SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's previous defense minister was formally arrested Wednesday over his alleged collusion with President Yoon Suk Yeol and others in imposing martial law last week, as authorities investigate whether their acts amount to rebellion.

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Bashar Barhoum woke in his dungeon prison cell in Damascus at dawn Sunday, thinking it would be the last day of his life. The 63-year-old writer was supposed to have been executed after being imprisoned for seven months.But he soon realized the men at the door weren't from former Syrian President Bashar Assad ’s notorious security forces, ready to take him to his death. Instead, they were rebels coming to set him free.

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syria's prime minister said Monday that most cabinet ministers are still working from offices in Damascus after rebels entered the capital over the weekend and overthrew President Bashar Assad. Streams of refugees crossed in from neighboring countries, hoping for a more peaceful future.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s Justice Ministry on Monday imposed an overseas travel ban on President Yoon Suk Yeol as authorities investigate allegations of rebellion and other charges in connection with his short-lived declaration of martial law last week.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday that he's open to the potential deployment of Western troops in Ukraine to guarantee the country’s security as part of a broad effort to end the almost three-year war with Russia.

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Ousted Syrian leader Bashar Assad fled to Moscow and received asylum from his longtime ally, Russian media said Sunday, hours after a stunning rebel advance seized control of Damascus and ended his family’s 50 years of iron rule.

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad fled the country on Sunday, bringing to a dramatic close his nearly 14-year struggle to hold onto control as his country fragmented in a brutal civil war that became a proxy battlefield for regional and international powers.

BEIRUT (AP) — Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the terrorist leader whose stunning insurgency toppled Syria’s President Bashar Assad, has spent years working to remake his public image, renouncing longtime ties to al-Qaida and depicting himself as a champion of pluralism and tolerance.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Police are considering placing an overseas travel ban on South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol as they investigate possible rebellion charges over his brief imposition of martial law last week, reports said Monday.

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — At the Westonaria agricultural park near Bekkersdal, east of Johannesburg, farm workers are busy tilling the soil and planting tomatoes and lettuce. Despite the hive of activity, there is silence around the park.

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Nearly 50 survivors of a migrant boat tragedy last month that left 25 people dead in the Indian Ocean off Madagascar arrived back in Somalia on Saturday and were received by government officials.

BEIRUT (AP) — The Syrian army withdrew from much of southern Syria on Saturday, leaving more areas of the country, including two provincial capitals, under the control of opposition fighters, the military and an opposition war monitor said.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Arsonists extensively damaged a Melbourne synagogue on Friday in what Australia’s prime minister condemned as an antisemitic attack on Australian values.

BEIRUT (AP) — Thousands of people fled the central Syrian city of Homs, the country's third largest, as insurgents seized two towns on the outskirts Friday, positioning themselves for an assault on a potentially major prize in their march against President Bashar Assad.

MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — Iran is poised to “quite dramatically” increase its stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium as it has started cascades of advanced centrifuges, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency warned Friday.

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian insurgents swept into the central city of Hama on Thursday and government forces withdrew, dealing another major blow to Syrian President Bashar Assad days after insurgents captured much of Aleppo, the country’s largest city.

BEIT FURIK, West Bank (AP) — Jewish settlers mounted a string of attacks on Palestinian towns in the occupied West Bank overnight, burning homes and clashing with Israeli troops. There were no immediate reports of any Palestinian casualties.

CAIRO (AP) — Palestinian officials say Fatah and Hamas, listed as a terrorist group by the U.S. government, are closing in on an agreement to appoint a committee of politically independent technocrats to administer the Gaza Strip after the war. It would effectively end Hamas' rule and could help advance ceasefire talks with Israel.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s opposition parties Wednesday submitted a motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over the shocking and short-lived martial law that drew heavily armed troops to encircle parliament before lawmakers climbed walls to reenter the building and unanimously voted to lift his order.

ADRE, Chad (AP) — For months, Aziza Abrahim fled from one village in Sudan to the next as people were slaughtered. Yet the killing of relatives and her husband's disappearance aren't what forced the 23-year-old to leave the country for good. It was hunger, she said.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said early Wednesday that he would soon lift the martial law he imposed during a tense night of political drama in which troops surrounded parliament and lawmakers voted to reject military rule.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel unleashed its largest wave of airstrikes across Lebanon since agreeing to a ceasefire with the terrorist group Hezbollah last week, after the Lebanese militant group fired a volley of projectiles as a warning over what it said were Israeli truce violations.

JERUSALEM (AP) — The terrorist group Hezbollah fired into a disputed border zone held by Israel on Monday, the militant group's first attack since its ceasefire with Israel took hold last week, after Lebanon accused Israel of violating the truce more than 50 times in recent days.

CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) — At least 56 people, including children, have died after fans at a soccer game in Guinea allegedly clashed over a disputed call by the referee, authorities said Monday.

TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli military said Monday that an Israeli American soldier who was believed to have been taken hostage alive on Oct. 7, 2023, is now presumed to have been killed during Hamas’ attack and his body taken into Gaza.