AFP news

European and Asian markets rose on Friday, tracking Wall Street gains, as China said it was considering a US offer to negotiate steep tariffs.

Media rights group RSF warned Friday about "an alarming deterioration in press freedom" in the United States under President Donald Trump as well as "unprecedented" difficulties for independent journalists around the world.

Hong Kong's economy grew by 3.1 percent in the first quarter of the year, the city's government said Friday, though it warned US tariffs had heightened "downside risks" in the global economy.

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to cut public funding for NPR and PBS, accusing the news outlets of being biased in his latest attack on traditional media.

TikTok was hit with a massive EU fine of 530 million euros ($600 million) Friday, accused of sending personal data of Europeans to China and failing to guarantee it was shielded from access by Chinese authorities.

On a torn-up road near the refugee camp where she once lived, Saja Bawaqneh said she struggled to find hope 100 days after an Israeli offensive in the occupied West Bank forced her to flee.

An Australian woman accused of murdering three people by dishing up a toxic mushroom-laced beef Wellington never asked after her dying guests' wellbeing, her husband told a court Friday.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says he has a "mountain to climb" in elections Saturday, despite leading the opinion polls, in a contest swayed by living costs and Trump tariffs.

Bangladesh's Islamists are readying to make political gains after being crushed for years by the government that was overthrown in a mass uprising last year, rallying hardline loyalists for eagerly anticipated elections.

Liverpool have wrapped up the Premier League title and the three relegated teams know their fate but the fight for the top five is reaching a climax.

With their sleek curves and chrome grilles, the classic American cars on sale at Yosuke Fukuda's yard ooze Californian cool but on Japanese roads new US vehicles are a rare sight -- much to President Donald Trump's annoyance.

Stung by the rocketing price of eggs -- and US supermarkets rationing a basic breakfast staple -- Yong-mi Kim decided to get some chickens to secure her own supply in southern California.

Syrian Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri on Thursday condemned what he called a "genocidal campaign" against his community after two days of sectarian clashes left 102 people dead.

Sales of Tesla cars in France plunged 59 percent in April, piling on more bad news for the electric vehicle company run by Elon Musk, the billionaire advisor to US President Donald Trump.

When he grows up, five-year-old Ahmad wants to be "stronger than Spider-Man".

Bushfires that erupted near Jerusalem were largely brought under control on Thursday, authorities said, with major roads reopened and firefighting teams still tackling lingering hotspots.

Tech giant Meta on Wednesday reported quarterly profits that were well above expectations, brushing aside market worries that its heavy investments in cloud computing and artificial intelligence would hamper growth.

Oil prices fell and stocks were mixed on Thursday in thin holiday trading, following weak US economic data that added to growth concerns.

United States officials have reached out to their Chinese counterparts for talks on vast tariffs that have hammered markets and global supply chains, a Beijing-backed outlet said on Thursday citing sources.

The estranged husband of an Australian woman accused of triple murder with a toxic mushroom-laced beef Wellington told a court on Thursday his father was "hunched" in pain before he died.

Hard-right and far-right parties are riding high in polls across Europe but their electoral success conceals divisions which could become major sources of tension if they win power, according to analysts.

Serbia's trade unions will for the first time join a protest Thursday called by student leaders, six months after the deadly train station tragedy that sparked mass demonstrations against corruption.

Rich in solar and wind power, and bulging in critical minerals for renewable energy technology, Australia touts itself as a leader in the race to net zero carbon emissions.

Centenarian Dorothea Barron recalled the wave of relief she felt when she heard World War II had finally come to an end.

Britain's two main parties are tipped to suffer losses Thursday in local elections likely to confirm the rise of hard-right populists and portend the splintering of a century-long political duopoly.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Wednesday that rapidly spreading wildfires near Jerusalem could reach the city, as he declared the situation a "national emergency".

The United States and Ukraine on Wednesday signed a minerals deal after a two-month delay, in what President Donald Trump's administration called a new form of US commitment to Kyiv after the end of military aid.

An Australian woman promised a "special meal" for her husband's family before dishing up a beef Wellington with death cap mushrooms that killed three of them, jurors heard Wednesday.

A US official on Wednesday told the International Court of Justice there were "serious concerns" about the impartiality of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. ICJ judges are holding a week of hearings to help them formulate an advisory opinion on Israel's obligations towards UN agencies delivering aid to Palestinians in Gaza.