Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman said Friday that message exchanges with Washington continue, but no final understanding has been reached, dismissing any notion that Tehran takes orders from abroad. “We said goodbye to the language of ‘must’ 47 years ago,” Esmaeil Baghaei told state television on »»»

MAKKAH: Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, the secretary-general of the Muslim World League and chairman of the Organization of Muslim Scholars, has received Ahmad Muzani, the speaker of Indonesia’s People’s Consultative Assembly, and his accompanying delegation in Makkah. The delegation included»»»

Doha, Qatar: Qatari pilgrims performing Hajj 1447 AH have praised the high level of organization and services provided throughout this year's pilgrimage, highlighting significant improvements in facilities and support across the holy sites. Pilgrims said enhanced services in Mina, Arafat and Muzdal»»»

The US is deliberately causing hunger in Cuba as part of its economic strangulation of the island, City University of New York professor Danny Shaw has said in an interview with RT’s Rick Sanchez. Speaking on the Sanchez Effect show, Shaw, an ethnography scholar, discussed his recent visit to Cuba »»»

MINA: The Saudi Ministry of Sports continued its volunteer initiatives during the current Hajj season, with the participation of 6,348 male and female volunteers in organizational and service activities across various sites dedicated to serving pilgrims. The initiative aims to promote a culture of »»»

Doha, Qatar: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defense Affairs, HE Sheikh Saud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan Al Thani, met with the Foreign Minister of Singapore, HE Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan. The meeting took place on the sidelines of His Excellency’s participation in the Shangri-La Dialo»»»

Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia has all the means to destroy anyone who attempts to destroy its air defense bases. “Russia has all the means to flatten anyone who tries to do this,” Putin told journalists during a press briefing following his visit to Kazakhstan, commenting on t»»»

KUALA LUMPUR: Saudi Arabia on Friday inaugurated its pavilion as guest of honor at the Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair 2026, showcasing the Kingdom’s literature, heritage and cultural traditions through a broad program of events and exhibitions. The fair, which runs until June 7 at the World T»»»

The Council of Ministers has adopted a decision naming Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Pekanov as Chair of the Bulgarian Council for Economic Analyses, the Government Information Service said on Friday. The Council was established as part of the implementation of a key reform envisaged under the Natio»»»

“We have agreed with the President of the European Commission on the release of 16.4 billion euros, approximately 6,000 billion forints, in EU funds,” Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced in Brussels on Friday. Péter Magyar promises aid for many in Hungary At a joint press conference with Presiden»»»

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defense Affairs HE Sheikh Saud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan Al Thani met with His Excellency Mohamed Khaled bin Nordin, the Malaysian Minister of Defense, on the sidelines of His Excellency's participation in the Shangri-La Dialogue 2026, which is being»»»

Katara Cultural Village Foundation concluded its three-day Eid Al Adha celebrations on Thursday, drawing large crowds of visitors from within Qatar and abroad through a vibrant programme of artistic, entertainment, and cultural activities. Katara stated that the festivities transformed the Cultural»»»

MINA: The Saudi health sector delivered over 1,273,380 medical services to pilgrims from the start of the the Hajj till Thursday. Guided by Saudi Vision 2030 initiatives, these integrated efforts ensure premium, accessible care to help pilgrims perform their rituals safely and comfortably. Accordin»»»

The Cabinet has named new members to the Supervisory Board of the National Social Security Institute (NSSI), the Government Information Service said on Friday. Hasan Ademov, Antoniya Dimova-Yordanova, and Lyubomir Yosifov have been relieved of their duties as members of the Supervisory Board. The g»»»

Chilean environmental authorities approved the expansion of the Port of San Antonio, the country's main maritime terminal for foreign trade. Photo by Mario Ruiz/EPA SANTIAGO, May 29 (UPI) -- Chilean environmental authorities approved the expansion of the Port of San Antonio, the country's main mari»»»

U.S. President Donald Trump holds a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Wednesday. On Friday, a federal judge temporarily blocked his administration's so-called anti-weaponization fund. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI | License Photo May 29 (UPI) -- A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the Jus»»»

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is set to make a “final determination” on whether to move forward with a proposed peace agreement with Iran. In a lengthy social media post, Trump said he would meet advisers in the White House Situation Room to decide on the next steps regarding a d»»»

MEO had the pleasure, to conduct an interview with Mr. Samy Soliman, President of Investors Association in Taba and Nuweiba. Can you tell us more about the investors association in Taba and Nuweiba? Well we are an organised entity that includes several investors who have got investment projects in »»»

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defense Affairs HE Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan Al Thani, alongside Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Singapore HE Abdulaziz bin Ahmed Al Maliki Al Juhani, attended the ministerial recepti»»»

Rositsa Velkova has been appointed Chair of the Supervisory Board of the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), the government information service announced on Friday. The Council of Ministers adopted a decision on Friday to replace two state representatives on the NHIF Supervisory Board. Stanimir »»»

LONDON: When Omnicom Advertising and Google launched what they describe as the first artificial intelligence-powered creative intelligence system in the Middle East this April, the promise was unusual: that a machine could tell a creative director not just what was weak in an ad, but what it would »»»

BEIJING: Three Chinese astronauts returned to Earth on Friday after spending nearly seven months in space and completing the handover with another crew earlier this week. The craft carrying Zhang Lu, Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang of the Shenzhou 21 crew touched down at the Dongfeng landing site in nor»»»

Asharq Al-Awsat has obtained a document recently sent by Hamas to mediators regarding the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, where escalating Israeli violations have killed more than 930 Palestinians since the deal took effect on October 10. Israel’s Channel 13 reported on Thursday evening, cit»»»

The government has adopted a decision to extend until June 30, 2026, the deployment in Bulgaria of up to 15 US aircraft, along with their support personnel and equipment, the Government Information Service said on Friday. Under Decision No. 205 of March 4, 2026, the Council of Ministers authorized »»»

Hungary’s new government will have to work double time in order to obtain billions of previously frozen EU funds, following a political agreement with the European Commission on Friday (29 May). “If every time I come here, I go back with this amount of money, I’ll be coming here more often,” Hungar»»»

Thai rescuers pulled a man from a cave in central Laos after he and six others had been trapped for nine days. Photo by Metta Tham Kalasin Rescue/EPA May 29 (UPI) -- One Laotian miner has been pulled from a cave in central Laos after being trapped for nine days underground, a Laotian rescue organiz»»»

Doha, Qatar: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Affairs HE Sheikh Saud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan Al Thani met with Singapore’s Minister for Defence and Coordinating Minister for Public Service HE Chan Chun Sing. The meeting took place on the sidelines of HE Deputy Prime Minist»»»

Finance ministers from the EU's six biggest economies (E6) agreed among themselves on Friday to support more centralized capital markets supervision, in a breakthrough crucial for deeper integration of Europe's fragmented capital markets. The push for financial market players to be supervised at a »»»

Prime Minister Rumen Radev Friday said that the European Commission would publish a report on June 3, launching an excessive deficit procedure against Bulgaria, which would lead to regular monitoring, restrictive measures and possible sanctions. "According to calculations and actual data submitted »»»

Four men were involved in a violent altercation in one of Budapest’s outer districts, during which firearms and knives were reportedly used. Several individuals were taken to hospital following the incident. Bladed weapons produced and shots fired in Budapest According to a police statement issued »»»

US President Donald Trump said he would make a final decision on Friday over a deal with Iran to extend their ceasefire that would need to include opening the Strait of Hormuz and dismantling Tehran's capacity to make a nuclear weapon. "I will be meeting now, in the Situation Room, to make a final »»»

ANDORRA LA VELLA - Serbian Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic, who is on an official visit to Andorra, met with the country's FM Imma Tor Faus on Friday to discuss opportunities for strengthening political dialogue, cooperation in tourism, education and sustainable development, as well as EU integratio»»»

AMMAN: Jordan play at their first World Cup determined to show they belong at football’s top table and with Lionel Messi’s Argentina presenting the most daunting of prospects. Jamal Sellami’s side face Austria in a tough Group J on their World Cup debut on June 16, followed by Algeria and then reig»»»

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday that 906 suspected Ebola cases, including 223 deaths, have been reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo amid an ongoing outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain, with additional infections confirmed in Uganda. A WHO official said the fatality rate am»»»

* Hamas says Netanyahu’s plan equates to ethnic cleansing* Ceasefire deal left contentious issues unresolved* Analysts warn move risks ‌increase in violenceGAZA/CAIRO: Hamas said on Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s declaration that his country would expand its area of control»»»

The United Nations on Friday added Israel and Russia to a UN blacklist of countries suspected of committing sexual violence in conflict zones, a move that prompted Israel's foreign ministry to say it would sever all ties with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Guterres' annual report to the UN »»»

Towns and villages in more than half of France have smashed temperature records for the month of May over the past week during an unusually early heatwave, a climatologist said Friday. "More than half of France has experienced at least one monthly heat record -- whether in minimum and/or maximum te»»»

The Regional Forestry Directorate in Varna has issued a ten-day deadline for the removal of fences surrounding illegal structures in the Baba Alino area near the coastal city, Agriculture and Food Minister Plamen Abrovski told a parliamentary hearing on Friday. Earlier this week, Abrovski, along wi»»»

Widespread reporting on Thursday that the Department of Justice was investigating Trump accuser E. Jean Carroll is being denied Friday by the U.S. Attorney out of Chicago. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo May 29 (UPI) -- Reports that the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago is investig»»»

AUCKLAND: Auckland FC goalkeeper Michael Woud has ‌had to put his wedding plans on hold after being selected in New Zealand’s squad for the World Cup, but he says taking part in soccer’s biggest tournament is not a bad reason to cancel. Woud got engaged a year ago when he had little inkling he woul»»»

Eleven children have been killed or injured on average every 24 hours in Lebanon over the last week, the UN's children's agency said on Friday, as Israel has expanded strikes across the country despite a ceasefire. Heavy Israeli strikes hit towns and villages in southern Lebanon overnight on Wednes»»»

The UN warned on Friday that an Israeli plan to take control of 70 percent of Gaza is sure to increase suffering among children already hit by the impacts of severe overcrowding. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he had ordered the military to take control of more terr»»»

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun told US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday that a ceasefire with Israel was crucial, as Israeli and Lebanese military delegations meet at the Pentagon. A statement from Aoun's office said that during a phone call, the president "emphasized the need to exert all »»»

US President Donald Trump is set to escalate Washington’s economic pressure campaign on Cuba in an attempt to force regime change, Axios reported on Friday, citing sources. The island is already enduring near-total fuel starvation and daily blackouts stretching up to 20 hours. The US has thus far o»»»

This week, as UK Labour’s destructive leadership contest intensified, former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair staged a remarkable intervention in which he single-handedly sought to save the party from political oblivion. Blair’s dramatic intrusion into Labour politics took the form of a 5,600-word »»»

MINA: This year’s Hajj pilgrims completed the second day of Tashreeq on Friday, following the ritual stoning of the three pillars at the Jamarat complex in Mina. Almost 1.71 million pilgrims have performed Hajj this year, with the majority taking part in the stoning ritual with ease and comfort, th»»»

Parliament on Friday adopted conclusively an Act on Counteracting Corruption among Persons Holding Public Office, which establishes a new Anti-Corruption Commission. The Commission’s members are to be elected within one month of the Act’s entry into force. One member will be elected by the National»»»

Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan Adylbek Kasymaliev held a meeting with investors led by He Ruqiu, a representative of the Chinese mining company Hunan Global South Industry. The Cabinet of Ministers’ press service reported. The parties discussed the possibility of implementing mi»»»

Paris, France: Towns and villages in more than half of France have smashed temperature records for the month of May over the past week during an unusually early heatwave, a climatologist said Friday. "More than half of France has experienced at least one monthly heat record -- whether in minimum an»»»

Hamas said on Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's declaration that his country would expand its area of control in Gaza was a dangerous escalation, as residents of the Palestinian territory also voiced alarm at the plan. Under a ceasefire deal in October Israel's military was to»»»