Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera

Residents react as they look at the damage caused by the landslide in Alausi, central Ecuador [Jose Jacome/EPA]

The mudslide happened late on Sunday night, burying dozens of homes, injuring 16 people and affecting around 500, the Risk Management Secretariat (SNGR) said in a statement. [Karen Toro/Reuters]

Rescuers work at the site of the landslide. [Karen Toro/Reuters]

The landslide buried a neighbourhood in the community of Alausi. [Jose Jacome/EPA]

Heavy rains have also destroyed roads, bridges, and other infrastructure across Ecuador. [Jose Jacome/EPA]

Rescuers look for survivors in Alausi. [Jose Jacome/EPA]

Ecuador’s Risk Management Secretariat said seven people remained missing hours after the landslide. [Jose Jacome/EPA]

Residents and rescuers have been ordered to evacuate the area due to the imminent risk of new landslides. [Dolores Ochoa/AP Photo]

Cuba hails legislative election as ‘victory’ despite criticism

Authorities say turnout surpassed 75 percent in weekend vote that did not include any opposition candidates.

A woman walks to cast her vote at a polling station in Cuba

This thing between Russia and Ukraine didn’t start with Putin’s invasion.

This thing goes back a thousand years, to the grand prince of Kyiv, Vladimir I, when he was baptised an Orthodox Christian.

Today, many Russian nationalists figure that makes Ukrainians one of them. But does it?

People have wanted a piece of Ukraine for centuries. In 1793, for instance, the empress of Russia annexed a lot of present-day Ukraine.

Early in the 20th century, Lenin made sure Ukraine became a founding republic of the Soviet Union. In 1991, as Gorbachev and Yeltsin watched the Soviet Union collapse, Ukraine declared independence.

Later, Putin showed up, and started eying Ukraine all over again.

But the Orange Revolution and EuroMaidan protests put the brakes on any plans the Russian president might have had.

In the aftermath, though, Putin annexed Crimea, started a low-grade war in eastern Ukraine and, in 2022, launched a full-on invasion.

Today, with the US and China on opposite sides of this thing, the stakes in this war—not just for Ukrainians, but for all of us—could not be higher.

Ecuador landslide kills at least 16, others reported missing

Seven people are missing as rescuers clear debris after wave of mud and debris swept through small town of Alausi.

South Africa shocked by prison break of rapist who faked death

Recent DNA tests reveal a body found in a prison and believed to be the serial sex offender is someone else.

A picture taken on July 08, 2021 shows an official entering a Correctional Centre, South Africa

Germany’s transport workers stage strike, demanding higher wages

Employees are demanding better pay and working conditions as inflation weakens living standards.

A protestor holds a placard reading 'Nancy (Nancy Feser, German Minister of Interior) give us the money' as people demonstrate in front of 'Landungsbruecken' at the harbour during a nationwide strike called by the German trade union Verdi over a wage dispute in Hamburg, Germany, March 27, 2023. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer

Kamala Harris begins Africa tour, announces security aid in Ghana

The US pledged help for Benin, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast and Togo to tackle violent groups and instability.

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, and Ghana President Nana Akufo-Addo, address a news conference in Accra, Ghana, Monday March 27, 2023. Harris is on a seven-day African visit that will also take her to Tanzania and Zambia [Misper Apawu/AP Photo]

Six killed in suicide attack near Afghan foreign ministry

At least six people killed and several others wounded in the second attack near the foreign ministry since January.

Russia-Ukraine war in maps and charts: Live Tracker

The Russian offensive enters its 393rd day, we track where battles are taking place and the human cost of war.

Mississippi faces ‘long road to recovery’ after deadly tornadoes

Residents of storm-stricken southern US state, one of nation’s poorest, are grappling with widespread devastation.

Kimberly Berry looks at what's left of her home after a massive storm in Mississippi

Alibaba founder Jack Ma makes rare public appearance in China

The return of China’s best-known entrepreneur may help quell concerns of private sector after regulatory crackdown.

Jack Ma, billionaire founder of Alibaba Group, waves

China’s rich flee crackdowns for ‘Asia’s Switzerland’ Singapore

Chinese wealth is rushing into the Southeast Asian city-state, prompting unease among some locals.

Black children six times likelier to be strip-searched: UK report

An investigation was launched after a Black 15-year-old girl was strip-searched at a London school in 2020.

A woman symbolically covers her eyes as she participates in a Black Lives Matter protest calling for an end to racial injustice, at the Parliament Square in central London

EXPLAINER

Here’s Israel’s judicial proposal that drew people to protest

Reports that PM Netanyahu will halt his plans, after weeks of protest and the sacking of his defence minister.

Women dressed as handmaidens from "The Handmaid's Tale" attend a demonstration after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed the defense minister and his nationalist coalition government presses on with its judicial overhaul, in Jerusalem, March 27, 2023.

Ex-Taiwan leader visits China, first such trip since civil war

Former President Ma Ying-jeou in Beijing as Taiwan’s ruling party accuses him of ‘endorsing’ Beijing’s Taiwan policy.

‘He running a gang?’: Pakistan minister slammed for Khan remarks

Rana Sanaullah’s remarks against Khan during a TV interview trigger a sharp reaction from the opposition PTI party.

Israel’s judicial crisis: How did we get here?

Israelis have been protesting for months against Netanyahu’s proposed judicial changes.

People attend a demonstration after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed the defense minister and his nationalist coalition government presses on with its judicial overhaul, in Tel Aviv, Israel, March 26, 2023. REUTERS/Nir Elias

Russia may demand compensation over Nord Stream blasts: Diplomat

Dmitry Birichevsky says Moscow intends to continue to insist on a comprehensive and open international probe.

Burkina Faso halts France 24 broadcasts after al-Qaeda interview

Paris and Ouagadougou’s relations have deteriorated sharply since Burkinabe military seized power in an October coup.

Israeli police fire water cannon in Tel Aviv to disperse demonstrators during a protest against plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to change the country's judicial system. [Ariel Schalit/AP Photo]

Tens of thousands of Israelis blocked Tel Aviv's Ayalon highway with a sea of blue-and-white Israeli flags and began lighting large fires. [Ohad Zwigenberg/AP Photo]

Demonstrations took place in Beersheba, Haifa, and Jerusalem where thousands of people gathered outside Netanyahu's private residence. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]

An uneasy calm returned to the country's streets after a raucous night of demonstrations. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]

The overhaul has sparked one of Israel’s gravest domestic crises, drawing widespread opposition from business leaders, officials, and even the country’s military. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]

Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets over the past three months to demonstrate against the plan in the largest demonstrations in the country's 75-year history. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]

Israeli police disperse demonstrators blocking a highway during the protest. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]

The US Department of State dismissed as 'completely false' claims repeated by Yair Netanyahu, the prime minister’s son, that the US government was financing the protests. [Ohad Zwigenberg/AP Photo]

Netanyahu’s government is pushing for a parliamentary vote this week on a centrepiece of the plan - a law that would give the governing coalition the final say over all judicial appointments. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]

Police scuffled with protesters and sprayed the crowd with water cannon. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]

Beyond the protests, universities across the country closed 'until further notice' in protest against the government's insistence to push forward with the judicial reform plan. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]

Defence Minister Yoav Gallant voiced concerns the divisions in society were hurting morale in the military and emboldening Israel’s enemies. [Oren Ziv/AP Photo]