BERLIN – WikiLeaks has published a list it claims shows the U.S. National Security Agency eavesdropped on senior German officials other than Chancellor Angela Merkel. Reports two years ago that Merkel’s phone had been targeted by the NSA prompted diplomatic friction between Berlin and Washington. German prosecutors recently dropped their …

BEIJING – Beijing’s municipal government says air pollution in the capital improved during the first six months of 2015. It said the concentration of PM 2.5 — tiny airborne particles that are particularly harmful to human health — dropped by 15.2 percent from a year earlier to an average of …

BAGHDAD – Authorities in Iraq say bombings targeting Shiite districts have killed 15 people in and around Baghdad. Police officials say a bomb exploded Sunday night near a cafe in the Shiite district of al-Obeidi on the eastern edge of Baghdad, killing four people and wounding 14 others. Another evening …

KABUL, Afghanistan – Afghanistan’s intelligence service says the second-highest figure among militants loyal to the Islamic State group in the country was killed in an airstrike. Abdul Hassib Sediqi , spokesman for the National Security Directorate, said Tuesday that Gul Zaman and six other militants were killed in a strike …

UNITED NATIONS – Russia says it is opposed to a UN resolution that would establish an international tribunal to prosecute those responsible for shooting down a Malaysia Airlines plane over Ukraine last year. Controversy continues over who downed Flight MH17 killing all 298 people on board. Ukraine and the West …

DENVER – Environmentalists and the energy industry have fought decisive battles over fracking in New York, Oklahoma and Texas, but the outcome is still unclear in Colorado. A ballot fight could be shaping up for Colorado’s 2016 election. A task force convened by Gov. John Hickenlooper tried to find a …

SEOUL, South Korea – South Korean police have detained a university design professor for allegedly forcing a former student to eat human feces and subjecting him to other cruel acts. A police statement Tuesday said the alleged violence began after the professor hired the ex-student in 2013 as an employee …

MEXICO CITY – Mexico City has published new regulations that will allow Uber and other smartphone-based ride-sharing apps to operate over the objections of taxi drivers. Under the rules, 1.5 percent of each fare will go into a “Taxi, Mobility and Pedestrian Fund,” which will be used to improve taxi …

PRAGUE – The death toll in a collision between a high-speed train and a truck in eastern Czech Republic has reached three after a passenger died in a hospital over the night. Tomas Oborny, spokesman for the University hospital in the city of Ostrava, confirmed the death Wednesday. He said …

With just one telephone call this year, Erik Wemple of the Washington Post was able to convince Media Matters to let me respond to their attacks on me in the comments section of their website — after they ignored my emails, telephone calls, numerous tweets and posts for seven years. …