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An aggressive England dominated from start to finish to thrash New Zealand by 323 runs on Sunday in the second Test and emphatically win the series with a match to go.

A Syria war monitor said that President Bashar al-Assad has left the country, after losing swathes of territory to a lightning offensive led by an Islamist-led rebel coalition that said it entered Damascus on Sunday.

Ruby slippers worn by actor Judy Garland in "The Wizard of Oz" went under the hammer Saturday, and the winning price was over the rainbow -- a record $32.5 million, the auction house said.

China's retaliatory export controls could take a toll on the growing US clean energy sector and its defense industry, analysts say, as a trade tussle escalates between the world's two biggest economies.

They come with big budgets, are wrapped in sentimentality and boost company revenues -- Britain's latest instalment of eagerly awaited Christmas television advertisements has a nation tuned in.

Joe Root raced to a century before England's methodical bowlers reduced New Zealand to 199-6 on Sunday to put the visitors on course for a series-clinching win in the second Test.

Gunfire rang out in the Syrian capital Sunday, residents told AFP, as Islamist-led rebels said they were "entering Damascus" in a lightning offensive against President Bashar al-Assad's forces.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's future remained uncertain Sunday after surviving an impeachment vote over his brief imposition of martial law.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday called a deliberately lit fire in a Melbourne synagogue an act of "terrorism" and warned about the "worrying rise in anti-Semitism" in Australia.

Taylor Swift's record-shattering "Eras Tour" is set to end on Sunday in Vancouver with the final performance of a cultural phenomenon that has easily become the highest-grossing musical tour in history.

Forget Netflix and telenovelas. In communist Cuba, many people still turn to the humble radio for their daily drama fix.

Islamist-led rebels announced Sunday they had captured the strategic city of Homs, on the way towards Damascus where Syria's embattled government said it was setting up an impenetrable security cordon.

South Korea's former defence minister was arrested Sunday, local media reported, a day after President Yoon Suk Yeol survived an impeachment vote over his calamitous attempt to impose martial law.

Joe Root raced to a century before England's bowlers reduced New Zealand to 59-4 as the visitors surged towards a series-clinching victory in the second Test on Sunday.

American football, in the form of flag football, will make its Olympic debut in Los Angeles in 2028 and the sport's governing body are already working to make sure the NFL-backed sport remains in the Games for the long term.

The Los Angeles Galaxy defeated the New York Red Bulls 2-1 to clinch a record-extending sixth MLS Cup crown on Saturday, ending a decade-long title drought for the Major League Soccer glamour club.

Roma thrashed Lecce 4-1 in Serie A on Saturday to give Claudio Ranieri his first victory since being appointed coach in mid-November.

Jude Bellingham guided champions Real Madrid to a comfortable 3-0 victory at Girona on Saturday in La Liga, with Kylian Mbappe also on the scoresheet after two high-profile penalty misses in recent games.

Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner will be sidelined indefinitely with a torn right oblique muscle, the NBA team said Saturday, a major blow for a club already missing star Paolo Banchero with the same injury.

Britain's leader Keir Starmer makes his first trip to the Gulf as prime minister from Sunday, seeking to attract investment from the region's oil-rich states, Downing Street announced.

Justin Thomas fired six birdies in a six-under par 66 on Saturday to grab a one-shot lead over world number one Scottie Scheffler heading into the final round of the Tiger Woods-hosted Hero World Challenge golf tournament.

Toulon held on despite a late red card to win 24-14 at the Stormers in their opening Pool 4 match in the rugby Champions Cup.

Jude Bellingham inspired champions Real Madrid to a comfortable 3-0 victory at Girona on Saturday in La Liga, with Kylian Mbappe also on the scoresheet.

Evan Mobley scored a career-high 41 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Cleveland Cavaliers improved their NBA-best record with a dominant 116-102 victory over the depleted Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.

A war monitor said late Saturday that Islamist-led rebels had entered the strategic city of Homs, on the way towards Damascus where Syria's embattled government said it was setting up an impenetrable security cordon.

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday insisted at a meeting with US President-elect Donald Trump that any settlement with Russia after its invasion of Ukraine had to be "just", as fears grow in Kyiv on the position of the incoming administration.

Ruben Amorim's Manchester United honeymoon is truly over after Nottingham Forest inflicted a second straight Premier League defeat on his side on Saturday while Manchester City stumbled again.

Romania's far-right candidate Calin Georgescu on Saturday urged voters to go to polling stations despite the country's top court having scrapped the presidential elections over alleged irregularities amid claims of Russian interference.

French officials solved an awkward seating dilemma at the Notre Dame cathedral re-opening on Saturday by placing First Lady Brigitte Macron between US President-elect Donald Trump and Joe Biden's wife and daughter in the front row at the ceremony.

Reigning World Cup champion Marco Odermatt clinched his first win of the season taking top spot in the super-G at Beaver Creek on Saturday.

France celebrated the re-opening of Notre Dame cathedral on Saturday at a special church service that featured a standing ovation for the firefighters who saved the 12th-century landmark from destruction during a 2019 blaze.

Nottingham Forest condemned Manchester United to their second straight Premier League defeat on Saturday, beating Ruben Amorim's men 3-2 at Old Trafford.