RIGA: NATO said Friday its fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Latvian airspace, the latest incursion along the military alliance’s eastern flank bordering Russia. The military alliance has launched an investigation, a NATO spokesperson said, as concerns grow in Europe over unauthorized dro»»»

Dubai: A single Powerball ticket sold in Illinois has won a $1.04 billion jackpot, ending a run of 44 consecutive drawings without a grand-prize winner and delivering the game’s biggest payout of 2026 so far. The winning ticket was bought at a Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh store in Quincy, western Illinois, »»»

German camera maker Leica has excluded a Russian photographer from its prestigious Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA) following Ukrainian criticism over his links to the Russian RIA Novosti news agency. Valery Melnikov, a three-time World Press Photo winner, said in a social media post this week that his l»»»

Părău 2 will combine a 342 MWp solar photovoltaic power plant with 150 MW of co-located battery energy storage system. The battery system will allow electricity generated on site to be stored and dispatched when the grid needs it, supporting the integration of renewable energy and improving the fle»»»

The drought roasting much of Europe this summer is taking a heavy toll on crops across the continent, from potatoes in the Netherlands to corn in Bosnia. Triodos, a Dutch bank with a focus on sustainability, has warned that this could reduce gross domestic product across the EU by 1 percent for 202»»»

Human Rights Watch has called on the United Nations to keep an international force in Lebanon after its peacekeepers' mandate ends this year. The peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, UNIFIL, has roughly 7,500 personnel from nearly 50 countries, and has been in place since 1978. Its presence has »»»

An elderly dancing duo has become a viral sensation in Italy after a tour operator shared one of their street performances online last week, striking a chord with many in Italy, whose population is the oldest in the EU. The pair said they hope their sudden popularity will push their peers off the s»»»

Ukraine's power generation capacity has collapsed from just under 60GW before the war to just 12GW today. If Russia's missiles get through this winter the way they did last year, the shortfall could nearly double. Ukraine already has a 5-6GW deficit of power generation between what it can produce a»»»

BEIRUT: Human Rights Watch has called on the United Nations to keep an international force in Lebanon after its peacekeepers’ mandate ends this year. The peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, UNIFIL, has roughly 7,500 personnel from nearly 50 countries, and has been in place since 1978. Its prese»»»

BEIRUT: A ‌Lebanese official denied on Thursday a Reuters report that Beirut had agreed with Israel to a shortlist of countries that could send troops to Lebanon to verify the disarmament of Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and said it was following up on the issue with Washington. A ‌June 26 ‌de»»»

Israeli news portal Walla on Thursday quoted Israeli and U.S. officials as saying that "there is no agreement between Lebanon and Israel on forming a body to oversee the Lebanese Army's operations in the designated pilot zones." The news portal added that "Israeli and American officials denied a Re»»»

DUBAI: The eagerly anticipated 2026/27 ADNOC Pro League kicks off this weekend, with questions ranging from whether an era of Al-Ain dominance awaits, to what revolutionary upstarts United FC can achieve on their debut with Italy icon Andrea Pirlo, somehow, still at the helm. The unbeaten Boss live»»»

TEL AVIV/BEIRUT: Israel and Lebanon have agreed on Britain, ​Italy, Switzerland and Indonesia as potential contributors to a proposed mechanism that could see foreign troops deployed to Lebanon to verify Hezbollah’s disarmament, people familiar with the matter said. The shortlist emerged from US-me»»»

Damascus, Aug. 12 (SANA) Agriculture Minister Basel al-Suwaidan on Wednesday discussed with International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Representative to Syria Tawfiq el-Zabri the projects implemented by the fund in Syria and its plans for the next phase. During the meeting, al-Suwaidan »»»

MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia will respond in kind if European countries start to seize Russian merchant vessels and the commander of Russia’s Pacific Fleet said his forces were ready to “inspect and detain” foreign vessels from what he called hostile states. The co»»»

CATANIA, Italy: Flights at ‌Sicily’s Catania airport were suspended again on Wednesday as fresh ash emissions from Mount Etna forced authorities to extend airspace restrictions, disrupting travel during the peak summer holiday season. Airport operator SAC said arrivals and departures would remain s»»»

Borino Municipality in the Rhodope Mountains (Southern Bulgaria) plans to establish a community for peaceful coexistence with bears, the WWF Bulgaria environmental organization reported. That would make Borino Bulgaria's first-ever municipality to implement the bear-smart communities model develope»»»

Paris, France: Areas of Europe home to at least 92 million people -- particularly in France, Italy, and Spain -- are set for temperatures over 35C on Wednesday in the continent's latest heatwave, according to AFP calculations. Europe is the planet's fastest-warming continent and in some places is i»»»

Romania-focused ETFs listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange added 276 million euros in assets in the first seven months of 2026, almost tripling in size from 174 million euros at the end of 2025 to approximately 450 million euros at the end of July. Of this increase, an estimated 155 million euros »»»

Dubai: UAE travellers who can visit Europe’s Schengen area without a visa will have to wait longer for a new travel authorisation requirement to take effect, with the European Union scrapping its 2026 launch date for ETIAS on Tuesday. Europe has long been planning to introduce the European Travel I»»»

BIRMINGHAM: Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson safely negotiated the heats of the 800m in Birmingham on Tuesday as she seeks a third consecutive European title. Home favorite Hodgkinson, who previously won continental crowns in Munich in 2022 and Rome two years ago, timed 1min 57.28sec to win her he»»»

No heavy military equipment will be deployed, no hazardous materials will be stored, and no firing exercises or military drills that could disturb the residents of the municipalities of Yambol and Tundzha are planned at the Kabile military area, Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said in response to»»»

European gas storage has fallen further behind its usual pre-winter pace, with Germany just 47.6% full against a normal 75% for early August and the Netherlands at 38.5% against a typical 77%, fuelling fears that Europe will face yet another energy crisis of fuel shortages and high prices. The Krem»»»

The situation at Bezmer Air Base is calm, with two US tanker aircraft deployed there and no incidents reported, Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said on Tuesday. Stoyanov discussed the situation at the military airfield and the development of the Kabile military base with representatives of the lo»»»

Dubai: Travellers heading to Europe will not need to apply for the European Union’s new ETIAS travel authorisation yet after the bloc removed its previous late-2026 launch timeline and stopped giving a specific start period for the system. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balanc»»»