With a production of Shakespeare's "Othello" and even an opera, cultural life in Turkmenistan is slowly coming back after grinding to a halt under the rule of eccentric despot Saparmurat Niyazov.

Niyazov, who died in 2006, notoriously ordered the closing of the Central Asian state's theatres in 2001 and now his successor Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov is seeing to a very cautious relaxing of control.

Iraqi architects and historians have decried official neglect of historical buildings nationwide, many of which have fallen into disrepair and disuse, and called for greater attention to be paid to them.

"For many years, we have talked about the importance of maintaining historical centers and buildings spread across Iraqi cities ... but unfortunately, the government did not respond to these calls," Iraqi architect Hisham al-Medfai said at a conference of local historians and architects over the weekend.

Australia was gearing up Tuesday for the transit of Venus, an event with historical significance as a previous occurrence in 1769 played a key part in the "discovery" of the southern continent.

When Venus on Wednesday passes between the Earth and the Sun, an astronomical event that will not occur again until 2117, millions of people will be gazing to the skies, just as Englishman Captain James Cook did in the 18th century.

India is raising the age of consent for sex to 18 under a new law seen by some children's rights activists as being out of step with social changes and open to abuse.

Under a provision in the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act approved by parliament last month, sex with a person under the age of 18 will be deemed as statutory rape and subject to prosecution.

A Bangladeshi court has issued an arrest warrant for the writer of a 2003 novel that allegedly contains insulting remarks against the Prophet Mohammed, a lawyer said Tuesday.

The court in Dhaka issued the order in response to a petition from a Muslim activist accusing author Salam Azad of hurting religious sentiment in his banned book "Bhanga Math" ("Broken Temple").

Sporty wine lovers are exploring the vineyard paths and private forests of France's historic wine region in marathons and bike rides, complete with zany costumes, live music and wine tastings de rigueur.

In Bordeaux, the Medocaine mountain bike ride in May drew 6,500 pedaling wine enthusiasts for its 14th edition, organized by hundreds of local volunteers to promote tourism, nature and, of course, wine in a convivial setting.

Eleven southeastern European countries pledged on Sunday at an UNESCO-organized summit in Bosnia to use their religious, cultural and historic heritage to boost ties, the FENA news agency reported.

In a joint declaration, adopted in Bosnia's historic southern town of Mostar, top officials from the 11 countries agreed to protect their cultural heritage as an "important basis for understanding and more intensive cooperation between our countries."

Britain is celebrating its second-ever royal diamond jubilee, in marked contrast to that of queen Victoria more than a century ago, which doubled up as a triumphant festival of the empire.

In 1897, Joseph Chamberlain, the secretary of state for the colonies, convinced Victoria to kill two birds with one stone: mark the 60th year of her reign but also celebrate the British empire "at its zenith", said the historian Walter Arnstein.

A few dozen horsemen roam the hills and plains of central Italy as the last of the "butteri" cow herders, proudly holding onto a tradition that has survived for 500 years.

"There aren't many of us left," said Maurizio Magagnini, 46, as he sipped wine and carved a chunk of cheese under a tree in the Monterano reserve of the Lazio region, 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of Rome.

Cardinals tasked with deciding the fate of the Vatican bank president amid financial scandals and a struggle for power in the Holy See are struggling to come to an agreement, media reports said Saturday.

The commission of cardinals must decide whether or not to uphold the board's decision to oust Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, who was fired for failing to clean up the institution's image amid accusations of corruption and money-laundering.