A military ceremony was held in Pleven Thursday to welcome home members of the Bulgarian contingent returning from NATO's KFOR peacekeeping mission in Kosovo. Brig. Gen. Hristo Hristov, chief of staff of the Joint Forces Command, praised the troops for their professionalism and dedication, saying t»»»

Air travel between the European Union and the United Arab Emirates remains uncertain amid the tensions in the Persian Gulf, Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry warned on Thursday. The Ministry said European airlines are currently waiting for the security risk in the region to ease before resuming regular f»»»

The latest meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council (EIC) has begun in Cholpon-Ata. It is being held as part of Kyrgyzstan’s chairmanship of the Eurasian Economic Union. The meeting is attended by Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic Adylbek Kasymaliev, as well as th»»»

JAKARTA: Indonesia and Saudi Arabia have signed an agreement to promote direct investment and facilitate cross-border capital flows, as Jakarta seeks to attract more Saudi companies to its strategic sectors. The Saudi Minister of Investment Fahad bin Abduljalil Al-Saif and his Indonesian counterpar»»»

At least six people were killed in Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight into Thursday, including three in the city ​of ‌Balakliia in the Kharkiv region and another three in the northern region of Sumy, local authorities said. A Russian ​attack also damaged ​a foreign-flagge»»»

Russian attacks on Kyiv and its surrounding region killed 17 people and wounded dozens, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday, as Ukraine’s depleted air defenses failed to stop any of Moscow’s incoming missiles overnight. Zelensky has reiterated to allies that Ukraine needs more air defences.»»»

In Germany, a drone carrying an explosive device was discovered and defused on the tarmac at Leipzig Airport. A second flying object then struck a cargo plane, causing minor damage. Air traffic was suspended for two hours. A Russian connection is being suggested. The interior minister describes a n»»»

DPS leader Delyan Peevski traveled on a regular commercial flight, marking a departure from his previous use of private aviation that had drawn public attention and criticism. Photos shared on Facebook show Peevski traveling in business class on Turkish Airlines flight TK1030 from Sofia to Istanbul»»»

GERB leader Boyko Borissov said the party will create a shadow government ahead of the local elections as part of an effort to show voters that it is prepared to return to power. In a video published on GERB's political platform "New Minds," Borissov said the party plans to present a team that will»»»

BELGRADE - At Thursday's reception for participants of a Serbia Is Calling You 2026 sports and education camp for children and youth from the diaspora, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said the 435 participants from the region, Europe and around the world proved that love for Serbia and mutual re»»»

An incident on the night of August 2 in the mountain resort of Bansko has grown into an international dispute involving the governments of Bulgaria and Italy, the Bulgarian Jewish community, local police and residents. The two sides describe what happened in sharply different terms, and the facts t»»»

Eight people have been charged in connection with an organized criminal group allegedly involved in producing and distributing high-risk narcotics, including around 6 kilograms of fentanyl valued at more than 157 million euros, Bulgarian prosecutors announced. The charges follow an operation by the»»»

Bulgaria’s Ministry of Innovation and Digital Transformation has detected unauthorized access to certain administrative networks, with initial information indicating that the activity may have continued for years. The access was discovered during the implementation of the country’s new national cyb»»»

An interactive map of registered water sports facilities along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast was added to a public register, the Ministry of Transport and Communications said on Thursday. The digital tool brings together data on registered facilities and offers residents, tourists and businesses a »»»

Dubai: Qatar Airways will resume flights to three regional destinations from August 8, restoring services to Bahrain, Kuwait and Erbil as it continues to rebuild its network. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.The airline announced on Wednesday that scheduled flights to B»»»

DOHA: Qatar Airways will resume passenger flight services to Bahrain, Erbil and Kuwait from August 8, 2026, the airline announced on Thursday. The airline said flights to Bahrain International Airport (BAH), Erbil International Airport (EBL) and Kuwait International Airport (KWI) will restart after»»»

The Leninsky District Court found former Zhogorku Kenesh deputy Kuvanychbek Kongantiev guilty of abuse of office and fined him 500,000 soms. The Bishkek City Court reported. The verdict was handed down on July 15. The court found Kongantiev guilty of five counts of abuse of office. Related news Ex-»»»

RIYADH: As Saudi Arabia steps up efforts to strengthen discipline in public procurement and contract execution, the government has approved a new Government Tenders and Procurement Law to enhance governance, transparency and the efficiency of the procurement system. Asharq Al-Awsat has learned that»»»

DUBAI: Saudi Arabia and seven other Arab and Muslim countries on Thursday condemned what they described as ongoing Israeli violations in the Gaza Strip, including attacks on healthcare facilities, civilian infrastructure and the continued loss of civilian lives. In a joint statement, the foreign mi»»»

Ukraine's alternative grain export routes will not reach the capacity needed to compensate for Russia's blockade of Black Sea ports until the end of August at the earliest, and even then will cover only half the volume normally handled through Odesa, Agrarian Policy Minister Taras Vysotskyi told Re»»»

The Bulgarian National Audit Office has launched conflict of interest proceedings involving MP Delyan Peevski following a formal complaint alleging a mismatch between his declared assets and his actual lifestyle. The proceedings were initiated after a report submitted on July 31, 2026, by former In»»»

Failure to condemn and investigate discrimination increases the risk of hate crimes, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee (BHC) said on Thursday after incidents in Plovdiv and Bansko. In recent days, a man was killed in Plovdiv and groups of young people clashed in Bansko, with media accounts suggestin»»»

In Central Asia, the spectacle of a president going on and on, and on, as if they plan to rule forever is a norm, not an exception. Thus, a Constitutional Court ruling that Kazakhstan’s 73-year-old president of seven years Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is eligible to seek another term in office under the c»»»

The US military has used up 50% of its Patriot interceptors and nearly 80% of those for the THAAD missile defence system fighting Iran, with senior commanders warning the Pentagon's munitions stockpile is “dangerously low,” CNN reported on August 4, citing multiple sources familiar with the matter.»»»

Ukraine's alternative grain export routes will not reach the capacity needed to compensate for Russia's blockade of Black Sea ports until the end of August at the earliest, and even then will cover only half the volume normally handled through Odesa, Agrarian Policy Minister Taras Vysotskyi told Re»»»

Kazakhstan could face heightened sanctions risks if Russian ecommerce group Wildberries expands its warehouse operations in the country, as "Russia's Amazon" seeks to protect and strengthen its logistics network following Ukrainian drone attacks on many of its facilities in Russia. That's the conce»»»

DOHA: The General Tax Authority (GTA) announced that the taxpayer compliance rate for filing tax returns for the 2025 tax year reached 90 percent, representing an increase of 13.9 percent compared with the 2024 tax year, which reflects the continued improvement in the efficiency of the tax system. »»»

Ankara, Aug. 6 (SANA) Syria and Türkiye agreed on Thursday to establish a High-Level Coordination Council as the two neighboring countries seek to deepen political, economic and infrastructure cooperation. The agreement was reached during talks in Ankara between Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan»»»

Schools in Kyrgyzstan have returned to the previous number of hours allocated for Kyrgyz and Russian language classes. Melis Muzulmanov, head of the School Education Department at the Ministry of Education, told 24.kg news agency. According to him, the changes apply to first and fifth grades. «Last»»»

Belarusian Prime Minister Alexander Turchin arrived in Kyrgyzstan to participate in the next meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council. He was welcomed at Issyk-Kul International Airport by Erlist Akunbekov, Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan and Minister of Water Res»»»

JEDDAH: A Saudi Arabia-developed educational device designed to give students a realistic understanding of reactor operations has debuted at the International Nuclear Science Olympiad 2026, highlighting the Kingdom’s growing capabilities in advanced scientific research and innovation. The Reactor D»»»

LONDON: Three human rights groups have labeled an Israeli attack that killed a Lebanese journalist and injured another a war crime. Amal Khalil, 42, died while traveling in southern Lebanon to verify Israeli troop movements on April 22. Her colleague Zeinab Faraj, 21, was wounded in the attack. Isr»»»

When Hungary abandoned plans to build the Bős–Nagymaros dam system following mass opposition born of environmental protests, Czechoslovakia completed the project and diverted 85 per cent of the Danube’s flow. An international agreement governs how much water must be released into the Old Danube – b»»»

Pakistan remains actively engaged with regional partners in diplomatic efforts to ease tensions in the Gulf and the Middle East, “particularly the standoff in the Strait of Hormuz,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said on Thursday. “Pakistan remains engaged alongside other brotherly sta»»»

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have condemned the Israeli killing of Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil in a strike in southern Lebanon, describing it as an apparent war crime and calling for an urgent international investigation. In separate publications, the two organizations said the »»»

Preventing acts of anti-Semitism and all forms of discrimination is an essential element in ensuring public order, protecting human rights, and establishing Bulgaria as a country that upholds the principles of tolerance, equality, and the rule of law, the Commission for Protection against Discrimin»»»

The Ministry of Culture, Information, and Youth Policy of Kyrgyzstan recommends that citizens and tourists temporarily refrain from visiting the Tash-Rabat historical and architectural complex. The restrictions are related to repair and restoration work currently underway on the complex’s grounds. »»»

Islamabad: Pakistan’s latest warning over threats to Red Sea shipping is more than a routine diplomatic statement—it signals the possible end of Islamabad’s long-standing strategic ambiguity in Middle Eastern conflicts. In a sharply worded declaration last Wednesday, Pakistan condemned Yemen’s Iran»»»

Dubai: The Philippines and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are strengthening cooperation on the medical screening of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), with plans to expand the number of accredited health facilities conducting mandatory pre-departure medical examinations for workers bound for Gul»»»

Dubai: The Foreign ministers of the UAE, Qatar, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Egypt have strongly condemned the ongoing Israeli violations in the Gaza Strip, including attacks on healthcare facilities, civilian infrastructure and civilians, saying the actions breach internat»»»

Romania’s Energy Ministry has asked households, companies, public institutions and prosumers to voluntarily reduce electricity consumption between 7 pm and 11 pm until August 31, as exceptionally low Danube flows continue to constrain domestic generation. Households are encouraged to avoid using se»»»

Israeli prosecutors Thursday charged a settler for the killing of a Palestinian community leader last year in the occupied West Bank, according to an indictment filed in district court. In the document, prosecutors accuse Yinon Levi, who lives in the south of the West Bank, of reckless manslaughter»»»

Dubai: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has launched a scathing attack on the proposed Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, calling it a “dangerous escalation in the centralisation of executive power” that “fundamentally rewrites the relationship between the Indian state and civil soci»»»

A total of 63 North Korean defectors reached South Korea in the first half of 2026, the Unification Ministry said Thursday. In this February 2021 photo, visitors look at ribbons wishing for Korean Unification near the DMZ in Paju. File Photo by Thomas Maresca/UPI | License Photo A total of 63 North»»»

Ukraine and Russia traded fire overnight with 4 people hurt in strikes targeting two major oil refineries in Russia while Russian attacks in the other direction killed 6 and injured dozens in Ukraine. File photo by Russian Emergencies Ministry/EPA-EFE Aug. 6 (UPI) -- Ukraine said Thursday that it h»»»

“We are confident that the institutions will do their job,” Alina Levi, Chairperson of the Organization of Jews in Bulgaria Shalom, told a briefing following a meeting with Acting Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior Lyubomir Nikolov. The meeting was held in connection with an incident inv»»»

Adwoa Tenkoramaa DomenaGhana's President John Mahama says he will push for Caribbean countries to join the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) when Ghana takes over the African Union chairmanship in 2027. Supporters see a chance to deepen Africa-Caribbean trade and diaspora ties. Critics w»»»

DOHA: The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, the Republic of Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Republic of Türkiye, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the Arab Republic of Egypt expressed their strongest condem»»»

Romania’s retail sales fell by 5.6% in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period last year, as turnover declined across food, non-food products and fuel, according to data published by the National Institute of Statistics. The decrease in the unadjusted series was driven by a 7.3% declin»»»

Kyrgyzstan is considering the creation of a full-cycle fish farming cluster at Toktogul reservoir. The project includes fish farming, feed production, fish processing and the subsequent export of finished products. The project concept was discussed at the National Investment Agency during a meeting»»»