World

Russian drone attacks on Ukraine kill three, including mother and child

Feb 9 (Reuters) - Russian ‌overnight drone attacks killed at least ‌three people, including a mother and her ‌10-year-old son in Ukraine's east and south, regional officials and prosecutors said on Monday.

World

Japan election landslide clears path for Takaichi to deliver tax cuts

TOKYO, Feb 9 (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister ‌Sanae Takaichi is set to be pressed on her promised tax cuts and spending plans on Monday after a historic election win was seen heightening the chances of ‌her delivering on stimulus measures that have rattled financial markets.

World

South Korean military helicopter crashes during training, killing two

SEOUL, Feb ‌9 (Reuters) - A South Korean ‌Army AH-1S Cobra attack helicopter ‌crashed on Monday during a training flight in the northern county ‍of Gapyeong, killing ‍both crew members ‌on board, the country's military ‍said.

World

Machado ally is kidnapped in Venezuela hours after prison release, son says

Feb 8 (Reuters) - A prominent Venezuelan opposition politician ‌was kidnapped in Caracas on Sunday night just hours after his release from jail, according to his son ‌and Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, casting uncertainty over government vows to free political ‌prisoners.

World

New Zealand mosque shooter tells court mental health forced him to plead guilty

Feb 9 (Reuters) - A white supremacist ‌who killed 51 Muslim worshippers at two mosques in New Zealand seven years ago said on Monday that he ‌was irrational when he pleaded guilty, local media reported, as he sought to overturn his conviction in ‌a New Zealand court.

World

Thailand's Bhumjaithai prepares for coalition talks after big election win

BANGKOK, Feb 9 (Reuters) - ‌Thailand faced a realignment of conservative politics on Monday after Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul's Bhumjaithai Party won a stronger-than-expected ‌general election victory, with coalition talks expected to start in the coming days.

World

Ghislaine Maxwell won't answer questions during congressional deposition, lawmaker says

Feb ‌8 (Reuters) - Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell intends to ‌refuse to answer questions at a Monday deposition ‌before the House's Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, according to a Sunday letter from U.S. Representative Ro Khanna. 

World

U.S. retains figure skating team gold at Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics

MILAN, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) --The United States successfully defended its title in the figure skating team event at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics on Sunday, with Japan finishing a close second and host Italy taking bronze.

World

Austria's Karl wins men's snowboard parallel giant slalom at Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics

LIVIGNO, Italy, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Austria's Benjamin Karl won the men's snowboard parallel giant slalom at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics on Sunday, while host nation Italy - led by seven-time Olympian Roland Fischnaller - fell short of the podium.

World

Britain, U.S., Italy and Sweden reach mixed doubles curling semis at Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Britain, the United States, Italy and Sweden secured spots in the semifinals of the mixed doubles curling competition at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games on Sunday.

World

Nicaragua scraps visa-free entry to Cubans

MEXICO ‌CITY, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Nicaragua has ended visa‑free ‌entry for Cuban citizens effective Sunday, ending ‌a policy that allowed thousands of Cubans to transit the Central American country in recent years on their journey ‍north to the United States.

World

Germany's Langenhan claims men's singles luge gold at Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Germany's multiple-time world champion Max Langenhan won the men's singles luge gold medal at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games on Sunday, delivering a dominant performance through all four runs.

World

"Send Help" tops North American box office for 2nd consecutive weekend

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Twentieth Century Studios' thriller "Send Help" stayed atop the North American box office chart with an estimated 10 million U.S. dollars this weekend as the Super Bowl took a chunk out of the box office.

World

Cultural fusion marks "Year of the Horse" celebrations in Cairo

CAIRO, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Cairo's Swiss Club hosted celebrations on Sunday for the 2026 Chinese Spring Festival, welcoming the Year of the Horse with food, art and performances that drew nearly 1,000 Egyptians and more than 200 Chinese residents.

World

Annual high-level economic policy conference opens in Saudi Arabia's AlUla

ALULA, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- The second edition of AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies opened here on Sunday, centering on the opportunities and challenges facing emerging market economies amid profound global economic changes.

World

France's Alexis Lebrun defends European Top 16 title

MONTREUX, Switzerland, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- French table tennis player Alexis Lebrun successfully defended the men's singles title at the 2026 CCB Europe Top 16 Cup by beating Slovenia's Darko Jorgic 3-1 for the second straight year here on Sunday.

World

Norway's Eitrem breaks Olympic record in men's 5,000m speed skating win at Milan-Cortina Games (updated)

MILAN, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Norwegian world record holder Sander Eitrem broke the Olympic mark here on Sunday to claim the gold medal of the men's 5,000 meters speed skating event at the Milan-Cortina Games.

World

3 dead after truck crashes into cargo van in SW Romania

BUCHAREST, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Three people, including two children, were killed and one man was injured on Sunday afternoon after a head-on collision between a truck and a cargo van in Caras-Severin County in southwestern Romania, authorities said.

World

France wins biathlon mixed relay gold at Milan-Cortina 2026

ANTERSELVA, Italy, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- France captured gold in the mixed 4x6km relay, the opening event in biathlon at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, while host nation Italy claimed silver and Germany secured bronze on Sunday.

World

Venezuela frees prominent opposition members as prisoner releases continue

Feb 8 (Reuters) - Venezuelan opposition politicians Juan Pablo Guanipa ‌and Freddy Superlano, along with prominent lawyer Perkins Rocha, have been freed from jail, their families and human rights organizations said on Sunday, ‌marking the latest high-profile releases by the government in Caracas.