The number of people killed by a typhoon that battered the Philippines over the Christmas period has risen to 28, say officials. Typhoon Phanfone, which made landfall on Tuesday, caused severe floods and destroyed homes in several provinces. According to the National Disaster Risk

A plane with 100 people on board has crashed in Kazakhstan, killing at least nine people, officials say. They say the Bek Air aircraft went down shortly after taking off at Almaty airport on Friday morning local time. A Reuters reporter close to the scene said there was heavy fog in

Japan has hanged a Chinese man for the high-profile and brutal murder of a family of four, the first execution of a foreigner in 10 years. The man, Wei Wei, carried out the murders in 2003 with two accomplices. They fled to China, where one was executed in 2005 and the other

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is being challenged for the leadership of his party in what is seen as a test of his hold on power. He is facing long-term rival Gideon Saar in internal Likud party elections. Although Mr Netanyahu is expected to win, it comes at a time of

A typhoon that swept across remote villages and popular tourist areas of the central Philippines on Christmas Day claimed at least 16 lives, authorities have said. Typhoon Phanfone, with winds of 195km (120 miles) an hour, tore roofs off houses and toppled electric posts as it cut

Annular solar eclipse: Crowds in Asia gather to see 'ring of fire'People across Asia are witnessing an annular solar eclipse, which is also known as a "ring of fire". Crowds have gathered to watch the natural phenomenon in a number of countries, including Sri Lanka, Indonesia,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today condemned the destruction of public property during violent agitations against the Citizenship Amendment Act over the last few weeks, asking protesters to introspect if their actions have been "good or not". "I want to ask people who resorted to

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was discharged from a hospital Tuesday after recovering from a fall at the presidential palace that affected his memory. Bolsonaro, 64, had a quiet night and left the Armed Forces Hospital in Brasilia following about ten hours under observation,

Suspected militants have killed 35 civilians, 31 of them women, in an attack on a military base and a town in Burkina Faso, officials say. They say seven soldiers and 80 militants were also killed as the army repelled Tuesday's attack in Arbinda, northern Soum province.

Pope Francis has ushered in Christmas by saying God loves everyone - "even the worst of us". He was speaking to thousands of people during Christmas Eve Mass in St Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. "You may have mistaken ideas, you may have made a complete mess of things... but

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck a spot off the coast of British Columbia Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said. At 8:36 p.m., the earthquake hit a spot 182 kilometers (113 miles) west of Port Hardy, a town of about 4,100 people, the agency said. It had a depth of 10 kilometers

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah were making contradictory statements on the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and wondered who was speaking the truth. Ms. Banerjee, while leading a protest march

Police in New Zealand are calling off the search for two bodies still missing after the White Island volcano. The eruption on White Island earlier this month killed 19 people, including two people who were never found. It's thought the bodies of Winona Jane Langford, 17, and

Republican and Democratic leaders in the US Senate have clashed over rules of President Trump's impeachment trial. Democrats are demanding assurances that witnesses and documents will be allowed, to enable what they term a fair trial. Top Democrat Chuck Schumer says the recent

At least 25 people in Indonesia have died, with another 13 injured, after a bus plunged down a steep ravine and landed in a river. Some 37 passengers, plus a driver, were onboard the bus in South Sumatra province when it plunged around 100 metres on Monday night. Authorities have

A court in Saudi Arabia has sentenced five people to death for the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year, the public prosecutor has said. Khashoggi, a prominent critic of the Saudi government, was killed inside the kingdom's consulate in the Turkish city of Istanbul by

Australian PM Scott Morrison says he will not make "reckless" cuts to the nation's coal industry, despite criticism of his response to climate change and a deadly bushfire crisis. Australia is being ravaged by bushfires which have killed nine people and razed hundreds of homes

There are growing indications that the Islamic State (IS) group is re-organising in Iraq, two years after losing the last of its territory in the country. Kurdish and Western intelligence officials have told the BBC that the IS presence in Iraq is a sophisticated insurgency, and IS

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani appears set to win a second term, after preliminary election results showed he was on course to win a narrow majority. He secured 50.64% of the vote in the September 28 election, officials said. The initial results were delayed amid protests and

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has appointed the country's first prime minister in more than 40 years - the tourism minister, Manuel Marrero Cruz. The post of prime minister was scrapped in 1976 by the then revolutionary leader Fidel Castro. It was reinstated under the rules