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Near-finished Japan condo blocking Mount Fuji to be razed

A Japanese property developer has decided to demolish a near-complete, 10-story condominium in Tokyo after pushback from neighbours who said it blocked a view of Mount Fuji.

The company Sekisui House said in a statement late Tuesday it had "voluntarily decided to discontinue the project".

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France mourns loss of 1960s icon Françoise Hardy

France mourned the loss of a singular voice and a legend of French song on Wednesday, as the death of Francoise Hardy took one of the last icons of its 1960s heyday.

Hardy's death at 80, after a long battle with cancer, was announced by her son late on Tuesday, and commemorations poured in from across France.

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Celine Dion resolved to perform again, 'even if I have to crawl'

Celine Dion is determined to return to singing onstage despite suffering from a rare neurological condition -- "even if I have to crawl," she said in a candid new interview.

In the sit-down with US network NBC, which will be released in full later Tuesday, Dion said that although she has been suffering from Stiff Person Syndrome -- which causes stiff muscles in the torso, arms and legs, and can trigger severe spasms -- she will do everything in her power to perform again.

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U.S. Jury holds Chiquita liable for Colombian death squad's murder of banana workers

In what case litigants are calling the first time an American jury has held a U.S. corporation legally liable for atrocities abroad, federal jurors in Florida on Monday found that Chiquita Brands International financed a Colombian paramilitary death squad that murdered, tortured, and terrorized workers in a bid to crush labor unrest in the 1990s and 2000s.

The federal jury in West Palm Beach, Florida found the banana giant responsible for funding the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) and awarded eight families whose members were murdered by the right-wing paramilitary group $38.3 million in damages.

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Blinken urges Hamas to accept Gaza truce plan as battles rage

Deadly fighting rocked Gaza on Tuesday as US top diplomat Antony Blinken promoted a ceasefire plan and Jordan hosted an emergency summit for the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.

Secretary of State Blinken, on his eighth Middle East tour since the October 7 Hamas attack, urged the Palestinian militant group to accept the truce and hostage release deal.

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Oldest privately owned book sells for £3 million at UK sale

The world's oldest book in a private collection, and one of the earliest books in existence, sold at auction in London on Tuesday for more than £3 million.

The Crosby-Schoyen Codex was previously owned by the Norwegian businessman and rare book collector Martin Schoyen, and contains the earliest complete copies of two texts from the Bible -- the book of Jonah and Peter's first epistle.

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Nigeria's repressed LGBTQ party people let 'true self' out at Lagos ball

Performers strutted their stuff onstage at an LGBTQ community dance party in Nigeria's Lagos, publicly celebrating their identities in a country where being gay could land you in jail.

To the tune of Afrobeats stars like Ayra Starr and pop stalwarts like Beyonce, a parade of sequin-wearing, wig-clad, neo-goth performers danced, spun and posed for the jury, egged on by a raucous crowd.

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'Plunging into civil war': Canadian government think tank mulls bloody future for America

A think tank housed within Canada's government has issued a warning about deteriorating conditions in the United States could lead the country "plunging into civil war."

As Politico reports, the Policy Horizons Canada think tank released a paper earlier this year that outlines how the political divisions in America could grow to the point where mass violence erupts.

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Tourists get taste of old Japan at hidden 'snack bars'

Down a Tokyo street lined with bright signs, up narrow stairs and behind a windowless door is a "snack bar" long cherished by regulars but hidden from tourists -- until now.

Snack bars are cosy, retro establishments found across Japan, often crammed into small buildings and equipped with karaoke systems that echo late into the night.

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Room with a view: the German teen living on trains

Lasse Stolley was looking for a change in scenery after a planned apprenticeship fell through. So nearly two years ago the teenager began living on German trains.

The epic journey has taken the 17-year-old from a small community in Germany's windswept far north to the country's southern borders and beyond.

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UK's Sunak to unveil manifesto promising 'financial security' to voters

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is due to unveil his Conservative party manifesto on Tuesday, promising voters "financial security" ahead of the general election as the Tories lag far behind Labour in polls.

"We Conservatives have a plan to give you financial security," he will say, according to extracts of his speech released in advance.

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Rare elephant twins born in dramatic birth in Thailand

An elephant in Thailand has delivered a rare set of twins in a dramatic birth that left a carer injured after he tried to rescue one of the newborns.

The 36-year-old Asian elephant named Jamjuree gave birth to an 80-kilogram (176-pound) male at the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace and Royal Kraal north of Bangkok on Friday night.

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Color-coded migrants wait for answers in Texas heat

Behind metal fences topped with barbed wire, men play volleyball and basketball at a detention center in Texas, passing time as they wait to hear if they will be allowed to stay in the United States.

They are among more than 1,000 men housed at this former naval base in the US city of Los Fresnos, just a few miles from the Mexican border, which they all crossed illegally.

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