MEXICO CITY: The United States suspended imports of avocados from Mexico’s top-producing state of Michoacan over security concerns, an industry group and authorities announced Wednesday. The state government said the suspension is a “preventive measure” following arrests of criminal leaders known f»»»

LONDON: Negotiations are now underway between the US, Iran, and Oman to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and while the agreement’s precise shape remains unknown, it seems at least one side will land responsibility for managing what has, until now, been an international waterway. From a legal and practi»»»

LONDON: Israel plans to expand its Gilo settlement in southwestern East Jerusalem by building an additional 2,300 houses, further isolating East Jerusalem from Bethlehem in the south of the occupied West Bank. The Israeli Jerusalem Municipality’s Planning and Building Committee intends to construct»»»

Multiple people were killed and another person was injured in a shooting in Prospect Hill, North Carolina, on Wednesday morning, authorities said. The Caswell County Sheriff's Office said deputies responded to a call for service shortly before 8am at a property on Brooks Road, where they found mult»»»

LONDON: Britain’s University of Cambridge said Wednesday it has launched a probe into one of its professors who has been engulfed by plagiarism accusations ahead of the release of his memoir. The controversy around Jason Arday — who made headlines when the university appointed him as its youngest b»»»

GENEVA: The United Nations’ special rapporteur on violence against women and girls on Wednesday welcomed moves toward extraditing radical social media influencer Andrew Tate, saying nobody should be above the law, regardless of status. Tate is one of the most prominent proponents of the so-called “»»»

A video showing a Russian explosive drone stalking and detonating beside an unarmed market trader in the frontline city of Kherson has drawn fresh accusations of war crimes from Kyiv, days after the United Nations reported that civilian casualties across Ukraine had climbed to their highest monthl»»»

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez wants access to unredacted copies of the Epstein files from the U.S. Justice Department in an attempt to investigate alleged crimes at Zorro Ranch, a property the late financier owned in Santa Fe County. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo Aug. 5 (U»»»

Rome: The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned Wednesday that the world is bracing for a new wave of food price surges due to the fallout from the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, in addition to climate change. Maximo Torero, the organization's chief economist, said the»»»

NEW YORK CITY: The closure of Syria’s Al-Hol camp in February has resulted in heightened security and humanitarian concerns, senior UN officials told the Security Council on Wednesday. The whereabouts of thousands of Daesh-linked individuals and members of their families who were held in the camp r»»»

Dubai: A footballer was killed and nine others were injured after lightning struck a football pitch during a match in southern Thailand on Wednesday, police and local media said. The incident occurred during the Golok Cup regional tournament at Santiphap Stadium in Narathiwat province as players co»»»

Egypt and Greece on Wednesday called for a peaceful settlement and a comprehensive agreement between the United States and Iran, saying such a deal is essential to reduce tensions and prevent the regional conflict from widening as negotiations continue over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Th»»»

Arab and Islamic foreign ministers agreed on Wednesday to launch a joint operational mechanism to document Israeli violations in Jerusalem, warning that escalations at holy sites could provoke a religious conflict with global repercussions. Meeting in Amman at the invitation of Jordan, the Arab Min»»»

The ministers of water resources and irrigation, industry, and military production have held an expanded meeting to develop an integrated framework for sustainable water management in Egypt’s industrial sector, with a focus on improving water-use efficiency and localising technologies for industria»»»

Sanaa: Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis said on Wednesday that they attacked two Saudi oil tankers, as the rebels pressed on with their maritime blockade of the kingdom. These were the eighth and ninth Saudi oil tankers targeted since the start of the blockade last month, according to figures given by a»»»

LONDON: Newcastle have appointed Matthias Jaissle as their new head coach following Eddie Howe’s departure, the English Premier League club announced Wednesday. The 38-year-old Jaissle, a former Germany Under-21 international, was previously in charge of Saudi side Al-Ahli but has no prior experien»»»

Hungary has emerged as one of the world’s most AI-ready outsourcing destinations, placing fourth in a new international ranking and achieving the highest population-level artificial intelligence adoption score among all 25 countries examined. The 2026 Global Outsourcing AI Readiness Index gave Hung»»»

Russia is refining its use of hybrid interference to undermine European Union enlargement countries by combining disinformation, covert political financing, cyberattacks, economic pressure and proxy actors in ways tailored to local vulnerabilities, while the EU's response remains uneven despite a g»»»

Cameroon has discussed an overhaul of its ship-registration system with the United States as it seeks to curb fraudulent use of its flag, including by tankers linked by European authorities to Russia’s sanctions-evading shadow fleet. Transport Minister Jean Ernest Masséna Ngalle Bibehe held talks w»»»

Uzbekistan, one of Central Asia’s economic drivers, is experiencing a significant expansion of Chinese economic influence.  Bilateral trade during the first half of 2026 grew to $7.7bn, according to official Uzbek government data, making China by far Uzbekistan’s largest trade partner. Be»»»

A federal judge said the Trump administration can move forward with efforts to remove hundreds of thousands of Haitians from the United States. Secretary Markwayne Mullin said his Department of Homeland Security is "going after them right now." File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo Aug. 5 (»»»

A UAE astronomical observatory said it tracked the impact of the upper stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on the Moon on Wednesday, with the collision estimated to have ejected around 1,100 tonnes of lunar soil and rocks into space. The Al Khatim Astronomical Observatory in Abu Dhabi, part of the In»»»

Abu Dhabi: UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and the Right Honourable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, discussed during a phone call bilateral relations and efforts to enhance ties, particularly in the economic, investment, energy, technology, and artificial intell»»»

MEXICO CITY: The drive-by shooting death of a Mexican influencer may have been in retaliation for social media posts about a criminal group, authorities said Wednesday. Gunmen on a motorcycle shot dead Cesar Gastelum late Tuesday during a livestreamed broadcast in Culiacan, the capital of Sinaloa s»»»

Egypt and Europe today are closer than geography or trade balances suggest. Gaza, the energy crisis, migration, climate change, and disrupted supply chains reveal, almost daily, that Egypt’s stability and Europe’s security are two sides of the same coin. This convergence now rests on a clear instit»»»

A controversial report published by The Jerusalem Post claimed that Israel’s Mossad had recruited members of the Islamic State (ISIS) operating inside Iran to gather intelligence on the country’s nuclear and military facilities, providing detailed information about activities within these highly se»»»

Egypt’s Minister of Health and Population, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, and Minister of State for Military Production Salah Gomblat held a meeting to review progress on jointly implemented national healthcare projects, with both sides pledging to accelerate completion of ongoing works and expand future co»»»

Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar urged political parties, businesses and households to reduce energy consumption to avoid supply disruptions caused by the imminent shutdown of the Paks nuclear power plant, likely within days, saying the most critical days are still ahead, state news agency MTI»»»

Discussing an August 2 confrontation between a group of young foreigners and Bulgarians in the Bulgarian mountain resort of Bansko, Asen Levov, the manager of the hotel which housed the group of foreign children, told reporters on Wednesday that police had previously been called to the hotel on sev»»»

Russia is refining its use of hybrid interference to undermine European Union enlargement countries by combining disinformation, covert political financing, cyberattacks, economic pressure and proxy actors in ways tailored to local vulnerabilities, while the EU's response remains uneven despite a g»»»

Russia is refining its use of hybrid interference to undermine European Union enlargement countries by combining disinformation, covert political financing, cyberattacks, economic pressure and proxy actors in ways tailored to local vulnerabilities, while the EU's response remains uneven despite a g»»»

As Ukraine goes through the fifth year of full-scale war, a quiet but unmistakable movement is underway. Families are packing what they can, often saying goodbye to aging parents and family dogs, and leaving for safer ground—whether to western Ukrainian cities or across borders into Europe. They ar»»»

WASHINGTON: The US is pressing ahead with talks on allowing Ukraine to make Patriot interceptor missiles, which Kyiv urgently wants to defend against Russian attacks, even after President Donald Trump cast doubt on such a deal, four sources familiar with the discussions said. The discussions includ»»»

LONDON: In an orchard behind her family’s home in Syria’s eastern province of Deir Ezzor, 3-year-old Ghala Khamis Al-Saleh Al-Khamis was found dead on Aug. 2, about two hours after she vanished. She was the third girl killed in the Syrian Arab Republic in less than three weeks, reigniting concerns »»»

The Senate Commerce Committee advanced the Kids Online Safety Act, co-sponsored by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., which requires online companies to develop products with children's safety in mind. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo Aug. 5 (UPI) -- The Senate Commerce Committee on Wedne»»»

Lt. Gen Francis Donovan said the new task force will serve as the command's "operational arm" to confront threats across the Western Hemisphere. File Photo by Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA Aug. 5 (UPI) -- The U.S. Southern Command announced Wednesday creation of the Western Hemisphere Joint Task Force, a partn»»»

Dubai: Several participants have walked away with cash prizes following the latest UAE Lottery Lucky Day draw conducted on Wednesday. In Lucky Day Draw No. 260805, the winning numbers in the Days section were 8, 22, 13, 28, 25, 16, while the winning number in the Months section was 1. Additionally,»»»

Bulgaria has escaped the extreme heat that has gripped much of Western Europe this summer because it has remained on the cooler side of the jet stream, according to Prof. Emil Gachev, head of the Hydrology Section at the Climate, Atmosphere and Water Research Institute at the Bulgarian Academy of S»»»

Aug. 5 (UPI) -- Officers arrested a woman accused of stabbing four men in London's Covent Garden neighborhood, the Metropolitan Police said Wednesday. All four victims -- aged 34, 39, 42 and 52 -- were transported to the hospital. Two have been released, while the other two were being treated for n»»»

NEW YORK: A US appeals court said on Wednesday that a New York City law requiring food delivery companies to share customers’ data with restaurants is unconstitutional. In a 3-0 decision, the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said the law violated the First Amendment’s protection against»»»

RIYADH: The Heritage Commission has announced the results of the first phase of its project to survey and document rock inscriptions and rock art in the High Najd area of the Riyadh Region. The project forms part of the commission’s scientific programs to expand archeological surveys and strengthen»»»

A 17-year-old boy fell head-first into a slicing machine at a construction company site in Szeged, after which the machine pulled him in. Paramedics arriving at the scene were unable to save his life. Police are still investigating the tragedy, which took place in mid-July, while further details ha»»»

Amman: The meeting of the Arab Ministerial Committee tasked with mobilizing international action in response to illegal Israeli policies and measures in occupied Jerusalem, held in Jordan on Wednesday, issued a joint statement following the meeting. The statement read as follows: At the invitation »»»

NEW YORK CITY: Bahrain’s permanent representative to the UN, Jamal Alrowaiei, on Wednesday called on Iran to halt what he described as “terrorist” attacks launched by Tehran and its proxies against other countries in the region. He said that Bahrain “renews the need for Iran to implement and fully »»»

Private-sector hiring saw a significant drop from the previous month, while people who switched jobs saw the largest increase in a year. File Photo by Tasos Katopodis/UPI | License Photo Aug. 5 (UPI) -- Private-sector hiring totaled 44,000 in July, a significant drop from the previous month, payrol»»»

TEHRAN: Iran and Oman have agreed a route for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz and are putting the final touches on arrangements for jointly managing the passage, Tehran’s foreign ministry said Wednesday. Iran has seized de facto control of the strait, a strategic waterway for the global energ»»»

LONDON: The UK’s charity authority is investigating organizations that donate funds to illegal Israeli settlements in Palestine, The Guardian reported on Wednesday. The Charity Commission is aiming to determine the amount of charitable funds going to illegal settlements, whether those funds further»»»

MANCHESTER: As FIFA President Gianni Infantino battles the biggest challenge of his decade in power, two of the most prominent voices in the revolt against him have been women. Wales’ Laura McAllister and Norway’s Lise Klaveness, the only women on UEFA’s executive committee, have emerged as outspok»»»

Manila: Edwin Salas watched as the first of 20 solar panels was installed on the roof of his home, joining a Philippine solar energy boom sent into overdrive by the Middle East war. The country's eye-watering electric bills -- the highest in the region -- were the primary driver of his decision, he»»»

Brazil recalled its ambassador to Argentina and downgraded diplomatic relations after a new round of attacks by Argentine President Javier Milei(picured) against Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Photo by Juan Ignacio Roncoroni/EPA Aug. 5 (UPI) -- Brazil's government accused the admini»»»