Japan's Emperor Akihito will step down on April 30, 2019, the country's prime minister announced Friday, the first retirement in more than two centuries in the imperial family believed to be the world's oldest.

Government leaders, diplomats, top politicians and rights activists yesterday expressed their sorrow over the death of former foreign minister and ASEAN secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan yesterday.

It was supposed to be business as usual in the sedate halls of the UN court for the former Yugoslavia, as judges delivered their final verdict after two decades of painstaking, groundbreaking work.

A chemical plant in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, exploded on Friday morning, leaving more than 10 people injured, local police said. The degree of injuries is unknown.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro -- who is battling a crippling economic crisis in his oil-rich, cash-poor nation -- will seek re-election next year, Vice President Tareck El Aissami said Wednesday.

Muslims could make up over 11 percent of Europe's population in the coming decades, compared with just under 5 percent currently, if legal migration levels are maintained, a report by a US-based think tank said Thursday.

 The United States yesterday warned that North Korea's leadership will be "utterly destroyed" if war breaks out as it called on countries to cut all diplomatic and trade ties with North Korea -- including Chinese oil shipments to Pyongyang.

 Libya agreed Wednesday with key EU and African leaders to allow migrants facing abuse in detention camps to be evacuated within days or weeks, mostly to their home countries, French President Emmanuel Macron said.