Featured
Last news
Japan hunts for 'sinking' tourist boat after distress call
Rescuers in Japan were searching Saturday for a sightseeing boat carrying 26 people, hours after it sent a distress signal warning it was sinking, the country's transport minister said.
China's censors scrub viral Shanghai lockdown video from online platforms
A viral video showing the impact of the prolonged coronavirus lockdown on Shanghai's residents has been taken down by China's internet censors Saturday, triggering an online backlash.
Scientists scour 'Mexico's Galapagos' for quake, volcano clues
Could a volcanic eruption off Mexico's coast unleash a tsunami like the one that devastated Tonga? What really causes tectonic plates to shift and trigger earthquakes? Scientists visited a remote archipelago in search of answers.
EU agrees deal to tame internet 'Wild West'
The European Union early Saturday finalised new legislation to require Big Tech to remove harmful content, the bloc's latest move to rein in the world's online giants.
Ecuador ex-president Correa says Belgium has granted him asylum
Belgium has granted asylum to corruption-convicted Ecuadoran ex-president Rafael Correa, the former head of state told AFP on Friday, as the South American country seeks his extradition.
Ex-Honduran president appears in US court on drugs charges
Ex-Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez made his first appearance before a US judge Friday following his extradition to America to face drug trafficking charges.
Somali man on trial in Germany over fatal stabbings
A Somali man went on trial in Germany on Friday accused of stabbing three people to death and injuring several others, with prosecutors seeking to have him placed in psychiatric care.
Turkey's jailed rights defender makes final appeal before verdict
One of Turkey's most famous prisoners appeared in court Friday for what could be his final hearing in a case that has come to define Ankara's uneasy ties with the West.
Far from conflict in Ukraine, Muscovites try to go on as normal
Far from the conflict in Ukraine, spring has arrived in Moscow with -- on the surface at least -- life appearing to go on much as normal.
Taliban arrest IS 'mastermind' of Afghan mosque attack: police
Taliban forces have arrested a suspected Islamic State militant who planned a bomb attack that killed at least 12 worshippers at a Shiite mosque in Afghanistan, police said on Friday.
Gabon counts on visitors to help preserve great apes
Around a bend on a narrow trail that runs deep into the forest of Gabon's Loango national park, Kamaya comes into view. The huge silverback gorilla coolly watches visitors arrive, then goes back to his meal.
Demolitions in Saudi's Jeddah turn residents into 'strangers'
The Saudi doctor still had 15 years left on the loan he used to build his family's "dream" home in Jeddah when bulldozers razed it to the ground, turning his life into "hell".
Bahraini artisans toil to preserve sugar-coated tradition
Bahrainis with a sweet tooth have long been spoiled for choice between a wide array of dessert franchises, but traditional confectioners still hold their ground, especially during Ramadan.
Horses give Irish prisoners hope of a stable life
The purpose-built stables and adjoining paddock stretch almost as far as the high grey, exterior wall of Castlerea Prison in central Ireland.
Bodyguards a status symbol amid Venezuela's crime and poverty
In a rich neighborhood east of Caracas, a bodyguard flashes his rifle as a private armored car with dark tinted windows speeds away under his intimidating watch.
Honduras ex-president extradited to US for drug trafficking trial
Former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez was extradited to the United States Thursday to stand trial for allegedly aiding the smuggling of hundreds of tons of cocaine to America.
Exhumed bodies central to Ukraine probe of war 'atrocities'
The empty graves under a leaden Ukrainian sky have passed their secrets to investigators, who exhumed the bodies in them as an effort intensifies to probe war crimes accusations against invading Russian troops.
Johnny Depp grilled about drug, alcohol use at defamation trial
"Pirates of the Caribbean" star Johnny Depp was grilled about his history of drug and alcohol use as he took the witness stand for the third day on Thursday in his defamation case against his ex-wife, the actress Amber Heard.
Portuguese man detained over Beirut blast
Spanish authorities said Thursday they had arrested and then granted conditional release to a Portuguese man wanted by Interpol over the 2020 Beirut port blast that killed over 200 people.
Mike Tyson hits passenger on US plane: phone video
Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson repeatedly punched a passenger on a plane about to fly out of San Francisco after reportedly becoming irritated by the man's attempts to talk to him.
Google makes cookie opt-out easier after France fine
Google announced on Thursday it was starting to roll out an option for European users to reject "cookies" with a single click, months after it was slapped with a massive fine.
Gaza rockets, Israel strikes stoke new Jerusalem clashes
Palestinian militants in Gaza and Israeli warplanes exchanged fire early Thursday in the biggest escalation in months, followed by fresh violence at Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque.
Hosting Britain's migrants: The view from Rwanda
Britain's controversial deal to send migrants and asylum-seekers to Rwanda has attracted a flood of criticism in the UK, with opposition politicians, campaigners and the UN refugee agency calling for the multi-million-dollar agreement to be scrapped.
Gaza militants, Israel in biggest exchange of fire since 2021 war
Palestinian militants fired volleys of rockets from Gaza into Israel, which responded with air strikes in the early hours of Thursday in the biggest escalation since an 11-day war last year.
Horror master Cronenberg makes art from 'beautiful' kidney stones
Canadian film-maker David Cronenberg has been shocking audiences for decades with his graphic "body horror" movies but he has now gone further by creating art from his own insides.
After life of trauma, Liberian lab chimps settle into retirement
Floating on a river boat near a Liberian island, vet Richard Ssuna watches intently as animal carers wade towards the shore hurling fruits and imitating chimpanzee calls as they go.
Hidden in bananas and tea, cocaine departs Ecuador port by the ton
Trying to prevent drug traffickers from hiding cocaine in cargo containers at Ecuador's main port of Guayaquil is becoming an increasingly expensive headache for police and exporters alike.
No joke: Political satire in Venezuela a risky business
A 72-year-old grandmother who named a popular snack after the "widow" of President Nicolas Maduro -- still very much alive -- has become the latest casualty of a Venezuelan hate speech law denounced by rights defenders.
QR codes and cranes: Japan embraces modern cemeteries
Masayo Isurugi settles into a booth on the sixth floor of a sleek Tokyo building, scans an ID card and waits for an automated system to deliver her late husband's ashes.
US Capitol evacuation over false alarm provokes fear, fury
The US Capitol was briefly evacuated Wednesday after authorities sounded a threat alarm over a harmless parachute stunt, prompting top lawmaker Nancy Pelosi to blast aviation officials for an "inexcusable" failure.
Gaza rocket hits Israel, as far-right rally blocked by police
Palestinian militants in Gaza fired a rocket into Israel on Wednesday, the army said, as tensions soared with police in Jerusalem blocking Jewish ultra-nationalist protesters from approaching the Old City's Muslim quarter.
Johnny Depp says ex-wife severed his finger with thrown vodka bottle
"Pirates of the Caribbean" star Johnny Depp testified Wednesday that his ex-wife Amber Heard would regularly "verbally decimate" him and once threw a vodka bottle at him, severing the tip of one of his fingers.
South African flood victims struggle with despair
Wielding shovels, mallets and machetes, they worked for four hours to try to shift the muddy debris, hoping that vehicles could at last get through.
Venice readies day-trip booking system to ease crowds
Venice plans to trial a reservation system for day-trippers, an official said Wednesday, in a bid to ease over-tourism as visitors flock back to the Italian city following the pandemic.
Hong Kong pro-democracy DJ gets 40 months in jail for sedition
A pro-democracy Hong Kong radio DJ was jailed for 40 months on Wednesday for "seditious speech" under a British colonial-era law authorities have embraced as China flattens dissent in the city.
El Salvador NGOs file suit against gag order on gang statements
El Salvadoran NGOs asked the judiciary on Tuesday to declare unconstitutional a new measure that journalists warn could criminalize certain forms of media reporting on gangs.
Chanters in Cyprus carry on 'rich heritage' of Byzantine music
Chanting resonates through a church in the Cypriot resort town of Ayia Napa, darkened but for a few low lights and mobile devices displaying the singers' Byzantine melodies.
Under shadow of drought, Santiago ditches exotic plants
With drought casting a constant shadow over Santiago's 7.1 million residents, there has been a recent rush to replace thirsty, exotic plants with hardier, native ones in the hopes of staving off water rationing.
Brazil readies first carnival since Covid
After two bleak years of lock-downs and loss, Rio de Janeiro will hold its famed carnival this weekend for the first time since Covid-19 hit Brazil, promising a giant, glittering spectacle of pandemic catharsis.