Madonna has signed a contract to perform at the Eurovision Song Contest in Israel, ending uncertainty after calls for her to boycott the event, Israeli public broadcaster KAN said Thursday.

The Eiffel Tower has celebrated its 130th birthday in Paris, with the city marking the anniversary with a light show at the famed monument.

Built for the 1889 World's Fair, the tower -- which soars to 324 metres in height and weighs 7,300 tonnes -- still attracts nearly seven million visitors every year.

Clashes erupted between Iranian students at Tehran University on Monday during a demonstration against the enforcement of wearing hijab or Islamic veil, media reports said.

Pope Francis is being urged by experts to take greater care when referring to "hypocritical" Pharisees, a stereotype that fuelled centuries of bad blood between Catholics and Jews.

At his shop in Jerusalem's Old City, Palestinian craftsman Issam Zughair makes traditional lanterns for Muslims marking the holy month of Ramadan, battling competition from cheap Chinese imports.

French lawmakers on Friday approved a controversial law for restoring Notre-Dame within five years, after the famous Paris cathedral sustained major fire damage last month. 

A Coptic priest's comments about women's clothing being too revealing in churches has sparked a heated debate this week among Egyptian Christians, the largest religious minority in the Middle East.

As the black-clad rapper spat lyrics into the microphone on stage, the Iraqi boys below beat their chests in mourning. He was, after all, paying homage to slain Shiite figurehead Hussein.

Black-and-white pictures were projected onto the wall of a South African classroom and gospel music played evocatively in the background.

The pictures told a chilling tale: Angry protesters. Policemen beating crowds. Corpses lying scattered on the road. Coffins piled up.

Lebanese author Hoda Barakat has won the Booker international prize for Arabic fiction for her novel "The Night Mail".