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

The four Artemis astronauts circling Earth were awaiting the green light from NASA on Thursday to head for the Moon and carry out the first crewed lunar flyby in more than 50 years.

US movie legend John Travolta will present his directorial debut "Propeller One-Way Night Coach", about a young boy's journey in the "golden age of aviation", at the Cannes Film Festival in May, organisers said Thursday.

Besides oil and gas, Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has choked off shipments of crucial goods and raw materials to world markets.

New Tottenham boss Roberto De Zerbi confirmed he will remain at the club next season even if they suffer relegation from the Premier League as he welcomed the biggest challenge of his career.

Four children were stabbed to death on Thursday at a kindergarten in Uganda's capital, Kampala, police said.

Oil surged and stocks fell on Thursday after Donald Trump threatened more heavy strikes on Iran and offered no solution to reopening the key Strait of Hormuz.

Donald Trump told his followers Thursday to boycott Bruce Springsteen in an angry rant against the rock icon who has emerged as a fierce critic of the US president's often harsh immigration crackdown.

Citigroup and Goldman Sachs stepped up security in Paris on Thursday, telling staff they can work from home, after authorities thwarted an attack against another US financial institution that French prosecutors said might have been linked to a pro-Iran group.

Violence by extremist Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, denounced as "Jewish terrorism" by politicians and former Israeli security officials, has surged since the start of the war with Iran, with rights groups alleging that perpetrators operate in near-total impunity.

Shoaib Bashir retains a "massive ambition" to become England's go-to spinner despite being overlooked by selectors during a troubled tour of Australia.

The US trade deficit widened in February but less than analysts expected, government data showed Thursday, a year since President Donald Trump unleashed sweeping tariffs on virtually all trading partners.

UEFA chief Aleksander Ceferin warned that Italy risks not being able to co-host Euro 2032 with Turkey due to the condition of the country's stadiums, which he called "some of the worst in Europe".

Shipping companies from Greece, the UAE and China are most affected by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, according to data from Bloomberg and marine traffic organisations.

Oil surged and stocks fell on Thursday after Donald Trump threatened more heavy strikes on Iran and offered no solution to reopening the key Strait of Hormuz.

The head of Italy's football federation (FIGC) resigned on Thursday, falling on his sword after the men's national team failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup.

Italian Edoardo Molinari will be vice-captain to Europe skipper Luke Donald for a third successive Ryder Cup next year in Ireland, the European Tour announced Thursday.

Dutch authorities on Thursday showed off a recovered priceless gold 2,500-year-old helmet from Romania that was stolen last year during a brazen heist in the Netherlands.

France's parliament on Thursday rejected a law to grant New Caledonia partial statehood, a reform the government hoped would bring stability to the overseas territory.

British Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper stressed Thursday the "urgent need" to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as she convened a meeting of some 40 countries on the vital shipping route.

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday Donald Trump's mocking comments about his marriage did not merit a response, calling them "neither elegant nor up to standard".

Russia will send a second ship carrying oil to Cuba as the island grapples with a US fuel blockade, Energy Minister Sergei Tsivilev said Thursday.

A Belgian bishop is taking on the Vatican with a push to ordain married men as priests -- telling AFP the reform is key to stemming a plunge in vocations across many traditionally Catholic nations.

Oil surged and stocks fell on Thursday after Donald Trump threatened further heavy strikes on Iran, and offered no solution to reopening the key Strait of Hormuz.

The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources.

Indonesia issued a second round of summons letters on Thursday to Google and Meta for allegedly flouting a days-old ban on social media access for under-16s.

Japan abruptly axed Nils Nielsen as coach on Thursday just 12 days after taking them to Women's Asian Cup glory, with football chiefs accusing him of being "lax" and "lacking passion".

French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in South Korea on Thursday after visiting fellow US ally Japan, where he praised Europe's "predictability" in an apparent swipe at Donald Trump over the Iran war.

India's defence exports "skyrocketed" to an all-time high of more than $4 billion in the last fiscal year, as it looks to boost its arms manufacturing sector, the government said Thursday.

Nils Nielsen is leaving as Japan coach less than two weeks after taking them to Women's Asian Cup glory, the football association said Thursday.

Hopes of making downtown Seoul dazzle more than Times Square have hit a setback with new guidelines to dim the digital billboards that light up the South Korean capital after a barrage of complaints.

Iran on Thursday threatened "crushing" attacks on the US and Israel, firing missiles at Tel Aviv after US President Donald Trump vowed to bomb the Islamic republic "back to the Stone Ages".

Women's Asian Cup finalists Japan and Australia renewed calls Thursday for equal prize money with the men's tournament in a direct challenge to the Asian Football Confederation and accused the governing body of "ignoring" previous requests.