Millions of Shiite Muslims in Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and around the world on Friday commemorated Ashoura, a remembrance of the 7th-century martyrdom of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson, Hussein, that gave birth to their faith.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban cut mobile phone services in key cities holding commemorations for fear of militants targeting Shiites, whom Sunni extremists consider heretics. Security forces in neighboring Pakistan as well stood on high alert as the commemorations there have seen attacks in the past.

Sweden's security situation has deteriorated after recent Quran burnings in the country and protests in the Muslim world, both of which have negatively impacted the Nordic nation's image, its domestic security service said Wednesday.

The agency, known by its acronym SAPO, said the burning and desecration of religious books in Sweden, and ongoing disinformation campaigns on social media and elsewhere, have negatively affected Sweden's profile.

Leticia Santiago carries her ancestral heritage wherever she goes. Every time she addresses the crowds during the Guelaguetza, the biggest cultural event in southwestern Mexico, her words, her garments and her skin reveal a clue about the town where she was proudly born.

The 35-year-old Mexican was elected as Centéotl goddess in late June, which means she'll represent the Aztec deity of maize for a year and lead all festivities during the Guelaguetza, which will run in the state of Oaxaca through July 28. During the government-sponsored event, 16 Indigenous ethnic groups and the Afro-Mexican community promote their traditions through public dances, parades and craft sales.

Iranian authorities have shut down one of the offices of the country's biggest e-commerce company and launched judicial procedures after it published pictures online showing female employees not wearing the mandatory Islamic headscarf, semi-official media reported.

The move appears to be part of a new campaign launched last week to impose the Islamic dress code nearly a year after the morality police largely melted away in the face of widespread protests.

Almost 140 bearded men who resemble Ernest Hemingway converged on Key West, the late author's home during the 1930s, to compete in the Hemingway Look-Alike Contest that began Thursday evening.

The challenge is a highlight of the island's Hemingway Days festival that salutes the literary talent and adventurous life of the Nobel Prize-winning writer.

Fans of late martial arts legend Bruce Lee, who broke negative stereotypes around Asian men in films, gathered in Hong Kong this week to commemorate their idol's death half a century ago, remembering his legacy and his life philosophy on persistence.

Lee, who was born in San Francisco but raised in the Asian financial hub, was famous for his martial arts talent and his fight against racist portrayals of Asians on big and small screens in the 1960s and 70s. He died at the height of his fame due to an allergic reaction to painkillers when he was 32.

The American University of Beirut’s Office of Advancement was announced as a Catalyst Award winner for Institutional Advancement during Anthology Together, Anthology’s annual user conference, on July 17-19 in Nashville, Tennessee.

AUB was one of 40 winners chosen from among 109 nominees from institutions in 21 countries.

Iraq's prime minister ordered the expulsion of the Swedish ambassador from Iraq and the withdrawal of the Iraqi charge d'affaires from Sweden on Thursday as a man desecrated of a copy of the Quran in Stockholm.

The diplomatic blowup came hours after protesters angered by the planned burning of a copy of the Quran stormed the Swedish Embassy in Baghdad, breaking into the compound and lighting a small fire.

Benjamin Franklin was so busy as an inventor, publisher, scientist, diplomat and U.S. founding father that it's easy to lose track of his accomplishments.

So add one more to the roster: his early work in printing colonial paper currency designed to counter a constant threat of counterfeiting.

Pope Francis' peace envoy was traveling to Washington on Monday as part of the Holy See's peace initiatives for Ukraine, hoping to support humanitarian operations especially concerning children, the Vatican said Monday.

Cardinal Matteo Zuppi's visit, which lasts through Wednesday, follows his recent mission to Moscow and an earlier stop in Kyiv, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelensky.