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Heavy winds and rain pummelled Florida on Wednesday as Hurricane Ian intensified to just shy of the strongest Category 5 level, threatening to wreak "catastrophic" destruction on the southern US state.

Fish fossils dating back 440 million years are helping to "fill some of the key gaps" on how humans evolved from fish, researchers said on Wednesday.

The parents of Mahsa Amini, whose death in the custody of Iran's morality police has sparked 12 nights of protests, have filed a complaint against the officers involved in her detention, the family's lawyer said Wednesday.

Kremlin-backed officials in Ukraine appealed to President Vladimir Putin Wednesday to annex the regions under their control, after the territories held votes denounced by Kyiv and the West as a "sham".

Iran launched cross-border missile and drone strikes that killed nine people in Iraq's Kurdistan region Wednesday after accusing Kurdish armed groups based there of stoking a wave of unrest that has rocked the Islamic republic.

Richarlison responded angrily on Wednesday to racist abuse after he scored as Brazil thrashed Tunisia in a friendly in Paris.

The EU said Wednesday that leaks from two Russia-Germany undersea gas pipelines appeared to be "a deliberate act", as Moscow said it would call for a UN Security Council meeting over the incident.

Kwasi Kwarteng has been finance minister for less than a month but is already in the firing line as Britain's economy teeters on the brink following his first policy announcement.

After worrying drone reports and the "sabotage" of Nord Stream's Baltic Sea pipelines, Europe's biggest gas supplier Norway is beefing up security at its energy installations, which experts have singled out as vulnerable targets.

Experts on Wednesday said they were encouraged after preliminary data for a new Alzheimer's drug showed it slowed cognitive decline, the first medicine to accomplish this goal.

Georgia opposition supporters on Wednesday rallied against "uncontrolled" migration from Russia, which has nearly doubled since Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a mobilisation for the war in Ukraine.

Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter said Wednesday that higher England match fees could help stop players leaving the Premiership for bigger salaries abroad after Sam Simmonds agreed a move to Montpellier.

Guinea's oldest chimpanzee and one of the last members of a globally famous endangered community has died in solitude around the age of 71, the environment ministry said.

Iran was accused of killing seven people and wounding 28 in cross-border strikes Wednesday against Kurdish factions in Iraq that have deplored an ongoing protest crackdown in the Islamic republic.

Havana resident Maykel was helping his friend fix an "almendron" -- as the decades-old American cars that ply Cuba's streets are known -- when the lights suddenly cut out late Tuesday.

Hurricane Ian intensified to just shy of catastrophic Category 5 strength Wednesday as its heavy winds began pummelling the US state of Florida, with forecasters warning of life-threatening storm surges after leaving millions without power in Cuba.

North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles on Wednesday, Seoul's military said, just days after Pyongyang's last test and ahead of a visit to South Korea by US Vice President Kamala Harris.

A crucial step towards the demolition of the iconic San Siro begins on Wednesday when Milan hosts the first of a series of meetings with the public necessary for the new stadium proposed by the city's two footballing giants.

Outside an army recruitment centre in Saint Petersburg, women and children embrace Russian men called up to fight in Ukraine, whispering among each other where their loved ones will be sent.

Just weeks away from the start of a World Cup like no other, the poor form of Europe's powerhouses suggests there could be a changing of the guard in Qatar.

Global stock markets sank Wednesday and the dollar soared as investors fretted over recession fears and heightened Ukraine tensions.

French rapper Kaaris was taken into custody for questioning on Wednesday over domestic violence allegations that he kicked and punched a former partner, prosecutors said.

The Bank of England stepped in Wednesday to shore up market confidence after the International Monetary Fund criticised Britain's inflation-fighting budget.

Almost half of all bird species are in decline globally and one in eight are threatened with extinction, according to a major new report warning that human actions are driving more species to the brink and nature is "in trouble".

Typhoon Noru tore roofs from homes and caused power outages across central Vietnam Wednesday, with hundreds of thousands of people taking refuge, after the storm claimed at least 10 lives in the Philippines.

British wildlife groups and campaigners have hit out at government's plans to ditch legislation covering pesticide use, as part of a drive to remove EU laws after Brexit.

Exiled Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya on Wednesday said President Alexander Lukashenko would commit "political suicide" if he involved Belarus's military in the war in neighbouring Ukraine.

Seven-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton said on Wednesday he does not see it as "a dry spell" or "end of the world" if he fails to win a race this season.

Former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly relived one of his career-defining moments on top of the Lord's balcony -- but this time in India on a replica, and with his shirt on.

Saudi Arabia's Mohammed bin Salman, who was named prime minister late on Tuesday, has shaken up the ultraconservative oil titan with economic, social and religious reforms since his meteoric rise to power.

The protests that have erupted in Iran are shadowing the national football team's bid for a breakthrough to the World Cup, with rumours of a split in the squad, social media posts that mysteriously disappear and former legends weighing in to support the demonstrations.

The EU said Wednesday that leaks from two Russia-Germany undersea gas pipelines appeared to be "a deliberate act", as fossil fuel-rich Norway boosted security at its installations.