AFP news

George Clooney and Brad Pitt brought a jolt of electricity -- and old-school Hollywood glamour -- to Venice Sunday, joking, teasing and presiding over a public love fest as their new film "Wolfs" premiered.

Israel has agreed to a series of three-day "humanitarian pauses" in Gaza to allow health officials to administer polio vaccinations to children in the territory, the World Health Organization said Thursday.

Fans are not the only ones eagerly awaiting next year's Oasis reunion tour: British hoteliers and pub owners are looking forward to a boom in business, with hopes of a Taylor Swift-style economy boost.

Eurozone inflation fell to its lowest level in more than three years this month thanks to falling energy costs, official data showed on Friday, raising expectations of a European Central Bank interest-rate cut.

Basel will host the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest after being chosen ahead of Geneva on Friday to stage the 69th edition of the glitzy TV extravaganza.

China's campaign of confrontation, from remote reefs in Southeast Asia to Taiwan and far-flung Japanese islands, is designed to wear down regional rivals competing with it for contested territories, analysts say.

Two women dominated Bangladeshi politics for decades. - Dynasties forged in blood - The decades-old contest between Zia and Hasina is a dynastic battle that predates the political career of both women.

After more than four years in the making, French video game designer Ubisoft on Friday released its much-anticipated "Star Wars Outlaws", an immersive spinoff from the famed saga.

Olena Semykina, the owner of a village shop in east Ukraine, voted for President Volodymyr Zelensky five and a half years ago, hoping the fresh-faced political newcomer would end the fighting unleashed by Russian proxy forces in 2014.

Liverpool boss Arne Slot faces his first major test with a trip to Manchester United, while Newcastle and Tottenham also face off on Sunday hoping to dispel early season doubts over their credentials for a top-four finish.

A radical far-left politician who wants to make peace with Russia's Vladimir Putin looks set to play a key role in regional elections in the former East Germany on Sunday.

Pope Francis embarks Monday on a 12-day trip to Southeast Asia, the longest and farthest of his papacy that will challenge the 87-year-old's increasingly fragile health.

Pacific leaders endorsed a major joint policing initiative and rebuffed moves from China's allies to sideline Taiwan on Friday, as they wrapped up a regional summit in Tonga.

Typhoon Shanshan weakened to a tropical storm Friday but was still dumping heavy rains as it slowly churned through Japan, triggering transport havoc and landslide warnings, with up to six people killed.

The king of New Zealand's Maori died on Friday after heart surgery, with aides saying the beloved 69-year-old monarch, praised as a symbol of national unity, had "passed to the great beyond".

A top UN aid official on Thursday questioned "what has become of our basic humanity," as the war in Gaza rages and humanitarian operations struggle to respond.

President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday defended a decision to grant French nationality to Telegram chief Pavel Durov, who faces a possible trial related to illegal content carried on his popular messaging app.

iPhone juggernaut Apple is in talks to invest in OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT and the biggest name in generative artificial intelligence, a news report said Thursday.

The head of the UN's nuclear watchdog hopes to visit Iran soon for talks with newly-elected Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, according to a confidential report seen by AFP on Thursday.

The US Army on Thursday took aim at Donald Trump's staff over a visit by the Republican presidential candidate to the country's most hallowed resting place for its war dead.

The 59-year-old Democrat insisted on CNN that she would be tough on illegal immigration and support controversial oil and gas fracking -- while sticking to her liberal background by pledging a fairer economy.

Film legend Errol Morris said the separation of thousands of migrant children from their parents by Donald Trump's US administration was "inhumane and cruel" as his new documentary about the policy premiered at the Venice Film Festival Thursday.

UK premier Keir Starmer was welcomed warmly Thursday in Paris by French leader Emmanuel Macron, as the new centre-left British government seeks to relaunch post-Brexit ties with Europe.

The United States has offered to escort Manila's resupply missions to outposts in the disputed South China Sea, the Philippine military chief said Thursday, following Beijing's intensifying efforts to block them.

Chinese tech giant Huawei said Thursday that sales surged in the first half of the year, even as it struggles under the weight of sanctions that have deprived it of technology from the United States.

Hong Kong pro-democracy news outlet Stand News and its two former chief editors were found guilty of sedition on Thursday, the first conviction of its kind since the city came under Chinese rule in 1997.

The death toll climbed Thursday as Israel pressed a large-scale military operation in the occupied West Bank for a second day, despite UN concerns it is "fuelling an already explosive situation".

Angelina Jolie returns to the limelight at the Venice Film Festival on Thursday as Maria Callas, "La Divina", whose rich voice, glamourous persona, and tragic love affair mesmerised audiences around the world.

Expectations are high that France and Serbia will sign a deal worth billions of euros to supply fighter jets to the Balkan country during a visit by President Emmanuel Macron to Belgrade that kicks off Thursday.