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Rugby chiefs on Friday announced that a new law designed to improve player safety in the scrum would be trialled during the Six Nations, which starts next month.

Nearly 40 percent of people in Ethiopia's Tigray are suffering "an extreme lack of food" in the face of an extended de-facto blockade of the war-hit region, a UN agency said Friday.

The Nord Stream 2 pipeline, set to double natural gas supplies from Russia to Germany, has become a key bargaining chip for the West in its bid to stop Moscow from invading Ukraine.

A Japanese gunman was arrested after he allegedly took a doctor hostage and shot him, police said Friday, with local media reporting that the victim had died from his wounds after the 11-hour standoff.

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen spoke of her shock and pain on Friday after her niece suggested she would back a rival in this year's presidential election, in what would be a heavy personal and political blow.

A funding crisis battering China's big property developers could start to shake the wider economy and global markets, the IMF warned on Friday, saying deeper reforms were needed to fully curb the threat.

China on Friday revealed a list of visiting dignitaries for next week's Winter Olympics that includes the leaders of Russia, Saudi Arabia and Egypt for an event that is being diplomatically shunned by some Western nations.

Relations have rarely been good between Albania and Serbia. But for Serbian footballers playing in the land of their erstwhile foes, the sport transcends the long standing differences between the rivals.

In her flat on the outskirts of Madrid, Pamela Ponce no longer turns on the heating despite the biting chill coming in through the windows.

Matteo Berrettini said he will learn from the experience of playing Grand Slam great Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals at the Australian Open Friday and become a better player.

Japanese investment giant SoftBank Group said Friday its chief operating officer Marcelo Claure is leaving the company, following reports that his demands for as much as $1 billion in compensation had fuelled an internal clash.

Six rockets were fired Friday at the Iraqi capital's airport, causing damage but no casualties, security sources said, the latest in a string of attacks the US blames on Iran-linked militias.

Google will invest up to $1 billion in India's second-largest mobile operator, Airtel, the companies said Friday, as the Android-maker looks to bolster its presence in the vast nation's booming telecoms market.

"No pain, no gain" is a mantra often heard anywhere elite athletes train. Danielle Collins has had more than her fair share of pain on the long road to a first Grand Slam final.

Multi-talented Ashleigh Barty has been a professiona cricketer, won a golf tournament and collected two tennis Grand Slam titles, with a third beckoning at the Australian Open on Saturday.

Danielle Collins faces a daunting task in the Australian Open final on Saturday against a world number one who is aiming to become the first homegrown women's champion in 44 years, backed by a fiercely partisan crowd.

Rafael Nadal marched into the final of the Australian Open to be just one match away from becoming the all-time men's Grand Slam leader after overcoming Matteo Berrettini in their semi-final on Friday.

Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan said Friday they had agreed a ceasefire after shootouts at their contested border left two Tajik citizens dead.

Toyota retained its crown as the world's top-selling automaker on Friday, having overcome a chip shortage and supply chain woes to beat Volkswagen for a second straight year.

The Philippines will re-open to fully vaccinated tourists from most countries on February 10 and lift quarantine requirements, officials said Friday, nearly two years after closing its borders to contain the coronavirus.

The threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine has reignited debate in Finland and Sweden over whether they should join NATO to fend off any possible eastern aggression.

A judge on Thursday canceled the sale of oil and gas exploration leases of some 80 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico, after environmental groups sued the Biden administration citing major concerns.

Tajikistan said Friday that two of its citizens were killed and 10 injured during overnight clashes at its contested border with Kyrgyzstan, where a ceasefire is now in place.

Hong Kong's U-turn on its mandatory three-week quarantine for arrivals follows growing scrutiny of the strict policy after a coronavirus outbreak was traced to a woman infected during her hotel stay.

Samuel Eto'o left for Europe to become one of the greatest African footballers of all time but it was in the city of Douala that he first made his name and where residents continue to idolise the former Barcelona superstar.

China Unicom said Friday there were no "justifiable grounds" for a US order that banned the company from operating in the country on national security concerns.

Days after buying over-the-counter medicine from a pharmacy in Beijing, university student Yu was stunned to find her prized green health code -- the essential rating needed to enter the city's shops, offices and public transport -- was gone.

France captain Antoine Dupont is expected to play his first game in seven weeks on Saturday as champions Toulouse welcome Racing 92 in the French Top 14 after the scrum-half suffered a knee issue and contracted coronavirus.

Chinese authorities locked down an area neighbouring the capital city of Beijing this week following a handful of reported Covid cases, but made no public announcements about the fresh restrictions with just a week until the Winter Olympics.

Kyrgyzstan said it had reached a ceasefire with Central Asian neighbour Tajikistan on Friday following the latest lethal flare up at the pair's contested border.

In the bone-splitting chill of the Afghan mountains, Mohammad Israr Muradi digs through coarse earth spilling from the open mouth of an emerald mine.

France's Kristina Mladenovic and Croatia's Ivan Dodig were crowned Australian Open mixed doubles champions Friday with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Australian pair Jaimee Fourlis and Jason Kubler.