A 61-year-old matador nicknamed "Little gypsy of America" fell headfirst into the dust when he was headbutted by a bull. He recovered to the applause of the crowd, and later killed the bull with a sword thrust to the back of its neck.

He was among six veteran bullfighters performing for free on a recent Saturday in front of about 150 people at an emerald-green hacienda in Colombia's Andes. The festival was to raise money for a foundation hoping to save the centuries-old tradition from a national ban being pushed by politicians who argue bullfighting is cruel and unethical.

Archaeologists said Monday they have found the oldest pearling town in the Persian Gulf on an island off one of the northern sheikhdoms of the United Arab Emirates.

Artifacts found in this town on Siniyah Island in Umm al-Quwain, likely once home to thousands of people and hundreds of homes, date as far back as the region's pre-Islamic history in the late 6th century. While older pearling towns have been mentioned in historical texts, this represents the first time archaeologists say they have physically found one from this ancient era across the nations of the Persian Gulf.

Tourists in Rome checking out the Pantheon, Italy's most-visited cultural site, will soon be charged a 5-euro ($5.28) entrance fee under an agreement signed Thursday by Italian culture and church officials.

Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano said the move was a matter of "good sense." The introduction of an entrance fee comes five years after a previous government shelved plans to start charging visitors 2 euros.

Centuries-old cultural artifacts that had been illegally smuggled out from Cambodia were welcomed home Friday at a celebration led by Prime Minister Hun Sen, who offered thanks for their return and appealed for further efforts to retrieve such stolen treasures.

Many, if not all, of the items displayed at the government's offices Friday had been looted from Cambodia during periods of war and instability, including in the 1970s when the country was under the brutal rule of the communist Khmer Rouge. Through unscrupulous art dealers, they made their way into the hands of private collectors and museums around the world.

Behind some great men, there is a bigger brother.

Claude Monet's older sibling is the focus of a landmark Paris exhibit illuminating the hitherto unknown role Leon Monet played in the French impressionist painter's life and art. Leon — a color chemist four years his senior -- is now understood to have been critical in the emergence of Monet's commercial success as well as the famed color palette that created masterpieces like the "Water Lilies" series.

On a recent school day, the Rene Mouawad High School in Beirut was empty, its classrooms dark, just like all of Lebanon's public schools have been for most of the past three months. Its striking teachers were protesting in front of the Education Ministry, not far away.

About a hundred teachers joined the demonstration outside the ministry, blocking traffic and holding placards demanding pay raises. "We are done with charity," said Nisreen Chahine, the head of the union for contractor teachers. "We are not negotiating anymore. They should either rightfully pay us or go home."

Austrian police warned Wednesday of a possible "Islamist-motivated attack" in Vienna against churches, citing undisclosed information received by the country's intelligence service.

Police in Vienna tweeted that they had heightened security in front of certain buildings and increased the presence of officers in the Austrian capital.

Small and subtle, the blue ribbons worn by many celebrities at the Oscars nonetheless had an important message: support refugees.

According to a statement from the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, donning the #WithRefugees ribbons Sunday "sends a powerful visual message that everyone has the right to seek safety, whoever, wherever, whenever they are."

For her 100th book club pick, Oprah Winfrey relied on the same instincts she has drawn upon from the start: Does the story move her? Does she think about it for days after? In a work of fiction, do the characters seem real to her?

"When I don't move on, that's always a sign to me there's something powerful and moving," Winfrey told The Associated Press in a recent telephone interview.

The British Ambassador to Lebanon, Hamish Cowell, hosted a reception at his residence last night to celebrate the sixth anniversary of the Alumni Association for Lebanese Graduates of UK Universities. It also marked the 40th Anniversary of Chevening, the UK government’s international scholarships and fellowships program. It’s a one year fully funded scholarship for individuals with ideas to create a positive change.

Guests included some of the most talented and successful Lebanese graduates of UK universities and Lebanese Army officers who attended UK staff colleges and military academies were present. Amongst them were lawyers, human rights activists, economists, entrepreneurs and politicians, some of whom graduated from amongst the UK’s most prestigious universities.