Region in Revolt

Ben Curtis/Associated Press

Seif al-Islam el-Qaddafi

Criminal Court in Indirect Talks With Qaddafi Son, Prosecutor Says

By J. DAVID GOODMAN 2:08 PM ET

The top prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has been in indirect contact with Seif al-Islam el-Qaddafi, the fugitive son of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi and his one-time heir apparent.

Syrian Security Forces Fire on Rallies, Killing 30

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 1:56 PM ET

Syrian security forces killed at least 30 people Friday and authorities disrupted telephone and Internet service in restive areas, activists said.

In Slap at Syria, Turkey Shelters Anti-Assad Fighters

By LIAM STACK

Once one of Syria’s closest allies, Turkey is hosting an armed opposition group waging an insurgency against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

Video: TimesCast | Syrian Defectors in Turkey

Saudi Arabia: Conservative Prince Is Appointed Heir to the Throne

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

State television reported Thursday that Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz, the tough-talking interior minister, had been named heir to the Saudi throne after the death of the Crown Prince Sultan last week.

European Sovereign Debt Crisis

Hitches Signal Difficulties Ahead for the Euro Zone

By JACK EWING AND DAVID JOLLY 1:28 PM ET

Markets take heed as Italy's borrowing costs rise and an Austrian bank posts a big loss.

For Italy, Berlusconi Is a Problem but Also a Solution

Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany during a news conference with the NATO's secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, on Thursday.

Calling Bankers’ Bluff, Merkel Won Europe a Debt Plan

By STEVEN ERLANGER and STEPHEN CASTLE

In the end, it was Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and President Nicolas Sarkozy of France against the European banking establishment — and the bankers blinked.

Greeks Direct Anger at Germany and European Union

By RACHEL DONADIO 18 minutes ago

The conditions of the debt reduction deal have led many in Greece to complain of a loss of sovereignty.

Euro Rescue Plan Means More Austerity, Sarkozy Tells France

By NICOLA CLARK 1:28 PM ET

Six months before a re-election campaign that has yet to formally begin, Nicolas Sarkozy painted a pessimistic tableau of slowing economic growth and deeper spending cuts.

Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and members of the lower house of Parliament on Wednesday during a critical vote that enabled a subsequent deal to prop up the ailing euro.

German Leader Seizes Initiative and Confounds Her Critics

By NICHOLAS KULISH

Angela Merkel, the chancellor of Germany, appeared to defy her detractors as she helped lead the nations of the euro currency zone to the most comprehensive deal yet.

Times Topic: Angela Merkel

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government in Italy is so far too weak to deliver on its pledges.

For Italy, Berlusconi Is a Problem but Also a Solution

By ELISABETTA POVOLEDO

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has promised fellow European leaders wide-ranging changes to get Italy’s economy back on track, but it is not clear that he has the political clout to enact them.

Gunman Fires at U.S. Embassy in Sarajevo

By ROBERT MACKEY and RICK GLADSTONE

At least one guard was reported wounded by the gunman, who was later shot and wounded by police who sealed off the embassy grounds.

Rule of Male Succession to British Monarchy Is Abolished

By JOHN F. BURNS 2:12 PM ET

The 16 countries that recognize the British monarch as head of state have abolished male precedence in the order of succession.

Yan Lianke outside his house, which is to be demolished.

Harassment and Evictions Bedevil Even China’s Well-Off

By ANDREW JACOBS

The struggle for Huaxiang World Famous Garden, a gated community near the capital, is not like most of the redevelopment battles that each year lead to forced evictions in China.

Peace Deal With Basque Separatists Still Tentative

By RAPHAEL MINDER 1:28 PM ET

ETA's recent pledge to end its violent struggle for independence came into question this week after defiant comments by former activists.

Bombing Reported in Tibet

By EDWARD WONG

A Tibetan advocacy group said a bomb hit an unoccupied municipal building on Wednesday in eastern Tibet.

Gaza City Journal

Mohammed Taqatqa, who was in prison for 18 years, tried to learn how to use his computer for the first time with his sister, Zeinab, at the Al Mashtal Hotel in Gaza City.

Making the Uneasy Transition From Prisoner to Celebrity

By STEPHEN FARRELL

Mohammed Musa Taqatqa, among the first batch of Palestinian prisoners freed in return for an Israeli tank soldier, is trying to adjust to his new life.

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and the South Korean defense minister, Kim Kwan-jin, spoke to reporters in Seoul on Friday.

Panetta Joins South Korea in Warning to North

By ELISABETH BUMILLER 8:34 AM ET

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and the South Korean defense minister, Kim Kwan-jin,threatened North Korea with a counterattack against a provocation from the North.

A taxi driver plied through flood waters outside the Grand Palace in Bangkok on Friday.

Floodwaters Menace Bangkok’s Grand Palace

By SETH MYDANS 22 minutes ago

The main river in Thailand’s capital swelled to a record high on Friday, spilling over its banks and sending water rippling into the grounds of the Grand Palace.

Ferhat Tokay was transported into an ambulance after being pulled from the rubble on Friday.

Boy Is Rescued 5 Days After Earthquake in Turkey

By SEBNEM ARSU 8:16 AM ET

A 13-year-old boy was pulled from the debris on Friday more than five days after a powerful earthquake jolted Turkey’s east, leaving at least 570 people dead.

From a box on the side of the stalls, right, security guards watched a rehearsal of “Ruslan and Ludmila.”

Czar-Worthy Finery, Refurbished For a Modern Era

By JULIE BLOOM and JAMES HILL

The Bolshoi Theater in Moscow has completed a six-year restoration and has been returned to its 19th-century glory but with 21st-century amenities.

Video

TimesCast | Global Market Rally

October 27, 2011 - Markets rally on a European debt deal and data showing the U.S. might avoid a double-dip recession.

Video

TimesCast | Syrian Defectors in Turkey

October 27, 2011 — Turkey’s support of the Free Syrian Army, an armed opposition group, comes amid a broader Turkish campaign to undermine President Bashar al-Assad’s government in Syria.