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

Iran's players sang the national anthem and saluted before their last group match at the Women's Asian Cup on Sunday in Australia, having stayed defiantly silent earlier in the tournament.

Huge fireballs and clouds of thick smoke erupted over Tehran on Sunday after US-Israeli air strikes hit fuel depots in the city, as Iran's Revolutionary Guards vowed to fight on for months to come.

The latest search for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which went missing 12 years ago in one of aviation's greatest enduring mysteries, concluded in January without yielding any findings, Malaysia's transport ministry said on Sunday.

Iran struck Gulf infrastructure on Sunday, hitting fuel tanks at Kuwait's international airport and damaging a desalination plant in Bahrain as Tehran pressed its missile and drone campaign against its neighbours into a second week.

World champion Lando Norris said he feared it will be a "long, tough season" after steering his McLaren to a distant fifth at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.

George Russell said Sunday that fellow Briton Lando Norris would not be complaining if he was winning after the world champion lashed out at new rules that have shaken up Formula One.

Tens of thousands of Indian cricket fans streamed toward the T20 World Cup final stadium Sunday and millions more will be glued to their televisions desperate to witness a historic home triumph.

Charles Leclerc said he was "positively surprised" by Ferrari's performance after coming third in Sunday's season-opener in Melbourne but admitted a lot of work was needed to reel in Mercedes.

Novak Djokovic believes world number one Carlos Alcaraz has what it takes to keep his 2026 winning streak alive, and the Serbian star who won 41 straight matches to open 2011 should know.

A jubilant George Russell said it had been "a long time coming" to have a competitive car after winning the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, but cautioned that Mercedes still need to raise their game.

China's top diplomat urged the United States Sunday to iron out its differences with Beijing, as the world's two largest economies lock horns over trade tariffs and geopolitical issues.

Sri Lanka discharged 22 Iranian crew from hospital who were plucked from life rafts after their warship was sunk by a US submarine, officials said Sunday.

Shattered home hope Oscar Piastri took responsibility for a crash on his way to the grid that ruled him out of Sunday's Australian Grand Prix, saying he was "very disappointed".

Political efforts to cripple Turkey's main opposition and lock up its presidential candidate will never stifle the people's frustration with the government and their growing demand for change, Istanbul's jailed mayor told AFP in an interview.

Venezuela released 17 political prisoners on Saturday from a jail in the capital, Caracas, an AFP journalist saw, as a new law granted amnesty for crimes historically used to lock up dissidents.

George Russell kept his cool to win a frantic season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Sunday from Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli after a thrilling battle with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.

World number one Carlos Alcaraz swept past Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-3 to reach the third round of the Indian Wells Masters on Saturday as Novak Djokovic battled back for a three-set victory over Kamil Majchrzak.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Sunday that the country's forces could fight an intense war for six months against the United States and Israel, which said it struck Tehran's commanders at a seaside hotel in the heart of Beirut.

Sri Lanka discharged from hospital 22 Iranian sailors who were plucked from life rafts after their warship was sunk by a US submarine, officials said Sunday.

Mirra Andreeva launched her Indian Wells title defense with a 6-0, 6-0 rout of Solana Sierra on Saturday to lead a trio of former champions into the third round.

A Kyle Schwarber homer and a five-run fifth inning helped the United States overpower Great Britain 9-1 in the World Baseball Classic on Saturday, but not before an early British lead tested American nerves.

New mother Zhang Xiaofei wanted to be financially secure before having a baby, wary of high childcare costs that have been softened only a little by Chinese government cash incentives to boost record-low births.

Japanese entertainment giant Sony will face a £2 billion ($2.7 billion) class action lawsuit starting Tuesday in London, accused of allegedly breaching competition law by overcharging millions of UK PlayStation users.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ensured the Oklahoma City Thunder became the first NBA team to collect 50 wins this season with a 104-97 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.

Nepal's centrist RSP party of rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah had secured a majority in the direct parliamentary elections, partial official results showed Sunday, and was heading for a landslide according to official trends.

An Ultimate Fighting Championship event to be staged on the White House's South Lawn in June will he headlined by Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje, the UFC announced Saturday.

A thin band of light from Cristian Lucanas's headlamp pierces the blackness of a Philippine rainforest as he digs through the underbrush before gently scooping up a cockroach with his bare hands.

Home hero Oscar Piastri Sunday sensationally crashed on his way to the grid for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix and is out of the race with major damage to his McLaren.

A federal judge ruled Saturday that President Donald Trump's pick to oversee mass layoffs at Voice of America and other government-funded media was unlawfully appointed, rendering the job cuts invalid.

The US embassy in Oslo was hit by an explosion in the early hours of Sunday but no one was injured, police in the Norwegian capital said, adding the cause was not immediately known.

For years India's economy was driven by its vast services sector that saw millions of people working away in low-cost back offices providing consultancy for predominantly western companies.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's centre-right CDU faces a regional election Sunday, the first of several this year in which it hopes to stem the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

An Israeli strike on a hotel in central Beirut killed at least four people Sunday, Lebanese officials said, underscoring the widening reach of the US-backed war against Iran as missiles, drones and air strikes pounded targets across the region.

World number one Carlos Alcaraz swept past Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-4 to reach the third round of the Indian Wells ATP Masters on Saturday as Novak Djokovic battled back for a three-set victory over Kamil Majchrzak.

Most movie car chases involve screeching around city corners, weaving in and out of traffic and almost always smashing into a few police cars.

The global positioning system (GPS) capabilities of cargo ships, oil tankers and other vessels stuck in the Middle East because of the widening war are likely worse than those in your cell phone.

Gulf nations reported on Sunday missiles and drone attacks, while Iran vowed to press on with strikes against neighbouring countries as the regional war entered its second week.

Five-time champion Novak Djokovic rallied from a set down to beat 57th-ranked Kamil Majchrzak 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 and reach the third round of the Indian Wells ATP Masters 1000 on Saturday.

Alyssa Thompson scored the only goal as the United States clinched the SheBelieves Cup women's football invitational tournament on Saturday with a 1-0 defeat of Colombia.