Satellite images obtained by Reuters show a build-up of Chinese civilian vessels near contested Thitu Island, Manila’s key outpost in the South China Sea, but a senior Philippine navy officer said they are “not a cause for concern”.

Israeli military strikes killed at least 26 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, medics said, as forces stepped up their bombardment of central areas and tanks pushed deeper into the north and south of the enclave.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signed into law Ukraine’s first wartime tax increases as the war against Russia reaches its 34th month.

Iceland’s voters will head to polls on Saturday in a snap election that could potentially steer it towards seeking European Union membership, an issue that has divided the country for years.

Romania’s top court ordered a recount of votes in the first round of the presidential election.

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Thursday she and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump had agreed to maintain a good relationship in a friendly phone call that appeared to ease tensions between the top trading partners amid tariff threats.

The Israeli military said its air force struck a facility used by Hezbollah to store mid-range rockets in southern Lebanon on Thursday, after both sides accused each other of breaching a ceasefire that aims to halt over a year of fighting.

Australia approved a social media ban for children aged under 16 after an emotive debate that has gripped the nation, setting a benchmark for jurisdictions around the world with one of the toughest regulations targeting Big Tech.

Rank-and-file attorneys in the federal government fear major budget cuts when President-elect Donald Trump assumes office and are hunting for private-sector jobs in unusually high numbers, five legal recruiters told Reuters.

Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador said on Wednesday any decision by President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration to cut support for Ukraine would be a “death sentence” for the Ukrainian army, while accusing Kyiv of trying to drag NATO countries into direct conflict with Russia in the meantime.

With the bodies of its fighters still strewn on the battlefield, Hezbollah must bury its dead and provide succour to its supporters who bore the brunt of Israel’s offensive, as the first steps on a long and costly road to recovery, four senior officials said.

The Biden administration is pushing ahead with a $680 million arms sales package to Israel, a U.S. official familiar with the plan said on Wednesday, even as a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in Lebanon between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah has come into effect.