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

The Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins Monday in Gaza with no truce in sight, as fighting rages between Israeli forces and Hamas militants and a dire humanitarian crisis grips the besieged Palestinian territory.

Amid the backslapping, frenzied chatter and free-flowing champagne at the bars inside the Hollywood theater where the Oscars are held, one small group look significantly more tense — the nominees.

"Oppenheimer" swept the board on Sunday at the Oscars, Hollywood's biggest night of the year, with seven awards including best picture and best director, crowning a triumphant year for filmmaker Christopher Nolan.

Badminton world number one An Se-young fired an Olympic warning after winning the French Open title in the Paris arena that will stage matches this summer.

An unbeaten 98 from Alex Carey and a formidable partnership with Mitchell Marsh rescued Australia from a dire position to set up a three-wicket victory in a tense second Test against New Zealand on Monday.

Vladimir Putin is set to secure another six-year term as Russian leader this weekend in a vote the Kremlin says will show society is fully behind his assault on Ukraine.

Asian markets mostly fell Monday after a forecast-busting jobs report dampened US interest rate cut hopes, with attention now turning to the release of key inflation data this week.

South Korea said Monday it had started procedures to suspend the medical licences of 4,900 junior doctors who have resigned and stopped working to protest government medical training reforms, causing healthcare chaos.

Kensington Palace released an altered photograph of Britain's Princess Catherine on Sunday, leading AFP and other news agencies to withdraw the image, the first to be officially released since her abdominal surgery.

Lee Kang-in was named in South Korea's squad on Monday for World Cup qualifiers this month despite a bust-up with skipper Son Heung-min at the Asian Cup.

Portugal's main centre-right party narrowly defeated the incumbent Socialists but fell well short of a majority in a general election that saw far-right Chega surge to become a potential kingmaker.

It is, in the words of its director, the story of the most important person who ever lived.

In "Poor Things," Emma Stone embraced an offbeat challenge: playing a Victorian-era woman who dies by suicide, is brought back to life with the brain of her unborn child by a mad scientist and embraces a journey of bold self-discovery.

Christopher Nolan, the indisputable Hollywood hitmaker whose ambitious and challenging blockbusters entice mainstream audiences and cult followings alike, finally confirmed his artistic pre-eminence with the Oscar-sweeping "Oppenheimer."

Sumo's greatest champion Hakuho could have his stable of wrestlers forcibly closed after he failed to control a protege who was thrown out of the sport for bullying, Japanese media said.

Envoys from key nations will meet Monday in the Caribbean to address the spiraling situation in Haiti, as gang violence crippled the impoverished island nation's capital and forced foreign diplomats to flee over the weekend.

Lindsey Horan scored the only goal as the United States defeated Brazil 1-0 on Sunday to win the CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup in California.

Self-effacing Irish actor Cillian Murphy is having to get used to red carpet glitz and acceptance speeches.

The Premier League's top three are separated by a single point with 10 games remaining as a thrilling battle between Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City looks set to go to the wire.

Nolann Le Garrec put his hand up as a worthy successor for Antoine Dupont's number 9 shirt with an all-encompassing display in France's 45-24 victory over Wales in the Six Nations.

England scuppered Ireland's dream of back-to-back Grand Slams with a thrilling win, Italy defeated Scotland and France added to the pressure on Wales as the Six Nations sparked into life.

"Oppenheimer" got off to a blistering start on Sunday at the Oscars, Hollywood's biggest night of the year, with three awards including one for best supporting actor Robert Downey Jr. -- and more likely to come.

Reigning Grand Slam champions Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz turned in dominating performances on Sunday to roll into the fourth round of the ATP-WTA Indian Wells Masters.

A sensational story about the Israeli prime minister's "psychiatrist" exploded online, but it was AI-generated, originating on one of hundreds of websites researchers warn are churning out tech-enabled fiction masquerading as news.

President Vladimir Putin has no doubt he will secure another term in Russia's election. The vote that leaves him in suspense, and could do more to change his policies, will occur eight months later in the United States.

Mitchell Marsh and Alex Carey half-centuries raised Australian hopes at lunch Monday on a tantalising day four of the second Test against New Zealand in Christchurch.

Robert Downey, Jr on Sunday won his first Academy Award, a best supporting actor statuette for his villainous turn in "Oppenheimer" -- a golden moment in a decades-long career of highs and lows, on and off the screen.

The powerful Auschwitz-set psychological horror film, "The Zone of Interest", which on Sunday won the Oscar for best international film, stunned critics with its penetrating study of the banality in the shadow of the death camp.

"Anatomy of a Fall" has propelled Justine Triet to international fame, winning a string of awards for the French director, culminating in an Oscar for best original screenplay on Sunday.

AFP and other news agencies removed from their services on Sunday the first official photo of Britain's Princess Kate to be released since her abdominal surgery, saying the image was found to have been manipulated.

An Oscar win two decades ago introduced the world to Japanese anime great Hayao Miyazaki, and now the Studio Ghibli co-founder, aged 83, has done it again.

Celebrated Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki won his second Oscar on Sunday with "The Boy and the Heron" -- the Studio Ghibli co-founder's first film in a decade, and potentially his last.