AFP news

French President Emmanuel Macron scored a major diplomatic coup by declaring his intention to recognise a Palestinian state, but the move risks being followed by bitter retaliation from Israel while not providing concrete benefits to the Palestinians, analysts and sources say.

Emmanuel Wanyonyi and Beatrice Chebet made it a memorable night for Kenya at the world championships on Saturday as they produced outstanding performances to win the men's 800 metres and women's 5,000m respectively.

The director of Al Shifa hospital was on duty Saturday marshalling the facility's response to Israel's assault on Gaza City when two victims killed in a strike were delivered to the ward: his brother and his sister-in-law.

From the music, film to publishing industries, growing numbers of Western artists are calling for a cultural boycott of Israel over the Gaza war, hoping to emulate the success of the apartheid-era blockade of South Africa.

One of sport's fiercest rivalries explodes back to life Friday as the Ryder Cup tees off at Bethpage Black, where Scottie Scheffler's United States take on Rory McIlroy's Europe under the glare of US President Donald Trump and the roar of a New York crowd.

US President Donald Trump hailed on Friday a call with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, claiming a deal to sell blockbuster app TikTok could be a "formality" and saying he would visit China, which gave a more cautious assessment of their talks.

Three Russian MiG-31 fighters violated Estonian airspace over the Gulf of Finland on Friday, Estonia said, triggering complaints of a dangerous new provocation from the EU and NATO. Italian F-35 fighters attached to NATO's air defence support mission in the Baltic states were scrambled to intercept the Russian jets and warn them off, Estonian and Italian officials said, with alliance chief Mark Rutte praising the "quick and decisive response".

At the opening of Ukraine's biggest defence tech fair, arms executives and government officials were welcomed by a giant movie screen blaring an action-style trailer with heavy base undertones.

The Israeli military warned on Friday it would operate with "unprecedented force" in Gaza City, telling residents to flee southwards as it presses its ground offensive on the territory's largest urban centre.

A cloud of dust escapes from an excavation site in the sand of Chad's arid north, where scientists are looking for signs of human habitation in an area once humid and called the "Green Sahara".

Tapanuli orangutans are the world's most endangered great ape. The tapanuli is not the first highly endangered animal to arrive at Vantara.

For Americans, the words are practically sacred: the First Amendment to the US Constitution guarantees freedom of speech.

Israeli tanks and warplanes pounded Gaza City on Thursday, prompting long lines of scared Palestinian civilians to flee as the military intensified its assault on the territory's largest urban hub.

Two men who escaped one of the world's most secretive and repressive states have told AFP how they were tortured, beaten and raped in Turkmenistan for the "crime" of being gay.

Natalia fled Russia fearing imminent arrest for her family's opposition activism and sought political asylum in the United States.

Jimmy Kimmel's late-night television show has been taken off the air "indefinitely" after the host was criticized for comments about the motives behind the killing of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, US network ABC said Wednesday.

After the royal hospitality and pageantry, US President Donald Trump's unprecedented second state visit to the UK takes a serious turn on Thursday when he is hosted by Prime Minister Keir Starmer for wide-ranging talks.

Virgil van Dijk scored a dramatic late winner to grab Liverpool a 3-2 Champions League victory over Atletico Madrid, while Paris Saint-Germain kicked off their title defence by thrashing Atalanta on Wednesday.

The US Federal Reserve on Wednesday lowered interest rates for the first time this year, flagging slower job gains and risks to employment as policymakers face heightened pressure under President Donald Trump.

The beauty of sport is its ability to surprise and Isaac Nader produced one of the biggest ever in international 1,500 metres finals as he won the world title on Wednesday while Katie Moon was a more predictable winner of a third successive pole vault crown.

Celebrated director Park Chan-wook's star-studded murder comedy "No Other Choice" opened Asia's biggest film festival Wednesday, which is launching its first fully-fledged competition lineup as South Korea projects its soft power worldwide.

Britain treated Donald Trump to an elaborate ceremonial welcome featuring a gun salute and mounted horses as the US president's unprecedented second state visit began under tight security on Wednesday.

The Israeli military said it was opening a temporary new route Wednesday to allow people to flee Gaza City, as it pressed a major ground assault aimed at crushing Hamas.

The top suspect in the 2007 disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann in Portugal was freed from a German prison on Wednesday, an AFP journalist at the scene reported.

Authorities have shared their most detailed account yet of the investigation set off by the killing of American conservative activist Charlie Kirk, which concluded with a suspect surrendering to police.

Four years after the military seized power, Guineans will finally vote on a new draft constitution that would pave the way for elections but also permit the country's junta leader to run for president, in a referendum boycotted by the opposition.

Decked out with fake crystal chandeliers and velvet sofas, cosmetic surgery clinics in Afghanistan's capital are a world away from the austerity of Taliban rule, where Botox, lip filler, and hair transplants reign.

The casino industry's quest to bring gambling to Manhattan faces a key test this week when an advisory panel weighs a Times Square proposal that has enraged much of Broadway.

Arsenal won 2-0 away to Athletic Bilbao as the league phase of this season's Champions League kicked off on Tuesday, with two Kylian Mbappe penalties giving Real Madrid a narrow win over Marseille while Juventus and Borussia Dortmund drew an eight-goal thriller.