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

Pope Francis saw priests' embrace of the trappings of power as a "cancer" corroding the Roman Catholic Church, according to a best-selling Spanish author who travelled to Mongolia with the pontiff.

One of Harvey Weinstein's accusers on Wednesday again told a New York court that he had raped her, five years after she testified in the first sexual assault trial of the disgraced Hollywood producer.

Formula One's high-octane show rolls into the Sunshine State this weekend for the sixth round of the 2025 season, the Miami Grand Prix, with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri holding a slender lead in the Drivers’ Championship.

The US economy unexpectedly contracted in the first three months of the year on an import surge triggered by Donald Trump's tariff plans, although the president pinned the blame squarely on his predecessor.

Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell missed Punjab Kings' IPL match on Wednesday with a fractured finger and is likely to be out injured for the rest of the T20 tournament.

Syria said Israel launched new strikes near Damascus on Wednesday, after sectarian clashes left nearly 40 dead in two days and Israel warned against attacks targeting the Druze minority.

Climate change, women's rights, displacement, poverty: Afghanistan remains a priority as it faces overlapping crises, the UN's relief chief Tom Fletcher told AFP on Wednesday, deploring "brutal" aid budget cuts.

The NFL fined the Atlanta Falcons $250,000 and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich $100,000 on Wednesday over a phone number leak that led to a prank call to rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders.

British teenager Matthew Brennan took over the yellow jersey of the Tour de Romandie after winning a sprint on the opening stage in Fribourg on Wednesday.

A Turkish court on Wednesday handed a Swedish journalist an 11-month suspended sentence for insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, but remains behind bars awaiting trial on a second more serious charge.

Fierce debate raged in Spain on Wednesday over the role its reliance on renewable energy may have had in this week's blackout which disrupted millions of lives, though officials sought to downplay any potential link.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced Wednesday a judicial inquiry into claims of deliberate delays in prosecuting apartheid-era crimes three decades after the end of white-minority rule.

Stocks slid on Wall Street on Wednesday, pulling European indexes off earlier highs after the US economy contracted in the first quarter, heightening fears about the fallout of President Donald Trump's tariffs blitz on the world's largest economy.

Africans in search of a better future became the latest casualties of Yemen's decade-long conflict after a deadly strike blamed on the United States hit a migrant detention centre, killing dozens of people.

President Donald Trump lashed out at his predecessor's economic record Wednesday after US financial markets fell on the news that the American economy unexpectedly contracted in the first three months of the year.

A UK-wide decline in bug splats recorded on car number plates indicates an "alarming" fall in the number of flying insects, UK scientists said in a survey published Wednesday.

Mexico's economy returned to growth in the first quarter of 2025, avoiding a recession despite deep uncertainty over US President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, official data showed Wednesday.

White wings flashing overhead in the sunlight, conservationist Olivier Nsengimana points out Rwanda's grey crowned cranes, migratory birds that have made an extraordinary comeback in the Great Lakes region.

Ange Postecoglou said Tottenham have an "unbelievable opportunity" to end a miserable season with a trophy as he prepares his team to face Bodo/Glimt in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final on Thursday.

Microsoft President Brad Smith called Wednesday for a swift resolution of trade tensions between the United States and Europe, during an interview with AFP in Brussels.

Britain's iconic Tower of London will be covered in a cascading installation of 30,000 red ceramic poppies to mark 80 years since the end of World War II.

The US economy unexpectedly contracted in the first three months of the year due largely to a surge in imports as businesses and consumers stockpiled ahead of the introduction of President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs.

Stock markets retreated into the red Wednesday after the US economy contracted in the first quarter, a stark reminder of the risks President Donald Trump's tariffs blitz could hold for the world's largest economy and its main trading partners.

The US economy unexpectedly contracted in the first three months of the year, according to fresh data published Wednesday, due largely to a surge in imports as businesses and consumers stockpiled ahead of the introduction of President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs.

Rajasthan Royals head coach Rahul Dravid on Wednesday lauded IPL's teenage sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi for his fearless approach and strength, but warned him of life in the spotlight.

Defiant Mikel Merino says Arsenal have "proved we can win anywhere" and insists they can still reach the Champions League final after defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their last-four tie.

Bangladesh won the second and final Test against Zimbabwe by an innings and 106 runs on Wednesday, a decisive victory in less than three days to level the series.

Iga Swiatek kept her Madrid Open title defence alive, as she avenged her Australian Open defeat to Madison Keys with a 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 win against the American in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.

Son Heung-min will miss the first leg of Tottenham's Europa League semi-final against Bodo/Glimt on Thursday, manager Ange Postecoglou said on Thursday.

The US economy unexpectedly contracted in the first three months of this year, according to fresh data published Wednesday, due largely to a surge in imports ahead of the introduction of sweeping tariffs by President Donald Trump.

India will conduct its first official caste census since independence, the government announced on Wednesday, a move likely to have far-reaching consequences for its politics and contentious affirmative action policies.

Several thousand people rallied in support of Burkina Faso's ruling junta Wednesday, days after the military authorities said they had uncovered a "plot" to overthrow the government.