POLITICS & POLICY

Russian attacks overnight damaged a Ukrainian power plant and several energy facilities, Kyiv said on Thursday, the latest in a series of bombardments that have pushed its power grid to the brink.

Chinese coast guard sailors brandished knives, an axe and other weapons in a clash with Philippine naval vessels near a strategic reef in the South China Sea, dramatic new footage released by Manila showed.

When invading Russian troops advanced towards Kyiv and the first explosions rang out in the suburbs, Daria Zymenko took refuge in Gavronshchyna, her parents' village near the Ukrainian capital.

France boast fearsome strength in depth but remain hugely reliant on Kylian Mbappe for inspiration and are now facing the prospect of being without their injured superstar for at least their next Euro 2024 game against the Netherlands on Friday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin begins a state visit to Vietnam on Thursday, a day after signing a mutual defence pact with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, who offered his "full support" on Ukraine.

An escalating cross-border tit-for-tat between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah raised fears Wednesday of a full-blown war, but experts are divided on the prospect of a wider conflict.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a mutual defence agreement on Wednesday with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, who offered his "full support" on Ukraine.

South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa hailed "the beginning of a new era" on Wednesday as he was sworn in for a second full term as president after his weakened African National Congress (ANC) struck a hard-won government coalition deal to remain in power.

Israeli air strikes and clashes between troops and Palestinian militants rocked Gaza on Wednesday, as Israel's army warned it had readied an "offensive" against the Lebanese Hezbollah movement on the country's northern front.

Republicans are flooding the internet with out-of-context videos of US President Joe Biden, using what the White House has characterized as deceptive editing tactics to cast the 81-year-old as infirm less than five months from November's election.

President Joe Biden on Tuesday will unveil new rules easing the process for undocumented spouses of US citizens to obtain permanent residency status, the White House said.

China tops the list of countries that imports iron ore and lithium from Australia. Iron ore was exempted from the banned commodities when China prohibited exports from Australia, three years ago

To protect children aged 10 and 11 who pose a risk to themselves or others, the police will be granted additional authority.

Israeli strikes on Tuesday killed at least 13 people in central Gaza, the civil defence agency in the Hamas-run territory said, although fighting has largely subsided as Muslims mark Eid al-Adha.

Australia voiced concern Tuesday about the "ham-fisted" actions of two Chinese diplomats at a media event, tarnishing a highly touted visit in which Premier Li Qiang has sought to celebrate trade and friendship.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to North Korea on Tuesday, in a rare visit that may see Moscow sign a "strategic partnership treaty" with Pyongyang, the Kremlin said.

EU leaders gather Monday in Brussels to thrash out over dinner how to distribute the bloc's top jobs, with Ursula von der Leyen seemingly on track for a second term heading the European Commission.

Israel struck Gaza on Monday and witnesses reported blasts in the besieged territory's south, but fighting has largely subsided after a day of relative calm and as Muslims marked Eid al-Adha.

China hailed mended ties with Australia on Monday, saying relations were "on the right track" as the trading partners moved on from a bitter economic dispute despite a duel for influence in the Pacific.

Pilgrims on Sunday performed the last major ritual of the hajj, the "stoning of the devil", in western Saudi Arabia as Muslims the world over celebrated the Eid al-Adha holiday.

World leaders on Sunday backed Ukraine's independence and territorial integrity, and the need for eventual talks with Russia on ending the war -- but left the key questions of how and when unresolved.

Israel's military said Sunday it would "pause" fighting around a south Gaza route daily to facilitate aid deliveries, following months of warnings of famine in the besieged Palestinian territory.

Iran and Sweden announced a prisoner exchange on Saturday in which a former Iranian official was released in Sweden in exchange for a European Union diplomat and a second Swede.

Israel bombed and shelled Gaza on Saturday, witnesses and first responders said, with fallout from the war bringing a resurgence of tensions to the Lebanon border and Yemen.

Donald Trump, whose attempted White House return is based in part on attacking President Joe Biden as old and feeble, turned 78 Friday -- just three years younger than his election rival -- with growing questions over his own health.

Standing outside the Catholic school where he teaches in eastern France, Charles Lauvergne said he was unsurprised the far right did so well in last week's European elections.

As winter sets in, diseases and viruses such as COVID-19, the flu and RSV are weighing on the health systems across Australia, Health ministers stated.

France's snap elections have sparked reconciliation within the country's most prominent far-right family, the latest episode in the saga of the tempestuous Le Pens.

France's left put up a united front on Friday, vowing a "total break" with President Emmanuel Macron's policies if it wins historic polls that could propel the far right to major gains in parliament.