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

Israel bombed Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon on Thursday, piling pressure on the militant group after two waves of explosions targeted its communications systems, killing 37 people.

The Bank of England on Thursday kept its key interest rate at 5.0 percent, deciding against consecutive cuts one day after a bumper reduction from the US Federal Reserve.

Carlos Alcaraz has admitted to being starstruck when he first faced Rafael Nadal, saying that facing the 22-time Grand Slam champion was "kind of a nightmare".

Portugal's firefighters have mastered most of the deadly forest fires in the north of the country, according to official data Thursday.

A counter-attacking century from Ravichandran Ashwin pulled India to 339-6 on day one of the first Test after Bangladesh fast bowler Hasan Mahmud rattled the hosts with four wickets on Thursday.

Outgoing NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg will caution the United States and Europe against "isolationism" in his parting speech on Thursday, as Donald Trump vies to return to the White House.

The coming winter will prove the "sternest test yet" for Ukraine's energy grid, the International Energy Agency said on Thursday, as the EU announced additional aid to help the country weather Russia's attacks on its power infrastructure.

Italian authorities have evacuated some 1,000 people from homes as the tail end of Storm Boris pummelled a northeastern region that was devastated by deadly flooding last year, regional authorities said on Thursday.

Israel said Thursday it bombed Hezbollah sites in Lebanon, piling pressure on the militant group already reeling after a series of deadly explosions targeting its communications systems that it blamed on Israel.

Same-sex Taiwanese-Chinese couples are now legally able to register their marriages in Taiwan, Taipei said Thursday, recognising cross-strait unions for the first time.

Asian and European stocks markets rallied and the dollar showed some weakness Thursday after the Federal Reserve announced a bumper interest-rate cut and pledged further reductions as inflation cools.

Gabon's ex-president Ali Bongo Ondimba, who was overthrown in a coup last year, has said he is withdrawing from political life and asked for clemency for his imprisoned wife and son who he said face "violence" and "torture".

Hundreds of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah exploded across Lebanon in unprecedented attacks this week, killing 32 people and wounding more than 3,000 others.

Bangladesh fast bowler Hasan Mahmud rattled India with four wickets to leave the hosts on 176-6 at tea on the first day of the first Test at Chennai on Thursday.

Asian markets rallied Thursday after the Federal Reserve announced a bumper interest rate cut and pledged a series of further reductions that boosted sentiment.

Multiple women have accused Egyptian billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed, the former owner of upmarket London department store Harrods where they worked, of rape and sexual assault, the BBC said on Thursday.

A Hong Kong man was sentenced to 14 months in jail on Thursday for wearing a T-shirt with protest slogans found to be "seditious" under the city's new national security law.

Hezbollah was in disarray on Thursday after a second wave of deadly explosions swept through its strongholds across Lebanon, putting pressure on its leader to exact revenge for the operation it blames on Israel.

Asian markets rallied Thursday and the yen hit a two-week high after the Federal Reserve announced a bumper interest rate cut and pledged a series of further reductions that boosted sentiment.

A group of companies including Meta and Spotify blasted the European Union Thursday for its "fragmented and inconsistent" decision-making on data privacy and artificial intelligence (AI).

Bangladesh fast bowler Hasan Mahmud took three early wickets including star batsman Virat Kohli in Chennai to jolt India's top-order in the opening Test on Thursday.

Security forces in New Caledonia killed two men during an overnight operation, the public prosecutor said Thursday, taking the death toll to 13 after months of unrest in the French Pacific territory.

The leaders of four countries hit by Storm Boris will meet Thursday in Poland with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to discuss aid for the flood-hit region.

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka will vote for its next president Saturday in an effective referendum on an unpopular International Monetary Fund austerity plan enacted after the island nation's unprecedented financial crisis.

The engine defect in the Airbus A350 plane that led to the cancellation of dozens of Cathay Pacific flights in early September could have escalated into "extensive damage", according to a Hong Kong probe released Thursday.

The development of artificial intelligence should not be guided by market forces alone, UN experts cautioned on Thursday, calling for the creation of tools for global cooperation.

All Blacks coach Scott Robertson is expecting "a hell" of a Bledisloe Cup Test against Australia on Saturday, predicting a tight game despite the Wallabies being mercilessly exposed by Argentina.

Japanese firm Icom said Thursday that it had stopped producing the model of radios reportedly used in recent blasts in Lebanon around 10 years ago.

Feel drained after a long video call? Your tiredness could be partly linked to the background on your screen, according to a study published on Thursday which suggested trying an image depicting nature.

Boeing said Wednesday it would start furloughs of professional and white-collar staff as it seeks to conserve cash amid a labor strike that shuttered Seattle manufacturing plants -- while talks with a union stalled.

Japanese firm Icom said Thursday that it was investigating after media reported that two-way radio devices bearing its logo exploded in Lebanon.

James Slipper is poised to become the most capped Wallaby ever after being named on the bench Thursday for Australia's crunch Bledisloe Cup clash against the All Blacks.