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Iran's Hossein Vafaei said the Crucible Theatre was snooker's answer to Wimbledon two years after he savagely attacked the cherished World Championship venue.

Stock prices were broadly lower Thursday, retreating after recent gains as investors tempered their enthusiasm for a quick end to the Middle East war.

Iran's Hossein Vafaei won nine frames in a row to become the first qualifier to reach the second round at this year's World Snooker Championship, beating China's Si Jiahui 10-3.

Aryna Sabalenka shook off some rust to post her first victory of the season on clay and extend her winning streak to 13 matches on Thursday in Madrid.

The sad saga of a humpback whale stranded a month ago on the German coast has sparked a flood of compassion but also a media frenzy, angry spats, conspiracy theories and death threats.

Warner Bros. Discovery on Thursday said shareholders approved its sale to Paramount Skydance, giving a green light to a hostile takeover bid valuing the combined company at $110 billion.

The US government on Thursday made it easier for Americans to use cannabis for medical reasons by reclassifying the drug and enabling more research into its safety and efficacy.

President Donald Trump ordered the US Navy on Thursday to destroy any Iranian boat caught laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, putting more pressure on a fraying ceasefire as disruption from the Gulf stand-off battered the world economy.

Najmul Hossain Shanto scored a century and Mustafizur Rahman claimed 5-43 as Bangladesh beat New Zealand by 55 runs in the third one-day international to clinch the series 2-1 on Thursday.

Controversial rapper Kanye West, also known as Ye, will hold a concert in Prague in July, Zuzana Rambova, director of the Chuchle Arena racecourse hosting the event, said on Thursday.

The Iran war has exposed Africa's vulnerability to fuel chokepoints and is heading for an 86 million tonne fuel shortfall by 2040, the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) said Thursday.

Stock prices fell across the board Thursday from their recent highs as investors tempered enthusiasm for a quick end to the Middle East war.

Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport said Thursday it would offer airlines a 10-percent discount on airport charges due to the high price of jet fuel caused by the Iran war.

Britain and France on Thursday signed a new three-year deal to stop undocumented migrants making the risky journey across the Channel in small boats.

As 41-year-old Annie Tse visited her flat in Hong Kong for the first time since a massive fire last year, a blackened staircase brought back memories of her lucky escape.

Bernard Arnault, chief executive of the world's biggest luxury conglomerate LVMH, brushed off speculation of his retirement on Thursday, telling shareholders that "we'll talk about all this again in seven to eight years".

The US Defense Department said Thursday its forces boarded a vessel in the Indian Ocean that was transporting oil from Iran, as disruption from a stand-off with the Islamic republic continued to batter the world economy.

Pope Leo XIV on Thursday held an open-air mass in Equatorial Guinea in front of tens of thousands of followers, wrapping up his first major international tour that began with harsh criticism of his stance on Iran from US President Donald Trump.

Romania's Social Democratic Party on Thursday said it had quit the coalition government of Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, triggering a new political crisis in the turmoil-weary country.

Tanzania's electoral violence last year left at least 518 dead, a government-appointed commission said Thursday, giving a figure far below opposition estimates and failing to say who was responsible.

Spain's Lamine Yamal has picked up a hamstring injury, but is expected to be fit for the upcoming World Cup, his club Barcelona announced Thursday.

Portugal on Thursday asked Air France-KLM and Lufthansa to make binding offers to buy a controlling stake in TAP Air Portugal, as the government seeks to privatise an airline it rescued during the Covid-19 pandemic.

American actress and filmmaker Maggie Gyllenhaal will head up the jury of the Venice Film Festival, organisers said Thursday.

Nestle, the food giant whose brands include Nespresso coffee and Perrier water, saw first-quarter sales figures slump due to the strong value of the Swiss franc and a baby formula recall, but sales volumes overall edged higher.

Oil prices and the dollar jumped Thursday while most equity markets slid as the United States and Iran appeared no closer to resuming peace talks.

Two commuter trains collided head-on near the Danish capital early Thursday leaving five critically hurt and 13 others with lesser injuries, officials said.

The Iran war has exposed Africa's vulnerability to fuel chokepoints and is heading for a 86 million tonne fuel shortfall by 2040, the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) said Thursday.

Rising reggae star Meta Dia will headline this year's Stereo Africa Festival in Dakar celebrating contemporary African music and the sounds of the diaspora.

Iran has banked the first proceeds from the tolls it is exacting on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a senior official said Thursday, as disruption triggered by the US-Israeli war against the Islamic republic continued to batter the world economy.

The Pentagon blasted as cherry picking and false on Thursday a news report saying that the department assessed it could take six months to completely clear the Strait of Hormuz of Iranian-laid mines.

Two commuter trains collided head-on near the Danish capital early Thursday leaving five critically hurt and 12 others with lesser injuries, emergency services said.

A US naval blockade of Iranian ports is likely to squeeze Iran's oil output in the coming weeks but claims it will throw the Islamic republic into economic free fall remain premature, analysts say.