Palestinian footballer Mahmoud Sarsak returns to Gaza to a hero's welcome after being in Israeli detention without charge for three years.

San Francisco's Department of Environment plans to ban city agencies from buying Macs after Apple pulls out of an environmental scheme.

The captain of the Costa Concordia cruise ship tells Italian TV he is sorry for the sinking in which more than 30 people died in January.

US President Barack Obama's re-election campaign ramps up pressure on Republican rival Mitt Romney, over the issue of his offshore accounts.

Hillary Clinton arrives in Laos as the first US secretary of state to visit the country in 57 years, before heading to Cambodia for an Asean meeting.

The Episcopal Church overwhelmingly authorises a service to bless same-sex relationships, becoming the largest US denomination to do so.

US citizen Joe Gordon, who was jailed for two-and-half years for defaming the Thai royal family, is pardoned by the king and freed from prison.

Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy is due to unveil a new raft of tough austerity measures as miners gather in Madrid for a mass protest against cuts.