DOHA: The General Authority of Customs and Qatar Aviation Services signed a memorandum of understanding on Thursday to enhance cooperation in the field of general customs clearance for personal imports, aiming to improve service quality, simplify procedures, expedite transactions, and enhance the e»»»

RIYADH: A pact between a Saudi Arabia university and Japanese space exploration company has raised hopes of using the Kingdom’s expertise in oil and gas infrastructure for a lunar economy. Dr. Julien-Alexandre Lamamy, CEO of ispace-Europe, told Arab News recently that the company envisages tangible»»»

The abrupt departure of US Navy Secretary John Phelan has come at a particularly sensitive moment — with American naval forces deeply engaged in operations linked to the Iran conflict and a fragile ceasefire still holding. The Pentagon announced that Phelan was leaving “effective immediately,” offe»»»

Lebanon's leaders accused Israel on Thursday of committing a war crime, after an airstrike killed a Lebanese journalist in the country's south, with the Israeli army saying it was reviewing the incident. Rescuers and the reporter's employer on Wednesday confirmed the death of Amal Khalil, a 42-year»»»

ANKARA: Turkiye is making efforts to revive negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and bring together the leaders of the warring sides, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in a meeting in Ankara, the Turkish presidency said on Wednesday. Earlier on Wednesday, Ky»»»

Dubai: Dubai's flagship Emirates is confident it will rebound quickly from disruptions caused by the Iran conflict, with President Tim Clark saying strong demand will help the airline recover lost ground and fend off competition. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.Speakin»»»

1 of 2 | The Justice Department announced that it is immediately seeking to reschedule FDA-approved cannabis products including state-licensed medical marijuana, to Schedule III. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said this open the door for research into the substance. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI |»»»

Authorities investigating the death of a 43-year-old woman in Crete are focusing on her former partner, a 40-year-old man, as the main suspect, after he was found dead on Tuesday from a gunshot wound in what is believed to have been suicide. The woman was discovered on Wednesday in the back seat of»»»

Doha, Qatar: Minister of State for Foreign Trade, HE Dr. Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Sayed met with HE Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of India, via video conference. During the meeting, the current developments in the region and the challenges they pose to the economy and»»»

New York: Warner Bros. Discovery on Thursday said shareholders approved its sale to Paramount Skydance, giving a green light to a hostile takeover bid valuing the combined company at $110 billion. The agreement ends a lengthy takeover saga and creates an entertainment behemoth whose impact on a str»»»

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia's main stock index closed lower on Thursday, falling by 135.40 points to settle at 11,109.59, with total trading value reaching SAR 6 billion. A total of 331 million shares were traded, with 45 companies posting gains, while 212 stocks declined. Meanwhile, the par»»»

Tunis, April 23 (TAP) - The Arab Investment and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (DHAMAN) is keen to boost investment and public finance by providing guarantees, DHAMAN Director General Rashed Ahmed Al-Haroun said during his meeting with Finance...»»»

The United Nations said Thursday it was "working on" maintaining a presence in Lebanon once the mandate for its UNIFIL peacekeeping force expires at the end of the year. "In terms of the post-UNIFIL, we're currently in the process of working on these options," said Jean-Pierre Lacroix, the U.N. Und»»»

BARCELONA: Lamine Yamal will miss the rest of Barcelona’s season but should be healed from a leg injury in time to play for Spain at the World Cup, the club said on Thursday. Barcelona said 18-year-old Yamal will miss the remaining six La Liga games for the leaders as he follows a “conservative tre»»»

A draft resolution proposing amendments to the regulations governing the National Hospital under the Ministry of Health has been submitted for public discussion in Kyrgyzstan. The document proposes changes to the procedure for appointing the leadership of one of the country’s key medical institutio»»»

Malta is on collision course for another legal dispute with the European Commission over its online gambling industry, after the European Court of Justice’s top advisor said that its law which forbids Maltese courts from recognising rulings from other member states breaks EU law. In a legal opinion»»»

Germany’s Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz congratulated Rumen Radev in a phone call on Thursday on the overwhelming victory of Progressive Bulgaria in the parliamentary elections and expressed the German government’s readiness to work with Bulgaria’s future regular government, the press office of»»»

Frankfurt, Germany: Elon Musk's automotive and robotics company Tesla said Thursday that it would hire more than 1,000 people in Germany, a rare bright spot in the country's struggling auto industry. A thousand employees will be added at Tesla's factory outside Berlin by the end of June, a company »»»

BERLIN: The son of the ‌former Shah appealed to Western countries to join the war against Iran and criticised the decision of the German government not to meet him during his visit to Berlin on Thursday. Reza Pahlavi, whose father was deposed in the revolution that brought Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomei»»»

RIYADH: Aquarabia, the Middle East’s largest water park, opened on Thursday at the Qiddiya City entertainment complex on the outskirts of Riyadh. The park features 22 rides and attractions with eight themed zones spread across 250,000 sq. meters. There are also an additional seven dry rides and att»»»

Tripoli — Sulzer has launched a joint venture with Jawaby Services & Investments Ltd, a subsidiary of the National Oil Corporation, marking a significant step toward rebuilding and localizing Libya’s industrial and energy services sector. The new entity, Jawaby Sulzer Services, will operate from th»»»

Alexandria — Pharco Pharmaceuticals has inaugurated a new ophthalmic drops production line at its Al Amreya facility, with investments of approximately $5.8 million (EGP 300 million), as part of a broader expansion programme valued at EGP 500 million. The company stated that the new line will produ»»»

Paris, France: Bernard Arnault, chief executive of the world's biggest luxury conglomerate LVMH, brushed off speculation of his retirement on Thursday, telling shareholders that "we'll talk about all this again in seven to eight years". The 77-year-old founder of the French group whose brands inclu»»»

Johannesburg, South Africa: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday suspended the national police chief implicated in a $20 million health tender scandal that has rocked the country and drawn in other officers. National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola is accused of flouting procurem»»»

MALABO, Equatorial Guinea: Pope Leo XIV wrapped up his African odyssey on Thursday with a final Mass in Equatorial Guinea, bringing to an end one of the newsiest papal trips in the history of popes on the road, thanks to his extraordinary back-and-forth with President Donald Trump. A powerful rains»»»

BEIRUT: Lebanon will formally urge Israel to immediately halt attacks on journalists and paramedics during US-sponsored talks in Washington, a day after an Israeli strike killed a Lebanese reporter and wounded another in southern Lebanon. An official source told Arab News that the demand was added »»»

LODNON: Israeli forces fatally shot a 15-year-old Palestinian boy on Thursday during a raid in the Rafidia neighborhood of Nablus, north of the West Bank. The teenager died in hospital from critical injuries after he was shot in the shoulder, according to the Wafa news agency. Israeli forces carry »»»

Doha, Qatar: Qatar Navigation (Milaha) - Qatari public shareholding company - announced a strategic reorganization of its business sectors aimed at enhancing operational efficiency and supporting its future direction. In a statement published on the Qatar Stock Exchange website, the company said th»»»

The Pentagon blasted as cherry picking and false on Thursday a news report saying that the department assessed it could take six months to completely clear the Strait of Hormuz of Iranian-laid mines. The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that the Pentagon shared the six-month estimate during a »»»

The 9th meeting of the Transport Ministers of the Organization of Turkic States was held in Bishkek. The meeting was chaired by the Minister of Transport of Kyrgyzstan, Talantbek Soltobaev. During the meeting, the parties noted the active development of cooperation in the transport sector and ident»»»

Senate Republican Leader John Thune, R-S.D., helped the Senate pass a bill to begin the budget reconciliation process early Thursday Morning. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo April 23 (UPI) -- Senate Republicans were up all night voting, eventually adopting a budget reconciliation pack»»»

Sharjah: His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, has issued an Emiri Decree on the establishment of “Wadi Al Qarha” Nature Reserve in the Emirate of Sharjah. The decree stipulates that a natural reserve named “Wadi Al Qarha Nature Reserve”»»»

SPA Hotel Devin aims to turn the Rhodope area into a leader in health tourism by continuing its balneotherapy traditions, the hotel manager Dzheylyan Kokalova told BTA. Even before the mass development of tourism, the area was known as a natural sanatorium for respiratory problems, bone diseases, a»»»

Tunis, April 23 (TAP) - The Assembly of People's Representatives (ARP) will hold a plenary session on Friday, starting 10 a.m. The session's agenda includes oral questions to Minister of Family, Women, Children and the Elderly Asma Jabri, reads a...»»»

NOVI SAD, Serbia (Sputnik) - Russia's response to the latest round of EU sanctions will follow a careful review of its contents, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told Sputnik on Thursday. European Union countries adopted the 20th round of sanctions against Russia on Thursday. "Our »»»

Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan held talks on Thursday, discussing the latest developments in Lebanon and the region, "particularly Israel's continued aggression against Lebanon, including its ongoing systematic destruction of border villages," »»»

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is set to host another major international wrestling event this summer, with WWE confirming the return of its “Night of Champions” showcase to Riyadh. The event will take place at Kingdom Arena on June 27, as part of the Kingdom’s expanding entertainment calendar under Riyadh S»»»

Paris, France: The Executive Board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) unanimously adopted the International Action Plan to Protect Education from Attacks during its 224th session, in what was described as a first-of-its-kind step within international fr»»»

Britain and France Thursday voiced hope that a military plan to protect the Strait of Hormuz was coming together and would succeed in restoring trade flows through the vital passage. At a two-day meeting in London, a dedicated operational planning group on Wednesday presented a decision brief to mi»»»

Lebanon has accused Israel of war crimes after a reporter for a Lebanese newspaper was killed on Wednesday in a strike on a house in the southern village of al-Tiri, where she had taken cover after an earlier attack targeted the vehicle she was traveling in. Amal Khalil, a reporter for Al-Akhbar, w»»»

Children in Bishkek have undergone surgeries with the participation of a doctor from Germany, the National Center for Maternal and Child Welfare reported. According to the medical institution, Professor Tino Just from Germany visited the center’s otorhinolaryngology (ENT) department from April 13 t»»»

Interim Peruvian President José María Balcázar sought to suspend the roughly $3.5 billion acquisition of 12 F-16s from Lockheed Martin, arguing that the decision should be left to the next administration that takes office in July. File Photo by Ritchie B. Tongo/EPA April 23 (UPI) -- Peru's planned »»»

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has secured top rankings in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2025-2026 report, reflecting a highly competitive environment and reinforcing its position as a premier hub for entrepreneurship. The Kingdom led all high-income economies in entrepreneurial finance, highlighting t»»»

By April 22, a total of 166 election-related case files have been opened by the Sofia City Prosecution Office, the prosecution said, reacting to allegations regarding its work on cases involving individuals with immunity. In a Facebook post on Tuesday, caretaker Prime Minister Andrey Gurov said tha»»»

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s conjoined twins separation program began one of the most complex surgeries of its kind in the world on Thursday morning in an operation expected to take 24 hours. The separation of conjoined Filipino twins Klea and Maurice Ann, joined at the head, presents a number of challen»»»

The UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, along with Saudi Arabia, are among the most exposed to undersea cable failures. Possible damage would result in a 70 to 90% loss of connectivity for Arab Gulf States, and up to 35% for Saudi Arabia alone, risking slowdowns in e-commerce, banking, and global servi»»»

BELGRADE - A 360-degree observation deck on top of Belgrade Tower, situated in the Belgrade Waterfront complex, was opened on Thursday at a ceremony also attended by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Eagle Hills founder and CEO Mohamed Alabbar. Accessed via lifts directly from the Galerija mal»»»

Voting in two of India’s most politically significant states — West Bengal and Tamil Nadu — saw exceptionally high turnout on Thursday, signalling strong voter engagement despite a contentious campaign backdrop. According to Election Commission (EC) estimates, West Bengal recorded 89.93 per cent po»»»

1/11Kamal Haasan, Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) president and actor, along with his daughter, actress Shruti Haasan, shows his inked finger after casting his vote during the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections 2026 in Chennai district, Tamil Nadu, on Thursday, April 23, 2026.IANS2/11Superstar Rajinikanth arr»»»

The Hague: Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport said Thursday it would offer airlines a 10-percent discount on airport charges due to the high price of jet fuel caused by the current Middle East geopolitical situation. The discount is a temporary measure that applies to daytime flights only from April 27, »»»