Australia’s Labour Party was set to end almost a decade of conservative rule as the government was swept away in yesterday’s election by a wave of support for candidates who campaigned for more action on climate change and may hold the balance of power.

Heavy rains have caused widespread flooding in parts of Bangladesh and India, leaving millions stranded and at least 57 dead, officials said yesterday. In Bangladesh, about 2mn people have been marooned by the worst floods in the country’s northeast for nearly two decades.

President Joe Biden and his new South Korean counterpart agreed yesterday to hold bigger military drills and deploy more US weapons if necessary to deter North Korea, while offering to send Covid-19 vaccines and potentially meet Kim Jong-un.

On Japan’s bullet trains, dogs usually have to travel in a carrier, but yesterday they could stretch their paws and enjoy the scenery on a special pet-friendly express.

Charities running migrant rescue ships in the Mediterranean faced a pre-trial hearing in Sicily yesterday over alleged collusion with people traffickers after a controversial probe that involved mass wiretapping.

Hazel McCallion, 101, was recently reappointed to the board of Canada’s largest airport as she forges ahead with a career that has included being a city mayor for 36 years and playing professional hockey.

Russia stopped providing gas to Finland in an escalation of a row over energy payments with the West yesterday, and intensified an offensive in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.

Boeing’s new Starliner crew capsule docked for the first time with the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday, completing a major objective in a high stakes do-over test flight into orbit without astronauts aboard.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison conceded defeat in an election on Saturday and the opposition Labor Party was set to end almost a decade of conservative rule, possibly with the support of independents who campaigned for greener policies.

The Ukraine war can only be resolved through "diplomacy", Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday amid a deadlock in negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow.

The first shipments of infant formula from Europe to address a critical shortage in the United States should begin arriving this weekend, President Joe Biden said on Friday amid criticism of his administration's handling of the issue.

The United States and South Korea expressed concern Saturday over North Korea's spiralling Covid-19 outbreak and made a fresh offer of aid, they said in a statement as US President Joe Biden visited Seoul.