WORLD

Russian President Vladimir Putin has over the past two decades built up a system of domestic repression and confrontation with the West that is almost certain to guarantee a fifth term in office on Sunday.

Kremlin critics called for massive protests at Russian polling stations on Sunday for the final day of a presidential election that is guaranteed to cement Vladimir Putin's hardline rule.

Senegal's charismatic opposition leader Ousmane Sonko and his coalition's presidential candidate flew to the south of the country Saturday, pressing on with their election campaign less than two weeks before the vote.

To the sound of Russian pop music blasting from speakers at the polling station, Eduard Ishnazarov cast a ballot for the only candidate he thought could deliver peace: Vladimir Putin.

WCK, the charity founded by celebrity chef José Andrés, released a statement that its team unloaded the aid in Gaza.

A half-century ago, two skinny brothers named Walter and Arturo Perez started lifting stones in their rural Nicaraguan town; now they are local legends and TikTok sensations known as the "Hercules brothers" and the "Bodybuilding Grandfathers."

A second ship loaded with aid for Gaza could depart as early as Saturday, Cyprus said, as the first vessel returned from the war-ravaged territory after successfully delivering its cargo.

In the shadow of the war raging in Gaza, record numbers of Palestinian detainees are filling Israeli prisons, where they face "systemic abuse" and torture, rights advocates warn, calling for international action.

Ukrainian bombardments killed two people in a Russian border region on Saturday, its governor said, on the second day of presidential elections in Russia guaranteed to cement Vladimir Putin's hardline rule.

North Korea's Kim Jong Un oversaw paratroop drills aimed at showing his soldiers' ability to occupy an "enemy region at a stroke", state media said Saturday, days after the most recent annual US-South Korean military exercise.

The United Nations called Friday for Sudan's warring factions to provide unimpeded access for desperately needed aid as the spectre of famine looms after nearly a year of conflict.

Apple reaches a $490 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit accusing CEO Tim Cook of misleading shareholders about declining iPhone demand in China.

Haitians were waiting nervously Friday for the naming of a transitional governing body that they hope will begin restoring stability to the country wracked by gang violence.

The Irish premier's annual Saint Patrick's Day visit to the White House is normally a joyful affair -- but this year the war in Gaza cast a shadow darker than a rainy Dublin sky.

A satin leopard headscarf framing her face, 23-year-old Russian ballerina Nadezhda walked away from the electronic booth after voting for the first time, but without much enthusiasm.

Ukraine said Friday that Russian forces had pounded the Black Sea port city of Odesa with missiles, killing more than a dozen people including a paramedic and a rescue worker.

From being "dazzled" by a beautiful girl to his role in Argentina's dictatorship, Pope Francis reviews his long life in his first autobiography -- and makes clear he is going nowhere.

McDonald's grapples with a global system failure, causing disruptions in operations across various countries.

A sculpture depicting modern women in the British capital will stand on the Fourth Plinth of London's Trafalgar Square from 2026, organisers said Friday.

Twenty-one migrants including five children drowned after a boat capsized off the Turkish coast, local officials said on Friday.

The family of an Ethiopian man who was among 27 migrants who drowned in 2021 when their boat capsized in the Channel filed a complaint Friday suing the French state in the first such case over the disaster, two groups said.

The Philippines has been pushing back against Chinese aggression in the West Philippine Sea through diplomatic channels, but the Philippine Rise may be a different story as the country's leader has been braver in recent comments about Beijing's aggression in Philippine territory – perhaps triggered by the Philippines' long history of fighting for its sovereignty, territorial integrity, and finally, freedom.

The first aid vessel heading to the besieged Gaza Strip via a new maritime corridor was visible Friday off the coast of the war-ravaged territory, an AFP journalist said.

From the hatch of a US aircraft, the destruction wrought by months of war on the Gaza Strip stretched out below in grey piles of debris along the turquoise waters of the Mediterranean.

In power as president or prime minister since the final day of 1999, the former KGB agent is casting the election as a show of Russians' loyalty and support for his military assault on Ukraine, now in its third year.

The crew was not injured and the vessel continued its journey, said the British navy's United Kingdom Marine Trade Operations, and security firm Ambrey, after the incident west of the rebel-held port of Hodeida in the early hours of Friday.

El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele said Thursday that his country has stored more than $400 million in bitcoin in an offline "cold wallet" as the cryptocurrency forges new record highs.

As the northern hemisphere edges toward spring and millions flock to the beach, headlines have dubbed the southeastern US state of Florida the world's most likely place to be bitten by a shark.

A high-ranking Turkish delegation held talks in Baghdad on Thursday, discussing key security and energy issues ahead of an expected visit by Turkey's president, Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said.