World

Five US detainees flew out of Iran on Monday in a swap for five Iranians held in the US under a rare deal brokered by Qatar between the arch enemies that also unfroze $6 billion of Tehran's funds.

A Qatari plane took off from Tehran carrying the five with two of their relatives, shortly after the US and Iran received confirmation that the funds had been transferred to accounts in Doha, a source briefed on the matter told Reuters.

The rights situation in Russia has substantially worsened since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine last year, a top UN expert said Monday, decrying the "persistent use of torture" and sexual violence.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights situation in Russia, Mariana Katzarova, said Moscow had launched a systematic crackdown on critics since launching the war in February 2022.

The Toronto International Film Festival wrapped up on Sunday, after a whirling 10 days chock full of world premieres, special presentations, talks with key filmmakers and TV debuts.

"American Fiction" won the coveted People's Choice Award, which has in the past helped to predict Oscars success.

World leaders meet Monday at the United Nations in a bid to salvage ambitious promises to lift the planet's poorest, at a time when vulnerable nations are facing a volley of crises.

But the development summit, on the eve of the annual UN General Assembly that opens Tuesday, threatens to be eclipsed by growing geopolitical tensions -- which will be symbolized by the presence at the meeting in New York of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Charles III finally makes it across the Channel from Britain to France this week, six months after rioting and strikes forced the last-minute postponement of his first state visit as king.

The 74-year-old British head of state's rescheduled three-day trip to Paris and Bordeaux with his wife Queen Camilla, 76, starts on Wednesday, with the itinerary largely unchanged from March.

Under the scorching sun, Thai archaeologist Tanachaya Tiandee clambers through ruined pagodas in the ancient town of Si Thep, trying to unlock their mysteries -- a task made harder because many of the clues are missing.

Looters stripped Thailand's rich historical sites such as Si Thep over decades, taking many items abroad. The kingdom is now trying to repatriate those stolen cultural treasures.

Six pillars of the monument at the heart of the German capital were sprayed with orange warning paint, the group said in a statement.

The paint spread to the Pariser Platz, the square at the foot of the monument, with bright footprints extending along the roadway.

Military-industrial complex players big and small gathered in London this week, hawking everything from long-range missiles to gold-plated pistols to arms fair attendees—including representatives of horrific human rights violators—as weapon-makers and other merchants of the machinery of death reap record profits.

"War is good for business," one defense executive attending the biennial Defense and Security Equipment International (DSEI) conference at ExCel London flat-out toldReuters. "We are extremely busy," Michael Elmore, head of sales at the U.K.-based armored steelmaker MTL Advanced, told the media agency.

Tens of thousands of Swedes thronged central Stockholm on Saturday to mark 50 years since King Carl XVI Gustaf ascended the throne.

To the sound of military bands and under a sunny sky, the 77-year-old monarch, clad in a sober suit and tie, enjoyed the public acclaim along with Queen Silvia, 79, wearing a canary yellow ensemble, as six horses led the royal procession.