JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s central bank has approved Indian fintech firm TotalPay to operate as an e-commerce payment technical service provider, expanding the Kingdom’s fast-growing digital payments ecosystem. The approval from the Saudi Central Bank, or SAMA, allows TotalPay to launch operations in t»»»

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US President Donald Trump on Wednesday claimed that a lot of progress has been over the past week in solving the Russia-Ukraine conflict. "I think we've made a lot of progress in the last couple of weeks, and we'll see how it all goes." Trump said ahead of his meeting with Vl»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - European Parliament lawmakers on Wednesday condemned Ukraine for naming a military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA, banned in Russia as an extremist organization), arguing that this move disregarded Poland's "sensitivities" as the UPA had committed multiple crimes ag»»»

Tunis, July 8, 2026 (TAP) - Faced with the heavy human and economic toll of road accidents, road safety is now emerging as a major priority for public policies in Tunisia. Beyond its impact on public health, road insecurity generates...»»»

Tunis, July 8, 2026 (TAP) - The Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries, in partnership with the North Africa office of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the General Directorate of Forests, on Wednesday launched a nationwide...»»»

Havana: Cuba fully restored its energy grid early Wednesday after the third nationwide blackout this year, but authorities warned more outages could follow due to fuel shortages. The Caribbean island is reeling from its worst economic crisis in decades -- one made worse by a fuel blockade imposed b»»»

A heated debate in Hungary’s Parliament has birthed political controversy after Krisztián Kulcsár, an MP for the governing Tisza Party, apologised for making an offensive remark during a speech by Anna Lezsák of the Fidesz-KDNP alliance. Although the alleged comment could not be heard on the offici»»»

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States might end up taking over Iran's Kharg Island, President Donald Trump said on Wednesday amid renewed hostilities and the end of the ceasefire. "We attacked Kharg Island last night. We knocked out a piece, I said: "Don't touch the oil, because maybe we'll take»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian Minister of European Integration Nemanja Starovic received Irish Ambassador to Belgrade Kevin Colgan on Wednesday to discuss the priorities of Ireland's Council of the EU presidency, the continuation of Serbia’s European integration process and opportunities for improving bilater»»»

Europe faces an estimated €70bn annual bill to adapt to climate change, but as deadly heatwaves and wildfires intensify across the continent, questions remain over who should pay. The European Parliament approved €144.1m in aid to Spain, Romania and Cyprus this week to recover from wildfires, flood»»»

London, United Kingdom: Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk cruised past Jasmine Paolini on Wednesday to book a Wimbledon semi-final clash with Linda Noskova, before Alexander Zverev and Flavio Cobolli attempt to set up a rematch of their French Open final. Kostyuk raced to a 6-3, 6-2 victory after just 69 min»»»

LONDON: France has returned 23 Syrian archaeological artifacts that had been in Paris since before the outbreak of the civil war in Syria, handing them back during President Emmanuel Macron’s recent visit to Damascus. The move has been welcomed as a sign of renewed ties and respect for Syria’s cult»»»

BERLIN: A Berlin court on Wednesday convicted and sentenced a German doctor to life in prison on charges of murdering 15 of his patients who were under palliative care, in a case involving allegations he torched the homes of victims to try to cover up the crimes. The 41-year-old doctor, who has onl»»»

Around 100 international students from 16 countries are currently enrolled in bachelor's programmes at the National Sports Academy in Sofia, the academy told BTA. The academy also has 10 foreign master's students from six countries, as well as eight doctoral students from Greece, China, Cyprus and »»»

More than 2,500 undergraduate students from around the world applied this summer for a place in a research internship at Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI), highlighting the growing global demand for hands-on AI research opportunities. Only 54 students were selected fo»»»

RIYADH: Bank transfers from Saudi Arabia to the UAE have faced unusual delays in recent weeks, raising concerns among companies and individuals operating between the two largest Arab economies. According to people familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the infor»»»

Dubai: Saudi Arabia’s Cabinet has approved the establishment of a unified national visa platform at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, making it the Kingdom’s official platform for visa services. The decision was taken during a Cabinet session chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Prime Minist»»»

US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Washington would give Kyiv the "the right to make" Patriot air-defence missiles as he met Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky at NATO's summit. "So one of the things we're going to be talking about is we're going to give a licence to you to make Patriots. That»»»

DUBAI: Deutsche Bank has secured a regional headquarters license in Saudi Arabia, giving the German lender access to major government and state-linked contracts as the Kingdom ‌pushes multinational companies to expand their presence in Riyadh. The new regional headquarters will be based in Riyadh a»»»

SAO PAULO: Brazil’s federal police searched the home of former President Jair Bolsonaro for weapons and ammunition on Wednesday, but did not find anything, one of Bolsonaro’s lawyers said in a post on X. “The defense had already previously informed the whereabouts of all the ‌weapons. Result: ‌Noth»»»

The funeral procession of Iran's late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei continued to draw massive crowds as it made its way through the holy cities of Iraq, home to some of the Shia faith's most sacred shrines. The six-day funeral ceremony will conclude on Thursday when Khamenei's body is retur»»»

RIYADH: The International Monetary Fund has raised Saudi Arabia’s economic growth forecast for 2027 to 5.5 percent, up from the 4.5 percent it projected in April, as the Kingdom is expected to be less affected by regional disruptions due to its diversified export routes. The revised forecast, publi»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian Minister of European Integration Nemanja Starovic received on Wednesday in Belgrade a delegation of the Belgian federal parliament headed by Chamber of Representatives member Katrijn van Riet to discuss Serbia’s EU accession and bilateral relations between the two countries. The »»»

London, United Kingdom: Czech ninth seed Linda Noskova reached her first Wimbledon semi-final with a 6-3, 7-5 win against Belgium's Elise Mertens on Wednesday. Noskova dominated from start to finish in a last-eight clash lasting one hour and 50 minutes in searing temperatures on Court One. The 21-y»»»

Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh: Heavy rain in Bangladesh triggered a landslide at the world's largest refugee camp on Wednesday, killing seven children and a teacher during a school class and doubling the death toll from rain-related disasters this week. Rescuers clawed through liquid earth to drag out th»»»

The 11th century Bayeux Tapestry will arrive in London in the coming days in a discreet overnight operation under police protection ahead of its first-ever exhibition in Britain, the UK envoy overseeing the transfer said. The 68-metre-long masterpiece, which depicts the 1066 Norman conquest of Engl»»»

Bulgaria’s Ministry of Interior has contacted the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury, saying it is prepared to provide information and evidence related to the implementation of sanctions imposed under the Global Magnitsky Act. According to the ministry, Bul»»»

The Israeli enemy continued on Wednesday its attacks on South Lebanon. In this regard, Lebanese ministry of health updated toll of Israeli aggression, since March 2, 2026, recording 4320 martyrs and 12203 injuries. The Israeli enemy targeted with air raids and artillery shells the Ali Al-Taher Hill»»»

ZAGREB: Croatia’s most successful football coach, Zlatko Dalic, resigned on Wednesday, ending a tenure that included taking the team to the 2018 World Cup final. “As much as I still feel the ambition and desire to achieve new successes with Croatia, I feel that this is the right moment to bring thi»»»

LA FLECHE, France: France’s far-right supremo Marine Le Pen hit the campaign trail on Wednesday fresh off her announcement she would run for president despite an embezzlement conviction. Surrounded by crowds and journalists in the western town of La Fleche, that was won by her National Rally (RN) p»»»

Lebanon's judiciary postponed a hearing scheduled Wednesday for former central bank governor Riad Salameh, accused of embezzling more than $300 million, a judicial official told AFP. Salameh, who headed the central bank for three decades and was arrested in 2024, has faced numerous accusations incl»»»

Lebanon demands Israel's withdrawal from two "pilot zones" in the south before participating in the next round of direct talks in Rome next week, a diplomatic source told AFP on Wednesday. The source, requesting anonymity, said "Lebanon is stipulating Israel's withdrawal from two pilot zones in ord»»»

Tunis, July 8 (TAP) - Temperatures are set to rise in most parts of the country from Friday, July 10, 2026, the National Institute of Meteorology (INM) said on Wednesday. This rise in temperatures will be particularly noticeable on Saturday, July 11...»»»

The parliamentary Labour, Demographic and Social Policy Committee approved the 2026 State Budget Bill at first reading, with 12 committee members voting in favour and six against, while there were no abstentions. The budget's parameters were presented by Deputy Finance Minister Lyudmila Petkova. Ga»»»

Former Milwaukee Judge Hannah Dugan is set to be sentenced Wednesday for trying to hide an undocumented immigrant from ICE agents. File Photo by Mike Theiler/UPI | License Photo July 8 (UPI) -- Former Milwaukee Judge Hannah Dugan is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday for obstruction for trying to »»»

DOHA: Qatar Gas Transport Company Limited (Nakilat) announced that 'Al Rakiyat', the liquefied natural gas carrier, was struck by a projectile while sailing through the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, confirming that the incident resulted in no injuries among the crew members, nor did it cause any env»»»

LONDON: Saudi fintech and private credit firm Seha Invest has signed a $500 million partnership with Boston-based Y-Innovations to support biotechnology and healthcare development in the Kingdom. The agreement was announced on the sidelines of the BMG Forum at the London Stock Exchange. Seha Invest»»»

WASHINGTON - In its new forecast, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Serbia would become one of Europe's five fastest-growing economies, with average annual GDP growth of 3.52 pct in 2027-2031. The IMF said a large-scale investment cycle associated with hosting EXPO 2027 Belgrade would the »»»

Munich, Germany: German police said several people had been wounded and a suspect arrested in an attack at a secondary school in the southern German state of Bavaria on Wednesday. The perpetrator appeared to have deliberately targeted the school in a suspected "rampage", a police spokeswoman told A»»»

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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Nullam at arcu a est sollicitudin euismod. Etiam quis quam. Maecenas ipsum velit, consectetuer eu lobortis ut, dictum at dui. Nullam at arcu a est sollicitudin euismod. Mauris elementum mauris vitae tortor. Etiam quis quam. Mauris tincidunt »»»

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Nullam at arcu a est sollicitudin euismod. Etiam quis quam. Maecenas ipsum velit, consectetuer eu lobortis ut, dictum at dui. Nullam at arcu a est sollicitudin euismod. Mauris elementum mauris vitae tortor. Etiam quis quam. Mauris tincidunt »»»

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Nullam at arcu a est sollicitudin euismod. Etiam quis quam. Maecenas ipsum velit, consectetuer eu lobortis ut, dictum at dui. Nullam at arcu a est sollicitudin euismod. Mauris elementum mauris vitae tortor. Etiam quis quam. Mauris tincidunt »»»

HAMBURG: Jordan’s state grains buyer purchased about 60,000 metric tons of animal feed barley in an international tender that closed on Wednesday, European traders said. The ‌seller was ‌said to be ‌trading ⁠house Louis Dreyfus, with ⁠the barley sold at $252.60 a ton, cost and freight (c&f), for sh»»»

Doha, Qatar: Amendments to Qatar's State Audit Bureau Law will enter into force on July 25 2026, introducing new enforcement powers, criminal penalties and financial disclosure requirements aimed at strengthening public-sector oversight after nearly a decade of experience under the existing legisla»»»

Dubai: The UAE has strongly condemned renewed Iranian attacks targeting Bahrain and Kuwait with missiles and drones. In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the attacks constituted a blatant violation of the sovereignty of Bahrain and Kuwait, and posed a threat to their security and st»»»

LONDON: Ahmed Al-Sharaa, the president of the Syrian Arab Republic, has held talks on ties and regional development with American members of Congress and US Special Presidential Envoy for Syria and Iraq Tom Barrack. The officials met on Wednesday in Ankara, where Turkiye is hosting the 36th NATO Su»»»

TUNIS, July 8 (TAP) – The challenges and difficulties facing communitarian companies were the focus of a meeting held on Wednesday by the Services and Social Development Committee of the National Council of Regions and Districts (CNRD), in the...»»»

Doha, Qatar: The Qatar Padel Federation announced that the International Padel Federation (FIP) has awarded Doha the hosting rights for the 2026 and 2028 editions of the FIP Padel World Cup, reinforcing Qatar's position as a global destination for major international sporting events. Both editions »»»