Britain's financial watchdog has urged banks to be vigilant about the risk of being used for criminal operations such as terrorist financing or money laundering in Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover.

Human Rights Watch has called on Saudi Arabia to stop laying off Yemeni employees, warning that this could force them to return to the humanitarian crisis in the war-torn country.

Yemen has been embroiled in conflict between the government, which is backed by a Saudi-led military coalition, and the Iran-allied Huthi rebels since 2014, creating what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

Global stock markets mostly rose Wednesday as investors weighed the economic impact of the spread of the coronavirus's delta variant.

Markets in London and Frankfurt opened higher. Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong advanced.

The Italian government vowed to crack down on demonstrators threatening to block train tracks throughout the country on Wednesday as a rule requiring COVID-19 tests or vaccines takes effect for long-distance domestic public transport.

In a bid to rein in transmission of infections now that many have returned from summer holidays, domestic travelers in Italy must now show a so-called "Green Pass." This certifies that they have received at least one dose of the vaccine more than 15 days ago, have tested negative in the past 48 hours or have recovered from COVID-19 in the past six months.

Israel's top diplomat in Dubai has said he is hopeful a deal to ship Emirati oil will clear environmental hurdles as trade booms after the groundbreaking opening of ties.

Ilan Sztulman Starosta, who heads Israel's first consulate in the UAE economic hub, told AFP that trade between the two countries would "easily" surpass $1 billion within a year if the Covid pandemic abates.

Israel on Wednesday approved a series of measures easing its blockade of the Gaza Strip, including opening the main commercial crossing with the Palestinian enclave to imports.

The announcement came a day after Israeli officials allowed the import of crucial construction material needed for the Gaza Strip's rebuilding following the recent conflict in May. Tensions have run high in recent weeks as Hamas activists have launched incendiary balloons into Israel, sparking a number of wildfires across the border, and staged a series of sometimes violent demonstrations along the border fence with Israel.

Hugely popular online games and celebrity culture in China are the latest targets in the ruling Communist Party's campaign to encourage the public to fall in line with its vision for a powerful, more wholesome country.

The message? Play less, study and work more.

Google said Tuesday that it is investing 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) by 2030 to expand its cloud computing infrastructure in Germany and to increase the use of renewable energy.

The internet giant said it plans to add new cloud computing centers in the Berlin region and in the town of Hanau, close to the DE-CIX data exchange in Frankfurt.

Ukraine's leader is traveling to the United States this week in hopes of bolstering security ties with Washington and persuading the administration to ramp up sanctions against a new Russian natural gas pipeline that bypasses his country.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called Washington's failure to block the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to Germany a grave political error, and he is expected to again raise the issue during his talks Wednesday with U.S. President Joe Biden.

Roula Mrad wanted to give her children a head start in life with a private education, but Lebanon's economic crisis is forcing her to move them to the substandard state system.