AFP news

Six months after Geert Wilders swept to a stunning election win in the Netherlands, top politicians have until Wednesday to form a government -- without the far-right firebrand as prime minister.

Israeli troops fought Hamas militants in multiple battles across the Gaza Strip, forcing new waves of Palestinian mass displacement, as Israel marked a sombre Independence Day on Tuesday.

UK MPs arrested on suspicion of serious sexual or violent offences could be barred from attending parliament after lawmakers changed the rules in a narrow vote late on Monday.

Armenia on Tuesday detained dozens of demonstrators in the capital Yerevan as large protests continue against government plans to concede land to the country's historic foe, Azerbaijan.

Dutch authorities slapped a 1.1-million-euro fine on Fortnite maker Epic Games on Tuesday, judging that vulnerable children were exploited and pressured into making purchases in the game's Item Shop.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit China this week, both countries announced Tuesday, meeting his "dear friend" Xi Jinping as he seeks to win greater support from Beijing for his war effort in Ukraine and isolated economy.

Ride-hailing giant Uber said Tuesday it has reached a deal with Delivery Hero SE to buy its Foodpanda delivery business in Taiwan for US$950 million.

Sony on Tuesday warned of falling profits this year as PlayStation 5 unit sales decline, after reporting a dip in annual earnings while also staying mum on a reported bid for Paramount.

Cheering crowds greeted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday as he submitted his candidacy for a Hindu holy city's parliamentary seat in a general election his party is strongly favoured to win.

American military aid for Ukraine is "on its way", US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in Kyiv on Tuesday, as Russia pressed on with a new offensive in the northeastern Kharkiv region.

Hong Kong's leader on Tuesday defended its foreign trade offices and said he had little recollection of a man accused by Britain of spying for the Chinese city, after a photograph emerged seeming to show the two together.

Hollywood stars jetted into Cannes on Tuesday as the world's premier film festival got under way in dramatic circumstances, including a fugitive director's daring escape from Iran, and a looming cloud of fresh #MeToo allegations.

Celebrities who have remained silent on the crisis in Gaza are feeling the wrath of angry fans wielding the "digital guillotine" to block them on social media and streaming platforms.

Demolition experts used explosives Monday to remove part of a collapsed bridge in Baltimore and free a cargo ship that has been trapped since it rammed into the structure in March.

OpenAI on Monday released a higher performing and even more human-like version of the artificial intelligence technology that underpins its popular generative tool ChatGPT, making it free to all users.

Philanthropist Melinda French Gates announced Monday she was leaving the nonprofit foundation she established with her ex-husband Bill Gates -- an organization that has become one of the most influential in the world.

Donald Trump's one-time fixer and the star prosecution witness at the former president's criminal trial testified Monday how the then-Republican candidate directed him to pay a porn actress to bury revelations of an alleged tryst.

Modi remains popular across much of India and his Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is widely expected to win the poll when it concludes early next month.

Putin proposed economist Andrey Belousov as Shoigu's replacement, according to a list of the ministerial nominations published by the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament.

Separately, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan emphasized Washington's concerns about an offensive in a call with his Israeli counterpart, Tzachi Hanegbi.

Some 5,200 workers at the Mercedes auto manufacturing plant and battery complex near Tuscaloosa, Alabama will decide whether to join the United Auto Workers in a federally-administered election that runs from Monday through Friday.

The family-owned hedge fund run by Hwang had taken huge bets on a few stocks with money borrowed from banks, and when several of those bets turned sour, the fund was unable to meet "margin calls" to cover the losses.

Hours of heavy rain caused large volcanic rocks to roll down one of Indonesia's most active volcanos into two districts on Sumatra island Saturday evening, while flooding inundated roads, homes and mosques.

No damage or casualties were immediately reported but images showed a column of ash soaring into the sky on Halmahera island in North Maluku province.

The central government will begin issuing some 30-year bonds on Friday as part of a planned sale of more than $138 billion of debt, according to a notice posted to the ministry's website.

Since winning office last year, President Mohamed Muizzu has reoriented the atoll nation -- known for its upmarket beach resorts and celebrity vacationers -- away from traditional benefactor India and towards Beijing.

Despite last year's pyrotechnical unveilings for superstars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Neymar, the new-look Saudi Pro League has provided few fireworks since.

The announcement came as Macron kicked off a day of meetings with foreign business leaders at the Chateau de Versailles, called "Choose France".

Clashes also raged in northern and central areas of the besieged Gaza Strip, AFP correspondents and witnesses said, as Israel prepared to mark a somber Independence Day, beginning Monday night, more than seven months into the war sparked by Hamas's October 7 attack.