AFP news

Sheikh Hasina once helped rescue Bangladesh from military rule, but her time in power has seen the mass arrest of her political opponents and human rights sanctions against her security forces.

The New Year's Day earthquake demolished wooden buildings all across Japan's Noto Peninsula but thanks to decades-old smart architecture, one small fishing village stood strong.

A woman in her 90s trapped for five days under rubble caused by a huge earthquake in central Japan was rescued against the odds, but snow and storms were further complicating relief efforts on Sunday.

Jordan's king urged the top United States diplomat on Sunday to push for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and an end to the humanitarian crisis brought by three months of war, the royal palace said.

European Council president Charles Michel announced Sunday that he will step down early, setting off a race against time for EU leaders to find a successor for the key position.

The first American spacecraft to attempt to land on the Moon in more than half a century blasted off early Monday -- but this time, private industry is leading the charge.

A strike that threatened to grind London's underground network to a virtual halt for several days was called off at the last minute on Sunday following "positive discussions" in pay talks, the main rail union said.

Top US diplomat Antony Blinken was due in Israel on Monday for difficult talks on the war in Gaza as fears grow that the conflict could engulf the wider region.

Tens of thousands of people gathered in southern Taiwan for "Super Sunday" rallies by three presidential candidates making a final weekend push before a crucial January 13 election.

Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu suspended three deputy ministers on Sunday for making "derogatory remarks" against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government said.

Internet and social media services across Pakistan were severely disrupted Sunday night as the party of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan prepared to launch a massive online campaign ahead of elections next month.

The city of Paris will on Monday name a street after rock music icon David Bowie, officials said, a first in honour of the singer eight years after his death.

"Oppenheimer," Christopher Nolan's drama about the inventor of the atomic bomb, topped the Golden Globes on Sunday -- but its fellow summer smash hit "Barbie" missed out on best comedy film honors to "Poor Things."

Spanish superstar Rafael Nadal on Sunday pulled out of the Australian Open with a "micro tear on a muscle" barely a week after making his comeback from a year-long injury absence, but said he remained positive.

A mid-air emergency in which a piece of fuselage came off a Boeing 737 MAX 9 jetliner as it flew over the US west coast dealt a new blow to the oft-beleaguered manufacturer.

Six sailors set out on the 40,000km around-the-world Ultim Challenge from France on Sunday, hoping to complete one of the sport's "biggest challenges" inside 50 days.

Mikel Arteta admitted Arsenal need a psychological "reset" after missing a host of chances in their 2-0 defeat against Liverpool in the FA Cup third round.

The number of people unaccounted for after Japan's New Year's Day earthquake more than tripled on Monday to 323 while the death toll rose to 168, according to local authorities.

Vietnamese carmaker VinFast said it will build its first electric vehicle factory in India as part of a planned $2 billion investment, as it looks to expand into the rapidly growing market.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa paid a surprise visit to Kyiv Sunday where she said Tokyo was "determined" to keep supporting Ukraine, as the second anniversary of Moscow's invasion nears.

Israel pounded Gaza on Sunday as its war with Hamas raged into a fourth month, while top US diplomat Antony Blinken decried the "tragedy" of civilian deaths and warned the conflict threatened the wider region.

Hampered by bad weather and damaged roads, Japanese rescuers searched Friday for 222 people still missing four days after a devastating earthquake as the death toll approached 100.

More than a thousand mourners attended the funeral in Beirut on Thursday of Hamas number two Saleh al-Aruri who was killed in a Lebanon strike blamed on Israel.

A teenager armed with a handgun and shotgun killed a fellow student and wounded five other people at a high school in the midwestern US state of Iowa on Thursday, authorities said.

A UK anti-monarchy group on Thursday said it had made a complaint to police in London about Prince Andrew, after the release of US court documents detailing people linked to Jeffrey Epstein.

North Korea has provided Russia with ballistic missiles and missile launchers that were used in recent attacks on Ukraine in a major escalation of support for Moscow, the White House said Thursday.

The United States on Thursday added Azerbaijan to a watchlist on religious freedom, following fears for Christian heritage after the country seized back an ethnic Armenian enclave.

Japanese workers began clearing the burnt wreckage of a passenger jet on Friday, three days after a near-catastrophic collision with a coast guard plane at Tokyo's Haneda Airport.

Israel's defence minister has laid out for the first time preliminary plans for the post-war administration of Gaza, saying neither Israel nor Hamas will rule the Palestinian territory after hostilities there conclude.