The National Times - News around the clock from Sydney, Australia and around the world

Thousands of people marched through Madrid on Saturday to protest the eviction earlier this week of an 87-year-old woman from her lifelong home, calling for greater protection for tenants.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused Europe Saturday of "doing everything" to thwart talks to resolve the conflict between Moscow and Kyiv, in an outspoken UN speech in which he vowed his country would achieve its Ukraine aims.

Zoe Harrison was England's heroine with a last-gasp try as the women's rugby world champions returned to winning ways with a dramatic 26-19 WXV victory over New Zealand at Twickenham on Saturday.

Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said on Saturday that the club were confident they could prove their "innocence" after reportedly being found guilty on all but one of 115 charges for breaching Premier League financial rules.

US President Donald Trump on Saturday rejected a truce deal proposed by Iran that Tehran said could have reopened the Strait of Hormuz to shipping within a week.

Germany defender Jonathan Tah praised Jurgen Klopp's instant impact, telling reporters on Saturday that the squad was "ready to walk through fire" for the coach after his first team talk.

Jordan Cox accepts he will have "big shoes to fill" should he replace Jos Buttler for England's final match of a turbulent home season when they face Sri Lanka at the Oval on Sunday.

Russian and Ukrainian strikes killed at least 16 people over the last 24 hours, both countries said Saturday, with the war still raging in its fifth year.

Perpignan, who survived a relegation playoff last season, upset Champions Cup holders Bordeaux-Begles 38–25 on Saturday in the opening match of round four of the French Top 14.

Heavy rain and strong winds battered the northeastern United States on Saturday as an unusually powerful autumn storm intensified, forcing the cancelation of hundreds of flights and leaving tens of thousands of people without power.

A deadly knife attack at a Polish abbey by a 31-year-old Ukrainian citizen has reignited online hate following months of strained relations between the otherwise close allies.

Bangkok authorities declared a flood disaster across the Thai capital on Saturday after almost 48 hours of heavy rain left homes, shops and roads waterlogged and residents wading through waist-deep water.

World championship leader Kimi Antonelli said his performance in Saturday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix was his worst of the year after victorious Mercedes team-mate George Russell trimmed his lead to 66 points.

World champion Lando Norris on Saturday said Alpine's Franco Colapinto should face a race ban for causing the crash that took him out of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Leylah Fernandez reached her first WTA final of the year after the Canadian recovered from a poor start to beat Poland's Maja Chwalinska in the Singapore Tennis Open on Saturday.

Victorious George Russell said he "has rediscovered himself" and will seek to win every race and pile pressure on his championship-leading Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli.

A giant clay sculpture of Pope Leo XIV's head takes shape in a workshop in Peru's capital, as the Andean nation prepares for the pontiff's visit in November.

South Korea found their composure when it mattered most to win the women's basketball gold at the Asian Games, surviving a huge scare to beat hosts Japan 75-70 in Saturday's final.

Elina Svitolina and Anhelina Kalinina secured a historic first appearance for Ukraine in the Billie Jean King Cup final by knocking out two-time defending champions Italy in dominant style in Shenzhen, China, on Saturday.

George Russell resisted a late charge from Max Verstappen to claim his first lights-to-flag victory with a composed drive for Mercedes in Saturday's thrilling Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Pope Leo XIV on Saturday celebrated an open-air mass in front of hundreds of thousands of faithful in Paris after riding in the popemobile along the iconic Champs Elysees to the cheers of vast crowds clutching French and Vatican flags.

George Russell held off Max Verstappen by one-tenth of a second to win a crash-filled Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku on Saturday and cut team-mate Kimi Antonelli's championship lead.

Munich was on Saturday selected ahead of the Cologne/Rhine-Ruhr region by the German Olympic Committee (DOSB) as part of a bid to host the 2036, 2040 or 2044 Summer Games.

Virat Kohli said Saturday that next year's ODI World Cup will be his last, with the India batting great determined to lift the trophy one more time.

Former France international Willy Sagnol has been sacked as Georgia coach, the country's football federation announced Saturday.

Pope Leo XIV rode down the French capital's iconic Champs-Elysees avenue in his popemobile on Saturday to the cheers of huge crowds of faithful, ahead of a giant open-air mass.

Former Manchester City chairman David Bernstein said the club could face potentially "drastic" sanctions after reportedly being found guilty on all but one of 115 charges for breaching Premier League financial rules.

Alexia Putellas may be known as the 'Queen' of Spanish football but after 14 trophy-laden years at Barcelona, she decided this summer to head off in search of a new challenge.

An angry Tyson Fury said Saturday his long-awaited 'Battle of Britain' bout with fellow former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua is at risk because of a row between rival promoters.

The rarely performed Italian opera "Mefistofele" will return to Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre on Saturday for the first time in almost 120 years.

Zhang Ziyu played a starring role to drag China to women's basketball bronze at the Asian Games on Saturday, with her coach predicting the teenager standing 223cm (7ft 4in) will one day be "invincible".

Pope Leo XIV was on Saturday to celebrate an open-air mass for hundreds of thousands of believers on the Champs Elysees in Paris, after saying it was possible to "live together in dignity and peace".