AFP news

The World Bank will unveil plans to tackle job creation, gender disparities, and food security at next week's gathering of the world's finance ministers and central bankers in Washington, its president said in an interview.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that the killing of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar in the Gaza Strip was the "beginning of the end" of the year-long war in the Palestinian territory.

Israel has inflicted an immense blow on Hamas by killing the Palestinian group's chief Yahya Sinwar, but whether his death will bring the end of the Gaza war any closer is unclear.

After a career in the shadows, spent in Israeli prisons and the internal security apparatus of Hamas, Yahya Sinwar emerged as the leader of the Palestinian group after helping ignite a full-blown war that has engulfed the region.

Public listings on Wall Street have seen a slow comeback in 2024 despite a resilient US economy, a long-awaited interest rate cut by the central bank and stock valuations hitting record highs.

Paris and Frankfurt stock markets climbed and the euro traded mixed Thursday before an expected interest-rate cut from the European Central Bank as the eurozone faces weakening economic activity and falling price pressures.

More than one billion people are living in acute poverty across the globe, a UN Development Program report said Thursday, with children accounting for over half of those affected.

Taiwanese chip giant TSMC announced a bigger-than-expected increase in net profit for the third quarter on Thursday and raised its growth forecasts for the year on "extremely robust" demand for AI technology.

The speaker of the French Senate -- the country's second most senior figure under the constitution -- said Thursday he was "astounded" by remarks attributed to Emmanuel Macron on Israel and accused the president of showing his "ignorance" of history.

The United States on Wednesday conducted multiple B-2 bomber strikes on weapons storage facilities in areas of Yemen controlled by the Iran-backed Huthi rebels, according to the US military and defense department.

Some 345,000 Gazans face "catastrophic" levels of hunger this winter due to falling aid deliveries, UN agencies said Thursday, warning of the persistent risk of famine across the Palestinian territory.

President Volodymyr Zelensky was headed to Brussels Thursday to defend his "victory plan" for Ukraine to both EU leaders and NATO defence ministers, with the outlook on the battlefield bleak in Kyiv's battle to repel the Russian invasion.

Forty years on from its 1984 release, Bronski Beat's new wave hit "Smalltown Boy" has transcended generations to become an LGBTQ anthem for young and old alike.

EU leaders will discuss tightening rules on migration as they meet in Brussels on Thursday for a summit that is set to crystallize a rightward shift in the bloc's rhetoric.

Israel's latest bombardment of Hezbollah targets caused widespread destruction in southern Lebanon, ahead of US and Israeli strikes in the wider region Thursday.

Pakistan's traditional matchmakers play a revered role in moulding daughters into potential brides, but marriage apps marketing themselves as halal are offering women a new route to finding a husband.

A bungalow where Singapore's early leaders spent long hours laying the country's foundations is under the spotlight as a bitter feud rages between former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew's children.

China has reacted more robustly to Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's rhetoric defending the island's sovereignty than his predecessor's, with fiery threats and war games analysts say will likely intensify.

British singer Liam Payne, a member of the best-selling boy band One Direction, died Wednesday aged 31 after plunging from the third floor of Buenos Aires hotel, police and emergency responders said.

Gulf leaders including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with European heads of state and government in Brussels Wednesday for summit talks the EU hopes could help defuse an "extremely dangerous escalation" in the Middle East.

Thomas Tuchel said he must rise to the challenge of ending England's wait for a first major trophy since 1966 as the German was unveiled as the new manager of the Three Lions on Wednesday.

The potholed streets of the Lebanese capital, sometimes plunged into darkness at night due to regular state power outages, were already busy before the displacement crisis sparked by the Israel-Hezbollah war.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk's X platform will not face the EU's stringent competition rules aimed at keeping digital markets open, the European Commission said on Wednesday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday unveiled his long-awaited Victory Plan to end Russia's invasion, rejecting any territorial concessions and urging ramped-up Western backing, including an invitation to join NATO. After pushing back Russian troops at the start of the invasion in February 2022, Kyiv is now facing mounting pressure to find an exit strategy as its troops suffer battlefield losses and Moscow intensifies its strikes on infrastructure.

Former US president Donald Trump's cryptocurrency platform had a faltering sales launch Tuesday, with only a fraction of its digital tokens that went on the market finding a buyer.

The robot artist Ai-Da, a humanoid powered by artificial intelligence, will be the first of its kind to have a painting sold at a major auction house, organisers said Wednesday.

Major Asian and European stock markets mostly fell Wednesday after concerns about the red-hot semiconductor industry fuelled a tech sell-off.

North Korea claimed Wednesday that more than a million young people had signed up for or rejoined the army this week after Pyongyang accused Seoul's military of sending drones into its airspace.

A wave of touching photos showing great moments in time is fascinating amateur historians online.