WORLD

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.

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.

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".

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.

A Thai court on Thursday jailed a famous Spanish actor's son for life for the grisly murder of a Colombian plastic surgeon on a tropical holiday island, in a lurid case that has gripped Spain.

US President Joe Biden is looking forward to talks with Xi Jinping in the "coming weeks", top White House aide Jake Sullivan told the Chinese leader Thursday as they met for rare talks in Beijing.

US Vice President Kamala Harris will give her first interview Thursday since becoming the Democratic standard-bearer, after intense criticism from Republicans that she has been hiding from tough questions.

A barrage of attacks on Tim Walz fueled by misinformation over his support for LGBTQ communities has failed to dent the US vice presidential candidate's surging poll ratings, suggesting that voters are wearying of some "culture war" issues in a tight White House race.

Two months after the first Kenyan police officers arrived in Haiti, little progress has been made against the country's rapacious gangs -- and the buildup of an international policing mission appears stalled.

With the smell still lingering in its suburbs after Greece's worst wildfire this year, floods and pollution now threaten Athens, experts say.

A bill aimed at regulating powerful artificial intelligence models passed California's legislature on Wednesday, despite outcry that it could kill the technology it seeks to control.

One of Japan's strongest typhoons in decades dumped torrential rain across southern regions on Thursday, with one person missing and authorities warning of life-threatening flooding and landslides.

Taylor Swift has yet to weigh in on the US presidential race, but some of her superfans are already stumping for Kamala Harris.

On a platform near the east Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, Anna Dvoryaninova waited for a train she never wanted to take, leaving her home behind as Russian forces push deeper into her native Donetsk region.

Israel launched a large-scale military operation Wednesday in the occupied West Bank, where the army said it killed nine Palestinian fighters, while the nearly 11-month Gaza war showed no sign of abating.

Pope Francis condemned Wednesday efforts to repel migrants and block their routes as a "grave sin", as he recalled those who lost their lives, including those "abandoned" in the desert.

Bangladesh's new authorities on Wednesday opened an investigation into hundreds of enforced disappearances by security forces during the rule of ousted premier Sheikh Hasina, the government said.

Voters in two former East German states will go to the polls Sunday in what could be a bad night for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's government, with the far-right AfD expected to make big gains.

Japan braced Wednesday for its strongest typhoon of the year, with authorities advising tens of thousands of people to evacuate and issuing the highest warning level for wind and storm surges on the main southern island of Kyushu.

SpaceX on Tuesday postponed once more its attempt at launching a daring orbital expedition featuring an all-civilian crew that is aiming to carry out the first-ever spacewalk by private citizens.

A surprise improvement in air quality in South Asia in 2022 drove a decline in global pollution, with favourable weather a likely factor, a new report said Wednesday.