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The Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine is a personal tragedy for Russians living in Ukraine, many of whom now see their homeland as an enemy -- and some are ready to fight.

NATO must not allow Russia's invasion of Ukraine to spill over into an open conflict between the alliance and Moscow, its chief Jens Stoltenberg said Friday, warning a no-fly zone would likely lead to full-scale war.

European stock markets climbed Friday as investors fished for bargains after recent Ukraine-driven losses, with London buoyed also by news of an economic rebound for Britain.

More than 70 percent of South Sudan's population will face extreme hunger this year as conflict and climate-related disasters deepen food scarcity, the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) warned Friday.

The EU said Friday that the talks it is chairing on the revival of the 2015 Iran nuclear accord must be paused, days after fresh demands from Russia complicated negotiations.

A Chinese city of nine million was ordered into lockdown on Friday and Shanghai shut its schools as authorities scrambled to halt a Covid-19 outbreak that has pushed nationwide cases to their highest levels in two years.

Former Olympic medallist Paul Schockemoehle has brought 80 Ukrainian refugees to Germany to help them escape Russia's invasion.

The EU and Britain on Friday opened antitrust probes into a 2018 deal between tech giants Google and Facebook owner Meta allegedly aimed at cementing their dominance over the online advertising market.

North Korea's Kim Jong Un called for the "expansion" of a key satellite station, state media said Friday, as the US threatened fresh sanctions over two recent missile tests it said were "disguised" as a space launch.

Days after learning her Kharkiv home was bombed, Ukrainian athlete Liudmyla Liashenko steeled herself on Friday for a gold medal performance on day seven of Beijing's Winter Paralympics.

Some 2.5 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded two weeks ago, and another two million have been internally displaced by the war, the United Nations said Friday.

Global efforts to cut plastic and agricultural pollution, protect a third of wild spaces, and ultimately live "in harmony with nature" will dominate UN biodiversity negotiations starting Monday, held in person after a two-year pandemic delay.

A new species of giant tortoise has been discovered in the Galapagos after DNA testing found animals living on one island had not yet been recorded, Ecuador's environment ministry said.

At least 750 civilians were killed or executed in Ethiopia's Amhara and Afar regions in the second half of 2021, the country's rights body said in a report published Friday that catalogued widespread abuses, including torture and gang rape.

Russian strikes hit civilian targets in central Ukraine's Dnipro city on Friday, as Moscow's troops edged closer to Kyiv, where officials said the capital was being transformed into a "fortress".

Vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah on Friday said India are still getting used to Test cricket under lights as they take on Sri Lanka in their third pink-ball match at home.

Pakistan slumped to their third straight defeat at the Women's Cricket World Cup against South Africa on Friday, leaving their hopes of making the playoffs under a cloud.

Lawmakers in Argentina on Friday approved a deal with the International Monetary Fund to restructure a ruinous $45 billion debt ahead of a vote in the upper house.

China will find it hard to maintain high growth in an increasingly uncertain world, Premier Li Keqiang warned Friday, after Beijing set its lowest GDP target in decades.

When Sean McDowell lost his sight two years ago, his self-confidence plummeted -- until his life was transformed by rugby.

North Korea has been using satellite subterfuge to test parts of a so-called "monster" missile, analysts say, as it gears up for a sanctions-shattering launch ahead of a key domestic anniversary.

Australia said Friday it is buying extra vaccines to fight the potentially deadly, mosquito-borne Japanese encephalitis virus, which has spread down the flood-hit east coast for the first time.

Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk lashed out Thursday at the tennis world's response to the Russian invasion of her homeland, saying anti-war platitudes weren't enough for a country plunged into turmoil and fear.

Residents trapped inside Ukraine's besieged port city Mariupol pleaded for help on Friday as family members desperately tried to contact them amid a communications blackout.

Asian markets mostly fell Friday as traders resumed their Ukraine-fuelled selling after the previous day's bounce, with data showing US inflation at a 40-year high adding pressure on the Federal Reserve to ramp up interest rates.

Leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson will make his long-awaited Test debut for Australia as the tourists opted for two spinners for the second Test against Pakistan starting on Saturday.

Russian shelling hit civilian targets in central Ukraine's Dnipro city on Friday, as Moscow's troops edged closer to Kyiv, where officials said the capital was being transformed into a "fortress".

China's leading ride-hailing company Didi Global has put plans to list in Hong Kong on hold, a report said Friday, as it struggles to appease Beijing over its handling of user data.

As he is sworn in as Chile's youngest ever president, leftist Gabriel Boric will be breaking new ground in more ways than one on Friday.

Even as Italy's Mario Draghi voices firm opposition to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the country's dependence on Russian gas puts the prime minister in a tight spot.

Leftist former student leader Gabriel Boric will be sworn in Friday as Chile's youngest-ever president, with plans to turn the country that for decades has served as a neoliberal laboratory into a greener, more egalitarian "welfare state."

Nearly three-quarters of Hong Kong's refugees are struggling to put food on the table, according to a survey released Friday, as fears over the city's plans to control its worst-ever coronavirus outbreak spark bouts of panic-buying.