AFP news

Mothers in crimson dresses and fathers clutching umbrellas huddled together in drizzly Beijing after sending their children into an exam hall on Friday, the first day of China's biggest "gaokao" tests that will shape the futures of millions of high school kids.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address lawmakers in the US Congress on July 24, Republican party leaders announced Thursday.

Voters in Ireland and the Czech Republic go to the polls Friday on the second day of marathon EU elections, after the Netherlands kicked off the ballot with a strong showing by the far right.

In the mountainous valleys of Pakistan, 18-hour daily power cuts have meant local teacher Aniqa Bano uses her fridge as a cupboard for storing books and kitchen utensils.

Workers at tech giant Samsung Electronics in South Korea staged the first strike at the company on Friday, the head of a major union representing tens of thousands of people told AFP. Samsung Electronics is one of the world's largest smartphone makers and also one of the only companies globally to produce high-end memory chips used for generative AI, including top-of-the-line AI hardware from industry leaders such as Nvidia.

The Pacific's Solomon Islands has become a key player in the global live animal trade, with foreign collectors sourcing exotic species including some subject to trade bans, an AFP investigation has found.

It was always going to take something big to make Americans pay any attention to cricket and Thursday's stunning victory by the USA over established power Pakistan provided just that moment.

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa said Thursday that his African National Congress (ANC) would seek to form a government of national unity, after failing to win an outright majority in last week's general election.

Standing in what remains of her house, partially destroyed by a Russian artillery strike, Raisa Abramtseva painted a bleak picture of her daily life in southern Ukraine's Kherson region.

A world-first launch from the far side of the Moon this week showcased China's progress in space, and Beijing now wants its commercial sector to catch up to rivals such as Elon Musk's SpaceX. Chinese companies lag far behind American frontrunners led by SpaceX, which plans to launch Starship, a massive prototype rocket that may one day send humans to Mars, on Thursday.

If ever a place encapsulated the glorious complexity and sometimes paradoxical nature of the European Union, it would be Baarle, just on the Dutch side of the Netherlands-Belgium border.

Iga Swiatek closed in on a third successive French Open title Thursday as she defeated Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-4 in the semi-finals, while Novak Djokovic said surgery on his injured knee "went well".

Tests on a leading AI tool allowed the creation of deceptive and incriminating images of President Joe Biden and Donald Trump, a watchdog said Wednesday, despite pledges to block fake photos of the presidential contenders ahead of elections in November.

More than one in four children under the age of five globally live in "severe" food poverty, UNICEF has warned -- meaning more than 180 million are at risk of experiencing adverse impacts on their growth and development.

Sam Thorne guides Harry Potter fans through the gothic streets of Edinburgh, where controversial author JK Rowling dreamt up the boy wizard more than three decades ago.

A volcano in eastern Indonesia erupted three times on Thursday, belching an ash tower five kilometres into the sky and spewing lava against a backdrop of lightning, according to the Geological Agency.

Taiwan thanked the United States on Thursday for approving the sale of equipment and parts for F-16 fighter jets, saying it would help the island defend itself against China.

Russia's central bank chief called Thursday for Russia to be an "open economy" despite the barrage of Western sanctions and trading restrictions it has been hit with over its Ukraine offensive.

The US trade deficit expanded slightly less than analysts expected in April, to the widest since late 2022, as imports rose more quickly than exports, according to government data released Thursday.

The Netherlands on Thursday kicked off the marathon four-day European elections with the Dutch far right urging voters to make a crackdown on immigration the headline issue.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was deep in negotiations with alliance partners to form his cabinet Thursday, after an unexpectedly close election that forced his party into a coalition government.

Western leaders were Thursday to remember the 1944 World War II D-Day landings in northern France to liberate Europe from Nazi occupation, mindful of the over two-year war raging again in Europe after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The Israeli military said Thursday it had carried out a deadly strike on a UN school in Gaza that it said housed a Hamas compound, with the militant group saying the attack killed at least 27 people.

When the Islamic State group rampaged through Iraq's ancient city of Mosul a decade ago, the jihadists killed thousands, upended countless more lives and left deep scars among the survivors.

Three years after gymnastics superstar Simone Biles put the mental health of athletes centre stage at the Tokyo Olympics, this year's Paris Games will demonstrate how greater awareness has translated into better care and support.

Park Choong-kwon was once a member of an elite North Korean unit that developed long-range missiles.

In an electoral system in which money is the ultimate kingmaker, Donald Trump has been courting the country's billionaires -- and they have their checkbooks ready.

Mirra Andreeva became the youngest Grand Slam semi-finalist for 27 years with a shock win over Aryna Sabalenka on Wednesday at the French Open, after fourth seed Elena Rybakina was knocked out by Italy's Jasmine Paolini.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday criticised the West's delivery of long-range weapons to Ukraine, arguing Moscow could arm other countries with similar weapons to attack Western targets.