IRAQ

Rep. Dennis Kucinich discussed topics such as marijuana legalization, universal healthcare and the Patriot Act while addressing a crowd at Seattle's Hempfest.

Joyful Libyan rebels overran Muammar Gaddafi's Tripoli bastion on Tuesday, seizing weapons and loot and destroying symbols of a 42-year dictatorship they declared was now over as they set about hunting down the fallen ruler and his sons.

Joyful Libyan rebels overran Moammar Gadhafi's Tripoli bastion on Tuesday, seizing weapons and loot and destroying symbols of a 42-year dictatorship they declared was now over as they set about hunting down the fallen ruler and his sons.

Triumphant rebels seized Muammar Gaddafi's compound in Tripoli on Tuesday after a fierce battle with a loyalist rearguard but there was no word on the fate of the Libyan leader who vowed again to fight to the end.

Up to 100 members of the outlawed Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK) have been killed by Turkish military raids in northern Iraq since Wednesday, the Turkish General Staff has announced.

Libyan rebels battled on Tuesday around Muammar Gaddafi's headquarters, where a son of the veteran leader had emerged overnight to confound reports of his capture and to rally cheering loyalists for a rearguard fightback.

Here is a brief rundown of important events around the world Tuesday morning, August 23, 2011.

A son of Muammar Gaddafi, previously reported captured, made a surprise appearance with jubilant supporters in Tripoli overnight, urging loyalists to fight off rebels who say they control most of the Libyan capital.

Remnants of forces still loyal to Muammar Gaddafi staged a desperate stand in Tripoli on Tuesday as rebels fought their way into the capital, but the whereabouts of the veteran leader was a mystery.

Muammar Gaddafi was a hunted man on Monday as loyal remnants of his forces made last-ditch stands in the capital while world leaders rushed to embrace the fractious rebel movement as new masters of Libya's oil riches.

Muammar Gaddafi, who for decades enjoyed strutting before the public in his finery, has disappeared from the stage as rebels take over his former stronghold Tripoli.

Libyan government tanks and snipers put up scattered, last-ditch resistance in Tripoli on Monday after rebels swept into the heart of the capital, cheered on by crowds hailing the end of Muammar Gaddafi's 42 years in power.

Moammar Gadhafi's put up scattered, last-ditch resistance in Tripoli Monday after rebels swept into the heart of the Libyan capital, cheered on by crowds hailing the end of his 42-year rule.

The implosion of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's 41-year-old rule will put a new spring in the step of the Arab revolutions and demonstrate once again that these entrenched autocratic governments are not invincible.

As for the threat of a military action ... any action against Syria will have greater consequences (on those who carry it out), greater than they can tolerate, the President said.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Sunday reiterated the nation's call for Iran to immediately release U.S. citizens Shane Bauer and Joshua Fattal, two hikers who were sentenced to eight years in prison, after being imprisoned for more than two years for allegedly trespassing into Iran, which they deny.

Two American men who were arrested more than two years ago while hiking along the Iraq-Iran border have been sentenced to eight years in prison.

Two American hikers arrested in Iran two years ago were sentenced to eight years in prison for espionage and illegal entry despite pleas from U.S. authorities, Iranian state TV reported. On Saturday, Iranian TV reported that judicial sources have said Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal were each given five-year prison sentences for spying and an additional three years for entering the country illegally. It is unknown if the two will get any credit for time served. They were arrested in July 2009.

Two Americans held in Iran for more than two years have been convicted as spies and sentenced to eight years' jail, Iranian TV reported on Saturday, a verdict that will further strain already very poor relations with Washington.

Body armor worth $2.5 billion that the Department of Defense's Inspector General found had been improperly tested poses no hazard to troops, according to the Army.

President Barack Obama on Thursday for the first time called on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down after a brutal crackdown by Syrian forces on demonstrations against the Assad family's 41-year reign.