US pastor Andrew Brunson leaves Turkey after court frees him
A US evangelical Christian pastor left Turkey on Friday after a Turkish court freed him from two years of detention, in a step that could improve ties between the two countries which are strained by differences over Syria, Iran and Ankara's planned purchase of Russian military equipment
An aircraft carrying Pastor Andrew Brunson took off from an airport in western Turkey's Izmir province, a witness said.
The US clergyman will spend two days in Germany before returning to the United States, his lawyer told reporters at the airport.
Brunson was released after the court sentenced him to over three years in prison on terrorism charges, but said he would not serve any further jail time. Brunson, who has lived in Turkey for more than 20 years, was jailed two years ago and has been under house arrest since July.
US archbishop criticised over sex abuse resigns with papal praise
The archbishop of Washington DC stepped down over the handling of sex abuse cases but received fulsome praise from the Pope, drawing criticism from campaigners who said it showed the Catholic Church cared more for its leaders than abuse victims.
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, a loyal ally of Pope Francis, was criticised in a US grand jury report in August for failing to halt abuse in his previous role as archbishop of Pittsburgh.
He becomes one of the highest ranking Catholic leaders to step aside over global accusations that the Church harboured sex abusers. His resignation also further exposes a rift between Francis and members of the Church's conservative wing, some of whom say the pope himself should quit over the sex abuse crisis.
'We are fine': Melania Trump dismisses gossip about marriage
Melania Trump dismissed on Friday the widespread talk about her husband President Donald Trump's alleged affairs with a porn star and others, saying she has "more important things to think about."
In an interview with ABC News, excerpts of which were broadcast early Friday, the US first lady did not deny her husband's alleged history of philandering. But Melania Trump insisted she doesn't dwell on it.
"It is not a concern and focus of mine," she said in the interview. "I'm a mother and a first lady, and I have much more important things to think about and to do."
Facebook says hackers accessed data of 29 million users
Facebook said on Friday that hackers accessed personal data of 29 million users in a breach at the world's leading social network disclosed late last month.
The company had originally said up to 50 million accounts were affected in a cyberattack that exploited a trio of software flaws to steal "access tokens" that enable people to automatically log back onto the platform.
"We now know that fewer people were impacted than we originally thought," Facebook vice-president of product management Guy Rosen said in an online post.
Football: France probes suspicions of match-fixing in PSG-Red Star game
France's financial prosecutor's office said on Friday it was investigating suspicions of match-fixing in the Champions League soccer match between Paris St Germain and Serbian club Red Star Belgrade on Oct 3. Paris St Germain beat Red Star 6-1.
Earlier on Friday, French sports newspaper L'Equipe wrote on its website that European football's governing body Uefa had alerted French authorities of possible match-fixing at the match, based on a tip from a "credible" informant.
L'Equipe said the informant had told Uefa, before the match, that a high-level Red Star official was planning to place nearly €5 million (S$8 million) in bets on a five-goal-difference win by PSG, with the complicity of several players. This prompted the investigation.
