Afghan woman mutilated by Taliban to have US surgery

A suicide bomber on a bicycle killed nine people outside the defence ministry in central Kabul on Saturday during a visit to the Afghan capital by new US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel.

The high-profile deaths of two children in Gaza last November were the result of Hamas rockets falling short and not Israeli airstrikes, the United Nations has concluded. Palestinians and some media outlets blamed Israel for the deaths of Omar al-Masharawi, the 11-month-old son of a BBC reporter, and Mohammed Sadallah, aged four, whose lifeless body was kissed by visiting Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil as the boy was taken to hospital.

The booming cosmetic treatments industry is facing a wide-ranging crackdown over an array of dubious practices that exploit, pressurise and pose a danger to often vulnerable patients who are hoping to improve their appearance.

The letter that arrived at the home of a leading Afghan women’s rights activist in February 2012 was chilling. “Respected Adela Mohseni, you all the time betray religion and the Koran,” it began. Because she had ignored warnings and continued to “co-operate with infidels,” it said, she now faced death. “After this, wherever our mujahedeen find you, it is obligated that they will sentence you to death and kill you in order to save our Islamic country.”

Time Magazine's beautiful new cover was designed by controversial Chinese artist Ai Weiwei:

Casey Anthony's lawyer Jose Baez has become a go-to expert on the trial of Jodi Arias.

KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday accused the Taliban and the U.S. of working in concert to convince Afghans that violence will worsen if most foreign troops leave – an allegation the top American commander in Afghanistan rejected as “categorically false.”

Spencer Ackerman offers some WikiLeaks-inspired reporting and analysis of Taliban vs official Afghan security forces payscales: