Sawt Falasteen - News from Ramallah, the political, economic and cultural centre of Palestine, as well as the West Bank and the whole world

Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka powered into the final of the US Open on Thursday, rallying from a set down to defeat American fourth seed Jessica Pegula and keep her title defence firmly on track.

Thailand's parliament is set Friday to vote in a right-wing tycoon as prime minister, ousting the nation's dominant political dynasty from office after their leader was sacked by court order.

Nigel Farage's anti-immigration party Reform UK kicks off Britain's annual party conference season Friday, with the Brexit cheerleader and his buoyant supporters increasingly confident he could be Britain's next leader.

New Zealand cricket great Ross Taylor announced Friday he was coming out of retirement, nearly four years after quitting, to help Samoa qualify for next year's Twenty20 World Cup.

Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather have reached a deal on a potential exhibition fight in 2026, promoter CSI Sports said on Thursday.

Thailand's influential former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra said Friday he has left the country by private jet, hours before his party looks set to be ousted from top office.

New Zealand's military said on Friday it had appealed a two year sentence for a soldier accused of attempted espionage, describing it as "manifestly inadequate".

More than two dozen countries have pledged to join a force to deploy in Ukraine after any eventual peace deal with Russia, aiming to deter Moscow from again attacking its neighbour, leaders announced Thursday.

Powerhouse Australia said it was "up for the challenge" Friday of winning an unprecedented eighth Women's Cricket World Cup, naming a star-studded squad to defend their title in India and Sri Lanka.

South American football's governing body, Conmebol, disqualified Argentine club Independiente on Thursday from the 2025 Copa Sudamericana competition over a bloody brawl during a game against Universidad de Chile last month.

Inter Miami forward Luis Suarez, who spat at a Seattle staff member after the Sounders' Leagues Cup final triumph on Sunday, apologized for his "behavior" in a statement on Instagram on Thursday.

US President Donald Trump signed an order Thursday to lower tariffs on Japanese autos, as Washington moves to implement its trade pact negotiated with Tokyo.

Germany went down to a shock 2-0 defeat in Slovakia in their opening World Cup qualifier on Thursday, while Spain kicked off their bid to reach next year's finals with a comfortable 3-0 victory in Bulgaria.

Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann has slammed his side's "lack of emotion" after Thursday's 2-0 World Cup qualifying loss to Slovakia in Bratislava.

Germany fell to a shock 2-0 defeat against Slovakia in their World Cup qualifying opener in Bratislava on Thursday, their first ever away loss in a qualifier for the tournament.

Cape Verde, an island nation off the west coast of Africa with a population of about 525,000, stayed on track for a first World Cup appearance by winning 2-0 in Mauritius on Thursday.

Matthew Breetzke became the first batsman in one-day international history to start his career with five consecutive scores of fifty or more as South Africa beat England by just five runs at Lord's on Thursday for a series-clinching win.

Germany fell to a shock 2-0 defeat against Slovakia in their World Cup qualifying opener in Bratislava on Thursday, their first ever away loss in a qualifier for the tournament.

Flamengo player Bruno Henrique was given a 12-match suspension Thursday by a sports court after being accused of deliberately triggering a yellow card to benefit relatives involved in online gambling.

A superb strike by Aston Villa's Matty Cash snatched a 1-1 draw for Poland on Thursday despite being dominated for long periods by the Netherlands in European World Cup qualifying Group G.

Spain kicked off their World Cup 2026 qualification campaign with an emphatic 3-0 win in Bulgaria on Thursday.

In a major political blow for budget-slashing President Javier Milei, Argentina's Congress on Thursday overturned his veto of a law increasing allowances for disabled people.

At the age of 17, Tokito Oda became the youngest world number one in wheelchair tennis. At 18, he was an Olympic gold medallist.

Novak Djokovic is in the unfamiliar role of spoiler as he tries to get in the way of a third straight Grand Slam final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open.

Donald Trump's pick to join the Federal Reserve's board of governors said Thursday that he plans to take a leave of absence from his White House job while at the US central bank -- but vowed to uphold its independence.

With an ill-disciplined military and an outdated arsenal, Venezuela would be at a serious disadvantage in the event of an American invasion, experts say.

The Israeli military on Thursday said it controls 40 percent of Gaza City, the largest urban centre in the Palestinian territory which it is preparing to conquer after nearly two years of devastating war.

Tennis legend Bjorn Borg says in his forthcoming autobiography that he has cancer, according to a blurb published on Amazon's Italian site on Thursday.

The daughter and son-in-law of a Nazi who stole art from European Jews during World War II were charged in an Argentine court Thursday with hiding numerous works, including 22 by French painter Henri Matisse.

Investigators probing the fatal derailment of one of Lisbon's famous funicular trains released early details Thursday, confirming that foreign visitors were among the 16 people killed.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday promised security aid to Ecuador and announced terrorist designations as he vowed to ramp up a regional fight against criminals following a US strike on a boat allegedly linked to Venezuela.

The US government on Thursday filed multi-million dollar lawsuits against a major power company over wildfires in Southern California, including one of the huge blazes that tore through the Los Angeles area in January.