Iran and Oman are reportedly closing in on a framework to restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, but the emerging arrangement could leave Tehran with a degree of control over the world’s most important oil chokepoint — precisely the outcome Washington has sought to prevent. The diplomatic p»»»

Cargo vessels are seen July 21 at one end of the Strait of Hormuz near the coast of Dibba Al Fujairah, United Arab Emirates. Photo by stringer/EPA Aug. 5 (UPI) -- Iran and Oman are in the final stages of a joint agreement to manage commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, agreeing on a route fo»»»

NEW YORK: The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Dr. Erica Schwartz as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, placing her in charge of a public health agency beleaguered by political meddling and low morale. Schwartz was confirmed in a 51-44 vote. The 54-year-old becomes the 22nd le»»»

MOSCOW: The director of a factory supplying drones to the Russian military was badly wounded and his driver was killed when the car they were in exploded, news reports said Wednesday. The state Tass and RIA Novosti agencies said that Vladimir Tkachuk was hospitalised in grave condition following th»»»

Abu Dhabi: The Nafis programme has announced a new set of updates, effective from September, under which private-sector employers will assume their full share of pension fund contributions for Emirati employees enrolled in the Ishtirak programme, subject to the programme’s eligibility conditions. I»»»

A rare video filmed on July 21 in Sabha, Libya shows a woman accused of adultery being sentenced to 100 lashes. Shared on social media, it has sparked outrage for various reasons: Some are appalled by the fact that the punishment was carried out in a public space, whilst others are shocke»»»

Four people were stabbed in central London and a woman has been arrested in a suspected "mental health related incident", the Metropolitan Police said Wednesday. The stabbings took place around lunchtime in Covent Garden, a bustling area frequented by tourists. A woman was arrested after four »»»

The left-wing Democratic upstart set to contest a critical US Senate seat in November's mid-term elections is a charismatic 41-year-old who once said he would have been a cab driver in Egypt but for an "accident of history." Abdul El-Sayed on Wednesday sealed the Democratic Party's nomination to ru»»»

Dr. Erica Schwartz speaks during a Senate committee hearing July 15 on her nomination at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Schwartz was confirmed Wednesday as the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo Aug. 5 (UPI) -- The U.S. Se»»»

Ashraf Siddiqui DOHA As diplomatic efforts to ease tensions between the United States and Iran continue to gather momentum, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Finnish President Alexander Stubb have called for the launch of a comprehensive regional security dialogue modeled on the historic»»»

Tribune News Network Doha The Department of Mass Communication at Qatar University’s (QU) College of Arts and Sciences, in partnership with the Al Jazeera Media Institute (AJMI), has concluded two professional diploma programmes: the Digital Media and AI-Supported Content Creation Diploma and the L»»»

Tribune News Network Doha The State of Qatar, represented by the National Counter-Terrorism Committee, participated in the 19th meeting of the GCC Unified Terrorist List Committee, held at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The»»»

Riyadh: The State of Qatar, represented by the National Counter-Terrorism Committee, took part in the 19th meeting of the Gulf Committee for the Unified Terrorist List, held at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Riyadh, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. »»»

LONDON: About 10 Israeli women illegally entered Lebanon on Wednesday afternoon, Israel’s military said. The area where they crossed over lies on the border between Lebanon and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, near the village of Ghajar. Soldiers located most of the women and escorted them back »»»

RIYADH: The State of Qatar, represented by the National Counter-Terrorism Committee, participated in the 19th meeting of the GCC Unified Terrorist List Committee, held at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Qatari»»»

Israel again fired on southern Lebanon on Wednesday, blaming Hezbollah for violating a ceasefire, as US-backed negotiations in Rome sought to end months of cross-border hostilities. Lebanon said at least one person was killed in the attacks, while Israel issued its first evacuation alert in weeks f»»»

Paris: The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) announced today that Beijing has been selected as the World Capital of Architecture 2029 under the joint UNESCO-International Union of Architects (UIA) programme. In a statement, UNESCO said Beijing was chosen for »»»

TEHRAN: Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said Wednesday that communication with the country’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was very “difficult at the moment.” Khamenei, who was wounded in the US-Israeli strike that launched the Middle East war, has not appeared in public since succeeding his»»»

LIBREVILLE, Gabon: Thirty-six Africans deported from the United States to Cameroon have started legal proceedings in the west African nation seeking to live there legally and avoid repatriation to their home countries, their lawyer said Wednesday. The deportations took place under a controversial U»»»

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»»»

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»»»

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 “»»»

ABUJA: The Nigerian government announced the release of more than 300 kidnapping victims on Wednesday, including 163 taken from a single village in the west of the country earlier this year. Kidnapping for ransom by criminal groups, militants and non-ideological gangs known as bandits has become a »»»

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»»»

Washington: Abdelrahman El Sayed won the Democratic Party's nomination to run for the US Senate seat from the state of Michigan, setting up a contest against Republican candidate Mike Rogers in the election scheduled for next November. The Michigan Senate seat is considered pivotal to Democrats' ho»»»

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»»»

LONDON: Premier League ‌champions Arsenal have agreed a deal worth £75 million ($99.5 million) to sign Newcastle United captain Bruno Guimaraes, British media reported on Wednesday. Arsenal’s opening offer for the 28-year-old Brazil midfielder was rejected earlier this week, but the London club ret»»»

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»»»

Los Angeles, United States: The armed man arrested over the weekend at President Donald Trump's golf course in California, two days before the US leader's scheduled visit, has been charged with illegal firearm possession, authorities said. "While we are still investigating the motives of this indiv»»»

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»»»

The Constitutional Court has opened proceedings following a request by the Ombudsman to review the constitutionality of provisions in the Transitional and Final Provisions of the State Budget Act of the Republic of Bulgaria for 2026, on the grounds that they are inconsistent with the principles of »»»

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»»»

1 of 2 | A view of the drained Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is shown July 28 in Washington, D.C. Attorneys for David Hearn, the former Olympian indicted for allegedly vandalizing the pool, have filed a motion seeking to have the charges permanently dismissed. Photo by Jemal Countess/UPI | Licen»»»

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 (»»»

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»»»

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»»»

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»»»

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 »»»

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei, referring to Iran-Oman talks on safe shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, says the two sides are now working on a joint statement based on main considerations and points agreed upon during the negotiations. In response to reporters’ questions on »»»

Somalia signed a Memorandum of Understanding on defense cooperation with Pakistan. The memorandum envisages strengthening bilateral ties in defense and security, conducting joint exercises, and exchanging experiences, according to Somalia's Ministry of Defense. Media previously reported on a potent»»»

LOS ANGELES: A California man who was arrested at President Donald Trump’s Los Angeles-area golf course while pretending to be part of the security detail preparing for Trump’s visit is due in court Wednesday on a federal weapons charge. Jeanine John Taele, 38, was arrested Sunday at Trump National»»»

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 waterway, Tehran's foreign ministry said Wednesday. But official sources briefing Iranian media stressed that any reopening of the strait wo»»»

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»»»