Africa

At least eight people have been killed in a shooting at a Tunisian museum where a hostage situation is believed to be underway.

According to reports of Radio Mosaique, three men dressed in military-style clothing have seized hostages at Bardo Museum in the capital, Tunis, which is adjacent to the national parliament building.

At least eight people were killed after a shooting took place in the Bardo National Museum in central Tunis, which is adjacent to the building of the Tunisian Parliament.

Among the victims are at least seven foreign tourists and one Tunisian.

According to unconfirmed reports, several tourists from European countries were taken hostages at the museum, the BBC reports.

A Dutch UN helicopter crashed on Tuesday in northern Mali near the city of Gao, killing two people.

The cause of the crash remains unclear and so far there have been comments neither from the Dutch defence ministry nor from the UN peacekeeping mission, the BBC reports.

Ambassador denies Serbians were abducted in Libya

BELGRADE -- No Serbian citizens were abducted on Tuesday in the town of Sirte, Serbian Ambassador to Libya Oliver Potezica has said.

Earlier in the day, U.S. broadcaster CNN reported that Islamic State (IS) terrorists had abducted 20 medical workers, "Serbians among them."

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on March 13 urged business executives to invest in Egypt, praising the government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi for ?bold? economic reforms aimed at restoring investor confidence.

US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived March 13 in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh where he is to meet President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to discuss the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
      

Suspected members of Somalia's Al-Qaeda-affiliated Shebab militants on March 12 attacked a fortified area containing regional government headquarters, an airport and a United Nations compound in the central town of Baidoa, security officials said.
      

Egypt hosts a foreign investor conference on March 13 it hopes will jump-start its battered economy while showcasing international support for President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi as he battles increasingly radical Islamist opponents.
      

The UN human rights chief on March 10 strongly condemned a surge in attacks in east Africa on albinos, whose body parts are often used for witchcraft.
      
The statement came after police in Tanzania arrested seven suspects over a brutal weekend assault in which a six-year-old albino boy's hand was hacked off with a machete.
      

A peacekeeper and two children died on March 8 as militants shelled a UN base in northern Mali, heightening security fears as police hunted jihadists who launched a deadly Bamako nightclub assault.
      
The UN's MINUSMA force said more than 30 rockets were fired at its barracks in the rebel stronghold of Kidal from 5:40 am (0540 GMT).