WORLD

French protesters were on Thursday staging a day of nationwide disruption in a show of anger over President Emmanuel Macron's budget policies, with mass protests expected, transport chaos and clashes between police and demonstrators.

US President Donald Trump said he would designate "Antifa" -- a shorthand term for "anti-fascist" used to describe diffuse far-left groups -- as "a major terrorist organization," a move he threatened in his first term.

A US panel stacked with figures sympathetic to the anti-vaccine movement will on Thursday take on federal immunization recommendations in a highly politicized meeting that could upend longstanding medical advice.

Russian, Chinese, and Iranian state media are exploiting conservative activist Charlie Kirk's assassination to advance thousands of false claims aimed at undermining the United States and other adversaries, a research group warned Wednesday.

Almost eight decades after Colin Wyatt stole and then vandalised thousands of precious Australian butterfly specimens, scientists are still untangling his web of deception.

Traditional news outlets were cautious not to broadcast the moment Charlie Kirk was assassinated, but it mattered little in the age of declining media influence.

Chimpanzees consume the equivalent of at least one alcoholic drink per day as they eat ripe, fermenting fruit, says a study out Wednesday that addresses one possible reason why humans are drawn to booze.

Pope Leo XIV sought to reassure Catholics in his first interview published Thursday that he would not change key doctrine on gay marriage and women deacons, after his predecessor's divisive papacy.

US President Donald Trump got a succulent menu for his UK state banquet -- but there was also an awkward guest at the feast in the form of Rupert Murdoch.

Venezuela said Wednesday it had begun three days of military exercises on its Caribbean island of La Orchila as tensions soar amid US military activity in the region.

Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro, convicted last week of leading an attempted coup, has been diagnosed with skin cancer, his doctor said Wednesday.

Colombia's top military officer has told AFP that his country will fight the resurgent cocaine trade with or without American help, after Washington blacklisted Bogota for what it called flawed anti-drug efforts.

The ex-chief of the US disease prevention agency told senators Wednesday she was fired for refusing to approve changes to childhood vaccine schedules not backed by scientific evidence, as the Trump administration moves to dismantle longstanding healthy policy.

Canada's central bank cut its key lending rate on Wednesday, offering a boost to borrowers in an economy squeezed by US President Donald Trump's trade war.

The beauty of sport is its ability to surprise and Isaac Nader produced one of the biggest ever in international 1,500 metres finals as he won the world title on Wednesday while Katie Moon was a more predictable winner of a third successive pole vault crown.

Donald Trump has come under fire for allegedly disrespecting King Charles during a state visit to Windsor Castle. The moment, which echoed his past controversies with the late Queen Elizabeth II, has sparked widespread backlash online.

The European Union on Wednesday proposed curbing trade ties with Israel and sanctioning ministers in its strongest action yet over the war in Gaza, though reluctance from key member states risks blocking adoption.