WASHINGTON, United States — The IMF cut its 2026 global growth projection again Wednesday, flagging "uncertainty and risks" to the economic outlook as fighting reignited in the Middle East.Global economic growth is estimated at 3.0 per cent this year, said the International Monetary Fund, down from»»»

France's far-right figurehead Marine Le Pen launched her fourth presidential campaign in the small town of La Flèche in the country's Loire Valley Wednesday after an appeals court cleared her to run for office – despite upholding her conviction for misusing millions of euros in public funds. French»»»

Doha: Nearly 900 snakes, including venomous cobras, escaped from a snake farm in southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region after floodwaters destroyed the facility, with some residents reportedly bitten, according to local media reports. The incident occurred on July 6 after heavy rainfall »»»

These days, every official visit, every summit that involves the President of the United States seems like a mad scramble to keep the leader of the Atlantic Alliance on board. But what if it’s just too late? Last month, leaders left France thanking their lucky stars that Donald Trump hadn’t taken a»»»

US President Donald Trump threatened Wednesday to halt all trade with Spain amid a bitter row over Madrid's defence spending and failure to help Washington with the Iran war. "Spain is a wasted cause. We don't want to do any trade business with Spain anymore," Trump said as he arrived at a NATO sum»»»

LONDON: Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk made quick work of Italy’s 2024 runner-up Jasmine Paolini on a sweltering Center Court to speed into her first Wimbledon semifinal 6-3, 6-2 on Wednesday. The 12th seed was a woman in a hurry from the start as she took the opening set in 36 minutes, breaking Paolini t»»»

Russia has carried out precision strikes on Ukrainian military-industrial facilities in Kiev, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has reported. In a statement released on Wednesday, the ministry said the strikes targeted the production facilities of Samsung Ukraine, where it said the components for FP-5»»»

NEW YORK CITY: Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces committed mass killings, systematic abductions of women and girls and mass gang rape in El-Fasher, the UN Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan said in a new report on Wednesday. The findings add further weight to evidence that atrocities committed by the warrin»»»

MASSACHUSETTS, USA: France coach Didier Deschamps says that their appeal of star Michael Olise’s controversial World Cup yellow card during their Round of 16 win over Paraguay was denied by FIFA on Wednesday. “There was no change when it comes to Olise’s yellow card. We received FIFA’s decision thi»»»

LONDON: At least four Palestinian children in Gaza and the occupied West Bank have been killed by Israeli attacks in the past six days, according to news reports. Palestinian medics said on Wednesday that an Israeli strike hit a tent in the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, in the south of the Gaza St»»»

King Charles III salutes the armed forces after the annual Trooping the Colour in recognition of the King's birthday on June 13. Charles gave a posthumous pardon to Ruth Ellis, who was the last woman hanged in Great Britain. Photo by Hugo Philpott/UPI | License Photo July 8 (UPI) -- King Charles II»»»

July 8 (UPI) -- A 93-year-old Iowa man might soon become a Guinness World Record-holder for being the world's oldest truck driver. Orrin Asmus, who will turn 94 in August, has been driving trucks since he was 19 years old, and has worked for McLaughlin Freight for the past 11 years. Dan McLaughlin,»»»

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President Donald Trump pose for a photo in January during their meeting on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Trump said Wednesday that the United States will allow Ukraine to produce Patriot interceptors. »»»

July 8 (UPI) -- A New Zealand great-grandfather was officially named the world's oldest water skier just a month and a half shy of his 95th birthday. Bryan Murray was 94 years and 318 days old when he went water skiing on Auckland's Lake Kereta in April, earning him the Guinness World Records title»»»

The timing of the Ukrainian drone attack on the Krasnodarskaya compressor station of the Turkiye-bound Blue Stream gas pipeline on July 7, the same day Zelensky arrived in Ankara for the NATO summit, is “very intriguing,” prolific global energy expert Dr. Mamdouh Salameh told Sputnik. Salameh could»»»

Constitutional Court Judge Desislava Atanasova did not leave Turkiye while she was in the country between April 5 and 8, 2024, and was not on a business trip, a press release sent to the media by the Constitutional Court’s press office said. On July 2, Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev said in Par»»»

The Hungarian forint suffered a sharp sell-off on Wednesday after a combination of geopolitical tensions and concerns over Hungary’s public finances unsettled investors. The currency weakened significantly against both the euro and the US dollar, reversing part of the strong gains it had made over »»»

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has confirmed in Ankara that the next NATO Summit will be hosted by Albania. "The next summit will be held in Albania. That was the decision taken in The Hague. The summit will take place in Albania, but we still need to determine the exact date," Rutte told report»»»

Albania's Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sports, Blendi Gonxhja, said the government decided to finance Kanye West's concert to ensure the event would not fail, arguing that its cancellation would also have damaged Albania's image. Gonxhja clarified that the €4 million allocated for the concert d»»»

ANKARA: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said ​he thought he would remove Syria from the United States’ list of designated state sponsors of terrorism. “I think I will,” Trump told reporters in response to a question during a meeting with Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa in Turkiye. The US ha»»»

LONDON: The UK government will lead a coalition of around a dozen European countries to step up funding for the next generation of long-range missiles designed to protect Europe, the UK government said on Wednesday. Prime Minister Keir Starmer was set to unveil details of the program at the NATO su»»»

VANCOUVER: Switzerland goalkeeper Gregor Kobel praised his side’s “incredible, incredible achievement” after their 4-3 penalty shoot-out win over Colombia in Vancouver on Tuesday took them into the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time in 72 years. The Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper, playing at»»»

Apple CEO Tim Cook gifts President Donald Trump a plaque to commemorate the announcement an additional $100 billion Apple investment in the United States during an event in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on August 6. On Wednesday, Apple announced plans to increase its commi»»»

The New Horizons probe has awakened after hibernating for nearly a year, billions of miles into deep space, from where it sent this image of Pluto on July 14, 2015. File Photo courtesy of NASA | License Photo July 8 (UPI) -- NASA's New Horizons probe has awakened after hibernating for nearly a year»»»

President Donald Trump filed a court petition to prevent payout to E. Jean Carroll for lawsuits that she won against him. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo July 8 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump and his attorneys filed a motion to pause the payout of nearly $5.8 million to writer E. »»»

LONDON: An Israeli rights group said on Tuesday that a state court filing on 14 detained Gaza doctors failed to answer “serious concerns” about the condition of Palestinian physician Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, who has been held by Israel since late 2024 reportedly without charge. Physicians for Human R»»»

Doha, Qatar: The United Arab Emirates and Qatar ranked as the two most expensive Arab countries in terms of the Cost of Living Plus Rent Index, according to data published by Numbeo. The UAE ranked first among Arab countries and 28th globally with an index score of 48.2, followed by Qatar in second»»»

People line up Tuesday in La Guaira, Venezuela, to receive humanitarian aid after twin earthquakes measuring 7.2 and 7.5 on the Richter scale struck June 24. Photo by Xaume Olleros/EPA July 8 (UPI) -- Two weeks after earthquakes devastated Caracas and La Guaira, Venezuela's emergency entered a new »»»

SINGAPORE: Car buyers in Singapore will now need to fork out almost $100,000 for a certificate to own a small car, as costs in the city-state’s vehicle quota system hit an all-time high for small models on Wednesday. Singapore regularly auctions a fixed number of “certificates of ‌entitlement” allo»»»

Tesco is reportedly considering selling its Central European operations, a move that could see the retail giant withdraw from Hungary after more than 30 years in the market. According to the Financial Times, the UK’s largest supermarket chain is working with investment bankers to evaluate strategic»»»

The process of excluding Russia from international sporting competitions constitutes a form of political “insanity,” not principles or logic which can be explained to a reasonable person, legendary Soviet and Russian football coach Gadzhi Gadzhiyev told Sputnik. That was the trainer’s reaction to t»»»

GENEVA: Far from the World Cup spotlight, the Champions League has restarted with Shamrock Rovers defender Roberto ‘Pico’ Lopes unable to play because of his memorable tournament run with Cape Verde. In 10 games played Tuesday in the Champions League first qualifying round, the first goal of the se»»»

The IMF downgraded global growth prospects for the second time this year, saying it expects the global economy to grow by just 3 percent in 2026. In January, this projection had still stood at 3.3 percent, Statista reports. While the downgrade is slight, it still conveys the multiple risks to the g»»»

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa has signed into law constitutional amendments extending presidential and parliamentary terms from five to seven years, a move that will allow him to remain in office until 2030 and delay the country’s next election by two years. The Constitution of Zimbabwe A»»»

1 of 3 | Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear speaks at the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago on August 19, 2024. On Wednesday, he called for Sen. Mitch McConnell to provide the public with an update regarding his health. File Photo by Tannen Maury/UPI | License Photo July 8 (UPI»»»

Two men detained over the killing of Anastasiia Berezovska — among them a serving military intelligence officer — Ukrainian media report, deepening the mystery around the attack on Vadym Iermolaiev. The woman sought by Interpol over the attempted assassination of the sanctioned Ukrainian businessma»»»

Senior US military commanders ignored warnings that intelligence on targets in Iran was outdated as they rushed to compile strike lists at the start of the war, CNN reports. Citing sources familiar with the decision-making process, the broadcaster said the decision contributed to the deadly strike »»»

The US decision to brand Brazil’s two biggest criminal groups as terrorist organizations could serve as a pretext for military intervention, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry has warned. Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira issued the warning in a letter sent to Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies last week, respon»»»

A Polish member of the European Parliament has publicly torn up a flag of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) – whose fighters massacred up to 100,000 ethnic Poles in one of World War II’s worst atrocities – during a debate on Kiev’s bid to join the EU. On Tuesday, Ewa Zajaczkowska-Hernik, a member »»»

Oil prices have surged as tensions between the US and Iran flared again, raising fresh concerns over supply disruptions in the Middle East after Washington reinstated pressure on Tehran and resumed military strikes. The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Tuesday revoked a two-»»»

Tourism Minister Ilin Dimitrov met with Romanian Ambassador to Bulgaria Brandusa Predescu to discuss a project to send a tourism attache to Bucharest, the Tourism Ministry reported on Wednesday. The project is expected to strengthen Bulgaria’s presence on the Romanian market, support the developmen»»»

Katmandu: A Nepali court has convicted two former government ministers for taking money from citizens with the false promise of international resettlement as refugees, officials said Wednesday. Former deputy prime minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi was convicted of offenses against the state, fraud and»»»

Argentine President Javier Milei said his proposed shutdown mechanism would prevent the government from spending after money in the approved budget has been used up. File Photo by Chema Moya/EPA BUENOS AIRES, July 8 (UPI) -- Argentine President Javier Milei said his administration will introduce le»»»

WASHINGTON: Eight teams are left in the World Cup, and the quarterfinals feature the top four countries in FIFA’s pretournament men’s world rankings plus two others in the top 10. France look like a juggernaut and are the betting favorite at just under 2-1, followed by Spain and defending champion »»»

KAMPALA: At least 14 people have died and 28 others were injured after a bus collided with a truck in a remote area of northern Uganda, police said on Wednesday. The incident happened late on Tuesday at a trading center along the highway to the northern city of Gulu, according to a police statement»»»

A Nicaragua-flagged oil tanker -- possibly part of the "shadow fleet" -- that ran aground off India is bringing attention to the government of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega. File Photo by Miguel Gutierrez/EPA July 8 (UPI) -- A Nicaragua-flagged oil tanker under investigation for allegedly tran»»»

Dubai: Nearly two decades after the first tunnels of the Dubai Metro were carved beneath the city, tunnelling speeds have more than doubled as the emirate deploys a new generation of smart engineering technology for the Blue Line project, according to the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA). The au»»»

ANKARA: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said ​he thought he would remove Syria from the United States’ list of designated state sponsors of terrorism. “I think I will,” Trump told reporters in response to a question during a meeting with Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa in Turkiye. The US ha»»»

Doha, Qatar: The Metrash app allows users to pay medical examination fees for expatriates at Qatar Visa Centers (QVCs) abroad after completing recruitment procedures. It also provides a service to transfer medical examination fees from one visa to another. To pay overseas medical examination fees: »»»

LONDON/DOHA: A Qatari LNG tanker remained stranded off Oman on Wednesday after ​a projectile strike sparked a fire in its engine room, though industry sources said the vessel’s cargo appeared secure and the risk of an explosion was low for now.The attacks on the tankers prompted Washington to revok»»»