JOHANNESBURG: Two trains collided in the South African city of Durban on Tuesday evening, injuring more than 50 passengers in an accident that officials said could have been much worse.

BANGKOK: The rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl, who was shoved off a moving train on an overnight trip from southern Thailand, has sparked public outrage and calls for capital punishment for rapists.

SYDNEY: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has played down recent tensions with neighbour China, saying the countries were "inextricably linked" and his door was always open for dialogue.

 UNITED NATIONS: The UN will now recognize all same-sex marriages of its staffers across the world as it put in place a new policy aimed at ensuring "greater equality" with Secretary General Ban Ki-moon calling for rejection of homophobia.

GAZA/JERUSALEM: Israel launched an aerial offensive in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, calling it part of a campaign named "Operation Protective Edge" targeting Hamas Islamist militants firing rockets at the Jewish state.

 TOKYO: Super typhoon Neoguri was barrelling toward Japan's southernmost Okinawa islands on Monday, packing violent winds and torrential rains as the national weather agency warned residents to stay in their homes.

 JERUSALEM: Israel has arrested a group of Jewish extremists suspected of kidnapping and murdering a Palestinian teenager in a revenge killing, triggering violent clashes spreading from east Jerusalem throughout Israel.

 LONDON: Two of Britain's most senior government ministers begin a two-day visit to India on Monday hoping to open up opportunities in the defence and infrastructure sectors, the first such trip since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's May election win.

 VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis will meet victims of paedophile priests for the first time on Monday, as a Vatican commission moves to address the problem of clerical sex abuse in developing countries.

WASHINGTON: The United States marks 238 years as a nation as it celebrates Independence Day on Saturday with fireworks, food and music. Hurricane Arthur crashed holiday parties along the East Coast. Moscow had subdued festivities amid growing anti-American sentiment over the crisis in Ukraine. Here are some highlights of Independence Day celebrations across the globe: