AFP news

Zimbabwe's opposition leader on Wednesday accused the ruling ZANU-PF government of plunging the country into crisis by "rigging" a tense election marred by long delays and reports of voter intimidation.

BRICS leaders on Wednesday will debate admitting new members to their five-nation bloc as it pursues a bigger role in shaping world affairs it sees as dominated by western powers.

Some 184 content moderators and Facebook's parent company Meta have agreed to pursue an out of court settlement in a lawsuit claiming unfair dismissal, court documents seen by AFP show.

The head of Russia's aerospace force General Sergei Surovikin has been sacked, state media said Wednesday, after he disappeared from public view following a failed mutiny by the Wagner mercenary group in June.

Rusted Russian tanks, which the Kremlin had hoped would parade victorious through Kyiv days after it invaded Ukraine, have instead been lined up as war trophies ahead of Ukraine's independence day.

After hiding at home for weeks, Sudanese refugees evaded militias in Darfur and fled on foot to neighbouring Chad with children on their backs and safety their destination.

A Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow damaged a building in a central business district, authorities said on Wednesday, in the sixth straight night of aerial attacks on Russia's capital region.

Straddling the frontier between Lebanon and the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, the picturesque village of Ghajar has become a lightning rod for tensions between the hostile forces on either side.

Zimbabweans go to the polls on Wednesday in closely-watched presidential and legislative elections, after a campaign tainted by a crackdown on dissent, fears of vote rigging and public anger at the economic crisis.

The United States said Tuesday it was imposing visa sanctions on Chinese officials pursuing "forced assimilation" of children in Tibet, where UN experts say one million children have been separated from their families.

Kenya's Faith Kipyegon won a historic third world 1500m gold on Tuesday and although Qatari high jumper Mutaz Essa Barshim missed out on a fourth crown, he became the first man to win five medals in the event.

From Quebec to British Columbia to Hawaii, North America is facing an extraordinary wildfire season -- and regions both near and far have found themselves increasingly blighted by smoke exposure.

India readied Wednesday to become the first nation to land a spacecraft on the Moon's south pole, days after a Russian probe crashed in the same region.

Ethiopia said Tuesday it would launch a joint investigation with Saudi Arabia into a Human Rights Watch report accusing the kingdom's border guards of killing hundreds of Ethiopian migrants.

BRICS leaders meeting in South Africa this week will consider expanding the five-nation bloc at a time of great interest in the group that accounts for a quarter of global wealth.

Former OPEC president Diezani Alison-Madueke has been charged with bribery offences relating to her time as Nigeria's oil minister, the UK National Crime Agency said on Tuesday.

Former OPEC president Diezani Alison-Madueke has been charged with bribery offences relating to her time as Nigeria's oil minister, the UK National Crime Agency said on Tuesday.

The African Union said Tuesday that it had suspended Niger's membership in the wake of a military coup, but responded cautiously to a threatened military operation to restore its ousted president, as Nigerien TV said 12 soldiers were killed in a new attack by suspected jihadists.

The African Union said Tuesday it had suspended Niger until civilian rule in the country is restored and would assess the implications of any armed intervention in the troubled Sahel nation.

Microsoft has submitted a new proposal to Britain's competition regulator for the acquisition of video gaming giant Activision Blizzard, the watchdog said Tuesday, after a previous version of the deal was blocked.

Moscow said Tuesday it had destroyed a Ukrainian military "reconnaissance boat" near Russian gas infrastructure in the Black Sea, in the latest clash in the waterway since Moscow's withdrawal from a major grain export deal.

North Korea is planning to launch another satellite just three months after its first attempt to put a military eye in the sky failed, prompting condemnation from Tokyo and Seoul on Tuesday and demands to call it off.

With a historic three-way summit with Japan and South Korea, President Joe Biden has further deepened the web of US partnerships in a determined signal to adversaries despite question marks on the political climate at home.

Thailand's divisive ex-leader Thaksin Shinawatra returned to the kingdom Tuesday, after 15 years in exile and hours before parliament votes to install his party's candidate as the new prime minister.

The United States on Monday approved a $12 billion sale of Apache attack helicopters to Poland, a giant deal with a frontline ally supporting Ukraine in its war against the Russian invasion.

Greece will help train Ukrainian F-16 warplane pilots and assist the reconstruction of Odesa, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Monday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday landed in Athens for an official visit, the Greek prime minister's office said, and would later join an informal dinner with EU and Balkans leaders.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Monday swore in a cabinet of 45 ministers, urging them to build public trust as his new government takes on Nigeria's huge economic and security challenges.

West African nations have rejected a call by Niger's coup leaders for a three-year transition back to democracy, as the crisis-hit country's neighbours weigh whether to take military action.