This is the mammoth tornado that ripped throught the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, flattening buildings, including two schools, and sparking fires in what many observers believe may be one of the most destructive tornadoes ever in the US. Officials now say 24 are confirmed dead, nine of them children, though they expect the toll to climb.

Raha Moharrak, 25, has stepped over sexist stereotypes in her nation to become the first Saudi female and youngest Arab to cllimb the world's highest mountain. She was part of team called Arabs With Altitude. "I really don’t care about being the first, so long as it inspires someone else to be the second," said Moharrak.

Italian beach resort owner Marcello Di Finizio is spending his second day perched on the dome of St. Peter's Basilica to protest Italian austerity measures that he complains are ruining lives and businesses. The nation is trapped in its longest recession in decades and record unemployment rates.

"The people of Moore should know that their country will remain on the ground there for them, beside them, as long as it takes," President Obama said today as he pledged urgent aid in the wake of one of the most destructive storms in the nation's history. There is a "long road ahead" but you "will not travel that path alone," he told survivors.

Mideast border tensions flared again as Israel opened fire on Syria after an Israeli vehicle was struck across the Golan Heights ceasefire line. Syria claims it destroyed the vehicle because it crossed into its territory, which Israel denies. Syria warned attempts to violate its sovereignty would be "met with immediate retaliation."

Shell-shocked residents of Moore were still searching for loved ones after a mammoth two-mile-wide tornado shredded a swath of the Oklahoma town, killing dozens, many of them children. At least one elementary school was crushed, trapping kids. "Our hearts are broken for the parents," said Governor Mary Fallin.

It's often nice to be close to transportation but few would choo-choose to live just feet from train tracks. Residents of this Vietnamese village vanish inside their homes twice a day to avoid accidents when the train comes speeding past their doors.

A Hofstra University student was accidentally shot dead by a Long Island police officer when he opened fire on a home intruder who was pointing a gun at the student's head in her off-campus home, then turned the weapon on the cop. College junior Andrea Rebello, 21, and the armed robber died at the scene.

Living turtles, fish and salamanders in tiny bags of water are being sold in Beijing as key rings for children. To the horror of animal rights activists, the sale of live animals as trinkets is a growing trend in China, and completely legal. The creatures can barely move and critics say they're likely to die within weeks.

An intrepid Telegraph reporter prowls the roads of the German village of Jamel, where 60 percent of the residents subscribe to the neo-Nazi beliefs of their landlord and leader, Sven Krueger, 36, who is serving time in prison for illegal possession of a gun. "One wishes dearly" that the situation would "go away, but it won't," said Jamel's mayor.

Car and suicide bombings in markets and bus stations killed at least 86 people in the latest violence mostly in Shia Muslim sections of Iraq, pushing the week's death toll to 230 and marking some of the worst sectarian bloodshed the nation has seen in years. Baghdad was hardest hit, but attacks also occurred in Samarra, Basra and Hilla.

Warning to would-be home invaders: Look out above. A new thief-hunting "home drone" created by a Japanese security firm will serve as a mechinical guard activated when an alarm is tripped to harass and video any wanna-be intruder. The drone will fly to the scene of a break-in, dodge any aggressive actions and hover until human security arrives.

Yahoo plans to acquire the social networking site Tumblr for a cool $1.1 billion, and the deal is expected to be announced today. The bold purchase would be the largest acquisition of such a company in years, and is an attempt by Yahoo to revive its fading fortunes.

Syrian government troops have launched a major offensive to retake the strategically important rebel stronghold of Qusayr near Lebanon, and killed dozens, mostly civilians trapped by the fighting. Syrian forces are reportedly being supported by Hezbollah militants, and Israeli officials are vowing to take action.

They're at it again. North Korea fired two short-range missiles off its east coast, making six launches in three days in what Pyongyang is describing as legitimate military drills. "Our military is conducting these exercises to cope with the mounting war measures from the US and South Korea," officials said.

Taiwan is demanding justice from the Philippines, after the Filipino coast guard shot and killed a Taiwanese fisherman in disputed waters that both countries claim. Mainland China is keeping a close eye on the tension, as China has its own territorial disputes in the region.

This amateur video, shot over the weekend, shows Syrian rebels under intense attack as their stronghold of Qusayr is shelled and they scramble to save themselves and fallen comrades. The death toll is mounting, but Reuters reports that several dead include Syrian government troops and their Hezbollah supporters.

The government of Bangladesh and Western retailers are making steps towards improving work conditions in the country, three weeks after a factory collapse killed over 1,100 in Dhaka.

Thieves ripped a safe from a hotel room wall near the Cannes Film Festival and stole some $1 million worth of jewelry being held by a representative of the Swiss jewelry firm Chopard. Though the company often loans gems to actresses on the red carpet at Cannes, a spokeswoman insisted the lifted jewels were not destined for the festival.

President Obama, speaking at a joint press conference with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, says that Turkey and the U.S. agree that Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad must give up power to a transitional government.