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Beijing Olympics organisers say app security flaws 'fixed'

An app that Winter Olympics attendees must use has been patched, a Chinese official told AFP Thursday, after cyber security researchers said they had found a "simple but devastating" flaw that could allow data leaks.

Afghan women activists go into hiding after Taliban crackdown

Several Afghan women's rights activists said Thursday they are going into hiding to escape a Taliban crackdown, just days after the hardline Islamists used pepper spray to break up a rally in the capital.

Texas synagogue hostage-taker 'prayed for two years' for attack: reports

A British man who took hostages at a Texas synagogue told his family he had prayed for two years to carry out the attack, media reported Thursday, as police made two arrests.

First foreign aid flights reach Tonga

The first humanitarian flights arrived in volcano and tsunami-stricken Tonga Thursday, five days after the dual disaster cut the Pacific kingdom off from the rest of the world.

Peril and promise: gas from 'killer lake' powers Rwanda

The engineers aboard the floating power station on Lake Kivu could only watch nervously as the volcano in the distance erupted violently, sending tremors rumbling throughthe water beneath them.

Thailand to restart quarantine-free travel from February 1

Thailand will resume its quarantine-free travel scheme from February 1, officials said Thursday, after the programme was suspended due to the fast-spreading Omicron Covid-19 variant.

Ex-pope Benedict under scrutiny in German child abuse probe

A potentially explosive report into the handling of child sex abuse in the Catholic Church will on Thursday be published in Germany, with former pope Benedict XVI among those in the spotlight.

Police deploy in Rio to retake gang-controlled favelas

Some 1,200 heavily armed military police launched an operation Wednesday to wrench control of Rio de Janeiro's slums from drug gangs, starting with the notorious Jacarezinho favela where residents took cover.

Justices seek to downplay Covid mask rift at US Supreme Court

Three US Supreme Court justices on Wednesday dismissed a report of a rift over the wearing of Covid face masks during hearings before the nation's highest court.

Israel police demolish Palestinian home in east Jerusalem eviction

Israeli police demolished a Palestinian family's home and arrested at least 18 people as they carried out a controversial eviction order in the sensitive east Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah early Wednesday.

Italy's top court upholds Robinho's nine-year rape conviction

Italy's highest court has upheld former Brazil forward Robinho's nine-year sentence for the gang rape of a young woman, the victim's lawyer said on Wednesday.

Flamboyant former Vogue creative director Andre Leon Talley dies at 73

Influential fashion journalist Andre Leon Talley, the first Black creative director of Vogue, died Tuesday in New York at the age of 73, with figures from fashion and entertainment paying tribute.

Psychiatrist says Breivik still a danger, hitting parole chances

A court-appointed psychiatrist on Wednesday said Anders Behring Breivik is as dangerous now as when he carried out Norway's deadliest peacetime attack in 2011, seemingly quashing his already-slim chances of early release.

Germany tries Syrian doctor for crimes against humanity

German prosecutors accused a Syrian doctor Wednesday of torturing detainees and killing one of them while working in military hospitals in his war-torn homeland, on the first day of a landmark crimes against humanity trial in Frankfurt.

Breivik as dangerous now as a decade ago: psychiatrist

Anders Behring Breivik, who is seeking conditional release just 10 years after carrying out Norway's deadliest peacetime attack, poses the same danger to society as a decade ago, a psychiatrist said in court Wednesday.

Taliban arrest fighter who shot dead Hazara woman at checkpoint

A Taliban fighter has been arrested for shooting dead a Hazara woman at a checkpoint in the Afghan capital as she returned from a wedding, a spokesman for the group said Wednesday.

'We are homeless': Victims of twin Afghan quakes await aid

Survivors of twin earthquakes in Afghanistan were waiting Wednesday for aid to arrive after spending their second night exposed to sub-zero temperatures following tremors that killed at least 22 people and wrecked homes.

China forcibly returned nearly 10,000 in overseas crackdown: report

Beijing has forced nearly 10,000 Chinese overseas nationals to return since 2014 using coercive means outside the justice system, according to a new report.

Verdict due in Belgium trial over UK migrant truck deaths

A Belgian court on Wednesday is to deliver its verdict in a trial of 23 people suspected of being involved with a gang that smuggled Vietnamese migrants to Britain, 39 of whom died in the back of a truck in October 2019.

42,000 rapid antigen tests snatched in Sydney heist

A thief has made off with 42,000 much-sought rapid antigen tests from a freight depot in Sydney, authorities said Wednesday.

Kellogg's falls foul of Mexico sugar labeling rules

US cereal giant Kellogg's has been sanctioned by the Mexican authorities for breaking sugar and other content labeling rules in a country with one of the world's most obese populations.

Bobby Kotick: Embattled Activision CEO faces uncertain future

Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick built a video game empire with flagship titles like "World of Warcraft", but he could lose control of it after a whopping Microsoft buyout deal announced Tuesday.

US Supreme Court to determine fate of Pissarro painting looted by Nazis

The US Supreme Court on Tuesday weighed the fate of a painting by Camille Pissarro looted by the Nazis in 1939 and currently on display at a gallery in Spain.

Images reveal devastation in tsunami-hit Tonga

A volcano that exploded in the Pacific island nation of Tonga has almost disappeared from view, new images revealed Tuesday, with swathes of the country smothered in grey dust or damaged by a tsunami.

Activision Blizzard: Troubled powerhouse in gaming world

Activision Blizzard is a star developer of gaming hits like "Call of Duty", but the firm has been roiled by serious sex discrimination allegations that have led to lawsuits, firings and official scrutiny.

Page to lead Wales World Cup bid after Giggs court case delayed

Wales manager Ryan Giggs's trial on charges of assaulting his ex-girlfriend and her sister has been delayed until August because of a courts backlog, meaning Robert Page is set to lead the side in March's World Cup play-offs.

Microsoft to buy US gaming giant Activision-Blizzard for $69 bn

Microsoft announced Tuesday a $69 billion deal to purchase US gaming giant Activision Blizzard, the firm behind hits like "Call of Duty" that has been hit by allegations of sex discrimination against women.

China rebuffs Australia's concern over health of detained writer

Beijing on Tuesday pushed back against claims from Canberra that a detained Australian writer was being arbitrarily held and not receiving adequate medical support despite his declining health.

Pakistani police officer killed in gun battle with local Taliban

A police officer was killed and two others injured in a shootout with Pakistan's Taliban in Islamabad, officials said Tuesday, a rare attack by the militants in the heavily guarded capital.

Court blocks South Korea speed skating champion's Olympic bid: Yonhap

South Korean speed skating star Shim Suk-hee's Beijing Olympic hopes were dashed Tuesday as she lost a court battle over a two-month ban that will rule her out of the Winter Games, local media reported.

Five facts about disaster-hit Tonga

The Pacific island nation of Tonga has suffered widespread damage after a huge underwater volcanic eruption and tsunami on the weekend.

Japan's 'invisible' disabled artisans fight for spotlight

In a trendy Tokyo neighbourhood, customers browse the wares at Majerca, a shop stocked with handmade items from scarves to glassware, all produced by people with disabilities.

Martin Luther King's family joins call for US voting reform

Members of Martin Luther King Jr's family joined marchers Monday in Washington urging Congress to pass voting rights reform as the United States marked the holiday commemorating the slain civil rights leader.

Distress signal detected in low-lying Tongan island

A distress signal has been detected in a low-lying Tongan island following the volcanic eruption and tsunami, the United Nations said Tuesday as the first death was reported.

Three dead as Yemeni rebels hit Abu Dhabi in 'warning' shot

Yemen's Huthi rebels claimed attacks in Abu Dhabi that triggered a fuel tank blast killing three people Monday, and warned civilians and foreign firms in the UAE to avoid "vital installations".

At least 26 killed in Afghan earthquake

At least 26 people were killed after an earthquake hit western Afghanistan on Monday, an official said.

Disbelief in Blackburn after local man stages Texas hostage siege

Community leaders in Blackburn, northwest England, on Monday voiced their shock after a local man took four people hostage more than 4,500 miles (7,400 kilometres) away at a Texas synagogue.

'Dr Mabuse' placed under house arrest for inciting doping in cycling

Former French cycling medical advisor Bernard Sainz, alias Dr Mabuse, was sentenced Monday to 12 months under house arrest with electronic monitoring for illegally practising medicine and pharmacology and inciting doping.

Texas rabbi describes moment he threw a chair at gunman in hostage stand-off

The rabbi of a Texas synagogue that was the scene of a hostage stand-off recounted Monday how he threw a chair at the gunman, allowing those being held to escape.

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