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

Mozambique's internationally acclaimed writer and poet Mia Couto hopes for a "fresh start" for his country, which heads to the polls on Wednesday, but he doubts the young democracy is ready for change.

The German convicted rapist and main suspect in the 2007 disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann was on Tuesday cleared of all charges in an unrelated sex crimes trial.

China said on Tuesday it would impose anti-dumping measures on brandy imported from the European Union, marking the latest salvo in an escalating trade row between Beijing and Brussels.

The German convicted rapist and main suspect in the 2007 disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann was on Tuesday cleared of all charges in an unrelated sex crimes trial.

Israel ramped up its ground offensive against Hezbollah along Lebanon's southern coast on Tuesday, after deploying more troops in the country and urging civilians living near the Mediterranean to evacuate.

Mainland Chinese markets rallied Tuesday but were well off their morning highs, while Hong Kong suffered its worst day in 16 years on disappointment at a lack of detail on Beijing's raft of economic stimulus announced last month.

Bangladesh's interim leader has refused to give a timeframe for elections following the ouster of his autocratic predecessor, saying in an interview published Tuesday that reforms are needed before polls.

England took two wickets just before lunch to restrict Pakistan to 397-6 on the second day of the first Test in Multan on Tuesday.

Mainland Chinese markets rallied Tuesday but were well off their morning highs, while Hong Kong tumbled as traders were left disappointed by a lack of detail on Beijing's raft of economic stimulus announced last month.

Taiwanese tech giant Foxconn said on Tuesday it is building the world's largest production plant for US hardware leader Nvidia's GB200 "superchips" that power artificial intelligence servers.

Kenya's parliament was set to vote on Tuesday on impeaching Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua in a political drama that has exposed a rift in the governing party.

Hurricane Milton barreled towards Florida as a weakened but still major Category 4 storm on Tuesday, threatening the US state with a second ferocious hurricane in as many weeks.

North Korean soldiers are likely fighting in Ukraine alongside Russian troops, with some believed already killed and more expected to be deployed, Seoul's defence minister said Tuesday.

An independent appeals panel was unveiled Tuesday to decide disputes between social media firms and their users in the European Union over content posted on their platforms.

The US Supreme Court hears a challenge on Tuesday to federal regulation of "ghost guns" -- firearms sold in easy-to-assemble kits.

Samoa on Tuesday said it had detected and contained "small leakages" from a New Zealand navy vessel wrecked on a reef while carting almost 1,000 tonnes of diesel.

The Nobel Prize in Literature has honoured predominantly Western writers since it was first awarded in 1901, but the Swedish Academy may shine its spotlight further afield this year, experts say.

The queue outside Istanbul's Our Lady of Vefa church stretched more than 200 metres, made up of Christians and Muslims chatting animatedly as they waited to make a wish inside this Greek Orthodox sanctuary.

Deforestation continued last year at a rate far beyond pledges to end the practice by 2030, according to a major study published Tuesday.

Myanmar will send a representative to a regional summit this week for the first time in three years, a diplomatic source told AFP Tuesday, as the junta struggles to quell a civil war.

Indonesian president-elect Prabowo Subianto has embarked on a whirlwind diplomatic tour ahead of his inauguration this month, showcasing his plans for a bolder foreign policy than under his predecessor.

With carrots and strawberries, zookeepers lure Chompers the porcupine into an animal carrier, hoping to keep the creature -- and all the rest of the inhabitants of Zoo Tampa -- safe from the fury of Hurricane Milton.

Mainland Chinese markets rallied Tuesday but were well off their morning highs, while Hong Kong tumbled as traders were left disappointed by a lack of detail on Beijing's raft of economic stimulus announced last month.

Japan's new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will hold talks this week on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Laos, a top official said Tuesday, meeting China's premier among others according to media reports.

A record number of climbers are gathered in Tibet to complete mountaineering's pinnacle achievement, summiting the world's tallest 14 peaks.

Slated for demolition, the graffiti-covered building close to the inter-Korean border was once a "monkey house", a clinic for sex workers forced to serve US soldiers protecting Seoul from North Korea.

China said on Tuesday it was "fully confident" of hitting its growth target this year but held off announcing more stimulus measures, leaving markets disappointed.

The Kansas City Chiefs shrugged off their injury woes to maintain their unbeaten start to the season with a battling 26-13 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Monday.

Nations remain in deadlock over a crucial pact on climate aid, with divisions over who pays, and how much, threatening chances of a deal being landed at next month's COP29 summit.

The Kansas City Royals jolted the New York Yankees's Major League Baseball playoff hopes with a series-leveling 4-2 win in the Bronx on Monday as the Detroit Tigers bounced back to stun the Cleveland Guardians.

The German convicted rapist and main suspect in the 2007 disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann on Tuesday faces a verdict on five other sex crime charges following a trial.

China's top economic planner said Tuesday that authorities were "fully confident" the country would hit its economic growth targets for the year, after last month announcing a series of stimulus measures that sent stock markets soaring.