The Irish Press - News from Dublin, Kilkenny, Waterford, Drogheda, Galyway, Ireland and the world

UN chief Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday he would convene new talks on ending the half-century-old Cyprus conflict, inviting leaders on the divided island and its three guarantor powers.

The wildfire that engulfed Spain's Avila region, northwest of the capital Madrid, is now considered the largest in the country's modern history, with around 50,000 hectares burned, the government said this week.

As far as the eye can see, Jose Fernandez spied only burnt furniture, half-collapsed walls and mountains of ash on what used to be his house and land.

The vice-president of the German FA (DFB) on Wednesday slammed FIFA's controversial plans to sell stakes in its competitions, including the World Cup, as "an outright attack on football".

Nepal's tiger population has risen by roughly 20 percent in the past four years to an estimated 429, officials said on Wednesday, a conservation milestone despite challenges from human-wildlife conflict.

FIFA's plans to sell a stake in the business operations of the World Cup and its other competitions through the creation of a semi-private subsidiary has sparked disbelief and outrage globally.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz faced a rising chorus of criticism from within his own centre-right CDU party Wednesday as he completed a chaotic cabinet reshuffle.

Three-time major winner Padraig Harrington was named on Wednesday as a vice-captain of Europe's team for the 2027 Ryder Cup in his native Ireland.

US and Saudi forces said they struck an Iraqi militant alliance on Wednesday, as the Middle East war expands beyond its main focus in Iran to involve the Islamic republic's proxies.

Thousands of Spaniards evacuated from the path of huge wildfires were returning home on Wednesday while in France firefighters braced for worsening conditions in their own battle with raging flames.

CONCACAF followed UEFA on Wednesday by criticising FIFA's controversial plans to sell a stake in the business operations of the World Cup and its other competitions through the creation of a semi-private subsidiary.

Veteran Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer said it is "very likely" he will retire at the end of the upcoming season.

Russia announced on Wednesday that it was seeking the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov over accusations of "complicity in terrorism", alleging he had let the platform be used for recruitment by Ukraine's security services.

Premium carmaker BMW is to offer almost half its German staff voluntary redundancy in a bid to cut 8,000 jobs by the end of 2027, a company source told AFP Wednesday.

South Korean stocks suffered one of their steepest plunges on Wednesday, with the blood-letting that has battered chip firms over the past month deepening as nervous investors unwound their bets on the AI boom.

Sisters Temwa and Tabitha Chawinga starred as rank outsiders Malawi stunned defending champions Nigeria 3-2 on Tuesday in a Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) Group C match in Morocco.

In a small square in central London, Kevin was hawking copies of the Big Issue, a charitable magazine sold by homeless street vendors.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's carefully built image of invincibility is facing its toughest test yet, analysts say, after his government backed down in the face of youth-led protests over exam irregularities and jobs prospects.

Bangladesh's fugitive ex-premier Sheikh Hasina told AFP she was determined to return to her country by December despite fearing for her life.

Swiss banking giant UBS reported Wednesday that net profit rose 17 percent to $2.8 billion in the second quarter, driven by its investment banking arm.

The US Senate confirmed Jay Clayton as Donald Trump's top intelligence official Tuesday, putting a permanent chief in charge of the country's spy agencies as the president revives unsupported election fraud claims ahead of the midterms.

A Hong Kong bookshop raided by national security police this month announced on Wednesday that it would close after 50 years in business, while another shut down ahead of schedule.

South Korean stocks suffered one of their steepest plunges Wednesday, with the blood-letting that has battered chip firms over the past month deepening as nervous investors unwound their bets on the AI boom.

US and Saudi Arabian forces said they struck Iran-backed militants in Iraq on Wednesday in retaliation for recent attacks, following a short pause in Iran war hostilities.

A major earthquake in Japan that all but destroyed a shopping mall killed at least 13 people, officials said Wednesday, as rescuers struggled to reach survivors feared trapped in the wreckage.

Oil prices spiked Wednesday after a fresh flare-up of fighting in the Middle East that revived fears over supplies through the Strait of Hormuz, while chip firms continued to bleed as nervous investors unwound their bets on the AI boom.

Second seed Ben Shelton dug deep to hold off qualifier Martin Damm in a rain-interrupted first-round match on Tuesday at the ATP and WTA Washington Open, while veteran Venus Williams was eliminated.

From "heatwave simulators" to ecological bootcamps, scientists and conservationists are trying ways to revive and reinforce the famous coral reefs off Japan's Okinawa, decimated by climate-driven bleaching two summers ago.

Under the gaze of men's coach Craig Fulton, India's hockey players run, dribble and sweat buckets at an intense training camp in Bengaluru.

The US Federal Reserve is expected to hold interest rates steady on Wednesday, but with surging inflation fuelled by President Donald Trump's war on Iran, analysts say some policymakers will dissent in favor of a rate hike.

A major earthquake that severely damaged a shopping mall and a factory in Japan killed at least 13 people, offficials said Wednesday, as rescuers desperately tried to reach survivors feared trapped in the wreckage.

South Korea's SK hynix said Wednesday second-quarter net profit soared a whopping 1,242 percent year-on-year, driven by the artificial intelligence industry's explosive demand for its advanced memory chips.