REYKJAVIK, Iceland – Iceland officials say the eruption of the Bardarbunga volcano that began in August has come to an end. Officials said Saturday the area will be closely monitored for any changes that might pose a threat to the population. The announcement came after several weeks in which the …

MELBOURNE, Australia – Thousands of anti-Islam and anti-racism protesters have clashed in rallies around Australia. The most violent was in Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city, where police struggled on Saturday to separate opposing demonstrators. Ambulance Victoria spokesman Paul Bentley says the Victoria state ambulance service treated four people, three for minor …

TEHRAN, Iran – A senior official in Iran’s judiciary says a court will hear the case of a detained Washington Post correspondent when it’s his turn. Gholamhossein Esmaeili, the head of Tehran’s justice administration, is quoted by the official IRNA news agency as saying Wednesday: “Jason Rezaian’s case will be …

PARIS – French authorities say a soldier patrolling Paris’ Orly Airport has been injured by a man wielding a knife. A joint statement by Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said the soldier, a sergeant in France’s anti-terror Vigipirate mission, was slightly injured in the attack …

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations says the special envoy to Syria will start in-depth consultations with Syrian, regional and international parties in May to try to relaunch political negotiations aimed at ending the Syrian conflict, which is now in its fifth year. In late March, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon ordered …

MANAMA, Bahrain – Bahrain is criticizing an Amnesty International report alleging that government reforms have failed to end serious violations of human rights in the Gulf country. The government said in a statement released late Thursday that the report had “significant shortcomings” and did not reflect important clarifications provided by …

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The mayor of Puerto Rico’s capital is banning horse-drawn carriages in San Juan following allegations of animal abuse. Carmen Yulin says tourists and locals have complained about the horses’ condition and treatment. The executive order signed Sunday comes a few days after people posted pictures …

BUCHAREST, Romania – A Romanian court has sentenced a senior judge to 10 years and eight months in prison for demanding money from defendants in exchange for favorable verdicts. Stan Mustata was convicted on six counts of taking bribes, influence peddling and abusing privileged information between October 2013 and April …

LONDONDERRY, Northern Ireland – Northern Ireland police say a small bomb has detonated outside a probation office on a residential street in Londonderry, injuring nobody, and the city’s leaders have accused IRA die-hards of recklessly endangering the lives of families living nearby. The blast at Crawford Square damaged the unoccupied …

SKOPJE, Macedonia – Macedonian prosecutors have filed charges against the country’s main opposition leader and former intelligence officials for alleged wiretapping following a scandal that has poisoned politics in the small Balkan country for months. Zoran Zaev is accused of “violence against the representatives of the highest state institutions.” If …