A former senior official who worked under US Covid czar Anthony Fauci has pleaded guilty to conspiring to hide government records concerning coronavirus research and the origins of the pandemic. David Morens served as a senior adviser at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NI»»»

Egypt is quietly solidifying its footprint as a massive global manufacturing engine, and Beijing is writing a hefty check to prove it. Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Hussein Issa recently met with executives from a top-tier Chinese industrial giant to hammer out a massive two billion do»»»

Dubai: Airport ground operations are moving towards more electric and autonomous equipment, with dnata investing $110 million in 800 new ground support units across 10 countries and testing self-driving baggage vehicles in the UAE. Get updated faster and for FREE: Download the Gulf News app now - s»»»

There is evidence that 37 people voted more than once in the April 29, 2026 parliamentary elections and the cases will be referred to the prosecution service, the Central Election Commission (CEC) said Thursday. A report about the 37 cases was submitted the same day by CEC member Ismail Osman. CEC »»»

Hezbollah proposed earlier this week to hand over the strategic Ali al-Taher area to the Lebanese Army, amid “the decline of its ability to hold onto it and its attempt to withdraw the fighters and equipment that are present there,” an informed Western diplomatic source said. “This information gain»»»

Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Ivan Shishkov has alerted the Sofia City Prosecution Office about unfavorable contracts and financial losses caused by the previous management of Water and Sewerage (W&S) Energy Group from March 2025 to March 2026. At the time, the managing director»»»

DUBAI: Oman ​said lasting security in the Strait of Hormuz ‌required ‌permanent ​peace ‌in ⁠the ​region and rejected ⁠further escalation or conflict, ⁠its ‌foreign minister told ‌his ​Japanese ‌counterpart ‌on Thursday. Iran has said ‌a deal with Oman ⁠on ⁠new shipping lanes through the strait was »»»

DUBAI: Oman ​said lasting security in the Strait of Hormuz ‌required ‌permanent ​peace ‌in ⁠the ​region and rejected ⁠further escalation or conflict, ⁠its ‌foreign minister told ‌his ​Japanese ‌counterpart ‌on Thursday. Iran has said ‌a deal with Oman ⁠on ⁠new shipping lanes through the strait was »»»

Millions more people may be able to get smaller, lightweight Amazon packages delivered by drones by the end of the year under a plan the company announced Wednesday to expand the airborne shipping to suburban areas in nearly 500 U.S. cities. Customers could receive the drone deliveries in as fast a»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia appreciates the efforts of all countries that sincerely want to contribute to the Ukrainian settlement, but there are still few of them, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday. "We highly appreciate the efforts of all countries that demonstrate a sincere desire t»»»

IRAN EYES STRIKING US ASSETS IN BULGARIA The topic that Iranian forces had assessed striking US military assets in Bulgaria dominates Thursday’s media. Citing “two regime insiders”, the Financial Times said that “Iranian forces had assessed striking US assets in south-eastern European countries suc»»»

Romania’s real estate investment market attracted transactions worth around EUR 300 million in the first half of 2026, down from approximately EUR 400 million a year earlier and equivalent to around 5% of the total volume recorded across the six largest economies in Central and Eastern Europe – Bul»»»

Leeds, United Kingdom: England's bid to strengthen their grip on the first Test against Pakistan was halted by bad weather as rain delayed the scheduled 10:00 GMT start of the second day's play at Headingley on Thursday. The hosts were well-placed at 112-2, 59 runs behind, after skittling out Pakis»»»

It is often said that no one is a prophet in their own country. For years, investors, business organisations, and economists have warned that Romania has been gradually losing its attractiveness: rules changed overnight, less efficient institutions, rising costs, and infrastructure that continues t»»»

Around 1 billion soms has already been paid to oil traders in Kyrgyzstan in subsidies to keep retail prices for gasoline, diesel fuel and autogas down, the Antimonopoly Regulation Service reported. According to the agency, the actual cost of fuel is currently significantly higher than the prices mo»»»

Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella has asked his ally U.S. President Donald Trump to suspend tariffs to help the South American nation recover from a powerful earthquake that killed at least 289 people. De la Espriella took office earlier this month just days before the 7.4 magnitude qua»»»

Doha, Qatar: Qatar Central Bank (QCB) has released its Annual Report for the year 2025, providing a comprehensive overview of the State of Qatar's monetary, financial, and institutional developments. The report also highlights the key achievements and QCB-led initiatives that strengthened the resil»»»

Damascus, Aug. 20 (SANA) Gold prices remained stable in the Syrian market Thursday, while global bullion retreated after reaching its highest level in more than two months. According to a bulletin issued by the General Authority for the Management of Precious Metals, 21-carat gold stood at SYP 16,5»»»

The next chapter of Europe’s energy transition will be defined by how effectively energy can be stored, managed and delivered to the grid. As battery energy storage moves from a supporting technology to critical energy infrastructure, WALDEVAR Energy and GEN-I Sonce are expanding their partnership »»»

Dubai: For Amanat Holdings CEO John Ireland, the case for healthcare and education is becoming less about surviving economic cycles and more about capturing structural growth. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & BalancesThe Dubai-listed investment company, which has built its portf»»»

"There has been deafening silence from Bulgaria's Commander-in-Chief Iliana Iotova 24 hours after the news about Bezmer," Continue the Change (CC) leader Assen Vassilev wrote in a Facebook post. "There has been no meeting of the Consultative Council for National Security. There has been no statemen»»»

The Sofia local authorities are encouraging public ideas for the future of the Knyazheska park in central Sofia. "През следващата седмица ще пуснем специализиран сайт за Княжеската градина, който ще бъде инструмент за събиране на идеи," каза заместник-кметът на София по направление "Градско планира»»»

DUBAI: The United ​Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO)said on Thursday it had received a ‌report ‌of an ​incident ‌136 ⁠nautical ​miles east ⁠of Yemen's Mukalla, where a tanker travelling ⁠west in ‌the Gulf ‌of ​Aden ‌said ‌it was approached by an unauthorised vessel.UKMTO ‌provided no furthe»»»

In mid-February 2025, I met Abhishek Bachchan, one of Hindi/Indian cinema’s leading stars and the son of legendary actor, Amitabh Bachchan. He was networking in London as the England and Wales Cricket Board was auctioning off equity stakes in The Hundred. Alongside him were Priyanka Kaul, Dhiraj Ma»»»

Cris-Tim Family Holding S.A. (BVB: CFH), the market leader in cold cuts and ready-meals in Romania, reports revenues of RON 567.4 million for H1 2026, a 6% year-on-year (YoY) increase. The performance was supported by continued growth across the Company’s core Cold Cuts segment, which advanced by 7»»»

Hungary marked its national day on Thursday with a traditional flag-raising and military commissioning ceremony in front of Parliament, as Prime Minister Péter Magyar called on newly sworn officers to remain loyal to Hungary rather than any government or political party. This year’s 20 August marks»»»

The UAE’s Sheikh Zayed Falcon Release Programme has returned more than 2,400 falcons to the wild since its launch in 1995, supporting efforts to protect birds of prey while preserving the country’s falconry heritage. The programme, established under the environmental vision of the late Sheikh Zayed»»»

Health and family are the top priorities Romanians want to protect, but most would not have the money they believe they would need in an emergency. Some 45% estimate they would need at least RON 20,000 to cope with an accident, illness, or other unexpected event, while 51% say they would have immed»»»

STRABAG Property and Facility Services (STRABAG PFS), a subsidiary of the European construction Group STRABAG, signed an agreement to acquire 100% of the shares in Brenneka Install SRL and Samivo Instal SRL, companies within the Brenneka Group, headquartered in Bacău and with an operational office »»»

Doha, Qatar: Hot weather conditions will persist this weekend, with scattered clouds forecast on Friday and Saturday. In its weather forecast for the weekend, the Qatar Meteorology Department said Friday will be slightly dusty and hot during the day, with scattered clouds. It will become humid and »»»

Starting August 20, citizens of Kyrgyzstan can enter China visa-free for up to 10 days. Sagynbek Abdumutalip, Head of the Foreign Policy Department of the Presidential Administration of the Kyrgyz Republic, reported citing information from China’s National Immigration Administration. Sagynbek Abdum»»»

Kyrgyzstan’s law enforcement personnel will be on high alert during the SCO summit, the 6th World Nomad Games, and visits by heads of state. The Ministry of Internal Affairs reported. On August 20, under the leadership of Interior Minister Ulan Niyazbekov, a staff meeting was held with the particip»»»

London, United Kingdom: Six years after stepping down as working royals, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are moving back to the United Kingdom within weeks, British press reported late Wednesday. In a surprise move, Harry, the youngest son of King Charles III, and his wife Meghan, "plan to leave t»»»

Singapore, Aug. 20 (SANA) The U.S. dollar hovered near three-month lows Thursday as investors assessed Treasury measures to calm bond markets after long-term yields hit their highest levels since 2007. Reuters reported the dollar index at 98.938, near its lowest since mid-May, while the euro stood »»»

U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he will meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this year. He made the remarks to the press as he toured a new helipad outside the White House. Photo by Al Drago/UPI | License Photo SEOUL, Aug. 20 (UPI) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday »»»

ANKARA: Turkiye will continue supporting Syria’s efforts ​to develop its own military capacity and infrastructure, the defense ministry said on Thursday, after Israel ‌carried out ‌air ​strikes ‌on ⁠a ​Syrian air ⁠base and warned Ankara against what it called “dangerous adventures” there. At its we»»»

An operational media headquarters has been established in Kyrgyzstan as part of preparations for the VI World Nomad Games. It will centrally coordinate media coverage of the event, the headquarters told 24.kg news agency. The headquarters includes representatives of the press services of government»»»

Canada and the United States moved closer Wednesday to finalizing a trade agreement that would avert threatened 50% U.S. tariffs, with a senior Canadian official calling the emerging terms "a very good deal for Canada" while cautioning that negotiations were not complete. President Donald Trump sai»»»

The national debt surpassed a record $40 trillion on Wednesday, a staggering milestone as defense costs, social programs like Social Security and Medicare and interest on the burgeoning deficit make up an enormous share of federal spending. The milestone figure was recorded just five months after t»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Russian armed forces took control of Nikolaipolye settlement in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), the Russian Defense Ministry said on Thursday. "Units the Yug battlegroup, as a result of active operations, liberated the settlement of Nikolaipolye in the Donetsk People's R»»»

MedLife, Romania’s largest private healthcare services network and the operator with the largest investments in genetics and molecular biology, has announced the signing of a transaction to acquire a 75% stake in Qualipat, a Romanian company specialising in pathology, immunohistochemistry, and mole»»»

Dubai: Dubai is strengthening the role of research and data in shaping social policies, with the Community Development Authority (CDA) signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Emirates Scholar Center for Research and Studies. The partnership aims to advance social research and develop e»»»

Dubai: After nearly six months of war, Donald Trump is trying another way to force Iran to bend: Squeeze its economy until Tehran can no longer afford to resist. The US president has announced what he calls the “MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY”, threatening not only »»»

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz on ​Wednesday was unchanged from the day ‌before, latest ​shipping data showed, challenging US President Donald Trump who claimed that ship traffic in the strategic waterway have increased. Commodity vessel transits at Hormuz ⁠totalled nine on Wednesday»»»

"There has been deafening silence from Bulgaria's Commander-in-Chief Iliana Iotova 24 hours after the news about Bezmer," Continue the Change (CC) leader Assen Vassilev wrote in a Facebook post. "There has been no meeting of the Consultative Council for National Security. There has been no statemen»»»

Doha, Qatar: The General Authority of Customs has concluded the activities of the 45th Foundation Course for new customs inspectors, which was organized at the Customs Training Center over a period of three months, with the participation of 31 trainees. The course forms part of the Authority’s prog»»»

Applications have so far been submitted by athletes from 112 countries for the World Nomad Games, including Australia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Georgia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Spain, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Poland, Russia, the United States, Uzbekistan and others, the Gam»»»

China’s visa-free regime for citizens of Kyrgyzstan does not apply to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR). China has 31 regions, with visa-free transit available in 24 of them. XUAR is not among them. Hong Kong and Macao, as special administrative regions, have separate migration policies.»»»

Madrid, Spain: The Spanish government announced on Thursday the creation of shelters for 1,800 migrants in Ceuta in a bid to relieve the humanitarian crisis there following last month's influx from Morocco. Some 72,000 migrants breached the border in an unprecedented and deadly rush into the north »»»

The biotech process development center at Sputnik Technopolis, operated by R-Pharm Group - a resident of the Technopolis Moscow special economic zone - is working on 11 original molecules to develop new therapies for cancer and autoimmune diseases, announced Deputy Mayor Maxim Liksutov. "Following »»»