France’s newest nuclear reactor automatically shut itself down Wednesday, a day after starting up for the first time. The state-owned operator said there was no need for concern and that shutdowns can happen during such “long and complicated” startup processes. The European Pressurised Reactor, which is the model for France’s new generation of power plants, was completed 12 years late and four times over budget.
Ugandan Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei has died from her injuries after being doused in petrol and set on fire by her boyfriend, the country’s Olympic Committee announced Thursday. Cheptegei sustained burns to 80 percent of her body in the attack that took place in her Kenyan home on Sunday. The Olympian competed in the women's marathon at the Paris Games on August 11, coming in 44th.
Turkey’s application to join the BRICS bloc, led by Russia and China, is sparking concerns over President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's commitment to NATO. The move, by a member of the world’s most powerful military alliance, highlights the geostrategic shifts straining the post-war order at a time of heightened international tensions.
The Democratic Republic of Congo, currently at the epicentre of an mpox outbreak, will on Thursday receive its first 100,000 doses of vaccines against the disease. More than 17,500 cases and 629 deaths have been recorded in the country since the start of the year and the virus is now present in at least 13 African countries. “We are in a health war against mpox,” Congolese Health Minister Samuel-Roger Kamba said.
For the first time since 2003, neither Argentina's Lionel Messi nor Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo feature as nominees for the Ballon d'Or, while Olympic champions Spain and Champions League winners Real Madrid headline the list of players vying for football's most prestigious individual award.
In seizing Kremlin-run websites and charging two Russian state media employees, the White House executed its most sweeping effort to push back against alleged Russian attempts to spread disinformation as the US presidential election approaches a critical stage.
The China-Africa forum on Thursday produced myriad agreements between China and over 50 African nations on areas ranging from industry and agriculture to natural resources and investments, including a pledge from Chinese leader Xi Jinping that the economic powerhouse would allocate $50 billion to the continent over the next three years.
Sinner, looking to capture his second major of the season after the Australian Open, won 6-2, 1-6, 6-1, 6-4 and will take on Britain's 25th-ranked Jack Draper for a place in the final. Sinner, 23, is the only top-10 player to make the semi-finals with number 12 Taylor Fritz due to face US compatriot Frances Tiafoe, ranked 20, in Friday's other last-four duel. Italy's Sinner had defeated Medvedev from two sets down to claim the Australian Open title before the Russian gained revenge in another five-setter at Wimbledon. Читать дальше...
The signing at Istiqlal Mosque was one of the final major set pieces of the 87-year-old's three-day visit to Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation, that is kicking off a gruelling tour around the Asia-Pacific. Religious harmony has been the central theme of the pontiff's trip. Opening the speech at the mosque, the pontiff underlined that "by looking deeply... we discover that we are all brothers, all pilgrims, all on our way to God, beyond what differentiates us. Warning... Читать дальше...
Pegula knocked out world number one and 2022 champion Iga Swiatek in a crushing one-sided quarter-final to reach the last four at a Slam for the first time. Navarro, also into her first semi-final at a major, defeated defending champion Coco Gauff in the fourth round. AFP Sport looks ahead to Thursday's semi-finals at Flushing Meadows (x denotes seeding): Jessica Pegula (USA x6) v Karolina Muchova (CZE) Head-to-head: Pegula leads 1-0 -- After losing six Grand Slam quarter-finals, 30-year-old... Читать дальше...
Sixth-ranked Pegula triumphed over the 2022 champion and four-time French Open winner 6-2, 6-4. Victory ended Pegula's run of losing all six Grand Slam quarter-finals in which she had played and extended her streak to 14 wins in 15 matches on US hard courts this summer. However, she believes the foundation of her charge into the New York semi-finals was laid by the effects of a rib injury which forced her to sit out the European clay court swing, including the French Open. She had already been... Читать дальше...
The 645-square-foot (60 square-meter) property was partially demolished when an enormous pine tree toppled over, crushing the front. No one was hurt in the incident, with the two renters and their dogs walking out the back door of the house in Monrovia, near Los Angeles, in May. But the home was left a wreck. Or a "fixer-upper" in realtor-speak. After the tree and debris were removed, the view from the street resembles a dilapidated doll's house, with just a forlorn-looking wall standing between two entirely open-plan ex-rooms. Читать дальше...
The United States indicted two employees of Russia's RT and imposed sanctions on top editors of the state-funded news outlet on Wednesday, accusing them of seeking to influence the 2024 US presidential election. The 10 individuals and two entities sanctioned by the Treasury Department include RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan and her deputy Elizaveta Brodskaia. Monte Francis reports.
FRANCE24's Sharon Gaffney speaks to Christine McDaniel, senior research fellow at the Mercatus Centre at George Mason University, about the economic policies proposed by the US presidential election candidates. She cautions against taking campaign promises at face value, and says that what candidates say they want to do versus the actual effects of their policy proposals are often not similar.