AFP news

World leaders called for peace in the Middle East and Ukraine at the BRICS summit in Russia on Wednesday, as President Vladimir Putin told them he welcomed offers to mediate in the Ukraine conflict.

Two survivors of a deadly 2017 suicide attack on an Ariana Grande concert in northern England in 2017 won a harassment claim on Wednesday against a former television producer who claims the attack was a hoax.

US regulators on Tuesday finalized regulations for "powered lift" vehicles, opening the door for commercial air taxis.

Thousands of artists including ABBA singer Bjorn Ulvaeus, Hollywood actress Julianne Moore and Nobel laureate Kazuo Ishiguro have signed a statement warning about the unlicensed use of artificial intelligence.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected a strategic missile base, state media said Wednesday, releasing images of him viewing transport and launch vehicles for the country's largest and most powerful intercontinental ballistic weapons.

European and Asian stock markets traded mixed Wednesday and oil prices retreated as investors focused on company earnings and the outlook for the US and Chinese economies.

A Chinese aircraft carrier group sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Wednesday, Taiwan's defence minister said, a day after Beijing held a live-fire exercise near the self-ruled island.

King Charles III landed in Samoa Wednesday to join his first Commonwealth summit as monarch, hoping to breathe new life into a bloc seen by critics as "a leftover of empire".

Boeing will be under a spotlight Wednesday as the beleaguered aviation giant announces what is expected to be its biggest quarterly loss in four years, and striking employees vote on whether to end a costly weeks-long stoppage.

Kamala Harris faces voters' questions at a live forum Wednesday in must-win Pennsylvania as the vice president and her rival Donald Trump battle for undecided voters in the closing stretch of an extremely close White House race.

The World Health Organization said Wednesday that "intense bombardment" and "escalating violence" in northern Gaza had forced it to postpone the final phase of a child polio vaccination drive.

Ukraine on Wednesday called on any North Korean troops fighting for Russia to surrender, after South Korea said over a thousand more had been deployed by Pyongyang.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday touted the creation of a new "multipolar world order" at the BRICS summit, a gathering of world leaders he hopes will show that Western attempts to isolate Moscow over its Ukraine offensive have failed.

When Kim Ye-ji first tried shooting at age 12 she could not lift the gun.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday "now is the time" to end the conflict in Gaza, and urged Israel to avoid further escalation with Iran.

Donald Trump may have become involved with a porn star, but if elected president he could try shutting down the entire industry, adult film stars are warning in a push to get young men to vote against the Republican next month.

Anastasia Gridina breaks down when she talks about keeping in touch with her three-year-old daughter Darina -- who is stranded in Ukrainian-occupied territory in Russia's Kursk region.

China's military began a live-fire exercise near Taiwan on Tuesday, maintaining pressure on the self-ruled island after staging large-scale drills and President Xi Jinping called for troops to prepare for war.

Europe's main stock markets dropped Tuesday after gains for Chinese indices, as traders sought to ascertain the outlook for US interest rates ahead of the presidential election.

Donald Trump surrogate Elon Musk's offer of a million dollars to one registered voter in a swing state every day until the US Election Day on November 5 has raised questions about the legality of such a move.

North Korea has not sent troops to Russia to help Moscow fight Ukraine, one of its United Nations representatives said Monday, dismissing Seoul's claims as "groundless rumour".

Apple CEO Tim Cook was in China for the second time this year, he said on social media Tuesday, as the US technology giant seeks to shore up slumping sales in a crucial overseas market.

One of the tightest US election races of modern times enters its final, two-week stretch Tuesday, with Republican Donald Trump making a special pitch to Latino voters as Democratic rival Kamala Harris sits down for a national network interview.

A collection of rare Tintin comic albums is up for auction in Paris on Wednesday, many signed by cartoonist Herge, who wrote "Tintin is just another version of me" on one flyleaf.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel Tuesday to push for a ceasefire in Gaza after his administration called for an end to the war in Lebanon "as soon as possible".

It's a job that didn't exist until recently but becoming an influencer is an ever more popular career path among Gen-Z youth in the modern era of social media.

Inside her cafe in the frontline Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, Anna appeared calm as she poured a capuccino, filling the room with the scent of Java roast.

Jeanne Allaire Kayigirwa was sure she was going to die three times during the Rwandan genocide in which most of her friends and family were massacred.

The untold story of how around 1,000 children were rescued from Rwanda during the bloodiest and most chaotic days of its genocide is finally coming to light three decades after they were saved from the slaughter.