NATO is creeping into the Pacific region, driving up the potential for conflict there, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. The president made the remarks while observing the final stage of Russian Pacific Fleet drills from the deck of the missile cruiser Varyag. He had earlier arrived in the cit»»»

Gaza Strip: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) has provided 24,500 hot meals to families most in need in central and southern Gaza. The assistance reached 24,500 people as part of the Saudi campaign to support the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. The aid is part of S»»»

Dubai: Turkey has revoked the citizenship of 6,134 people who obtained it through the country’s citizenship-by-investment programme, according to Turkish media reports, amid a widening crackdown on fraudulent property transactions and applications. The action affected investors as well as family me»»»

The United Nations hailed Lebanon’s decision to scrap the death penalty, and urged other countries in the Middle East and North Africa to do likewise. "I commend the decision by the Lebanese parliament to formally abolish the death penalty in the country. Lebanon is now the first country in the reg»»»

ALKHOBAR: Sarah Al-Ablan had never trained in athletics when she lined up for her first 100-meter race in Riyadh in 2023. The King Faisal University student had been passionate about sport since 2020, but it was one of her university instructors who noticed her athletic ability at the gym and encou»»»

UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major General Diodato Abagnara said principles of Security Council Resolution 1701 – adopted exactly two decades ago and which forms basis of UNIFIL’s mandate – remain the cornerstone of efforts to preserve stability in south Lebanon and support peace in t»»»

Lebanon's military has seized 1.2 million captagon pills that were about to be sent abroad. Lebanon has faced pressure from Gulf states to counter the production and trafficking of drugs, particularly the amphetamine-like narcotic captagon, for which the conservative monarchies are a major market. »»»

To mark the anniversary of Russia’s military aviation, the Ministry of Defense released footage that speaks louder than words, showcasing its iron grip on the skies. “From swatting down cruise missiles and UAVs to delivering surgical precision strikes along the frontline, Russia’s reach now extends»»»

Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Lightning struck a northern Ohio state prison, injuring at least 16 people, who were transported to the hospital, officials said Tuesday night. The lightning struck the Grafton Correctional Institution, located about 30 miles southwest of Cleveland, Tuesday night, as inmates were r»»»

Washington, Aug. 12 (SANA) The U.S. dollar was little changed on Tuesday as investors awaited July consumer price data that could offer fresh clues on the Federal Reserve’s near-term monetary policy outlook.The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against a basket of major currencies incl»»»

One of the two youths arrested on August 10 for attacking two Nepalese nationals in Plovdiv was present at the murder of Georgi Kuzev in the city's Youth Hill locality on August 4, Deputy Regional Prosecutors Plamen Pantov and Neno Dimov told a news briefing here on Wednesday. The youth in question»»»

Mumbai: Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran will step down when his current term ends on February 20, 2027, after six months of discussions failed to produce agreement on his reappointment. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.The decision puts succession firmly in focus at»»»

New Delhi, India: Afghanistan will host India in a three-match Twenty20 international series in New Delhi next month, the cricket boards of both countries said Wednesday. Afghanistan have long used India and the United Arab Emirates as home venues because of the country's political and security cha»»»

Tripoli, Libya: The General Electricity Company of Libya said on Wednesday that an attack on the South Zawiya substation caused a complete power outage across large areas of southern Zawiya city. In a statement posted on Facebook, the company explained that the 30/11 kV substation south of Zawiya w»»»

An earthquake was recorded in Kyrgyzstan at 1:14 p.m. today, August 12. According to preliminary data, its magnitude was 4.8. The epicenter of the tremors was approximately 17 kilometers from the village of Kochkor in Naryn region. It is reported that the earthquake could also be felt in Kazakhstan»»»

SIMFEROPOL (Sputnik) - The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been notified of the attack by the Ukrainian armed forces, which injured employees of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), who were performing work tasks, ZNPP communications director Yevgenia Yashina told Sputnik. Earli»»»

Riyadh: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) signed on Monday a joint implementation program with a civil society organization to rehabilitate educational and community buildings in Homs, Daraa, and Deir Ezzor governorates in Syria, directly benefiting 4,941 individuals and»»»

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s interior minister is visiting Iran to discuss regional security, stability and other developments, the foreign office said on Wednesday.“He is discussing bilateral relations, security, regional security and stability, and constructive engagement among the parties in the region»»»

Paris, France: Cristiano Ronaldo and his long-time partner Georgina Rodriguez married on Tuesday in a ceremony in the Portuguese resort of Cascais, said the football superstar's representatives. The wedding capped a decade-long relationship and came after days of intense media speculation in Portug»»»

Doha, Qatar: Qatar Insurance (QIC, or ‘the Group’), the leading insurer in Qatar and one of the largest across the Middle East and North Africa, reported a resilient performance for the first half of 2026, with net profit of QR365m. The Group absorbed the impact of an exceptional regional geopoliti»»»

Secretary's SpeechLebanon PalestineZionist EntityRegional and International International More Video Language Ar En Fr EsSubscribe for Weekly Updates Subscribe Maariv’s Avi Ashkenazi: Israeli army builds several forward defense lines amid fears of Hezbollah operations, which still maintains a large»»»

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s interior minister is visiting Iran to discuss regional security, stability and other developments, the foreign office said on Wednesday.“He is discussing bilateral relations, security, regional security and stability, and constructive engagement among the parties in the region»»»

The detained agent of Ukraine plotted to use an explosive device under the car of a Defense Ministry officer in Russia’s Krasnodar Krai, the FSB states. He was arrested while trying to retrieve a Western-made explosive device from a cache, it notes, adding the criminal was offered money by Ukrainia»»»

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)’s Chief Commander Major General Ahmad Vahidi vows to spare no efforts to fulfill Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Sayyed Mojtaba Khamenei’s demands of the Islamic Republic’s Armed Forces. Maj. Gen. Vahidi made the remarks in a message addressed t»»»

In a video address on Facebook, Labour and Social Policy Minister Natalia Efremova Wednesday congratulated young Bulgarians on International Youth Day. "On this day, we celebrate your energy and the courage to dream,” she said in her message. “I know that each of you is following your own path - so»»»

Bulgaria has a total of 897,968 young people aged 15-29, which makes 14% of the total population. Only one in three of them are employed, shows National Statistical Institute data for 2025, published on the Institute’s website in observance of International Youth Day, August 12. This year the Inter»»»

Washington, United States: A US helicopter fired missiles on Tuesday into the engine room of a Panama-flagged cargo ship that attempted to break the American blockade of Iran's ports, the United States military said. The US Navy MH-60 helicopter fired on and disabled the M/V Vela Nova "after the sh»»»

On Aug. 12, 1985, in aviation's worst single-plane disaster, a Japan Air Lines Boeing 747 slammed into a mountain in central Japan, killing 520 people. Four passengers survived. 1 of 6 | Families of the deceased from the JAL Flight 123 crash on August 12,1985, pay their respects following a memoria»»»

The area around the ammunition plant warehouse near Tryavna (Central Bulgaria) where explosions occurred on August 10 is still being surveyed, with smouldering fires and scattered ammunition posing a potential danger, Gabrovo Regional Directorate of Interior Director Iliyan Ivanov said on Wednesday»»»

Pereira, Colombia: Colombian rescuers pulled a 32-year-old woman alive from the rubble of a collapsed building Tuesday, sparking cheers and applause as exhausted crews raced to find more survivors from the country's strongest earthquake in a century. Daniela Largo was carried from the wreckage wrap»»»

Over five years, Kyrgyzstan’s quota for duty-free imports of electric vehicles has increased fivefold, from 5,000 vehicles in 2022 to 25,000 in 2026, including the additional quota. Deputy Minister of Economy and Commerce of Kyrgyzstan Sultan Akhmatov said. According to him, Kyrgyzstan was allocate»»»

BEIJING: Oil prices rose on Wednesday as doubts about ​a US-Iran peace deal and attacks on two ships fuelled concerns about disruptions to Middle East supplies, although ‌industry data showed swelling inventories of US crude. Brent futures were up 75 cents, or 0.84 percent, to $89.66 a barrel by 08»»»

Lebanese lawmakers attend a parliamentary session to discuss the abolition of the death penalty in Beirut, Lebanon, on Tuesday. Photo by Wael Hamzeh/EPA Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Lebanese lawmakers have approved legislation prohibiting the death penalty, making Lebanon the first Middle Eastern country to en»»»

Leaving your computer unlocked for just a minute, opening a sensitive document in a lift or simply holding the office door open for someone may appear harmless, but these everyday actions could create an opportunity for a security breach. The Department of Government Enablement – Abu Dhabi has high»»»

At least 169 people died and more than 600 were injured in the earthquake that struck Colombia, according to a tally released Tuesday by the Association of Mayors. The deaths were concentrated in the western cities of Cali, Pereira, Manizales, and Quibdo. Colombian mayors also reported 165 building»»»

”The consumer price index for July 2026 compared with June 2026 was 100.58%. The year-to-date inflation rate (July 2026 compared with December 2025) was 4.4%. The annual inflation rate in July 2026 compared with July 2025 was 8.2%. The average rate of change in consumer prices over the last 12 mont»»»

Beijing: Oil prices rose Wednesday amid concerns about supply disruptions in the Middle East, despite an increase in US crude oil inventories. Brent crude futures rose $1.10 to $90.01 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained 71 cents, or 0.85%, to $83.91. Both benchmark crudes »»»

Singapore: The dollar traded sideways at the start of the Asian session on Wednesday, as currency markets awaited the release of inflation data later in the global day. The yen was flat against the dollar at 159.275 yen, hovering around its weakest levels of the month despite the recent joint inter»»»

Washington, USA: Google's Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) system has surpassed one billion users, according to an announcement by CEO Sundar Pichai. Pichai said in a social media post that Gemini is the company's fastest-growing product and its fourteenth to reach one billion users, explaining »»»

DUBAI: Al-Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo, who celebrated getting married in his native Portugal on Tuesday night, is set to miss the club’s first two matches of the new season, Arabic daily newspaper Arriyadiyah has reported. According to the publication’s sources, Al-Nassr will begin the 2026-27 »»»

Somali referee ‌Omar Artan urged aspiring officials to “never stop dreaming” ahead of making history as the first non-European to referee the ​UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday in Salzburg. The 34-year-old has emerged as one of African football’s leading referees, becoming the first Somali to officiate a»»»

MOSCOW: Russia’s Defense Ministry ‌said ‌on Wednesday ​it ‌had ⁠intercepted ​and destroyed ⁠502 Ukrainian drones over various regions overnight ⁠and ‌had hit ‌a ​fuel ‌depot in ‌the port of Odesa, which ‌it said was used ⁠to ⁠supply the Ukrainian army. Reuters could not independently verify the min»»»

Zhanarbek Akayev, the mayor of Osh, met with Liu Ming Ge, the Chinese Consul General in Osh. The parties discussed the development of Kyrgyzstan — China cooperation and new joint projects, the City Hall reported. They focused on trade, economic, and investment cooperation, transport logistics, and »»»

Criminal investigation officers in Osh city detained two Uzbek nationals who were on an international wanted list, the city’s police department reported. The first man, 38, was detained on August 6 at an apartment on Masaliev Street. According to police, he is a resident of Andijan and had previous»»»

Germany and Japan are reviving practices reminiscent of the Gestapo and Japan’s Tokko secret police, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova writes on social media. “Two former WWII Axis powers returned in unison in July to surveillance practices from which they were forcibly weaned i»»»

Three reactors at the Gravelines nuclear power plant in northern France were shut down late on Monday due to a massive ​swarm of ‌jellyfish, triggering preventative measures put in place last year after the entire ⁠plant went offline, operator EDF said.  A nuclear plant in northern France shut»»»

Wellington: New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he had the "full support" of his ruling National Party on Wednesday after surviving a leadership challenge called with less than three months until a general election. Luxon has led New Zealand since 2023 but has been unable to reverse h»»»

Mumbai: Natarajan Chandrasekaran has stepped down as chairman of Tata Sons Pvt. ahead of a contentious annual shareholder vote, according to a person familiar with the matter, throwing the salt-to-software conglomerate into uncertainty at a time when it’s spearheading the country’s push into high-t»»»

Doha, Qatar: The Social and Sport Contribution Fund (DAAM) has signed a financing agreement with Qatar Career Development Center (QCDC), founded by Qatar Foundation, to support the Youth Labour Market Readiness Programme. Under the agreement, the Fund will provide a financial contribution to suppor»»»

A gunpowder charge that may have been ignited by an external factor is currently considered the possible cause of the explosions that destroyed an ammunition warehouse at the EMCO plant near the village of Belitsa in the Tryavna area, according to plant director Slavcho Demiev. Demiev said the asse»»»