FIFA defended the harsh punishment it handed down to Uruguay striker Luis Suarez for biting an opponent during the World Cup, despite complaints on Friday from his coach, politicians and even the man he bit that the record penalty was excessive.

Borrowing from Narendra Modi's phraseology, Pakistan on Tuesday said 'acche din aa rahe hain' for bilateral ties with India.

The United States decided not to inform Pakistan about its top-secret mission to kill Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad as it knew that elements in spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence maintained close ties with the al Qaeda and the Taliban, according to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Pakistan and Israel will define the relationship between the Modi government and the Middle East. While the region is concerned that India-Pakistan relations may become prickly in the Modi regime, it is also worried that the BJP government will give greater weightage to its ties with Israel.

Lucy Marion Edwards, crowned Miss Vermont 2014 recently, will represent the state in the Miss America contest in Atlantic City, New Jersey, September 14.

Markets ended lower with private banking majors and index heavyweights ITC and RIL leading the decline.

The moon took on an eerie blood-red hue on Tuesday during the first total lunar eclipse of 2014, a celestial sight that wowed potentially millions of stargazers across North and South America.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier has action-packed entertainment, raves Paloma Sharma.

'Indians go to vote next week -- the world's oldest democracy should both celebrate and perhaps analyse this event and its implications.' Dr S Jaishankar, India's ambassador to the US, offers prescriptions for India-US ties.

Aziz Haniffa walks through Beyond Bollywood: Indian Americans Shape the Nation, an exhibition that explores the 'American Dream' as lived by the community stretching far behind the stereotypes such as saris and temples and sadhus, at the Smithsonian, with curator Masum Momaya.

The Dwarkadhish Temple in Parlin, New Jersey, United States of America, celebrated the festival of joy and colours on March 22, which was attended by thousands of Indian Americans from across that country. Rediff.com's Paresh Gandhi brings us these exclusive photographs.

The body of Jasmine Joseph, 22, who went missing from her Syosset, Long Island, New York home since February 24, was found in her car at a busy parking lot not far from her home.

Neymar's hat-trick lit up a powerful Brazil performance as the 32 nations taking part in this year's World Cup tested out their squads on a busy night of friendlies on Wednesday which also brought victories for Spain, Germany and France.

A 2014 study revealed that socio-economic status also impacted levels of sexual satisfaction.

Double Davis Cup winner Tomas Berdych has called for the annual competition to be played every two years, warning the current format was destroying tennis's top team prize.

'In theory, yes, Hindus are very open. I'm one of them. I've coined the phrase 'open architecture'... But I think the Wendy Doniger group is not allowing open architecture. They are closing this architecture'... 'They are bringing a point of view in such a heavy-handed way that it tends to dominate and it tends to suppress the alternative points of view. So some kind of counteraction is necessary and using the law is a decent thing to do.' Rajiv Malhotra, one of Wendy Doniger's most vociferous critics, speaks to Rediff.com's Arthur J Pais about the prejudices created by American scholars about Hindu gods and Hinduism.

In an online chat, Prof Nora Burke Wagner, Assistant Director, Student Affairs and Anjali Khavnekar, India Co-ordinator for University of Cincinnati, USA discussed higher education in the US.

In a first, a third year Economics student from Jaipur has been offered the role of an analyst in a leading financial institution with an annual salary of US $70,000.

Asked if Narendra Modi as prime minister or for that matter the advent of a BJP government would lead to a different approach in dealing with the jihadi threat in India, Stephen Tankel, one of America's leading experts on terrorism in South Asia felt it is "highly unlikely because of the lack of coordination between intelligence agencies and inter-state police cooperation, as states zealously guarded their authority and prerogatives".'

The United States will continue to focus on the Asia-Pacific region and shape a future of greater security, President Barack Obama said on Wednesday, even as he vowed to veto any Congressional bill imposing new sanctions on Iran to give "diplomacy a chance to succeed".

Bollywood's biggest overseas event, the IIFA Awards, will be held in the US for the first time. Aseem Chhabra reports.

Bill Clinton was there. Hillary Clinton was there. New York's governor was there. But guess who stole the show at New York Mayor Bill de Blasio's inauguration? New York City 2014 Youth Poet Laureate Ramya Ramana! Ramya tells Arthur J Pais how poetry helps her fight inhumanity, racism and exploitation.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter cannot remember a World Cup host nation falling as far behind with their preparations as Brazil have, he said in an interview.

'The diplomat's arrest has led to a major diplomatic spat, the likes of which I have not seen in my nearly three decades of covering the US-India relationship, says Aziz Haniffa. 'The knee-jerk reaction by the powers-that-be in Delhi was myopic to say the least.'

The Indian agencies are trying to get in touch with the family of Sangeet Richard, the nanny who filed a complaint against Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade, who was arrested and later released last week in connection with an allegedly 'fradulent' visa application for her housekeeper and babysitter .

Nearly 100 world leaders including President Pranab Mukherjee and US President Barack Obama came together in an unprecedented act of homage to Nelson Mandela describing him as a "giant of history".

From battling cancer to making Michelle Obama and Miss America Nina Davuluri groove to Bollywood tunes, Nakul Dev Mahajan has had a whirlwind year.

An art exhibition called Our Name is Rebel, at the Guerilla Cafe in Berkeley, California, celebrated the centenary of the Ghadar Party, the Indian Diaspora-led movement for India's independence from British rule.

The trailer looks solid and promising.

America's NSA cannot be possibly tracking only suspected terrorists in India, says Vicky Nanjappa

American talk show host Rush Limbaugh has shocked the Catholic Church by accusing Pope Francis of preaching Marxism.

32nd Miss India USA, Monica Gill, and Miss Teen India USA Alycia Rehmatullah tell George Joseph what makes girls successful.

Mexico have confirmed Miguel 'Piojo' Herrera will coach the national squad at the World Cup finals in Brazil next year.

Pakistan have included uncapped opener Sharjeel Khan in their squad for this month's Twenty20 internationals against Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, but senior players Shoaib Malik and Abdul Razzaq were left out.

The horror in numbers: November 26, 2008. 66 hours. 10 terrorists. 166 innocent people dead.

While all eyes are on India's mission to Mars, there are 80,000 among us who are readying for their very own 'mission' to the Red Planet. Rediff.com catches up with a few space enthusiasts who worry little about the 'one-way trip'.

It would be wrong to blame only Bollywood or the fairness cream industry, or the masses that cater to both, because clearly, all of us encourage this lust for whiteness that films and companies only cash in on.

Rediff takes a look at some of the tallest statues and how tall they stand in comparison.

The challenge for India and Russia is to make the relationship more broad-based and give it greater economic content, says former ambassador to Russia, Ronen Sen, who spoke exclusively to Sheela Bhatt

Mexico's national coach Victor Vucetich says he has been notified by the country's soccer federation that he is no longer in the job, according to an interview posted on Thursday night on ESPN.com.