AFP news

Japanese tech investor SoftBank Group, a major player in the US Stargate artificial intelligence drive, on Tuesday posted a $7.8 billion annual net profit, its first in the black for four years.

Three suspected rebels were killed in Indian-administered Kashmir on Tuesday in a gun battle with soldiers, the army said, the first since an attack on tourists last month brought India and Pakistan to the brink of war.

Japan's Nissan posted an annual net loss of $4.5 billion on Tuesday while saying it plans to cut 15 percent of its global workforce and warning about the possible impact of US tariffs.

A months-long Israeli blockade is worsening acute malnutrition in the Gaza Strip, medical charity Medecins du Monde warned on Tuesday, accusing Israel of using hunger as "a weapon of war".

Ukraine said Tuesday that if Vladimir Putin skips talks in Turkey it would be a "clear sign" to the world the Russian leader is not serious about peace, and the West should reply with boosted military support to Kyiv.

Rights groups and NGOs took the UK government to court on Tuesday accusing it of breaching international law by supplying fighter jet parts to Israel amid the war in Gaza.

Gerard Depardieu was a titan of French cinema for more than 50 years but a sexual assault conviction, a string of other allegations and several instances of lewd behaviour now cast a long, dark shadow over what was once a glittering career.

Donald Trump enjoyed a lavish welcome in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday as he opened the first state visit of his second term, with the US president eyeing major business deals even as progress on the Middle East's hotspots will likely be harder to reach.

India and Pakistan have announced a ceasefire after coming close to all-out conflict, but on social media citizens on both sides are vying to control public perceptions by peddling disinformation.

Wang Dong hasn't worked for months and doesn't plan to, whiling away his days at a lakeside town as one of a growing number of young Chinese "retiring" in the countryside.

A-list celebrity Kim Kardashian is to testify in a Paris court on Tuesday, an eagerly awaited appearance nearly a decade after masked men robbed her at gunpoint of millions of dollars of jewellery during the French capital's fashion week.

It is arguably the world's most iconic plane, an instantly recognizable symbol of the US presidency.

More than 350 figures from the cinema world including Hollywood stars Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon condemned "genocide" in Gaza in an open letter published Monday on the eve of the Cannes Festival.

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) on Monday announced its dissolution and the end of its armed struggle, drawing a line under its deadly four-decade insurgency against the Turkish state.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed Monday to "finally take back control" of Britain's borders as his government unveiled policies designed to reduce legal immigration and fend off rising support for the hard right.

Millions of Filipinos braved long lines and soaring temperatures Monday to vote in a mid-term election largely defined by the explosive feud between President Ferdinand Marcos and impeached Vice President Sara Duterte.

Holding an oversized carrot, a brawny, shirtless man promotes a supplement he claims can enlarge male genitalia -- one of countless AI-generated videos on TikTok peddling unproven sexual treatments.

Donald Trump on Sunday defended plans to receive a new Air Force One as a gift, after reports he will accept a luxury Boeing jet from Qatar despite strict rules on presents for US presidents.

Stock markets, the dollar and oil prices rallied Monday after Chinese and US officials slashed tit-for-tat tariffs for 90 days, fuelling hopes the two sides will pull back from a standoff that has rattled global markets.

Russia fired more than 100 drones at Ukraine overnight, Kyiv said Monday as it awaits the Kremlin's response to Volodymyr Zelensky's call for a personal meeting with Vladimir Putin this week.

The United States and China announced Monday an agreement to drastically reduce tit-for-tat tariffs for 90 days, de-escalating a trade war that has roiled financial markets and raised fears of a global economic downturn.

US President Donald Trump's Gulf tour this week will take him to Saudi Arabia, which he would like see recognise Israel, and the neighbouring UAE which has benefitted from Israeli ties but also paid a price.

Pope Leo XIV called Monday for the release of jailed journalists and urged reporters against using words that fan hatred, as Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky invited him to the war-torn country.

Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed founder of the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), is an icon to many Kurds but a "terrorist" to many within wider Turkish society.

Deep in the bowels of the UN headquarters, a pump sucks in huge amounts of water from the East River to help cool the complex with an old but energy-efficient mechanism.

Aarti Verma is about to join the growing ranks of Indians installing air conditioning, scraping together savings to secure relief from sometimes deadly temperatures that can reach nearly 50 Celsius.

Hamas said it would release a US-Israeli hostage held in Gaza as the group revealed it was engaged in direct talks with the United States towards a ceasefire in the war-battered territory.

The Eurovision Song Contest burst into Basel on Sunday, but a parade launching a week of build-up to the grand final was marked by protests over Israel's participation.

The glitz and glamour of the Cannes film festival returns to the French Riviera on Tuesday.