World

Russian forces have taken complete control of the Ukrainian city of Avdiivka after months of intense fighting, the defence ministry has said. President Vladimir Putin congratulated troops on the development, labelling it a “success” and “important victory” just days away from the second anniversary of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Sergei Shoigu, the Russian defence

Japan’s new H3 flagship rocket has reached orbit following a successful launch – in a key test almost a year after its debut flight failed. H3 lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Centre in the southwest of the country on Saturday morning, after a two-day delay due to bad weather. The rocket reached orbit at

Police in Russia have cracked down on people gathered to mark the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny – with one human rights group claiming that at least 100 people have been arrested. Footage and pictures from Russia’s two largest cities – Moscow and St Petersburg – showed officers ripping away placards from protesters and

The head of Ukraine’s army has announced his forces are retreating from the frontline city of Avdiivka. Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine’s newly appointed commander-in-chief, says military bosses have taken the decision to “avoid encirclement” and “preserve the lives and health of servicemen”. “Based on the operational situation around Avdiivka, in order to avoid encirclement and preserve

US President Joe Biden has said he is “contemplating” steps to punish Moscow after he blamed Vladimir Putin and his “thugs” for the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Mr Biden said he was “outraged” but “not surprised” by the death of the prominent Putin critic as he joined other world leaders in saying

The Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny – a vocal critic of President Vladimir Putin – has died, according to the prison service. This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet

Greece has legalised same-sex marriage – becoming the first Orthodox Christian-majority country to do so. The landmark bill, drafted by prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ centre-right government, passed on Thursday night with a cross-party majority of 176–76 votes. It also allows same-sex couples to legally adopt children, but will not allow gay men to acquire biological

Russia is secretly developing a new kind of satellite-killing space weapon, according to US intelligence watchdogs in Washington. The Biden administration is gathering highly sensitive information about the new capability, which is not yet operational but could potentially be a game changer in the war in Ukraine. Russia has denied the claims but the chair

The exchange of fire over Israel’s northern border with Lebanon is some of the most serious yet – but the situation remains fundamentally the same.  Hezbollah’s Iranian patrons do not want the militia to escalate the conflict to an all-out war. And its commanders want to avoid one too. Israel may be weighing a bigger

Vladimir Putin’s ambassador to the UK says the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, which Russian forces razed to the ground, is now “beautiful” and “rebuilt”. In a wide-ranging interview with Sky News’ Yalda Hakim, Andrei Kelin also said Moscow has “no interest in Poland, Latvia, Estonia or any other countries” after NATO warned of future Russian

Global defence spending on everything from ammunition to nuclear weapons has jumped 9% to a record $2.2trn (£1.7trn) from a year earlier and will rise again in 2024 as the world enters “a more dangerous period”, new analysis has found. Russia – locked in a war with Ukraine – allocates more than 30% of annual

More than a million Palestinians sheltering around the southern city of Rafah are braced for an offensive by the Israeli army, with nowhere left to flee inside Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s says his office has ordered the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) to develop a plan to evacuate the city and destroy four Hamas battalions

World marathon record holder and London Marathon winner Kelvin Kiptum and his coach have died in a road accident, Kenya’s former prime minister has said. The 24-year-old won the London Marathon last year. Kenya’s former prime minister Raila Odinga said on X: “Devastating news as we mourn the loss of a remarkable individual, Kelvin Kiptum,

Madagascar is set to castrate child rapists after its parliament passed a controversial law last week. The Indian Ocean island’s senate approved the law which will allow for chemical, and in certain cases, surgical castration of those found guilty of raping a minor. It must now be ratified and then signed into law by President

The chief executive of one of Nigeria’s largest banks is believed to have been killed along with his wife and son when a helicopter they were riding in crashed in Southern California’s Mojave Desert. Herbert Wigwe, chief executive of Access Bank, and his family were among six people on board when the charter flight went

Israel has been warned of repercussions if its military launches a ground invasion in Gaza’s southern city of Rafah, while Israel has suggested civilians could evacuate and find refuge in tent camps which are not yet built. The warning came after Israeli air strikes killed at least 44 Palestinians, including more than a dozen children,

Pakistan is in political limbo after an election result that few in the establishment predicted. Independent candidates backed by Imran Khan‘s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI) have delivered a major upset. Many seemed to underestimate the level of discontent and desire for change in a country that’s experienced years of turbulence. The army generals who have

Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi has been named as the new chief of Ukraine’s army.  The 58-year-old was promoted by Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he removed General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi from the post after months of friction between the pair. Mr Syrskyi has played a key role in some of Ukraine’s biggest victories – but has also faced

Vladimir Putin has said Bill Clinton misled him over Russia’s potential membership of NATO two decades ago. During a lengthy interview with the former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, the Russian president said he asked the outgoing President Clinton if his country could join the alliance when he visited the Kremlin in 2000. He claims

Alexei Navalny has become the latest in a string of deaths of critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Over his more than two decades at the top of the Kremlin, a number of Mr Putin’s opponents have suffered unfortunate fates – including being jailed, shot dead in the street, or poisoned with tea spiked with