GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – Palestinian ministers have unexpectedly cut short their rare visit to the Gaza Strip. It was not clear what led the West Bank ministers to leave ahead of schedule on Monday. But rival Palestinian factions blamed each other for the abrupt departure. The eight Cabinet ministers, …

BEIJING – A woman who was sentenced to death in China after being convicted of murdering her abusive husband received Friday a two-year reprieve, which could become a life sentence with a possibility of parole. The reprieve is part of new guidelines on domestic violence cases that include recommendations for …

To watch “The Talking Points Memo” in the Screening Room click here. TheAmerican Civil Liberties Union (search), in conjunction with four people, a lesbian couple, and an agnostic couple, have sued the city of San Diego because it leased a public park to the Boy Scouts for $1 a year. …

WARSAW, Poland – Poland’s Justice Minister Cezary Grabarczyk has resigned over doubts concerning the legality of his gun permit. He is the first minister to leave the Cabinet of Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz, which took office in September and will be submitted to voter assessment in parliamentary elections scheduled in …

Not surprisingly,“Gigli” (search )tanked at the box office. In its opening weekend, the $54 million Ben Affleck/Jennifer Lopezgangster romance took in less than $4 million.Producers of the film who lost money are probablydisappointed. It happens. But judging from the torrent of venomous press this movie project has unleashed, one would …

UNITED NATIONS – Yemen’s ambassador to the United Nations is asking the international community to quickly intervene with ground forces to save the country from Houthi rebels who have been targeted by Saudi-led airstrikes for weeks. A letter sent Wednesday to the president of the U.N. Security Council and obtained …

CAIRO – Prosecutors in Egypt are expected to begin their closing arguments on June 1 in the retrial of two Al-Jazeera English journalists. That’s according to defendant Mohammed Fahmy, a Canadian who is Al-Jazeera English’s acting bureau chief in Egypt. He made the comment after a court hearing in the …

TOKYO – A strong earthquake has hit Japan in the same region devastated by a major quake and tsunami in 2011. Authorities said there is no risk of tsunami. The Japan Meteorological Agency put the preliminary magnitude at 6.6, the U.S. Geological Service measured it at 6.8. The offshore quake …

MEXICO CITY – Mexican farmworkers fighting low wages and poor working conditions in the border state of Baja California have reached an agreement with the government and their employer. The Mexican interior ministry says daily wages will go from 100 to 200 pesos ($13 a day). Workers will be added …

UNITED NATIONS – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned in a new report that the crisis in Yemen could open a corridor for jihadist movements through Somalia, which is located just across the Gulf of Aden. Ban said in a report to the U.N. Security Council circulated Monday that security in Somalia …