WORLD

Foreign troops are heading to Syria to support both the rebels and the embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, prompting fears that the conflict is set to enter a yet more lethal phase.

A breakaway group of demonstrators has stormed the British Embassy compound in Tehran.

A rare cache of photographs of the tragic Romanov family are set to go under the hammer.

As Christmas approaches, those who make up half a couple are desperate to find the perfect present.

Officials at Egypt's Suez Port have refused to sign and accept a shipment of seven and a half tons of tear gas for fear it would be used against protesters, Egyptian media reported on Monday.

Forty male beagles raised inside a laboratory in Spain have been freed from captivity for the first time.

Norweign psychiatrists have found that gunman Anders Behring Breivik was insane.

As the second day of Egypt's landmark parliamentary elections takes place, the trial regarding virginity checks allegedly conducted by the security forces on Samira Ibrahim while in detention in was due to start today but has been delayed to December, prompting more outrage from women protesters in Egypt.

Nigeria's Senate voted Tuesday to criminalise gay marriage, instituting prison terms of more than ten years in cases of violations, prompting fears that discrimination towards gay people is growing despite international calls for more rights.

Nando's South Africa last week sparked controversy with a toungue-in-cheek advertising campaign showing world dictators spending quality time together. The international restaurant chain has a long history of provocative and politically sensitive adverts. Here are some of the IBTimes' favourites.

Soviet dictator Josef Stalin's only daughter has died Monday in the U.S. state of Wisconsin at 85.

The Metropolitan Police arrested three men in Kent which led to the seizure of over £50 million of cocaine.

Egyptians have turned out in force in defiance of calls to boycott parliamentary elections.

Psychiatrists are expected to submit their report on Norwegian mass killer Anders Behring Breivik.

Polls have opened for a second day of voting in Egypt's parliamentary elections, the first since former leader Hosni Mubarak was ousted in February 2011.

With an estimated value of £20,000, the Amy Winehouse chiffon dress with a red belt was designed by Thai-based Disaya Sorakraikitikul.

As the year is drawing to a close, the IB Times is taking a look at some of the celebrity tweets that have created ripples in the cyberspace this year.

The Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's largest and best organised opposition party, until recently seemed poised to take power in the Arab world's most populous country. Where have the uprisings of the last week left the Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party?

Syrian officials have rejected the new sanctions imposed on the country by the Arab League and continued to accuse foreign countries of a conspiracy.

Men in prehistoric Europe used to scar, pierce and tattoo their private parts with circles, lines and triangles, mainly for rituals and social reasons, according to a new study.

Lebanon's Prime Minister has invited Pope Benedict XVI to visit his country.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering releasing tens of millions of dollars in Palestinian tax funds, it has been reported.

Julian Assange Monday lashed out at British journalism, calling it a "backstabbing industry" after his whistleblowing website Wikileaks was praised for its "outstanding contribution to journalism" in Australia.

A wall may be built to stop illegal Mexicans from crossing the border into Arizona.

The director of Japan's troubled Fukushima nuclear power plant is stepping down due to ill health, according to the plant's operator Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO)

Zimbabwean police believe there is a syndicate of women who are raping men to use their semen in rituals that claim to make people wealthy.

As Egyptians vote in parliamentary elections Monday, they also are taking to the Web to report violations and attempted fraud at the polls.

Aliaa Magda Elmahdy, the Egyptian nude blogger, was allegedly beaten up by an angry crowd in Tahrir Square, Egyptian TV claims.

The Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) has won Friday's elections in Morocco, taking the most seats in parliament, final polls confirm.