AFP news

Mounting maritime security threats off Yemen's coast have stalled work on scrapping a decrepit oil tanker, officials have told AFP, jeopardising a rare success story in the war-torn country.

US President Joe Biden's Middle East envoy held talks in the region Tuesday as hopes rose for a new deal to free Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a longer pause in fighting in Gaza.

The Israeli army said Tuesday it had suffered its biggest single-day losses since the start of its ground war in Gaza amid growing pressure on the government to find a way to end the conflict.

Donald Trump aims to steamroll his way toward the Republican presidential nomination Tuesday in the New Hampshire primary, making short work of his only surviving opponent, former UN ambassador Nikki Haley.

France's data protection agency said Tuesday it had fined Amazon's French warehouse management unit 32 million euros ($34.9 million) for an "excessively intrusive" surveillance system to monitor staff performance.

A major 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck along the China-Kyrgyzstan border on Tuesday, the United States Geological Survey said, warning of potentially widespread damage though no casualties have been reported.

Turkey's parliament is expected to end more than a year of delays that severely strained its ties with Western allies and approve Sweden's membership of NATO this week.

Colombia's government and the National Liberation Army (ELN) rebel group started a sixth round of peace talks Monday, seeking to agree in Cuba on an extension of a ceasefire that expires next week.

The United States and Britain launched new strikes on Yemen's Huthis Monday, saying their second round of joint military action against the Iran-backed rebels was in response to continued attacks on Red Sea shipping.

A Japanese man who admitted starting a fire that killed 36 people at an anime studio in 2019 faces a possible death sentence on Thursday when a court delivers its verdict.

The death toll from a landslide that struck a remote and mountainous part of southwestern China reached 20 on Tuesday, state media said, as rescuers raced to find those still trapped under the debris.

Around the clock, glowing slabs of steel move from one machine to the next in a Norwegian factory producing artillery shells desperately needed by Ukraine.

Australia has identified the Russian mastermind behind a crippling cyber attack, unmasking the 33-year-old hacker for the first time on Tuesday and linking him to an international crime syndicate.

The makers of a video game dismissed as "Pokemon with Guns" when it was announced said Monday the game has proved a hit, with "Palworld" selling more than five million copies in just three days.

Ecuador on Monday announced the arrest of a wanted cocaine trafficker from neighboring Colombia, as President Daniel Noboa said his government's crackdown on gang violence was starting to bear fruit.

Donald Trump held a final rally Monday in New Hampshire on the eve of the primary where polls show him likely to trounce the sole remaining challenger, Nikki Haley, for the Republican presidential nomination.

League of Legends maker Riot Games said Monday it will cut around 530 jobs worldwide, describing the layoffs as "a necessity."

Swedish telecoms equipment giant Ericsson warned Tuesday that it expected further market decline outside China this year after booking a sizeable loss in 2023 due to a write-down and restructuring costs.

Equatorial Guinea pulled off one of the most stunning results in Africa Cup of Nations history on Monday by thrashing hosts Ivory Coast 4-0 to win Group A and secure a last-16 place.

Debutants Tajikistan struck twice late on to beat Lebanon 2-1 and reach the Asian Cup knockout rounds on Monday but China's hopes are hanging by a thread after defeat to Qatar.

Imane Ayissi is on a mission to put authentic African textiles in the spotlight but faces an uphill battle as a pioneer African couturier at Paris Fashion Week.

The film world will learn Tuesday who is in the running for this year's Oscars, with box office blockbusters "Oppenheimer" and "Barbie" expected to top the nominations list.

A 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck along the mountainous China-Kyrgyzstan border on Tuesday, injuring at least three people.

Palestinian militant group Hamas on Sunday defended its October 7 attacks against Israel but admitted to "faults" and called for an end to "Israeli aggression" in Gaza, where the health ministry said the death toll passed 25,000.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Sunday urged Addis Ababa and Mogadishu to open dialogue to settle their dispute over Ethiopia's maritime deal with the breakaway region of Somaliland.

Police in violence-plagued Ecuador arrested 68 people Sunday who had attempted to take over a hospital in the country's southwest in the midst of a "war" between drug gangs and the security forces.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday opens a week-long tour of Africa's west coast as he seeks to bolster US-friendly democracies with security deteriorating in the Sahel.

The Israeli army bombarded Khan Yunis, the new epicentre of the war in Gaza, on Monday as the families of hostages held by Hamas urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a deal to secure their release.

Dozens of people were buried and three confirmed killed when a landslide struck a remote and mountainous part of southwestern China on Monday.