U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry Thursday called on key Asian allies South Korea and Japan to improve their deeply strained relations and work together for regional stability.

"It's up to Japan and the Republic of Korea to put history behind them," Kerry told a joint press conference after talks with his South Korean counterpart Yun Byung-Se.

Scores of alleged Taliban fighters walked free from jail in Afghanistan on Thursday, triggering condemnation from the United States which said they were responsible for killing NATO and Afghan soldiers as well as civilians.

The release of the prisoners further worsened the bitter relationship between Kabul and Washington as U.S.-led foreign troops prepare to withdraw after 13 years fighting the Islamist militants.

U.S. Senator Rand Paul filed suit Wednesday against President Barack Obama and other officials in a bid to end the secret program that scoops up telephone data on virtually all Americans.

The libertarian-leaning Paul, a potential 2016 presidential contender, said he and a prominent Tea Party group filed their "historic" civil action on behalf of "everyone in America that has a phone," in what he described as potentially the largest class-action lawsuit of its kind.

President Nicolas Maduro vowed Wednesday to tighten security in cities across Venezuela after protests against his government turned deadly, killing three people and injuring 26 others.

"There will be no coup d'etat in Venezuela; you can rest assured. Democracy will continue, and the revolution will continue," Maduro said on national television.

Suspected Thai militants shot dead five people, including a nine-year-old boy and a Buddhist monk, in the latest attacks in the kingdom's insurgency-torn deep south, police said Thursday.

The killings appeared to be revenge attacks for the recent deaths of three young Muslim brothers.

The Pakistani Taliban on Thursday claimed credit for a bomb blast that killed twelve policemen on a bus, the latest in a series of near-daily attacks since the government called for peace talks with militants.

The explosion in the commercial hub of Karachi, which wounded almost 60 others, comes as Pakistan has been negotiating with the Taliban to end their seven-year insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives.

The United States Thursday ended a decade-long boycott of Indian opposition leader Narendra Modi over deadly religious riots, as its envoy held talks with the man tipped to be next prime minister.

Nancy Powell, the U.S. ambassador to India, shook hands with Modi who presented her with a bouquet at his official residence in the western state of Gujarat where he is chief minister, before closed-door talks.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will press China this week to dispel ambiguity over its territorial claims and to exert greater pressure on North Korea to rein in its nuclear program.

As Kerry headed out on his fifth trip to North and Southeast Asia, U.S. officials warned of Washington's renewed concern at rising territorial tensions driven by competing claims on disputed islands.

Unidentified assailants on a motorcycle fired into a crowd of anti-government protesters in Caracas, wounding at least two people.

The gunmen fled after firing the shots outside the attorney general's office, where protesters had gathered to demonstrate against the government of President Nicolas Maduro.

U.S. President Barack Obama will travel to Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and the Philippines in April, the White House said Wednesday.

The visit is intended to quell doubts in the region about Obama's strategy of rebalancing U.S. power to Asia, following the cancellation of his last planned trip there in October for domestic political reasons.