ATHENS, Greece — The Paris Olympics flame was formally handed to French organizers on Friday in the all-marble stadium where the first modern Games were held in Athens in 1896. Greek water polo player Ioannis Fountoulis, the last in a long line of torchbearers, used the flame to light a cauldron at the Panathenaic Stadium. From there,…

Russian security services detained one of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu’s deputies on suspicion of taking major bribes, the highest-profile corruption case since President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in early 2022. Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov was detained on Tuesday, according to a brief 22-word statement by Russia’s investigative committee. The statute that the investigators cited…

One of the most prominent figures in the far-right Alternative for Germany party arrived in court Thursday for his trial on charges of using a Nazi slogan, months before a regional election in which he is running to become his state’s governor. Björn Höcke, 52, is the leader of the regional branch of Alternative for Germany, or…

An investigation of five fur farms in China housing foxes, raccoon dogs and mink found a high risk of diseases developing that could jump from animals to humans, said animal protection group Humane Society International who conducted the study at the end of 2023. The farms in China’s northern Hebei and Liaoning provinces each held…

Iran’s retaliatory attack Saturday — which swarmed Israeli airspace with hundreds of drones and missiles while causing relatively limited damage — was unprecedented but calibrated to show deterrence without provoking an all-out war, according to experts who spoke to NBC News. Within hours of the strike, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, the chief of staff of…

ABOARD THE USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT — A U.S. carrier strike group led by the USS Theodore Roosevelt has held a three-day joint exercise with its allies Japan and South Korea as President Joe Biden meets for talks with leaders from Japan and the Philippines at the White House. The dueling military and diplomatic maneuvers are meant…

Chinese leader Xi Jinping met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday in a sign of mutual support and shared opposition to Western democracies amid Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. “We would like to express our highest appreciation and admiration for the successes that you have achieved over the years and, above all, over the last decade…

A growing number of Chinese immigrants are crossing into the U.S. without papers, often taking harrowing journeys through several countries and modes of transport and using social media as their guide.  “I think what we’re seeing now are people who are more middle class who just feel that the opportunities are diminishing and that the…

HUALIEN, Taiwan — Rescuers in Taiwan combed mountains for a dozen people still missing and airlifted others to safety on Friday, as the death toll from this week’s earthquake increased to 12. Two more bodies were found in the mountains of Taiwan’s eastern Hualien county, two days after a 7.4-magnitude quake off the nearby coast…

The powerful earthquake in Taiwan on Wednesday shook an island that was well prepared for a seismic catastrophe — likely more so than some regions of the U.S., several experts said.  Nine people have been reported dead, though Taiwanese officials said the death toll could rise in the coming days. More than 1,000 were injured…