World

Feature: No title to defend, just snow to ride for American skier Alex Hall

by sportswriter He Leijing

World

Roundup: Flower festival brings color back to Sudan's capital after years of war

KHARTOUM, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Khartoum this week hosted its first Flower Festival in nearly three years, a rare sign of recovery in a city scarred by war. The weeklong event is the largest horticulture and landscaping exhibition held in the capital since fighting erupted in April 2023.

World

Italy's Lollobrigida breaks women's 3,000m speed skating Olympic record to win maiden Olympic gold (updated)

MILAN, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Italian veteran Francesca Lollobrigida broke the Olympic record in the women's 3,000m speed skating event to win her first Olympic gold medal at the Milan-Cortina Games on Saturday.

World

Carnival held in Zimbabwe to celebrate Chinese New Year

HARARE, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabweans on Saturday were treated to Chinese cuisine and traditional performances at a carnival held in Harare, Zimbabwe's capital, to celebrate the upcoming Chinese New Year.

World

8 injured in building collapse in India's Rajasthan

NEW DELHI, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- At least eight people were injured after a building collapsed in Kota in India's state of Rajasthan late Saturday, a local police officer confirmed over phone.

World

Former French minister Lang resigns from Arab World Institute over Epstein ties

PARIS, ‌Feb X (Reuters) - ‌Jack Lang, a ‌former French culture minister under President ‍Francois Mitterrand, ‍has resigned ‌as president of the ‍Arab ​World ⁠Institute, the French Foreign Affairs ‌ministry said on ⁠Saturday, ‍a decision taken under ‍pressure over Lang's ‌ties to the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

World

1st LD-Writethru: Death toll rises to 7 in north China factory explosion

TAIYUAN, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from Saturday's biotech factory blast in north China's Shanxi Province has risen to seven, with one person still missing, local authorities said early Sunday.

World

Swiss alpine skier Von Allmen wins first gold of Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics (updated)

BORMIO, Italy, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Swiss alpine skier Franjo von Allmen won the first gold medal of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics here on Saturday, capturing the men's downhill title on the daunting Stelvio course in one minute and 51.61 seconds.

World

Italy's Lollobrigida breaks women's 3,000m speed skating Olympic record to win maiden Olympic gold

MILAN, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Italian veteran Francesca Lollobrigida broke the Olympic record in the women's 3,000m speed skating event to win her first Olympic gold medal at the Milan-Cortina Games on Saturday.

World

Greenland, Denmark FMs signal "not where we want to be" in U.S. talks

NUUK, Greenland, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Greenlandic Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt and Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said Saturday that ongoing negotiations with the United States are "still not where we want to be," signaling that a final agreement remains distant.

World

Greenland foreign minister says US talks are positive but the outcome remains uncertain

COPENHAGEN, Feb ‌7 (Reuters) - Greenland's Foreign ‌Minister Vivian Motzfeldt said ‌on Saturday that while it is positive that talks with ‍the U.S. are ‍ongoing, they are ‌not yet where Greenland wants ‍them ​to be, and it is ⁠too early to predict where ‌they will lead.

World

Russian officials voice hope for greater cooperation as Chinese New Year comes

MOSCOW, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- During the Spring Festival reception for Russian friends held in the Chinese Embassy in Russia on Friday, Russian officials voiced their hope for more cooperation with China while delivering Chinese New Year greetings.

World

Arab publishers bring new titles back to Syrian readers at Damascus book fair

DAMASCUS, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- The ongoing International Book Fair in Damascus has reopened a vital channel for new books, reconnecting Syrian readers with global culture after years of war and isolation, Arab publishers said.

World

1 dead, 13 injured as joyride collapses in north India

NEW DELHI, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- A police officer of inspector rank died and about 13 persons were injured when a joyride collapsed at an annual fair in India's northern state of Haryana on Saturday, according to the local police.

World

ISU opens home of skating in Milan during Winter Olympics

MILAN, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- The International Skating Union opened the ISU home of skating here on Saturday, creating a dedicated Olympic-time venue for athletes and the global skating community.

World

Hungary's opposition Tisza promises wealth tax, euro adoption in election programme

BUDAPEST, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Hungary's opposition ‌Tisza party plans to introduce a wealth tax for the rich, adopt ‌the euro currency and firmly anchor Hungary in the European Union and ‌NATO, its 240-page election programme published on Saturday said.

World

Thousands protest in Berlin in solidarity with Iranian uprisings

BERLIN, Feb ‌7 (Reuters) - Thousands of people protested in Berlin on Saturday ‌in support of Iranians' nationwide uprising, coinciding with ‌the anniversary of Iran's 1979 anti-monarchy revolution.

World

US pushes Russia and Ukraine to end war by summer, Zelenskiy says

KYIV, Feb 7 (Reuters) - The United ‌States wants Moscow and Kyiv to find a solution on how to end the war in Ukraine before summer, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said.

World

Algeria begins to cancel air services agreement with UAE

Feb 7 (Reuters) - Algeria ‌has begun the process of cancelling its air ‌services agreement with the United Arab Emirates, signed ‌in Abu Dhabi in May 2013, state media said on Saturday.

World

Farmers report 'catastrophic' damage to crops as Storm Marta hits Spain and Portugal

CORDOBA, ‌Feb 7 (Reuters) - Farmers in Spain warned on Saturday that torrential rains and high winds ‌had left fields submerged and caused millions of euros worth of damage to crops, ‌as Spain and Portugal braced for more extreme weather.