China probes for key target weak spots with 'paralysing' Taiwan drills

Armed with only a phone and selfie stick, blogger Igor Grishin has set himself the task of fighting corruption in his hometown beyond Moscow, following in the steps of imprisoned Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.
Asian markets rose in limited trade Tuesday following another strong lead from Wall Street fuelled by a rebound in tech firms, while comments from Federal Reserve officials eased concerns that it will embark on an aggressive phase of policy tightening.
Washington's and Moscow's top diplomats will hold fresh talks Tuesday on the Ukraine crisis as Western officials say Russia continues to build a massive military force on the ex-Soviet state's border.
Global energy giants were quick to halt their Mozambican gas projects when jihadist violence erupted on their doorsteps. After months of calm, reviving those multi-billion-dollar projects is a much slower job.
Japan's parliament on Tuesday passed a rare resolution expressing concern about rights issues in China, including the treatment of its Uyghur Muslim population and Hong Kong, days before the Beijing Olympics open.
Streets emptied and shops shuttered across Myanmar on Tuesday as people defied junta orders to go about their business with a silent strike on the first anniversary of the military coup.
Australia's central bank moved to end multi-billion-dollar pandemic stimulus Tuesday, but kept interest rates at a record low despite rising inflation.
Before she became one of the world's top skiers, Petra Vlhova was a little girl with a speech impediment and a love for riding motorbikes growing up in the shadow of the Tatra mountains in Slovakia.
Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris combined for 64 points as the Philadelphia 76ers won their fifth straight game with a 122-119 overtime victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in a clash between two of the hottest teams in the NBA on Monday.
Ethiopian Airlines is set Tuesday to operate the Boeing 737 MAX for the first time since a crash nearly three years ago killed all 157 people on board and triggered the global grounding of the aircraft.
Edward Gray sweet factory in central England evokes a bygone age where brass cauldrons steam with molten sugar and workers wrestle with huge chunks of gooey treacle, but its handmade produce now enjoys a global demand.
At the age of four, Arif Mohammad Khan put on skis for the first time, just a few kilometres from the Line of Control that divides the disputed, conflict-ridden region of Kashmir.
Tom Brady says he will "know when the time is right" but for now he taking his future "day-by-day" and hasn't made up his mind about retiring from the National Football League.
Asian markets rose in limited trade Tuesday following another strong lead from Wall Street fuelled by a rebound in tech firms, while comments from Federal Reserve officials eased concerns that it will embark on an aggressive phase of policy tightening.
Cricket Australia has denied reports national coach Justin Langer threw a tantrum at a "fiery" meeting after being told he may need to reapply for his job.
The music is often hushed and the atmosphere studious -- for the patrons filling Beirut's cafes these days, the most important things are good lighting and stable wi-fi.
The United States told the families of its government employees in Belarus to leave the country, the State Department said Monday, as fears grow of a Russian invasion of neighboring Ukraine.
The UN aviation agency on Monday extended its investigation into a bomb warning aboard a Ryanair flight last May, citing gaps and inconsistencies in Belarus's account of its rerouting of the aircraft.
Russian President Vladimir Putin will host talks Tuesday with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has taken a softer line on the Ukraine crisis than NATO and the EU, with Hungary a member of both.
British singer-songwriter Frank Turner has had a long and hugely successful career as a punk-folk star.
It was a highly original way to drop a new track: live in the studio on France's evening news, Belgian star Stromae answered a question by launching into "L'enfer" ("Hell").
Fear reigns in northeastern Colombia on the border with Venezuela where the local population has been caught in the crossfire of rival warring groups of left-wing guerrillas.
Denmark on Tuesday becomes the first European Union country to lift all of its Covid restrictions despite record numbers of cases, relying on its high vaccination rate to cope with the milder Omicron variant.
A US judge on Monday rejected plea deals from two white men convicted of murdering a Black jogger in Georgia after relatives of the victim vehemently objected to the agreements.
A single flash of lightning in the United States nearly two years ago cut across the sky for nearly 770 kilometres, setting a new world record, the United Nations said Tuesday.
Dele Alli and Donny van de Beek joined Everton's bid to beat Premier League relegation on transfer deadline day after Frank Lampard was unveiled as the club's new manager.
Christian Eriksen made a remarkable return to football on Monday by signing for Brentford, while Everton brought in Dele Alli and Donny van de Beek on the day they announced Frank Lampard as the club's new manager.
The New York Times announced Monday it had bought Wordle, a phenomenon played by millions just four months after the game burst onto the Internet, for an "undisclosed price in the low seven figures."
The Facebook-backed digital currency project Diem announced Monday the winding down and $182-million sale of its technology, capping a years-long initiative that drew significant concern from regulators.
Barcelona were reportedly closing in on the signing of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on Monday night, after Arsenal agreed to let their former captain leave for free.
Paris Saint-Germain were eliminated from the French Cup on Monday as Marcin Bulka, a goalkeeper they loaned to Nice, saved twice in a penalty shootout to put his new team into the last eight.
Colombia took umbrage Monday at being included in a report by UN agencies on 20 "hunger hotspots," demanding to be removed from the list of countries considered at risk of "acute food insecurity."
Criminal trials will resume this week for 46 opponents of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega's government, including seven presidential hopefuls precluded from contesting November elections, the prosecutor's office said Monday.
Rangers bolstered their bid to retain the Scottish Premiership with the loan signing of Aaron Ramsey on Monday from Juventus on loan until the end of the season.
Wall Street stocks finished a bruising month on a positive note Monday, rallying ahead of a heavy week of economic news and corporate earnings.
PlayStation maker Sony announced a $3.6 billion agreement on Monday to buy US video game studio Bungie, creator of hits like "Halo" and "Destiny", as a gaming industry battle heats up with Microsoft.
Researchers estimate there are significantly more species of trees on Earth than currently known, with more than 9,000 species yet to be discovered, according to a study published Monday.
Boeing launched a new freighter jet Monday while announcing a pair of major agreements with Qatar Airways, in a boost to the still-struggling US aviation giant.
Trade relations between Washington and Beijing are at a "difficult" stage but President Biden's administration is committed to protecting the US economy from negative impacts of China's policies, the top American trade official said Monday.