A wave of car bombs in southern Iraq killed 20 people on Sunday as the country grapples with a spike in violence and prolonged political deadlock, sparking fears of all-out sectarian war.

At least 20 people were killed and 27 others injured in a twin bomb attack followed by firing in Pakistan's southwest city of Quetta, police said on Sunday.

North Korea's top government body is proposing high-level nuclear and security talks with the United States days after a planned meeting with rival South Korea collapsed.

Moderate cleric Hassan Rohani soared to a huge lead over conservative rivals in preliminary vote counting on Saturday, suggesting he may be able to pull off a surprise outright victory in Iran's presidential election.

Hunt has been on in India for possible cousins and relatives of Prince William after it emerged that he has a sliver of Indian ancestry.

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush set the twitter world ablaze as he called for overhauling America's immigration system, saying immigrants were "more fertile" and thus a great benefit to American society.

Eleven students were killed and 22 others were injured in the twin blasts that rocked southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta on Saturday.

Militants on Saturday attacked a historic 121-year-old building in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province, where the nation’s founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah used to reside. The incident left a policeman dead and caused extensive damage to the structure.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the current efforts by Myanmar's parliamentarians to "foster genuine dialogue and participation by all political parties in the reform process" in the country.

An American Sikh group has challenged the dismissal of human rights violation case against Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal.