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A heatwave sweeping southwestern Europe was expected to peak on Thursday in Spain, with the scorching temperatures fuelling stubborn wildfires ravaged several countries.

The European Commission is expected next week to ask EU countries to reduce heating and cooling of public buildings and offices to cut demand for gas, according to a document seen by AFP.

Sri Lanka's president submitted his resignation Thursday shortly after reaching Singapore, the parliamentary speaker's office said, days after the head of state fled protests triggered by his country's worst-ever economic crisis.

Germany on Thursday paid tribute to more than 180 people killed in severe floods a year ago, as those left behind charged that help with the reconstruction effort has been too slow to arrive.

Russia has been dropped as a figure skating Grand Prix host and Russian and Belarusian skaters banned, the International Skating Union (ISU) said as it announced the 2022-3 programme on Thursday.

Former finance minister Rishi Sunak came out on top in the latest round of voting Thursday by Conservative MPs to decide Britain's next prime minister, followed by bookmaker favourite Penny Mordaunt.

The race to replace Boris Johnson as Conservative leader and Britain's prime minister is down to five candidates after the second round of voting among Tory MPs on Thursday.

Six-time major winner Phil Mickelson insisted he "couldn't be happier" with his decision to join the Saudi-backed rebel LIV golf tour despite facing a wave of criticism.

Amazon has offered a settlement against EU charges that the online giant undermined rivals by misusing the sensitive information of independent sellers to benefit its own retail business, the EU said Thursday.

Cameron Young of the United States stormed into the lead with an eight-under-par 64 in the first round of the 150th British Open at St Andrews on Thursday, as the championship began amid the fallout from the breakaway LIV series.

Stock markets mostly retreated Thursday as fresh evidence of runaway global inflation ramped up expectations of more aggressive interest rate hikes by central banks.

US President Joe Biden held joint investment talks Thursday with Israel, India and the United Arab Emirates, as Washington seeks to counter the global reach of China.

The UN's trade body on Thursday said African economies were vulnerable to a triple shock as it urged governments to pave the way for tech startups that would ease dependence on commodities.

Russian missiles struck Vinnytsia in central Ukraine Thursday, killing at least 20 people including three children, in what President Volodymyr Zelensky called "an open act of terrorism".

A gallery in Scotland said Thursday it was "thrilled" to announce the discovery of a previously unknown self-portrait of Vincent Van Gogh, with his ear intact, hidden behind another painting.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp on Thursday laughed off past comments about his unwillingness to spend heavily on a single player, defending the club's big-money signing of Darwin Nunez from Benfica.

A Swedish court on Thursday handed a life sentence to former Iranian prison official Hamid Noury for crimes committed during a 1988 purge of dissidents, in the first trial related to the mass executions.

Twitter experienced a widespread but seemingly brief outage in the United States and parts of Europe on Thursday -- fresh turbulence for the firm locked in a buyout battle with Elon Musk.

The US and Israel signed a new security pact on Thursday reinforcing their common front against Iran, as President Joe Biden pledged to use "all" American power to stop the Islamic republic from acquiring nuclear weapons.

Down a trench in Ukraine's Donbas region, Dima admits it took him time to adjust to the sounds of war, to living with fellow soldiers and to the flies everywhere.

Leeds manager Jesse Marsch said he liked the energy of his team as they battled past Brisbane Roar 2-1 Thursday, with Colombia winger Luis Sinisterra making his debut.

The World Health Organization said Thursday it would reconvene its expert monkeypox committee on July 21 to decide whether the outbreak constitutes a global health emergency.

Sri Lanka's president arrived in Singapore Thursday, as protestors who chased him from his residence demanded he keep his promise to step down over his country's worst-ever economic crisis.

German World Cup winning midfielder Mesut Ozil signed for 2020 Turkish champions Basaksehir on Thursday, a day after he left their rivals Fenerbahce.

Ian Poulter said long-standing friendships with other golfers have not been affected by a public war of words over the Englishman's decision to join the Saudi-backed breakaway LIV tour.

Virat Kohli returned to the India side as captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to field in the second one-day international against England at Lord's on Thursday.

A Swedish court on Thursday handed a life sentence to former Iranian prison official Hamid Noury for crimes committed during a 1988 purge of dissidents, in the first trial related to the mass executions.

A baby elephant was dramatically rescued from a manhole in central Thailand after his mother was sedated to allow the operation to proceed, wildlife officials said.

Russian missiles struck Vinnytsia in central Ukraine Thursday, killing at least 17 people including a child, in what President Volodymyr Zelensky called "an open act of terrorism".

JPMorgan Chase reported a drop in second-quarter profits on Thursday, reflecting the impact of a weakening macroeconomic outlook that led it to set aside funds in case of bad loans.

LIV Golf rebel Ian Poulter was booed on the first tee as the 150th British Open got underway on the Old Course in St Andrews on Thursday with Rory McIlroy the bookmakers' favourite for the Claret Jug.

Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira said Thursday that the club's decision to not bring several first-team regulars on a pre-season tour of Singapore and Australia was not ideal preparation for the upcoming Premier League season.