WASHINGTON: The World Bank (WB) Board of Executive Directors approved on Thursday $225 million in grant financing from the International Development Association (IDA) to support Syria to enhance the delivery of public services in its water and health sectors. Also Read: Syria needs to rebuild insti»»»

Share: An IRGC boat off the coast of Bandar Abbas, Iran .President Trump orders U.S. military to ‘shoot and kill’ Iranian boats mining Strait of Hormuz[File: Nazanin Tabatabaee/WANA via Reuters] The U.S. also boarded another tanker it said was involved in smuggling Iranian oil, as the intensifying »»»

SANTA ANA, California: More than two dozen members and associates of the Mexican Mafia were arrested Thursday during an early morning crackdown across Southern California, federal authorities said. The FBI and other federal and local agencies executed search and arrest warrants at about 30 location»»»

The Hague, Netherlands: Judges at the International Criminal Court on Thursday confirmed charges of crimes against humanity against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for deadly anti-drug crackdowns he allegedly oversaw while in office. A three-judge panel found unanimously there were “sub»»»

WASHINGTON: A US special forces soldier involved in the military operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has been charged with using classified information about the mission to win more than $400,000 in an online betting market, federal officials announced Thursday. Gannon Ken Van »»»

President Donald Trump's “gold card” visa, where a foreigner can shell out at least $1 million to legally live and work in the U.S., has been approved for one person, said Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick Thursday — appearing to fall a bit short of an earlier claim. After it launched in December, »»»

OFF THE COAST OF RHODE ISLAND: Offshore wind turbines roughly three times the height of the Statue of Liberty were spinning off the coast of Rhode Island on Thursday, sending clean electricity to the region. Wind farms are taking shape and operating along the East Coast, even as President Donald Tr»»»

First Sermon (Khutbah One) All praise is due to Allah, who has commanded fidelity and trustworthiness, and has forbidden treachery and betrayal. I bear witness that there is nothing worthy of worship but Allah alone, without partner—Glory be to Him—“He does not guide the plan of the treacherous” (Q»»»

Share: President Trump meets with U.S., Israeli and Lebanese officials in the Oval Office on April 23. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images Hezbollah said on Thursday it fired rockets at northern Israel in response to the country’s ceasefire “violations”, as Lebanon and Israel’s US ambassadors were set to»»»

The Hague, Netherlands: Judges at the International Criminal Court on Thursday confirmed charges of crimes against humanity against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for deadly anti-drug crackdowns he allegedly oversaw while in office. A three-judge panel found unanimously there were “sub»»»

With a summer of travel chaos looming for many European holidaymakers, one ferry operator is promising smooth sailing. Christophe Mathieu, CEO of Brittany Ferries, tells France 24 the line has enough supplies of maritime fuels to last the season, and vows not to raise ticket prices despite the glob»»»

Share: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office, with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio standing behind him, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 23, 2026. SUMMARY Israel and Lebanon agreed to extend their ceasefire by three weeks following a mee»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has shown how vulnerable India is in securing oil and gas supplies. The South Asian country is the world’s third-largest consumer of oil and imports about 85% of its demand. Prior to the conflict, nearly half of those imports passed through the Strait of Horm»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

For years, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue - the so-called “Quad” linking the United States, Australia, India and Japan - has been presented as a cornerstone of Indo-Pacific stability. The Quad was never a formal allia»»»

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has shown how vulnerable India is in securing oil and gas supplies. The South Asian country is the world’s third-largest consumer of oil and imports about 85% of its demand. Prior to the conflict, nearly half of those imports passed through the Strait of Horm»»»

AI developer Anthropic insists it has no backdoor or “kill switch” for its Claude AI once it is deployed in classified Pentagon military networks, according to a new court filing. The US military and the tech firm found themselves embroiled in a policy dispute earlier this year, with the Pentagon i»»»

BRUSSELS: The Board of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group approved a total of €10 billion in financing, including almost €2 billion for initiatives to expand Europe’s clean energy investments, ensure affordability and bolster competitiveness. The Board of the EIB endorsed loans to support the»»»

WASHINGTON: Israel and Lebanon agreed to extend their ceasefire by three weeks following a meeting in the White House with top U.S. officials, President Donald Trump said. Trump’s post Thursday afternoon said that “High Ranking Representatives” of the two countries met with him, Vice President JD V»»»

Dubai: The war involving Iran is reshaping how UAE-based travellers plan and pay for flights, as airspace closures across key Middle East corridors and higher fuel costs force airlines to reroute services, cut capacity and lift fares. The disruption is feeding through quickly, leaving travellers wi»»»

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in December 2025 in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. Trump announced a drug price deal with drug company Regeneron on Thursday. File Photo by Will Oliver/UPI | License Photo April 23 (UPI) -- On Thursday, President Donald Trump announced a»»»

GENEVA: Despite significant funding cuts, the World Health Organisation (WHO) was able to support significant national health gains for hundreds of millions of people in 2025, according to its annual Results Report released on Thursday. "The Results Report 2025 shows that with support from WHO and »»»

Meta is laying off about 8,000 workers, or about 10% of its workforce, the company said Thursday as it continues to ramp up spending on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and highly paid AI-expert hires. The company said it was making the cuts for the sake of efficiency and to allow new in»»»

AL AIN: On the second day of the Emirates Agriculture Conference and Exhibition 2026, discussions centred on strengthening national food industries, creating value chains for local products, and attracting investment in agriculture. These efforts aim to boost the competitiveness of Emirati products»»»

NEW YORK: President Donald Trump said Thursday that he was weighing a taxpayer-funded takeover of Spirit Airlines with the intent of reselling the struggling budget carrier after oil prices drop. The president confirmed his continued interest in offering Spirit a financial lifeline after a lawyer t»»»

ABU DHABI: UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan received a written message from His Excellency Alexander Lukashenko, President of the Republic of Belarus, regarding bilateral relations and ways to further strengthen cooperation in support of mutual interests. The message wa»»»

A workspace is dedicated to Meta in 2023 in the Internation Media Center in Moscone Center in San Francisco. Meta said Thursday that it will lay off about 10% of its workforce in a move to artificial intelligence. File Photo by Terry Schmitt/UPI | License Photo April 23 (UPI) -- Meta, the parent co»»»

Manila: Bank transactions worth billions of pesos linked to Vice President Sara Duterte did not appear to match the assets she declared annually, lawmakers said, citing records presented during House hearings on impeachment complaints. The disparity could be the “smoking gun” behind allegations of »»»