BBC World Service

While Saudi is closed to most foreign tourists, it is spending heavily on attracting religious visitors and locals to its cultural sites.

An Islamic community in the US state of Virginia is said to be furious after it emerged a Boston bombing suspect was buried at a rural cemetery there.

A judge suspends a deal giving control of Brazil's biggest stadium to a private consortium, saying there were irregularities in the bidding process.

Andy Murray is beaten in straight sets by Czech Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals of the Madrid Open.

Australian authorities end an air and sea search for a man and a woman who are believed to have fallen overboard from a cruise ship.

Pakistanis are set to vote amid tight security, in elections that mark the country's first-ever transition from one civilian government to another.

Andy Murray is beaten in straight sets by Czech Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals of the Madrid Open.

Authorities launch a criminal investigation into a huge explosion last month at a fertiliser plant in Texas killed 14 people and wounded 200.

A woman is pulled alive from the ruins of a building that collapsed 17 days ago in Bangladesh, as the army says the death toll has risen above 1,000.

The US Internal Revenue Service apologises for improperly subjecting conservative political groups to extra review, a tax official says.

The man accused of holding three women hostage for a decade or more fathered the child who was also rescued from the house, authorities have confirmed.

Two Indian ministers resign over links with corruption allegations, with reports suggesting the Congress party is holding crisis talks.

Two Indian ministers resign over links with corruption allegations, with reports suggesting the Congress party is holding crisis talks.

America's Cup chiefs, San Francisco police and the US Coast Guard to investigate the death of British sailor Andrew Simpson.

A gang of cybercriminals stole $45m (£29m) by hacking into a database of prepaid debit cards and draining cash machines around the world, US prosecutors say.

Cleveland Police agrees to pay over £500,000 in damages after prominent defence lawyer James Watson and his family were falsely imprisoned, BBC Newsnight learns.

A woman has been pulled alive from the rubble of a clothing factory in a suburb of the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, 17 days after it collapsed.

Doctors close the main hospital in Nigeria's north-eastern city of Maiduguri in protest at alleged police assaults on staff and patients.

Prime Minister David Cameron says the international community must do more to "help shape" a transitional government in Syria after holding talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

A prominent activist known as the "Bahraini Blogger", has been smuggled out of Bahrain and taken refuge in the UK, the BBC learns.