Two nights after the Paris attacks in November, a young couple stripped to their waists and kissed in the rain on the Place de la Republique as crowds gathered to grieve and share their shock at the killings.

She was French and he Syrian, and the photo of them holding a handwritten placard saying "Love will always win" went viral.

Alejandro was just 15 when he left home to join Colombia's leftist FARC rebels -- one of thousands of children recruited to fight the government during the deadly decades-long conflict.

Three years on, he is back home, in school and readjusting to normal life thanks in part to a program based on the unique world vision of his Nasa Indian tribe, who live in the country's southwestern Cauca department.

In a vast, light-filled room, a dozen girls in identical lavender leotards, hair in tight chignons, all strike an arabesque pose and share the same dream: one day joining Russia's legendary Bolshoi Ballet.

Others chatter, legs impossibly splayed in full splits, in the building's endless corridors. Welcome to the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, churning out talent for one of the world's leading dance companies.

Saudi Arabia may be facing its biggest economic challenge in years but there's little talk of falling oil revenues or austerity at Riyadh's glittering annual Jewelery Salon.

Women in traditional black abaya robes stroll through the showrooms at a luxury Riyadh hotel, as muscle-bound security men patrol.

Swedish author David Lagercrantz, who took over the Millennium crime series from the late Stieg Larsson, said the fifth book will be written in a straight-talking style popularized by Raymond Chandler.

But in an interview with the Swedish daily newspaper DN published on Tuesday, Lagercrantz admitted that finding his voice in this new style was tough.

Archaeologists were on Tuesday to build a full-scale recreation of the iconic Arch of Triumph from the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra in London's Trafalgar Square to mark its liberation from Islamic State (IS).

Google's massive book-scanning project cleared its final legal hurdle Monday as the U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal contending it violates copyright law.

The top U.S. court denied without comment a petition from the Authors Guild to hear the appeal of a 2013 federal court ruling seen as a landmark copyright decision for the digital era.

A priceless diamond that is part of the Queen Mother's Crown was given to Britain and not stolen, India's government on Monday told the Supreme Court, which is hearing a suit seeking its return.

The 108-carat Koh-i-Noor gem, which came into British hands during the colonial era, is the subject of a historic ownership dispute and has been claimed by at least four countries including India.

A trio of Nobel laureates will take part in a "humanitarian" visit to North Korea later this month, even as suspicions grow that Pyongyang is preparing to carry out a fifth nuclear test.

A bearded imam may have seemed out of place at this week's In-Cosmetics expo in Paris, an annual showcase for the world's leading beauty and personal care products.

But Shaikh Ali Achcar's presence points to a growing demand for makeup that adheres not just to the face -- but also to Muslim rules.