A German museum has been unexpectedly overrun by Taylor Swift fans because one of its paintings bears a striking resemblance to the opening scene of Swift's current No. 1 hit video, "The Fate of Ophelia."

Hundreds of additional visitors came to the Hessische Landesmuseum in the central German city of Wiesbaden over the weekend to admire the painting, with one family traveling from the northern city of Hamburg especially for the occasion, museum spokesperson Susanne Hirschmann told The Associated Press on Thursday.

An Israeli airstrike targeting the top leaders of Yemen's Houthi rebels in August killed the chief of staff of its military, officials said Thursday, further escalating tensions between the group and Israel even as a ceasefire holds in the Gaza Strip.

The Houthis have acknowledged the killing of Maj. Gen. Muhammad Abdul Karim al-Ghamari, who had been sanctioned by the United Nations over his role in the country's decadelong war.

A bomb exploded Thursday on a Syrian Defense Ministry bus in the country's east, killing four soldiers and wounding others, the country's oil minister said.

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu survived two votes of no-confidence Thursday that could have toppled his fragile new government and plunged France deeper into political chaos.

The National Assembly votes clear the way for the embattled Lecornu to pursue what could be an even greater challenge: getting a 2026 budget for the European Union's second-largest economy through Parliament's powerful but bitterly divided lower house before the end of the year.

The United Nations on Thursday urged Pakistan and Afghanistan to bring "a lasting end to hostilities" to protect civilians, after days of fighting killed dozens of people in both countries and injured hundreds more.

It's the deadliest crisis between the neighbors since 2021, when the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan following the collapse of the Western-backed government.

That's show business for you! Taylor Swift's 12th studio album, "The Life of a Showgirl," has officially sold 4.002 million equivalent album units — which includes album sales and streaming activity — in its first week in the U.S. That is the biggest first week in modern music history; at least, according to Luminate, the industry data and analytics company that began tracking sales in 1991.

Swift broke the record set by Adele's "25," which sold 3.378 million copies in its first week in 2015 in the U.S.

Leaf-peeping season has arrived in the Northeast and beyond, but weeks of drought have muted this year's autumn colors, and sent leaves fluttering to the ground earlier than usual.

Soaking in the fall foliage is an annual tradition in the New England states as well as areas such as the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina and Upper Peninsula of Michigan. As the days shorten and temperatures drop, chlorophyll in leaves breaks down, and they turn to the autumn tones of yellow, orange and red.

Play was briefly delayed in a World Cup qualifier between Wales and Belgium on Monday after a rat entered the field.

France missed a chance to secure a spot at the 2026 World Cup on Monday after being held to 2-2 at Iceland.

Three researchers who probed the process of business innovation won the Nobel memorial prize in economics Monday for explaining how new products and inventions promote economic growth and human welfare, even as they leave older companies in the dust.

Their work was credited with helping economists better understand how ideas and technology succeed by disrupting established ways — a process as old as steam locomotives replacing horse-drawn wagons and as contemporary as e-commerce shuttering shopping malls.