Journal De Bruxelles - News from Brussels, Belgium, Europe and the world

A jump in US retail sales boosted world markets Thursday even as investors mulled the US rates outlook, US President Donald Trump's tariffs and the future of Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell.

Syrian troops pulled out of the Druze heartland province of Sweida on orders from the Islamist-led government, following days of deadly clashes that killed more than 500 people, according to a war monitor.

Content moderators at the German branch of social media giant TikTok sounded the alarm Thursday about what they say is a plan to replace them with artificial intelligence, potentially putting platform users at risk.

Tadej Pogacar reclaimed the leader's yellow jersey at the Tour de France with an imperious stage 12 triumph on the Hautacam mountain in the Pyrenees on Thursday.

Ruth Chepngetich, the Kenyan who shattered the women's marathon world record last year, has been provisionally suspended on suspicion of doping, the Athletics Integrity Unit said on Thursday.

The EU executive is preparing a list of proposed restrictions on US services companies -- including tech giants -- should Brussels fail to strike a trade deal with Washington, European diplomats said on Thursday.

Reigning MotoGP world champion Jorge Martin said on Thursday he would stay with the Aprilia team for the 2026 season, dispelling doubts about his future.

An Israeli strike on Gaza's only Catholic church killed three people on Thursday, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said, as Israel said it "never targets" religious sites and regretted any harm to civilians.

Oleksandr Usyk has slammed claims that his age could be the decisive factor in Saturday's undisputed world heavyweight title clash with Daniel Dubois.

Noelle Maritz said Thursday that fervent home support will help Switzerland in their task of beating world champions Spain in the quarter-finals of Women's Euro 2025.

Dozens of Druze crowded the Israeli-controlled side of the armistice line in the occupied Golan Heights on Thursday, hoping to catch a glimpse of relatives on the Syrian-held side who might try to cross the barbed-wire frontier.

US health authorities are set Thursday to reassess Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), a treatment used by menopausal women around the world but long clouded by debate over its risks.

World number one Scottie Scheffler made a fine start to his quest for a first British Open with a three-under par round of 68 to sit one off the lead at a rain-swept Royal Portrush on Thursday.

A leading rights group investigating corruption in El Salvador has been forced into exile due to a crackdown by President Nayib Bukele's administration, two of its members said Thursday.

Shocked, sad but determined to dance, tens of thousands of electronic music enthusiasts started to arrive at Tomorrowland in Belgium Thursday, a day after the festival's main stage went up in flames.

Serie A champions Napoli announced Thursday the signing of Netherlands attacker Noa Lang from PSV Eindhoven.

Lee Westwood said the fact Royal Portrush was the host course inspired him to enter qualifying for this week's British Open, after firing an impressive first-round 69 on Thursday.

The British government said Thursday it would allow 16 year-olds to vote in general elections, a landmark change giving the UK one of the lowest voting ages worldwide.

Sri Lankan authorities returned six orphaned and injured elephants to the wild on Thursday after nursing them back to health under a long-running conservation project, officials said.

Russian lawmakers on Thursday advanced a bill that would outlaw opening or searching for content online judged "extremist", such as songs glorifying Ukraine and material by feminist rock band Pussy Riot.

Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine's new prime minister, represents a generation of young Ukrainian politicians who have steered their country through the turmoil of war.

Britain sought a firm commitment Thursday from Germany to change its law to help smash people smuggling gangs, as the two countries agreed to boost defence ties on the first official UK visit by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

If you believe the viral videos online, R. Kelly and Pope Leo XIV agree on one thing -- that Burkina Faso's junta chief, Captain Ibrahim Traore, is a fantastic leader.

An Israeli strike on Gaza's only Catholic church killed two people on Thursday, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said, as Israel said it "never targets" religious sites and regretted any harm to civilians.

A rare painting of Mahatma Gandhi, believed to be the only oil portrait that the Indian independence leader ever sat for, has sold at auction in the UK for £152,800 ($205,000).

France on Thursday formally handed back its last two military bases in Senegal, leaving Paris with no permanent camps in either west or central Africa.

Syrian troops pulled out of the Druze heartland province of Sweida Thursday on orders from the Islamist-led government, leaving bodies strewn on the street, AFP journalists reported from the provincial capital.

G20 chair South Africa warned Thursday that abandoning the rules-based global order and declining cooperation could derail 2030 development goals to end hunger, eradicate extreme poverty and fight climate change.

Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Novartis posted Thursday a 29 percent increase in first-half net income, at $7.6 billion -- and unveiled its new chief financial officer.

A strike on Gaza's only Catholic church injured several people on Thursday, the territory's civil defence agency and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said, as Italy's prime minister slammed "unacceptable" Israeli attacks on civilians.

A fire tore through a newly opened shopping mall in the eastern Iraqi city of Kut overnight, killing at least 61 people, authorities said Thursday, as grief-stricken families searched for missing relatives.

Taipei came to a brief standstill on Thursday when air raid sirens forced people off the streets and into underground shelters in a rehearsal for a Chinese attack.