Ahmad H. allegedly led a pro-Assad militia in the suburbs of Damascus during the early years of the Syrian civil war. He has been accused of crimes against humanity and arrested in Bremen.

The main opposition Congress party leader had been found guilty of defaming PM Narendra Modi. However, the Supreme Court suspended Gandhi's conviction, paving the way for his return.

Niger's political scene became more complex on Wednesday as former rebel Rhissa Ag Boula announced a new Council of Resistance for the Republic (CRR) aimed at reinstating deposed Nigerien president Mohamed Bazoum.

Niger's coup leader Abdourahamane Tiani sent a delegation, led by his defence chief General Moussa Salaou Barmou, to the Guinean capital Conakry on Saturday to thank leaders there for their support - a sign of the junta's desire to affirm alliances as it stands up to regional and other powers.

Niger's coup leaders say they will prosecute deposed President Mohamed Bazoum for "high treason." Earlier, they reportedly said they were willing to negotiate with the West African bloc ECOWAS.

The independent monitoring group Golos says the detention of its co-chair Grigory Melkonyants is aimed at hindering public observation of the upcoming elections in Russia.

Maxime Mokom is accused of crimes against humanity for atrocities committed against Muslim civilians in the Central African Republic. ICC judges are determining whether he should stand trial.

The deputy premier of Bavaria, Hubert Aiwanger, was accused by a major German daily of penning and circulating an antisemitic pamphlet in his school days. But his elder brother said later in the day he was the author.

"A no is a no," said Friedrich Merz, chairman of the largest German opposition party CDU. He has pledged not to cooperate with the far-right AfD at any level.

General Brice Oligui Nguema was sworn in as Gabon's interim president on Monday in a ceremony designed to portray the military as liberators of an oppressed society.

A judge in Washington has sentenced the former national chairman of the far-right Proud Boys militia to 22 years in prison. It's the stiffest sentence yet in connection with the January 6, 2021 attack on Congress.

Alongside the late Nelson Mandela, Mangosuthu Buthelezi was a pivotal actor in South Africa's transition from a white apartheid state to a multiracial democracy in the 1990s. But his legacy is also controversial.