AFP news

Republicans nominated Steve Scalise as their candidate for speaker of the US House of Representatives Wednesday as they sought to heal bitter internal divisions paralyzing their domestic agenda and preventing action on the Israel crisis.

US Federal Reserve officials agreed last month they should hold interest rates high "for some time" in their ongoing fight against inflation, according to minutes of the meeting published Wednesday.

Arab foreign ministers on Wednesday denounced Israel's siege of Gaza following the shock attack by Palestinian militants on Israel, demanding that aid be "immediately" allowed to enter the blockaded enclave.

A Kenyan-led multinational force will hopefully help bring some semblance of stability to Haiti, where gang violence has escalated into a form of "urban guerrilla" warfare, the Caribbean country's police chief said.

The US Federal Reserve's fight against inflation seems to be heading in the right direction, while the US economy remains resilient, a senior Fed official said Wednesday.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed Wednesday to Israel in a show of solidarity after a bloody attack by Hamas, with Washington closing ranks with its ally that has launched heavy retaliation on the Gaza Strip.

Niger's military leaders have ordered the United Nations coordinator to leave the country within 72 hours, blaming the world body for hindering international recognition of the post-coup regime.

The World Bank's new president, Ajay Banga, said Wednesday that the global lender must become "better" and "bigger" to boost its capacity to help developing countries battle climate change, poverty and pandemics.

The German government slashed its growth forecast Wednesday, predicting Europe's top economy will shrink this year as it battles high inflation, elevated energy prices and a manufacturing slump.

ExxonMobil sealed a megadeal to acquire shale producer Pioneer Natural Resources for about $60 billion on Wednesday, and depicted the transaction as boosting US energy security in an attempt to allay regulatory concerns.

Guitars played by music legends Eric Clapton and Kurt Cobain are going under the hammer in the United States next month with an estimated price tag of up to $2 million each.

Spain coach Luis de la Fuente was a surprise appointment and an early humiliating defeat by Scotland in March put his fledgling project on the ropes no sooner than it had begun.

The EU's top internet enforcer took to X, the rebranded Twitter, on Wednesday to trumpet a rival platform, as a duel with Elon Musk over disinformation ratcheted up.

Musician-turned-designer Pharrell Williams will hold his second show as creative director for Louis Vuitton in Hong Kong, the brand announced on Tuesday.

German sandals maker Birkenstock will debut on the New York stock exchange Wednesday with a valuation of $8.6 billion that belies its former dowdy image, with the brand now a fashion favorite and the pink footwear of choice for "Barbie."

Asia extended a global markets rally Wednesday on a growing belief the Federal Reserve is finished with its interest rate hiking cycle, while optimism was also boosted by a report that China is considering a large burst of economic stimulus.

Afghanistan's Taliban government downgraded the death toll from a series of earthquakes to "over 1,000" on Wednesday, as fresh tremors panicked residents of villages flattened by the disaster.

London's Luton Airport has suspended all flights until Wednesday afternoon and asked passengers not to travel there after a "significant fire" caused the partial collapse of a parking structure.

Australian journalist Cheng Lei was deported from China on Wednesday after more than three years in detention on espionage charges widely seen as politically motivated.

President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Ukraine's allies on Wednesday to step up weapons supplies to help his country survive through the winter, on his first visit to the military alliance's headquarters during Russia's all-out war.

In the back room of "The Baron", a Dutch marijuana-selling "coffee shop", owner Rick Brand excitedly browsed through the cannabis products he will soon be able to offer.

Israel kept pounding Hamas targets in Gaza, where entire districts lay in rubble Wednesday, as its soldiers found more victims five days after the Islamist militants' onslaught on its southern towns.

Qatar has agreed to supply France's TotalEnergies with natural gas for 27 years, its state energy company announced on Wednesday.

Seven survivors and relatives of victims of a bloody 2021 jihadist attack in northern Mozambique have launched legal action against France's TotalEnergies, accusing it of failing to protect contractors at a multi-billion-dollar gas field, their lawyers said Tuesday.

The Russian segment of the International Space Station (ISS) sprung its third coolant leak in under a year Monday, raising new questions about the reliability of the country's space program even as officials said crew members were not in danger.

Dozens of foreigners have been killed, injured or taken hostage during a surprise attack on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas that has left 900 people dead in Israel.

Hollywood writers overwhelmingly voted to approve a hard-fought new deal with studios, their union said Monday, officially ending one of the industry's longest ever strikes.

US President Joe Biden has been questioned as part of an investigation into the handling of classified documents found at his home and former private office, the White House said Monday.

Russia on Tuesday will seek to return to the UN Human Rights Council, a test of what Moscow contends is quiet support despite fierce Western-led criticism over its invasion of Ukraine.