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The US and the EU moved Friday to tighten the economic noose around the Kremlin as Russian forces inched toward the capital Kyiv and pounded civilian areas of Ukrainian cities, drawing a flurry of warnings of potential war crimes.

Australian globe-trotter Michael Cheika was Friday named as the new coach of Argentina on a contract which will take him through to the 2023 World Cup.

Last-minute Russian demands related to the Ukraine conflict threatened to derail the near-complete process of reviving the Iran nuclear deal Friday, as the EU announced negotiations would be paused.

Entertainment and theme park giant Disney has halted all political donations in Florida after an outcry among LGBTQ staff over its silence on perceived "anti-gay" legislation, its CEO said Friday.

A plaster on his eye, eight-year-old Dima Kasyanov lies unconscious on a hospital bed in Ukraine's second city Kharkiv after a Russian missile blasted through his home.

YouTube on Friday broadened its blocking of Russian state-linked media channels to apply internationally after initially barring them only in Europe following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Big and scary-looking Joro spiders have spread from Asia to the southern United States and are now poised to colonize the country's cooler climes -- but they're nothing to fear and might end up actually helping local ecosystems.

Neymar will rejoin Brazil for its final two World Cup qualifiers, after missing the national team's first two matches of the year due to injury, coach Tite said Friday, announcing his squad.

The United States has not seen evidence that troops from close Russian ally Belarus are in Ukraine, the Pentagon said Friday.

Actor Alec Baldwin wanted to finish filming "Rust" in the weeks after the fatal on-set shooting of a cinematographer, new legal documents showed Friday.

Zak Crawley and Joe Root made the most of a benign pitch and uninspired West Indies bowling to compile unbeaten half-centuries, taking England through a rain-shortened afternoon session to be 146 for one at tea, ahead by 82 runs, on the fourth day of the first Test on Friday.

PGA Tour chiefs on Friday acknowledged the possibility that The Players Championship might not be finished until next week as poor weather once again forced play to be suspended.

Western countries accused Russia of spreading "wild" conspiracy theories at the United Nations Friday after Moscow's envoy told diplomats that America and Ukraine had researched using bats to conduct biological warfare.

Burberry returned to live fashion shows after two years of pandemic-induced absence on Friday with Italy's Riccardo Tisci taking over a church in central London outside of fashion week for a celebration of Britishness.

US Vice-President Kamala Harris on Friday said Russian President Vladimir Putin "shows no sign of engaging in serious diplomacy" as she accused Moscow of "atrocious and outrageous conduct" in Ukraine.

Queen Elizabeth II's heralded return to major public duties has been put on hold, as royal officials announced Friday she would not attend next week's Commonwealth Day service.

Volkswagen said Friday its net profits jumped last year despite selling fewer cars due to the semiconductor shortage as buyers forked out for better-equipped cars.

The Security Council quietly let a deadline pass for it to renew UN authorization to fight piracy in waters off lawless Somalia, diplomats said.

The world economy's fragile recovery from the Covid-induced crisis is now threatened by Russia's war in Ukraine and soaring commodity prices.

Olympic slalom champion Petra Vlhova clinched victory in the World Cup giant slalom event at Are on Friday to keep her hopes of the overall title alive.

Russia moved on Friday to restrict Instagram access and launched a criminal case against its owner Meta, as Moscow fired back at the tech giant for allowing posts calling for violence against Russian forces.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador hit out Friday at EU lawmakers who urged his government to protect journalists and accused him of intimidating the press, branding their statement slanderous.

Kevin Magnussen made an eye-catching return to Formula One on Friday when he topped the times in pre-season testing in Bahrain, just 48 hours after replacing Nikita Mazepin at Haas.

Russian oligarch Valeriy Oyf is selling his majority share in Dutch football club Vitesse Arnhem amid the war in Ukraine, the first division outfit announced on Friday.

Last-minute Russian demands threatened to derail the near-complete process of reviving the Iran nuclear deal Friday, as the EU announced negotiations would be paused.

US and European stock markets were buoyed Friday by Russian President Vladimir Putin's comments about a "positive shift" in talks with Ukraine, traders said.

On the 16th day of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Russian forces were encircling at least four major cities Friday and inched closer towards the city limits of Kyiv.

The United States stepped up the pressure against Moscow on Friday as Russian forces moved further into western and central Ukraine and tightened their grip on the capital Kyiv.

Warren Barguil won Friday's fifth stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico after a late burst into the final kilometres of a climb-packed day, as Tadej Pogacar held onto the overall lead despite taking a wrong turn just as he mounted an attack of his own.

Its once-flourishing oil industry decimated by corruption, poor management and US sanctions, Venezuela's vast crude reserves are unlikely to make up for banned Russian oil even if Washington eases measures against Caracas, experts say.

Primoz Roglic and Simon Yates remain on course for a Paris-Nice showdown on Saturday's climb stage after outsider Mathieu Burgaudeau of TotalEnergies won the hilly stage six on Friday with the main contenders finishing together.

Washington and its allies moved Friday to end normal trade relations with Russia, as President Joe Biden vowed the West would make Vladimir Putin "pay the price" for his invasion of Ukraine.