Asia

Aussie man beats death penalty in Malaysia – twice

An Australian man has escaped the death penalty for a second time after a Malaysian court rejected an appeal by prosecutors against his acquittal on drug charges.

More than 800,000 flee as Pakistan launches military offensive against Taliban

Thousands of families have left the North Waziristan tribal area for the nearby town of Bannu.

Chinese court rules against Apple

US technology giant Apple has lost a lawsuit against a Chinese state regulator over patent rights to voice recognition software such as the iPhone’s Siri.

Europe

UK chemicals ‘likely’ to have been used in Syrian weapons

Britain’s Foreign Secretary William Hague says it’s likely chemicals exported by British companies to Syria were used to make chemical weapons.

Topless activists go on trial in Paris

Gay marriage activists who bared their breasts in Notre Dame Cathedral have gone on trial.

USA

Miley Cyrus mimes drug coma in latest shocker

Music”s wild child Miley Cyrus has appeared in a music video, seemingly comatose with an open bottle of pills strewn across the bed in front of her face.