The groundwater that supplies farms, homes, industries and cities is being depleted across the world, and in many places faster than in the past 40 years, according to a new study that calls for urgency in addressing the depletion.

The declines were most notable in dry regions with extensive cropland, said researchers whose work was published Wednesday in the journal Nature. On the plus side: they found several examples of aquifers that were helped to recover by changes in policy or water management, they said.

Jurgen Klopp shocked the soccer world by announcing he will step down as Liverpool manager at the end of this season.

Klopp has led Liverpool to a Champions League title and Premier League championship in his tenure after being hired in October 2015.

As Paris Couture Week drew to a close, Fendi offered a hypnotic blend of minimalist futurism and homage to the legendary Karl Lagerfeld.

Zendaya and Reese Witherspoon were among luminaries who caused snaking traffic and hyperbolic tussles to witness artistic director Kim Jones deliver what was a memorable collection with frothing, organic fringing inside the gilded venue of the Palais Brongniart. It not only revered the past but embraced a forward-thinking ethos.

The U.N. trade body has sounded an alarm that global trade is being disrupted by attacks in the Red Sea, the war in Ukraine, and low water levels in the Panama Canal.

Jan Hoffmann, a trade expert at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development known as UNCTAD, warned that shipping costs have already surged and energy and food costs are being affected, raising inflation risks.

Protesting farmers shut down long stretches of some of France's major highways again on Friday, using their tractors to block and slow traffic and squeeze the government ever more tightly to cede to their demands that growing and rearing food should be made easier and more lucrative.

Their spreading movement for better renumeration for their produce, less red tape and lower costs, and protection against cheap imports is increasingly becoming a major crisis for the government, with echoes of the 2018-2019 yellow vest demonstrations against economic injustice that rocked the first term of President Emmanuel Macron and lastingly dented his popularity.

As Russia and Ukraine trade accusations over this week's crash of a Russian military transport plane, one thing is clear: families' fears that future prisoner exchanges may be in danger and loved ones could stay imprisoned.

Even the basic facts are being debated. Russian officials accused Kyiv of shooting down the plane Wednesday and claimed that 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war were on board as they headed for a prisoner swap. The Ukrainian side said it had no evidence of POWs and that Russia is just playing with Ukrainians' psyche. It did say, however, that an exchange had been due to take place on Wednesday.

Jannik Sinner ended 10-time champion Novak Djokovic's perfect semifinal record at the Australian Open, earning a place in a Grand Slam final for the first time on the back of Friday's commanding win.

The 22-year-old Italian broke Djokovic's serve twice in each of the first two sets but missed a match point in the third set before holding on for a 6-1, 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-3 victory. Djokovic had won all 10 semifinals and all 10 finals he'd played previously on Rod Laver Arena.

Thousands of people lined a ceremonial boulevard in the heart of India's capital on Friday to watch a colorful parade showcasing the country's military power and cultural heritage to mark its 75th Republic Day.

French President Emmanuel Macron attended the parade as the chief guest at the celebration of the adoption of the country's Constitution on Jan. 26, 1950, following India's independence from British colonial rule.

Colombia's government has declared a disaster and asked for international help to combat raging wildfires that are expected to worsen in coming days due to warm, dry conditions associated with the El Niño weather phenomenon.

Officials raised the number of fires from 25 to 31, and said nine of them were under control. They did not order mandatory evacuations despite some fires burning in the mountains that surround some municipalities.

China's leaders launched a barrage of new policies this week to prop up languishing financial markets and rekindle growth in the world's second-largest economy.

The moves to support lending and spending with billions of dollars of fresh cash gathered pace when the central bank cut bank reserve requirements and issued new rules to encourage banks to lend more to property companies.