The death toll from a strong earthquake that struck southwestern Japan climbed to 13 on Wednesday morning, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said.

More than 250,000 people across the two countries have been forced to evacuate, and the European Commission has said that Europe’s firefighting capacity is struggling to keep pace with what is proving to be an intense wildfire year.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said President Donald Trump had agreed to move ahead with production licenses for Patriot air defense interceptors during a Washington visit that delivered diplomatic wins for Kyiv just after it warned the war was entering a new phase with a large Russian mobilization.

Last year, 20 people were killed in antisemitic attacks outside of Israel, making it the deadliest year for such incidents since 1994.

Former President Barack Obama endorsed Iowa Democrat Josh Turek for US Senate in a basketball court cameo, boosting his bid for an open GOP-held seat.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres ​said on Wednesday ‌he planned to convene a multi-party meeting ​on the division ​of Cyprus to define ⁠the way forward ​on resolving a conflict ​which has lasted more than half a century.

The founder of Telegram was the target of a international warrant issued by Russia which wants him on charges the app was used to organize "terror" attacks.

Zawtar al-Gharbieh is the first village to be handed over to the Lebanese army under a U.S.-brokered "pilot zones" agreement between Lebanon and Israel.