Fashion designer Jesus del Pozo, one of Spain's most influential style modernizers, has died aged 65.
A statement released late Saturday by Spain's Fashion Creators Association said Del Pozo had succumbed to a lung problem. Association president Modesto Lomba said although Del Pozo had looked weak in recent months he had worked with commitment and energy to the end.

Foreign and local climbers have recently scaled Afghanistan's highest mountain, indicating that some areas of the war-torn country are ready for a revival of international tourism.
An expedition member says the summit of Mount Noshaq, located in the Wakhan Corridor of northeastern Afghanistan, was reached by a team on Aug. 4.

It's not all jeans, sneakers and sweatshirts packed in those duffel bags headed to college campuses in the coming weeks. There might also be a ripped-from-the-runway look from Zara or H&M that mimics Celine or Chloe, and maybe — just maybe — a bona fide Diane von Furstenberg dress or Alexander Wang jacket.
Dr. Martens are a must-have.

A sexy dose of jazz and the refined strains of Western opera and traditional Xhosa song drive a new opera about South Africa's former president and anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela.
The range of musical styles in "Mandela Trilogy" reflects South Africa's mix of cultures, the production's writer and director Michael Williams said in an interview before a dress rehearsal on Friday.

A Turkish official says Istanbul will bid to host the 2020 Olympic Games.
The official from Turkey's Olympic committee says Turkish Prime Minister will formally announce Istanbul's bid later on Saturday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to make an announcement.

World Health Organization officials said Friday that famine-hit Somalia faces a cholera epidemic as dirty water and poor sanitation are leading to an increase in outbreaks of the disease.
Officials say cases of acute watery diarrhea — an important indicator of the risk of cholera — are now at 4,272 in Somalia — an 11 percent rise on last week's WHO reported figure of 3,839.

It seemed too good to be true — a slot-machine jackpot of almost 43 million euros. And maybe it was.
Austrian state broadcaster ORF reports that Behar Merlaku is going to court over the refusal of the Bregenz casino to give him what he considers his win on March 26.

The Los Angeles County sheriff's department says The Game incited a telephone flash mob that overwhelmed the emergency phone system.
Capt. Mike Parker tells the Los Angeles Times (http://lat.ms/oGFHO1) that the rapper tweeted the number of the Compton station Friday and told his 580,000 followers that if they wanted an internship with him, they should call the number.

Daniel Baldwin's wife says the couple is attempting to reconcile and is dropping divorce filings.
Joanne Baldwin told The Oregonian (http://bit.ly/r33bfx) on Friday that "we have a lot of work to do in our marriage." The actor filed for divorce last month and was granted a restraining order against his 41-year-old wife.

The London 2012 Olympic Village has become Qatar's latest acquisition in world sport.
The property company of the Arab state's royal family and British developer Delancey have signed a 557 million-pound ($906 million) joint agreement to buy and manage the athletes village as private housing after next year's Olympics.
