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First Lady Jill Biden said the United States was committed to helping African nations get a louder voice at the UN and other international bodies, as she visited Namibia on Thursday.

England coach Steve Borthwick said he had "incredible sympathy" for Welsh rugby players after a strike-threatened Six Nations clash between the arch-rivals was given the green light.

Facebook parent company Meta said Thursday it had taken down two fake account networks with links to the governments of Cuba and Bolivia that were used to spread official propaganda and discredit the opposition.

Canadian mining giant First Quantum Minerals announced Thursday the suspension of its operations at a major mine in Panama, saying it was being blocked from exporting copper abroad.

The United Nations is expected to vote Thursday on a resolution demanding Russia withdraw its troops from Ukraine, one year after it invaded the country.

US stocks bounced higher Thursday following a streak of downcast sessions, while European shares were also mostly higher.

US President Joe Biden said Thursday that Washington is nominating former Mastercard Chief Executive Ajay Banga to lead the World Bank, after its current chief David Malpass announced plans to step down early.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday expressed confidence in his country's victory over invading Russian forces with fears mounting of strikes on the war's first anniversary.

He says he has helped the Kremlin gain ground in Ukraine, but he has ruffled feathers among Russian elites.

Several thousand solar panels bake under an unseasonably warm February sun in Plains, Georgia, one of the many projects that bolster the environmental record of local icon and former US president Jimmy Carter.

A six-decade archive charting pop icon David Bowie's career will open in London in 2025, providing a "new source book for the Bowies of tomorrow", a museum director said Wednesday.

Japanese director Makoto Shinkai admits that he "didn't have an eye on the global market" when making "Suzume".

French schools were set Thursday to hold a nationwide minute of silence for a teacher stabbed to death the previous day by one of her pupils with no apparent motive.

Milan's catwalks may be the epicentre of global fashion this week, but it's Seoul and K-Pop fans who are front and centre in the battle for new luxury customers.

Meta on Thursday said that tens of millions of people in Iran are using Instagram despite government efforts to block the service due to months-long protests.

Wales coach Warren Gatland has insisted his team need no extra motivation heading into Saturday's Six Nations match against England after a week of off-field disruption over player contract issues.

A collection of nearly half-a-century's worth of Apple computers that traces the evolution of one of the world's most influential companies is going under the hammer in California next month.

G7 finance chiefs pressed the IMF on Thursday to provide more aid to Ukraine, as US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen insisted that sanctions were hurting Russia on the eve of the first anniversary of the invasion.

England cricketer Danni Wyatt revealed Thursday the "terrifying" moment when Cape Town's famed Table Mountain cable car lost power and left her hovering helplessly high above the ground.

Dozens of miles inland from the English Channel, the Seine River port of Rouen is bustling with shipments of wheat, barley and other grains, a boom fuelled by the Russian chokehold on Ukraine's agriculture exports.

French pop giant Aya Nakamura was fined 10,000 euros ($10,600) on Thursday and her former partner Vladimir Boudnikoff 5,000 euros, over a dispute in which the pair came to blows in August 2022.

Israel launched air strikes on Gaza in return for rocket fire from the Palestinian enclave Thursday, a day after the deadliest Israeli army raid in the occupied West Bank in nearly 20 years.

Croatian defender Dejan Lovren announced his international retirement on Thursday, following a storied run with the "Fiery Ones" that included second and third place finishes at the World Cup.

US, European and other governments on Thursday urged Nigerian leaders to ensure a fair and calm election this weekend when the country votes to choose a successor to President Muhammadu Buhari.

Ross Byrne and Craig Casey form a new halfback partnership as both make their first Six Nations starts against Italy on Saturday with Ireland bidding to make it three wins from three matches.

A French court on Thursday granted a request to delay the appeal of Chilean Nicolas Zepeda, convicted of the 2016 murder of his Japanese ex-girlfriend Narumi Kurosaki, after the defendant's lawyer was changed at the last moment.

Anthony Watson is set for his first start for England since 2021 after being named on the wing to face Wales in Saturday's Six Nations clash in Cardiff.

The incoming Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides on Thursday held his first meeting with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar to try and break the ice on frozen reunification talks.

Giant centre Mason Grady was selected to make his debut for Wales against England on Saturday as coach Warren Gatland dropped George North and Dan Biggar after two opening defeats.

Since war-torn Syria was hit by a deadly earthquake, volunteers have kicked into action, cooking food for the homeless, giving free haircuts and bringing cheer to traumatised children.

Police in Northern Ireland said Thursday that they had arrested three men over the shooting of an off-duty officer, after declaring "violent dissident republicans" the "prime focus" of their investigation.

Stock markets traded mixed Thursday, with little buying enthusiasm after minutes from a Federal Reserve policy meeting indicated US interest rates would keep rising for longer than expected.