Members of two left-leaning Dutch political parties have overwhelmingly voted to join forces as prepare for a November general election

By Daphne Psaledakis and Anna Voitenko WASHINGTON/KYIV (Reuters) -U.S. aid chief Samantha Power on Monday announced more than $500 million

Microsoft and British regulators sought more time from a court Monday as the U.S. tech company uses a rare second chance to overcome opposition to its $69 billion bid for video game maker Activision Blizzard

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Cremations in one of China’s most populous provinces surged by 72.7% year-on-year in the first quarter, local media

The death toll in an investigation linked to a Kenyan cult that practised starvation to "meet Jesus Christ" has exceeded 400 after 12 more bodies were found...

Three years after the pandemic brought Hollywood to a standstill, the film and TV industry has again ground to a halt

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited the United Arab Emirates as part of a swing through the Arab Gulf states focused on energy and commerce

Watch a live view of Kalyvia, Greece, where wildfires have sparked evacuations of coastal towns amid a summer heatwave. Smoke continues to rise across the sky on Monday 17 July, while sizzling temperatures have swept across Europe in recent days and the heatwave has taken hold across many popular holiday hotspots in the Mediterranean. Much of southern Europe has been in the high 30s, while some parts of southern Italy and areas in Greece have been in the low-to-mid 40s, which is eight to 12 degrees above the seasonal average for the region. The hottest temperature recorded was around 45C and the heatwave has caused health issues, leading to a strain on local medical services during a busy tourist period. Forecasters say in the coming days parts of Italy and Greece could push the 48.8C recorded in Syracuse, Sicily in August 2021, the highest temperature ever recorded in Europe. The hot weather is set to continue for at least another week. Read More Watch view of the Vatican as European temperatures soar to nearly 40C Mapped: Temperatures set to soar in Italy, Spain and Greece due to Charon heatwave Greece ‘like Africa’ as Europe melts in deadly heatwave forecast to smash record

By Stephen Nellis and Karen Freifeld (Reuters) -The U.S.-based Semiconductor Industry Association trade group on Monday called on the Biden

By Valerie Volcovici and David Stanway BEIJING (Reuters) -This week's visit by U.S. climate envoy John Kerry to China after

The possible link between repetitive heading and cognitive impairment in later life has again been highlighted in new data published on Monday. The University of Nottingham’s FOCUS study, co-funded by the Football Association and the Professional Footballers’ Association, gathered information on heading frequency from 459 retired players aged 45 and over. Players who recalled heading a ball 15 times or more per match or training session were found to be 3.53 times more likely to score below the test threshold in the cognitive status assessment than players who said they headed the ball up to five times, the FOCUS study found. Players who recalled heading a ball six to 15 times were also 2.71 times more likely to score below the test threshold than the lowest-frequency heading group. The study said its findings suggested “repetitive heading during a professional soccer career is associated with an increased risk of cognitive impairment in later life”. It concluded further study was required to establish the upper threshold for heading frequency to mitigate this risk. The FA has already taken steps to reduce the possible risk posed by repetitive exposure to heading by issuing guidance for players in children’s and adults’ game. Adults at grassroots and professional level are now advised to perform a maximum of 10 ‘higher force’ headers per week in training. As well as restrictions on heading in training for under-18s football, the FA is entering the second season of trialling the complete removal of heading in under-12s football. FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said on the FOCUS Study: “This study is another step in understanding any potential link between neurogenerative disorders and former professional footballers. “Since funding the FIELD study, we have continued to invest in research to gain a greater understanding of the area and potential risk factors. “More research is required to fully understand the issues and we welcome a global approach to do that. “Whilst there is no doubt of the overall benefit to health of playing football, by addressing potential risk factors whilst we continue to invest in medical research, we will ensure that millions can continue to enjoy our national sport.” The FIELD study found in 2019 that footballers were three and a half times more likely to die of neurodegenerative disease compared to age-matched members of the general population. The first part of the FOCUS study, published in June, found 2.8 per cent of retired professional footballers in its study reported medically diagnosed dementia and other neurodegenerative disease compared to 0.9 per cent of controls. This meant former professionals were found to be 3.46 times more likely to have neurodegenerative diseases compared to the control group. The study also showed retired footballers in the study were twice as likely to fall below established thresholds in some dementia testing than the general population. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Leon Taylor hails ‘coming of age’ moment for Team GB’s female divers Cameron Smith has no point to prove defending Open title he won before LIV move An in-depth look at the rapid rise of Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz