Connecticut school shooting: Children among 27 killed

15 December BBC

Twenty children and six adults have been killed in a shooting attack at a primary school in the US state of Connecticut, police say.The gunman also died, but was not formally identified by police. However, officials told US media the killer at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown, was a 20-year-old son of a teacher at the school.

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Divided Egypt votes on new constitution

15 December AFP

Egyptians began voting on Saturday on a new constitution supported by the ruling Islamists but bitterly contested by a secular-leaning opposition. Polls opened in Cairo, Alexandria and eight other provinces and are scheduled to close at 7:00 pm in the first round. The rest of the country votes on December 22.

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Moroccans bury Islamist leader who defied king

15 December AFP

Tens of thousands of devotees gathered in Rabat on Friday for the funeral of Abdessalam Yassine, the founder of a radical Moroccan Islamist movement whose outspoken criticism of the monarchy landed him in jail. Sheikh Yassine founded the Adl wal Ihsan (Justice and Charity) movement, which actively participated in Arab Spring protests that erupted in Morocco in February 2011, as revolutions swept Egypt and Tunisia.

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