World News

LONDON -- Britain's House of Commons has passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in England and Wales. [ Read more → ]

LONDON — Senior members of the Church of Scotland voted Monday to let some congregations choose ministers who are in same-sex relationships — an important compromise that must still pass further hurdles before it can become church law. [ Read more → ]

RABAT, Morocco -- A Moroccan court has convicted two men of homosexuality and public indecency, and sentenced each to four months in prison, in the latest case against gays in this North African nation. [ Read more → ]

BEIJING — Police in central China have detained the 18-year-old organizer of a gay pride march in a sign of the government's nervousness over a growing civil society and demands for stronger individual rights. [ Read more → ]

PARIS — French President Francois Hollande has signed a law authorizing gay marriage and adoption by same-sex couples, after months of nationwide protests and wrenching debate. [ Read more → ]

TBILISI, Georgia — Thousands of anti-gay protesters, including Orthodox priests, occupied a central street in Georgia's capital Friday, with some threatening to lash with stinging nettles any participant in a gay pride parade which was to take place there. [ Read more → ]

PARIS -- France's constitutional council, the country's highest constitutional authority, on Friday rejected a challenge by conservative lawmakers to the country's new marriage equality law, saying the law is constitutional. [ Read more → ]

THE HAGUE, Netherlands -- Across Europe, gay couples are scared of publicly engaging in even the most basic expression of their affection: Holding hands. [ Read more → ]

LISBON, Portugal -- Portugal's Parliament has passed a law allowing same-sex married couples to adopt their partners' children, but lawmakers rejected legislation granting gay couples the same adoption rights as heterosexuals. [ Read more → ]

LGBT rights advocates observed the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (or IDAHO) in more than 100 countries around the world Friday, commemorating the May 17, 1990 decision by the World Health Organization that decategorized homosexuality as a mental disorder. [ Read more → ]

SEOUL, South Korea -- An openly gay filmmaker in South Korea on Wednesday said he plans to campaign to legalize same-sex marriage in the conservative nation, while announcing plans to marry his partner of nine years. [ Read more → ]

MOSCOW -- As news spread over the weekend of the horrific torture and murder of a young gay man in southern Russia, LGBTQ activists in the country are warning that such violence is escalating rapidly and with more frequency. [ Read more → ]

BRASILIA, Brazil -- Brazil's National Council of Justice on Tuesday said that notary publics throughout the country must register same-sex civil unions as marriages if the couple requests it. [ Read more → ]

HONG KONG -- Hong Kong's top court granted a transgender woman the right to marry her boyfriend Monday in a watershed ruling that falls short of allowing same-sex marriage. [ Read more → ]

VOLGOGRAD, Russia -- Two men have been arrested for torturing a 23-year-old man to death in Russia in an apparent homophobic attack, investigators said Sunday. [ Read more → ]

BRASILIA, Brazil — Brazil is guaranteeing homosexual couples' right to access assisted fertilization. [ Read more → ]

MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay — Uruguay's President Jose Mujica’s has signed the country's marriage equality bill into law, making the South American country the 12th nation in the world and third in the Americas to legalize same-sex marriage. [ Read more → ]

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan -- Dozens of transgender activists and allies gathered outside a Canadian bridal shop on Saturday to show support for a woman who said she was refused service at the store because she is transgender. [ Read more → ]

LONDON – British media are reporting that a senior Conservative Party politician has been arrested on suspicion of raping one man and sexually assaulting another. [ Read more → ]

MISSISSAUGA, Ontario — A Canadian real estate agent who distributed anti-gay marketing flyers promoting “traditional” families as "best for the future of the kids” has been terminated, according to his employer. [ Read more → ]