Microsoft's gaming executive Phil Spencer is retiring after 38 years and will be replaced by Asha Sharma, company officials said on Friday. Photo by Friedemann Vogel/EPA Feb. 20 (UPI) -- Microsoft Gaming Chief Executive Officer Phil Spencer is retiring after 38 years at the tech giant and is being »»»

Dubai: Dubai’s population has surpassed four million, a milestone that is already feeding directly into housing demand and reinforcing record activity in a property market that saw transactions approach Dh900 billion last year. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.The emira»»»

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 20 (KUNA) -- Indonesia officially signed a bilateral trade agreement with the United States on Friday, titled "Implementing the Agreement Towards a New Golden Era of the US-Indonesia Alliance," during a meeting between Presidents Prabowo Subianto and Donald Trump in Washington.Ind»»»

KUWAIT, Feb 20 (KUNA) -- Kuwait Towers, inaugurated in 1979 overlooking the Arabian Gulf, were initially constructed as a water storage project. Over time, they have become a prominent national landmark and an icon of contemporary Arab heritage.The concept was the idea of late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-»»»

BEIRUT, Feb 20 (KUNA) -- More than 10 people were killed and over 30 others injured in an airstrike carried out by Israel occupations forces on the Beqaa Valley region in eastern Lebanon, the Lebanese National News Agency said Friday.The airstrike targeted a building in the city of Riyaq in Beqaa G»»»

WASHINGTON, Feb 20 (KUNA) -- US President Donald Trump described a Supreme Court ruling invalidating tariffs he imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) as "disgraceful," asserting he has "stronger alternatives" and announcing plans to introduce a 10 percent global tari»»»

Outgoing Director General of the Bulgarian National Television (BNT), Emil Koshlukov, filed a complaint with the Sofia Regional Administrative Court challenging the Council for Electronic Media’s (CEM) decision to appoint Milena Milotinova as his successor, the Court announced on its website on Fri»»»

Feb. 20 (UPI) -- The University of Mississippi Medical Center closed its 35 clinics throughout Mississippi on Friday after being targeted in a ransomware attack. Medical center officials also canceled all elective medical procedures that were scheduled for the day and rescheduled all but dialysis a»»»

US President Donald Trump has said he is considering a limited military strike on Iran in order to pressure its leaders to agree a deal to curb the nuclear programme. The president made the remark in response to a question from a journalist hours after officials had suggested the possibility of a s»»»

US President Donald Trump on Friday said he was considering a limited strike on Iran as he sent a major naval buildup to the region with the goal of pressurising Tehran to cut a deal that would curb its nuclear programme. Iran's foreign minister said a draft proposal for an agreement with Washingto»»»

Dubai: Google’s decision to build new undersea internet cables linking India to multiple continents has raised a bigger question: can India realistically challenge the United States and China in artificial intelligence — and match the UAE’s rapid progress in AI adoption? Sign up for our daily busin»»»

Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed Friday that his country's army has regained control of 300 square kilometers in a counter-offensive that is still ongoing in the south of the country. In a press statement, the Ukrainian president noted that this advance is part of Kyiv's "bro»»»

Britain is to develop new air defence weapons alongside the EU's four biggest military powers, deepening ties with the European defence sector. The project will invite manufacturers in the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Poland to submit plans to build low-cost missiles and autonomous drones. The al»»»

February 19, 2026, will undoubtedly enter British history. Whether it will also come to be seen as a marker of the British Empire’s final unraveling remains an open question. That discussion can wait. For now, the facts themselves are striking enough. At eight o’clock on Thursday morning, Andrew Mo»»»

The US is in “active negotiations” with India, which it hopes to persuade to import oil from Venezuela instead of Russia, the American ambassador in New Delhi has said. The US issued licenses to two trading houses to distribute oil produced in Venezuela after kidnapping the Latin American nation’s »»»

Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, has enacted an amnesty law meant to grant immediate clemency to individuals jailed for participating in political unrest. The law, signed on Thursday, had been formally proposed by Rodriguez in January, weeks after she was appointed interim president.»»»

Tens of thousands of people march through downtown Minneapolis as they protest the federal government's immigration enforcement surge in Minneapolis on Jan. 30. A new poll shows that most Americans believe President Donald Trump has gone too far in his immigration efforts. Photo by Craig Lassig/UPI»»»

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Friday that telling people the truth is not a choice but a must, as he defended new taxes approved earlier this week by his government. "The financial situation we inherited is very difficult and the trust between the state and the people was damaged in the past," he»»»

At the inaugural meeting of his Board of Peace in Washington, President Donald Trump spoke of billions of dollars pledged to rebuild the Gaza Strip and a "new and harmonious" Middle East rising from the ashes of war. Videos aired at the meeting showed a future of gleaming high-rises and new soccer »»»

Sofia International Airport will suspend all civil flights during two short nighttime windows on February 23 and 24, allowing only military aircraft to operate, according to data published on Flightradar24 and an official notice to airmen (NOTAM). The restrictions will apply from 01:15 to 02:50 on »»»

US and Chinese fighter jets faced off not far off the South Korean coast this week, according to local media outlets. Approximately ten US Forces Korea (USFK) F-16 warplanes took off from Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek – about 60km south of Seoul – and flew over international waters in the Yellow Sea,»»»

Washington, Feb. 20 (SANA) The US trade deficit reached a new record level last year, totaling $1.24 trillion, despite broad tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. According to CNN, US Commerce Department data showed the goods and services trade gap widened in December to $70.3 billion. The »»»

An Austrian court on Thursday fined a man and suspended his five-month sentence after finding him guilty of negligence in his climber girlfriend's death amid wintry conditions while climbing Grossglockner Mountain in January 2025. Photo by Helmut Fohringer/EPA Feb. 20 (UPI) -- An Austrian man recei»»»

Heavy snowfall has complicated the meteorological situation in Austria, the Situation Centre of the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry reported on its website on Friday. The Ministry advised Bulgarian citizens to travel to Austria only if necessary. Traffic on main roads in the provinces of Upper Austria, »»»

As soon as she heard the US Supreme Court had struck down President Donald Trump's authority to impose sweeping global tariffs, Jenelle Peterson's mind raced to the possibilities for her toy business. She might import more toys to the US and invest in designing new ones - things she had put on hold»»»

In the latest repatriation of stolen artefacts, France on Friday handed over the Djidji Ayokwe or "talking" drum back to Ivory Coast after it was looted by colonial troops in 1916. The drum, which was used by the Ebrie tribe to transmit messages, is one of hundreds of objects France is prepari»»»

A 16-year-old boy was arrested Thursday in Thessaloniki following allegations that he pushed a 17-year-old pregnant girl, causing her to fall and sustain injuries. He was also charged with revenge pornography after a 16-year-old girl accused him of posting a private video of them on social media a »»»

By Wade SheridanFebruary is a month marked by milestones -- moments of courage, change, celebration and loss. From Nelson Mandela being released from prison in Africa to the World Trade Center bombing, here's a look at historic moments from February that continue to shape the world we know today. F»»»

Newspaper front pages feature Peru's new interim president Jose Maria Balcazar in Lima on Thursday. Congress elected Balcazar as the new interim president during an extraordinary session. But he is also on trial for financial irregularities. Photo by Paolo Aguilar/EPA Feb. 20 (UPI) -- Peru's interi»»»

A 38-year-old inmate accused of fatally shooting fellow prisoner Antonis Papadatos at Domokos Prison last Sunday and the prison’s chief guard, charged with complicity, were both ordered held in pretrial detention by a Lamia magistrate and prosecutor. The joint hearings lasted more than 10 hours, wi»»»

Dubai: An Egyptian man has been arrested for allegedly beating his wife, who was battling cancer, to death after repeated arguments in which she urged him to stop taking drugs and find work to support their five children, authorities said. The incident came to light after police in Alexandria recei»»»

People walk past sargassum clumps on the sand in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, in July. File Photo by Orlando Barria/EPA Feb. 20 (UPI) -- The Dominican Republic opened the year with 1.22 million tourists in January, a 5.5% increase compared with the same month last year. The increase was driven b»»»

TradeUnited States of AmericaTrump tariffs struck down: What's his plan now? Timothy RooksThe US Supreme Court has ruled that most of the president's tariffs are unconstitutional because of how he implemented them. But the administration is prepared to reinstate them, starting with a 10% temporary »»»

A 38-year-old inmate told a Lamia investigating magistrate Friday that he acted in self-defense when he fatally shot fellow prisoner Antonis Papadatos at Domokos Prison, as authorities investigate the killing as a possible contract hit. The suspect spent three hours defending himself against charge»»»

Budapest has imposed a veto on a €90 billion ($106 billion) EU loan for Ukraine agreed in December, Financial Times has reported. Hungary, along with several other EU members, had previously opted out of the scheme, which was expected to be covered through joint EU borrowing. The Hungarian represen»»»

1 of 4 | Chair of the House Democratic Women's Caucus Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M., speaks during a press conference with advocates and survivors of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including the family of Virginia Giuffre, at the U.S. Capitol on February 10. Two executors of Epstein'»»»

The FBI is planning to make it easier for existing employees to become special agents by eliminating two long-standing vetting steps, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing sources. The change comes as Director Kash Patel seeks to reshape the bureau amid an agent shortage. According to the report, Pa»»»

NASA chief Jared Isaacman has slammed Boeing for failures that plagued the botched debut mission of its first crewed spaceship, Starliner, which left two astronauts stranded for nine months last year.A billionaire private astronaut and close associate of SpaceX founder Elon Musk, Isaacman, who was »»»

The Central Election Commission (CEC) has allocated the seats to the multi-member constituencies for the parliamentary elections scheduled for April 19, 2026, the Commission said on Friday. The CEC determines the number of seats for each multi-member constituency according to a uniform national rep»»»

BELGRADE - The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury has extended an operating licence issued to the Serbian oil company NIS for 30 more days, until March 20. NIS is under US sanctions due to its Russian-majority ownership. "Good news for Serbian citizens - th»»»

French police will be out in force at a weekend rally for a slain far-right activist, the interior minister said Friday, as the country seeks to contain anger over the fatal beating blamed on the hard left.»»»

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Former Brazil captain Neymar said he is thinking of retiring at the end of the year after being hampered by injuries but hopes to go to the World Cup first. The ex-Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain striker returned in January 2025 to his boyhood club Santos from Saudi club A»»»

There are many obstacles to a peace deal in Ukraine, but a diplomatic solution remains the only viable option, the newly appointed head of the UN refugee agency said Friday, warning that humanitarian operations are increasingly overstretched because of multiple global crises. Barham Salih, Iraq’s f»»»

More than 22,000 companies have closed and more than 300,000 formal jobs have been lost in Argentina over the past two years as a result of a trade liberalization policy that reduced tariffs with the promise of lowering consumer prices, a trade association says. File Photo by Juan Ignacio Roncoroni»»»

President Donald Trump speaks during a Governors Working Breakfast in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Friday. He told a reporter he's considering limited military strikes on Iran. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo Feb. 20 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump said »»»

As Ramadan begins, New York City’s first Muslim mayor, Zohran Mamdani, has shared his reflections on the holy month, calling it his favourite time of year for its spirit of reflection and the sense of community it inspires. “Right now, I feel parched,” Mamdani joked to reporters. “This is a month o»»»

Eric Dane, known for his roles on "Grey’s Anatomy" and "Euphoria," died this week from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at age 53. The fatal nervous system disease, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, killed Dane less than a year after he announced his diagnosis. According to the Centers for Disease C»»»

French police will be out in force at a weekend rally for slain far-right activist Quentin Deranque, the interior minister said Friday, as the country seeks to contain anger over the fatal beating blamed on the hard left. His death has fomented tensions ahead of municipal elections next month »»»

UK police on Friday searched properties belonging to the British royals for a second day after the sensational arrest of disgraced ex-prince Andrew tipped the British monarchy into crisis. Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested and later released as police probe misconduct claims over»»»

As part of FRANCE 24’s and Talking Europe’s coverage of the fourth anniversary of the war in Ukraine, we host veteran diplomat Vsevolod Chentsov, Ukraine’s ambassador to the European Union. He highlights the critical assistance the EU is providing for the country’s military, budgetary, and energy n»»»