By Emma Farge BAMAKO (Reuters) - President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita won power with a pledge to resurrect a "strong and united" Mali from the ashes of a war against Islamists militants yet six months later he has done little to heal the wounds of the conflict. Elected with a reputation as a strongm an, Keita has focused on restoring control over Mali's army after a March 2012 coup. The putsch plunged Mali into chaos that allowed Islamists to seize the north, forcing France to intervene in its ex-colony. Restoring stability to north Mali is a crucial step in stamping out al Qaeda cells and traffickers operating in the arid Sahel belt south of the Sahara.

Several thousand mourners gathered in central Istanbul on Wednesday for the funeral of a 15-year-old boy wounded during anti-government demonstrations last summer whose death on Tuesday triggered protests across Turkey. Riot police fired water cannon and tear gas on thousands of demonstrators in several cities overnight, adding to pre-election worries for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan as he battles a corruption scandal that has become one of the biggest challenges of his decade in power. Berkin Elvan, then aged 14, got caught up in street battles in Istanbul between police and protesters on June 16 while going to buy bread for his family.

HONG KONG (AP) — Within an industry notorious for impoverishing shareholders and irking customers, Malaysia Airlines has stood out for its years of restructurings and losses. The company now has global recognition of a far more unfavorable kind after one of its jets disappeared four days ago with 239 people aboard.