Dubai: The Central Bank of the UAE reported significant progress in Emiratisation across the banking, financial, and insurance sectors, with employment targets exceeded and compliance rates nearing full alignment by the end of 2025. Get updated faster and for FREE: Download the Gulf News app now - »»»

The topic of how the new parliament will look like after the elections dominates Wednesday’s news media. POLITICS 24 Chasa’s front-page article presents the governance programme of Rumen Radev’s Progressive Bulgaria, which won the April 19 elections under the headline, “Life according to Radev: Sta»»»

RIYADH: “This is a multidimensional shock.” That is how Jihad Azour, director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund, summed up the bleak outlook gripping the region, describing the current war as an earthquake not seen in geopolitics and economics for fiv»»»

Manila: The global race for microchips and AI hardware is reshaping Southeast Asia. Manila’s move to join "Pax Silica" and help build a 16.2-km2 "free zone" in the Luzon Economic Corridor (LEC) forms part of a catch-up industrial strategy. The plan: Align the country towards advanced supply chains »»»

The Bulgarian Medical Association (BMA) expressed its concern about the lack of staff for the upcoming opening of 100 new outpatient clinics in the country as stated in a position of the professional organization, published on the BMA website on Wednesday. In their statement, BMA says that they sup»»»

KYIV: Ukraine has asked Turkiye to host a meeting between President Volodymyr Zelensky and ​Russian President Vladimir Putin, its top diplomat said, as Kyiv seeks to reinvigorate stalling peace talks.“We asked the Turks about it, we asked some other capitals,” Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said in»»»

According to a study by the Cato Institute, the US war with Iran—despite demonstrating overwhelming firepower during Operation Epic Fury—resulted in significant strategic and material losses that exposed the fragility of Washington’s military posture in the region. The Cato Institute notes that whi»»»

DUBAI: Haitham Al-Busafi will represent Oman at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia — which runs from May 9 until Nov. 22 — and he will also serve as its curator. Commissioned by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, and located in the Arsenale Artiglierie, “Zinah” »»»

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia: Tournament debutants Machida Zelvia secured a place in a first Asian Champions League (Elite) final following a controversial 1-0 victory against UAE side Shabab Al Ahli in Jeddah yesterday. The Japanese team, who until this season had never appeared in the continent’s premier»»»

President Tamás Sulyok has convened the inaugural session of the new National Assembly for 10 a.m. on May 9, the Sándor Palace announced. Under Hungary’s Fundamental Law, the inaugural session must be convened by the president for a date within thirty days following the general election of members »»»

Doha, Qatar: Advisor to the Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari has said that Qatar fully supports mediation efforts undertaken by Pakistan to end US-Iran war. “Qatar continues its ongoing communication with various parties, »»»

Lebanese armed group Hezbollah said it fired rockets and drones into northern Israel on Tuesday, accusing the Israeli military of violating a ceasefire ahead of US-mediated talks between the Israeli and Lebanese governments this week. The Israeli military earlier said Iran-aligned Hezbollah had fir»»»

Lebanon's Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said on Tuesday his government was not seeking confrontation with Iran-backed Hezbollah, but would not allow itself to be intimidated as it prepares direct talks with Israel to end the conflict. Salam and French President Emmanuel Macron met in Paris to see how »»»

The United States has a history of mistaking defeats in war for victories. In 1973, Richard Nixon declared his administration had achieved a “Peace with Honour,” which didn’t betray Washington’s South Vietnamese allies, but barely two years later, Saigon fell. In May 2003, George W Bush announced t»»»

Kyrgyzstan is rapidly increasing its film production and could soon rank among the world’s leaders in the number of films produced per capita. Director Suyun Otkeev reported. Despite its relatively small market, the country’s film industry has been accelerating significantly. Around 50 films were p»»»

Former Chilean president Michelle Bachelet said Tuesday she hopes the world is finally ready for a woman to lead the United Nations as she campaigns to succeed António Guterres. She framed her bid as a chance to restore trust in the crisis-hit organisation and send a powerful global signal by appoi»»»

MADRID: Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior each scored as Real Madrid ended a four-game winless streak by defeating Alaves 2-1 on Tuesday to move closer to Spanish league leader Barcelona. The victory at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium left Madrid six points behind Barcelona, which hosts sixth-placed »»»

NEW YORK: Prosecutors once again portrayed Harvey Weinstein as a onetime Hollywood power player who used his sway as a tool of sexual assault, repainting a familiar but fraught picture Tuesday at a rape retrial nearly eight years after the former movie tycoon’s arrest. “This case will come down to »»»

The “15-minute city” has gone from urban-planning buzzword to a rather sensible idea: if people can get to work, school, shops and parks without embarking on a daily expedition, cities become healthier, happier and less exhausting places to live. Before cities were carved up by zoning codes and lon»»»

Argentina’s Congress has approved a reform to the country’s glacier protection law, relaxing restrictions on mining in high-altitude regions in a move aimed at attracting billions in investment, while drawing criticism from environmental groups concerned about water security. »»»

Former CIA analyst Larry Johnson alleged on a podcast this week that President Donald Trump wanted to use the nuclear codes against Iran during an emergency White House meeting, but that he was stopped by General Dan Caine, Chairman of his Joint Chiefs of Staff. He described the interaction as "qui»»»

Yousra Elbagir, a journalist with British TV channel Sky News, has become the target of a smear campaign by supporters of Burkina Faso's junta leader Captain Ibrahim Traoré after she raised questions about security in the country and the repression of free speech.  Supporters of Burkina Faso's»»»

France’s far-right National Rally party president Jordan Bardella sat down for lunch Monday with the country’s leading employer federation, marking the latest step in a years-long campaign to woo business leaders in the lead-up to next year’s presidential election – and once again revealing th»»»

A wave of “fill up and flee” crime is sweeping petrol stations across the UK, while American drivers are waking up to drilled-through tanks and drained fuel as the US-Israeli war on Iran has sparked a spike in oil and gas prices across the globe, according to media reports and industry watchdogs. T»»»

For over a century, the geographical gap between the southern coast of Iran and the bustling ports of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was less a barrier and more a bridge. However, the recent war on Iran by the US and Israel and Iran's response to GCC neighbours has all but burnt that bridge.  »»»

Russia expects positive news on the resumption of diplomatic efforts to resolve the situation around Iran, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, state news agency TASS reported on April 21. Moscow has emerged a»»»

Russia expects positive news on the resumption of diplomatic efforts to resolve the situation around Iran, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, state news agency TASS reported on April 21. Moscow has emerged a»»»

For 30 years, analysts warned that Iran could close the Strait of Hormuz. For 30 years, Iran did not. It threatened to close the Strait, but it never pulled the trigger. The US and its Gulf allies assumed Iran was jive-talking. That changed on February 28 when the US and Israel thought they could b»»»

For over a century, the geographical gap between the southern coast of Iran and the bustling ports of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was less a barrier and more a bridge. However, the recent war on Iran by the US and Israel and Iran's response to GCC neighbours has all but burnt that bridge.  »»»

For 30 years, analysts warned that Iran could close the Strait of Hormuz. For 30 years, Iran did not. It threatened to close the Strait, but it never pulled the trigger. The US and its Gulf allies assumed Iran was jive-talking. That changed on February 28 when the US and Israel thought they could b»»»

For over a century, the geographical gap between the southern coast of Iran and the bustling ports of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was less a barrier and more a bridge. However, the recent war on Iran by the US and Israel and Iran's response to GCC neighbours has all but burnt that bridge.  »»»

Russia expects positive news on the resumption of diplomatic efforts to resolve the situation around Iran, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, state news agency TASS reported on April 21. Moscow has emerged a»»»

For 30 years, analysts warned that Iran could close the Strait of Hormuz. For 30 years, Iran did not. It threatened to close the Strait, but it never pulled the trigger. The US and its Gulf allies assumed Iran was jive-talking. That changed on February 28 when the US and Israel thought they could b»»»

Freedom Holding Corp has undergone a transformation that few could have predicted. It listed on Nasdaq in 2019 as a mid-sized Kazakh brokerage, the first Kazakh brokerage ever to list in the US, yet today it is a $9.6bn fintech platform with operations spanning Central Asia, Europe, the US and the »»»

Russia expects positive news on the resumption of diplomatic efforts to resolve the situation around Iran, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, state news agency TASS reported on April 21. Moscow has emerged a»»»

BEIRUT/JERUSALEM: Lebanese armed group Hezbollah said it fired rockets and drones into northern Israel on Tuesday, accusing the Israeli military of violating a ceasefire ahead of US-mediated talks between the Israeli and Lebanese governments this week. The Israeli military earlier said Iran-aligned»»»

MADRID: Venus Williams was knocked out of the Madrid Open in the first round on Tuesday as the 45-year-old went down in straight sets to Kaitlin Quevedo. The 20-year-old Spanish wild card beat the seven-time Grand Slam champion 6-2, 6-4. Ranked 479th in the world, Williams has now lost all seven ma»»»

LONDON: Governments worldwide are trying to shield consumers from soaring energy costs resulting from the US-Israeli war on Iran. Here’s how ‌different countries are responding: Britain is looking to force older wind and solar generators onto fixed contracts in a bid to bring down consumer bills. T»»»

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s approval rating held at the lowest of his term in recent days as many Americans ​questioned his temperament amid the Iran war and a feud with Pope Leo, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. The six-day public opinion poll, concluded on Monday, showed only 36 percent of Am»»»

MADRID - Serbian tennis player Dusan Lajovic is through to the main draw of the Madrid Masters ATP tournament after a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Chris Rodesch of Luxembourg in the final qualifying round on Tuesday afternoon. Lajovic won after 68 minutes of play, joining Miomir Kecmanovic, the other Serb»»»

“This is a multidimensional shock.” That is how Dr. Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund, summed up the bleak outlook gripping the region, describing the current war as an earthquake not seen in geopolitics and economics for five de»»»

BELGRADE - At his own initiative, Serbian PM Djuro Macut held an urgent meeting with the head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Andreas von Beckerath on Tuesday to discuss the key issues of stability in the academic community and advancement of cooperation with EU institutions. Ensuring an equal relat»»»

Prominent conservative commentator Tucker Carlson has issued a public apology for his role in getting US President Donald Trump into the White House, saying in a podcast published on Monday that he will be “tormented for a long time” by the damage he helped cause. Speaking on his podcast with his b»»»

After eight snap elections in five years, Bulgaria’s Rumen Radev, a 62-year-old reform-minded pragmatist with much political (he’s a former president) and military (he's also a former general) experience has just managed to gain an absolute majority of seats in the national parliament. It is, accor»»»

France formally backed Egypt’s inclusion in the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and the two nations agreed to finalise a bilateral migration agreement in the coming weeks, officials announced following the inaugural French-Egyptian strategic dialogue on Monday. The talks in Cairo »»»

MUNICH: Bayern Munich playmaker Jamal ‌Musiala missed much of the season due to a broken leg and while he has already made an impact since returning to the pitch in January, coach Vincent Kompany is confident he will soon take his game to a whole new level. The 23-year-old Germany international sus»»»

WASHINGTON: US forces have boarded an oil tanker previously sanctioned for smuggling Iranian crude oil in Asia, the Pentagon said Tuesday, as it puts into place a global warning to track down vessels tied to Tehran. US forces “conducted a right-of-visit maritime interdiction” and boarded the M/T Ti»»»

PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique said Tuesday he was unsure if midfield metronome Vitinha would be fit to play against Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals. The Portuguese central midfielder will miss PSG's Ligue 1 clash against Nantes on Wednesday due to a heel inflammati»»»

US forces have boarded an oil tanker previously sanctioned for smuggling Iranian crude oil in Asia, the Pentagon said Tuesday, as it puts into place a global warning to track down vessels tied to Tehran. US forces “conducted a right-of-visit maritime interdiction” and boarded the M/T Tifani “withou»»»

President Iliana Iotova is very likely to convene the new Parliament on April 29 or 30. "It is very much possible that I will convene the 52nd National Assembly [next] Wednesday or Thursday," she told reporters on Tuesday. The Central Election Commission is yet to announce the official results for »»»