Pope Francis was "not complicit" with Argentina's brutal military dictatorship and pursued "silent diplomacy", Nobel Peace Prize laureate Adolfo Perez Esquivel said on Thursday after meeting with Latin America's first pontiff.

Pope Francis was "not complicit" with Argentina's brutal military dictatorship and maintained a "diplomatic silence," Nobel Peace Prize laureate Adolfo Perez Esquivel said on Thursday after meeting with Latin America's first pontiff.

For years Myanmar's paranoid junta blocked websites such as Gmail and YouTube. However, when Google chairman Eric Schmidt visits this week, he will find a small but flourishing Internet community.

For years Myanmar's paranoid junta blocked websites such as Gmail and YouTube. However, when Google chairman Eric Schmidt visits this week, he will find a small but flourishing Internet community.

Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai returned to school for the first time since October when she was shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for girls' education.

Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai returned to school on Tuesday for the first time since October when she was shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for girls' education.

A gynaecologist renowned for his work in treating thousands of rape victims, Denis Mukwege has begun a new crusade against widespread sexual violence in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Talks resume Monday on a United Nations treaty to regulate the sale of conventional arms -- amid roadblocks put up by some of the world's key players.

Tens of thousands of pilgrims thronged St Peter's Square on Sunday to see Pope Francis at his first Angelus appearance, but some were worried that this mould-breaking pontiff could come up against powerful vested interests in the Vatican.

Washington signaled Friday a looming showdown at the United Nations when 193 countries will try again to hammer out the first international treaty on the $70 billion global arms trade.

The Dalai Lama Thursday congratulated Argentinian cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio on his election as pope and lauded his decision to become the first pontiff ever to go by the name Francis.

A UN human rights investigator on Monday urged Myanmar to reveal the truth about a wave of sectarian violence against Rohingya Muslims thousands of whom have sought refuge in neighbouring countries as boat people.

Nelson Mandela, South Africa's frail anti-apartheid hero who spent a night in hospital at the weekend for a medical checkup, is doing well but has memory lapses, a close friend said on Monday.

South Africa's anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela was admitted to hospital Saturday for a "scheduled medical checkup".

Global peace icon and former statesman Nelson Mandela was hospitalised Saturday for a "scheduled medical check-up", the South African presidency said, months after he underwent treatment for lung infection and gallstones.

The world must keep Myanmar in the spotlight, a UN human rights monitor warned Friday, saying there was a gap between words and deeds since its military junta made way for democracy.

Aung San Suu Kyi's long-silenced opposition opened its first ever party conference on Friday, as it sets its sights on the challenges of power in Myanmar after years in the political wilderness.

Stacked up in Liu Yi's studio dozens of China's most sensitive subjects stare out from thick black-and-white oil paintings, from victims of Tiananmen Square to Tibetans who have set themselves on fire.

Pakistani schoolgirl-turned-icon of Taliban resistance Malala Yousafzai, ex-Eastern bloc activists and former US president Bill Clinton are in the running for this year's Nobel Peace Prize, as the Nobel Institute announced a record 259 nominations on Monday.

A record 259 nominees are in the running for this year's Nobel Peace Prize -- 209 individuals and 50 organisations -- with the laureate to be announced in October, the Nobel Institute said on Monday.