The Sofia Military District Prosecution Office has opened a pre-trial proceedings following a report alleging a criminal offence involving the Malta-flagged vessel Chelsea 3 in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea, the prosecution service said on Friday. The general cargo ship Chelse»»»

The Justice Ministry published proposed Judicial System Act amendments for public consultation, introducing new rules on magistrates' secondment and competitive selection, the Ministry said on Friday. The changes aim to strengthen competitive selection, curb indefinite secondments and provide more »»»

NOVI SAD - Addressing a rally of the Aleksandar Vucic-United Serbia electoral list in Novi Sad on Friday evening, Slovak PM Robert Fico said Vucic was defending Serbia's sovereignty and not letting the country be run by someone abroad, however mighty they might be. A large number of people who had »»»

Riyadh airport operations suspended amid missile and drone attack concerns The US Mission to Saudi Arabia has warned American citizens of potential attacks on airports, airspace closures and flight disruptions following recent missile and drone attacks on airports in the Kingdom. In a security aler»»»

The Ministry of Innovation and Digital Transformation Friday announced the completion of certification of the type of voting machines to be used in the presidential elections on October 25, 2026. The Minister of Innovation and Digital Transformation, the acting President of the Bulgarian Institute »»»

Elisa Spiropali has called on Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama to convene the Socialist Party’s leadership structures and initiate internal reforms, arguing that the party must embrace change and greater democratic accountability. In a lengthy letter addressed to Rama, Spiropali called for genuine »»»

ISTANBUL: Catastrophic flooding in Istanbul in recent days is the worst in more than 80 years, Turkiye’s interior minister said Friday as the death toll rose to four. Istanbul, Turkiye’s largest city with 16 million residents, was hit by more rain in the 48 hours up to Thursday morning than the com»»»

Tunis, Oct. 16 (TAP) - The weather will be partly cloudy on Friday night across most regions, with a possibility of locally dense fog developing late at night in northern coastal areas, according to forecasts by the National Institute of Meteorology...»»»

LONDON: A Norwegian teenager convicted of traveling to Britain to carry out a contract killing on behalf of an international crime gang linked to Iran was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison. Johannes Kongsnes Natland, 19, was found guilty in July of conspiracy to murder for agreeing to shoot an»»»

Jakarta: Smoke from spreading forest and land fires in Kalimantan has reached Jakarta, prompting Indonesia’s meteorological agency on Friday to advise capital residents to restrict outdoor activities. Satellite images showed smoke spreading across Kalimantan and Sumatra and reaching Banten, West Ja»»»

Drivers in Abu Dhabi advised to prepare for upcoming weekend traffic changes Abu Dhabi Mobility has announced temporary road closures on key routes in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain over the weekend, urging motorists to plan their journeys and allow extra time for travel. The closures affect Shakhbout Bin Su»»»

Tunis, Oct. 16 (TAP) - Tunisia is targeting economic growth of 3.1% in 2027, compared with an expected 2.7% for the full year 2026, according to the 2027 Economic Budget Report, a copy of which was obtained by TAP news agency. Data in the...»»»

As they met separately with Finance Minister Galab Donev in Sofia Friday, trade union and employer organizations disagreed on the minimum wage and public-sector wage increase in the government's 2027 budget plan. Representatives of the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB) a»»»

KYIV: Kyiv has begun installing mobile concrete shelters at public transport stops, an AFP reporter saw Friday, as it grapples with air attacks and concern about the city’s preparedness for the looming winter. The Ukrainian capital has faced an increased number of Russian aerial strikes over the pa»»»

NAIROBI: Kenya's Ministry of Health on Friday confirmed the country's third case of Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease. The patient, a 65-year-old woman, is a close relative of the first and second cases and was identified as a primary contact, the ministry said. "She has been in quarantine since Oct. »»»

Damascus, Oct. 16 (SANA) Syria is seeking to expand domestic seed production to lower farming costs and reduce reliance on imports, as agricultural institutions restore seed-multiplication facilities and work with research centers and farmers to develop higher-yielding varieties. The General Establ»»»

DHAHRAN: It took Riyadh-resident Amal Sghaier nearly 22 hours and several detours to return home from her vacation in South Korea this week. Airport closures due to recent unrest meant her original journey was not possible, so she entered the Kingdom by car via King Fahd Causeway. While she enjoyed»»»

PAPHOS, Cyprus: A British man who pleaded guilty in the fatal fall of his 3-year-old son from a hotel window is free to return home after a Cyprus court fined him 3,000 euros ($3,380). Joshua Patric Foster, 38, wept Friday in Paphos District Court as Judge Froso Christodoulidou ruled a prison term »»»

LONDON: Downing Street Friday distanced itself from comments by the wife of the British prime minister’s national security adviser who voiced support for banned activist group Palestine Action. Sarah Helm, a journalist and author and wife of Jonathan Powell, Andy Burnham’s national security adviser»»»

ADEN: Yemen’s Armed Forces said they carried out 1,292 strikes against Houthi military targets over 24 hours, claiming more than 430 militia members had been eliminated and over 100 military vehicles and other assets destroyed or disabled. In a statement issued as part of Operation Dawn of Yemen, t»»»

Doha: The Qatar Football Association (QFA), represented by its President HE Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed Al-Thani in his capacity as a member of the FIFA Council, participated in the Council's 37th meeting today. Chaired by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, the meeting took place via video con»»»

The United Nations aviation agency has found Lebanon’s main airport lacks valid certification, according to a report summary seen by Reuters, in a setback to US President Donald Trump’s move to revive direct US-Beirut flights. Trump made the announcement in July and signed an order last month for t»»»

BANGKOK - A National Bank of Serbia (NBS) delegation presented Serbia's economic results at a meeting with representatives of leading international investors during the International Monetary Fund-World Bank Group Annual Meetings in Bangkok. "The discussions with investors focused on the performanc»»»

Since the beginning of the year, 310 settlements have been liberated, he added. Russian president visited the auxiliary command post of the Joint Group of Forces and he held another meeting with the command staff.Other Key StatementsAbout 10% of the territory of the Donetsk region and around 16.5% »»»

UAE residents urged to monitor security and flight updates amid regional tensions UAE residents are being urged to monitor regional security developments and check flight updates before travelling as Saudi Arabia faces continued missile and drone attacks and widespread aviation disruption. The late»»»

TUZ GOLU, Turkiye: Turkiye’s second-largest lake has become a stark symbol of a growing water crisis, with drought and intensive groundwater use threatening an ecosystem that supports wildlife, industry and tourism. Known for its stunning natural beauty, Tuz Golu — Turkish for Salt Lake — is a shal»»»

Former Budapest mayor István Tarlós has made unusually sharp remarks about Viktor Orbán’s responsibility for corruption under Fidesz. However, the veteran politician was far from complimentary about Péter Magyar’s Tisza government either. Former Budapest mayor István Tarlós has spoken openly about »»»

BELGRADE - Serbian Armed Forces Chief of General Staff Gen Milan Mojsilovic met on Friday in Belgrade with KFOR Commander Maj Gen Roberto Vergori to discuss the current security situation in Kosovo-Metohija, problems and challenges facing the Serb community in the province and activities by the Ser»»»

H.E. Hakan Fidan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Türkiye, will participate in the 52nd Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers ­(CFM) of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), to be held in Baghdad on 17–18 October 2026. Minister Fidan, as Chair of the 51st CFM, will del»»»

We welcome the new appointments to the Iraqi Cabinet following the vote of confidence held on 15 October in the Iraqi Council of Representatives, and extend our best wishes for success to the Iraqi Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi. We are confident that this developmen»»»

BAKU: Azerbaijan said Friday it had charged a Turkish newspaper columnist with calling for the violent overthrow of the government, amid tensions between the close allies over restrictions on Islamic headscarves in schools. The case comes amid a rare public row between Baku and Ankara, with critici»»»

LONDON: US President Donald Trump ruled out using nuclear weapons against Iran but raised the possibility of further strikes on its nuclear facilities, saying Washington wanted to ensure Tehran could never develop an atomic weapon. “No, I wouldn’t use nuclear. We don’t have to,” Trump said in an in»»»

VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone on Friday, calling for a ceasefire in a Russian-occupied city in southern Ukraine, as he recovers in hospital from a lung cancer operation. The Vatican said that Pope Leo “expressed his deep concern about the grave huma»»»

HANOI: Vietnam will keep its annual public debt ceiling at 60 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) during the 2026-2030 period under the government's adjusted public debt strategy, local daily Tien Phong reported Friday. Under the strategy, signed on Thursday, government debt will remain capped »»»

Kyiv, Ukraine: Ukraine's Health Ministry is launching a government-approved experimental pilot project to transport donor organs using drones. Ukraine will start delivering organs for transplant by drone, the health ministry said Friday. Kyiv touts itself as a world leader in drone technology, chur»»»

Australia warns citizens of Saudi airport disruptions amid security concerns Australia has advised its citizens not to travel to King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh following recent security incidents that disrupted operations, warning that flight cancellations, delays and airspace closures»»»

New York: Wall Street stocks were mixed early Friday at the end of a volatile week marked by unease over rising US inflation and hefty artificial intelligence spending. Appearing at the IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Federal Reserve Chief Kevin Warsh said the global economy had showed u»»»

BELGRADE- Aleksandar Vucic, who heads the Aleksandar Vucic-United Serbia electoral list for the October 25 early parliamentary polls in Serbia, said on Friday he expected more than four million voters to cast their ballots, taking the turnout to 63-64 pct. The higher the turnout, the higher the sup»»»

TUNIS, Oct. 16, 2026 (TAP) - FAO Sub-regional Coordinator for North Africa and Representative in Tunisia Nabil Assaf indicated on Friday that "Tunisia is brimming with abundant human skills in the agricultural field, enabling it to increase its...»»»

Indian authorities on Friday detained Abhijeet Dipke, the founder of the satirical youth movement "Cockroach Janta Party", ahead of a new protest in New Delhi, live images from the group showed. Police earlier closed a central New Delhi park in an attempt to stifle near-daily demonstrations ca»»»

Doha: Weather inshore tonight until 6:00 am on Saturday will be some clouds at times, the Department of Meteorology said in its daily weather report. Offshore, it will be some clouds at times, the report added. Wind inshore will be variable mainly southeasterly southwesterly at a speed of 02 to 12 »»»

Pope Leo XIV celebrated a mass at Rome's Gemelli hospital Friday after undergoing surgery to remove a cancerous tumour from his right lung, photos released by the Vatican showed. Doctors said his recovery was progressing normally but that further tests would show whether the cancer had spread. Pope»»»

Storm clouds bring hail to eastern UAE as the NCM monitors rainfall and changing weather. Abu Dhabi: Heavy rain and hail have swept across parts of the UAE, including Al Ain, Hatta, Kalba and Ras Al Khaimah, as towering thunderstorm clouds developed over eastern areas of the country. Hail was repor»»»

MOSCOW: Russia has seized local assets of four companies from France, Germany, Sweden and Belgium, according to a decree by President Vladimir Putin, in retaliation for Europe’s wartime support for Ukraine. Thursday’s decree listed assets belonging to French flooring maker Tarkett, German packaging»»»

PARIS: After weeks of student protests, France is set to be swept by broader, nationwide demonstrations Saturday over the cost of living, setting up a potentially fraught period ahead of presidential elections next year. The prospect of the two movements merging, perhaps with outbreaks of violence,»»»

BAGHDAD: Iraq has lost around $60 billion during the Middle East war, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said on Thursday, with Iran blockading a waterway that is crucial to global energy flows. OPEC member Iraq was producing about four million barrels of oil per day before the conflict, exporting about»»»

Interactive exhibition highlights progress in integrative medicine practices Al Shifaa Summit for Integrative Medicine, an initiative of the UAE Integrative Medicine Council, will return for its second edition from 20 to 22 October 2026 at ADNEC Centre Abu Dhabi, as part of Abu Dhabi Future Health »»»

Bangkok, Oct. 16 (SANA) Syria and Lebanon have agreed to establish a joint technical team to address financial and banking challenges and propose solutions to strengthen economic, investment and trade ties. The agreement was reached during a meeting on the sidelines of the Annual Meetings of the In»»»

BANGKOK: Rising energy and fertilizer costs are hitting smallholder farmers and driving up prices of agricultural commodities, fueling fears of a global food crisis, the head of the UN agriculture development fund told AFP. Global agricultural prices jumped 13 percent in the third quarter of the ye»»»

KALEMIE, DR Congo: US businessman Erik Prince and his mercenaries have emerged as key players in the war-stricken Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), fighting for its government as Washington vies for strategic minerals in the country, researchers and local sources told AFP. Numerous foreign parami»»»