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Oil prices and stock markets stabilised Friday after postponement of Mideast peace deal talks and following big movements for markets this week on hopes of an end to the US-Iran conflict.

The ceasefire declared in Gaza more than eight months ago is a "deadly illusion", the UN charged on Friday, with 265 children killed there since the fighting was supposed to have stopped.

As the hantavirus scare comes to an end with the last cruise ship passengers set to leave quarantine, what did the world learn from this sudden outbreak of a previously little-known virus?

Veteran UK Labour politician Andy Burnham won a crunch by-election on Friday, resoundingly securing a parliamentary seat and clearing the way for his expected bid to oust beleaguered Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

In a Kenyan sports bar, several football fans cheered South Africa's opponents in their latest match at the World Cup -- reflecting a wave of anger at the country's recent xenophobic violence.

Arsenal will kick off their Premier League title defence against promoted Coventry on August 21.

Humanoid robots able to perform tasks from grape harvesting to welcoming visitors were front and centre at France's Vivatech trade fair this week, with European firms looking to fill niches beyond what dominant Chinese giants can offer.

A robot with expressive eyebrows that is designed to perform basic tasks to free up healthcare workers is being given a trial run by a hospital in Milan.

Images of Samurai Blue fans cleaning up World Cup stadiums have garnered them widespread praise, but back in Japan, a post has gone viral complaining men rarely do so at home.

A French appeals court on Friday confirmed that Moroccan football star Achraf Hakimi will face trial for the alleged rape of a woman in 2023, which the Paris Saint-Germain defender denies.

A newly signed deal to end the Middle East war was already under strain on Friday, after talks in Switzerland were postponed and fighting flared between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Assistance from Russia had rendered sanctions imposed on nuclear-armed North Korea "ineffective", South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Friday after discussing the matter with his US counterpart Donald Trump.

Arsenio Butil Jr. fell to his knees and began to pray when last week's deadly 7.8-magnitude earthquake began shaking his home on the coast of the southern Philippines.

Stock markets were mixed on Friday and oil prices rose after Switzerland said planned talks following up on the US-Iran agreement had been postponed, dealing a blow to the week-long rally.

Closer ties between Moscow and Pyongyang have rendered sanctions imposed on North Korea over its nuclear programme "ineffective", South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on Friday.

Indonesia's government is racing to capture the last-known Bornean rhino in the wild in a bid to preserve the species through in-vitro fertilisation, a government official told AFP on Friday.

Ebola is spreading again in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where conflict, mistrust and the lack of a vaccine have made the outbreak hard to contain.

The United States and Australia will look to book their place in the World Cup knockout rounds on Friday while Brazil aim to kickstart their campaign against Haiti.

Switzerland announced Friday that planned talks following up on the deal to end the Middle East war had been postponed, hours after US Vice President JD Vance's departure for the Alpine country was cancelled.

The squawks of macaws, the smell of wet earth after rain and a swirl of colors will transport visitors from a Los Angeles museum to the heart of the Amazon rainforest -- or rather, an AI version of it.

Iran's World Cup team will lodge a complaint with FIFA claiming they are being subjected to travel restrictions during the tournament in North America, the Iranian football federation spokesman said on Thursday.

Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt said Friday "old dog" James Slipper will add vital leadership and experience after the 37-year-old was coaxed out of retirement for the Nations Championship.

A New Zealand minister has defended fishers involved in the deaths of two orcas in commercial fishing incidents and said "these things happen", while conservationists condemned the "devastating" loss.

Mexico became the first team to reach the knockout round of the World Cup on Thursday after a 1-0 victory over South Korea while Canada edged closer to the last 32 after thrashing Qatar.

Tech firms powered Seoul's Kospi index to another record on Friday, while oil prices extended losses after traffic began to resume in the Strait of Hormuz under the US-Iran agreement.

Co-hosts Mexico became the first team to reach the knockout rounds of the World Cup with a 1-0 win over South Korea at a delirious Guadalajara Stadium on Thursday.

Veteran UK Labour politician Andy Burnham emphatically won a crunch by-election on Friday, securing a parliamentary seat and clearing the way for a widely expected leadership challenge against beleaguered Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Top ranked South Africa launch their 2026 season against the Barbarians in Gqeberha on Saturday with a warning from head coach Rassie Erasmus ahead of a 14-match schedule.

Roberto 'Pico' Lopes might have been whiling away his time as a mortgage advisor in Ireland instead of preparing to face Uruguay in the World Cup on Sunday had Shamrock Rovers not come calling.

About 100 guerrillas laid down their weapons Thursday in a jungle area of southern Colombia under a deal with leftist President Gustavo Petro, who has sought peace with armed rebels, AFP journalists witnessed.

Waikato Chiefs captain Tupou Vaa'i said Friday the Super Rugby final against the Wellington Hurricanes on Saturday is "the game that everyone wanted to see".

Merlin meets the journalists early in the afternoon after a busy morning at Mexico's biggest TV station. His agenda is jam-packed, going late into the night so he can join thousands of admirers at the World Cup "Fan Fest" in Mexico City.