German Chancellor Angela Merkel's key ally in Bavaria distanced himself again on Saturday from her welcoming policy towards migrants in the wake of a series of brutal attacks in the country.

Al-Nusra Front, whose leader on Thursday announced its break from al-Qaida, is a well-organized, battle-hardened jihadist group allied with rebels fighting the Syrian regime.

On the subject of women in politics, Hillary Clinton is fond of quoting the words of another illustrious first lady, Eleanor Roosevelt, who once said: "You need to grow a skin as thick as a rhinoceros."

When out on the stump, in cafes, and rallies across the country, Clinton talks of the adversity she has faced down over the course of four decades in public life.

On a recent Sunday in southern Egypt, dozens of Coptic Christians gathered for mass next to the charred remains of a wooden structure they once used as a chapel.

The failed coup of July 15 left the Turkish army humiliated and weakened at a time when it must tackle the twin challenges of fighting guerrillas of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and jihadists from the Islamic State (IS) group.

Venezuelans seeking to oust President Nicolas Maduro expect a crucial ruling Tuesday on whether their efforts to remove him in a referendum can proceed.

Here is a quick guide to the process:

More than his security forces, what saved Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the night of the coup attempt was the extraordinary devotion the charismatic strongman inspires among his followers.

In the tense hours when rebel troops attacked with fighter jets and tanks, and commandos were closing in on him, Erdogan called directly on the Turkish people to resist the mutineers.

For most people in Turkey, July 15, 2016 was just another brilliant summer day heading into a balmy night. Until around 10:30 pm.

Then came the F-16s roaring over Ankara, dropping bombs on targets including parliament. Tanks and heavily armed soldiers appeared on the Bosphorus bridges in Istanbul, where they were soon confronted by angry citizens.

The Islamic State group has claimed several high-profile attacks in the West that it appears to have inspired rather than planned, sowing fear and boosting its profile at low cost.

Such attacks require far less effort than planning and financing an operation in Europe or the United States and dispatching IS jihadists to carry it out, and also leave fewer signs for authorities trying to foil them.

The failed coup attempt in Turkey and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's firm crackdown on the alleged plotters have aggravated ties between Washington and Ankara, already poisoned by the war in Syria and human rights issues.

Although they are NATO allies and officially partners in the fight against the Islamic State group, the United States and Turkey have seen their relations take an icy turn in recent months.