Dubai: Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, has surprised social media followers with photos of a personal meeting with Elon Musk in Dubai, where the Crown P»»»

Abu Dhabi: The National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) has forecast that tomorrow’s weather will be partly cloudy, with the formation of some low clouds over islands and parts of western areas, accompanied by a chance of light rainfall. The weather is expected to become humid at night and on Tuesday m»»»

DOHA: The Ministry of Social Development and Family (MSDF) unveiled on Sunday the details of the Rawda Award for Excellence in Social Work. This came during a press conference attended by a contingent of national leaders, representatives of public agencies, civil society institutions, and media pro»»»

Doha, Qatar: The Public Works Authority ‘Ashghal’ announced the availability of advanced tanker-tracking devices powered by 4G/5G SIM technology, aimed at improving fleet monitoring efficiency and streamlining operations. Ashghal said the upgrade will enable 24/7 visibility, enhanced security, and »»»

The EU’s failure to grab frozen Russian assets to finance Ukraine will reinforce Washington’s view of the bloc as an irrelevant and “impotent force,” British outlet The Economist reported on Friday. EU leaders had long debated providing cash-strapped Kiev a so-called ‘reparations loan’ backed by Ru»»»

Agadir: Mohamed Salah has shown no signs of being distracted by the uncertainty surrounding his future at Liverpool as he prepares to lead Egypt into the Africa Cup of Nations, Pharaohs coach Hossam Hassan said on Sunday. "Salah's morale in training is very high, as if he were just starting out wit»»»

Tunis, Tunisia: The 36th Carthage Film Festival was capped off on Saturday evening at the Opera Theatre of the City of Culture in Tunis. The feature film The Stories was crowned winner of the Golden Tanit for feature-length fiction films, while the Silver Tanit went to the Nigerian film My Father's»»»

Share: The PM says the part of the plan on south of the Litani River is ‘only days away from completion’. Lebanon is close to completing the disarmament of Hezbollah in the south of the Litani River before a year-end deadline as part of a ceasefire deal with Israel, according to Prime Minister Nawa»»»

San Francisco: A huge electricity outage hit San Francisco on Saturday, leaving 130,000 residents without power for several hours at its peak, with the city’s main provider saying all services would return overnight. Pacific Gas & Electric Company said in a statement on X that power had been restor»»»

Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi Police and the Abu Dhabi Civil Defence Authority have urged residents to follow strict safety guidelines when using heating devices and firewood during the winter season, warning that improper use could lead to fires or dangerous cases of suffocation. The call comes as part of »»»

Abu Dhabi: The UAE continues to make strong gains in the tourism sector, strengthening its position as one of the world’s leading travel destinations while attracting steady investment backed by high returns and a competitive business environment. These achievements are part of a long-term national»»»

Abu Dhabi: The UAE Aid Agency has signed a cooperation agreement with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to support the delivery of urgent humanitarian and relief aid to the Sudanese people impacted by the repercussions of the ongoing conflict in the country. According to the»»»

Saudi Arabia has surpassed its record for the number of executions carried out annually for a second year in a row. At least 347 people have now been put to death this year, up from a total of 345 in 2024, according to the UK-based campaign group Reprieve, which tracks executions in Saudi Arabia an»»»

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has said that the first phase of the weapons monopolization plan related to the area south of the Litani River is "only days away from completion." “The state is ready to move on to the second ‌phase, namely (confiscating weapons) north of the ‍Litani River, based on the »»»

Sharjah Charity International has launched a fundraising drive to build a new school in Kenya at a cost of Dh1.1 million, aiming to improve access to education for children in remote rural communities. The appeal was made during an episode of the charity’s radio and television programme Al Reeh Al »»»

Jerusalem, Dec. 21 (SANA) Israeli airstrikes on Gaza’s Shuja’iyya neighborhood killed three Palestinians on Sunday, in a continued violations of the ceasefire agreement in place since October. Medical officials said one man was killed in a drone strike targeting a gathering of civilians, while two »»»

Abu Dhabi: President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Sunday welcomed Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic, who is on a working visit to the country. The meeting was held at the Zayed National Museum in Abu Dhabi, where Sheikh Mohamed welcomed the French President. Th»»»

Israel's security cabinet approved the establishment of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, a move the country's far-right finance minister said on Sunday was aimed at preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state. The decision brings the total number of settlements approved over th»»»

Cairo, Egypt: The State of Qatar took part in the 136th meeting of the Board of Directors of the Union of Arab Chambers (UAC) in Cairo, Egypt. Qatar Chamber Chairman, HE Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim Al-Thani chaired the QC's delegation in the meeting. The UAC meeting discussed a number of topics relat»»»

Farmers have planned new roadblocks on Sunday in western Greece, while ongoing blockades in the country’s north continue to disrupt traffic. Some farmers’ groups have announced they will unblock highways from Tuesday through Friday to facilitate Christmas travel, before reassessing their actions ah»»»

US President Donald Trump is preparing for a more aggressive immigration crackdown in 2026 with billions in new funding, including by raiding more workplaces — even as backlash builds ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Trump has already surged immigration agents into major US cities, where the»»»

Mourners in Australia have fallen silent in honour of the victims of the Bondi beach attack. The memorial was part of a national day of reflection to mark a week since the shooting in which two gunmen opened fire on an event celebrating the Jewish festival of Hannukah. A 10-year-old girl, a British»»»

London: From school and university canteens to football stadiums and theatres, venison is muscling in on beef as UK chefs hunt for greener options. As climate change concerns mount, some catering services are turning to deer meat as a low-carbon alternative to farmed livestock like beef. Since the »»»

DOHA: The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), through Qatar Digital Academy and in collaboration with Microsoft, organized two awareness sessions under the SMEs Go Digital Program at the Digital Center of Excellence. The sessions aimed to support SMEs in adopting modern di»»»

The National Assembly building in Seoul. Photo by Asia Today Dec. 19 (Asia Today) -- A South Korean civic group said most retired National Assembly officials subject to post-employment screening were cleared to take private-sector jobs, calling the results evidence of a serious revolving-door probl»»»

Doha, Qatar: The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, MCIT, through Qatar Digital Academy and in collaboration with Microsoft, organized two awareness sessions under the SMEs Go Digital Program at the Digital Center of Excellence. The sessions aimed to support SMEs in adopting mod»»»

Beijing: Chinese tennis player, Pang Renlong has been suspended from the sport for a period of 12 years and fined 110,000 US dollars, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) announced on Saturday. The decision comes after Pang was found to have fixed or attempted to fix 22 matches between »»»

Dubai: Winter in the UAE began on Sunday and will continue until March 20, bringing a season defined by shorter days, cooler temperatures and shifting weather patterns, according to astronomers. Ibrahim Al Jarwan, Board Chairman of the Emirates Astronomical Society and a member of the Arab Union fo»»»

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark the 77th Armed Forces Day in Gyeryong, South Korea, 01 October 2025. File Photo by KIM HONG-JI /EPA Dec. 19 (Asia Today) -- President Lee Jae-myung said Friday that while North Korea's "hostile two-state" line may refl»»»

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung takes questions during a news conference to mark 100 days in office at the Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, 11 September 2025. File Photo by EPA/KIM HONG-JI / REUTERS POOL Dec. 19 (Asia Today) -- President Lee Jae-myung on Friday questioned South Korea's restri»»»

Madrid: Kylian Mbappe matched Cristiano Ronaldo's club record for goals in a calendar year and Jude Bellingham also scored as Real Madrid beat Sevilla 2-0 on Saturday in La Liga. French superstar Mbappe levelled Ronaldo's tally of 59 goals in 2013 by stroking home a late penalty, after Bellingham s»»»

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Seoul, South Korea, on 14 October 2025. File Photo by EPA/YONHAP Dec. 19 (Asia Today) -- President Lee Jae-myung on Friday told the Unification Ministry to take the lead in easing inter-Korean hostili»»»

Dubai: Looking for a government job in 2026? Expat professionals have a growing range of opportunities in Dubai and across the UAE as the government expands roles in healthcare, technology, infrastructure, and education. Check out the latest jobs in the UAEWith federal vacancies set to rise and sev»»»

Evergreen 58-year-old striker Kazuyoshi Miura is set to join a Japanese third-division team to begin his 41th season as a professional footballer, local media reported Sunday. Miura, known as "King Kazu", will join Fukushima United on a year-long loan after spending last season with fourth-tier Atl»»»

A Kremlin envoy reported that peace talks in Florida on a US-proposed plan to end the nearly four-year war in Ukraine are progressing "constructively" as part of the Trump administration’s ongoing diplomatic efforts. The talks, involving both Ukrainian and European officials, come amid sharply dive»»»

At least 16 Jeffrey Epstein–related files abruptly disappeared from the Justice Department’s public website within a day of their release. The unexplained missing files, including an image with a photo of President Donald Trump, fuelled speculation online about what was taken down and why the publi»»»

Rabat: Morocco carry a huge weight of expectation into their opening game at the Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday as the hosts, with star man Achraf Hakimi returning from injury, aim to see off stiff competition to claim continental glory. Senegal, reigning champions Ivory Coast, Mohamed Salah's Egy»»»

Tokyo: Evergreen 58-year-old striker Kazuyoshi Miura is set to join a Japanese third-division team to begin his 41th season as a professional footballer, local media reported Sunday. Miura, known as "King Kazu", will join Fukushima United on a year-long loan after spending last season with fourth-t»»»

Three men will stand trial next year after a silver steward employed at the official residence of the French president was arrested this week for the theft of items of silverware and table service worth thousands of euros, the Paris prosecutor's office said. The Elysee Palace’s head steward reporte»»»

CAIRO, Dec 21 (MENA) – Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates Badr Abdelatty discussed with Equatorial Guinea’s Foreign Minister Simeon Oyono Esono ways to strengthen bilateral relations and step up coordination and consultation on issues of mutual interest. Abdelatty prai»»»

Peoples offer flowers and prays during the 2nd anniversary of late former President Shinzo Abe's assassinated at the site where he was shot near Yamato-Saidaiji station in Nara-Prefecture, Japan on Monday, July 8, 2024. File Photo by Keizo Mori/UPI | License Photo Dec. 19 (Asia Today) -- Japanese p»»»

At least 16 files disappeared from the Justice Department’s public webpage for documents related to Jeffrey Epstein — including a photograph showing President Donald Trump — less than a day after they were posted, with no explanation from the government and no notice to the public. The missing file»»»

Australians held a moment of silence on Sunday in tribute to the 15 Bondi Beach shooting victims, marking one week since gunmen fired into Jewish crowds on one of the nation's darkest days. A father and son are accused of targeting the family-thronged Hanukkah festival at Bondi Beach, a touris»»»

Donald Trump has claimed that he could pay himself $1 billion in US government money as damages for a raid carried out at his Mar-a-Lago estate by the FBI. Federal agents searched Trump’s property in Palm Beach, Florida in August 2022 as part of an investigation into his alleged mishandling of clas»»»

News report by Fawaz Al-Otaibi BEIRUT, Dec 21 (KUNA) -- Amid growing indications of recovery, commercial and tourism activity in Lebanon is witnessing noticeable momentum as the New Year holiday season approaches, traditionally one of the most economically active periods of the year. Preliminary in»»»

Manila, Philippines: The Philippines' Department of Agriculture on Sunday said the ban on sugar importation will remain in place until December next year, extending protection for local producers amid improving supply conditions. "Based on the current outlook for sugar production and demand, a long»»»

DOHA: Msheireb Properties announced the launch of the third edition of Baraha Cinema, which will run from December25-January 3, which will include an outdoor cinema experience featuring family films, seasonal activities, and a movie-themed culinary programme. Baraha Cinema is part of Msheireb Downt»»»

Egypt has approved a $300 million tyre manufacturing plant by Prometeon Tyre Group, marking another major step in the country’s drive to localise automotive manufacturing and expand export-oriented industry. The project received formal approval in mid-December 2025 during a session of the Ministeri»»»

Total net wealth across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) exceeded $7.5 trillion in 2024, underscoring the region’s growing financial depth and asset accumulation, according to data from Boston Consulting Group. Saudi Arabia ranked as the region’s wealthiest economy, with total net wealth reaching»»»

Dubai: If you are one of those drivers who likes to cruise along in the fast lane, you might want to think twice. Authorities in Dubai have once again issued a stern reminder about a traffic rule that many motorists continue to violate, and it could cost you Dh400. The Roads and Transport Authority»»»