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

Wall Street stocks slid on Wednesday as the US government started to shut down after Democrats and President Donald Trump failed to break a deadlock over spending.

The United States entered a government shutdown Wednesday with President Donald Trump and Democrats in an acrimonious stand-off and banking on the other side to blink first in what could be a prolonged crisis.

Germany's famed Oktoberfest was briefly shut Wednesday after threats against it by a man who appeared to have torched his parents' home with family inside, and was later found with an explosives-laden backpack.

Iga Swiatek's tennis collapsed in the final set as Emma Navarro stunned the top seed and 2023 China Open champion 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 in Beijing on Wednesday.

A flotilla carrying aid to war-battered Gaza said Wednesday it would stay its course despite what it called "intimidation tactics" by the Israeli military.

Facebook owner Meta on Wednesday defended its advertising model in a 550-million-euro trial in Spain over alleged breaches of EU data protection rules brought by more than 80 Spanish media organisations.

Rescuers pulled two survivors from a collapsed school in Indonesia on Wednesday as frantic parents demanded searchers speed up efforts to find dozens of children believed still trapped in the rubble two days on.

Mobile networks returned to several provinces across Afghanistan on Wednesday, including the capital Kabul, 48 hours after the Taliban authorities shut down telecommunications.

Danish premier Mette Frederiksen on Wednesday urged Europe to step up its response to Russia's "hybrid war", as she hosted EU leaders for defence talks held under tight security following mystery drone flights.

Britain's Labour government plans to permanently ban fracking, a highly controversial method of extracting fossil fuels, due its environmental impact, Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said Wednesday.

The situation at the Russia-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine is "under control", the Moscow-installed operator said Wednesday, a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned it was "critical" following a week-long power cut.

An independent appeals body tasked with resolving disputes between social media platforms and EU users on Wednesday criticised a lack of cooperation from digital platforms, especially YouTube.

The EU will propose cutting steel import quotas and significantly increasing tariffs on the metal from abroad, the bloc's industry chief Stephane Sejourne told the sector on Wednesday, mirroring US moves.

Liverpool started the season with seven straight wins as they threatened to sweep all before them but consecutive defeats underscore pressing issues that Arne Slot must address.

European stocks and gold prices rose, while Wall Street futures fell on Wednesday as the US government shut down after lawmakers failed to reach a funding deal.

Survivors and relatives of victims of the 2005 Bali bombings gathered on the popular tourist island Wednesday to mark 20 years since the attack, saying the trauma of that night still haunts them.

Thousands of Greek workers prompted large-scale disruption during a 24-hour general strike on Wednesday, protesting against the conservative government's plans to introduce a 13-hour work day.

Hundreds of Indigenous people in Colombia -- holding spears, blowguns and banners saying "Don't kill us" -- protested against bloody clashes between guerrilla factions on the Venezuelan border that have displaced their communities.

A severe rainstorm battered the Ukrainian city of Odesa overnight, causing floods that killed at least nine people including a child in the southern port city, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday.

An unbeaten maiden century by New Zealand's Tim Robinson wasn't enough to deny Australia a comfortable six-wicket win in the opening Twenty20 at Bay Oval on Wednesday.

French tennis player Gael Monfils, one of the most entertaining and popular players on the ATP tour, announced on Wednesday that he will retire at the end of next year.

Jannik Sinner won the 21st title of his career by thrashing American teenager Learner Tien 6-2, 6-2 in the China Open final on Wednesday.

Rescuers pulled a survivor from the ruins of a collapsed school in Indonesia on Wednesday, as desperate parents demanded searchers speed up efforts to find dozens more still believed trapped in the rubble.

Carlos Alcaraz added his voice to the criticism and pulled out of the Shanghai Masters with "physical issues" as the packed schedule for elite tennis players came under renewed scrutiny this week.

New guidelines agreed to by World Rugby that will limit players to 30 full games a season to protect their health were hailed Wednesday as a "landmark moment" for the sport.

The ocean hidden under the icy shell of Saturn's moon Enceladus harbours complex organic molecules, a study said Wednesday, offering further evidence that the small world could have all the right ingredients to host extraterrestrial life.

Germany's Oktoberfest was temporarily closed by a bomb threat Wednesday, organisers said, as police investigated a house in Munich that had been rigged with explosives then set alight, leaving one man dead.

A Spanish court opened a trial on Wednesday over a 550-million-euro lawsuit brought by more than 80 Spanish media organisations against Facebook owner Meta for allegedly breaching European Union data protection rules.

After a well-received menswear collection for Dior in June, star Northern Irish designer Jonathan Anderson is set to unveil his first women's ready-to-wear collection on Wednesday during Paris Fashion Week.

Gold hit a record high and Wall Street futures fell with the dollar Wednesday as the US government shut down after lawmakers failed to reach a funding deal, though most Asian and European markets edged up.

Jannik Sinner won the 21st title of his career by thrashing American teenager Learner Tien 6-2, 6-2 in the China Open final on Wednesday.

The death toll from a powerful earthquake in the central Philippines rose to at least 69 on Wednesday, a disaster official said, with scores of injured patients overwhelming hospitals on the island of Cebu.