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

Fernanda, a cleaner from Rio de Janeiro, lists off the items she sold to feed her online gambling addiction, one of millions of Brazilians caught in a betting craze that has swept the nation.

Whether it's battling tumors or breaking down plastic, American scientist David Baker, co-recipient of this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry, has an answer: engineering proteins that don't naturally exist -- a concept once dismissed as "crazy."

Hurricane Milton blasted ashore in Florida Wednesday night with furious winds, life-threatening rain and storm surge, as people who endured another hurricane just two weeks ago braced for a long, violent night.

Francisco Lindor belted a grand slam in the sixth inning to propel the New York Mets to a 4-1 victory over Philadelphia on Wednesday and into Major League Baseball's National League Championship Series.

Wild populations of monitored animal species have plummeted over 70 percent in the last half-century, according to the latest edition of a landmark assessment by WWF published on Thursday.

Hundreds of apparent pro-Russian bot accounts on X are pushing US election misinformation and amplifying false narratives about Democratic contender Kamala Harris, a research group said Thursday, calling them "sleeper agents" for having evaded detection for years.

The death toll from a brutal gang attack in Haiti last week has risen to 109 people with around 40 more injured, a local government official said Wednesday.

Hurricane Milton closed in on Florida Wednesday, unleashing tornadoes and threatening a wide swath of the state with life-threatening flooding, as residents made last-minute preparations for impact and the country's top politicians sparred over relief efforts.

Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson drove in runs with hits and Detroit blanked Cleveland 3-0 on Wednesday to reach the brink of advancing in the Major League Baseball playoffs.

Argentine lawmakers on Wednesday upheld President Javier Milei's veto of funding increases for public universities, handing him a key victory in his months-long standoff with teachers and students.

Manchester City made a spectacular return to the Women's Champions League on Wednesday, defeating holders Barcelona 2-0 in the opening round of group stage matches as Bayern Munich downed Arsenal 5-2.

Panathinaikos and Greece international George Baldock was found dead in his swimming pool on Wednesday, Greek news reports said.

The normally pleasant seaside town of Sarasota looked deserted Wednesday, with most of its residents gone or seeking shelter as dangerous Hurricane Milton rumbled toward Florida.

Singer and designer Pharrell Williams is among the co-chairs of New York's next Met Gala, which will wade into race relations in the context of fashion, the museum announced Wednesday.

Wall Street indices powered to fresh records Wednesday despite an impending major hurricane to Florida, while Chinese stocks tumbled on disappointment over a lack of fresh stimulus.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te is set to deliver a key speech on Thursday as part of the self-ruled island's National Day celebrations that is likely to elicit an angry response from China.

Southeast Asian leaders will hold summit talks Thursday with Chinese Premier Li Qiang, with the disputed South China Sea on the agenda after months of escalating clashes between Beijing's vessels and Philippine and Vietnamese fishermen.

England interim boss Lee Carsley has revealed Harry Kane will not be in the starting line-up for Thursday's Nations League clash with Greece as his captain recovers from injury.

Known for its appeal to online renegades, chat platform Discord finds itself in the crosshairs of Turkey and Russia.

A massive ball of plasma and accompanying magnetic field ejected from the Sun is expected to strike Earth on Thursday morning, potentially triggering auroras as far south as Alabama, according to US forecasters.

Mozambique began counting votes on Wednesday at the close of tense presidential and parliamentary elections expected to allow the ruling Frelimo party to extend its 49 years in power.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday announced meetings this week with several European leaders as he pushes for more military aid to repel Russian forces.

Industrialist Ratan Tata, who has died aged 86, was credited with transforming India's Tata Group into a globally renowned conglomerate with a portfolio ranging from software to sports cars.

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers on Wednesday rejected reports that he played a role in the firing of the team's head coach Robert Saleh.

The remnants of Hurricane Kirk swept into western Europe Wednesday, tearing up trees in Portugal and Spain before dumping heavy rains on France that left at least one dead.

Indian industrialist Ratan Tata, who is credited with transforming the Tata Group into a globally renowned conglomerate, has died at age 86, the company said late Wednesday.

United Nations officials warned Wednesday that Lebanon was staring down a "catastrophic" humanitarian crisis as the number of internally displaced people hit 600,000 and Israel presses its offensive against Hezbollah militants.

The United States warned Israel Wednesday against any Gaza-like military action in Lebanon after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened it with "destruction" like that in the Palestinian territory.

Elon Musk's social media platform X, which was banned in Brazil for 40 days in a legal tussle over disinformation, was available again in the country on Wednesday.

She loves raisin bran and exercise, and is as comfortable talking about abortion as she is about beer. Meet Kamala Harris -- or at least a rather different side that emerged in an unconventional US media blitz this week.

A nude by Lucian Freud that took 16 months to paint sold for £13.9 million ($18.2 million) at a London auction on Wednesday, the first time the work, hailed as a "masterpiece," has come to market.

CONCACAF will host the next two editions of the Nations League Finals at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood near Los Angeles, the confederation said on Wednesday.