BAKU (Reuters) – Azeri exit polls pointed to victory for incumbent Ilham Aliyev on Wednesday in a presidential election condemned by the opposition as a charade to extend the Aliyev family dynasty in the oil-producing state.

THE HAGUE (Reuters) – The UN’s highest court ordered Russia and Georgia on Wednesday to ensure the security of all ethnic groups in the breakaway Georgian regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and adjacent areas of Georgia.

KABUL (Reuters) – Afghan and NATO-led forces killed 18 insurgents overnight as dozens of Taliban prepared to attack the capital of the southern province of Helmand for the second time in three days, police said on Wednesday.