BBC World Service

The Duke of Edinburgh has been admitted to hospital for an exploratory operation, Buckingham Palace says.

Syrian government forces have been consolidating their hold on villages around the key town of Qusair which they seized from rebel fighters on Wednesday after a two week offensive.

Two Massachusetts residents sue the New York Post, accusing the tabloid of identifying them as suspects in the Boston marathon bombing.

The historic centre of Dresden is spared flooding as barriers hold when the Elbe peaks, but many other German cities remain under threat.

Author Kevin Barry wins this year's International Impac literary award, receiving prize money of 100,000 euros (£81,000)

Justin Gatlin beats Olympic champion Usain Bolt by one-hundredth of a second to record a surprise 100m win in Rome.

Six Georgian soldiers have been killed by a suicide attack in the Helmand province of Afghanistan, the Georgian defence ministry says.

People in the German city of Dresden have worked through the night to shore up flood defences, as the swollen waters of the River Elbe reach a peak.

The US National Security Agency (NSA) is collecting the telephone records of tens of millions of Americans, US officials have confirmed.

Prince Philip has been admitted to hospital for an exploratory operation, Buckingham Palace says.

Thousands of Turkish protesters are pouring into Istanbul's Taksim Square, ahead of the prime minister's return from a North Africa tour.

Coronation Street actor William Roache is charged with five counts of historical indecent assault involving four girls aged between 12 and 16.

The food giants Nestle and Mars, along with a distribution company, have been charged by authorities in Canada over alleged price-fixing of chocolate

The head of the messaging application Viber says people in Saudi Arabia have had freedoms curtailed, after his service was blocked there.

The head of the messaging application Viber says people in Saudi Arabia have had freedoms curtailed, after his service was blocked there.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan says controversial plans to redevelop a park in Istanbul will go ahead despite mass protests.

US swimming champion-turned-movie star Esther Williams, known in her heyday as Hollywood's Mermaid, dies in Los Angeles aged 91.

India beat South Africa by 26 runs in the opening match of the Champions Trophy, after 114 from Shikhar Dhawan.

US Attorney General Eric Holder says the justice department will not prosecute journalists for their reporting as long as he is in office.

Manchester City sign Brazilian midfielder Fernandinho from Ukrainian champions Shakhtar Donetsk for a fee of about £30m.