BP Plc (BP.L) asked a U.S. court on Tuesday to fire the court-appointed lawyer tasked with paying out compensation to people affected by the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, saying the lawyer had not disclosed an alleged conflict of interest before taking the job.
The Islamic State militant group released a video on Tuesday purporting to show the beheading of a second American hostage, journalist Steven Sotloff, raising the stakes in its confrontation with Washington over U.S. air strikes in Iraq.
A pro-democracy movement that has threatened to blockade Hong Kong's financial district has said Beijing "brutally strangled" its fight for full democracy and vowed to take action.