LONDON: Syria said on Thursday it has cut the price of industrial fuel oil to $400 per tonne from $475 in a bid to lower production costs, support manufacturers and boost the competitiveness of domestic industries. Energy Minister Mohammed Al-Bashir told the state-run SANA news agency the move is i»»»

Madrid: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced today that Spain has lifted the national state of emergency imposed in response to major wildfires near Madrid, following significant progress in containing the blazes. Speaking during a visit to an emergency operations centre in the town of Na»»»

Doha: The Gulf Football Federation today unveiled its new visual identity and announced the adoption of its new official name, Gulf Football Federation, replacing its previous title, the Arabian Gulf Cup Football Federation. In a statement, the federation said the new identity reflects the core val»»»

The National Assembly on Thursday passed on second reading Election Code amendments removing the cap on voting sections in non-EU countries, abolishing the Abroad constituency, introducing mandatory machine voting in most voting sections, and introducing special features for voters with visual impa»»»

London: Players found guilty of discrimination will face a minimum 10-match suspension under new English Football Association rules. The FA have increased the punishment for discrimination after bans ranged from six to 12 games in previous seasons. The revamped rules also apply to managers and othe»»»

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Acting Director General of Passports Maj. Gen. Saleh bin Saad Al-Murabba has participated in the 41st meeting of the Directors General of Passports of the Gulf Cooperation Council, which was held in Riyadh in the presence of delegations from member states. The meeting looked »»»

AMMAN — Global passenger demand for air travel declined by 1.7 per cent in June 2026 compared with the same period last year, as weaker domestic markets in China, the United States and Japan offset growth across several international regions, according to new figures released by the International A»»»

TOKYO — Japan will temporarily slash consumption tax on food from eight percent to just one percent starting next April, the prime minister said on Thursday, as her administration seeks to tackle rising inflation.It will be the first such reduction since the tax was introduced in 1989, and the rate»»»

LONDON — Global stock markets diverged Thursday as traders tracked major earnings and central bank updates, while oil prices steadied after recent volatility caused by the Middle East war.The US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady Wednesday, weighing on the dollar, though three policymakers »»»

SEOUL — South Korean technology giant Samsung Electronics posted on Thursday a massive 19-fold jump in second-quarter operating profit from last year, buoyed by sustained AI-driven demand for memory chips.Samsung and other leading memory chipmakers have seen profits skyrocket in 2026, but their sha»»»

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the NYSE Options Market on Wall Street on Wednesday. The GDP only rose 1.5% in the second quarter, well below expectations. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo July 30 (UPI) -- The U.S. economy slowed in the second quarter of this »»»

President of Argentina Javier Milei speaks at the General Debate in the U.N. General Assembly Hall at the United Nations Headquarters in 2025 in New York City. In a statement on Thursday, he said, "The defense of the nation, its citizens and its national symbols is non-negotiable. Anyone who attack»»»

LONDON: The United ‌Kingdom’s Supreme Court has said it will hear an appeal against a lower court ruling that ​Britain’s decision to ban campaign group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization was lawful. London’s Court of Appeal ruled in June that proscribing Palestine Action under terrorism l»»»

UN: The UN Security Council began the process of selecting the UN’s next secretary-general, holding a first “straw poll” to gauge the seven candidates’ support for the high-profile global statesman role. Four women and three men are so far in the running to succeed Antonio Guterres, who will comple»»»

In this edition of French Connections, Genie Godula and Florence Villeminot continue their tour of Paris with a stop in the 3rd arrondissement. This is the quieter, more local side of the Marais and one of the oldest neighbourhoods in the French capital. It's a place where medieval history rubs sho»»»

Dubai: Dubai Financial Market (DFM) on Thursday reported a net profit before tax of Dh443.2 million for the first six months of 2026, supported by strong trading activity and increased investor participation. The DFM said that trading activity grew significantly during the first half of the year, w»»»

The assault on a checkpoint in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa comes days after another deadly clash in the volatile border province, where authorities have blamed a growing wave of attacks on militants operating from neighbouring Afghanistan.   An attack late Wednesday on a checkpoint in northern Pak»»»

Cairo: The League of Arab States on Thursday expressed strong condemnation of the targeting of two ships in the Egyptian port of Damietta, which -according to the Egyptian Cabinet's findings- was carried out by a drone. In a statement, Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Fahmy stressed that this ta»»»

United Nations, United States: The UN Security Council began the process of selecting the UN's next secretary-general, holding a first "straw poll" to gauge the seven candidates' support for the high-profile global statesman role. Four women and three men are so far in the running to succeed Antoni»»»

The IIHF Council has rejected a request from the Russian Ice Hockey Federation to allow Russian national teams back into international competition for the 2026/27 season. Citing “safety, security and sporting integrity,” the federation said Russia will remain excluded from the senior World Champion»»»

More than €3.7 million was spent on salaries and other remuneration for a special unit at Bulgaria’s Ministry of Interior that former Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev ordered to be closed, describing it as a “parasitic” structure. According to information provided by the ministry under the Access»»»

"Revival" MP Angel Yanchev launched a strong attack against Prime Minister Rumen Radev and the ruling Progressive Bulgaria party, accusing them of abandoning key commitments made during the election campaign. Speaking from the parliamentary tribune, Yanchev compared Radev’s alleged change of positi»»»

Bulgaria's Air Force spent this week at the center of an unusually candid public admission: the country's Soviet-era MiG-29s are running out of spare parts, the American F-16s meant to replace them are years behind schedule and Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov has sent letters to four different co»»»

The Bulgarian Parliament approved amendments to the Electoral Code that remove restrictions on opening polling stations in countries outside the European Union, with the changes passing their second reading in the plenary hall with 151 votes in favor, 36 against and one abstention. The adopted amen»»»

Bulgarian Foreign Minister Velislava Petrova assured her Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, that no direct military operations connected to the conflict in the Middle East will be conducted from Bulgarian territory, despite the deployment of US military aircraft in the country. During a telephone»»»

The president of Spain's north African exclave Ceuta on Thursday warned of a "total humanitarian and social emergency" after hundreds of migrants entered the territory by swimming across from neighbouring Morocco in recent days.  Hundreds of migrants have entered the Spanish north African excl»»»

Vast cosmic collisions over tens of billions of years have shaped our galaxy into the Milky Way that we see in the night sky today. Galactic archaeologist Amina Helma has dedicated her life to unearthing the "cosmic fossils" that help us decipher our galaxy's violent birth – and give us glimps»»»

Just days before the parliamentary election, on 30 March, Levente Magyar, the deputy foreign minister, was still praising the scheduled flights relaunching from Pécs-Pogány after an 18-year break, under the German airline operator SkyHub Airlines. It took only a few months for the company to all bu»»»

Albania’s ruling Socialist majority has unveiled its proposal for the Administrative-Territorial Reform 2.0, which would reduce the number of municipalities from 61 to 46 by merging 28 existing municipalities into 13 new administrative units. According to the proposal, the reform is based on an ass»»»

The National Assembly on Thursday voted 151-36, with one abstention, to scrap the limit of up to 20 voting sections outside Bulgaria's diplomatic missions and consular posts in non-EU countries. The change was adopted at second reading as part of amendments to the Election Code. Progressive Bulgari»»»

Russia’s Federal Security Service has brought terrorism-related charges against Pavel Durov, the Russian-born billionaire behind popular messaging app Telegram, once again placing the entrepreneur at the center of a dispute over whether technology platforms should be held responsible for crimes org»»»

Belgrade: UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Serbian President His Excellency Aleksandar Vučić discussed bilateral cooperation, particularly in the fields of the economy, investment, trade, and renewable energy, as well as other priority sectors, under the Comprehensi»»»

Riyadh: Not every journey to Saudi Arabia begins with a lifelong dream; sometimes, it starts with a single opportunity. When Susan Allen first arrived in Riyadh from the UK over eight years ago, she never imagined that the Kingdom would one day feel like home. Today, through her social media, she s»»»

KHARTOUM: Nine civilians were killed in a drone attack Wednesday, a medical source told AFP, two days after paramilitary leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo said he had “unleashed” his Rapid Support Forces. The latest attack took place in North Kordofan, where the RSF is attempting to encircle the city of»»»

LONDON: Syria’s old banknotes, bearing the image of ousted President Bashar Assad, lost their status as legal tender on Thursday, closing a monthslong exchange window that the Central Bank of Syria says has already pulled roughly 80 percent of the old currency out of circulation since January. The »»»

LONDON: Britain’s government said Thursday that 752 migrants were detected arriving in small boats across the Channel the previous day, a daily record for this year. The figure, released by the interior ministry, broke a previous 2026 record set in June of 710 arrivals in a single day. The issue of»»»

Acting Prosecutor General Vanya Stefanova held a working meeting at the Palace of Justice in Sofia with Regional Development and Public Works Minister Ivan Shishkov and Justice Minister Nikolay Naydenov, the prosecuting magistracy said on Thursday. According to a press release of the Ministry of Re»»»

Paris: The Arab World Institute (Institut du Monde Arabe) has announced the shortlisted projects across all categories of its 2026 Design Awards, including the Emerging Talent Award, Contemporary Craftsmanship Award, Impact Award, Arab Swiss Bank Award, and the Grand Prize. Established by the Paris»»»

Sofia, Bulgaria: Sinking water levels in the Danube river have unveiled bones of a mammoth in Bulgaria and could lead to further discoveries, a local museum director told AFP on Thursday. The bone fragments found near the northeastern city of Ruse "very likely" belonged to a woolly mammoth that liv»»»

Energy prices were the driving factor in June’s slowing inflation as talks of a peace deal between the United States and Iran gained momentum. Prices for gasoline and energy goods fell by 9.2%, marking the largest decrease since August 2022. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo July 30 (UP»»»

DUBAI: Iran’s Foreign ‌Minister Abbas Araqchi urged Bulgaria to reconsider its decision to allow the temporary deployment of US military aircraft at ​the Bezmer air base, Iranian state media reported on Thursday. During a phone call with his Bulgarian counterpart, Velislava Petrova-Chamova, Araqchi»»»

Tunis, July 30, 2026 (TAP) - The Tunis Stock Exchange advanced 0.37% to close at 20,070.56 points on Thursday.Trading activity remained strong, with total turnover reaching TND 15.7 million, according to stockbroker Tunisie Valeurs.BH BANK shares...»»»

Head of Yemen’s Ansarullah Movement Sayyed Abdul Malik Badreddine Al-Houthi denounced on Thursday the US-Saudi aggression Iraq, offering condolences to the Iraqi state, people, and the families of the martyrs. In a televised speech, Sayyed Houthi affirmed full solidarity with the Iraqi people, high»»»

Istanbul: Hundreds of Turkish firefighters on Thursday battled to contain wildfires spreading near key tourist regions on the country's Mediterranean coast. Authorities expressed particular concern over fires around the city of Antalya and the Aegean sea resorts of Fethiye, where flames gathered ne»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian FM Marko Djuric said on Thursday that demolition of properties in the Kosovo-Metohija Zubin Potok municipality, illegal works at the Serbian Orthodox monastery of Visoki Decani and administrative barriers hindering pilgrims represented "a deliberate pattern of pressure" on Serb p»»»

NATO-provided air defenses in Ukraine have failed to stop Russia’s ballistic and hypersonic missiles, as the July 30 strikes demonstrated. NATO was caught off guard by “Russia’s ability to transform its Soviet-era legacy into a new generation of high-tech weapons, such as the Zircon, Kinzhal and Or»»»

JERUSALEM: Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas is progressing toward a deal involving the decommissioning of its weapons, sources familiar with the ongoing talks with mediators in Cairo told AFP on Thursday. A Hamas source added, however, that they were still in the process of making amendments to »»»

DUBAI: Adidas and Al-Nassr FC have unveiled the club’s 2026-27 home kit under the theme “We Share Our Identity With the Rest of the World,” celebrating Saudi heritage, culture and the club’s growing global connections. Inspired by Saudi Arabian postage stamps, one of the world’s most recognizable s»»»

Buenos Aires, Argentina: Argentine President Javier Milei on Thursday demanded a bar on foreigners who express "hate" toward the Latin American country. The decree published by the presidency -- which requires parliamentary approval -- would bar or expel foreigners deemed to have "spread or incited»»»

TEHRAN (Sputnik) - The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Thursday that it will "punish" the United States for their strikes on Iran. Overnight into Thursday, the US Central Command said that the US military completed a new wave of strikes against Iran, targeting military command cent»»»