Top World News

If Iran war forces pivot from the Mideast to U.S. oil, all consumers will pay -- including Americans

Despite soaring Middle Eastern risk, factors including the tyranny of distance make U.S. and Venezuelan oil unattractive buys for the Asian industrial economies that supply the bulk of the world's manufactured products.

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Philippine troops kill 10 suspected Muslim militants in deadliest clash so far this year

Philippine forces have killed 10 suspected Muslim militants in the deadliest clash so far this year with the remaining rebels waging a considerably weakened separatist insurgency

Nigeria students abducted as gunmen attack passenger bus in Benue state

Gunmen have abducted students on their way to university examinations in Nigeria's Benue state

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Brazil's Lula and Sánchez of Spain headline meetings of progressive leaders in Barcelona

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is starting a two-day visit to Spain where he and his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sánchez will meet with other leaders, mostly of mid-to-small-sized countries, who are concerned with the fate of the democrati...

Weather tracker: hail covers parts of Tunisia and Algeria like snow

Accumulations of up to 3cm deep reported as severe thunderstorms also bring heavy downpours to central ItalySevere thunderstorms have affected the Mediterranean this week. On Monday, a surface low-pressure system in the Mediterranean in conjunction with an upper air cut-off low, led to thunderstorms over north Africa. Their intensity was aided by the hot precursor conditions.Algeria and Tunisia were notably affected by the thunderstorms, with some hail accumulation layers as a result. When so much hail forms, it starts to lay down sheets of hail, covering the ground like snow. Hail accumulations of up to 3cm were reported in Oum Ladjoul and Hammam Sokhna in Algeria, and there were hailstones of up to 3cm in diameter in Makthar, Tunisia. Thunderstorms continued in the region through the following day, with further hail accumulations, notably in Ouled Bousmir, Tunisia, where there was a layer about 2cm deep. Continue reading...