US, Iran ceasefire sees Israel's war goals left hanging

A shallow 4.9-magitude earthquake struck eastern Indonesia overnight, damaging dozens of homes and injuring multiple people, an official said Thursday. 

The jolt struck at a depth of 10.4 kilometres (6.46 miles), some 104 kilometres east of Maumere, East Nusa Tenggara, shortly before midnight on Wednesday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said. 

Two villages on the small island of Adonara felt the biggest impact, with more than 100 houses damaged and at least 20 people injured, according to local official Ismail Daton Ban. 

Indonesia and neighbouring countries experience frequent earthquakes due to their location in the Pacific "Ring of Fire" -- an arc of intense seismic activity stretching from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.

A 9.1-magnitude quake struck the westernmost Aceh province in 2004, causing a tsunami and killing more than 170,000 people in Indonesia.

Shallow quakes tend to be more damaging, with seismic waves travelling a shorter distance through the ground and reaching the surface with more energy.

str/dsa/mlr/lga

Nepal's ex-prime minister KP Sharma Oli and former interior minister Ramesh Lekhak have been released from custody after questioning for their alleged role in a deadly 2025 crackdown on protesters, police said Thursday.

Oli and Lekhak were arrested on March 28, a day after Prime Minister Balendra Shah took office following the country's first elections since the September uprising brought down Oli's government.

"Both former prime minister KP Sharma Oli and the former home minister have been released today on the condition that they will present themselves to the police when required," Kathmandu Police spokesperson Pawan Kumar Bhattarai told AFP.

Neither man has been formally charged, and both deny responsibility for the violence.

"Both of them have been handed over to their relatives," Bhattarai added.

The arrests came after an inquiry commission recommended prosecuting Oli -- a four-time prime minister -- and other officials for failing to stop security forces from opening fire on demonstrators.

The commission's report said statements given by the two men suggesting they did not know about the violence were part of a bid to shift responsibility and amounted to "criminal negligence".

Oli, 74, was taken to hospital since soon after his arrest for what police described as a procedural check-up, adding that he suffers from heart and kidney problems.

After their arrests, their wives filed habeas corpus petitions at the Supreme Court, challenging the legality of their detentions.

On Monday, Supreme Court spokesperson Arjun Prasad Koirala said that the petitions were dismissed but that the court had ordered authorities to complete the investigation without granting any additional extensions of detention.

Oli's CPN-UML party has described the arrests as "a vengeful act" and called for protests.

The youth-led uprising in September began in Kathmandu and was triggered by a brief social media ban.

It spread countrywide the following day, fueled by longstanding frustration over corruption and economic hardship.

Protesters set fire to the parliament building and offices and eventually toppled the government. 

aoj/pjm/fox

They took thousands of photographs and documented copious observations on their voyage around the Moon, but as they sped closer to home the Artemis astronauts said Wednesday they have barely started processing the extraordinary experience they shared.

"Human minds should not go through what these just went through," said NASA's Artemis II mission commander Reid Wiseman during a press conference from space.

"It is a true gift. And we have a lot that we just need to think about and journal and write, and then we'll get the full feeling of what we just went through."

The four astronauts -- Americans Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch as well as Canadian Jeremy Hansen -- set a record for distance from Earth during their lunar flyby.

The astronauts were speaking to news media less than two days before they are scheduled to splash down in the Pacific Ocean at the end of their 10-day mission around the Moon.

"I haven't even begun to process what we've been through," Glover said. "We've still got two more days, and riding a fireball through the atmosphere is profound as well."

"I'm going to be thinking about and talking about all of these things for the rest of my life."

Wiseman said the solar eclipse was particularly poignant: "I'm actually in chills right now just thinking about it, my palms are sweating."

- 'Fragile planet' -

Asked what they would miss about celestial life, Koch said "camaraderie."

"I will miss being this close with this many people and having a common purpose, a common mission, getting to work on it hard every day across hundreds of thousands of miles with a team on the ground," she said. 

"This sense of teamwork is something that you don't usually get, like, as an adult," Koch added. "I mean we are close like brothers and sisters. That is a privilege we will never have again."

But she said even though they've been sharing a small space -- and a malfunctioning toilet -- for more than a week now, "I don't think there's anything I would say... that I'm just ready to be over."

"This whole thing is a package. We can't explore deeper unless we are doing a few things that are inconvenient, unless we're making a few sacrifices, unless we're taking a few risks," she said.

"Those things are all worth it."

Koch said the team has "loved living in Orion," their spacecraft, even though it was tight quarters.

"It is bigger in microgravity," she said, but "we are bumping into each other 100 percent of the time."

Hansen said he witnessed things "I just had never even imagined" while flying around the Moon's far side.

But he said his perspective on life remains rooted: "We live on a fragile planet in the vacuum and the void of space."

"Our purpose on the planet as humans is to find joy... and lifting each other up by creating solutions together instead of destroying," Hansen told journalists from his vantage point cruising far above home.

"When you see it from out here, it doesn't change it. It just absolutely reaffirms that."

mdo/hol

Facing daily barrages of Russian drones and missiles, Ukraine has invited private companies to get their own air-defence systems in a bid to ease the burden on its military.

In an interview with AFP, a senior Ukrainian military official detailed the plan -- involving state authorisation and integration into the air force coordination system -- that has already attracted over a dozen companies.

The goal is to give businesses "the possibility, at their own expense and with their own employees, to protect themselves against aerial threats," Yuriy Myronenko, 48, inspector general at the Ukrainian defence ministry and the main architect of the project, told AFP.

Since it invaded in 2022, Russia has regularly launched hundreds of long-range Shahed drones, originally Iranian-designed but now mass-produced in Russia, at Ukraine.

Cheap but lethal, the drones target residential areas and critical infrastructure, sometimes hundreds of kilometres from the front line.

The largest attack since the start of the invasion came at the end of March, when Russia fired nearly 1,000 drones in 24 hours, along with missiles.

Ukraine's air-defence system -- which includes thousands of mobile anti-drone teams -- is fairly effective but cannot cover the entire country.

That is why the defence ministry has opted to partly outsource the task to private actors, including energy companies, frequently targeted by Russian strikes, logistics firms and security groups to protect their sites.

For now, the Ukrainian authorities have released few details of the plan.

But Myronenko told AFP that 16 firms have received the necessary authorisation and "some companies are already shooting down Shaheds".

- Interceptors -

"I think we are the first in the world to create such a system," Myronenko said, referring to the plan he said was already yielding results. 

"The first shoot-downs were two weeks ago," added the lieutenant-colonel who used to command a drone unit.

In the northeastern Kharkiv region, near the front line, one company -- unnamed for security reasons -- used heavy machine guns mounted on remote-controlled turrets to intercept several Russian drones.

After the defence ministry published a statement on the matter, "dozens" of other groups contacted the authorities to enquire about the scheme, Myronenko said.

"We don't expect private air defence to solve all our problems," he conceded. "We are forced to take this step because every opportunity to shoot down one, two, three, four, five Shaheds helps."

Companies wanting to take part must undergo a special authorisation process, including to rule out any Russian ties, before they can purchase weapons and train their staff.

They must also integrate into the air force's real-time coordination system, a key element of the sophisticated network that manages thousands of air-defence teams.

The special software allows commanders to see "who is shooting down what, with which systems, which teams," and to locate incoming targets, said Myronenko.  

For him, the future of private air defence lies in drone interceptors -- small unmanned aircraft designed to destroy incoming drones mid-air.

Under the pressure of relentless attacks, Ukraine has already developed around 50 different interceptor models, an industry that barely existed a year ago.

- No limits -

Intense competition is pushing manufacturers to improve effectiveness while slashing costs, sometimes to less than $1,000 per unit, making them "affordable", Myronenko said.

In the longer term, private companies could even be allowed to acquire weapons capable of downing cruise missiles that Russia frequently uses against Ukraine, such as man-portable air-defence systems (MANPADS), he added.

"We don't limit what protective means they can buy," he said, adding: "because we understand that the war will change in three months, six months."

The main goal set by defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov -- appointed in January -- for this year is to "detect 100 percent of all air targets", both drones and missiles, and "shoot down 95 percent of them," up from around 80 percent currently.

Myronenko called the target "absolutely realistic," citing the surge in interceptor production, with tens of thousands now being delivered to the army each month.

"We must clearly demonstrate (to Russia) that terrorising our population and civilian infrastructure will not work."

ant/blb/asy/mmp/rh

The Oklahoma City Thunder secured the Western Conference top seed and best record in the NBA with a 128-110 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.

Center Chet Holmgren poured in 30 points and pulled down 14 rebounds, and NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 20 points and 11 assists for the reigning champion Thunder, who notched a seventh straight victory to improve to 64-16 with two games left in the regular season.

Oklahoma City snagged the West's top seed for the third year running, and with the best overall record they'll have home court advantage throughout the playoffs.

"It's extremely important," said Holmgren, who added five assists, two steals and four blocked shots. "Just knowing that in the event of a game seven it's always going to be at home. We saw that in the playoffs last year twice, so it's extremely important.

"It's great to see that the hard work has paid off in one way, and now we've got more to do," Holmgren added.

OKC's win means the surging San Antonio Spurs are locked into the second seed in the West.

San Antonio cruised past the Portland Trail Blazers 112-101 despite the absence of superstar Victor Wembanyama -- who sat out with a bruised rib -- and Stephon Castle.

De'Aaron Fox scored 25 points to lead a balanced Spurs attack. Keldon Johnson scored 20 points off the bench and rookie reserve Carter Bryant contributed 17.

The Denver Nuggets tightened their grip on third place in the West, beating the Memphis Grizzlies 136-119 behind a triple-double of 14 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists from Nikola Jokic.

Three-time MVP Jokic posted his 34th triple-double of the season, the 198th of his career, to help Denver win their 10th straight -- their first double-digit win streak of his tenure.

Jamal Murray scored 26 points to lead eight Nuggets players to score in double figures as Denver edged further ahead of the injury-hit Los Angeles Lakers for the third seed.

Eastern Conference top seeds Detroit welcomed star guard Cade Cunningham back to action with a 137-111 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.

Cunningham, who had missed 11 games with a collapsed lung, scored 13 points and handed out 10 assists in just under 26 minutes on court.

Jalen Duren scored 21 points to lead the Pistons, who had seven players score in double figures.

The Pistons have locked up the top seed and home court advantage throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs, but coach J.B. Bickerstaff said the return of Cunningham and teammate Isaiah Stewart, sidelined since March 13 with a calf strain, was a welcome opportunity to build their fitness before the playoffs start on April 18.

"There is no way to replicate NBA basketball," Bickerstaff said.

- Cavs hold off Hawks -

In Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell scored 31 points, Evan Mobley added 22 points and 19 rebounds and James Harden chipped in 21 points as the Cavaliers held off the Atlanta Hawks 122-116, denying the Hawks' bid to clinch a playoff berth.

The Cavs, who notched a fourth straight win, are assured of a top-four seed in the East and are chasing the New York Knicks for third.

The Hawks are fifth in the East, but they are just half a game ahead of sixth-placed Toronto and could still slip into the play-in tournament that will see the seventh- through 10th-placed teams battle for the last two playoff spots.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 25 points and Jonathan Kuminga added 24 off the bench for Atlanta, who cut an 18-point fourth quarter deficit to two but could get no closer.

The Orlando Magic kept their hopes of escaping the play-in alive with a fourth straight win, beating the Minnesota Timberwolves 132-120.

bb/lga

At a remote monastery in North Macedonia's rugged west, Father Porfirij starts his day by feeding his large black Karaman sheepdogs, a breed that has guarded highland flocks for centuries.

In February, the Karaman -- a hardy mountain shepherd -- won provisional recognition as an indigenous breed from the International Canine Federation (FCI).

The decision caps years of work by breeders, scientists and Porfirij himself to define and preserve one of the region's oldest breeds.

"They are very nice dogs, very peaceful," the Orthodox priest told AFP, as he dished out the morning meal to the thick-coated hounds at their home in the centuries-old monastery.

Rooted in nomadic herding traditions, the Karaman is one of several breeds Balkan shepherds used to guard mountain-dwelling flocks against bears and wolves, a practice that dates back to Ottoman times.

- 'Created by the mountain' -

For locals, the sheepdogs' symbolism is deeply important.

The more famous Yugoslavian Shepherd, also known as the Sharplanina or Sharr, even features on the country's currency.

But as rural populations decline across the region, the pastoral life that sustained the Karaman is fading, leaving just 2,000 of them registered in the country, according to Ilija Karov, who heads a kennel club devoted to the breed.

Official recognition as a distinct breed was important because it "opened the borders" for the animal to become a pet abroad and bolster breeding efforts, Karov said.

It is also the first breed with its origins exclusively recognised in North Macedonia, with the Sharr shared with Serbia.

Porfirij was drawn to the campaign for the animal almost a decade ago, while living at the St Jovan Bigorski Monastery.

Using the monastic kennel as his base, the priest travelled through the mountains, collecting dogs with specific traits.

Although the Karaman is visually similar to the Sharr, scientists have found clear genetic and anatomical differences, which Karov says include its curled tail, lighter eyes and spoon-shaped paws.

It was important to define the breed only by characteristics "created by the mountain", he said.

"In Karaman, there is literally zero human intervention in relation to how it should look."

- 'Brighter future' -

The canines' powerful build and origins as mountain sheepdogs can be intimidating -- the Sharr has been banned in Denmark since 2010.

But Porfirij said any fears of the Karaman are unfounded and hopes there will be growing interest in the breed thanks to its loyalty and friendliness.

"Especially towards kids," he said, as two local children hugged a thick-furred dog behind him.

As young people leave and mountain communities age, Karov said the breed's future would rely more on urban pet owners than its pastoral past.

"The breed has a brighter future, even if that is more in the cities than in the mountains."

dd/al/jhb

A wolf that escaped from a zoo in South Korea remained at large Thursday, authorities said, prompting a local school to close over safety concerns as the search continued.

The male wolf -- born in 2024 and weighing about 30 kilogrammes — escaped from a zoo at a theme park in Daejeon, about 150 kilometres (93 miles) south of Seoul, on Wednesday, triggering a wide search in surrounding areas.

It remained at large Thursday, authorities said, with a nearby school closing for safety.

"Daejeon Sanseong Elementary School is closed today following the escape of a wolf from a zoo yesterday," a spokesperson for the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education told AFP.

More than 300 people -- including firefighters, police officers and military troops -- are taking part in the search operation, an official from the Daejeon Fire Headquarters said. 

"We deployed drone cameras early in the morning but had to pull them back due to the ongoing rain," he told AFP.

The wolf dug into the ground and damaged the zoo's installed fence before escaping, according to the fire official. 

Images released by local media showed it wandering in the middle of a road.

In 2023, a male zebra became a global sensation after escaping from a zoo in Seoul and was seen roaming through the streets. 

The zebra — named Sero — was eventually cornered in a narrow alley, safely tranquilised and returned to his enclosure without any injuries.

kjk/cdl/lga

Observers and NGOs have raised concerns about Sunday's Hungarian presidential election taking place on an "uneven playing field" as nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban faces popular challenger Peter Magyar.

During Orban's 16-year tenure, his ruling coalition has used its supermajority to overhaul the electoral system and leverage state resources to campaign, while his business allies radically changed the media environment.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has given increasingly critical reports on elections after noting in 2014 that Orban's ruling party enjoyed an "undue advantage".

For the second time in a row, the OSCE has deployed a full observation mission for the elections, which marks only the third time ever of such a mission in an EU member state.

Orban has touted the country's "very strong" democracy, saying his government "very strongly believes in... competition in politics".

- Advantage at polls -

Analysts say Orban could still retain his majority, even if his Fidesz-KNDP alliance loses the popular vote by three or four percent due to the 2011 overhaul of the electoral system and subsequent redrawing of the constituency map.

Preferential mandates for ethnic minorities, which require substantially fewer votes for a parliamentary seat, could also benefit his alliance, as representatives of both the German and the Roma minorities usually speak out in support of the ruling coalition.

Hungarians in neighbouring countries -- many grateful to Orban for offering simplified naturalisation under a 2010 law -- are allowed to vote by mail, unlike emigrants, who are generally critical of the nationalist leader.

Rights groups warned that outdated voter rolls and lax ballot security risk enabling mail-in ballots cast for deceased individuals.

Manipulation concerns are amplified by the fact that in Romania and Serbia Orban-allied parties collect the votes of Hungarians there.

- Media control -

Since Orban's return to power in 2010, many independent media outlets have shut down, while others have been bought by his business allies and turned into pro-Fidesz organs.

Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) estimates that 80 percent of Hungary's press is controlled by "oligarchs" tied to the governing coalition and receive almost all state advertising money.

Critics accuse these outlets of unquestioningly echoing the government's narrative, along with the state media.

An 11-month study conducted last year by liberal Republikon Institute showed the public television's main news broadcast depicted Orban positively 95 percent of the time, while his challenger, Magyar, was portrayed in a negative context 96 percent of the time.

Orban's government has repeatedly said that it doesn't interfere in the media.

- Campaigning on taxpayers' money  -

Orban is also accused of leveraging state resources to help his re-election bid, while the government has said it has a duty to "inform" people, even during campaigns.

In the lead-up to the vote, Orban's party used multiple state mailing lists, including that of the tax authority, to spread his campaign messages.

The government has also conducted an extensive, taxpayer-financed media blitz advertising its anti-Ukraine positions, such as opposition to the country joining the EU, with the latest billboards featuring the nationalist premier's face, urging Hungarians to "stand together". 

Some state-owned companies, including electricity distributor MVM, have also paid for outdoor advertisement reinforcing Orban's key messages on energy.

The government also allocated millions of euros to dozens of local NGOs linked to the ruling party, some of them sharing office space with Fidesz, a 2024 investigation by conservative site Valasz Online found.

Media have reported that several of these associations have been distributing pamphlets in support of ruling party candidates during this campaign.

ros/jza/cw/lga

US President Donald Trump said late Wednesday that US forces deployed near Iran would remain stationed in the area until a "real agreement" is reached, as Washington enters a fragile two-week ceasefire with Tehran.

The truce reached Tuesday showed signs of unravelling, with Israel bombarding Lebanon and Washington contradicting some of Iran's demands to end the war ahead of planned talks.

"All U.S. Ships, Aircraft, and Military Personnel, with additional Ammunition, Weaponry, and anything else that is appropriate and necessary for the lethal prosecution and destruction of an already substantially degraded Enemy, will remain in place in, and around, Iran, until such time as the REAL AGREEMENT reached is fully complied with," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

While he said a deal falling through was "highly unlikely," Trump threatened to revert to "bigger, and better, and stronger" strikes if an agreement was not reached.

"In the meantime our great Military is Loading Up and Resting, looking forward, actually, to its next Conquest. AMERICA IS BACK!" Trump wrote.

Iran agreed to reopen the vital thoroughfare during the two-week truce, but said it would maintain "dominion" over it.

The Strait of Hormuz is a key chokepoint through which one-fifth of the world's oil passes in peacetime.

In a Farsi-language release of demands circulated by Iranian state media, the Islamic republic also insisted that Washington accept its uranium enrichment programme.

That was not included in Iran's demands released via the UN, and Trump has said the matter of enrichment would be "taken care of" in any deal.

Ahead of planned negotiations in Pakistan, Trump said Iran will have "no nuclear weapons" and the "Strait of Hormuz WILL BE OPEN & SAFE."

jgc-aks/hol/fox

In the Romanian town of Odorheiu Secuiesc, where most of the population are ethnic Hungarians, Teresia Hadhazi wants her vote to help nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban win again in Sunday's parliamentary election across the border.

"We want Viktor Orban to stay on, because he's exactly the kind of person we need. He has to lead Hungary and lead us as well," the 71-year-old told AFP.

"Our fate depends on this," she said after casting her ballot in the town in central Romania's Transylvanian region ahead of Sunday's main vote.

Orban -- in power since 2010 but facing an unprecedented challenge in this election -- has long courted the vote of ethnic Hungarians across the border.

Besides investing in schools, churches and football academies or stadiums in Transylvania, he has also simplified procedures to obtain Hungarian citizenship, so many local people have dual citizenship.

In February, in a letter sent by mail to potential voters which displayed his photo, Orban urged the diaspora to participate in the vote, mentioning "an alliance" with them which "has yielded renovated schools and churches".

"We receive help" from Hungary, so "it is important" to vote, Erzsebet Simo, 70, said, adding that she roots for Orban's Fidesz party.

Other Fidesz supporters in Romania praised the party for its "patriotism", income tax exemption for mothers or its hard stance on Ukraine. Orban's government opposes military aid for Ukraine and its bid to join the EU.

- Fraud concerns -

The estimated one million ethnic Hungarians in Romania mostly live in the Transylvania region, which became part of Romania after the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian empire.

In Odorheiu Secuiesc, known as Szekelyudvarhely in Hungarian, 90 percent of the 30,000 inhabitants belong to the Hungarian minority.

Hungarian is the language most likely to be heard in streets and shops in the lively city, which sports well-preserved historical buildings.

Roughly 300,000 Hungarian citizens across Romania are registered to vote. Like in Serbia, Slovakia and Ukraine, they receive envelopes with the ballot to cast it remotely.

In Romania, they can take these to local offices of the Hungarian ethnic party UDMR or NGOs linked to it before April 12.

Romanian NGO Declic criticised the procedure as being "vulnerable to fraud and external interference".

Several UDMR leaders have supported Orban in recent weeks, including party leader Kelemen Hunor, who praised the Hungarian premier's "coherent and responsible national policy" regarding Hungarian minorities living abroad.

He said more than 90 percent of voters in Romania will pick Fidesz, according to surveys.

Though the choice influences only one or two seats in the 199-seat parliament, it is an "emotional" vote for those who do not feel fully respected in Romania, said Farcadi Botond, editor in chief at the local daily newspaper Haromszek, dedicated to the Hungarian community. 

Through the simplified procedure to obtain Hungarian citizenship, Orban offered them "a sense of moral satisfaction" and "succeeded in reuniting them with the motherland", Botond added.

Last year, however, Orban angered many when he gave his tacit support to a far-right eurosceptic candidate in Romania's presidential election.

Religious and political leaders saw the candidate, who lost out to a centrist, as a threat to minority rights.

- Vote for 'change' -

Some people told AFP they would not vote for Orban's party, which is battling former-government-insider-turned-opposition-leader Peter Magyar.

"I voted with the intention of helping the opposition in Hungary take power and bring about change in the country," said Sandor Kolumban, 39, the owner of an IT company in Odorheiu Secuiesc.

A Fidesz voter in the past, he complained about the party's moves in recent years in education, forcing people to emigrate and political corruption.

He said many only watch official Hungarian TV channels and do not access independent media with "news that would be uncomfortable for Fidesz".

First time voter Hunor Toth, a 25-year-old journalist, also criticised the Orban government, saying it was "important for a real change to take place, a change in the stagnant leadership". 

ani/jza/tw/lga