WORLD

Major pharmaceutical companies lashed out following a landmark deal unveiled Thursday to cut the costs of 10 key medicines, with some saying the price-setting process was not transparent.

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris made an upbeat show of unity Thursday as they held their first joint public event since Harris replaced the president as the Democratic Party's candidate in November's election.

Ukraine on Thursday rejected as "absolute nonsense" suggestions it was involved in the 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines, which transported Russian gas to Europe via the Baltic Sea.

Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas told a special session of the Turkish parliament on Thursday that he would travel to Gaza.

The EU on Friday formally requested that Meta detail steps it is taking on transparency after the Facebook and Instagram owner scrapped a widely-used tool for tracking disinformation online.

Pakistan said Friday it had confirmed a case of mpox, a day after Sweden recorded the first infection outside of Africa involving a new, more dangerous strain of the virus that has killed hundreds in the DR Congo.

New Zealand will shakeup its defense forces and "reset" its foreign policy to align with traditional allies, the country's prime minister said Thursday.

Pressure built for a Gaza ceasefire to be agreed at talks set to resume Thursday in Qatar, aiming to stop the spread of a war that the Hamas-run territory's health ministry said has killed 40,000.

Thousands took to the streets of Kolkata early Thursday to condemn the rape and murder of a local doctor, demanding justice for the victim and an end to the chronic issue of violence against women in Indian society.

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe faces 38 challengers in polls next month, the election commission said Thursday after nominations closed, with ally-turned-rival Sajith Premadasa leading the pack.

The party of Thailand's billionaire ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra meets on Thursday to choose a candidate for prime minister, a day after the kingdom's top court dismissed incumbent premier Srettha Thavisin over an ethics violation.

Mobs vowing to guard Bangladesh's student-led revolution roamed the site of a planned rally for ousted premier Sheikh Hasina on Thursday, beating up some of her suspected supporters with bamboo rods and pipes.

The lakeside mansion where Myanmar democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi spent years under house arrest was put up for auction for the second time on Thursday but once again attracted no bids, AFP reporters said.

Venezuela's CNE electoral council, under fire after declaring a widely rejected election victory for President Nicolas Maduro, on Wednesday described a UN report disputing the outcome as "rife with lies."

From Google to Netflix, prominent US companies are battling internet boycott calls over their perceived political leanings in a polarizing election season that has exposed them to what researchers call "brand disinformation."

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.