Pallade Veneta - News from Venice, Veneto, Venetia and Italy, as well as from around the world

Every morning and evening -- and for several hours in between -- tens of millions of Indians sit idle on gridlocked highways and hang from the sides of packed passenger trains in what is becoming the world's most populous nation.

The EU unveiled an overhaul of its fiscal rules on Wednesday, a long-awaited reform that has bitterly divided member states over how to encourage investment while strengthening scrutiny of government spending.

A wanted Sudanese war crimes suspect has confirmed that he and other members of the Islamist regime ousted in 2019 have escaped from prison during recent fighting, raising new fears for a fragile ceasefire that has enabled foreigners to flee.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday cancelled his planned appearances due to a stomach bug less than three weeks before Turkey's crunch election.

More than 1,500 items from Freddie Mercury's private collection, including costumes, unique objects and previously unseen handwritten draft lyrics, will be auctioned later this year, Sotheby's announced on Wednesday.

Weeping relatives on Wednesday awaited news of loved ones linked to a suspected starvation cult in Kenya as police resumed the search for victims after unearthing dozens of bodies since last week.

Former world number one Daniil Medvedev will headline the return of elite men's tennis to China after a Covid-enforced break of four years, organisers said on Wednesday.

Yevgeny Roizman, a prominent Kremlin critic and popular former mayor, went on trial on Wednesday over accusations of discrediting the Russian army over the Ukraine offensive.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis met South Korea's prime minister in Seoul on Wednesday to discuss trade and North Korea's nuclear weapons on the second stop of his four-country trip before a possible presidential run.

Opposition politician Yevgeny Roizman, who went on trial on Wednesday, has been one of the last vocal critics of the Kremlin and its offensive in Ukraine to remain in Russia and not behind bars.

Asian stocks were mixed on Wednesday following plunges on Wall Street fuelled by concerns for the banking sector and broader fears of recession.

Three suitcases sit piled on top of one another in 95-year-old Yoro Diao's cramped studio apartment outside Paris.

The United States has moved to block China's access to the most advanced semiconductors and the equipment and talent needed to make them in recent months, citing national security.

A ship carrying 1,687 civilians from more than 50 countries fleeing violence in Sudan docked in Saudi Arabia Wednesday, the foreign ministry said, the largest evacuation effort by the Gulf kingdom so far.

Future All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson on Wednesday announced his backroom staff including current Super Rugby bosses Jason Holland and Leon MacDonald.

Scotland rugby great Greig Laidlaw announced his retirement on Wednesday aged 37, ending a career that saw him captain his country more times than any other player.

Moritz Riedacher sat down at a busy road junction with four other climate activists in southwestern Germany earlier this year, holding up traffic for hours –- an action that landed him a jail sentence. But he remains undeterred.

Bryson DeChambeau took renewed aim at golf's world rankings on Wednesday, describing them as "almost obsolete", after the LIV rebel slumped to a new low of 178.

Pakistan and New Zealand contest a five-match one-day series starting on Thursday in Rawalpindi which serves as crucial build-up to the World Cup.

Trae Young nailed a last-gasp three-pointer as the Atlanta Hawks stunned the Boston Celtics 119-117 to keep their Eastern Conference postseason campaign alive on Tuesday, while Denver and Phoenix booked their places in the next round with series-clinching victories.

Getting hit by a truck doesn't sound like anyone's favourite fantasy, but it's an idea central to an escapist type of Japanese anime exploding in popularity.

China is pushing ahead with the largest-ever expansion of its nuclear arsenal, modernising the atomic deterrent with an eye on any future conflicts with the United States, experts say.

US and Philippine troops fired a salvo of rockets at a warship representing an enemy vessel in the disputed South China Sea on Wednesday, in the final exercise of the allies' largest-ever military drills.

The Indian Premier League has reached its midway stage with Faf du Plessis firing on all cylinders, Rinku Singh achieving a miracle and MS Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings top of the table.

Japan's ispace on Wednesday became the latest company to try, and fail, at a historic bid to put a private lunar lander on the Moon.

Japan's powerhouse anime business risks being overtaken by rising Chinese competition because a tilt towards commercialism has stifled creativity, industry heavyweight Masao Maruyama has warned.

Scotland rugby great Greig Laidlaw announced his retirement on Wednesday aged 37, ending a career that saw him captain his country more times than any other player.

Japanese start-up ispace conceded Wednesday its ambitious attempt to become the first company to land on the Moon had ended in failure, but pledged to move ahead with new missions.

Barcelona are confident of achieving their goal of reaching a third consecutive Champions League final when they host Chelsea on Thursday, boasting a 1-0 advantage from the semi-final first leg.

The same day US President Joe Biden announced his re-election bid, his vice president put forth abortion as a key issue in their 2024 campaign.

The EU will unveil an overhaul of its fiscal rules on Wednesday, a long-awaited reform that has bitterly divided member states over how to encourage investment while strengthening scrutiny of government spending.

Asian stocks were off to a shaky start on Wednesday following plunges on Wall Street fuelled by concerns for the banking sector and broader fears of recession.