AFP news

Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels said Tuesday they would not halt attacks on Red Sea shipping despite the announcement by the United States of a new maritime protection force.

Dec 19, 2023

Rescuers in remote villages of northwest China dug through the rubble of collapsed homes on Tuesday after China's deadliest earthquake in years killed at least 118 people and injured hundreds more.

Dec 19, 2023

Fourteen people were killed and 178 others injured after a powerful explosion and fire at the main fuel depot in Guinea rocked the centre of the capital Conakry early on Monday, causing substantial damage and bringing the city to a standstill.

Dec 19, 2023

A 46-year-old man is facing drunk driving charges after his car crashed into a US Secret Service vehicle attached to President Joe Biden's motorcade, police said Monday.

Dec 19, 2023

French MPs and senators on Monday sought to hammer out a compromise over a beleaguered immigration bill as President Emmanuel Macron's government hoped to salvage what is seen as a flagship reform of his second term.

Dec 19, 2023

NASA on Monday announced it had used a state-of-the-art laser communication system on a spaceship 19 million miles (31 million kilometers) away from Earth -- to send a high-definition cat video.

Dec 19, 2023

A volcano in Iceland was erupting on Tuesday, with geysers of molten lava shooting into the pitch-black night sky after weeks of seismic activity had the region southwest of the capital on high alert.

Dec 19, 2023

Rescue teams on Tuesday evacuated a flood-ravaged town in northeastern Australia, racing to airlift hundreds of people to safety before they run out of food and water.

Dec 19, 2023

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to accelerate his country's nuclear build-up and warned Washington against making a "wrong decision" after overseeing the launch of the country's most powerful ballistic missile, state media said Tuesday.

Dec 19, 2023

From Hamas's brutal attacks in Israel and the fierce retribution it provoked to the kiss that sparked a revolt in Spanish football, here are 10 events that marked a tumultuous 2023.

Dec 19, 2023

Finland on Monday signed an agreement to enhance military cooperation with the United States, saying it saw a long-term threat from Russia, a day after its giant neighbor issued a warning over Helsinki's recent entrance into NATO.

Dec 19, 2023

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday that he would seek deeper ties with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, during his second visit to the country within four months.

Dec 19, 2023

The UN Security Council is expected on Tuesday to accede to a demand from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and launch a gradual withdrawal of peacekeepers, starting later this month.

Dec 19, 2023

A Swedish appeals court will announce on Tuesday its verdict in the trial of a former Iranian prison official handed a life sentence in a lower court for crimes committed during a 1988 purge of dissidents.

Dec 19, 2023

Apple on Monday said it will stop selling some of its smartwatch models in the United States while it fights a patent battle over technology for detecting blood oxygen levels.

Dec 19, 2023

Japan's Nippon Steel agreed to buy US Steel Corp for $14.1 billion, the companies announced on Monday, sparking criticism about the firm's ownership in an industry crucial to US national security.

Dec 19, 2023

A US jury on Monday ordered chemical company Monsanto to pay $857 million to seven people at a school in the western state of Washington who said they were sickened by chemicals leaking from light fittings.

Dec 19, 2023

The Panama Canal delivered $2.5 billion to the national treasury for last year's operations, the government said Monday, despite record-low water levels that limited ship transits.

Dec 19, 2023

The EU announced "formal infringement proceedings" against Elon Musk's platform X on Monday, under a law designed to combat disinformation and hate after identifying suspect posts related to Hamas's October 7 attack in Israel.

Dec 19, 2023

Artificial intelligence allowed Pakistan's ex-prime minister Imran Khan to campaign from behind bars on Monday, with a voice clone of the opposition leader giving an impassioned speech on his behalf.

Dec 19, 2023

When news broke about a bedbug outbreak in his native South Korea, 29-year-old blockchain engineer and self-professed insectophobe Kang Jae-gu got straight to work -- on the data.

Dec 19, 2023

Artist Candice Breitz worked for several years to set up an exhibition in the German city of Saarbruecken, only for it to be cancelled over her stance on the Israel-Hamas war.

Dec 19, 2023

A second-hand pop-up store in Tokyo by casual clothing giant Uniqlo was a first for the Japanese firm, but also a sign that a local aversion to used garments may finally be fading.

Dec 19, 2023

Rising Hollywood star Jonathan Majors was convicted Monday of assaulting and harassing his ex-girlfriend Grace Jabbari, prompting Marvel to drop him from a prime role in its superhero blockbusters.

Dec 19, 2023

Algerian international footballer Youcef Atal went on trial in France Monday accused of inciting hatred after posting a video in which a Palestinian preacher purportedly threatens Israel with a "black day".

Dec 19, 2023

World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said Monday that the tickets for the Paris Olympics are "expensive" and pleaded for the families of athletes to be given priority by organisers.

Dec 19, 2023

The Republican governor of Texas signed a bill on Monday that would allow state police to arrest and deport migrants who cross illegally into the United States from Mexico.

Dec 19, 2023

The United States on Monday announced a 10-nation coalition to quell Huthi missile and drone attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea, with Britain, France, Bahrain and Italy among countries joining the "multinational security initiative."

Dec 19, 2023

Kenya and the European Union on Monday signed a long-negotiated trade agreement to increase the flow of goods between the two markets, as Brussels pursues stronger economic ties with Africa.

Dec 18, 2023