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Oil prices soared 10 percent Thursday after Qatar reported "extensive" damage to the world's largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility following Iranian strikes, sparking fears for global energy supplies.

The number of meningitis cases being probed by UK authorities has risen to 27, health officials said Thursday, following an unprecedented deadly outbreak centred on a university.

A defiant Hungarian leader Viktor Orban vowed Thursday to keep blocking a massive loan for Ukraine despite heavy pressure from EU partners, who were headed into a Brussels summit hoping to unlock the much-needed funding.

Iran will "boycott the United States" but "not the World Cup", Iranian football federation president Mehdi Taj said in a video released by the Iranian press agency Fars.

Tokyo's meteorologists declared the start of the much-loved cherry blossom season in the Japanese capital on Thursday, as residents prepare to host outdoor picnics under dazzling floral displays.

Energy prices soared Thursday and stocks sank as Iran attacked several Gulf energy facilities and warned of more in retaliation for a strike on one of its key gas fields.

Qatar reported "extensive" damage on Thursday to the site of the world's largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility following Iranian strikes, sparking fears for global energy supplies and fresh threats from Donald Trump against Iran.

Clutching a monkey plushie, Eliete Ikeda screamed "Punch!" as she caught sight of the underdog baby macaque still drawing crowds of photo-hungry visitors to a Japanese zoo weeks after he shot to stardom.

China's snaggle-toothed Labubu dolls will soon come alive on the big screen after flying off the toy shelves, with maker Pop Mart announcing a collaboration with Sony Pictures.

Oil surged more than five percent Thursday and stocks sank as Iran attacked several Gulf energy facilities and warned of more in retaliation for a strike on one of its key gas fields.

BTS, the world's biggest boy band, reunites on stage on Saturday in a K-pop extravaganza watched by hundreds of thousands of fans in downtown Seoul and by millions around the planet online.

In the back of a 4X4, a nurse cleaned a gash in a boy's arm, picked up from living rough on the streets of Kinshasa, the capital of one of the world's poorest countries.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is the scion of a construction dynasty and a hobbyist jet pilot, but championed Thailand's decriminalisation of cannabis and styles himself as a man of the people.

Thailand's new parliament on Thursday elected Anutin Charnvirakul as prime minister, according to an AFP tally of the vote, keeping the conservative in the top office after his party routed its election rivals.

Through months of winter protests in support of South Korean democracy, professor Lee Ji-young clutched her K-pop glowstick -- a small but telling sign of her love for K-pop megastars BTS.

Almost all life-saving fire safety measures failed on the day a devastating blaze tore through a Hong Kong housing complex last year, killing 168 people, a public hearing was told on Thursday.

US President Donald Trump threatened to "massively blow up" a vast Iranian gas field unless Tehran stops striking Qatari energy facilities, which sustained extensive damage Thursday.

Luka Doncic scored 40 points and LeBron James added 30 on Wednesday to spark the Los Angeles Lakers over Houston 124-116, stretching their NBA win streak to seven games.

Inter Milan continue their hunt for the Serie A title on Sunday night when they visit Fiorentina hoping to maintain their hefty league lead before all eyes turn to the national team's bid to reach the World Cup.

In a supermarket in Bahrain, Mahmoud Ali fills his cart as usual. The shelves remain stocked despite the war in the Middle East, but the blockade of the main shipping routes into the Gulf is now being felt at checkout.

In the Danish city of Kolding, voters are worried about rising prices, the welfare state and immigration ahead of the country's general election, reflecting nationwide concerns reinforced by worries about Greenland and global uncertainty.

A wild possum joined stuffed furry friends in an Australian airport gift shop this week, surprising travellers in an adorable case of hide and squeak.

Iranian missile attacks have killed three Palestinian women in the occupied West Bank and a foreign worker in central Israel, medics said Thursday.

Athletes at the Asian Games in Japan will have "a unique experience" staying on a cruise ship and in wooden containers, an organising official told AFP six months out from the event, but acknowledged there were concerns about the plan.

Qatar's main gas facility has suffered extensive damage after several rounds of Iranian strikes, causing new energy supply fears as the Middle East war grinds on.

Leaders of Samoa and Tonga appealed for help this week as the import-reliant Pacific nations raised fears over possible fuel shortages and escalating costs caused by war in the Middle East.

Armand Duplantis and Keely Hodgkinson headline the world indoor athletics championships that kick off in Torun, Poland, on Friday.

Oil surged more than five percent Thursday and stocks sank as Iran carried out a series of attacks on Gulf energy facilities and warned of more following a strike on one of its key gas fields, while warnings of higher US inflation also soured the mood.

EU leaders converge on Brussels Thursday hoping to unlock a massive loan for Kyiv, with the much-needed funding ensnared in a standoff between Hungary's Viktor Orban and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky.

The energy shock unleashed by the Middle East war will top the agenda at Thursday's European Central Bank meeting, as fears grow of a major hit to the eurozone economy.

Clark Laidlaw extended his coaching contract with New Zealand's Wellington Hurricanes into a fourth year Thursday with the Scot saying, "there's loads to develop".

Argentine superstar Lionel Messi bagged the 900th goal of his glittering career on Wednesday but could not prevent Inter Miami from crashing out of the CONCACAF Champions Cup on away goals after a 1-1 draw with Nashville.