IRS probe — Moving quickly to stem a raging controversy, the new acting head of the Internal Revenue Service started cleaning house Thursday by replacing the supervisor who oversaw agents involved in targeting tea party groups. A day after she refused to answer questions at a congressional hearing, Lois Lerner was placed on administrative leave, according to congressional sources. Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, a senior Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, said Lerner was asked to resign but refused, so she was placed on leave.

Arias jury — Jurors who spent five months determining Jodi Arias’ fate couldn’t decide whether she should get life in prison or die for murdering her boyfriend, sending prosecutors back to the drawing board to rehash the shocking case of sex, lies and violence to another 12 people. Judge Sherry Stephens gave a heavy sigh as she announced a mistrial in the penalty phase of the case Thursday and scheduled a July 18 retrial.

Niger attacks — Suicide bombers in Niger detonated two car bombs simultaneously, one inside a military camp in the city of Agadez and another in the remote town of Arlit at a French-operated uranium mine, killing 26 people and injuring 30, according to officials in Niger and France. A surviving attacker took a group of soldiers hostage, and authorities were attempting to negotiate their release. Both attacks were claimed by a spinoff of al-Qaida, the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa, or MUJAO, which earlier vowed to avenge the 4-month-old French-led military intervention which ousted them from neighboring Mali’s north.

Mideast peace talks — Injecting a sense of urgency into his mission to revive the moribund peace process, Secretary of State John Kerry held a round of meetings Thursday with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. “I am convinced, with great humility, that this moment is a critical one for the region and particularly for Israel, for Palestine and for Jordan,” Kerry said before meeting with President Shimon Peres of Israel. Kerry later traveled to Ramallah, in the West Bank, to meet with the president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, and his aides.

Syria talks — Members of Syria’s main political opposition group on Thursday began three days of talks to elect a new leader and formulate their positions before an expected international conference in Geneva next month that is meant to pave the way for negotiations on a possible transitional government in Syria. Members of the opposition group expressed hesitation about attending the Geneva meeting, and they asked for clarification on what to expect before committing to it, while emphasizing that such talks might be futile unless Syrian President Bashar Assad is removed.

Malaysian opposition — The Malaysian government began a crackdown on political opponents Thursday, arresting three government critics, including a prominent member of Parliament, and charging a student activist with sedition. An election two weeks prior showed the governing party losing support broadly. The crackdown may be an attempt to pre-empt a demonstration planned for Saturday to protest accusations of fraud in the election, analysts said. The opposition won the popular vote in the May 5 election but failed to take control of Parliament.

Achebe burial — Writer Chinua Achebe shunned Nigeria’s corrupt politicians and twice turned down national honors, never fearing to criticize those he felt ruined his country. On Thursday, however, the lawmakers and the country’s elite came to praise him. Hundreds attended Achebe’s funeral among the rolling hills of his eastern Nigeria home, a service that saw President Goodluck Jonathan literally hold up the writer’s books.