WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama has authorized direct US military support to Syrian rebels after concluding that the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad has crossed a red line - using chemical weapons against its own people.

WITTENBERGE: German Chancellor Angela Merkel praised rescue efforts on her third trip to water-logged regions on Monday as central Europe grappled with historic floods that have killed at least 19 people.

JOHANNESBURG: South Africa prayed for Nelson Mandela on Sunday as the revered peace icon faced a third night in hospital, with calls for the family and the nation to "let him go".

WASHINGTON: The Obama administration could decide this week to approve lethal aid for Syrian rebels and will weigh the merits of a less likely move to send in U.S. airpower to enforce a no-fly zone over the nation wracked by two years of civil war, officials said Sunday.

LOS ANGELES: Paris Jackson, the 15-year-old daughter of late pop star Michael Jackson, was rushed to a Los Angeles-area hospital on Wednesday after an apparent suicide attempt, her mother said, but her family later reported she is "physically fine."

JERUSALEM: Syrian rebels fighting troops loyal to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad have taken over the Quneitra crossing on Israel-Syria ceasefire line in the Golan Heights, army radio reported on Thursday, quoting military officials.

AMMAN: France said on Tuesday it had performed tests that proved President Bashar al-Assad's forces had used nerve gas in Syria's civil war, a "red line" that the United States and other countries have repeatedly said would demand a response.

KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait: Kuwait said on Tuesday that barring foreigners from attending public hospitals in the mornings was aimed at resolving the problem of "overcrowding" at such health facilities.

BEIJING: In one of China's worst industrial accidents in recent years, at least 120 people were charred to death and scores severely wounded in a massive fire at a poultry plant in northeastern China

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday issued a stark warning to Israel to resume long-stalled peace talks with the Palestinians, saying if efforts fail now they may never get another chance.