AFP news

As markets from China to the United States race to put more EVs on their roads, the pedal is nowhere near the metal yet in Japan, where the hybrid still reigns supreme.

Unlike in other Arab states, "the gaming community was completely dead here" until recently, says Sofiane Mattouss, who runs the business set up in 2022.

The contract -- which includes investments in oil, gas and solar production -- was signed in September 2021 but a new government took office in Iraq last year and its demands did not please TotalEnergies.

Many blamed the government and its stuttering response to Turkey's worst disaster of its modern era for a death toll that has now surpassed 50,000.

Ukraine accuses Russia of having abducted and forcibly deported more than 16,000 children since it began its invasion more than a year ago.

The deal was described as temporary but signals the end of independent oil exports by northern Iraq's Kurdish regional government and marks a clear limit to its autonomy.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) had said earlier in the day that UN women employees had been blocked from work in eastern Nangarhar province.

Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, called on Palestinians in the West Bank "to go en masse to the Al-Aqsa mosque to defend it".

A few photographers were allowed to capture the drama of the 76-year-old's initial presence in the stiflingly hot room, as the one-time White House resident wearing a blue suit and red tie greeted their lenses with steely eyes.

After March's banking sector-sparked turmoil, markets have enjoyed a few bright weeks on optimism the Federal Reserve will temper its interest rate hikes earlier than thought.

Since 2008, developers have barrelled through the island, transforming the Limassol skyline into tower blocks and luxury homes, making it the most modern-looking of Cypriot cities.

Under Pakistan's constitution, elections should have been scheduled within 90 days -- a deadline just days away.

The strike in northwestern Syria on Monday killed senior IS leader Khalid Aydd Ahmad al-Jabouri, US Central Command said.

Completing the ratification in well under a year still makes this the fastest membership process in the alliance's recent history.

The alliance was formed at the start of the Cold War to protect Western Europe against the threat of Soviet aggression but its remit and reach have expanded over time.

Crude held on to Monday's surge of more than six percent that came after top producers announced a surprise output cut, providing a fresh headache to central bankers as they battle inflation.

Once China's largest real estate company, Evergrande was found in 2021 to be drowning in more than $300 billion in liabilities, sparking a nationwide property crisis that had ramifications around the world.

For refugees, barred from seeking regular work, the project provides them with a way to supplement handouts from the United Nations.

The mosque has numerous boarded-up broken windows and walls pitted by shrapnel. A rocket exploded nearby two days earlier.

Sisi was greeted at Jeddah airport by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and was waved off again several hours later by the 37-year-old, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei all have overlapping claims in the sea, while the United States sends naval vessels through it to assert freedom of navigation in international waters.

The inflation rate slowed for a fifth consecutive month from a high of more than 85 percent, according to the state statistics agency.

The group said on Twitter it had been "working closely with two of the families".

There was a large crater in a yard and windows were shattered from ground to top floors in two 14-storey tower blocks, while nearby private houses had smashed roofs, AFP journalists saw.

Medical student Mohammed al-Asibi was killed late Friday, hours after worshippers marking the Muslim holy month of Ramadan held prayers at the sacred site.

The strike early Sunday near the western Syrian city of Homs was Israel's third since early Thursday, after the capital Damascus was targeted that morning and early Friday.

The battle for Bakhmut has raged for months with Wagner supporting Russian troops and Ukraine warning the fall of the town would lead to the loss of huge swathes of its territory.

Andriy, a Ukrainian serviceman, was injured Saturday morning near the frontline of Bakhmut, the scene of the heaviest fighting since Russia invaded last year.

New Delhi has resisted Western pressure to freeze out Moscow, opting instead to strengthen trade ties with its long-standing ally -- with the added benefits of tempering inflation while saving money.