ust two weeks before going to trial, Elon Musk has agreed to follow through with his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter. The billionaire entrepreneur had tried to call off the takeover just days after announcing it in April. Twitter shares soared as the news was confirmed.

The German government says some people it wanted to evacuate after the Taliban took power in Afghanistan have since died. Some deaths were violent, but none seemed linked to any cooperation with Germany, it said.

In Afghanistan, girls are at increasing risk of child marriage. As hunger and poverty surge, families are offering their underage girls, some very young, to older men in exchange for money. Volunteers from Too Young to Wed are helping girls reunite with their parents.

A deadly attack on a school van in Pakistan's Swat Valley has sparked fears of a resurgence in Taliban activity in the region. Thousands have protested against the possible return of a militant presence to Swat.

The world's richest man Elon Musk has completed his $44 billion takeover of Twitter, and tweeted: "The bird is freed".

Employees are bracing for bad news after receiving a memo about job cuts, with every second worker reportedly at risk of being laid off. Elon Musk has already fired top executives since buying the social media giant.

The UN has said it is "concerned" after five activists, including a woman, were detained and subjected to body searches in the Afghan capital during the launch of a women's rights organization.

German Economy Minister Robert Habeck wants to stop the sale of a chip production plant to a Chinese investor. The Green Party politician has expressed concern about giving China control over key infrastructure.

Afghanistan's ultra-conservative authorities have ordered that women should no longer be allowed to enter amusement parks. The decree comes after a wider announcement restricting access to public spaces.

Gyms and public baths are now also off limits to Afghan women, the Taliban confirmed Sunday, days after banning them from parks and funfairs.

When the Taliban seized power in 2021, many people, including some Western diplomats, expected the fundamentalist group to rule differently this time around. A year later, Afghanistan's rulers have proven them wrong.

The Daesh (ISIL or ISIS) terrorist group claimed responsibility for an attack on Pakistan's embassy in the Afghan capital Kabul on Friday, a statement carried by one of the group's affiliated channels on Telegram said on Sunday.