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Kremlin says Biden 'fuelling' war as Russian strikes rock Odesa

The Kremlin accused US President Joe Biden on Monday of escalating the war in Ukraine by allowing Kyiv to use long-range missiles supplied by Washington to strike targets inside Russia.

G20 leaders gather to discuss wars, climate, Trump comeback

G20 leaders began arriving for a summit in Brazil on Monday to try reignite deadlocked climate talks and overcome their differences on the Middle East and Ukraine wars ahead of Donald Trump's return to the White House.

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Four bombs kill at least 11 in Afghanistan

Four bombs ripped through minibuses and a mosque in Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing at least 11 people, officials said.

Russia bears down on key eastern Ukraine city

Russian forces threatened to encircle a crucial eastern Ukrainian city on Wednesday as Moscow said the West must drop sanctions over its invasion to end a global food crisis.

US negotiator says odds against reviving Iran deal

The US pointman on Iran warned Wednesday it was more likely than not that talks would fail to revive a nuclear deal as he vowed no let-up in pressure if Tehran clings to its demands.

India jails Kashmir independence leader for life

A former militant and campaigner for Kashmir independence was sentenced to life imprisonment on terrorism charges Wednesday by an Indian court.

Nike halts sales to retailers in Russia

Nike will not renew licensing agreements in Russia, the company said Wednesday, joining a growing list of Western companies pulling back from the country following the Ukraine invasion of Ukraine.

China offers South Pacific nations security, free trade agreements

China has put forward plans to dramatically expand security and economic cooperation with South Pacific nations, with one regional leader calling it a thinly veiled effort to lock them into "Beijing's orbit".

UK's PM urged to quit over drunken 'Partygate' culture

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson rejected calls to resign after an inquiry Wednesday found that he presided over a culture of lockdown-breaking parties that featured drunken fighting among staff.

Ousted PM Khan leads protest march on blockaded Pakistan capital

Pakistan's ousted prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday led a convoy of thousands of supporters towards the capital Islamabad in a show of force the new government has attempted to shut down, with clashes breaking out between police and protesters.

Ferdinand Marcos Jr proclaimed next Philippine president

Ferdinand Marcos Jr was Wednesday proclaimed the next Philippine president after a landslide win in elections that rights groups and religious leaders fear could weaken the corruption-prone country's fragile democracy.

Boris Johnson: the man who always gets away with it?

He was once described as a "greased piglet", with an uncanny knack of wriggling free from politically perilous situations -- usually of his own making.

China, Australia launch duelling South Pacific charm offensives

Chinese and Australian foreign ministers will launch duelling charm offensives in the South Pacific Thursday, as Beijing and the West jostle for influence in the strategically significant region.

Xi speaks with UN rights chief as Xinjiang row rages

Chinese President Xi Jinping held a video call with UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet on Wednesday, as she visits Xinjiang during a mission overshadowed by fresh allegations of Uyghur abuses and fears she is being used as a public relations tool.

UK government authorises sale of Chelsea FC

The UK government announced Wednesday it had given the green light to Todd Boehly's proposed takeover of Chelsea football club from the sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.

After wheat, India caps sugar exports

India said it has capped sugar exports to safeguard its own supplies and ease inflation, days after a ban on wheat shipments sent global prices soaring in the wake of the Ukraine war.

Crisis-hit Sri Lanka appoints PM to helm finance ministry

Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was on Wednesday given the additional responsibility of running the finance ministry as the island nation grapples with its worst-ever economic crisis.

North Korea fires likely ICBM hours after Biden leaves Asia

North Korea fired a volley of missiles early Wednesday including a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile, just hours after US President Joe Biden left Asia after a trip overshadowed by Pyongyang's sabre-rattling.

In Sierra Leone, football offers hope to amputees

On a sun-drenched Sierra Leone beach, a one-legged man balances on his crutches and fires the ball past a one-armed goalkeeper.

Pakistan capital blockaded ahead of opposition protest

All roads leading into Pakistan's capital Islamabad were blocked on Wednesday ahead of a major protest planned by ousted prime minister Imran Khan and his supporters.

Water shortages test Ukraine's Mykolaiv as hardships bite

As the sound of artillery rumbles in the distance and the occasional air raid siren wails, Anna Bondar waits her turn to fill up on drinking water in Mykolaiv, a port city in southern Ukraine.

Biden channels personal losses to console families after Texas gun atrocity

"To lose a child is like having a piece of your soul ripped away," said US President Joe Biden -- a twice-bereaved father channeling his own heartache to console a nation devastated by another mass shooting on Tuesday.

Another mass shooting, another US gun control debate

A mass shooting that left 18 schoolchildren dead in the deeply pro-gun state of Texas on Tuesday increased pressure on US politicians to take action over the ubiquity of firearms -- but also brought the grim expectation of little or no change.

N. Korea fired 'suspected intercontinental ballistic missile': Seoul

North Korea fired a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile early Wednesday, Seoul's military said, just one day after President Joe Biden wrapped up his first Asia visit as US leader.

Makeup artist who fled Ukraine lands Cannes dream

Ukrainian makeup artist Aliona Antonova had little idea when she fled her hometown the morning of the Russian invasion that she would soon find herself among the stars at the world's top film festival.

Georgia rebukes Trump over US voter fraud 'Big Lie'

Republican voters delivered a stark repudiation Tuesday of Donald Trump's "Big Lie" that the 2020 US election was stolen, backing Georgia Governor Brian Kemp for re-election by a huge margin over a candidate recruited by the former president.

Locals 'apprehensive' in Moscow-run Ukraine region

In Ukraine's only region fully controlled by Russian troops, Moscow-backed officials are pushing for formal annexation while those still living there say they are apprehensive about the future.

Two decades of deadly gun violence in US schools

Fourteen students and a teacher were shot dead Tuesday when an 18-year-old gunman opened fire at their Texas elementary school, the latest in the United States' relentless cycle of school mass shootings.

At least 22 killed in latest police raid on Rio favela

An anti-crime operation in a Rio de Janeiro slum left at least 22 people dead Tuesday, officials said, a year after the bloodiest-ever favela raid in the city's history.

Russian troops aim to 'destroy everything' in Donbas: Zelensky

Russian troops advanced in eastern Ukraine on Tuesday, pounding key cities and aiming "to destroy everything there," President Volodymyr Zelensky said, as Moscow signalled it was digging in for a long war against its neighbor.

North Korea fires three ballistic missiles, Seoul military says

North Korea fired three ballistic missiles towards the Sea of Japan early Wednesday, Seoul's military said, just one day after President Joe Biden wrapped up his first Asia visit as US leader.

UN envoy faces pressure on China trip over new Xinjiang leak

China faced new accusations Tuesday that it was sanctioning abuses of Uyghurs at the "highest levels", as a vast document leak came out during a controversial visit by the UN rights chief.

US says ending Russia debt payment exemption

The United States will end an exemption allowing Moscow to pay foreign debt held by American investors with funds held in Russia, the US Treasury said Tuesday, a move that could push Vladimir Putin's country closer to default.

Petrobras shares fall after Bolsonaro fires its boss

The price of shares in Brazil's state oil giant Petrobras fell Tuesday in reaction to President Jair Bolsonaro firing its boss after only 40 days on the job.

Iraqi arrested in plot to kill ex-president Bush

An Iraqi man who sought political asylum in the United States plotted to kill former president George W. Bush, the Justice Department said Tuesday.

Soros says 'civilization may not survive' Ukraine war

US billionaire George Soros warned Tuesday that "civilization may not survive" Russia's invasion of Ukraine but said Europe could have a stronger position against President Vladimir Putin regarding gas than it realises.

21 killed in latest police raid on Rio favela

An anti-crime operation in a Rio de Janeiro slum left 21 people dead Tuesday, officials said, a year after the bloodiest-ever favela raid in the city's history.

Countries agree to overhaul WHO funding model

The World Health Organization's member states agreed Tuesday to overhaul how they fund the UN health agency, giving it much more money to spend on its own priorities.

Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua to attend allied, regional summit: Havana

The leaders of Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua -- which risk not being invited to an Americas summit in Los Angeles next month -- will gather in Havana Friday with allied counterparts, the Cuban foreign ministry said.

In Kharkiv's Gorky Park, a war crimes investigation

Ukrainian prosecutor Roman Petrenko inspects the remains of Russian rockets that fell on the popular Gorky Park in the country's second city Kharkiv.

'Everything Russian must go': Ukraine's Kharkiv renames streets

Before the war, it was called "Moscow Avenue". But now this wide boulevard which runs through Ukraine's second city has been renamed "Heroes of Kharkiv" in honour of those fighting against invading Russian forces.

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