World news

World news

For 17 years, she had earned a living cutting and polishing the gems that helped transform Botswana from one of the world's poorest nations into one of Africa's success stories. Diamonds were discovered in 1967, a year after independence, an abrupt change of fortune for the landlocked country. Botswana became the world's top diamond producer by value, and second-largest by volume after Russia. Diamonds are woven into the national identity.

A recent report from the Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies found that the median price Russia paid for Chinese exports of sanctioned products soared 87% between 2021 and 2024. For exports from other countries, however, prices of sanctioned goods rose just 9% during that time. Researchers highlighted ball bearings, which is on the European Union's list of high-priority items. While the value of Chinese ball-bearing exports to Russia jumped by 76% from 2021 to 2024, the quantity of exports actually dropped by 13%.

The national officials have accepted comrade Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla's decision to resign and support her efforts to ensure that these young South Africans are brought back safely to their families, the MK Party's national chairperson, Nkosinathi Nhleko, told a news conference. MK officials said Zuma-Sambudla's resignation was voluntary and that her departure from the National Assembly and all other public roles was effective immediately.

The ceremony took place on Saturday afternoon at Albanese's official residence, the Lodge, witnessed by a small group of close family and friends, including Albanese's son, Nathan, and Haydon's parents, Bill and Pauline. We are absolutely delighted to share our love and commitment to spending our future lives together, in front of our family and closest friends, Albanese and Haydon said in a statement. The couple were married by a celebrant from the NSW Central Coast and wrote their own vows.

The US Congressional Progressive Caucus on Friday accused President Donald Trump of "flagrantly interfering" in Honduras' upcoming presidential election after Trump announced his endorsement of right-wing candidate Nasry "Tito" Asfura and repeated threats he's made previously ahead of other electoral contests in which he sought to secure a conservative win.

The killing of two unarmed Palestinians by Israeli soldiers in the northern West Bank city of Jenin has provoked international outrage after video footage of the incident went viral on Friday. Credited to the local Palestine TV station, the footage shows two young Palestinian men surrendering to Israeli soldiers and lying on the ground in front of a garage under soldiers' instructions.

Air pollution has reached "alarming" levels in the Iranian capital, Tehran, leading authorities to close schools and universities and ban truck travel in the region in the latest environmental crisis to strike the Middle East nation. The Air Quality Index in Tehran and surrounding cities on November 29 climbed to between 170 and 200 -- considered to be "unhealthy" for all age groups, Iranian media reported.

Today, that roadmap is beginning to shift. A growing number of young Chinese people are starting to explore smaller cities, where the pace is less frenetic and a work-life balance is more attainable. This shift stems from a change in priorities. Stagnant wages, high youth unemployment, chronic burnout and increasingly realistic life expectations are pushing an entire generation one marked by competitiveness and pressure to seek a balance between ambition and mental well-being.

I got the words I said there completely wrong, said a sheepish Stokes. Has-beens is a horrible word. It's the only thing that managed to come out of my mouth at that moment. God, I'm going to be one of those one day. But it's not at all what I meant by that. Talk of lessons being learned is a common refrain from defeated sides but Stokes preferring one-on-one debriefs rather than all in one room was happy to expand on a few.

He's won four world championships. I have a lot of respect, and I think that gives anyone a lot of credit in general. He's achieved an incredible amount, more than anyone generally dreams of achieving. Max generally has a good clue about a lot of things, but there's also a lot of things he doesn't have much of a clue about.

International Criminal Court (ICC) appeals judges are set to rule on a request to release from detention former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has ongoing proceedings against him on charges of crimes against humanity. The judges are scheduled to issue their ruling on Friday, paving the way for a possible provisional freedom of the ageing politician a move strongly opposed by human rights groups and families of victims of his brutal drug war.

Local sources told Al Jazeera on Friday that nine Syrians people were killed and others wounded in Israeli artillery and missile strikes targeting the town of Beit Jinn. Clashes between the residents and the invading Israeli force erupted after the incursion. Several Israeli soldiers were reportedly injured. Israeli sources initially reported that two of its soldiers were wounded, while two Syrian civilians were killed.

Though official results have yet to be released, the NDP's likely victory is slated to end the Unity Labour Party's 24 years in power. The party addressed its constituents in St Vincent and the Grenadines, sometimes known by the acronym SVG, in a social media post after Thursday's election. We love you, SVG, and we will keep working and advocating for you, the Unity Labour Party said. This is not the end, it is the beginning.

Javokhir Sindarov, 19, became the youngest ever winner of the Fide knockout World Cup on Wednesday when the Uzbek teenager defeated China's Wei Yi 2.5-1.5 in the final at Goa. Ukraine's Ruslan Ponomariov had been a year younger in 2002, but that World Cup had also doubled as the Fide world championship in a period when the global title was disputed.