Georgetown University on Thursday announced measures to atone for having profited from the sale of nearly 300 slaves in the 19th century, giving an edge in admissions for their descendants.

The U.S. university's president, John DeGioia, will discuss the steps in a speech later Thursday, and is to offer a formal apology.

Moroccan actress Loubna Abidar, who took refuge in France following a backlash over a role as a prostitute, is launching a YouTube channel to discuss controversial issues with people back home.

The Israelis and Palestinians were facing off in Jerusalem again -- but this time they actually seemed to be enjoying each other's company.

Pope Francis on Wednesday announced the creation of a new Vatican ministry for human development in the latest move by the reforming pontiff to put his personal stamp on the Catholic church.

Eight years after the first woman in Egypt won a conviction against a man for sexual harassment, activists and lawyers see progress in transforming attitudes and more harassers being jailed.

A suspected murderer on the run for 16 years in China found refuge in Buddhist temples, eventually rising to become an abbot, state media said Wednesday.

A South African school was ordered Tuesday to suspend allegedly racist hairstyle regulations after black pupils said they had been called monkeys by teachers for wearing banned 'afros'.

The U.N. welcomed Tuesday a decision by France's highest administrative court to suspend a controversial ban on burkini swimwear, warning that the ban had fueled religious intolerance and stigmatization.

"These decrees do not improve the security situation but rather fuel religious intolerance and the stigmatization of Muslims in France, especially women," Rupert Colville, spokesman for the U.N. rights office, told reporters.

Turkey has for the first time allowed policewomen to wear the Islamic headscarf as part of their uniform, according to a ruling published in the official gazette Saturday.

The Tehran prosecutor recommended strict new rules on Saturday for concerts in the capital, the latest in a tug of war between moderates and conservatives that has already seen live music banned in Iran's second city Mashhad.