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European stock markets edged higher Tuesday after a mixed showing in Asia, as traders grew increasingly concerned by the lack of a US debt deal necessary to avert a default.

Namibia's Supreme Court on Tuesday recognised same-sex marriages contracted abroad between citizens and foreign spouses, a landmark ruling in a country where homosexuality is illegal.

A German court on Tuesday sentenced five gang members to up to six years in prison for snatching priceless 18th-century jewels from a Dresden museum in what media have dubbed the biggest art heist in modern history.

The world must halve single-use plastics and slash throwaway consumption to stem the tide of environmental pollution, according to a UN report on Tuesday that warns the next few years are critical.

Fast bowler Jofra Archer was Tuesday ruled out of the Ashes with a stress fracture to his right elbow as England announced their Test squad to face Ireland next month.

Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska met South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul on Tuesday as a special representative of her husband, President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The death toll in cyclone-hit Myanmar's Rakhine state rose to 41 on Tuesday, local leaders told AFP, as villagers tried to piece together ruined homes and waited for aid and support.

Ex-Audi CEO Rupert Stadler pleaded guilty at his "dieselgate" fraud trial in Germany on Tuesday, becoming the highest-ranking former executive to make a confession in the emissions cheating scandal that rocked the car industry.

Ukraine said on Tuesday it had downed an entire barrage of Russian drones and missiles overnight -- including six advanced Kinzhal missiles -- hours ahead of a visit from a special envoy dispatched by China.

Fast bowler Jofra Archer was Tuesday ruled out of the Ashes with a stress fracture to his right elbow as England announced their Test squad to face Ireland next month.

A German court on Tuesday sentenced five members of a criminal gang to up to six years in prison for snatching priceless 18th-century jewels from a Dresden museum in what local media have dubbed the biggest art heist in modern history.

South Korean international footballer Son Jun-ho is in police custody in northeast China in connection with a bribery case, Beijing's foreign ministry said Tuesday.

Aged 16, Halim Flowers was arrested in the United States, tried as an adult then jailed for murder. Now aged 42, he is a prolific artist, poet and writer exhibiting in Paris.

Equities were mixed Tuesday as traders grew increasingly concerned that US lawmakers remain far apart in their bid to raise the country's borrowing limit to avert a default.

The death toll in cyclone-hit villages of Myanmar's Rakhine state rose to at least 41 on Tuesday, local leaders told AFP.

US bank Wells Fargo has agreed to pay $1 billion to settle a class action lawsuit by shareholders who accused it of not having changed its management and practices quickly enough after a series of scandals.

The US Central Intelligence Agency bolstered efforts to convince Russians to leak their country's secrets on Monday, posting an emotional video on Telegram aimed at people frustrated with the situation under President Vladimir Putin.

A fire ripped through a four-storey hostel in New Zealand's capital in the early hours of Tuesday, killing at least six people as others fled for their lives, with some plucked from the roof.

England Test captain Ben Stokes is still unable to bowl and is only "batting cover", his coach at IPL side Chennai Super Kings says, in a fresh injury scare weeks before the Ashes.

As the credits rolled on Greek television's long-awaited election debate between the party leaders, one thing united them -- they were all men.

They may live in a tourist paradise, but many villagers on Greek islands despair of a central government they say does little for them.

Greece will hold a legislative election on May 21 that promises to be the closest in more than a decade, with three main parties competing for seats in the 300-member parliament.

Greeks will vote on Sunday in the most unpredictable national polls in a decade with an inconclusive result likely to lead to the election needing to be re-run.

Five years after Europe enacted sweeping data protection legislation, prominent online privacy activist Max Schrems says he still has a lot of work to do as tech giants keep dodging the rules.

Taiwan's parliament passed an amendment on Tuesday allowing gay couples to jointly adopt children, a move hailed by activists as "another big step forward" for marriage equality.

Tunisia's top cartoonist doesn't hesitate to compare President Kais Saied with Hitler. It's a sign of the country's current political climate, but such vehemence is nothing new for the artist who has regularly savaged Tunisian leaders.

China's economic data for April missed expectations last month, official figures showed Tuesday, as low demand and high youth unemployment led to a patchy recovery after lifting strict Covid rules.

Japan hosts G7 leaders in Hiroshima this week hoping to drive home the dangers of nuclear weapons and push for progress on disarmament.

The Cannes Film Festival was set for a stormy start on Tuesday, with Johnny Depp making his comeback in the opening film, showing off his French skills as King Louis XV.

Johnny Depp became a global megastar playing off-beat characters from Willy Wonka to Captain Jack Sparrow, until his destructive off-screen lifestyle threatened to permanently derail his career.

The Royal Palace of Caserta, a long-neglected architectural jewel near Naples, is being returned to its former glory through a vast restoration project, partly financed by the EU's recovery fund.

Russian drones and ballistic missiles attacked Ukraine's capital early Tuesday in what the defence forces called an exceptionally complex strike, a day after President Volodymyr Zelensky said he would return from a European tour with a restocked weapons arsenal.