WORLD

Stubborn inflation, exorbitant borrowing costs, bankruptcy risks and a growth slowdown: the Russian economy is facing a slew of negative headlines, as the costs of the Ukraine war and Western sanctions mount.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meets Wednesday with NATO chief Mark Rutte and key European leaders in Brussels to discuss "next steps" on Russia's war as Donald Trump prepares to take office in the United States.

Tsunami-hit nations will next week commemorate the more than 220,000 people who died in the Boxing Day disaster two decades ago, when huge waves tore into coastal communities around the Indian Ocean.

US authorities on Tuesday charged the man suspected of gunning down a health insurance CEO in New York earlier this month with murder, including a charge of second-degree murder "as an act of terrorism."

A powerful earthquake struck the Pacific island of Vanuatu on Tuesday, smashing buildings in the capital Port Vila including one housing the US and other embassies, with a witness telling AFP of bodies seen in the city.

The head of the Russian army's chemical weapons division died on Tuesday when an explosive device attached to a scooter went off outside an apartment building in Moscow, officials said.

A New York judge ruled Monday against a bid by US President-elect Donald Trump to have his conviction for covering up hush money payments to a porn star thrown out on immunity grounds.

President-elect Donald Trump characterized the rebel ouster of Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad as an "unfriendly takeover" by US ally Turkey as he addressed the conflict at a news conference on Monday.

A 15-year-old female student was identified by police as the assailant who opened fire Monday at a school in the US state of Wisconsin, where a fellow student and teacher were killed and the suspected shooter was found dead.

The war in the Palestinian territories is having a catastrophic impact on the local economy, the World Bank said Monday, noting that all sectors have been badly affected by Israel's attacks.

Qatar-based news channel Al Jazeera said its cameraman Ahmed al-Louh was killed "in an Israeli bombardment" that targeted Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip.

As Islamist-led rebel forces swept Syrian president Bashar al-Assad out of power last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ordered troops to seize the demilitarised zone between the two countries' forces on the Golan Heights.

South Korea's Constitutional Court began proceedings against Yoon on Monday and has around six months to determine whether to uphold the impeachment.

Pressure has been growing on Nobel Peace Prize winner Yunus -- appointed the country's "chief adviser" after the student-led uprising that toppled ex-premier Sheikh Hasina -- to set a date.

Washington has long been Taipei's most important ally and biggest arms supplier -- angering Beijing, which claims Taiwan as part of its own territory.

Leaders of the island nation typically make their first visit to regional powerhouse India, which competes with China for influence in the Indian Ocean.

The move from Brussels came after the United States and Britain said they had made contact with the new authorities in the Syrian capital.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's dark claims of communist infiltration when declaring martial law last week may have seemed to many like a throwback to the Cold War.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has ordered the military to "prepare to remain" throughout the winter in the UN-patrolled buffer zone that is supposed to separate Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday told Turkey it was "imperative" to work against a resurgence of the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria following the fall of Bashar al-Assad.

UK postal operator Royal Mail has been fined GBP10.5 million ($13.3 million) for delays in delivering mail for the 2023/2024 financial year, Britain's communications regulator Ofcom said Friday.

China's foreign minister Wang Yi told his Egyptian counterpart on Friday that Beijing is "deeply concerned" about the situation in Syria, as the two top diplomats met in the Chinese capital.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Thursday said he discussed with French President Emmanuel Macron the possibility of stationing foreign troops in Ukraine in case of a ceasefire, but that Warsaw was not currently "planning any such actions".

French President Emmanuel Macron was expected Thursday to name a new prime minister a week after MPs toppled the government, with politicians across the spectrum holding their breath while he conducts a day visit to Poland.

A rash of unexplained drone sightings in the skies above New Jersey has left locals rattled and sent US officials scrambling for answers.

Australia will force Meta and Google to pay for news shared on their platforms under a new scheme unveiled Thursday, threatening to tax them if they refuse to strike deals with local media.

US President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday appointed election denier Kari Lake to be the new director of Voice of America, the state-funded international media organization.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday urged businesses to invest in war-torn Ukraine and stressed a commitment to smooth Kyiv's path to European Union accession.

Gaza's civil defence agency reported that Israeli air strikes on Thursday killed at least 33 people, including 12 guards securing aid trucks in southern parts of the Palestinian territory.