World briefs 8/1/16

Tokyo elects first female governor

TOKYO -- Tokyo on Sunday elected its first female governor to lead the city as it prepares to host the 2020 Olympics, as voters turned to a leader promising clean politics after two predecessors resigned over money scandals. Yuriko Koike was announced the winner by Japanese media as soon as voting ended, based on her definitive lead in exit polls. She will take charge of a capital with a population of more than 13 million and an annual budget bigger than Sweden's. "I am pushing for a Tokyo where people's lives will be better, and everyone can shine -- men and women, children and adults, the elderly and the disabled," Koike said, appearing at her campaign office, bowing deeply and waving to cheering supporters.

Explosion shakes Afghan capital

KABUL, Afghanistan -- An Afghan police official said there has been a strong explosion near a guesthouse for foreigners in Kabul. It was not clear what caused the blast, which shook much of the capital at 1:25 a.m. today. The blast was followed by power outages. Gul Agha Rohani, Kabul's deputy chief of police, said the blast happened east of the city's international airport. Rohani named the Northgate Hotel, which houses international contractors, without other details. An email message from Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the insurgents had attacked that hotel. A man who answered the phone at the hotel said there had been a large explosion at the facility.

Turkish troops put under gov't rule

ISTANBUL -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a new presidential decree Sunday that introduced sweeping changes to Turkey's military in the wake of a failed coup last month, bringing the armed forces more under civilian authority. The decree, the third issued amid a three-month state of emergency declared after the attempted coup, gives the president and prime minister the authority to issue direct orders to the commanders of the army, air force and navy. It also announces the discharge of 1,389 military personnel, including Erdogan's chief military adviser, who had been arrested days after the attempted coup, the chief of general staff's charge d'affaires and the defense minister's chief secretary.

Pope exhorts belief 'in a new humanity'

KRAKOW, Poland -- Pope Francis encouraged hundreds of thousands of young people at a global gathering Sunday to "believe in a new humanity" that is stronger than evil and refuses to see borders as barriers. His appeal came at the end of World Youth Day, a weeklong event held in southern Poland this year that draws young Catholics from around the world every two to three years to a different country for a spiritual pep rally. The youth gathering was Francis' main focus during his pilgrimage to Poland, but over five days in this deeply Catholic nation, he also prayed in silence at the former Nazi death camp Auschwitz and implored God to keep away a devastating wave of terrorism now hitting the world. He also met with Poland's political and church leaders.

-- From wire reports