The United Nations' torture watchdog on Friday expressed "alarm" at reports of torture and abuse by Venezuelan authorities during months of opposition protests this year and urged the country to fully investigate the incidents.
U.S. air support and pledges of weapons and training for Iraq's army have raised expectations of a counter-offensive soon against Islamic State, but sectarian rifts will hamper efforts to forge a military strategy and may delay a full-scale assault.
China's President Xi Jinping ratcheted down Beijing's heated rhetoric and called on the government to expand its foreign policy agenda through cooperation and diplomacy.
Protests by disgruntled soldiers in Ivory Coast have exposed the government's failure to reform its mutiny-plagued armed forces and its rapid capitulation sets a dangerous precedent in a country with bright economic prospects.
