Lebanese comedians are bringing relief and defying taboos with jokes about dating, partying during the pandemic -- and how even drug dealers are considering leaving the crisis-hit country.

Tunisia is struggling to protect North Africa's Jewish heritage, threatened by vandalism, looting and the smuggling of valuable artefacts bearing witness to the long history of the region's Jews.

The European Court of Justice ruled Thursday that authorities can order that animals be stunned before slaughter in a move decried by Israel and religious groups as attacking their traditions.

Joe Biden boasted of a "cabinet of barrier breakers" Wednesday as the U.S. President-elect introduced his transportation secretary pick Pete Buttigieg, who if confirmed would become the first openly gay head of a cabinet-level department.

Buttigieg, whom Biden called "a policy wonk with a big heart," is one of several trailblazing picks by the veteran Democrat who appears to be following through on his pledge to name the most diverse U.S. cabinet ever.

Escalating attacks on the Iraqi capital's few liquor stores have terrified shop-owners who fear hardline Islamists are flexing their muscle against alcohol consumption.

Pakistan's president on Tuesday approved a new anti-rape law which will speed up convictions and launch the country’s first national sex offenders registry.

The law, which goes into effect immediately but must be ratified by parliament within three months, was prompted by the gang rape of a mother in front of her children on the side of a motorway in September.

Hungarian MPs on Tuesday approved a package of new measures targeting the country's beleaguered LGBTQ community, the government's latest salvo in defense of "traditional" values.

Pope Francis, an avid supporter of Argentine football team San Lorenzo, has committed a cardinal sin by becoming a member of a rival club, although it's for a good cause.

Instead of a manger in Bethlehem, Jesus will arrive this Christmas in a badly burned clearing in the Amazon rainforest, a black baby born to a black virgin with indigenous cherubs looking on.

The U.S. envoy on international religious freedom on Tuesday voiced concern about France, warning against "heavy-handed" measures as President Emmanuel Macron targets radical Islam.