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UN Urges Evacuation of 6,000 Sailors Stranded in Hormuz Strait

World Cargo vessels are seen at one end of the Strait of Hormuz near the coast of Dibba Al Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, 21 July 2026.  EPA/STRINGER

UN Urges Evacuation of 6,000 Sailors Stranded in Hormuz Strait

UN rights chief Volker Turk on Friday urged countries involved in the Middle East war to help evacuate and repatriate some 6,000 sailors stranded in the Strait…

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World FILE PHOTO: United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk holds a news conference on the conclusions of his visit to Mexico in Mexico City, Mexico April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Raquel Cunha/File Photo

UN Rights Chief Volker Turk Faces Opposition to New Term

United Nations Human Rights chief Volker Turk, an outspoken critic of Russia's war in Ukraine and Israel's conduct in Gaza, faces opposition from both…

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World Police and forensic investigators examine the location of impact after a Russian drone struck an apartment building in Galati, eastern Romania May 29, 2026. Daniel Mihailescu, AFP-

Romania Shoots Down Drone in Its Airspace for First Time, Says President

Romania shot down a drone in its airspace on Friday, its president said, a first since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. "We had a drone…

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World A still image taken from a handout video provided by the Russian Defense Ministry press service on 23 July 2026 shows a Russian serviceman preparing a self-propelled gun Giatsint-S for firing at an undisclosed location in Ukraine. EPA/RUSSIAN DEFENCE MINISTRY

Russia Says it Hit Three Ukrainian Ports Overnight Striking Infrastructure and Fuel

Russia said on Friday that its forces had struck three Ukrainian ports overnight in attacks which had targeted infrastructure - including loading and unloading…

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World A man wades through the flood water in Teok village in upper Assam, India, Friday, July 24, 2026. (AP)

At Least 50 People Killed and 700,000 Displaced by India Floods After Monsoon Rains

Flooding in India’s northeastern Assam state has killed at least 50 people and displaced 700,000 after days of heavy monsoon rain that overflowed the…


World This handout screengrab taken on July 24, 2026 and released by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) shows a Chinese Coast Guard ship (back) firing water canon on a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) ship near Scarborough Shoal, in the disputed South China Sea. (Handout / Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) / AFP)

Philippines Says Ship Hit by Chinese Water Cannon at Disputed Reef

The Philippines accused the China Coast Guard on Friday of blasting a Filipino government vessel with a water cannon near a disputed South China Sea reef, the…

World FILE - Novelist Salman Rushdie attends the premiere of the documentary film "Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie" during the Sundance Film Festival on Jan. 25, 2026, at The Ray in Park City, Utah. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

Salman Rushdie Testifies at the Terrorism Trial of the Man Convicted of Stabbing Him

Four years after being stabbed on an amphitheater stage, Salman Rushdie sat across a courtroom from his convicted attacker Thursday and told jurors for a…

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World A firefighter sprays water on a burning forest close to a residential area during a wildfire near Lege-Cap-Ferret, southwestern France, on July 23, 2026. (Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP)

Hundreds Flee French Peninsula by Boat to Escape Wildfire

Hundreds of people fled by boat from a peninsula in western France on Friday, as authorities ordered it evacuated in the face of a rapidly advancing wildfire. …

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World FILE - President Donald Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House, July 16, 2026, in Washington. (Saul Loeb/Pool via AP, File)

Trump under Pressure from All Sides over Chinese AI Surge

US President Donald Trump is under pressure to respond to the increasing success of Chinese AI models that many companies prefer to the more powerful, but…

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World This photograph shows portraits of Iranian protesters allegedly executed by the Iranian regime during protests in Iran are displayed during a demonstration at the Ergife Palace Hotel to condemn the silence of Western governments in the face of the growing wave of Iranian political executions, in Rome on July 16, 2026. (AFP)

Iran Ramps up Executions Under Shadow of War

Vahid Baniamerian's family only found out he was going to be executed when Iranian state media reports flashed on their phones, saying the supreme court would…

World Candidates for the position of United Nations secretary-general (L-R) Michelle Bachelet Jeria, Maria Fernanda Espinosa Garces, Rafael Mariano Grossi, Rebeca Grynspan Mayufis, Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett and Macky Sall participate in the "UN Town Hall: The Next Secretary-General" in the General Assembly Hall at United Nations headquarters in New York, New York, USA, 23 July 2026. (EPA)

Six Candidates to Lead UN Take Stage for Televised Debate

The six candidates vying to lead the United Nations stressed the importance of restoring the credibility of an organization in crisis during a restrained…

World A cargo tanker attacked by Houthis earlier in the Red Sea (Archival - Reuters)

Iran Flew IRGC Commanders, Missile Gear to Yemen's Houthis, Sources Say

Iran flew Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders, military advisers and missile- and drone-related equipment into Yemen this month, according to…

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World A US Air Force B-1B Lancer assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, takes-off to fly a bilateral mission with Japanese and South Korea Air Force jets in the vicinity of the Sea of Japan, from Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, October 10, 2017. (Staff Sgt. Joshua Smoot/US Air Force/Handout via Reuters)

US Sends More Weaponry to Middle East, Giving it More Military Options against Iran

The US is surging forces, medics and weaponry to the Middle East to give President Donald Trump more military options as he considers expanding the conflict…

World Smoke rises from an explosion at an unknown location, during what the US Central Command (CENTCOM) says are strikes on Iranian military targets, in this screengrab taken from a handout video released on July 23, 2026. (US Central Command/Handout via Reuters)

US Military Launches New Strikes on Iran as Clashes Escalate Over Shipping Routes

The US military launched the 13th night of strikes Thursday against Iran, targeting key military and commercial sites as clashes continued to escalate over…

World Rescuers recover a trapped victim from the rubble at the scene of a landslide in Pengshui County in southwestern China's Chongqing area on Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Toll from China Landslide Rises to 11 Dead, 50 People Still Missing

Teams searching the rubble of last week's landslide in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing found three additional bodies in recent days, bringing the…

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World President Donald Trump speaks during a breakfast with the National Governors Association in the State Dining Room of the White House, Friday, Feb. 20, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Trump Threatens Iran, Houthis with 'Major Military Punishment'

US President Donald Trump said Thursday he would hold Iran responsible for attacks on shipping by Yemen's Houthis and threatened both with "major military…

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World TOPSHOT - This handout photograph taken and released by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine on July 21, 2026, shows firefighters working to extinguish a fire at the site of a drone strike on a shopping center in Sumy, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Photo by Handout / STATE EMERGENSY SERVICE OF UKRAINE / AFP)

Strikes Kill at Least 7 in Ukraine and Russia

A Russian strike on the Ukrainian city of Pavlograd on Thursday killed three people, as Kyiv's counter-strikes on Russia and Moscow-annexed Crimea killed four…

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World TOPSHOT - A motorist parks his bike in front of a wall mural along the street in Tehran on July 21, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) /

Iran Vows to Continue Strikes in Mideast War

Iran vowed on Thursday to keep striking the region so long as it remains under attack, AFP reported on Thursday. The war resumed following a ceasefire that…

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World File photo: Vegetation in a residential neighborhood is engulfed in flames in Cotignac, southeastern France, on July 22, 2026. (Photo by Thibaud MORITZ / AFP)

France Evacuates Thousands of Tourists as Fire Rages in Pine Forest

More than 10,000 tourists had evacuated camping sites and other holiday accommodation in southwest France on Thursday, as a wildfire fire ravaged a seaside…

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World US Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends the ASEAN Post-Ministerial Conference with US on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines, July 22, 2026. REUTERS/Eloisa Lopez/Pool

Rubio Says US Wants Positive China Ties but Won't Abandon Allies

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday that the United States wants a positive relationship with China ‌but that ‌would not ‌be ⁠at…

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World File photo: An aerial view of what Philippine Coast Guard alleges were Chinese vessels, manned by Chinese maritime militia loitering within the vicinity of Thitu Island, one of nine features occupied by the Philippines in Spratly Islands, in the disputed South China Sea, March 9, 2023. (Reuters)

Philippines Says China Harassed Vessels in Disputed Waters

The Philippines accused China's coast guard of firing water cannon and using a "dangerous maneuver" on Thursday to block vessels bringing aid to Filipino…

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World Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov leaves after a meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers Meeting in Pasay, Metro Manila, on July 23, 2026. BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/Pool via REUTERS

Russia Warns US against Ukraine Arms Sales as Top Diplomats Meet in Manila

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned Washington against making "unacceptable" arms deliveries to Ukraine during a Thursday meeting with US…

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World Law enforcement officers with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) inspects a site allegedly used by Mexican and Nigerian suspects as a clandestine methamphetamine laboratory, according to the NDLEA, during a visit to examine evidence in Ogun State, Nigeria, July 22, 2026. REUTERS/Sodiq Adelakun

Trump Praises Nigeria's Efforts against Violence towards Christians

President Donald Trump praised Nigerian President Bola Tinubu for his actions against violence, according to a letter released by Nigeria's presidency on…

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World The European Central Bank building in Frankfurt (Reuters)

EU Ambassadors Agree 21st Sanctions Package against Russia

EU ambassadors have reached a political agreement on the 21st sanctions ‌package ‌against Russia, an ‌EU ⁠diplomat said on ⁠Thursday according…

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World Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, stand with Maduro's lawyer Anna Estevao and Flores' lawyer, Mark Donnelly, at a hearing before US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who set a trial date of June 1, 2027 to face US drug trafficking charges at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Court House in New York City, US, July 22, 2026 in this courtroom sketch. REUTERS/Jane Rosenberg

June 1 Trial Date Set for Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro in His US Drug Trafficking Case

Former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and his wife will go on trial on drug trafficking charges next June, a judge said Wednesday, as their lawyers…

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World Smoke and flames rise in Le Porge as a wildfire burns in a forest area in the Gironde department amid worsening drought conditions following a heatwave and water shortages across much of France, July 22, 2026. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe

Southern Europe Battles Fast-Spreading Wildfires

Wildfires swept across different parts of southern Europe on Wednesday, killing three firefighters and forcing thousands to flee as scorching temperatures and…

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World The Gordie Howe International Bridge is seen from River Rouge, Mich., connecting Detroit with Windsor, Ontario Tuesday, July 14, 2026, (AP)

Canada Cancels Joint US Border Bridge Ceremony

Canada has scrapped plans to hold a joint inauguration ceremony with the United States for a new cross-border bridge, following this week's announcement of new…

World  Secretary of State Marco Rubio, right, takes part in a bilateral meeting with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)

Rubio Meets China’s Wang at Regional Gathering Where Iran War Looms Large

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Wednesday discussed a visit to the US in September by Chinese President Xi Jinping during…

World US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Trump Says US Will Destroy a Bridge or Power Plant for Each Iranian Attack in the Strait of Hormuz

US President Donald Trump warned Wednesday that the US will destroy one bridge or power plant each time Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump…