As 2012 draws to a close, rediff.com takes a look at the international personalities who hit headlines around the world.
Pakistani Taliban have beheaded 12 soldiers captured during a recent attack on a security check post in the restive Bajaur tribal region and released a video showing their severed heads, a militant spokesman said on Friday.
The horrific attack on CST on November 26, 2008 has forced RPF personnel to be more vigilant and prepared for known and unknown threats, Inspector General of Police Anil Sharma says.
The Pakistani police are on the look out for two youths suspected of shooting 15-year-old education activist Malala Yousufzai, and the prime suspect who drove them to the scene, Interior Minister Rehman Malik has said.
The teen had received a word that a friend had died in his home country days before. He vowed in a note that he would 'take revenge on these infidels'.
The Pakistani Taliban have introduced "moral policing" in parts of northeastern Afghanistan in a bid to enforce their puritanical version of Islam, Afghan police officials have said.
Mirza Tatlic fatally shot Naren Prabhu, a Silicon Valley tech executive, and his wife at their home in San Jose.
If we really want to prove that we are all like Malala, then we have to stand up for our rights like Malala did, says senior Pakistan journalist Hamid Mir
Richard Gasquet won his first ATP title in more than two years when he continued his domination of Gilles Simon by swatting aside his French compatriot 6-2, 6-1 to claim the Thailand Open on Sunday.
Holder Elina Svitolina will face world number one Ash Barty in the end-of-season WTA Finals showpiece on Sunday after they got past Belinda Bencic and Karolina Pliskova respectively in the semi-finals at Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre.
Militants clad in military uniforms intercepted a convoy of buses and gunned down 18 minority Shia men on Tuesday in a northern Pakistan region that borders the former Taliban stronghold of Swat.
The arrival of solar power last year has changed the lives of people in rural India.
'I knew I was the underdog and I was just enjoying it'
From consulting firms to tech and detergent companies, brands are busy swatting away online crusaders. In the fraught times we live in, it is not just religion that stokes the fires of controversy. In such instances, it may be best to take the trolls head on.
Iran handed Cambodia a record-breaking 14-0 thrashing on an historic day in Tehran as goals flowed in World Cup qualifiers across Asia with Japan, South Korea and Australia securing comfortable wins on Thursday.
Many feel that a humanitarian crisis is imminent as Pakistan is facing its worst refugee crisis since the partition of the subcontinent in 1947.
The shooting occurred at the Tree of Life Congregation Synagogue in the Squirrel Hill area of Pittsburgh.
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan chief Hakimullah Mehsud has warned that his fighters were planning orchestrated attacks against the government and the military to wrest control of areas that they had lost in the country's northwest.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Tuesday gave further unequivocal backing to this summer's Tokyo Olympics, urging athletes to prepare "full steam" despite the coronavirus threat. Multiple sports events around the world have been cancelled during the epidemic, which has killed more than 3,000 people in China and spread to more than 60 nations including Japan where infections are near 1,000 and 12 people have died.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
Novak Djokovic extended his unbeaten start to the season to 15 matches as he swatted aside German veteran Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3 6-1 with ease on Wednesday to reach the Dubai Tennis Championships quarter-finals.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni's late cameo and his brilliant glovework helped Chennai Super Kings crush Delhi Daredevils by 90 runs.
'The CPI-M faces multiple investigations, with the CBI, the SIT and the Kerala police pursuing different cases. It is said as many as 70 to 90 CPI-M leaders are under the scanner, and that as many as 30 of these leaders are under imminent danger of being arrested,' notes T V R Shenoy.
World number one Novak Djokovic was sensationally disqualified in the US Open fourth round on Sunday after striking a line judge with a ball following a point during the first set of his match against Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta.
Stylish Indian opener Rohit Sharma, who couldn't make it to the Playing XI for the first Test -- he was forced to miss the opening Test due to viral fever -- was seen having an enjoyable time with team-mates while having an intense session of FIFA video games.
Images from Day 1 of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, on Monday.
A red alert was sounded in the national capital over intelligence inputs of a possible terror strike which threw Delhi Police and other security agencies into a tizzy on a day when multiple attacks by militants in Jammu and Kashmir left several persons dead.
Over 50 people, including 41 Taliban fighters and 10 security personnel, were killed in fierce clashes in the restive Bajaur tribal region and the Swat vally in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday.
World number one Novak Djokovic continued his dominant form in Tokyo to storm past Frenchman Lucas Pouille 6-1, 6-2 and into the semi-finals of the Japan Open.
Barcelona continued their rampant run of domestic form to beat Osasuna 2-0 away from home on Saturday and move to within two points of La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid, with Lionel Messi setting up goals scored by Jordi Alba and teenager Ilaix Moriba.
In flood-ravaged Pakistan, the government's awfully slow rescue operations are proving out to be largely ineffective, as the destitute victims' plight is turning irreparable, notes Tahir Ali.
In India, many players are in the throes of chaos and pain but at least one partnership -- Air Asia India -- that was fraying even before the pandemic now finds itself at breaking point, says Anjuli Bhargava.
Figures showed that the worst-hit was Mirpur with 24 dead, nine in Jatlan and one person lost his life in Jhelum.
Samuel Eto'o scored twice as Inter Milan swatted aside Bologna 4-1 on Saturday to record their fourth successive win under new coach Leonardo and continue their ominous climb up the Serie A table.
Two soldiers were killed and as many injured when their vehicle was targeted with a remote-controlled bomb by suspected Taliban militants in Pakistan's restive northwestern tribal region on Sunday. The soldiers were attacked in a mountainous area when they were heading to a check post after fetching drinking water. Initial reports had said the vehicle had hit a landmine. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.
Images from Day 9 of the 2021 French Open at Roland Garros in Paris on Monday.
Both its short video-sharing apps have ranked as the top two breakout social apps of 2019 in India.
Residents of Gamdevi, the plush area in South Mumbai that houses Mani Bhavan, welcomed Barack Obama with a frown on Saturday. Sonil Dedhia and Abhishek Mande listen in.
The Pakistani Taliban on Monday vowed they would again target teenage rights activist Malala Yousafzai, who survived an assassination attempt last year to become a frontrunner for the Nobel Peace prize.
Pakistani troops on Sunday killed 17 militants and recovered 22 bodies of suspected Taliban fighters in the country's restive northwest and tribal areas, while an anti-Taliban mayor survived a fifth assassination bid in a town near Peshawar.
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