Rebel Stronghold in Northern Mali Taken!
By Harold Hutchison

French, Malian, and other African troops have taken the town of Kidal, the last major stronghold of Islamist rebels who hijacked a Tuareg revolt that began in January 2012. French President Francois Hollande is about to visit the African country on Saturday.

Two Killed In Murder-Suicide Bombing
By Harold Hutchison

The United States embassy in Ankara Turkey was attacked by a murder-suicide bomber early this morning. The attack left a Turkish security guard at the embassy dead.

The attack comes less than five months after Ambassador Chris Stevens was killed in the 11 September, 2012 attack on the U.S. consulate in Bengahzi, Libya.

Ancient Texts Destroyed As French and Malian Troops Re-Take Ancient Town
By Harold Hutchison

The Ahmed Baba Institute was torched by Islamist rebels in the ancient African city. The institute held a number of ancient documents dating back to the 13th century, and there is growing concern about the extent of the damage.

Death Toll in New Spasm of Violence Includes Soccer Players
By Harold Hutchison

A thirty-day state of emergency has failed to stop riots and violence in three Egyptian cities, and the death toll has included two soccer players. The riots occurred after nearly two dozen people were sentenced to death for their actions in deadly riots in Port Said.

French-backed Malian forces are battling Islamist militants in a key town that leads toward the city of Goa, a militant stronghold in the country's north.

Residents and security officials say French and Malian forces fought rebels in Hombori, on Friday, a town about 250 kilometers from Gao.

Meanwhile, local officials say militants have bombed a strategic bridge near the border with Niger.

A French-led international counter-offensive against Islamist militants who seized control of much of northern Mali last year has entered its third week.

Yemen says a Saudi national freed by U.S. authorities from detention at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and who later rose to second in command of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, has died.

A government statement Thursday said Said al-Shihri died of wounds sustained in a counter-terrorism operation in late November. The Yemeni state news agency said he had been in a coma since then. Neither the agency nor a statement Thursday from the Supreme National Security Committee gave the date of death, but a leading Saudi newspaper [Ukaz] said it occurred in late December.

A contingent of soldiers from Burkina Faso has deployed to central Mali, becoming the first African troops to link up with French and Malian forces fighting al-Qaida-linked Islamist militants.

Malian officials said Thursday about 150 soldiers from Burkina Faso had arrived in Markala, a town about 250 kilometers from the capital, Bamako.

VOA correspondent Idrissa Fall, who is in Bamako, says the soldiers are gathering near the base that French forces used to help re-take the town of Diabaly.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton testified Wednesday before a Senate Committee about last year's attack on the U.S. mission in the Benghazi, Libya, in a hearing that included sharp criticism from lawmakers on her handling of the incident.

Among her harshest critics on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee was one-time Republican presidential candidate, Senator John McCain. "There are many questions [about Benghazi] that are unanswered and the answers frankly that you have this morning are not satisfactory," he said.

A reporter on the ground in northern Mali says most Islamist militants have fled the city of Gao since last week, when French warplanes bombed their positions.

The VOA reporter in Gao said Tuesday that some militants have been spotted in the area - driving in trucks or riding motorbikes or hiding out in trees. But he adds it is clear the Islamists are not numerous or organized enough to continue applying the strict Sharia law they imposed after taking control of the city last April.