AFP

A perceived lack of transparency over the US investigations into notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has carved a rare chasm between President Donald Trump and his typically loyal Republican base.

Filming has begun on a Harry Potter TV series that will debut in 2027, bringing the Hollywood hit to the small screen for the first time.

The Pentagon announced contracts on Monday with multiple leading US artificial intelligence firms including Elon Musk's xAI, which has faced intense scrutiny in recent days over anti-Semitic posts by its Grok chatbot.

EU foreign ministers on Tuesday will discuss a raft of options for action against Israel over the war in Gaza -- but likely will not agree on any.

A drone strike forced a US company to suspend operations at an oil field in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region Tuesday, amid a wave of similar attacks targeting the region's energy infrastructure.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told Russia's top diplomat on Tuesday that their countries should "strengthen mutual support", state media said, as foreign ministers gathered in Beijing for Shanghai Cooperation Organisation talks.

Fuel control switches to the engines of an Air India flight that crashed shortly after takeoff, killing 260 people, were moved from the "run" to the "cutoff" position moments before impact, a preliminary investigation report said early Saturday.

Pakistan will not travel to India for upcoming hockey tournaments over "security" concerns, government sources told AFP on Saturday, potentially jeopardising their place in next year's World Cup.