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Britain's economy grew 0.6 percent in the April-June period, a slight slowdown compared with the first three months of the year, official data showed on Thursday.

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe faces 38 challengers in polls next month, the election commission said Thursday after nominations closed, with ally-turned-rival Sajith Premadasa leading the pack.

A Beijing-based North Korea tour operator expressed hopes of fresh business on Thursday following an unexpected announcement that the country would reopen to foreign tourists this winter.

The party of Thailand's billionaire ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra meets on Thursday to choose a candidate for prime minister, a day after the kingdom's top court dismissed incumbent premier Srettha Thavisin over an ethics violation.

A mob wielding bamboo rods and plastic pipes beat several suspected supporters of Sheikh Hasina on Thursday, vowing to quash a rumoured rally for the ousted Bangladesh premier outside her childhood home.

Chinese industrial production growth slowed in July while unemployment rose, official data showed Thursday, highlighting an uneven recovery in the world's second-largest economy despite recent government measures to try to stimulate expansion.

The Australian Olympic Committee on Thursday decried what it said was a "vexatious, misleading and bullying" petition targeting Paris breakdancing sensation Raygun.

Desiccated leaves crackled underfoot as Romanian farmer Iulia Blagu walked through her scorched cornfield, devastated by one of the country's worst droughts in recent years.

The lakeside mansion where Myanmar democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi spent years under house arrest was put up for auction for the second time on Thursday but once again attracted no bids, AFP reporters said.

Thailand’s ruling party meets Thursday to choose a candidate for prime minister after a court dismissed incumbent Srettha Thavisin in an ethics case, deepening the kingdom’s political uncertainty a week after the main opposition party was dissolved.

New Zealand police said Thursday they have recovered 29 methamphetamine tablets disguised as pineapple sweets that were mistakenly handed out to the public in charity packs.

Head coach Scott Robertson on Thursday handed his All Blacks forwards a chance for "redemption" after revamping his backline but leaving the pack nearly untouched for the second Rugby Championship Test against Argentina.

Even if Kylian Mbappe had not completed his long-awaited move to Real Madrid this summer they would still be widely tipped to retain La Liga.

Hundreds of Japanese flights and trains were cancelled Thursday in the middle of a major holiday week as another typhoon roared towards the archipelago.

Asian markets mostly mirrored positive strides on Wall Street in early trade Thursday, as easing US consumer inflation buoyed hopes that a big interest rate cut was around the corner and economic growth in Japan outpaced expectations.

US actress Gena Rowlands, whose six-decade career garnered Oscar nominations and other acclaim, died Wednesday at age 94.

Venezuela's CNE electoral council, under fire after declaring a widely rejected election victory for President Nicolas Maduro, on Wednesday described a UN report disputing the outcome as "rife with lies."

Gena Rowlands, an award-winning US actress best known for starring in the films of her first husband, director John Cassavetes, died Wednesday at age 94, according to US media reports.

Teenage star Lamine Yamal is carrying the weight of expectations as Hansi Flick's Barcelona face the unenviable challenge of dethroning a fearsome Real Madrid side as Spanish champions this season.

Paris Saint-Germain are beginning a new era following the departure of Kylian Mbappe and the reigning French champions have so far kept a low profile as they prepare for life without the superstar forward.

The United States on Wednesday pleaded with Sudan's army to join talks on ending the devastating war as talks opened in Switzerland with only its rival's participation.

Even with two electric fans whirring, retired janitor Chun Loi was sweating profusely in her windowless, one-room flat that swelters during Hong Kong's humid summer.

Hundreds of Bangladeshi students wielding bamboo rods patrolled the site of a planned gathering Thursday of ousted premier Sheikh Hasina's supporters, vowing to quash any show of strength.

Japan will lift its week-old "megaquake" warning later Thursday if there is no further major seismic activity, the disaster management minister said.

Cincinnati Masters top seeds Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek both secured opening triumphs Wednesday over qualifiers, with Swiatek forced to escape an attempted second-round ambush by France's Varvara Gracheva.

From Google to Netflix, prominent US companies are battling internet boycott calls over their perceived political leanings in a polarizing election season that has exposed them to what researchers call "brand disinformation."

England Women's head coach John Mitchell has insisted the expectations surrounding his squad are as nothing compared to the "internal pressure" driving the team ahead of next year's Rugby World Cup.

The president of New York's Columbia University has resigned, US media reported Wednesday, months after pro-Palestinian protests brought national scrutiny to the institution and just weeks before the start of the new school year.

With the 2024/25 La Liga season kicking off on Thursday AFP Sport looks at five key talking points ahead of the campaign.

Taylor Swift will return to the stage in London on Thursday to end the European leg of her "Eras" tour, a week after her Vienna concerts were cancelled due to a suicide attack plot.

Veteran anti-whaling campaigner Paul Watson, detained in Greenland pending an extradition request from Japan, has spent decades battling harpoonists and seal hunters in spectacular high seas confrontations.

American-Canadian anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, arrested in July in Greenland, goes before a judge Thursday who will rule on his continued detention pending his possible extradition to Japan.