AFP news

The president of New York's Columbia University has resigned, US media reported Wednesday, months after pro-Palestinian protests brought national scrutiny to the institution and just weeks before the start of the new school year.

Taylor Swift will return to the stage in London on Thursday to end the European leg of her "Eras" tour, a week after her Vienna concerts were cancelled due to a suicide attack plot.

Google on Tuesday confirmed that hackers backed by Iran are targeting the campaigns of US presidential rivals Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.

NASA needs to decide by the end of August whether to return two astronauts to Earth aboard Boeing's Starliner, which flew them to the International Space Station (ISS), or bring them home on a SpaceX craft, officials said Wednesday.

A German military base was sealed off for several hours Wednesday as authorities investigated suspected sabotage while a NATO airbase in the country faced an attempted trespassing incident, officials said.

The World Health Organization on Wednesday declared the mpox surge in Africa a global public health emergency, sounding its highest possible alarm over the worsening situation.

Israeli air strikes targeted Gaza on Wednesday ahead of ceasefire talks that the United States hopes will stop Iran striking Israel in retaliation for the killing of a Hamas leader.

Climate change may have played a part in the latest massive wildfire just outside Athens, but some critics blame inadequate equipment and lack of planning for what has become an annual crisis.

Taiwanese tech giant Foxconn on Wednesday reported a six percent jump in net profit for the second quarter of the year, driven by strong growth in demand for artificial intelligence servers.

Australia's Olympians returned home Wednesday and mounted a resolute defence of their breakdancing colleague against "awful" critics, comics and keyboard warriors.

Climate change played a key factor in torrential rains in India that triggered catastrophic landslides killing at least 200 people last month, a group of scientists said Wednesday.

Despite three years of improved security following the end of the Taliban's insurgency, Afghanistan's economy remains stagnant and its population is in the grips of a worsening humanitarian crisis.

Women's accessories sold by some of the world's most popular online shopping firms contained toxic substances sometimes hundreds of times above acceptable levels, authorities in Seoul said Wednesday.

A former Chinese naval captain arrested for illegally entering Taiwan by boat was formally charged Wednesday, but prosecutors said "no military or national security involvement" was linked to his act.

"I'm a software engineer," says Josephine Wright, cocktail in hand, as she introduces herself to another woman at a bar in west London.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced Wednesday he will step aside next month, ending a three-year term plagued by low popularity ratings and a spluttering economy.

Elusive street artist Banksy's ninth animal-themed mural in nine days, unveiled on Tuesday on a shutter outside London Zoo, depicted a gorilla releasing animals from the zoo, tying together the series of artworks.

French authorities said on Tuesday that more than 140 cyberattacks were reported during the Paris Olympics, but none of them disrupted the competitions.

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers celebrated three years in power on Wednesday with a military parade paying homage to their homemade bombs used in war, fighter aircraft and goose-stepping security forces.

Thailand's Constitutional Court sacked Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin on Wednesday, branding him dishonest in a ruling in an ethics case that throws the kingdom into fresh political turmoil.

US President Joe Biden's administration on Tuesday approved more than $20 billion in new weapons sales to Israel, brushing aside pressure from rights activists to stop arms deliveries over the death toll in Gaza.

Ukraine on Wednesday pressed its surprise offensive in Russian territory and bombarded the neighbouring border region of Belgorod, where the governor has declared a state of emergency.

Google on Tuesday unveiled new Pixel 9 smartphones, its latest salvo in the scramble by Big Tech to corner the market on nascent artificial intelligence.

SpaceX is aiming to break new barriers in polar exploration with the first manned space mission over the Earth's poles -- a private flight commanded by a crypto entrepreneur later this year, the company said Tuesday.

Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir led hundreds of Israelis into the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in annexed east Jerusalem Tuesday and performed prayers marking a Jewish holiday, sources said.

Iran on Tuesday rejected Western calls to stand down its threat to retaliate against Israel for the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran late last month.

Mercedes-Benz Korea released the names of its electric vehicle battery suppliers on Tuesday, bowing to public outrage after one of its cars burst into flame in a parking lot earlier this month.

Greek emergency services battled a massive wildfire threatening Athens for a third day Tuesday after finding the first victim and thousands of people were kept away from their homes by the flames.

The Olympic flag arrived under bright skies Monday in Los Angeles, where officials now have four short years to organize a Games capable of rivaling the widely praised Paris edition in a notoriously traffic-clogged metropolis.