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World news from every region: conflicts, elections, diplomacy, disasters and the people at the centre of them.
7598 articles · page 55 of 159 · The World front page
Most of the world's internet traffic still travels through subsea cables crisscrossing ocean floors, but these fiber-optic links, along with oil and gas pipelines and submarine power cables, now face growing sabotage risks as gray-zone warfare and open conflicts become widespread, according to a new book by Atlantic Council senior fellow Elisabeth Braw.
The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted and destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile heading for Riyadh on Wednesday, as the Saudi Energy Ministry confirmed a Houthi attack damaged an administrative building of state oil company Aramco in Dhahran, deepening a conflict that has shattered a UN-brokered ceasefire.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Republican candidate for the US Senate, has launched investigations into pediatricians and the American Academy of Pediatrics over alleged financial incentives for administering vaccines, aligning himself with the Make America Healthy Again (Maha) movement and echoing vaccine skepticism from Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. At least one Texas pediatrician has reported being under investigation.
France's foreign minister has accused Elon Musk of using his social media platform X to orchestrate 'massive online harassment campaigns' against European leaders, warning that foreign efforts are seeking to destabilise the country before next year's presidential election. Speaking at an OECD conference on Tuesday, Jean-Noël Barrot said the forces trying to undermine democracy now dominate the information landscape, employing tactics designed to polarise public debate.
The Indian Ocean island of Mauritius has imposed an overnight curfew to quell the worst riots in decades, after protests over water shortages and the high cost of living turned violent and a woman was shot and wounded by police.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has threatened to sink American warships in the Strait of Hormuz, as Houthi militants backed by Tehran step up attacks on Saudi Arabian targets, including an overnight strike on a Saudi Aramco administrative building in Dhahran.
Iran has expanded its military surveillance of the Strait of Hormuz, deploying new naval units east of the waterway and warning ships to coordinate with its armed forces, as tanker attacks reach their worst levels since the US and Israel's war on Iran began. Oil transit through the strait is falling again after a brief recovery, and an Iranian official has said Tehran's new tactics partly aim to influence November's US midterm elections.
A missile launched by Yemen's Houthi movement struck a building owned by Saudi state oil company Aramco in the eastern city of Dhahran overnight, after the Saudi-led coalition bombed a fuel depot near the capital, Sanaa. The Saudi energy ministry said the attack caused a limited fire, while falling debris from intercepted missiles and drones injured four people in Riyadh.
The consumer price index rose at an annual rate of 3.7% in September, up from 3.4% in August, driven by a surge in gasoline prices as the US-Israel war with Iran continues to disrupt energy markets. The data, released Wednesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, marks the final inflation snapshot before November's midterm elections and adds pressure on the Federal Reserve to consider further interest rate increases.
A weather system carrying the remnants of Hurricane Isaias is forecast to bring gales, heavy rain and a surge of warm air to the UK this week, with the Met Office issuing a yellow wind warning for parts of the Highlands and the Western Isles.
Scottish swimmer Archie Goodburn is to meet Prime Minister Andy Burnham at Downing Street after making a tearful appeal on BBC Breakfast for more investment in brain cancer research. Goodburn, 25, who was diagnosed with three inoperable brain tumours two years ago, described the meeting as a "unique opportunity for change".
More than 600 people attended the Melbourne launch of former federal treasurer Josh Frydenberg's memoir on Wednesday evening, with the event fuelling speculation among Liberal party figures that the book is a precursor to a political comeback.
The UK health secretary, Yvette Cooper, has issued a "profound apology" to parents whose stillborn babies were buried in mass graves, a practice that left families unaware of where their children's remains lay. Speaking in the House of Commons during a baby loss awareness debate, Cooper said the historic practices caused "unthinkable pain" and that what happened to those parents "should never have happened".
The rape and sexual assault trial of Russell Brand opened at Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday, with prosecutors describing the 51-year-old entertainer as a "ruthless, calculated and manipulative sexual predator" who used his rising fame to assault six women between 1999 and 2009. Brand has pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of indecent assault.
An Israeli air strike on an apartment block in Gaza City killed a 33-year-old Palestinian woman and wounded two other people early on Wednesday, hospital officials said, as violence continues despite a ceasefire declared last October.
An audit by Victoria's Auditor-General Andrew Greaves has identified a $1.5 billion investment need to maintain and replace the state's aging fire truck fleet over the next decade, with only $390.4 million in allocated funding leaving a shortfall of more than $1 billion. The report, released Wednesday, found nearly 60 per cent of fire trucks operated by the Country Fire Authority and Fire Rescue Victoria were more than 15 years old, exceeding internal replacement recommendations.
The AFL integrity unit has opened an investigation into the hospitalisation of Carlton players Lachie Cowan and Will Hayward after a weekend house party, a significant escalation in the controversy engulfing the club. Reports suggest Cowan is likely to be charged with bringing the game into disrepute and face a two-match ban, while Hayward is expected to avoid suspension.
Nigel Farage has said charities and volunteers who help asylum seekers reach the UK should face potential criminal prosecution, describing humanitarian groups as "deluded, hard-left socialist Marxists" who have "aided and abetted criminality in absolutely every way." The Reform UK leader made the comments in an interview with Benny Johnson, a rightwing US podcaster.
A radio malfunction on a Corendon Airlines flight from Greece to Germany triggered a false hijack alert on Tuesday, prompting authorities to scramble fighter jets and briefly close Nuremberg airport. The incident, which disrupted six flights and diverted two others, came amid heightened aviation security concerns following a recent terror-related incident on a Dubai flight.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday that international partners provided no advance warning ahead of Russian ballistic missile strikes on civilian infrastructure in Kyiv, killing two people and leaving hundreds of thousands without power.
Russia launched overnight missile and drone strikes on Ukraine, hitting a key energy facility and a residential building on the outskirts of Kyiv, killing at least three people and injuring 21, Ukraine's state emergencies service DSNS said. At least 600,000 people across the country are without electricity after strikes also hit critical infrastructure in the north-eastern city of Kharkiv.
The AFL trade period concluded with Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs gaining the most ground, according to a column by Jake Niall. In a period described as a rare outbreak of honest and rational negotiation, Zach Merrett completed his long-awaited move to Hawthorn, and Ben King also joined after the Suns chose not to match a seven-year, $9 million offer. Side deals and draft capital moves reshaped the next season's landscape, with Hawthorn positioned as a leading contender for 2027.
The Rugby League World Cup got underway at Allianz Stadium on Thursday night with a frenetic first half between hosts Australia and New Zealand, the teams heading to the break level at 10-10. Debutant winger Jack Bostock and Tom Trbojevic each scored from long-range intercepts for the Kangaroos, turning what looked like certain Kiwi tries into points at the other end. Kotoni Staggs was sent to the sin-bin for a professional foul late in the half, leaving Australia to start the second period a man short.
Former and current members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, formerly the Exclusive Brethren, have described it as a controlling sect rather than a religion, detailing how dissenting members are excommunicated, shunned by family and monitored by church authorities.
Police have confirmed a body has been found in the search for three men who were aboard a fishing boat that went missing off the Western Isles. A large scale search is ongoing for the two remaining men.
A Brisbane widower told a stunned courtroom on Wednesday that he hopes the teenager who killed his wife in a high-speed crash will one day find someone who loves him as much as he was loved. Jean-Paul Franzidis was speaking at the sentencing of the now-18-year-old driver for the manslaughter of Rosemary Franzidis, 69, who died on November 7, 2024 when a stolen car driven at more than 130km/h struck her vehicle as she returned home from morning Mass in Brisbane's north.
Anti-government protests in Albania have continued to grip Tirana, with thousands of demonstrators confronting riot police in the capital as calls for Prime Minister Edi Rama to step down grow louder. The clash follows an outbreak of violence that saw students set fire to the education ministry and two banks, drawing a heavy police response and concern from the European Union.
Thomas Murfett, 63, has described how he circled Muchea airfield looking for a safe landing spot on Saturday morning after sensing something wrong with his home-built RV-6A, before the aircraft stalled and crash-landed in a paddock near the Brand Highway.
The UK government is pressing ahead with artificial intelligence ambitions despite failing to replace aging IT systems that expose departments to cyberattacks and fraud, according to a damning report from Parliament's spending watchdog. Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, chair of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, warned that Whitehall lacks the digital skills and urgency needed to tackle the challenge.
Two leaders of India's "cockroach" youth movement will serve five days in jail after being detained during a protest in New Delhi, police said. Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das were among a dozen people detained after climbing barricades to enter Jantar Mantar, a historic site police say is no longer an official protest venue.
New rules in Azerbaijan’s public schools banning clothing that violates secularism have led to teachers and students being denied entry, sparking protests and detentions. English teacher Gulshan Aliyeva, a 23-year veteran, was turned away from her school in Baku this week for wearing a headscarf; her daughter was also prevented from attending. At least 37 people have been detained for disrupting public order, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The Western Australian Supreme Court has heard that a woman accused of murder admitted to a fellow prisoner that she stabbed her ex-girlfriend in the neck and dragged her through the house, while police listened on a hidden microphone.
Decades of international sanctions, tightened further during the current US-Israeli war on Iran, have cut off most of the country from the global banking system, forcing individuals and businesses to rely on informal currency exchange networks, intermediary firms and private trust-based deals to move money across borders. These channels provide a lifeline for international trade and personal payments, but come with higher costs, delays and no enforceable guarantees.
The UK government has announced it will increase the supply of anti-drone missiles to Ukraine, according to Andy Burnham, as preparations continue for Prime Minister's Questions and a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in London.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused Russia of showing 'ostentatious disrespect' towards the United States after Moscow launched fresh attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, leaving an estimated 600,000 people without power. Zelenskyy said the strikes targeted sites covered by a ceasefire announced by the American president, while reports emerged that Ukrainian soldiers have had their access to Starlink satellite internet restricted.
Former Democratic Republic of the Congo President Joseph Kabila has officially allied with M23 rebels and other armed groups, launching a new political-military coalition called the Front pour la Refondation de la Nation (FRN) from his residence in Goma. The alliance threatens to escalate a conflict that has already killed thousands and displaced millions in the country's mineral-rich east.
Six months after a framework agreement aimed at securing Israel's phased withdrawal from southern Lebanon, the occupation continues behind what is called the 'Yellow Line', a zone up to 10 kilometres deep where Israeli forces have systematically demolished homes and infrastructure. Tens of thousands of Lebanese remain displaced, and Hezbollah has resumed rocket attacks after more than a year of relative calm.
Ukrainian soldiers in combat suddenly lost access to Starlink satellite internet terminals on Tuesday evening, causing several combat missions to fail, as the Trump administration intensifies pressure on Ukraine to halt long-range strikes on Russia's oil industry, according to officials and military sources.
Russian air attacks killed at least six people in Ukraine and left hundreds of thousands without power on Wednesday, in what Kyiv called a deliberate violation of the "energy ceasefire" announced days earlier by US President Donald Trump.
United States President Donald Trump has announced that 'massive' exploration for oil, gas and minerals is set to begin in Greenland, a self-governing Danish territory, citing its vast untapped resources and its strategic importance for US defence.
Russia launched an overnight attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure that left at least 600,000 people without power in the Kyiv and Kharkiv regions, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday, in what he called a deliberate breach of the US-brokered energy ceasefire announced by President Donald Trump on Sunday.
The final question on Wednesday's Higher School Certificate English Advanced exam used a fishing metaphor to prompt students to reflect on the importance of wonder, absorption and play for human flourishing, rather than merely achieving outcomes.
Western Australia's parliament descended into chaos during question time when Higher Education Minister Tony Buti said Opposition Leader Basil Zempilas had privately backed the government's controversial three-way university merger, a claim Zempilas repeatedly rejected as a lie.
Russian ballistic missiles struck a key energy facility supplying Kyiv with heating and electricity and damaged a residential building late on Tuesday, killing two people, in an attack Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said came with no early warning and undercut the energy ceasefire that the United States said Russia and Ukraine had agreed two days earlier.
A teenager who fled Gaza in search of safety and an education has been left without a school or college place in Northern Ireland, where compulsory education ends at 16 and asylum seekers of that age have no automatic right to keep studying. Mona, 16, attended school in Coleraine after arriving, but has been unable to get a place since her family moved to Belfast.
Pope Leo XIV spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, calling for a ceasefire in the Ukrainian city of Oleshky to allow humanitarian aid deliveries and civilian evacuations, in his most significant public act since undergoing lung cancer surgery earlier this week.
A car is stolen every four minutes in the UK, according to Home Office data, with vehicle thefts in England and Wales up almost 50% compared with a decade ago. Despite a recent drop, only 3% of vehicle theft offences resulted in a charge or summons last year, leaving victims frustrated and police struggling to keep pace with sophisticated criminal networks.
Outgoing Coalition frontbencher Jonno Duniam has used his final speech to parliament to warn the Liberal Party against mimicking One Nation, urging colleagues to return to their roots and stay the course as the party struggles in the polls after two successive election defeats.