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A head pops out of the toilet, a woman gets pregnant from birth control pills -- South Korean Booker Prize nominee Bora Chung's short stories are full of horror, inspired by her own lonely life.

India said it has capped sugar exports to safeguard its own supplies and ease inflation, days after a ban on wheat shipments sent global prices soaring in the wake of the Ukraine war.

Boeing's Starliner capsule is readying to return to Earth on Wednesday in the final step of a key test flight to prove itself worthy of providing rides for NASA astronauts to the International Space Station.

Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was on Wednesday given the additional responsibility of running the finance ministry as the island nation grapples with its worst-ever economic crisis.

Bangladesh made early inroads on the third day of the second Test in Dhaka on Wednesday but Sri Lanka recovered to reach lunch at 210-4, still trailing by 155.

A teenage gunman killed at least 19 young children and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas on Tuesday, prompting a furious President Joe Biden to denounce the US gun lobby and vow to end the nation's cycle of mass shootings.

Chinese President Xi Jinping held a video call with UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet on Wednesday, as she visits Xinjiang during a mission overshadowed by fresh allegations of Uyghur abuses and fears she is being used as a public relations tool by the Communist Party.

North Korea fired a volley of missiles early Wednesday including a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile, just hours after US President Joe Biden left Asia after a trip overshadowed by Pyongyang's sabre-rattling.

On a sun-drenched Sierra Leone beach, a one-legged man balances on his crutches and fires the ball past a one-armed goalkeeper.

All roads leading into Pakistan's capital Islamabad were blocked on Wednesday ahead of a major protest planned by ousted prime minister Imran Khan and his supporters.

As the sound of artillery rumbles in the distance and the occasional air raid siren wails, Anna Bondar waits her turn to fill up on drinking water in Mykolaiv, a port city in southern Ukraine.

"To lose a child is like having a piece of your soul ripped away," said US President Joe Biden -- a twice-bereaved father channeling his own heartache to console a nation devastated by another mass shooting on Tuesday.

US oil and gas firms took advantage of energy worries over the Ukraine war to push their fossil fuel products and resist climate change regulatory measures, an analysis showed on Wednesday.

Luka Doncic scored 30 points as the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Golden State Warriors 119-109 to keep their NBA Western Conference finals series alive on Tuesday.

At the height of his career, Vietnamese hacker Ngo Minh Hieu made a fortune stealing the personal data of hundreds of millions of Americans.

Reigning champion Novak Djokovic will come up against his long-time former coach when he plays Slovakia's Alex Molcan in the second round Wednesday at Roland Garros, while Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz look to keep their French Open title ambitions on course.

Asian markets fluctuated Wednesday, with little sign of any relief from recent dour performances as investors remain fearful about the economic outlook owing to the impact of inflation, higher interest rates, China's slowdown and the Ukraine war.

A teenage gunman killed at least 19 young children and two adults at an elementary school in Texas on Tuesday, prompting a furious President Joe Biden to denounce the US gun lobby and vow to end the nation's cycle of mass shootings.

Fearing Russia's invasion of Ukraine will disrupt its crucial supply of fertilizer imports, agricultural powerhouse Brazil is increasingly turning to natural alternatives.

A mass shooting that left 18 schoolchildren dead in the deeply pro-gun state of Texas on Tuesday increased pressure on US politicians to take action over the ubiquity of firearms -- but also brought the grim expectation of little or no change.

At a bar in Brasilia, two longtime members of Brazil's Workers Party retweet messages supporting Luis Inacio Lula da Silva on their cell phones, as part of his campaign's drive to fight the overwhelming presence of President Jair Bolsonaro on social media.

Drones spraying pesticide, sensors taking soil readings, sprinklers that squirt fertiliser at the touch of a button -- a Malaysian plantation is using high-tech methods to boost its crop of pungent durians.

North Korea fired a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile early Wednesday, Seoul's military said, just one day after President Joe Biden wrapped up his first Asia visit as US leader.

In one of the longest awaited musical reunions, Swedish pop legends ABBA return to the concert stage on Friday in London but only as avatars of their 1970 selves shimmering with shiny costumes, glitter and platform boots.

A labor coalition on Tuesday said that Amazon delivery workers are getting hurt due to pressure by the e-commerce giant to quickly distribute heaps of packages to customers.

Ukrainian makeup artist Aliona Antonova had little idea when she fled her hometown the morning of the Russian invasion that she would soon find herself among the stars at the world's top film festival.

When a little-known teenager from the Philippines burst into the global golf spotlight by winning last year's US Women's Open it changed her life -- but left tricky decisions ahead.

India's film industry, the world's most prolific, is taking centre stage at the Cannes Film Festival, but insiders say it's a challenge to please global audiences without losing its massive fanbase at home.

A group of US Democratic lawmakers urged Google on Tuesday to stop collecting smartphone location data that could be used to identify women who have had abortions.

A high-octane documentary on David Bowie has delighted fans at the Cannes Film Festival which is having a vintage year for music lovers.

Republican voters delivered a stark repudiation Tuesday of Donald Trump's "Big Lie" that the 2020 US election was stolen, backing Georgia Governor Brian Kemp for re-election by a huge margin over a candidate recruited by the former president.

It's the first queer play to be staged in Tunisia -- director Essia Jaibi's latest work aims to challenge conservative attitudes in a country where same-sex acts are punishable by prison terms.