SANTIAGO: Spain are the ‌favorites to win the 2026 World Cup, ahead of France, Argentina and Brazil, according to a Goldman Sachs model published on Friday that uses teams’ historical performance and ranking data. The model gives Spain a 26 percent chance of lifting the trophy at the tournament, wh»»»

Damascus, May 29 (SANA) The Federation of Syrian Chambers of Commerce (FSCC) has defined the tasks of its newly formed “Franchises Committee,” in a move aimed at strengthening franchise culture and expanding the presence of Syrian brands locally, regionally, and internationally, supporting the inve»»»

The Atlantic flows up to a restaurant during the aftermath of Hurricane Milton in Vero Beach, Fla., on October 10, 2024. File Photo by Joe Marino/UPI | License Photo AccuWeather meteorologists are monitoring areas in the Gulf and waters off the west coasts of Central America and Mexico for possible»»»

Mexico approved a constitutional reform that adds foreign intervention or interference in electoral processes as a new ground for annulling elections. File Photo by Sashenka Gutierrez/EPA May 29 (UPI) -- Mexico's Congress approved a constitutional reform that adds foreign intervention or interferen»»»

Art AlUla’s Madrasat Addeera — billed as “a platform dedicated to heritage-led creativity” — has teamed up with Saudi fashion label HINDAMME to release a limited-edition handmade collection. “The collection is rooted in AlUla’s landscape — its tones, its textures, its quiet intensity,” HINDAMME’s c»»»

LONDON: Some walked out of Syria’s Sednayah prison unable to remember their own names. After years inside what rights groups described as a “human slaughterhouse,” survivors of the country’s most notorious prison emerged in late 2024 unsure whether their families were alive or whether their homes w»»»

BUSAN, South Korea: Talor Gooch surged into the lead at LIV ‌Golf Korea with a 7-under 63 in the second round Friday at Asiad Country Club in Busan, South Korea. Gooch carded eight birdies — six on the front nine — and a lone bogey at the par-4 fifth hole to move to 8-under, one stroke ahead of Bry»»»

MIAMI: The Trump administration has extended protections shielding about 11,000 Lebanese from deportation, allowing them to stay and work in the United States for another six months. The decision, announced Thursday by the Department of Homeland Security, marked a rare reprieve for people protected»»»

Hungary will not supply weapons or military equipment to Ukraine, the country’s newly elected prime minister, Peter Magyar, said on Thursday shortly after meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Brussels. Magyar’s center-right Tisza party defeated Viktor Orban’s Fidesz last month, securin»»»

Sputnik International News Agency and Radio Broadcaster has held its first SputnikPro workshop for students at Al-Azhar University in Gaza. Acting Head of Sputnik’s Arabic Editorial Department Karina Mhanna and Chief Editor of Sputnik Arabic Wasim Suliman addressed students and faculty members, spe»»»

Located in Matal, Alkhobar, Maceo delivers the kind of dining atmosphere that instantly transports you elsewhere. Between the warm lighting, sea-facing setting, woven decor, and softly lit tables, the restaurant feels less like a typical local dining spot and more like a coastal Italian escape. Dur»»»

Damascus, May 29 (SANA) Former United Kingdom envoy to Syria Ann Snow said Friday that the discovery of chemical weapons dating back to the ousted regime era constituted an important step toward addressing “one of the darkest aspects of the conflict’s legacy.” In a post published Friday on the soci»»»

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s fintech race is no longer being defined by consumer-facing apps, but by the infrastructure powering them, according to Mohamed Oueida, founder and CEO of Stitch. As the Kingdom’s financial sector matures under Vision 2030, attention is shifting away from user interfaces towar»»»

DEIR EZZOR: The Syrian Arab Republic’s government has continued its emergency operations in Deir Ezzor after surging water levels along the Euphrates River affected about 2,400 families. The crisis prompted widespread evacuations, urgent shelter preparations, and a sweeping humanitarian relief effo»»»

The only edition of the beloved classic that is authorized by Fitzgerald’s family and from his lifelong publisher. This edition is the enduring original text, updated with the author’s own revisions, a foreword by his granddaughter, and with a new introduction by National Book Award winner Jesmyn W»»»

PARIS: France’s government said on Friday that it’s asking prosecutors to investigate Israel’s alleged violent mistreatment of activists from a flotilla to Gaza, potentially opening a route for criminal proceedings. France had already announced an indefinite ban from French territory of Israel’s fa»»»

Colombia will head to the polls Sunday to elect President Gustavo Petro's successor. File Photo by Tannen Maury/UPI | License Photo May 29 (UPI) -- Colombia will head to the polls Sunday to elect its next president under an unprecedented security deployment that includes 246,000 members of the secu»»»

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia continued preparations in New York on Friday ahead of a friendly against Ecuador as the Green Falcons build toward the World Cup, which starts next month. The match against Ecuador on Saturday forms part of a series of warm-up fixtures for the Saudi squad, which also includes f»»»

Aleksandar Todorov has been appointed as Chair of the Management Board of the Road Infrastructure Agency (RIA) as of Friday by order of the Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Ivan Shishkov. The Minister has appointed a new Management Board of the agency, and the previous members of t»»»

Salil Parekh, Chief Executive Officer of Infosys, earned a total remuneration of ₹826 million in fiscal year 2026, slightly higher than ₹806 million in FY25, according to the company’s annual report. A Reuters report said Parekh received a fixed salary of ₹79.7 million along with bonuses worth ₹233»»»

Iranian Commander of the Mohammad Rasoolullah Corps Hassan Hassanzadeh attends an event with Iranian officials at the Imam Khomeini Mosque in Tehran, Iran, on Sunday. President Donald Trump is expected to make a decision on the proposed Iran cease-fire Friday. Photo by Behnam Tofighi/UPI | License »»»

1 of 3 | A coordinator with U-Reporters, an UNICEF program to engage and inform local communities, wears a protective gown as he takes part in a campaign to raise awareness against Ebola in Goma, North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, on Friday. Photo by Jeanne Munyerenkana/EPA May 29 (UPI) »»»

May 29 (UPI) -- Five people died and more than two dozen were injured Friday morning after a bus crashed into multiple vehicles along a Virginia interstate, state police said. The crash happened around 2:35 p.m. on Interstate 95 in Stafford county, the Virginia State Police said in a statement to U»»»

Washington, United States: US President Donald Trump on Friday mocked Jill Biden for saying she thought her husband Joe was having a stroke during the 2024 election debate, accusing the former first lady of being a bad wife. During a promotional tour for her upcoming book on life in the White House»»»

NEW YORK: A newly released UN report has accused Israeli military, prison, and security personnel of committing widespread sexual violence against Palestinian detainees, including rape, gang rape, torture targeting genitals, forced nudity, and threats of sexual assault. Presenting the Secretary-Gen»»»

PARIS: Mayar Sherif’s journey at this year’s Roland Garros came to an end on Thursday with a second-round defeat to defending champion Coco Gauff but the Egyptian says she leaves Paris feeling “proud” of her performances and “motivated” for what’s to come. Sherif, who won four matches in Paris thro»»»

ISLAMABAD: On a scorching afternoon earlier this month in Islamabad, food delivery rider Hamza Ali pulled his motorbike beneath the shade of a tree after collecting an order from a restaurant. He opened the insulated delivery bag strapped behind him, took out a bottle of water, splashed some across»»»

Severe prison overcrowding, judicial backlogs, and selective justice resulting from political interference -- much of it linked to years of Syrian and Hezbollah influence -- have left Lebanon with a ticking bomb ready to explode, while sectarian disputes continue to delay a new general amnesty law.»»»

The US is deliberately causing hunger in Cuba as part of its economic strangulation of the island, City University of New York professor Danny Shaw has said in an interview with RT’s Rick Sanchez. Speaking on the Sanchez Effect show, Shaw, an ethnography scholar, discussed his recent visit to Cuba »»»

Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia has all the means to destroy anyone who attempts to destroy its air defense bases. “Russia has all the means to flatten anyone who tries to do this,” Putin told journalists during a press briefing following his visit to Kazakhstan, commenting on t»»»

“We have agreed with the President of the European Commission on the release of 16.4 billion euros, approximately 6,000 billion forints, in EU funds,” Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced in Brussels on Friday. Péter Magyar promises aid for many in Hungary At a joint press conference with Presiden»»»

The Cabinet has named new members to the Supervisory Board of the National Social Security Institute (NSSI), the Government Information Service said on Friday. Hasan Ademov, Antoniya Dimova-Yordanova, and Lyubomir Yosifov have been relieved of their duties as members of the Supervisory Board. The g»»»

The Council of Ministers has revoked two of its decisions in the field of defence and modernization of the armed forces on Friday. The Council of Ministers decision No. 263 of April 2, 2026, approving the Report on the State of the Defence and Armed Forces of the Republic of Bulgaria for 2025 is re»»»

Chilean environmental authorities approved the expansion of the Port of San Antonio, the country's main maritime terminal for foreign trade. Photo by Mario Ruiz/EPA SANTIAGO, May 29 (UPI) -- Chilean environmental authorities approved the expansion of the Port of San Antonio, the country's main mari»»»

U.S. President Donald Trump holds a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Wednesday. On Friday, a federal judge temporarily blocked his administration's so-called anti-weaponization fund. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI | License Photo May 29 (UPI) -- A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the Jus»»»

LONDON: When Omnicom Advertising and Google launched what they describe as the first artificial intelligence-powered creative intelligence system in the Middle East this April, the promise was unusual: that a machine could tell a creative director not just what was weak in an ad, but what it would »»»

Asharq Al-Awsat has obtained a document recently sent by Hamas to mediators regarding the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, where escalating Israeli violations have killed more than 930 Palestinians since the deal took effect on October 10. Israel’s Channel 13 reported on Thursday evening, cit»»»

Hungary’s new government will have to work double time in order to obtain billions of previously frozen EU funds, following a political agreement with the European Commission on Friday (29 May). “If every time I come here, I go back with this amount of money, I’ll be coming here more often,” Hungar»»»

Thai rescuers pulled a man from a cave in central Laos after he and six others had been trapped for nine days. Photo by Metta Tham Kalasin Rescue/EPA May 29 (UPI) -- One Laotian miner has been pulled from a cave in central Laos after being trapped for nine days underground, a Laotian rescue organiz»»»

ANDORRA LA VELLA - Serbian Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic, who is on an official visit to Andorra, met with the country's FM Imma Tor Faus on Friday to discuss opportunities for strengthening political dialogue, cooperation in tourism, education and sustainable development, as well as EU integratio»»»

AMMAN: Jordan play at their first World Cup determined to show they belong at football’s top table and with Lionel Messi’s Argentina presenting the most daunting of prospects. Jamal Sellami’s side face Austria in a tough Group J on their World Cup debut on June 16, followed by Algeria and then reig»»»

* Hamas says Netanyahu’s plan equates to ethnic cleansing* Ceasefire deal left contentious issues unresolved* Analysts warn move risks ‌increase in violenceGAZA/CAIRO: Hamas said on Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s declaration that his country would expand its area of control»»»

BUDAPEST: Paris Saint-Germain’s injury worries have cleared up ahead of the Champions League final against Arsenal on Saturday. PSG forward Ousmane Dembélé has been managing a calf issue in the final weeks of the season but the reigning Ballon d’Or winner said Friday he is “100 percent ready and ra»»»

The United Nations on Friday added Israel and Russia to a UN blacklist of countries suspected of committing sexual violence in conflict zones, a move that prompted Israel's foreign ministry to say it would sever all ties with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Guterres' annual report to the UN »»»

Towns and villages in more than half of France have smashed temperature records for the month of May over the past week during an unusually early heatwave, a climatologist said Friday. "More than half of France has experienced at least one monthly heat record -- whether in minimum and/or maximum te»»»

Widespread reporting on Thursday that the Department of Justice was investigating Trump accuser E. Jean Carroll is being denied Friday by the U.S. Attorney out of Chicago. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo May 29 (UPI) -- Reports that the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago is investig»»»

AUCKLAND: Auckland FC goalkeeper Michael Woud has ‌had to put his wedding plans on hold after being selected in New Zealand’s squad for the World Cup, but he says taking part in soccer’s biggest tournament is not a bad reason to cancel. Woud got engaged a year ago when he had little inkling he woul»»»

Eleven children have been killed or injured on average every 24 hours in Lebanon over the last week, the UN's children's agency said on Friday, as Israel has expanded strikes across the country despite a ceasefire. Heavy Israeli strikes hit towns and villages in southern Lebanon overnight on Wednes»»»

US President Donald Trump is set to escalate Washington’s economic pressure campaign on Cuba in an attempt to force regime change, Axios reported on Friday, citing sources. The island is already enduring near-total fuel starvation and daily blackouts stretching up to 20 hours. The US has thus far o»»»

This week, as UK Labour’s destructive leadership contest intensified, former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair staged a remarkable intervention in which he single-handedly sought to save the party from political oblivion. Blair’s dramatic intrusion into Labour politics took the form of a 5,600-word »»»