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Japan PM expresses concern to Xi over South China Sea situation

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba expressed "serious concerns" over the situation in the South China Sea to Chinese President Xi Jinping in their first in-person talks, Tokyo's foreign ministry said Saturday.

Mushroom houses for Gaza? Arab designers offer home-grown innovations

As winter descends on Gaza's tent cities, emergency housing made from mushrooms could keep out the cold -- just one of several sustainable, home-grown innovations put forward by Arab designers at an expo in Dubai.

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Russian ultimatum to Ukraine forces in Mariupol expires

A Russian ultimatum for the last remaining Ukrainian forces in Mariupol to surrender expires on Sunday, with Moscow poised for a major strategic victory in the southeastern port city.

Presidential candidates refuse to back rival Robredo in Philippine race

Three rivals of Philippine presidential candidate Leni Robredo refused to back her campaign Sunday, dousing speculation they would withdraw from the race to improve her chances of defeating the son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

Yemen's new leaders say focused on peace path

Yemen's new leaders are "ready for war" should the latest push for peace with Huthi rebels fail, but a senior official told AFP they genuinely want the years-long conflict to end soon.

Puppets and poetry go underground in besieged city of Kharkiv

In a subterranean metro station serving as a bomb shelter in eastern Ukraine, two flamboyant puppeteers act out a tabletop fairytale for a gaggle of spellbound children.

Australia says China pact would not end its Solomons security treaty

Australia's foreign minister said Sunday that a controversial security deal between the Solomon Islands and China would not spell the end of her country's defence cooperation with the Pacific nation.

Myanmar junta says to free 1,600 prisoners in new year amnesty

Myanmar's junta said it will release more than 1,600 prisoners from jails across the country on Sunday to mark the Buddhist new year, without specifying whether those being pardoned were protesters or common criminals.

'Inhuman' situation in Ukraine's Mariupol as Russia claims almost full control

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said the situation in Mariupol is "inhuman" and called on the West to immediately provide heavy weapons, as Russia claimed it was in control of almost all of the strategic port city and urged its last defenders to surrender.

North Korea tests new weapons system to improve 'tactical nukes'

Kim Jong Un supervised the test-firing of a new guided weapons system to improve North Korea's "tactical nukes", state media said Sunday, capping days of celebrations surrounding the birthday of the country's founding leader.

Families demand justice four years on from Nicaragua protest repression

Alvaro Conrado's last words were: "It hurts to breathe."

Russians flee Putin regime to join Ukraine refugees in Israel

The moment Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine, Russian filmmakers Anna Shishova-Bogolyubova and Dmitry Bogolyubov knew they had to leave Moscow.

NKorea tests new weapons system aimed at enhancing 'tactical nukes' efficiency: KCNA

North Korea has test-fired a new weapons system, under the supervision of leader Kim Jong Un, that it claims will boost the efficiency of its tactical nuclear weapons, the official Korean Central News Agency said early Sunday.

Russia renews attacks on Kyiv, Zelensky issues talks ultimatum

Russia renewed air strikes on Kyiv on Saturday, as President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that peace talks with Moscow will be scrapped if the last Ukrainian troops in the besieged port city of Mariupol are killed.

Hundreds rally against threat to close Turkish women's rights group

Hundreds of people demonstrated on Saturday in several Turkish cities including Istanbul and Ankara against a move to close one of the country's most respected women's rights groups.

Behind the frontlines, Ukrainians find world of ways to help

Inside a packed warehouse in war-torn Ukraine, 35-year-old volunteer Roman Kolobochok said his friend on the frontline needed a sniper scope and he was going to find him one.

Taliban warns Pakistan after rocket attacks kill 5 Afghan children

The Taliban authorities warned Pakistan on Saturday after five children and a woman were killed in Afghanistan in alleged rocket attacks by the Pakistani military in a pre-dawn assault along the border.

Macron talks up green credentials ahead of French election

French President Emmanuel Macron promised to put the environmental at the heart of his government if he is re-elected next weekend, in a speech in southern France on Saturday designed to appeal to young and green-minded voters.

Five Afghan children die in Pakistan rocket attacks: officials

At least five children and a woman were killed in an eastern Afghan province when the Pakistani military allegedly fired rockets along the border in a pre-dawn assault Saturday, officials said.

In Kyiv, a sunny respite from weeks of war

In a park in central Kyiv, a Ukrainian soldier ushers his wife and children against a backdrop of blooming magnolias, and lifting a phone, tells them to "smile!"

One dead after renewed Russian strikes shatter Kyiv calm

Russia stepped up air strikes on Kyiv on Saturday, killing at least one person at a tank factory a day after Moscow warned it would renew attacks following two weeks of relative calm in the Ukrainian capital.

In embattled Ukraine, spring flowers take on patriotic hues

In her garden in western Ukraine, Ivanna Kuziv, a retired accountant in her late 60s, gathers an armful of yellow daffodils and bluebells to sell at the market.

Russia shatters Kyiv calm with fresh strikes

Russia stepped up air strikes on Kyiv on Saturday, hitting another military factory a day after Moscow warned it would renew attacks following two weeks of relative calm in the Ukrainian capital.

Russia warns US of 'consequences' of Ukraine military aid: reports

Russia has formally complained to the United States over its military aid to Ukraine, warning of "unpredictable consequences" if shipments of advanced weaponry go forward, US media reported.

Myanmar rebel troupe takes aim at junta with folk satire

A troupe of Myanmar folk singers and satirists are taking their new show on a jungle tour, hoping to rally anti-coup fighters far from their families with barbs against the junta and jokes about home.

Belgium trial for alleged accomplices of 2015 Paris attacks

Fourteen people charged as accomplices to jihadists who carried out deadly bomb and gun attacks in Paris in 2015 will go on trial in Belgium from Tuesday.

Thousands join Pope for Good Friday service with Ukraine in mind

Thousands of faithful attended the "Way of the Cross" prayer service, presided over by Pope Francis at Rome's Colosseum on Friday, a ceremony overtaken by the war in Ukraine.

Russia hits Kyiv missile factory after flagship sunk

Russia pounded a Ukrainian rocket factory after losing an iconic warship in the Black Sea, as the Pentagon on Friday backed Kyiv's claim to have sunk the Moskva with cruise missiles.

Russian offensive hits home in eastern Ukraine

This is the spot where Sergei died. In the modest conservatory of his family home, a ground floor flat in Ukraine's second city of Kharkiv.

Russian warship hit by two Ukrainian missiles before sinking: Pentagon

Russia's Moskva warship was hit by two Ukrainian missiles before it sank in the Black Sea, a senior Pentagon official said Friday, calling it a "big blow" for Moscow.

Tech battles to show its worth in Ukraine war crimes probes

Russia's war in Ukraine is still being counted in days, but images of atrocities already number in the hundreds of thousands.

Lost warship dents Russian pride, navy capability

Russia's loss of its flagship cruiser Moskva represents a dent in the operational capabilities of the Russian navy and a severe wound to Russian pride at the height of the war against Ukraine, analysts say.

Five million people flee war in Ukraine

More than five million people have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion, UN figures showed on Friday, in Europe's fastest-growing refugee crisis since World War II.

EU embargo on Russian oil, gas will take 'months'

The EU is working on broadening sanctions on Russia to include oil and gas embargoes but such measures would take "several months", European officials told AFP on Friday.

Russian strike hits missile unit outside Kyiv: AFP

A Ukrainian military factory outside Kyiv that produced missiles allegedly used to hit Russia's Moskva warship was partly destroyed by overnight Russian strikes, an AFP journalist at the scene saw Friday.

Russia hits Kyiv missile factory after Moskva flagship sinks

Russian strikes pounded a military factory near Kyiv that makes the missiles Ukraine claims it used to sink the Moskva naval flagship, with Moscow on Friday vowing further such attacks.

More than 150 hurt in Jerusalem clashes as religious festivals overlap

More than 150 people were wounded Friday in clashes between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli police at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound, the first face-off in the area since the start of Ramadan.

Russia to step up Kyiv missile strikes after Moskva sinks

Moscow warned Friday it would step up missile attacks on Kyiv in response to what it said were sorties across the border, the day after its Black Sea naval flagship sank.

More than 100 hurt in Jerusalem clashes as religious festivals overlap

More than 100 people were wounded Friday in clashes between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli police at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound, in fresh violence as Jewish and Christian festivals overlap with Ramadan.

North Korea celebrates founding leader's birthday

North Korea celebrated the birthday of its founding leader on Friday, state media reported, but mystery surrounded when a military parade -- at which the regime may unveil new weapons -- might happen.

Kosovo's underground LGBTQ community leads 'double life'

For Flamur and his gay partner, freedom is restricted to the four walls of a Pristina apartment. Only behind lock and key can they be themselves while the ultra-conservative society outside still brands their love "unnatural".

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