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

A new novel in "The Godfather" literary saga is set for publication in the fall of 2027, the first written by a woman, who will tell the story of the Corleone mafia family from the perspective of its women.

Aldrich Potgieter, a 21-year-old South African making his sixth major start, fired a three-under par 67 on Thursday to seize the early clubhouse lead at the PGA Championship at Aronimink.

New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art will take control of the city's Neue Galerie, which houses the most important collection of 20th-century Austrian and German art outside Europe, in 2028, they said Thursday.

US senators agreed unanimously Thursday to suspend their own pay during government shutdowns, in an effort to force Congress to share the financial pain after a series of funding standoffs that upended the federal government.

Davide Ballerini dodged a mass of crashes on the final corner on slick Naples cobbles to win stage six of the Giro d'Italia on Thursday as overall leader Afonso Eulalio finished safely in the peloton.

The International Monetary Fund warned on Thursday that continuing disruptions due to the Iran war meant its global economic outlook was moving towards an "adverse" scenario, with growth pared down and greater risks to inflation.

Chinese group Weichai on Thursday took control of the world's top yacht maker, Ferretti, after a takeover battle with a Czech shareholder that had appealed to the Italian government.

Japan winger Kaoru Mitoma is a major doubt for the 2026 World Cup after being ruled out of Brighton's final two Premier League games of the season.

Unai Emery has labelled Harvey Elliott's lack of game-time with Aston Villa this season as "embarrassing for everyone".

Britain's Princess Catherine wrapped up a trip to Italy on Thursday with a pasta-making class on her first official overseas visit since her 2024 cancer diagnosis.

Jannik Sinner reached the semi-finals of the Italian Open on Thursday after seeing off Andrey Rublev and establishing a new record of consecutive wins in Masters 1000 tournaments.

Japanese auto giant Honda said Thursday its plans to build a multi-billion-dollar electric vehicle plant in Canada have been "indefinitely suspended," marking another blow to the country's tariff-hit auto sector.

The mayor of Cannes has ordered a drugs crackdown as Hollywood stars and film industry executives flock to party and do deals in the French Riviera resort.

Chelsea interim boss Calum McFarlane has urged his side to salvage their turbulent season by beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final on Saturday.

Lebanon and Israel held new peace talks in Washington on Thursday, as their latest ceasefire -- considered to still be in place despite hundreds of deaths in Israeli strikes -- nears its end.

Spain, one of the few places in the world where a total solar eclipse will be visible in August, has begun preparations for an event it hopes will shift tourism away from the beaches and toward the countryside.

European and US stock markets climbed Thursday as a tech-fuelled rally rolled on even as the United States and China were locked in talks in Beijing, accompanied by key US business leaders hoping for deals.

Russia pummelled Kyiv for hours early on Thursday, firing hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles in an attack that killed at least seven people and further shredded hopes of a halt to Moscow's grinding invasion.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping's unusually "blunt" warning to US President Donald Trump over Taiwan at Thursday's summit in Beijing exposes potentially grave pitfalls in the relationship, although its immediate impact could be limited, analysts say.

Cuba was hit by worsening power outages on Thursday as the island's communist government said oil reserves had run out and rare protests broke out around the capital Havana.

Rory McIlroy began with a bogey on the 10th hole in Thursday's opening round of the 108th PGA Championship at Aronimink, where Germany's Stephan Jaeger seized the lead with four birdies in the first six holes.

Jannik Sinner reached the semi-finals of the Italian Open on Thursday after seeing off Andrey Rublev and establishing a new record of consecutive wins in Masters 1000 tournaments.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged the European Union on Thursday to reform its budget to include more investments and reduce subsidies, but rejected any joint borrowing by EU nations to do so.

Britain's health minister Wes Streeting announced on Thursday that he had resigned, paving the way for him to launch a leadership challenge against embattled Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Latvia's Prime Minister Evika Silina resigned Thursday after a key party in her coalition withdrew support in a row over Ukrainian drones that strayed into the Baltic nation.

European and Asian stock markets diverged on Thursday as investors weighed high-stakes talks between the United States and China and optimism over artificial intelligence.

Afghanistan's water crisis worsened in 2025, the United Nations said in a report, with drought nearly doubling compared to the year before.

Russia pummelled Kyiv for hours early on Thursday with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles in an attack that killed at least five people and further shredded hopes of a halt to Moscow's grinding invasion.

Climate activists are urging movie stars to fly economy or take the train to Cannes after saying private jets burned two millions of litres of kerosene getting them to the film festival last year.

Rory McIlroy was hoping for a morning charge and set for an early test of his right foot issues as the 108th PGA Championship teed off Thursday at Aronimink.

Mikel Arteta wants Arsenal to put relegated Burnley to the sword in emphatic fashion on Monday as they close in on a first Premier League title for 22 years.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's future looked increasingly uncertain on Thursday as potential challengers positioned themselves for a possible leadership contest, including popular former deputy Angela Rayner.