KABUL: Human Rights Watch called for the release of two UN staffers and six NGO workers in Afghanistan following a string of Taliban detentions in recent weeks.HRW said on Wednesday that six male staff working with the Women and Children Legal Research Foundation (WCLRF) had been “forcibly disappea»»»

The requirements for registering for Hajj 2027 through the state digital system Azhylyk have been published in Kyrgyzstan. Registration will be carried out through the Azhylyk app. Applicants will need an electronic identification card (eID) or an ID card, as well as an initial payment of 180,000 s»»»

Senior female marketing and communications professionals in the UAE are being invited to apply for the second edition of The Leadership Accelerator by Think Equal, a six-month programme aimed at preparing women for future C-suite roles. The programme, launched by The Marketing Society UAE in partne»»»

Dubai: Investors will be able to pull official Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange market data into AI platforms including ChatGPT and Claude, giving them a new way to check prices, trading activity, company disclosures and market flows using everyday language. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, »»»

LONDON: It was no more than a faint whisper, appearing to come from beneath the ruins of one of the many buildings devastated by the earthquake that struck Colombia on Monday. After two days, hope of finding anyone still alive was running out. But by sheer luck, Brian Zuluaga, walking home from wor»»»

The deadly beating of Georgi Kuzev in Plovdiv has renewed attention on groups of young people who organize online and carry out aggressive attacks against others in Bulgaria. Journalists Eduard Papazyan and Nikolay Hristov say such groups are not a new phenomenon in Bulgaria and have been operating»»»

RABAT: Cameroon won a penalty shootout 3-1 against Morocco after a scoreless draw in the other semi. Malawi beat Algeria 3-1 in the first semifinal match on Wednesday, led by Tabitha Chawinga with a pair of goals. Upstart Malawi will face Cameroon in the final of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations o»»»

RIYADH: Ahead of the new Saudi Pro League season, a new report from football media and culture company Footballco has revealed the preferences of young fans across the Kingdom and how they can impact commercial opportunities for brands and rights holders across creator content, gaming, and culture »»»

RIYADH: An oval-shaped ball was enough to make Ameera Marghalani curious about a sport she had barely heard of growing up. Rugby was still new in Saudi Arabia when her coach introduced her to the game during her senior year of high school. “I think what first drew me to rugby was honestly how diffe»»»

Dubai: Morocco has arrested several people suspected of inciting mass irregular migration into the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla and stepped up security to prevent a repeat of large-scale border crossings, the Interior Ministry said. The measures follow the circulation of anonymous posts on»»»

Dubai: DP World’s revenue rose 13.1% to $12.7 billion in the first half of 2026, with growth across its global ports, logistics and marine businesses helping offset lower activity at Jebel Ali following disruption to Middle East trade flows. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Bala»»»

On Aug. 13, 2020, Israel and the United Arab Emirates agreed to full normalization of relations. 1 of 5 | U.S. President Donald Trump (2nd-L), Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L), United Arab Emirates' Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al »»»

Young people looking to contribute to community projects across Abu Dhabi have until August 15 to apply for the Global Shapers Abu Dhabi Hub’s 2026-27 cohort. The Hub expects to receive close to 700 applications, with around 100 candidates progressing to further assessment before up to 30 new membe»»»

Doha, Qatar: Once withdrawn and struggling to communicate, 13-year-old Linai has experienced a remarkable transformation through opportunities provided by the Circle-In Palestine program, finding her voice and a true sense of belonging. Lina, a seventh-grade student with disability and speech diffi»»»

Dubai: Jordanian authorities have arrested a woman found begging in central Amman with about $46,600 in cash, the Ministry of Social Development said. Anti-begging teams from the ministry, working with the Public Security Directorate, apprehended the woman in Amman’s downtown area as part of effort»»»

MAKKAH: The Muslim World League has launched an initiative to promote social peace in West Africa, bringing together religious, political and civil society leaders around a joint framework for strengthening coexistence and preventing conflict. MWL Secretary-General and Chairman of the Organization »»»

Dubai: As Pakistan marks its 79th Independence Day anniversary, Pakistanis living and working in the UAE have renewed their call for greater unity, stronger institutions, quality education and wider opportunities for the country’s young population, while expressing pride in their homeland and confi»»»

BURGOS, Spain: Day briefly turned to night in Spain on Wednesday, as the country witnessed its first total solar eclipse in more than a century, plunging it into eerie darkness in one of nature’s greatest spectacles.The spectral glow of the Sun’s outer corona, shimmering out of the edges of the sha»»»

A man pays his respects during the 76th anniversary of the Jeju 4.3 memorial ceremony at the Jeju 4.3 Peace Park in Jeju City, South Korea, on April 3, 2024. File Photo by Darryl Coote/UPI JEJU ISLAND, South Korea, Aug. 12 (UPI) -- The Korea Heritage Service announced Wednesday that Jeju Island's D»»»

In tonight's program, across parts of Africa millions lifted their eyes skywards for a rare celestial event, a partial solar eclipse. Also, in Zambia President Hakainde Hichilema hopes for a second term his main rival, says that it's been a tough campaign in part because of deliberate obstruction f»»»

People across Europe looked to the western horizon on Wednesday evening to see the moon moving in front of the sun, bringing twilight-like conditions and plunging parts of the continent into darkness. The totalsolareclipse began in northern Siberia, before the moon's umbra swept in an arc over Gree»»»

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has called for immigrants to be housed more widely across the UK, as the country continues to grapple with large numbers of people crossing the English Channel. More than 3,000 illegal immigrants have reportedly reached the country by boat in the three weeks sinc»»»

Multiple people were feared dead after a ferry with 95 passengers capsized on Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe on Tuesday, police and eyewitnesses said. The boat, which provides transport between the northern town of Kariba and several islands and fishing camps, overturned after hitting strong waves. Lake K»»»

The Libyan National Army, which controls the east and parts of southern Libya, said Tuesday that a car bomb killed its military intelligence chief Fawzi al-Mansouri in Benghazi. The assassination raises fresh questions over security in the stronghold of military commander Khalifa Haftar as efforts »»»

RIYADH: What kind of relationship binds the Houthis to Iran? Afrah Al-Zouba, the first woman to head Yemen’s Foreign Ministry, has a term for it: “mutual instrumentalization.” “I use the term because it describes the relationship more accurately,” Al-Zouba told Asharq Al-Awsat in her first intervie»»»

LONDON: Syrian authorities said on Wednesday they had thwarted an attempt to smuggle a large shipment of narcotics into neighboring Jordan using balloons. Officers seized 70 kg of hashish, 45,000 captagon pills and equipment allegedly used in the operation, the state-run SANA news agency reported, »»»

GENEVA: The World Health Organization said Wednesday it hopes to reverse the spread of Ebola in the DR Congo within three months, but warned the deadly outbreak would not be over by then. The epidemic, which began in the conflict-scarred northeastern province of Ituri, is spreading faster than any »»»

AMMAN — The national team for empowering women-owned enterprises to access economic opportunities held its regular meeting on Wednesday, hosted by the Jordan Forum for Business and Professional Women, with the participation of businesswomen and representatives of the public and private sectors.The »»»

CASABLANCA, Morocco: Morocco said Wednesday it has beefed up security along its border with Spain as calls resurfaced on social media for mass crossings into the Spanish city of Ceuta, raising concerns of another surge, similar to the one last month when tens of thousands of migrants rushed the bor»»»

One of nature's greatest spectacles –- a rare total solar eclipse –- cast its shadow on Wednesday, briefly turning day into night in Russia's remote Arctic north before heading towards mainland Europe. The Moon first blotted out the Sun at the northernmost tip of mainland Russia at about 1700 GMT, »»»

ABUJA, Nigeria: Muslim and Christian leaders from across West Africa have agreed on a joint framework to tackle extremist ideologies, prevent conflict and strengthen social cohesion under a new initiative launched by the Muslim World League in Nigeria. The agreement was reached during an internatio»»»

Burgos, Spain: One of nature's greatest spectacles –- a rare total solar eclipse –- began casting its shadow on Wednesday, briefly turning day into night in Russia's remote Arctic north before heading towards mainland Europe. The Moon first blotted out the Sun at the northernmost tip of mainland Ru»»»

BURGOS: One of nature's greatest spectacles — a rare total solar eclipse — began casting its shadow on Wednesday, briefly turning day into night in Russia's remote Arctic north before heading towards mainland Europe. The Moon first blotted out the Sun at the northernmost tip of mainland Russia at a»»»

Burgos, Spain: One of nature's greatest spectacles –- a rare total solar eclipse –- began casting its shadow on Wednesday, briefly turning day into night in Russia's remote Arctic north before heading towards mainland Europe. The Moon first blotted out the Sun at the northernmost tip of mainland Ru»»»

Tunis, August 12 (TAP) - The Tunisia Africa Business Council (TABC) will organise a multi-sector trade mission to Guinea next October 6-11. This mission, which will bring together a delegation of Tunisian business representatives from priority...»»»

The Israeli military on Wednesday failed to remove settlers from blockaded Palestinian homes in the occupied West Bank. The siege began over the weekend, when a group of settlers blocked essential supplies from entering the Palestinian village of Qusra. The incident marked a ⁠rare confron»»»

The countries have included rare earth exploration and processing in this year’s joint workshop program, expanding their scientific cooperation into a strategically sensitive field. China will provide about $4,200 per workshop, while Iran will help cover international travel and accommodation in th»»»

Solar prominences flare from the sun as the moon crosses in front during a total solar eclipse, as seen in Chardon, Ohio, on April 8, 2024. Millions of people live in the path of Wednesday's total solar eclipse, viewable mostly from Europe. File Photo by Pat Benic/UPI | License Photo Aug. 12 (UPI) »»»

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 »»»

A young girl helps her mother deposit her ballot in a drop box for the 2020 general election in Los Angeles. On Tuesday, a judge expanded a block on the USPS managing who gets mail-in ballots. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo Aug. 12 (UPI) -- A federal judge expanded a block on Presiden»»»

PoliticsEritreaEritrea: Key player in the geopolitical gamble at the HornMartina SchwikowskiAmid growing tensions and security risks at the Horn of Africa, Eritrea, with its strategically important coastal points on the Red Sea and a perceived lack of conflict, is emerging as important player in th»»»

Doha, Qatar: Skywatchers across parts of the Northern Hemisphere will witness a solar eclipse today, August 12, with the Moon completely blocking the Sun along a narrow path through Greenland, Iceland and Spain, while millions elsewhere will see a partial eclipse. According to NASA, the path of tot»»»

GENEVA: Half of Afghan women now leave their homes only once or twice a month as Taliban-imposed restrictions curtail their freedom of movement and participation in public life, according to data released by UN Women on Wednesday. As the Taliban prepare to mark the fifth anniversary of their return»»»

LONDON: A British serial sex attacker was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in jail on Wednesday, after he was convicted of two murders and rape following an escalating spree of sexual offenses which police and prosecutors failed to stop. Simon Levy, 40, was found guilty last week of the murd»»»

Washington, United States: The International Monetary Fund has reached a staff-level agreement on a new $439 million loan for Guinea, with a more than three-year program aimed at helping the West African nation transform resource wealth into broader economic growth. The agreement came after an IMF »»»

Harare, Zimbabwe: At least 44 people drowned after an overcrowded ferry capsized on Zimbabwe's Lake Kariba, police said Wednesday, releasing an updated toll a day after the disaster. A witness told AFP soon after the government ferry sank in rough weather on Tuesday that bodies could be seen in the»»»

The move is aimed at seeking bilateral and multilateral currency cooperation with BRICS members. The impending accession was announced by Iran’s Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati, who added the NDB is "the most important result" of BRICS cooperationThe bloc now includes 10 members—Brazil, Ru»»»

The Human Rights Organisation HANA has warned that continued deportations of undocumented Afghans from Iran could expose women and children to serious protection risks after their return to Afghanistan. In a report published August 10, HANA said deported children could face family separation, disru»»»

LONDON: Acclaimed Iranian photojournalist Yalda Moaiery has spent much of her career documenting moments of dissent and the lives of women in Iran. The work has repeatedly brought her into ​conflict with the authorities, and on Iran’s National Journalist Day on Saturday she learned she had been sen»»»

After weeks of scorching temperatures and desperately dry conditions, Hungary may finally be heading for a major weather change. Forecasts currently suggest that a slow-moving weather front could bring widespread rain across the country next week – although another burst of extreme heat is expected»»»