AFP news

Western leaders will this week mark on the beaches of northern France 80 years since Allied troops surged into Nazi occupied Europe in the World War II D-Day landings, haunted by the war again raging on the continent as Ukraine battles Russian invasion.

Nearly two decades after its then-president described women as "two-legged washing machines," Mexico has elected a woman to lead a country with a long history of gender-based bigotry and violence.

Feebly shaded by trees in the blistering heat, desperate civilians throng a displacement camp in tents and ramshackle shelters after fleeing jihadist violence in northeastern Burkina Faso.

The Netflix hit "Heeramandi" depicts the plush and powerful lives of courtesans in the 1940s, but there is little glamour for modern Pakistani sex workers in the faded red-light district where the series is set.

Fresh strikes were reported in the Gazan city of Rafah overnight into Monday, as mediators urged Israel and Hamas to agree to a truce and hostage release deal outlined by US President Joe Biden.

India's six-week election was staggering in its size and logistical complexity, but also in the "unprecedented" scale of online disinformation.

Iga Swiatek ramped up her pursuit of a third successive French Open crown on Sunday by storming into the quarter-finals with a 40-minute blitz, while Carlos Alcaraz produced an assured display to blow past Felix Auger-Aliassime.

South Africa's ruling ANC said Sunday that it would enter talks with other parties to form a new government, after losing its three-decade-old absolute majority in a watershed election.

Israel battled and bombarded Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Sunday as mediators called on both sides to agree to a truce and hostage release deal outlined by US President Joe Biden.

A top opponent of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he would return to jail Sunday, the end of the bail term issued to allow him to campaign in just-concluded national elections.

Mexican voters are expected to make history Sunday by electing their first woman president, a milestone in the crime-plagued country where gender-based violence and discrimination have long been rampant.

EU voters go to the polls in a week's time, with far-right, nationalist parties expected to do well in the bloc's next parliament in a time of social and geopolitical uncertainty.

As Japan plays host to a record influx of tourists, one of the country's more private attractions -- the high-tech toilet -- is becoming a must-have in luxury bathrooms worldwide.

Real Madrid withstood a Borussia Dortmund barrage to win the Champions League for a 15th time as Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Junior struck late in a 2-0 win at Wembley on Saturday.

Alexander Zverev came back from the brink of defeat to reach the French Open last 16 for a seventh successive year on Saturday as Novak Djokovic took aim at equalling Roger Federer's record for Grand Slam match wins.

South Africa's ruling ANC faced a search for allies to help it form a new government Saturday after it lost its three-decade-old absolute majority in a watershed election.

It was predicted to go badly but turned out to be worse: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa led the ANC to its worst election result since the end of apartheid, one which threatens his survival.

India's gruelling heatwave is set to abate soon but that was no consolation to housewife Bindwasvini Devi, one of the millions braving Saturday's scorching sun to vote in the final day of national elections.

Israeli forces hammered Rafah in southern Gaza with tanks and artillery Saturday, hours after US President Joe Biden said Israel was offering a new roadmap towards a full ceasefire.

Indians flocked to the polls under scorching heat in the Hindu holy city of Varanasi on Saturday as a marathon national election reached its final day, six weeks after voting first began.

El Salvador's gang-busting President Nayib Bukele will be sworn in for a second term Saturday, more popular -- and more powerful -- than ever.

At a job fair for soon-to-be graduates in central Shanghai, recruiters sat bored under washed-out tarpaulins as rain and an apparent lack of interest kept potential young employees away.

Reigning champion Iga Swiatek celebrated her 23rd birthday by brushing aside Marie Bouzkova to reach the French Open last 16 on Friday, while Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz both powered into the second week.

Negotiations towards a global agreement on how to handle future pandemics seemed on course Friday to be extended for up to a year as countries try to bridge their differences.

South African parties on Friday jostled to set out their stalls ahead of talks on a possible coalition government, with the ruling ANC on course to lose the absolute parliamentary majority it has held for three decades.

Newly convicted felon Donald Trump was set to address journalists Friday after the stunning guilty verdict in his New York criminal court threw the 2024 presidential campaign into uncharted territory.

A small, seemingly unremarkable fern that only grows on a remote Pacific island was on Friday crowned the Guinness World Record holder for having the largest genome of any organism on Earth.

Cricket ventures into uncharted territory on Saturday as the first ever major tournament to be staged in the United States gets under way in Texas with the opening game of the T20 World Cup.

Most markets rose Friday after falling for much of the week, with below-forecast US data injecting some fresh life into hopes the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this year.