Monaco Journal - News from Monaco, Monte-Carlo and the world

Rafael Nadal eased into the last 16 of the Italian Open on Wednesday with a straightforward 6-3, 6-1 win over John Isner, while Alexander Zverev beat Sebastian Baez.

The son of the late Philippines dictator Ferdinand Marcos on Wednesday claimed victory in the presidential election, vowing to be a leader "for all Filipinos", his spokesman said.

Soldiers stood behind wrought-iron barricades and next to burnt-out buses in the heart of Sri Lanka's capital Colombo Wednesday, guarding almost deserted streets after a convulsion of deadly clashes.

The renaissance of Italian men's tennis has pleased no one more than a legend of the sport, Nicola Pietrangeli, who told AFP he believes Jannik Sinner will be in the top five by the end of the year.

The United States staging a first Rugby World Cup would be a "game-changer" for the sport in the country, according to Eagles international Nick Civetta.

European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde hinted Wednesday at a first interest rate hike in July to tackle soaring inflation, echoing the actions of other major central banks and heralding the end of the eurozone's cheap money era.

Cyber experts are urging Africa to up its game in the face of criminals targeting the continent's fast-growing internet economy with scams and theft.

Frank Wilczek, the Nobel-winning theoretical physicist whose research transformed humanity's understanding of the fundamental forces of nature, was announced Wednesday as the winner of the prestigious 2022 Templeton Prize.

Thousands of South Koreans poured into the presidential Blue House in leafy northern Seoul on Wednesday, after President Yoon Suk-yeol made good on a campaign promise to return the once-fortified compound to the people.

China's censors scrambled to wipe out online debate over its zero-Covid strategy on Wednesday after the World Health Organisation (WHO) criticised the country's hardline approach to crushing the virus.

Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum is now in contention to become England's new Test head coach, according to British media reports.

Solomon Islands' prime minister dismissed criticism of a new maritime investment deal with China on Wednesday, saying there was nothing "sinister" in the draft agreement.

A Hong Kong court ruled on Wednesday that prosecutors could label organisers of the city's annual Tiananmen vigil "foreign agents" without having to reveal who the group is accused of working for.

When Biniam Girmay chased Mathieu van de Poel across the line in the opening stage of the Giro d'Italia last weekend, he offered further proof that Eritrea is an African hotbed of cycling.

Ukraine said Wednesday it was pushing Russian troops away from the country's second city Kharkiv but facing stiff resistance, as Washington predicted that Vladimir Putin was ready for a long war.

"The Rock", the biggest white diamond ever to be sold at auction, will go under the hammer in Geneva on Wednesday and could fetch up to $30 million -- or more.

All heatwaves today bear the unmistakable and measurable fingerprint of global warming, top experts on quantifying the impact of climate change on extreme weather said Wednesday.

Malaysia's central bank raised its key interest rate on Wednesday for the first time since 2020, in a surprise move aimed at taming inflation.

Out-of-form Virat Kohli says that he has a sure-fire way of drowning out his growing number of critics -- he just mutes the television.

India has relaxed environmental compliance rules for coal mines seeking to ramp up production as power outages exacerbate a sweltering heatwave, a government notice showed.

Asian stocks were mixed on Wednesday, following a volatile day on Wall Street with investors concerned about surging inflation and see-sawing crude prices.

A Hong Kong scholar who helped run a now-disbanded defence fund for democracy protesters was arrested at the airport under the national security law, two legal sourcestold AFP on Wednesday.

A Japanese town that accidentally sent a resident $360,000 in financial aid said on Wednesday it has been forced to file a lawsuit after the recipient refused to return the funds.

Sri Lankan police have been ordered to go on the offensive and use live ammunition to prevent "anarchy", a top official told AFP Wednesday after another night of sporadic arson attacks.

Despite his Oxford education and jet-set lifestyle, the Philippines's president-elect Ferdinand Marcos Junior sailed to victory this week as a champion of the poor.

The son of the late Philippines dictator Ferdinand Marcos on Wednesday claimed victory in the presidential election, vowing to be a leader "for all Filipinos", his spokesman said.

Veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh was killed by Israeli troops Wednesday as she covered a raid on Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, the network and Palestinian witnesses said.

The casing of a cluster munition stood upright like a fence pole not far from a team of Ukrainian medics rushing a bleeding soldier from the eastern front.

Cambodian fishermen on the Mekong River got a shock when they inadvertently hooked an endangered giant freshwater stingray four metres long and weighing 180 kilos, scientists said on Wednesday.

Badminton world number one Akane Yamaguchi suffered a stunning Thomas and Uber Cup defeat on Wednesday at the hands of a teenage rookie ranked more than 300 places below her.

The fate of New Zealand Rugby's contentious deal with a US private equity firm should be known within a month, after a special general meeting was called by the sport's bosses on Wednesday.

Ferdinand Marcos Junior visited the grave of his dictator father hours after his thumping victory in the Philippine presidential election, his team said Wednesday, posting photos of the intimate moment on social media.