Could Mogadishu be about to lose its title as the world's most dangerous city? Mary Harper says soon there'll be a new parliament and a new president in the Somali capital and there's hope the days of war, drought and famine could come to an end.
The authorities in Yemen helped by the US have been taking the battle to al-Qaeda but Natalia Antelava says some believe hearts and minds are being lost in the process.
Three years ago the north-eastern tip of Sri Lanka was the scene of the Tamil Tigers' last big battle against the Sri Lankan army. Charles Haviland's been allowed to visit the area.
Henry Nicholls, who's been in the Galapagos Islands out in the Pacific Ocean, says people there are finding it hard to pick themselves up after the death of their most famous resident, the giant tortoise, Lonesome George.
The annual Bayreuth Festival has been taking place in the south of Germany and Stephen Evans says that once again it's being stalked by controversy.