AFP news

With companies cutting back on office space as working from home remains popular, Europe's biggest business district is looking to students to fill the void left by workers.

More than 10 million Australians were cut off from internet and phone services on Wednesday after unexplained outages struck one of the country's largest communications companies.

German chemicals giant Bayer said Wednesday it would cut management jobs and was examining splitting off one of its divisions after reporting a massive third-quarter loss.

Israel said it was tightening the "stranglehold" around Hamas in Gaza City as the military operation on Wednesday aimed at smashing the Palestinian militants gathered pace despite ceasefire calls.

When Jessica Martinez moved away from home in 2020, a temporary contract brought her to New Jersey as a nurse on the frontlines of the pandemic.

The EU's executive was expected Wednesday to recommend opening formal membership talks with Ukraine and Moldova, nudging them further along the long road to joining.

James Spratt recalls dashing home from school as a teenager to band together online with friends to do battle in "Call of Duty", the global video game juggernaut that never gets old.

Equity markets struggled Wednesday as investors tried to figure out the Federal Reserve's interest rate plans, while demand concerns saw oil prices struggling to recover from the previous day's plunge.

The US state of Ohio voted Tuesday to enshrine abortion rights in its constitution, while the Democratic governor of Kentucky won reelection, in results that boosted President Joe Biden ahead of the 2024 White House race.

Israel's campaign to destroy Hamas pushed into its second month Wednesday as its forces battled the Palestinian militants in Gaza City, despite mounting calls for a ceasefire.

Plans to expand oil, gas and coal production by major fossil fuel countries would push the world far beyond the Paris deal's 1.5C global warming limit, the UN warned Wednesday.

China's red carpet treatment for "handsome boy" Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese offered an intriguing blueprint for Beijing's shifting approach to international diplomacy.

The "extreme" drought gripping Iraq, Syria and Iran would not have occurred without climate change caused primarily by burning fossil fuels, scientists said Wednesday, warning that punishing dry spells will become more intense as the world warms.

French automaker Renault and Japanese partner Nissan officially launched their "rebalanced" alliance on Wednesday as they seek to reset a rocky 24-year-old partnership.

Among the glittering chandeliers and wooden benches of a stately and solemn New York City courtroom, Donald Trump took the stand Monday, raising his right hand and swearing his testimony would be truthful.

Several dozen owners of transport companies on Monday blocked three major Polish border crossings with Ukraine to protest what they say is unfair competition from the neighbouring country's businesses.

The head of Russia's navy met Myanmar's junta chief ahead of joint naval exercises due to begin Tuesday, according to Myanmar state media, the first combined drills by the two countries at loggerheads with the West.

Israel's deadliest ever war in Gaza, sparked by the October 7 Hamas attacks, entered its second month Tuesday as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed there would be no ceasefire until the militant group releases its 240 hostages.

The union representing striking actors said Monday it could not agree to studios' "last, best and final offer" issued over the weekend in a bid to end a months-long stalemate that has crippled Hollywood.

Major stock markets mostly retreated and the dollar advanced Tuesday as concerns about weak growth offset hopes of an end to global interest-rate hikes.

The conservative US Supreme Court has an opportunity on Tuesday to clarify its latest case law on the right to bear arms, which has caused confusion in American courts -- though it remains to be seen whether it will seize it.

China is owed more than a trillion dollars through its Belt and Road project, making it the biggest debt collector in the world, a report said this week, with an estimated 80 percent of the loans supporting countries in financial distress.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Tuesday on the G7 to speak "in a clear voice" about the Israel-Hamas war as he kicked off talks with fellow foreign ministers from the grouping in Japan.

A top Swiss museum has run into trouble showing an art collection acquired in questionable circumstances during World War II, with some saying its attempt to put it "in context" does not focus enough on the fate of the art's former Jewish owners.

UBS posted a larger-than-expected loss in the third quarter on Tuesday, the first quarterly drop since 2017 as it integrates Credit Suisse after taking over its fallen Swiss banking rival.

Japanese gaming giant Nintendo raised its annual forecasts on Tuesday after strong first-half sales of its new "Zelda" and "Mario" franchise games for the ageing Switch console.

Korean Air said Tuesday it "strictly manages" cosmic radiation exposure for its flight crew, after a landmark decision ruled an air steward's cancer death was akin to an industrial accident.

Workers at four Swedish ports blocked the loading and unloading of Tesla cars Tuesday in a growing strike movement over the US company's refusal to sign a collective wage agreement with mechanics.

It was just before 8am on October 7 when Orit Meir's cellphone beeped with a terrifying voice message from her son Almog who was at a music festival in southern Israel.