WORLD

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushed back against accusations that the Trump administration has given in to Russia even before talks on ending the Ukraine war begin, saying Washington first wants to see whether Moscow was "serious".

China issued a warning Friday of potential "live fire" naval drills in international waters off Australia's eastern coast but gave little prior notice, disrupting commercial air flights, the Australian government said.

The United States deported 177 migrants from its military base in Guantanamo, Cuba to their homeland in Venezuela Thursday, the latest sign of cooperation between the long-feuding governments.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday ordered an "intensive operation against centers of terrorism" in the occupied West Bank, his office said, after three buses exploded in central Israel without causing any reported injuries.

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Elon Musk said Thursday that a feature on his social media platform X which allows users to fact-check potentially misleading posts was being "gamed" over Ukraine's President Volodymr Zelensky and vowed to "fix" it.

Bolivian ex-president Evo Morales launched a fresh election bid Thursday ahead of polls in August, in defiance of a constitutional term limit and pending criminal charges.

Mexico's president warned the United States on Thursday her country would never tolerate an "invasion" of its national sovereignty and vowed fresh legal action against US gunmakers after Washington designated cartels as terrorist organizations.

The event included discussions on the future of digital media, the responsibilities of content creators, and the media's impact on global conversations. Guests exchanged ideas and opinions while forming new connections.

Hundreds watched on Thursday as four black coffins, which Hamas said held the remains of Israel's Bibas family and an elderly hostage, were carried off stage by Palestinian militants in southern Gaza.

Newly-energized American conservative leaders and activists will gather on the outskirts of the capital Washington on Thursday for an annual three-day conference set to celebrate US President Donald Trump's return to power.

European aircraft maker Airbus said Thursday net profits rose in 2024 as it boosted plane deliveries and set a goal of accelerating them further.

US President Donald Trump suggested on Wednesday that a trade deal was "possible" with China -- a key target in the US leader's tariffs policy.

Pope Francis passed another peaceful night in hospital, "got up and had breakfast in his armchair", the Vatican said Thursday, the day after reporting a slight improvement in his condition.

South Korea's ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday became the country's first sitting head of state on trial on criminal charges.

Residents of northern Japan were sheltering from deep snow up to the rooftops in some areas on Thursday after a two-week whiteout.

US President Donald Trump said Wednesday his treasury secretary was treated "rudely" during an official visit to Kyiv, accusing Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky of "sleeping" and failing to make a deal.

Iran executed at least 975 people last year in a "horrifying escalation" of its use of capital punishment, two human rights groups said on Thursday.

Top diplomats from the Group of 20 major economies will convene in South Africa on Thursday for a meeting dominated by a packed global agenda but overshadowed by a snub by the top US envoy.

US airline Delta will offer $30,000 to each passenger on a plane that crashed as it landed at Toronto airport this week, the carrier told AFP on Wednesday.

French President Emmanuel Macron was set on Wednesday to host a new meeting on Ukraine in a bid to coordinate a European response to what he called an "existential threat" from Russia amid a shock policy shift in Washington.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and opposition leader Friedrich Merz will face off in a final head-to-head debate Wednesday, four days before the election, in a campaign overshadowed by the rise of the far right.

Bogus child pornography claims, fabricated support for communism and fake posts showing Elon Musk calling for his removal -- a deluge of disinformation is targeting a top judge in suspended South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment trial.

An asteroid that could level a city now has a 3.1-percent chance of striking Earth in 2032, according to NASA data released Tuesday -- making it the most threatening space rock ever recorded by modern forecasting.

A US judge on Tuesday declined a request to temporarily block Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from firing federal employees and accessing agency data, a victory for President Donald Trump in his bid to shrink the government workforce.

Wildlife rangers will Wednesday begin shooting 90 dolphins stranded on a remote Australian beach, saying the stressed creatures would be euthanised after attempts to refloat them failed.

The US Senate voted Tuesday to confirm Wall Street billionaire Howard Lutnick as commerce secretary, a key step towards the rollout of President Donald Trump's "America First" trade agenda, which uses tariffs as a broad negotiation tool.

Colombia's President Gustavo Petro claimed Monday to have been the target of a plot to down his plane with missiles by "big mafias" irate at his government's attempts to hunt them down.

The sweeping tariffs threatened or already imposed by US President Donald Trump risk triggering inflation, market distortions, and even a global recession, China said Tuesday at the World Trade Organization.