The National Times - News around the clock from Sydney, Australia and around the world

The US Coast Guard is investigating a two-mile-long oil spill just off the California coast near Los Angeles, officials said Friday.

US senators were scrambling to vote by the end of Friday on a government funding package that would keep open several key departments threatened with closure this weekend after months of bitter wrangling failed to produce a 2024 budget.

The US Food and Drug Administration has given the green light for a popular anti-obesity drug to be used to prevent serious heart conditions for the first time, in a move likely to expand insurance coverage.

Jannik Sinner dominated Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-3, 6-0 to begin with a decisive win on Friday at the ATP-WTA Indian Wells Masters.

Max Verstappen launched a powerful defence of his mentor and Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko on Friday when confronted by reports that the Austrian may face a possible suspension in the aftermath of the Christian Horner saga.

Up to 3,000 pregnant women in Haiti risk losing access to crucial health care, the UN warned Friday, as humanitarian conditions in capital Port-au-Prince continued to deteriorate.

US President Joe Biden took his reelection message on the road to key swing states Friday, buoyed by a combative, well-received State of the Union address that savaged rival Donald Trump.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday said that the country's March local elections would be his last, suggesting an end to his more than two decades in power.

A jury in New York on Friday found former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez guilty of trafficking hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States, enriching himself while protecting some of the region's most infamous drug cartels.

The United Nations Security Council called Friday for a ceasefire in Sudan to coincide with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan as conditions in the country continue to deteriorate.

British teenager Oliver Bearman realised a dream on Friday when he made his competitive Formula One debut for Ferrari and qualified an impressive 11th for Saturday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said Friday she would be "honored" to helm the Washington-based financial institution for a second five-year term if she is renominated by member states.

Apple reversed course on Friday and will allow Epic Games to develop a competing European app store for iPhones after a feud between the two companies tested a new law governing big tech on the continent.

Turkey is ready to host a peace summit between Russia and Ukraine, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday after talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky in Istanbul.

The sinking of a bulk carrier carrying thousands of tonnes of fertiliser off Yemen after a Huthi missile attack poses "no immediate danger", an expert said Friday.

Jamie George has said his side "will defend our home like every Englishman would" against Ireland in the Six Nations at Twickenham on Saturday.

Max Verstappen shut out all the distractions surrounding his troubled Red Bull team to take pole position on Friday for Saturday's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

Swedish marines on Friday peered out from their assault vessel as part of a vast NATO military exercise to simulate repelling an invasion of neighbouring Norway.

It is an image that has become common in countries hit by gang violence like Ecuador and El Salvador: shirtless and subdued prisoners lined up under the watch of heavily armed police.

A student was killed in a confrontation with police in southern Mexico, authorities said Friday, as tensions flared over the case of 43 students from the same college who disappeared nearly a decade ago.

An international effort gathered pace on Friday to get desperately needed humanitarian relief into Gaza by sea, in the latest bid to counter overland access restrictions blamed on Israel as it battles Hamas militants.

Mikaela Shiffrin returns to competitive skiing in Are this weekend, six weeks after a heavy crash and with her thoughts for boyfriend Aleksander Aamodt Kilde who survived a "life or death" fall while racing.

The UN Security Council will vote Friday on a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Sudan to coincide with the beginning of Ramadan next week as conditions in the country continue to deteriorate.

Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman has divorced her French choreographer husband, US media reported Friday.

This winter was the warmest ever recorded in the United States, data showed Friday -- the latest sign the world is moving towards an unprecedented era as a result of the climate crisis.

IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said Friday that she would be "honored" to helm the Washington-based financial institution for a second five-year term if she is renominated by member states.

The Republican National Committee elected Donald Trump allies, including his daughter-in-law, to top leadership positions on Friday, tightening the former president's grip over the party ahead of the November election.

Global stocks wobbled Friday as investors digested a jobs report that failed to settle the debate about when the US Federal Reserve could start cutting interest rates.

Greek students clashed with police in Athens Friday as thousands protested a controversial bill on private universities, which they say will favour the rich.

Peter O'Mahony believes the current Ireland team is the best of his 103-cap career but said there would be no complacency when they face England in the Six Nations on Saturday.

American Brandon McNulty took the overall lead of cycling's Paris-Nice in the scenic low Alps on Friday as his escape partner Mattias Skjelmose won hilly stage six.

US President Joe Biden took his reelection message to a raft of key swing states Friday, buoyed by a combative, well-received State of the Union address that savaged rival Donald Trump.