midland City in the US state of Alabama are spending a fifth day negotiating with a man accused of holding a young boy hostage in a bunker.

A portrait of Thailand's booze magnate and his global ambitions