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Ireland Shrugs Off French Riddle over Yeats Remains

A trove of documents from a French chateau has cast doubt on the remains of beloved Irish poet W.B. Yeats but fans have shrugged off the controversy and said there is no doubt as to his spiritual home.

The Nobel laureate died in southern France in 1939 but because of legal issues and the outbreak of World War II it wasn't until 1948 before a coffin said to carry his remains was repatriated to Ireland.

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Gay Rights 'Non Issue', Kenyan President Says ahead of Obama Visit

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Tuesday dismissed gay rights as a "non-issue" ahead of a visit by U.S. President Barack Obama later this week.

Kenyatta also said Deputy President William Ruto, who is still on trial at the International Criminal in The Hague accused of crimes against humanity, would also meet the U.S. leader.

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Photo of Black Official Helping Man at KKK Rally Goes Viral

The black director of South Carolina's public safety agency said Monday he was surprised a photo showing him helping a white man wearing a racist T-shirt went viral. But now that it has, he is hoping it will be a catalyst for people to work toward overcoming hatred and violence.

Leroy Smith said in a statement that the photo, taken at a Ku Klux Klan rally, captured "who we are in South Carolina" and represents what law enforcement is all about: helping people "regardless of the person's skin color, nationality or beliefs."

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Visitors to Havana Can Find U.S.-Cuban Connections Everywhere

This week's reopening of embassies and resumption of diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba opens a new chapter in the countries' complicated relationship.

But any visitor to the Cuban capital can see that connections between the two nations run long and deep just by taking stock of all the attractions showcasing American culture and history. Despite decades of hostility, some of these sites even seem to celebrate Americans, while others reflect an anti-U.S. point of view.

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Indian Villagers Behead Woman over 'Witchcraft'

A 63-year-old Indian woman has been dismembered and beheaded by machete-wielding villagers who accused her of practicing witchcraft, police said Tuesday.

Seven people have been arrested over the death of Moni Orang, a mother of five who was seized from her home in the northeastern state of Assam on Monday after local priests said she was casting spells.

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Nepal Quake Forces 'Living Goddess' to Break Decades of Seclusion

When a massive earthquake struck Nepal in April, Nepal's longest-serving "living goddess" was forced to do the unthinkable -- walk the streets for the first time in her life, she told AFP in a rare interview.

Still following the cloistered lifestyle she entered at the age of two, Dhana Kumari Bajracharya also opened up about her unusually long 30-year reign, suggesting the pain of her unceremonious dethroning in the 1980s was still raw. 

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Reaching for Opera Stardom, Inspired by Placido Domingo

Gesticulating and breaking into spine-tingling arias, a jovial Placido Domingo coached young opera singers vying for their big break while perched on a stool in a rehearsal room at London's Royal Opera House.

Frenchman Julien Behr greeted him with a "Buenos dias!" before practicing an aria with the legendary Spanish tenor for Sunday's final of the Operalia competition, being held in the British capital for the first time.

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Remains of Nazi Anatomy Prof's Victims Found at French Forensic Institute

Remains belonging to victims of Nazi anatomy professor August Hirt have been found at a forensic medicine institute in eastern France, local authorities said in a statement Saturday.

Eighty-six Jews had been sent to the gas chambers in 1943 and their bodies brought to the eastern French city of Strasbourg, then under Nazi occupation and where Hirt was assembling a macabre collection of corpses.

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China's Minority Muslims Observe Ramadan

Liu Shoupeng, a 74-year-old retired electrical engineer, is a devout Muslim in China, where he says his practice of Islam has not only been protected, but also respected.

Arranged through local government officials, Liu told The Associated Press on Saturday on the day following the end of the holy month of Ramadan that his country's stability is of paramount importance to his religious belief.

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Replica 'Hermione' to Set Sail for France after Canada Visit

A replica of the Hermione, the 18th-century ship that brought French General Lafayette to America, sailed to Canada Saturday on the last leg of its North American journey before its voyage back to France.

The faithful reproduction of the majestic French frigate fired its cannon 20 times as it arrived in the port of Lunenburg, not far from the city of Halifax, at around 10 am (1300 GMT).

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