An Israeli air strike that hit the densely populated Al-Mawasi area, previously designated as a humanitarian safe zone, near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis on Saturday killed at least 71 people, according to health authorities in the Hamas-run Palestinian enclave. The Israeli army said the strike targeted Mohammed Deif, the head of Hamas's military wing, according to Israeli media reports.
Wing Mark Tele'a scored two tries, one each half, and Damian McKenzie slotted four penalties as the All Blacks survived a scare for the second week in a row as they kept their 30-year unbeaten record at Eden Park intact. Just like in the 16-15 first Test win at Dunedin, New Zealand had to wrestle back the lead after half-time from Steve Borthwick's spirited young England side. "Hugely proud of the boys to hold on and win the arm wrestle and finish off a good performance," said New Zealand captain Scott Barrett. Читать дальше...
Host France's flagbearers at the Paris Games' opening ceremony on the River Seine will be former Olympic swimming champion Florent Manaudou and discus thrower Melina Robert-Michon, it was reported on Thursday. The July 26 opening ceremony is due to break with Olympic tradition and be held away from the Games' main stadium and instead on the French capital's River Seine.
After a frenetic meet in Paris last weekend, a host of athletes fine-tuned their preparations for the Summer Games in some style in perfect conditions in Monaco. AFP Sport looks at five events that stood out. Men's 1500m Jakob Ingebrigtsen is back! After battling an Achilles injury over the winter, the Norwegian has returned to the track in top form. He was superbly led out by two pace-setters in Monaco and promptly improved his European record to 3:26.73, also a world lead and sixth fastest time ever. Читать дальше...
Tries by wing Mark Tele'a either side of half-time in Auckland saw New Zealand seal a 24-17 victory on Saturday to follow their 16-15 victory in Dunedin. A spirited England side led 14-13 at half-time after tries by Tommy Freeman and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, then pinned New Zealand in their own half as they extended their advantage to 17-13. Playmaker Beauden Barrett came off the bench to swing the momentum back to the All Blacks as he set up Telea's second try before Damian McKenzie landed two penalties. Читать дальше...
Cross-discipline maverick Pidcock is due to protect his mountain bike Olympic title at the 2024 Games which start in just two weeks. "A disappointed Tom Pidcock will not line up for stage 14 of the Tour de France today," Ineos said. "Tom is experiencing symptoms of Covid-19 and under advice from our medical team will now return home to recover." The 24-year-old was pipped to the line on the stage-nine run over gravel roads in the champagne region. Pidcock entered Tour de France folklore in 2021 for his daredevil descent of the Galibier... Читать дальше...
With the water quality of the River Seine meeting required standards over the past few days, French Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera on Saturday swam in the river in a boost for Olympics organisers ahead of the July 26 kickoff. The question of whether the river will be consistently clean enough for official swimming events to be held in it has kept Paris officials on tenterhooks for months.
"It is deeply concerning that Pakistan is forcing Afghan refugees based in Pakistan back into Afghanistan, and I'm deeply concerned about the women and girls", the activist, who was awarded the Nobel Peace prize in 2014, told AFP in an interview on Friday. Despite extending leave for Afghan refugees with permits to stay in Pakistan for another year, Islamabad this week said it would remove illegal migrants. More than 600,000 Afghans have fled Pakistan since Islamabad last year ordered undocumented migrants to leave or face arrest. Читать дальше...
More than 90 others were injured in the strike on Al-Mawasi camp, the ministry said, condemning a "brutal massacre." It came as the Israeli military pursued attacks in central Gaza with artillery fire and drone strikes heard by an AFP correspondent, while Palestinian medics said one bombing killed a father and his three daughters. Palestine Red Crescent medics said the strike on a home in Deir al-Balah city killed Rital al-Raey, five, Mai, eight, Leila, nine and their 40-year-old father Mohammed al-Raey. Читать дальше...
Tele'a touched down either side of half-time as the All Blacks took the series 2-0 and extended their 30-year unbeaten record at Eden Park. Just like in the 16-15 first Test win at Dunedin, New Zealand had to wrestle back the lead in the second half from a spirited England side. "Hugely proud of the boys to hold on and win the arm wrestle and finish off a good performance," said New Zealand captain Scott Barrett. "Test matches certainly challenge your character and we had to dig deep there,... Читать дальше...
The force of Friday's landslide in central Chitwan district pushed the vehicles over concrete crash barriers and down a steep embankment, at least 30 metres (100 feet) from the road. "One body has been found about 55 kilometres (35 miles) from the accident site," police spokesman Kumar Neupane told AFP. District official Khimananda Bhusal told AFP that roughly 50 people remained unaccounted for, revising down the number of missing from the 63 reported by authorities on Friday. "It is hard to confirm... Читать дальше...
As France's left-wing alliance scrambles to agree on a candidate for prime minister after taking the most parliamentary seats in the July 7 snap election, the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) party has proposed veteran politician Huguette Bello as a compromise candidate. The former Communist Party member from the French overseas region of Reunion is a respected politician whose candidacy is supported by most parties in the New Popular Front coalition, but the Socialists appear to be reluctant to endorse her... Читать дальше...
The youngest son of Mukesh Ambani, Asia’s richest man, married his longtime girlfriend early Saturday in what many dubbed the wedding of the year, attended by global celebrities, business tycoons and politicians, highlighting the billionaire’s staggering wealth and rising clout. The guest list includes former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Boris Johnson; Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser; and Adele, Lana Del Rey, Drake and David Beckham, according to local media.
Alec Baldwin's trial for involuntary manslaughter collapsed in spectacular fashion Friday as a judge found key evidence over a fatal shooting on the set of "Rust" had been withheld from the defense, and dismissed the case. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer, presiding over the trial in Santa Fe, New Mexico, said bullets potentially linked to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins that could have been favorable to Baldwin's case had not been shared with his lawyers by police and prosecutors.
A two-story school collapsed during morning classes Friday in north-central Nigeria, killing 22 students and sending rescuers on a frantic search for more than 100 people trapped in the rubble, authorities said. The Saints Academy college in Plateau state’s Busa Buji community collapsed shortly after students, many of whom were 15 years old or younger, arrived for classes.
The United Nations chief appealed for funding Friday for the beleaguered UN agency helping Palestinian refugees in Gaza and elsewhere in the Middle East, accusing Israel of issuing evacuation orders that force Palestinians “to move like human pinballs across a landscape of destruction and death.” UNRWA’s 30,000 staff provide education, primary health care and other development activities to about 6 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
People in the central Auvergne region are divided as they watch France's political parties struggle to form a ruling majority in Parliament. The 577-seat National Assembly is roughly split into thirds between the New Popular Front (NFP) left alliance with at least 190 seats, President Emmanuel Macron's centrists at 164 and the far-right National Rally (RN), with 143.
A determined Joe Biden is back on the campaign trail following NATO's summit in Washington over the last three days. Biden on Friday forcefully defied the growing number of critics in his own party who have called on him to exit the race, pivoting to warnings about a second Donald Trump term and declaring he was “not done yet.”
As the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza enters its 10th month, NGOs are once again sounding the alarm. The Palestinians, who have been displaced several times in the enclave on the Israeli army’s orders, are crammed into overcrowded areas where humanitarian aid can no longer get through.
French political parties used to a winner-takes-all electoral system are struggling to wake up to the reality of a divided chamber following Sunday's parliamentary ballot. The 577-seat National Assembly is roughly split into thirds between the New Popular Front (NFP) left alliance with at least 190 seats, President Emmanuel Macron's centrists at 164 and the far-right National Rally (RN), with 143. Further complicating the situation is the make up of the top-placed NFP, with its largest component... Читать дальше...
The South Asian nation agreed to the deal -- its 24th IMF payout since 1958 -- in exchange for unpopular reforms, including widening its chronically low tax base. Pakistan last year came to the brink of default as the economy shrivelled amid political chaos following catastrophic 2022 monsoon floods and decades of mismanagement, as well as a global economic downturn. It was saved by last-minute loans from friendly countries, as well as an IMF rescue package, but its finances remain in dire straits... Читать дальше...
A nearly three-year legal saga for Hollywood star Alec Baldwin following the 2021 fatal shooting of a cinematographer ended on Friday when a US judge dismissed the involuntary manslaughter case due to the withholding of evidence by police and prosecutors.
Donald Trump compared his upcoming vice presidential announcement to a “sophisticated version” of his former TV show, “The Apprentice” as the Republican candidate drummed up the suspense ahead of a rally Saturday in Pennsylvania. The running mate hype comes days before the Republican National Convention begins in Milwaukee next week.
Loubaoui, 40, rode his combine harvester for 280 kilometres (175 miles) hoping to pick up work in what previously had been the booming agricultural village of Dar Bel Amri. His day-long journey was for nothing. Now Loubaoui fears he will end up like the roughly 159,000 Moroccan agricultural workers who, official figures say, have lost their jobs since early last year. "Work has become hard to come by because of drought," Loubaoui told AFP. Large areas of the Mediterranean have been under "alert drought conditions"... Читать дальше...
But with the country in the early days of a political transition and a gang-fighting international security mission just hitting the ground, it's uncertain how long the 65-year-old -- like hundreds of thousands of other displaced Haitians -- still has to wait. "The only thing I'm asking for: I'd like to go home, find a place to rest. I can't stay here indefinitely," she told AFP recently at the crowded International Primitive Church. Dayiti used to live in Bas-Delmas, a dangerous neighborhood in the capital's sprawling metropolitan area... Читать дальше...
