TEHRAN (Sputnik) - Iran will not open the Strait of Hormuz as long as the United States violates the ceasefire, including with its naval blockade, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Wednesday. "A full ceasefire only makes sense when it is not violated by a naval blockade an»»»

RAMALLAH: Israeli settlers shot dead a Palestinian man in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, the Palestinian health ministry said. The ministry said 25-year-old Awda Atef Awawdeh was killed by settler gunfire in the central West Bank town of Deir Dibwan, just east of Ramallah. He is the third vic»»»

The United Nations is pushing its proposal for a humanitarian corridor to get fertiliser and other essential goods through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively blocked since the start of the Iran war. This plan, which FRANCE 24 has seen, has yet to be approved by several countries.»»»

American surveillance tech contractor Palantir released a 22-point manifesto over the weekend, calling for a “new era” of AI-enabled US military supremacy. The internet went wild, with the text being labeled a blueprint for “technofascism.” Posted on X on Saturday, the document goes far beyond the »»»

The U.S. District Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana alleges that Charles Ford, 56, lied to federal agents about owning the firearm that was used by Shamar Elkins on Sunday to kill eight children, between 3 and 11-years old, including seven believed to be his own. File Photo by»»»

MADRID - Serbian tennis player Dusan Lajovic is through to the second round of the Madrid Masters tournament after a 6-3, 7-6 (7-1) first-round victory over Italian Lorenzo Sonego on Wednesday. Lajovic, who won after an hour and 34 minutes of play, is now 3-3 head-to-head against Sonego. The Serbia»»»

Human Centre for Human Rights Research & Advocacy (CENTHRA) announced the signing of a memorandum of cooperation with Waves of Freedom France (WOFF) in Malaysia, and Global Coalition to End the Occupation of Palestine (SANED), with the aim of establishing a framework for international legal coopera»»»

London: Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham said a debt of gratitude towards his home city of Birmingham was behind his decision to buy a minority stake in cricket franchise Birmingham Phoenix. The England midfielder has taken a 1.2 per cent holding in the Edgbaston-based Hundred team at a reported co»»»

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, said that the UAE’s education system, under the leadership of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President»»»

DOHA: ​The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has announced the vaccination requirements for Hajj 1447H/2026, reaffirming its commitment to safeguarding the health and safety of pilgrims to the Holy Mosque and visitors to the Prophet's Mosque. These measures aim to allow pilgrims to perform their rit»»»

Sanya, China: President of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani, also the President of Qatar Olympic Committee, has met with State Councilor of the People's Republic of China HE Shen Yiqin. Director of the General Administration of Sport and President of the Chinese »»»

Damascus, Apr. 22 (SANA) Director of Research and Studies at the Diplomatic Institute of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Obeida Ghadban, affirmed Wednesday that President Ahmad al-Sharaa’s participation in the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2026) marks a pivotal shift in Syrian foreign»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic held a phone conversation with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday, and noted that the discussion, which addressed key issues of the Serbia-EU relationship, had been good and open and that he had highlighted Serbia's commitme»»»

RIYADH: UAE side Shabab Al Ahli on Wednesday formally requested that their Asian Champions League semifinal against Japanese club Machida Zelvia be replayed, claiming that their late equalizer should have stood. The Emirati side were beaten 1-0 in Jeddah on Tuesday but a club source told AFP that t»»»

FBI Director Kash Patel speaks during a press conference at the Department of Justice Headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. A federal judge in Houston tossed Patel's lawsuit against a former FBI counterintelligence official accusing him of defamation. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Phot»»»

Abdelbaset Al-Baour, Chairman of the General Authority for Communications and Informatics, held an extensive meeting at the Authority’s Tripoli headquarters last Monday (20 April) with representatives of major telecommunications companies in Libya to activate Libya’s transition from the current IPv»»»

The Spanish Embassy in Tripoli welcomed yesterday the arrival of the first direct flight from Tripoli’s Mitiga airport to Madrid – after a hiatus of more than a decade. The Spanish Ambassador to Libya participated in the celebration event of the Medsky flight at Madrid. The Spanish Embassy said the»»»

The environmental study for the redevelopment of the Hinitsa Bay Resort in the western Peloponnese, a project promoted by Irish billionaire Paul Coulson, has been submitted for public consultation. Two years after luxury hospitality giant Four Seasons announced it would be handling the management a»»»

The Israeli enemy continued its violations of the ceasefire in southern Lebanon, targeting again the vehicle that had been struck in an airstrike in the town of Al-Tiri, leaving two martyrs and preventing ambulance crews from reaching the scene. The Zionist enemy targeted the same spot again, besie»»»

The issue of the Israeli war against Lebanon remains a key topic in the U.S.-Iranian contacts and separating the Lebanese file from the Islamabad talks does not appear to be certain, informed sources told al-Akhbar newspaper. "This issue continues to exert pressure on the American side, which is at»»»

London: Britain's financial market regulator said Wednesday it had carried out an operation targeting eight locations in London suspected of hosting illegal peer-to-peer cryptocurrency exchanges. Peer-to-peer trading allows people to buy and sell crypto directly with one another, bypassing centrali»»»

The Albanian Prime Minister, Edi Rama had a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during an official visit to Athens, where he is attending the Delphi Economic Forum. In a photo published by him shows the two leaders shaking hands, symbolizing what Rama described as a strong and evo»»»

A merchant vessel south of Crete has rescued 38 migrants whose small boat ran into trouble trying to reach the Greek island from north Africa, state ERT television reported Wednesday. The new rescue came as Crete has turned into the main single destination for people from the Middle East and Africa»»»

BELGRADE - Patriarch Porfirije of the Serbian Orthodox Church has received US Special Envoy for Global Partnerships Paolo Zampolli, and the historical friendship between Serbs and Americans and possibilities for advancing it were the main topic of the meeting. The meeting was held on April 21 at th»»»

President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday that a second French soldier had died following an attack on United Nations peacekeepers in Lebanon last week, which he said was carried out by Iran-backed Hezbollah. The soldier, Chief Corporal Anicet Girardin, was severely wounded on April 18 and died o»»»

KHARTOUM: For nearly two years, Al-Shubbak watched through ancient grey eyes as Tuti, the crescent-shaped island in the heart of the Sudanese capital she calls home, emptied of its inhabitants under a punishing paramilitary siege. She refused to leave. “I didn’t even move for the English when they »»»

LONDON: The emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, discussed regional and international developments with Syria’s president, Ahmad Al-Sharaa, on Wednesday. Al-Sharaa expressed solidarity with Qatar amid the Iranian attacks that have targeted the country and other states in the region, as w»»»

WASHINGTON: FIFA is putting more World Cup tickets on sale after angering some fans by adding new, more expensive categories. Soccer’s governing body announced Tuesday it will make more tickets available at 11 a.m. EDT Wednesday for all 104 games in Categories 1, 2 and 3 plus the new “front categor»»»

Doha: The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has announced the vaccination requirements for Hajj 1447H/2026, reaffirming its commitment to safeguarding the health and safety of pilgrims to the Holy Mosque and visitors to the Prophet's Mosque. These measures aim to allow pilgrims to perform their ritu»»»

New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed lawsuits against cryptocurrency companies Coinbase and Gemini for violating state gambling laws. FilePhoto by Derek French/UPI | License Photo April 22 (UPI) -- New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed lawsuits against cryptocurrency compan»»»

DAMASCUS: President of the Syrian Arab Republic HE Ahmed Al Sharaa has reiterated his country's solidarity with the State of Qatar regarding threats to its security and sovereignty. In a post on the social media platform X, the Syrian president said he held a "fraternal meeting" with HH the Amir Sh»»»

JEDDAH: Muslim World League Secretary-General Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa recently met in Kuala Lumpur with senior Malaysian scholars from across the country, led by Sheikh Ahmad Fauwaz Fadzil, grand mufti of Malaysia. The meeting was followed by a discussion session on themes from Al-Issa’»»»

BELGRADE, April 22 (Tanjug) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met with US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker on Wednesday to discuss the most significant security and political issues in the region, especially noting that preservation of security for Serbs in the Autonomous Province of Kosovo-M»»»

At its regular meeting on Wednesday, the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Bulgaria approved the fourth consecutive Mid-Term Programme for Development Assistance and Humanitarian Aid, covering the period 2025 – 2030. The document reaffirms Bulgaria’s role as a predictable and responsible dono»»»

Tunis, April 22 (TAP) - Tunindex closed Wednesday's session down 0.4% to 15,765.82 points with a traded volume of TND 17.9 million, said broker Tunisie Valeurs. STIP shares were the best performers after rising by 3.5% to TND 12.420, generating only...»»»

BANGKOK: Thailand held a Buddhist ceremony on Wednesday at ancient temple ruins it took control of during deadly border clashes with Cambodia last year, drawing a rebuke from its neighbor. The two Southeast Asian countries have been at odds for decades over the demarcation of their 800-kilometer (5»»»

JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said it apprehended and returned dozens of Israeli civilians who had briefly crossed into Syria on Wednesday, with Israeli media reporting that the group were activists from a settler organization.The military said around 40 people gathered near Israel’s northern bor»»»

RIYADH: The first W Hotel has opened in Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District, marking the entry of the chain into Saudi Arabia. KAFD said in a statement that the opening represents a significant step in strengthening the district’s hospitality offerings and cementing its status as a premier bu»»»

CHISINAU: ‌A Moldovan court sentenced business magnate and former political powerbroker Vladimir Plahotniuc to 19 years in prison on Wednesday in a fraud case involving the theft of $1 billion from the country’s banking sector. Plahotniuc, who was not present in the courtroom, has previously denied»»»

SANYA: President of the Olympic Council of Asia and President of the Qatar Olympic Committee HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani met with State Councilor of the People's Republic of China HE Shen Yiqin, in the presence of President of the Chinese Olympic Committee and Minister of Sport HE Gao Zhidan»»»

Japan Petroleum Exploration (JAPEX) has issued a press release warning of the impact on its business from escalating tensions in the Middle East, indicating that higher LNG procurement costs and suspended oil production are expected to weigh on earnings. »»»

As the US-Israel-Iran war enters its second month, one of the most consequential geopolitical actors has been conspicuous by its silence. China has not intervened, has not condemned, and has not chosen sides in any meaningful public way. But Beijing is not simply watching. It is calculating — and a»»»

The conflict that has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for one-fifth of global crude and a significant share of gas supplies, has done more than spike oil prices. It has laid bare how dangerously concentrated energy supply had become around a single chokepoint, sending importers s»»»

The conflict that has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for one-fifth of global crude and a significant share of gas supplies, has done more than spike oil prices. It has laid bare how dangerously concentrated energy supply had become around a single chokepoint, sending importers s»»»

The conflict that has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for one-fifth of global crude and a significant share of gas supplies, has done more than spike oil prices. It has laid bare how dangerously concentrated energy supply had become around a single chokepoint, sending importers s»»»

The conflict that has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for one-fifth of global crude and a significant share of gas supplies, has done more than spike oil prices. It has laid bare how dangerously concentrated energy supply had become around a single chokepoint, sending importers s»»»

The conflict that has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for one-fifth of global crude and a significant share of gas supplies, has done more than spike oil prices. It has laid bare how dangerously concentrated energy supply had become around a single chokepoint, sending importers s»»»

The conflict that has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for one-fifth of global crude and a significant share of gas supplies, has done more than spike oil prices. It has laid bare how dangerously concentrated energy supply had become around a single chokepoint, sending importers s»»»

The conflict that has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for one-fifth of global crude and a significant share of gas supplies, has done more than spike oil prices. It has laid bare how dangerously concentrated energy supply had become around a single chokepoint, sending importers s»»»