MEDIRIGIRIYA, Sri Lanka: When the decades-long civil war that forced Samantha Pushpakumara from his village in north-central Sri Lanka ended, he was finally able to return home to a life of farming that he thought would give his family a stable future. That was until the rains didn’t come. Sri Lank»»»

San Francisco, United States: Anthropic on Thursday moved to bar users from treating its Claude AI system with needless cruelty, amid a growing philosophical debate over whether artificial intelligence can be conscious. The San Francisco-based AI lab updated its usage policy to include “a prohibiti»»»

Global markets react to inflation concerns and bond yield pressure Oil prices soared Thursday following reports that the United States could launch fresh attacks on Iran before next month's midterm elections, risking further supply disruptions. But the cost surge eased slightly after US President D»»»

Tunis, Oct.8 (TAP) - The Confederation of Tunisian Citizen Enterprises (CONECT), in cooperation with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), held an information workshop on Thursday for its member companies as part of the third phase of...»»»

Tunis, Oct.8 (TAP) - A working meeting on preparations for the Hajj season and ways to further improve services provided to pilgrims was held Wednesday at the Ministry of Religious Affairs, co-chaired by Minister of Religious Affairs Ahmed Bouhali...»»»

MIAMI: Isaias strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane as it barreled toward the US Gulf Coast on Thursday, prompting orders for tourists to abandon beaches for safer spots inland, sending locals scurrying for gas and groceries and leading fishing crews to secure their boats before the potentially »»»

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s administration announced Thursday it was suspending Microsoft and several other firms from a program allowing foreign workers to apply for green cards as it also lashed out at universities that bring international students to the US on exchange programs. The ann»»»

Over 70,000 people took part in demonstrations across France on Thursday demanding better education and less police brutality, as students protested nationwide despite government attempts to ease a crisis that has rocked the country for more than a week. Students have blocked entrances to hundreds »»»

On behalf of Minister of Energy and Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, CEO of the Saudi Industrial Development Fund Prince Sultan bin Khalid bin Faisal headed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s delegation participating in the 57th meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Coun»»»

British ​counter-terrorism police are investigating after two Latvian men were arrested Thursday near a Royal Air Force ​base in southeast England housing US and NATO intelligence operations, police said in a statement. The arrests come days after a major incident at another UK base led t»»»

The story’s as underreported as it is consequential for the entire planet: Three Turkish-owned cargo ships out of Ukraine hit in EU waters by suspected Russian drones. One, the Togo-flagged Alfa Watan sinking Tuesday off Bulgaria. Ten Egyptian and Syrian crew missing. For its part, Ukraine’s been h»»»

Tribune News Network Doha Qatar Foundation’s Ladies Sport Night, in partnership with ORYX GTL, returns to Oxygen Park in Education City this fall with a diverse programme of sports, fitness and community activities for women and girls aged 8 and above. Running every Tuesday between October 13 and D»»»

QNA Doha Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs His Excellency Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh Al Khulaifi has told French President’s Personal Envoy to Lebanon Jean-Yves Le Drian that Lebanon’s stability is essential to regional stability and underscored the importance of respec»»»

Tribune News Network Doha The SC has received the AI Transformation Leadership Award, presented by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) in collaboration with Microsoft, in recognition of its efforts to adopt and integrate AI technologies across the organisation. The awar»»»

QNA Manama Qatar participated in the proceedings of the 12th Meeting of the Committee of Ministers of Labour of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States held in Bahrain on Thursday. Qatar’s delegation was headed by Minister of Labour HE Dr Ali bin Samikh Al Marri. The ministers discussed ways to s»»»

SALFIT: Israeli forces on Thursday closed agricultural roads in the western area of Deir Ballut, in the central West Bank district of Salfit, while settlers attacked agricultural land in the nearby town of Kafr Al-Dik. Local sources said that Israeli bulldozers blocked several agricultural roads in»»»

Qatar’s international reserves rise 0.46% to QR262.3bn in SeptemberQatar’s international reserves and foreign currency liquidity rose 0.46 percent year-on-year to QR262.279 billion at the end of September 2026, compared with QR261.061 billion in the same month last year, according to data released »»»

QNA Doha Qatar’s real estate trading volume exceeded QR508 million during the week from Sept. 27 to October 1, according to the weekly bulletin issued by the Department of Real Estate Registration at the Ministry of Justice. The volume of real estate trading through registered sale contracts reache»»»

Tribune News Network Doha This October, Qatar Museums (QM), the nation’s preeminent institution for art and culture, will present ERDEM: About Time, About Her, a major retrospective dedicated to the work of internationally-acclaimed British-Turkish designer Erdem Moralioglu. Born in Montreal to a T»»»

Tribune News Network DOHA Qatar Museums (QM) will present Beyti Beytak My Home is Your Home, a major exhibition organised by the future Art Mill Museum at the Fahad bin Ali Palace in Doha. On view from October 26, 2026 until May 29, 2027, the exhibition will feature works by more than 40 architects»»»

Tribune News Network MEXICO CITY Years of Culture’s Crafting Design Futures residency, developed by Design Doha as part of the Qatar, Canada and Mexico 2026 Year of Culture, joined Design Week Mexico’s Visión y Tradición programme, bringing four designers from Qatar and the wider Middle East, North»»»

Tribune News Network DOHA The National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ), in collaboration with Qatar University’s College of Education, concluded a two-day workshop introducing future educators to practical approaches for integrating Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) into classro»»»

QNA New York Qatar highlighted efforts to advance social development, strengthen women’s empowerment and protect children’s rights at the United Nations, reaffirming its commitment to translating these priorities into national policies and international initiatives. The remarks were delivered by Th»»»

Among the key areas under discussion were authentic assessment and safeguarding academic integrity amid the growing use of artificial intelligence tools capable of generating texts and answering questions. This, HE the Minister noted, requires a greater focus on measuring what students have actuall»»»

QNA Manama Qatar participated in a meeting of the Committee of GCC Ministers of Social Affairs and Social Development, held in Bahrain, as part of efforts to strengthen cooperation and coordination on social development issues across the Gulf. Qatar was represented at the meeting by Minister of Soc»»»

Tunis, Oct.8 (TAP) - Communications Technologies Minister Sofiene Hemissi discussed on Thursday evening at the ministry’s headquarters with African Postal Union (APU) Secretary-General Sifundo Chief Moyo ways to strengthen and develop existing...»»»

New York, Oct. 9 (SANA) Syria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ibrahim Olabi said Thursday that Syria has chosen to rebuild its state institutions and uphold the rule of law following the fall of the deposed regime. Speaking during a discussion of the “Rule of Law at the National a»»»

Damascus, Oct. 8 (SANA) Economic cooperation between Syria and Saudi Arabia is gaining fresh momentum, with the energy sector emerging as one of the key areas for investment and technical partnership following recent talks between President Ahmad al-Sharaa and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman»»»

Socialist Party lawmaker Erion Braçe has raised strong reservations about Albania’s proposed territorial reform, arguing that the draft fails to deliver meaningful decentralization and a genuine transfer of power to local government. Speaking in Parliament, Braçe said many of the powers presented a»»»

JERUSALEM: Gaza’s civil defense rescue service said on Thursday that seven people were killed in separate Israeli strikes throughout the day, while the Israeli army said three of the victims were “military operatives.” Six of the seven were killed in various parts of Gaza City. Two people were kill»»»

HASAKAH: Some 518 displaced families from Ras al-Ain in northern Hasakah returned from Hasakah city to their home areas on Thursday, marking the fourth group to return under a voluntary return program. Mustafa Abdi, a member of the presidential team implementing the Jan. 29 agreement with the Syria»»»

Russian strike on buses in Ukraine leaves at least 33 dead, authorities confirm Thirty-three people were killed on Thursday when Russia struck two passenger buses in Kramatorsk, near the frontline in eastern Ukraine, local authorities said. They called it the deadliest single attack of 2026 so far.»»»

Damascus, Oct. 8 (SANA) France has launched a technical assistance program for the Central Bank of Syria (CBS), describing the initiative as a new step toward strengthening financial cooperation with Damascus. French Chargé d’Affaires in Syria Jean-Baptiste Faivre said in a post on X that the launc»»»

LONDON: Jordan affirmed its support on Thursday for the decision by the UK government to keep open its diplomatic mission in the contested city of East Jerusalem that serves Palestinians. Early last month, Israel gave British authorities 30 days to close the consulate in retaliation for sweeping UK»»»

SALFIT: Israeli forces on Thursday closed agricultural roads in the western area of Deir Ballut, in the central West Bank district of Salfit, while settlers attacked agricultural land in the nearby town of Kafr Al-Dik. Local sources said that Israeli bulldozers blocked several agricultural roads in»»»

Socialist Party lawmaker Elisa Spiropali has voiced strong criticism of the way institutions and political power operate in Albania, as Parliament prepares to vote on a new territorial reform. Speaking in Parliament, Spiropali questioned whether changing the number or boundaries of municipalities c»»»

HASAKAH: Some 518 displaced families from Ras al-Ain in northern Hasakah returned from Hasakah city to their home areas on Thursday, marking the fourth group to return under a voluntary return program. Mustafa Abdi, a member of the presidential team implementing the Jan. 29 agreement with the Syria»»»

Tunis, Oct. 8 (TAP) - The Major Projects Committee meeting chaired on Thursday at the Government Palace in Kasbah by Prime Minister Sarra Zaafrani Zenzri reviewed progress on several major public projects spanning the energy, health, infrastructure,...»»»

Tunis, Oct. 8 (TAP) - Interior Minister Khaled Nouri and his Libyan counterpart, Major General Emad Mustafa Trabelsi, reaffirmed their shared commitment on Thursday to further strengthening security cooperation and taking it to a higher level during...»»»

Damascus, Oct. 8 (SANA) Syrian Foreign and Expatriates Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani met with Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan in Ankara. The meeting addressed ways to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries, reviewed progress on activating the Joint Higher Committee.The two min»»»

WASHINGTON: US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the firing squad execution of convicted military base shooter Nidal Hasan will be “public,” according to a video publicized by the Pentagon on Thursday. “He’s going to get a firing squad of soldiers, as it should be, and we’ll make sure that people»»»

CALIFRONIA: The USS Abraham Lincoln returned home to San Diego Bay Thursday with sailors jumping up and down and waving excitedly to loved ones as the ship ended a deployment that included a record uninterrupted 265 days at sea in support of the Iran war. Families described crying and losing sleep »»»

Washington, United States: Donald Trump presented Elon Musk with the top US science medal on Thursday, as the rocket tycoon fully returned to the president's orbit after an explosive bust-up. Six US tech titans received prestigious awards from the president at a Washington peace institute that was »»»

RIYADH: The Saudi Water Authority has closed five filling stations in Tabuk for failing to meet hygiene standards, and also recorded 144 license and transport violations, according to recent reports. The authority had conducted inspections, coordinated with relevant authorities, to check compliance»»»

JEDDAH: Across Saudi Arabia, skylines are rising, masterplans are taking shape and technology is becoming increasingly embedded in the way cities are designed. But amid the pace of change, architects are grappling with a question that is as cultural as it is technical: What should the future of Sau»»»

Riyadh: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty discussed regional developments during a telephone call on Thursday. The two ministers stressed the importance of continued coordination and efforts to support security and stability in the region. A»»»

Doha, Qatar: The Ministry of Municipality received a delegation from the Emirate of Ajman in the United Arab Emirates, as part of a visit aimed at exploring leading experiences and practices in municipal work, urban planning and digital transformation projects. During the visit, the delegation was »»»

Paris, France: France's education minister on Thursday promised 3,000 substitute teachers for the country's worst-off high schools, after tens of thousands took to the streets nationwide to demand better education and less police brutality. Students have blocked entrances to hundreds of high school»»»

MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian on Thursday and promised to “do everything” to help end the Middle East conflict, Russian news agencies reported. “We are ready to do everything that is in our power to contribute to the settlement of thi»»»

MARRAKECH: Moroccan Military Industry, a subsidiary of Israel’s Elbit Systems, will begin delivering armored vehicle turrets to the Moroccan army in March 2027, its general manager said, as Rabat pushes to build up its military industry with foreign partners. Morocco and Israel, which resumed diplo»»»