On its towering hilltop perch, the Krak des Chevaliers, one of the world's best preserved Crusader castles, held off a siege by the Muslim warrior Saladin nearly 900 years ago. It was lauded by Lawrence of Arabia for its beauty and has been one of the crown jewels of Syria's tourism.
But it has fallen victim to the chaos of Syria's uprising and the crackdown against it by President Bashar Assad's regime. Recently, gunmen broke into the castle, threw out the staff and began excavations to loot the site, says Bassam Jammous, general director of the Antiquities and Museum Department in Damascus.

The Jessica Simpson baby watch finally came to an end Tuesday.
Simpson gave birth to a daughter named Maxwell Drew Johnson in Los Angeles on Tuesday, said publicist Lauren Auslander.

Zahi Zeidan vows he won't back down as he stands in his bomb-shattered restaurant and oversees workers carrying debris out of dining rooms where on a good night patrons are usually drinking and dancing.
"They targeted us because we serve alcohol," said Zeidan. "Selling alcohol is my right. This is my country and I will not accept that people dictate to me what I work."

PepsiCo Inc. is tweeting to a new generation of music lovers.
The No. 2 soda company said Monday that it's partnering with Twitter to provide streaming videos of live music concerts to Pepsi's followers on the social networking site. The deal is part of Pepsi's new global ad campaign that will also feature a TV ad with singer Nicki Minaj.

McDonald's is a sponsor for the London Olympics — and a British doctors' group says that's sending the wrong message in a country with ballooning obesity.
Big Macs, fries and milkshakes will be part of McDonald's exclusively branded menu at the Olympics and the fast-food giant will soon be opening its largest franchise in the world, a two-story cathedral-like restaurant that seats 1,500 customers, at London's Olympic Park. McDonald's will be the only restaurateur allowed to sell brand-name food at the Games and there will also be a separate McDonald's within the Athletes Village — in addition to three others at the Olympic Park.

The largest-ever collection of Leonardo da Vinci's drawings of the human body is going on display at Buckingham Palace.
The exhibition at the palace's Queen's Gallery includes 87 pages from the artist's notebooks and groundbreaking anatomical sketches.

With one thumping header, Vincent Kompany may well have tilted the balance of football power in Manchester from red to blue.
Kompany's goal in first-half stoppage time was enough to give Manchester City a 1-0 win over Manchester United on Monday and put his team in position to secure a first Premier League title in 44 years.

Germany forward Lukas Podolski is leaving Cologne to join Arsenal, the Bundesliga club said Monday, confirming the worst-kept secret in European football.
Podolski will make the switch in the summer, one year before his contract was due to expire. Cologne said the two clubs have agreed not to release details of the deal.

New research sends a stark warning to overweight teens: If you develop diabetes, you'll have a very tough time keeping it under control.
A major study, released Sunday, tested several ways to manage blood sugar in teens newly diagnosed with diabetes and found that nearly half of them failed within a few years and 1 in 5 suffered serious complications. The results spell trouble for a nation facing rising rates of "diabesity" — Type 2 diabetes brought on by obesity.

Al-Qaida in Yemen said it released on Sunday 73 soldiers captured by its fighters during battles with government forces in the south of the country.
The terror network said in an emailed statement that the release of the soldiers followed mediation efforts by tribal elders and senior clerics. Relatives of some freed prisoners confirmed the release.
