World

Paris attacks findings: gross intel failure, police rivalry

PARIS — Intelligence failures, in France and abroad, led to the failure to foil attacks in Paris last year by Islamic radicals that killed 147 people, while rival units of security forces trapped by rules and stepping on each other's feet made the situation worse during the attacks, the head of an investigating commission of lawmakers concluded Tuesday.

Attackers take hostages at Bangladesh restaurant

DHAKA, Bangladesh — A group of as many as nine gunmen attacked a restaurant popular with foreigners in a diplomatic zone of the Bangladeshi capital on Friday night, taking hostages and exchanging gunfire with security forces, authorities said.

The head of the elite anti-crime force, Rapid Action Battalion, or RAB, told reporters Friday night that they were working to save the lives of the people trapped inside the Holey Artisan Bakery. Some foreigners are believed to be among the hostages.

Attention in Istanbul bombing focused on Chechen extremist

ISTANBUL — Attention focused Friday on whether a Chechen extremist known to be a top lieutenant in the Islamic State group was involved in the suicide attacks that killed 44 people at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport.

UK shelves balanced budget goal as Brexit vote roils economy

LONDON  — Britain's Treasury chief on Friday abandoned the government's long-held goal of balancing the nation's books by 2020, warning that the country's vote to leave the European Union had sent shock waves and instability through the U.K. economy.

In a sign of that uncertainty, a leading contender to become the country's next prime minister said he would not trigger formal EU exit talks before next year — even as senior European officials urged Britain to hurry up and go.

Rome's Colosseum sparkles after magnate-funded restoration

ROME — The Colosseum has emerged more imposing than ever after its most extensive restoration, a multimillion-euro cleaning to remove a dreary, undignified patina of soot and grime from the ancient arena, which has been assailed for decades by pollution in traffic-clogged Rome.

Turkish official: Attackers were from Russia, Central Asia

ISTANBUL— As the death toll from the Istanbul airport attack rose Thursday to 44, a senior Turkish official said the three suicide bombers who carried it out were from Russia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, and police raided neighborhoods for suspects linked to the Islamic State group.

Turkish authorities have said all information suggested the Tuesday night attack on Ataturk Airport, one of the world's busiest, was the work of IS, which boasted this week of having cells in Turkey, among other countries.

Official: Suicide attack on Afghan police convoy kills 37

KABUL, Afghanistan — Taliban militants launched a twin suicide attack on Thursday, targeting a convoy of buses carrying Afghan police cadets outside of the capital and killing 37 people, mostly policemen, and wounding 40, an Afghan official said.

The attack took place in Paghman district, some 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of Kabul, according to Mousa Rahmati, the district governor of Paghman.

Boris bows out: UK in shock as Johnson drops leadership bid

LONDON — In a real-life political drama mixing Shakespearean tragedy with "House of Cards," Britain's victorious anti-EU campaigner Boris Johnson saw his chances of leading his country evaporate Thursday after the defection of a key ally.

The former London mayor dropped his campaign to become Conservative Party leader and prime minister after Justice Secretary Michael Gove abruptly withdrew his support for Johnson and announced he would run himself.

Report: US sailors ill-prepared for Iran encounter in Gulf

WASHINGTON — Weak leadership, poor judgment, a lack of "warfighting toughness" and a litany of errors led to the embarrassing capture and detention by Iran of 10 U.S. sailors in the Persian Gulf in January, according to a Navy investigation released Thursday.

Attackers kill 42 in scenes of chaos at Istanbul airport

ISTANBUL — Suicide attackers armed with guns and bombs killed 42 people and wounded hundreds at Istanbul's busy Ataturk Airport, apparently targeting Turkey's crucial tourism industry. The government blamed the attack on Islamic State extremists but there was no immediate confirmation from the group.

Scenes of chaos and panic unfolded Tuesday night as gunfire and explosions sent crowds fleeing in all directions.