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

In a football league of big men trying to lose weight, the five-a-side teams feature names like OB City, Big Bananas and Heavy Touch FC.

US President Donald Trump heads for a superpower summit with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping next week hoping the Iran war will not spoil the mood in Beijing.

Russia said Friday it intercepted drones bound for Moscow after warning of a potential retaliatory strike on Kyiv despite a two-day unilateral ceasefire it declared around its World War II victory holiday.

New York's governor on Thursday ordered federal immigration agents operating in her state to not wear masks, a move likely to be challenged by President Donald Trump's administration after courts overturned a similar effort in California.

Arsenal are firmly back in control of the Premier League title race and a win at struggling West Ham on Sunday could all but seal the Gunners' first English title in 22 years.

The grass pitch for the World Cup final was installed Thursday at a stadium near New York, a milestone as anticipation builds for the top football tournament.

Two Australian women "kept a female slave" after travelling to Syria in 2014 to support the Islamic State group, police said Friday after they were charged in Melbourne.

Venezuela's prisons ministry on Thursday acknowledged the death in custody of a political prisoner nearly a year after his passing and after his mother spent months searching for him.

PHILADELPHIA, PA / ACCESS Newswire / May 8, 2026 / TruMerit, a global leader in healthcare workforce development and credential verification, today announced that it has issued its first verifiable digital credentials to healthcare professionals through a new partnership with Credivera, marking a major step forward in secure, portable credential verification for the global healthcare workforce.

American Andrea Lee birdied four of her last five holes to grab a one-stroke lead after Thursday's opening round of the LPGA Mizuho Americas Open.

Matt McCarty birdied five of his first eight holes, three on spectacular putts from beyond 50 feet, and grabbed the lead in Thursday's storm-halted opening round of the PGA Truist Championship.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Thursday called for US authorities to relaunch their investigation into the Israeli military's killing of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was gunned down while reporting for Al Jazeera in the occupied West Bank in 2022.

The US military said it carried out strikes on Iranian military targets Thursday after an attack on three American destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz, while Tehran accused Washington of striking first.

A passion for football binds three generations of the Rueda family in Mexico City, from Pele fan Fernando to Maradona aficionado Jairo and France follower Emilio.

Crystal Palace soared into their first European final on Thursday, completing an emphatic 5-2 aggregate win over Shakhtar Donetsk to give manager Oliver Glasner the chance of a fairytale end to his golden reign.

Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins saluted Unai Emery for masterminding his side's run to the Europa League final after they thrashed Nottingham Forest 4-0 on Thursday.

Performances by AI-generated actors will not be eligible for Golden Globe awards, organizers said Thursday, days after they were also ruled out of Oscars contention.

Lukas Kuebler scored in each half as Freiburg beat Braga 3-1 at home on Thursday to win 4-3 on aggregate and and qualify for the Europa League final where they will face Aston Villa.

Rayo Vallecano are through to the first European final in their history after ending Strasbourg's hopes with a 1-0 win in France in the second leg of their UEFA Conference League last-four tie on Thursday, as a 2-0 aggregate success set up a decider against Crystal Palace later this month.


Aston Villa reached their first European final for 44 years in memorable style with a 4-0 demolition of Nottingham Forest in the Europa League semi-finals on Thursday.

President Donald Trump and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Thursday hailed a positive three-hour meeting in Washington, as the ideological opposites sought to smooth tensions.

Colombian pop idol Shakira on Thursday teased the new official song for the 2026 World Cup, releasing a brief video of the track filmed at Brazil's iconic Maracana Stadium.

Crystal Palace swept past Shakhtar Donetsk 5-2 on aggregate to reach their first-ever European final on Thursday, giving manager Oliver Glasner the chance of a fairytale end to his golden reign.

The price of a roundtrip rail ticket from New York to the nearby stadium that will host the final and seven other matches at football's World Cup is being cut from $150 to $105, following outrage from fans, an official said Thursday.

Global stocks mostly fell Thursday as US indices pulled back from records while Washington awaited Tehran's response to a US plan to end the Middle East war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Aryna Sabalenka breezed into the third round of the Italian Open on Thursday with a straight-sets win over Barbora Krejcikova, 6-2, 6-3.

President Donald Trump on Thursday said the European Union must ratify its trade deal with the United States by July 4 or face "much higher" tariffs, after European officials fell short of agreement on the pact.

A total of 30 passengers left the hantavirus-stricken Hondius during its call at the remote British island of Saint Helena, the cruise ship's Dutch operator said Thursday.

Real Madrid said they would punish midfielders Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni after a clash on Thursday at the club's training ground which left the former needing hospital treatment.

France's parliament on Thursday definitively adopted legislation to simplify the return of artworks looted during the colonial era to their countries of origin.

Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti is set to be handed a four-year contract extension taking him through to the 2030 World Cup, the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) said Thursday.

Abdoulaye Diarra was beaten and burnt alive near his home in the Malian capital, wrongly accused of being a "terrorist" because of his shabby clothes and long hair.