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Thousands of oil contracts -- a far higher volume than normal -- were traded 15 minutes before US President Donald Trump pledged to halt strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure, sending prices tumbling, data showed on Tuesday.

The death toll in one of Colombia's worst air accidents in recent years rose to at least 69, according to an updated tally Tuesday, as the government faulted a "junk" aircraft donated by the United States.

US President Donald Trump has continued his makeover of the White House, adding a statue of Christopher Colombus and laying new black granite paving stones on the famed West Wing colonnade.

Denmark's left-wing bloc, headed by Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, took an early lead in general elections Tuesday but failed to secure a majority, exit polls showed, with the premier's Social Democrats posting their weakest showing in 125 years.

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that talks with Iran to end the Middle East war were under way "right now", even as the Islamic republic and Israel traded fresh strikes.

Toronto unveiled its upgraded World Cup stadium on Tuesday, insisting that temporary seating installed to meet FIFA capacity requirements would be safe for fans.

A first half goal from Dutch striker Lineth Beerensteyn was enough for Wolfsburg to snatch a precious 1-0 win over Lyon in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final in Germany on Tuesday.

Guatemala has cracked down on gangs while safeguarding human rights, its Defense Minister Henry Saenz told AFP in an exclusive interview, rejecting the brutal methods neighboring El Salvador has used to curb rampant criminal activity.

Afghanistan's Taliban government released a US national on Tuesday who had been detained for more than a year, after a letter from his family requesting his freedom.

Denmark's left bloc headed by Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen took an early lead in Tuesday's general election but failed to secure a majority, exit polls showed, with Frederiksen's Social Democrats posting their weakest showing in 125 years.

Mohamed Salah will leave Premier League champions Liverpool at the end of the season, the Egypt forward announced on Tuesday as he started a farewell to what the club said were nine "illustrious" years at Anfield.

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Iran gave him a "very big present" related to the Strait of Hormuz, boosting his confidence that he was talking to the right people in Tehran to end the war.

US officials on Tuesday played down speculation that distracted air traffic controllers might have contributed to a deadly collision between an Air Canada jet and a fire truck at New York's LaGuardia Airport.

President Volodymyr Zelensky slammed Russia's "absolute depravity" Tuesday after Moscow staged massive drone attacks on Ukraine, killing multiple people and hitting the UNESCO heritage site of Lviv.

Mohamed Salah is to leave Liverpool at the end of this season, the Premier League champions announced Tuesday ending an "illustrious" nine years on Merseyside.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado told AFP on Tuesday that her country's formerly all-powerful socialist ideology has been fatally "wounded" by US President Donald Trump.

Israel should "refrain" from sending in forces to take control of a zone in south Lebanon, France's foreign minister told AFP on Tuesday, warning that such a move would have "major humanitarian consequences".

The UN Human Rights Council will hold a rare urgent debate on Wednesday on Iran's strikes on countries across the Gulf region and their impact on civilians.

Russia fired almost 1,000 drones at Ukraine over the last 24-hours, unleashing one of its largest-ever daytime attacks, killing at least eight people and hitting the UNESCO-protected city centre of Lviv, officials said Tuesday.

Iran and Israel traded fresh strikes on Tuesday as the Middle East war ground on, though a diplomatic push to bring Iran and the United States to the negotiating table appeared to be gathering pace.

Belgium's all-time leading goalscorer Romelu Lukaku will miss his country's visit to the United States for two 2026 World Cup warm-up matches, the Belgian football federation (RBFA) announced on Tuesday.

Soaring fuel prices due to the Middle East war and snarled supply chains are already hurting businesses, business survey data published Tuesday showed.

US oil giant ConocoPhillips has been urging President Donald Trump's administration to provide extra protection around assets in Qatar where the company has invested significantly, its chief executive said Tuesday.

Oil prices jumped on Tuesday as traders turned cautious over the prospect of a negotiated agreement between the United States and Iran to end the Middle East war.

CERN scientists on Tuesday pulled off the unprecedented feat of transporting antiprotons by road, successfully test-driving the world's first antimatter delivery system, with an eye to one day supplying research labs across Europe.

Chile's new hard-right President Jose Antonio Kast on Tuesday withdrew Santiago's support for former socialist president Michelle Bachelet as candidate for the post of UN secretary general.

There is a limit on how many times a mammal can be cloned before suffering "mutational meltdown", Japanese scientists have discovered, after making 1,200 clones over two decades that started off with a single mouse.

A 600-year-old grape seed discovered in the toilets of a medieval French hospital is genetically identical to the grapes still being used to make pinot noir wine, scientists said Tuesday.

NASA's chief on Tuesday said the US space agency will invest $20 billion to develop a base on the Moon, while suspending its plans to create the lunar orbital space station known as Gateway.

The National Museum in Prague on Tuesday unveiled a van containing a 3D scanning device that will soon travel to war-ravaged Ukraine to help preserve its cultural artifacts.

Mikaela Shiffrin extended her overall World Cup lead with an imperious display to win the slalom at the World Cup finals in Lillehammer on Tuesday, although Emma Aicher pushed their title fight into the last race of the season.

Antoine Griezmann will leave Atletico Madrid for MLS side Orlando City at the end of the season, the two clubs announced on Tuesday.

The 2030 Winter Olympics in the French Alps, already bedevilled by several senior executives quitting, faces another potential headache with the election of far-right politician Eric Ciotti as mayor of Nice.

Afghanistan's Taliban government announced the release of a US national on Tuesday who had been detained for more than a year, after a letter from his family requesting his freedom.

A New Mexico jury began its first full day of deliberations on Tuesday in a trial where social media giant Meta is accused of endangering children by making them vulnerable to predators.

Lucas Pinheiro Braathen claimed the men's giant slalom World Cup title on Tuesday after the discipline's leader Marco Odermatt crashed out on the first run at the season-ending race in Norway.

The first boat of a flotilla carrying medical supplies, food and solar panels reached Cuba on Tuesday to aid the island as a US fuel blockade deepens its energy crisis.

Survivors who escaped the massive blaze that killed 168 people at a Hong Kong housing estate last year told a public hearing Tuesday they still blame themselves for failing to save their neighbours.

European and US stocks resumed sliding and oil prices jumped on Tuesday as traders turned cautious over the prospect of a negotiated agreement between the United States and Iran to end the Middle East war.