A woman and her baby were killed when a tree fell on their house and at least two other storm-related deaths were reported on Friday as Hurricane Florence slammed into the Carolinas, dousing the eastern US states with torrential rain and causing rivers to burst their banks.

US authorities on Friday downgraded Florence from a hurricane to a tropical storm, as the still dangerous weather system unleashed torrential rains but saw its wind power weaken slightly.

Two former skinheads were handed seven- and 11-year jail terms by a Paris court Friday for killing an 18-year-old antifascist in a 2013 brawl.

Japan's determined bid to return to commercial whale hunting was rejected by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) Friday in a tense vote that left the 72-year old organization at a crossroads.

President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort agreed Friday to cooperate in the Russia collusion investigation in a plea deal that left the White House looking increasingly under siege by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

President Donald Trump's conservative pick for the Supreme Court Brett Kavanaugh denied Friday involvement in an alleged sexual assault on a woman while they were in high school in the 1980s.

Japan's determined bid to return to commercial whale hunting was rejected by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) Friday in a tense vote that exposed a deep split in the 72-year old organization.

President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort agreed Friday to cooperate in the special counsel investigation of possible campaign collusion with Russia.

The Philippines raised its storm alert on Friday and warned of major destruction, hours before Super Typhoon Mangkhut was due to make landfall with fierce winds and drenching rains.

Two Russian men's claims that they were innocent tourists wrongly accused of an attempted assassination in Britain raised eyebrows on Friday -- even in Russia's usually patriotic media.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the spiritual leader of the world's Anglicans, faced accusations of hypocrisy on Friday after it emerged the Church of England holds shares in online retail giant Amazon and employs people on zero-hours contracts.

The UN warned Friday that shelling and air strikes in Yemen's Hodeida province have targeted humanitarian workers and infrastructure, threatening its ability to feed 3.5 million "very hungry people."

Volkswagen announced Thursday it would end production of its iconic "Beetle" cars in 2019 after adding a pair of final editions of the bug-shaped vehicles.

British house prices could crash by 35 percent if the UK leaves the European Union next year without a divorce deal, Bank of England governor Mark Carney has reportedly warned.

North and South Korea opened a joint liaison office in the Northern city of Kaesong on Friday as they knit closer ties ahead of President Moon Jae-in's visit to Pyongyang next week.

The Chinese economy revealed fresh signs of softness Friday with data showing the pace of investment slowing to record lows while retail spending and industrial production stabilised.

A fire department in northern Bangkok has not received a call for a fire since June. But for trapping a slithery foe? There is a 24-hour hotline.

Dadarao Bilhore smoothes the road surface, rests his shovel, looks to the sky and prays for his son, one of thousands of Indians killed every year in accidents caused by potholes.

On opening night, Yemeni director Amr Gamal held his breath to see if anyone would turn up for his film, screened in a makeshift theatre in the war-torn country.

It was "Lehman Weekend." The moment in September 2008 when the 150-year-old investment bank Lehman Brothers collapsed, precipitating the worst global economic crisis since the 1930s.

SpaceX on Thursday announced a new plan to launch a tourist around the Moon using its Big Falcon Rocket (BFR), a massive launch vehicle that is being designed to carry people into deep space.

Tadd Fujikawa, the youngest American to make the cut in a US PGA Tour event, became the first openly gay male professional golfer, making the revelation in an Instagram post.

A lonely narwhal that strayed far from its Arctic habitat has apparently found a new family in a pod of belugas in Canada's Saint Lawrence River, a marine conservation group said Thursday.

A perfect start from their opening four games has raised expectations over Liverpool's title credentials, but Jurgen Klopp's men face their first serious test of the Premier League campaign at Tottenham on Saturday.

Several paragraphs referring to Russian oil trade in a United Nations report about sanctions on North Korea have been removed at Moscow's urging, sparking US anger on Thursday.

Tempers flared at the International Whaling Commission on Thursday as it voted to back a Brazilian proposal which would safeguard the marine mammals in perpetuity, after a bitter debate.

A zoo in Colombia is celebrating the birth of a baby spider monkey, a rare species in danger of extinction.

London Fashion Week kicked off Friday with all eyes on Victoria Beckham, who debuted at the event on the 10th anniversary of her label's launch, and on Burberry's new star designer Riccardo Tisci.

The Russian Orthodox Church Friday cut "diplomatic ties" with Bartholomew I, the Istanbul-based spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, accusing him of encroaching on its religious territory in Ukraine.

The EU on Friday urged member countries to work together to avoid turning Europe into a confusing patchwork of different timezones, after announcing plans to abolish seasonal clock changes.

Legendary French fashion house Chanel said Friday it had moved staff from New York to its global hub in London, a welcome change for the British capital which has been under threat of companies pulling out because of Brexit.

Mexico has arrested an alleged drug cartel hitman on charges of trafficking the critically endangered totoaba fish, a species whose swim bladder can fetch up to $20,000 on the black market in China.

A fire department in northern Bangkok has not received a call for a fire since June. But for trapping a slithery foe? There is a 24-hour hotline.

Australia is by most measures one of the world's most successful multicultural societies, but a controversial cartoon of Serena Williams has rekindled accusations it is also inveterately racist.

Dadarao Bilhore smoothes the road surface, rests his shovel, looks to the sky and prays for his son, one of thousands of Indians killed every year in accidents caused by potholes.

Wearing a black "Hate Hero" T-shirt, a large pair of headphones clamped over his ears, the young singer croons into a microphone at a simple recording studio inside a prison in Burkina Faso.

On opening night, Yemeni director Amr Gamal held his breath to see if anyone would turn up for his film, screened in a makeshift theatre in the war-torn country.

Surrounded by other people's belongings piled high on beds, Georgie Ndab wants to leave Tunisia's only migrant centre and take her baby to Europe.

A lonely narwhal that strayed far from its Arctic habitat has apparently found a new family in a pod of belugas in Canada's Saint Lawrence River, a marine conservation group said Thursday.

A zoo in Colombia is celebrating the birth of a baby spider monkey, a rare species in danger of extinction.

With Hurricane Florence downgraded on Thursday from a Category Four to a Category Two storm, around fifty people left the evacuation shelter in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

The public is broadly fearful that automation will lead to significant job losses, with many populations skeptical the technologies will boost economic efficiency, according to a survey of 10 countries released Thursday.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos announced Thursday he was launching a philanthropic fund with a $2 billion initial commitment to help homeless families and launch preschools in low-income communities.

Seven people including a family of Czech tourists were injured Thursday following a rockslide at Navagio beach on the island of Zante, one of Greece's most popular travel destinations, officials said.

A stone's throw from the presidential palace in Madagascar's capital Antananarivo, men sit for hours playing fanorona -- a cross between chequers and chess -- on wooden boards with black and white pieces.

It may be hot outside but that doesn't stop doctors and former shepherds on skis snowploughing on giant white treadmills on the outskirts of Beijing -- part of the battalions of workers learning the sport ahead of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

Rolling up the sleeves of her immaculate white habit, Sister Ofelia Morales Francisco plunges her hands into an aquarium, grabs a large, slimy salamander and lifts it dripping into the air.

Rihanna celebrated women of every shape, size and color in an outre show unveiling her Savage X Fenty lingerie line, bringing New York Fashion Week to a juddering climax on Wednesday.

Apple unveiled three new iPhones on Wednesday in a bid to bolster its spot in the premium smartphone market, along with an upgraded smartwatch that takes electrocardiograms and detects falls.

The International Whaling Commission on Wednesday cast a rare strong vote in favor of whale hunting -- but strictly for small subsistence hunts undertaken by some communities, mostly in the Arctic.

A 10-year-old American boy was making a remarkable recovery Wednesday after a meat skewer impaled his skull but missed his brain, in what medics called a "one in a million" accident.

Apple's polished iPhone line-up comes with tools to help users dial back their smartphone obsessions, amid growing concerns over "addiction" and harmful effects on children.

Lawmakers in Chile on Wednesday passed legislation allowing people as young as 14 to legally change their name and gender identity.

US regulators said Wednesday they are considering an immediate ban on flavored e-cigarettes, as the Food and Drug Administration chief warned of an "epidemic" of vaping among youths.

Kylian Mbappe and Neymar watched on from the stands as Paris Saint-Germain prepared for their Champions League trip to Liverpool with an emphatic 4-0 win over Saint-Etienne in Ligue 1 on Friday.

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has claimed he is "in the dark" over Paul Pogba's outspoken agent Mino Raiola's intentions for the French World Cup winner.

Pep Guardiola has said Leroy Sane must face down the challenge posed within Manchester City’s deep and talented squad if he is to win back his starting place with the Premier League champions.

Borussia Dortmund's new loan recruit from Barcelona Paco Alcacer scored on his debut in Friday's 3-1 defeat over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Davis Cup rookie Benoit Paire helped holders France to a 2-0 semi-final lead over Spain with Croatia in command against the United States by the same margin after Friday's opening singles.

Lucas Pouille dug deep to deny Roberto Bautista-Agut in five sets to give France both points on the opening day of their Davis Cup semi-final against Spain on Friday.

The World Anti-Doping Agency has been given the green light to lift its ban on Russia's drug-tainted testing authority after a recommendation from investigators, the global doping watchdog said Friday.

Puerto Rican trailblazer Maria Torres overcame a shaky start in the second round to emerge as one of four joint halfway leaders in the final major of the season, the Evian Championship on Friday.

Britain's Simon Yates, of the Mitchelton team, tightened his grip on the Tour of Spain red jersey on Friday after a thrilling 19th stage in the mountains won by Frenchman Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ).

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will have an eye fixed firmly on the 2019 World Cup when they get the Asia Cup underway in Dubai on Saturday.

Former England wicket-keeper James Foster is to retire from cricket when his Essex contract expires at the end of the season and move into coaching.

Kimi Raikkonen edged out Lewis Hamilton to the fastest lap in Friday's second practice for the Singapore Grand Prix, but the Finn's Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel had his session cut short after he smacked a wall.

Reinhard Grindel, the head of the German Football Association (DFB), and Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, have exchanged heated letters over bids for Euro 2024, German media reported on Friday.

Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths wants to fire the Scottish champions to 10 consecutive league titles after signing a new four-year contract on Friday.

French authorities have added to former IAAF president Lamine Diack's legal problems by charging him with favouring his son in negotiations over sponsorship and TV rights, sources close to the case told AFP on Friday.

Croatia raced to a commanding 2-0 lead over the United Status on the opening day of their Davis Cup semi-final in Zadar on Friday.

England all-rounder Moeen Ali has criticised the "rude" approach of several Australia teams he has played against, saying their "disrespect" for opponents makes them the only side he has "disliked".

Pep Guardiola has urged Raheem Sterling to end his prolonged contract talks with Manchester City and sign an extended deal with the Premier League champions.

Real Madrid coach Julen Lopetegui believes staging Girona's home game against Barcelona in the United States would harm the equality of La Liga.

Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri has opened the door for former captain John Terry to return to Stamford Bridge as part of his coaching staff.

New Zealand legend Dan Carter scored a try and finished with 21 points to inspire Kobe Steelers to a 36-20 victory over Suntory Sungoliath in a man-of-the-match Japan debut Friday.

Fast bowler Dale Steyn was on Friday named in a 16-man South African squad for three one-day internationals against Zimbabwe, starting on September 30.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes too much demand is placed on international stars who have had barely any rest following the World Cup.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff on Friday launched an extraordinary attack on fellow Formula One bosses for their "lies" and "lack of balls" which have left Esteban Ocon without a drive next season.

Italian veteran Claudio Marchisio will make his debut for Saint Petersburg when they visit surprising Orenburg in the Russian Premier League this weekend.

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho turned on the media once more on Friday as he launched a detailed defence of his use of England international striker Marcus Rashford.

The co-chairman West Ham, David Gold, has backed proposals to stop clubs spending millions on football agents.

Canada's high court on Friday ruled that Hollywood studios and other copyright holders must pay internet service providers to chase down Canadians suspected of illegally downloading movies or other online content.

The private apartments of 18th-century Emperor Qianlong, one of the most renowned rulers in Chinese history, go on display in Athens Friday in a rare exhibition, organisers said.

Dressed as zombies, superheroes, villainous ogres and masked angels, thousands of fans flocked to Africa's first Comic Con on Friday for the start of the three-day event outside Johannesburg.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, the richest person on the planet, announced Thursday he was creating a philanthropic fund to help homeless families and launch preschools in low-income communities, committing an initial $2 billion.

Wearing a black "Hate Hero" T-shirt, a large pair of headphones clamped over his ears, the young singer croons into a microphone at a simple recording studio inside a prison in Burkina Faso.

On opening night, Yemeni director Amr Gamal held his breath to see if anyone would turn up for his film, screened in a makeshift theatre in the war-torn country.

Danish inventor Peter Madsen, found guilty in April of the 2017 murder of journalist Kim Wall aboard his homemade submarine, is hoping appeal court judges will reduce his life sentence when they announce their decision on Friday.

World Cup-winning coach Vicente del Bosque has some advice for sprint king Usain Bolt's new Australian club -- play him in defence.

The Eurovision Song Contest will make its glitzy debut in Tel Aviv next year, the European Broadcasting Union announced Thursday, after it beat rival Israeli contenders to host the annual music spectacle.

An iconic oil painting by British artist David Hockney estimated to be worth $80 million is going on sale in New York, poised to set an auction record for the most expensive work by a living artist.

A Paris court on Thursday freed a radical Russian artist imprisoned since last October after he torched the facade of a French central bank building to protest the outsize role of bankers.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos announced Thursday he was launching a philanthropic fund with a $2 billion initial commitment to help homeless families and launch preschools in low-income communities.

Six months ago, the slaying of black rights activist Marielle Franco shocked Brazil and prompted major demonstrations against the surging violence in Rio de Janeiro, where she served on the city council.

World dignitaries laid to rest former UN secretary general Kofi Annan in his native Ghana on Thursday, with calls to keep alive the legacy of a "stubborn optimist" to create a better, more peaceful world.

Twenty dancers for Belgian choreographer Jan Fabre alleged they had suffered years of humiliation and sexual harassment Thursday, as the #Metoo movement arrived in the highest spheres of the avant-garde.

Video footage emerged Wednesday showing disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein apparently sexually harassing a woman who subsequently accused him of rape.

New York Fashion Week wrapped up with Rihanna's outre Brooklyn party unveiling her new Savage X Fenty lingerie line, snatching an honor traditionally the preserve of creme-de-la-creme designer Marc Jacobs.

"We used to be scared," said Josephine Katumba, a 30-year-old hairdresser in Kamwokya, a poor suburb of Uganda's capital Kampala. "We don't have fear anymore."

When Camille Corot's figure paintings last went on display more than a century ago, they stunned Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, who paid tribute to the French painter in their groundbreaking Cubist creations.

The executive producer of "60 Minutes," America's flagship investigative television news program, was out at CBS Wednesday in the wake of accusations of sexual misconduct and allegedly tolerating an abusive culture.

When Camille Corot's figure paintings last went on display more than a century ago, they stunned Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, who paid tribute to the French painter in their groundbreaking Cubist creations.

A Renoir painting stolen by the Nazis from a Paris bank vault was returned to its rightful owner Wednesday after a more than 70-year odyssey from South Africa to London, Switzerland and New York.

A Spanish actor accused of ridiculing "god and the Virgin Mary" was detained Wednesday to be questioned by a judge, police said, in the latest high profile case to raise free speech fears in the country.

Adult film star Stormy Daniels said Wednesday she will publish an autobiography detailing her alleged affair with President Donald Trump in October, shortly before key US midterm elections.

Michael Kors kicked off the final day of New York Fashion Week "Sunny Side Up" on Wednesday with A-listers Nicole Kidman and Catherine Zeta-Jones front row for a happy collection inspired by the beach.

The sandy beaches and historic red brick homes of Wilmington, North Carolina have been the setting for many a Hollywood production, but there's nothing make-believe about the powerful hurricane bearing down on the picturesque coastal city.

Peru's Shining Path leader Abimael Guzman, who is already serving a life sentence, was handed a second life term on Tuesday for a 1992 car bombing that killed 25 people in Lima.

A woman and her baby were killed when a tree fell on their house and at least two other storm-related deaths were reported on Friday as Hurricane Florence slammed into the Carolinas, dousing the eastern US states with torrential rain and causing rivers to burst their banks.

Super Typhoon Mangkhut slammed into the northern Philippines on Saturday with violent winds and torrential rains, as authorities warned millions in its path of potentially heavy destruction.

Japan's determined bid to return to commercial whale hunting was rejected by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) Friday in a tense vote that left the 72-year old organization at a crossroads.

UN member-states on Friday agreed on a global plan to step up the fight against tuberculosis, the world's number one killer among infectious diseases, settling a row with the United States over access to cheap drugs.

In the port city of Wilmington, residents awoke to the sound of power transformers blowing up, plunging homes into darkness as Hurricane Florence's howling winds whipped through the streets sending metal signs, water and debris flying.

The International Whaling Commission's rejection Friday of Japan's proposal to resume commercial whaling "is not the end of the story," Tokyo's whaling commissioner said at the end of a divisive meeting in Brazil.

Mexico has arrested an alleged drug cartel hitman on charges of trafficking the critically endangered totoaba fish, a species whose swim bladder can fetch up to $20,000 on the black market in China.

Japan's determined bid to return to commercial whale hunting was rejected by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) Friday in a tense vote that exposed a deep split in the 72-year old organization.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday that the European Union would maintain sanctions against Russia until Moscow makes progress on fulfilling its commitments under a peace plan for east Ukraine.

SpaceX is among a handful of companies racing to propel tourists into space. Here are the top projects in the works, and what they involve.

Scientists have discovered three new species of "hardcore" fish living in one of the deepest parts of the ocean, the see-through, scale-free creatures perfectly adapted to conditions that would instantly kill most life on Earth.

Proven masters at sustainably managing forests that protect against global warming, indigenous peoples got a place at the table, and some cash, at an international climate summit in San Francisco this week.

Emergency crews in North Carolina scrambled Friday to rescue hundreds of people stranded in their homes by flood waters unleashed by Hurricane Florence.

Japan's determined bid to return to commercial whale hunting was blocked by anti-whaling nations in a tense vote Friday at the International Whaling Commission meeting in Brazil.

A 1,500 year old Mayan altar discovered in a small archeological site in northern Guatemala is drawing comparisons to popular fantasy drama television series "Game of Thrones" for its descriptions of the Kaanul dynasty's political strategies aimed at bringing entire cities under its control.

The mutilated carcass of a female white rhino, who had given birth just months ago, lay rotting on a hill beside a road that meanders through South Africa's Kruger National Park.

A fire department in northern Bangkok has not received a call for a fire since June. But for trapping a slithery foe? There is a 24-hour hotline.

With Hurricane Florence downgraded on Thursday from a Category Four to a Category Two storm, and then once again, around fifty people left the evacuation shelter in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

SpaceX on Thursday announced a new plan to launch a tourist around the Moon using its Big Falcon Rocket (BFR), a massive launch vehicle that is being designed to carry people into deep space.

Mass evacuations from US towns north of Boston were underway Thursday after dozens of fires and suspected gas explosions erupted, police said, leaving at least 10 residents injured, one critically.

A lonely narwhal that strayed far from its Arctic habitat has apparently found a new family in a pod of belugas in Canada's Saint Lawrence River, a marine conservation group said Thursday.

Tempers flared at the International Whaling Commission on Thursday as it voted to back a Brazilian proposal which would safeguard the marine mammals in perpetuity, after a bitter debate.

A zoo in Colombia is celebrating the birth of a baby spider monkey, a rare species in danger of extinction.

Zero fossil fuel energy, zero gas-guzzlers on the road, zero waste, zero CO2 emissions -- dozens of cities, regions and companies made "zero" pledges Thursday at a global climate summit in San Francisco.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday rejected the official death toll from last year's Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, saying it had been inflated to almost 3,000 as part of a ploy to make him look bad.

German police said Thursday that protesters bombarded officers with stones, Molotov cocktails and shots from catapults, as environmentalists living in treehouses sought to block the razing of a forest to make way for an open-cast coal mine.

As Hurricane Florence looms off the eastern United States and Typhoon Mangkhut threatens the Philippines, here are some facts about monster storms and what to expect as climate change supercharges our weather.