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Europe Rethinks Train Security after Foiled Jihadist Attack

European countries will increase identity checks and baggage controls on trains after American passengers thwarted an attack on a high-speed train from Amsterdam to Paris, France's interior minister said Saturday.

Bernard Cazeneuve said the checks would be carried out "everywhere it is necessary" but did not give other details. He spoke after an emergency meeting in Paris with top security and transport officials from nine countries and the European Union in the wake of last week's attack attempt.

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Health, Election Work Elevated Jimmy Carter Post-Presidency

To Azaratu Zakaria, Jimmy Carter's battle against the Guinea worm is represented by a scar.

Zakaria was the last person to be declared disease-free in Ghana after more than 20 years of work spearheaded the former president's humanitarian organization, The Carter Center. Zakaria, who is in her 40s, said she and her family have prayed every day since Carter announced this month that cancer has spread to his brain and forced him to scale back his work.

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U.S. National Zoo's Surviving Newborn Panda is Male

The National Zoo's panda parents, Mei Xiang and Tian Tian, have another son.

The zoo announced Friday that the surviving panda cub is male and the son of the zoo's male panda Tian Tian. Mei Xiang gave birth to fraternal twins Saturday, but the smaller cub — also a male fathered by Tian Tian — died Wednesday.

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Twitter Sets Modest Goals to Diversity its Workforce

Twitter is setting modest goals to diversify its workforce while it fights a proposed class-action lawsuit that says the online messaging service discriminates against its female employees.

The hiring targets were released Friday along with data showing that Twitter primarily employs white and Asian men in high-paying technology jobs, like most of its industry peers.

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Thousands of Lebanese Demonstrate against 'Corrupt' Politicians, Issue Ultimatum

Thousands of anti-government protesters marched on Saturday from the interior ministry in the capital's Hamra thoroughfare to downtown Beirut's Martyrs Square in an anti-government protest organized by civil society, which is frustrated with the political class.

"You Stink,” which started as an online movement, is the main activist group behind the protest.

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Robin Williams' Family Back in Court over Estate Dispute

Attorneys for Robin Williams' wife and children were due back in court Friday in the ongoing fight over the late actor's estate.

The two sides were scheduled to go before a San Francisco judge, as court documents indicate they remain at odds over the division of Williams' personal items and a reserve fund to maintain Susan Williams in the home she shared with Robin Williams.

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Texas Judge Wants $10M Set Aside in 'Fifty Shades' Case

A Texas judge has told lawyers for an Australian woman and her publishing company to set aside $10 million for a former business partner who says she was defrauded out of her rightful share from the sale of the erotic best-seller "Fifty Shades of Grey" and two companion novels.

State District Judge Susan McCoy said Wednesday that she wants the money deposited in a court registry by Sept. 25 as attorneys seek to negotiate a judgment amount for Jennifer Pedroza, who lives in the Dallas suburb of Arlington.

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Japan Scales back Tokyo 2020 Olympic Stadium Plans

Japan's government has approved a plan to reduce the seating and slash the construction cost of the main stadium for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after public opposition to the initial design.

The cabinet approved the revised plan Friday, which would cap the price tag at 155 billion yen ($1.3 billion), down from the plan for a 252 billion yen stadium that the government abruptly scrapped in July.

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Australian Olympic Committee Extends Ban on Sleeping Drugs

Australia Olympians for next year's Rio Games will be banned from taking sleeping drugs from the time they're selected for the national team.

In a bid to avoid repeating the controversies of the 2012 London Games, the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) has tightened restrictions on the use of what it called "hypnotic medications."

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India's Polluted Waters Cleanse Spirits at Hindu Festival

It's just water, and far from the cleanest you could find. Raw sewage often flows in the Godavari River, bringing with it high bacteria levels. Residue from sand mining can cloud the water. Farm pesticides leech through the soil.

But to the millions of Hindus expected at the Kumbh Mela festival, held this year along the Godavari, touching that water is reverential. It's a way to cleanse themselves of sin, to come close to God, to immerse themselves in a tradition that reaches back into antiquity. They have come to this city from across India and around the world. Entire villages arrive together, and their parties often last through the nights. Thousands of mystics gather.

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