Share: A worker tears down the pictures of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, former Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, Lebanon’s late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at a gas station in Nubl, in rural Aleppo, Syria, December 11, 2024.(photo credit: UMIT BEKTA»»»

The US is allegedly weighing unprecedented measures to punish NATO members it believes failed to support its war against Iran, Reuters reported on Friday, citing an internal Pentagon email. The options are said to include the possible suspension of Spain from the bloc, according to the outlet. The »»»

US President Donald Trump has threatened lethal force against any Iranian boats suspected of laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, claiming that Washington now has “total control” over the key waterway until Tehran agrees to a deal. The warning comes amid a maritime standoff in the Strait of Hormuz»»»

Maine Gov. Janet Mills on Friday vetoed a bill that would have paused construction of artificial intelligence data centers in the state because lawmakers in the Maine legislature refused a carve-out to the pause for an already in progress project there. File Photo CJ Gunther/EPA April 24 (UPI) -- M»»»

A rotating cast of people, which could include President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, will fill in for White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt when she takes maternity leave after her daughter is born. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI | License Photo April 24 (UPI) -- White House Press S»»»

TUNIS: Prominent Tunisian ‌reporter Zied Heni was detained on Friday after writing an article criticizing the judiciary, according to his lawyer, a ​move the journalists’ union said was part of a broader crackdown on free speech. The Tunisian public prosecutor ordered the arrest, lawyer Nafaa Larib»»»

NAIROBI: The head of a global vaccine organisation told AFP on Friday that aid cuts by the United States and other donors have forced it to slash its malaria programme in Africa, threatening tens of thousands of children's lives. Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, brings together government and private do»»»

A late-season freeze this week brought damaging cold to the mid-Atlantic, threatening crops just as orchards and berry fields entered critical stages of growth. Record lows were set in parts of the region Monday and Tuesday, including 24 degrees Fahrenheit in Allentown, Pa. Temperatures also droppe»»»

CASABLANCA, Morocco: Towering over the Moroccan capital’s historic cityscape, a $700 million, 55-story skyscraper opened this week in a move that underscores the country’s expanding global ambitions. Named for King Mohammed VI and inspired by a rocket on its launchpad, the 820-foot Mohammed VI Towe»»»

BEIRUT: A Lebanese journalist who was wounded in an Israeli airstrike that killed her colleague this week described hours of agony as they waited for help to arrive, in an interview with The Associated Press on Friday. Zeinab Faraj, a young freelance photographer and video journalist, frequently mo»»»

Special envoy Steve Witkoff (L) and President Donald Trump's adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner are heading to Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, to have more talks with Iran to make a peace deal. File Photo courtesy Ukrainian President's Office | License Photo April 24 (UPI) -- Talks with Iran are s»»»

BEIRUT: Lebanon faces growing concern over what officials describe as potential Israeli encroachment onto its offshore energy resources, after the Israeli military published a map extending its buffer zone into the Mediterranean, raising questions about the fate of the Qana gas field. The map, rele»»»

President Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday reclassified state-licensed medical marijuana as a less-dangerous drug, easing research barriers and granting tax relief. The change falls short of federal legalisation but marks a major shift in US cannabis policy. President Donald Trump's acting»»»

Spain's centre-left Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Friday declined to comment on a reported Pentagon email written by top policy adviser Elbridge Colby raising the possibility of suspending Madrid from the NATO military alliance. The note reportedly also suggested reconsidering US suppor»»»

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Thursday fired Stars and Stripes' ombudsman, whose job it had to been to protect the newspapers' editorial independence and report to Congress if military officials were interfering with it. File Photo by Annabelle Gordon/UPI | License Photo April 24 (UPI) -- Th»»»

France's foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot on Friday voiced concern about the spread of Islamist extremism in west Africa, after talks with Togo's leader, Faure Gnassingbe. Violence by jihadist groups has blighted the Sahel region for the last decade, and is now spreading into northe»»»

Government workers in Tokyo have new dress code rules that allow them to wear shorts to the office in a bid to cut air conditioning costs, an official said on Friday, as the Middle East war drives up energy costs around the world. Tokyo's metropolitan government is encouraging staff to wear shorts »»»

BANGKOK: Thailand wants to ​play a leading role in Myanmar’s bid to normalize its ties with Southeast Asian bloc ASEAN after five years on the sidelines, the Thai foreign minister said ahead of a meeting on Wednesday with new President Min Aung Hlaing. Former military chief Min Aung Hlaing led a 20»»»

On the most dangerous parts of Ukraine's front line, it's almost as common these days to hear Spanish as Ukrainian. Many Colombian soldiers are now fighting in Ukraine, lured by the comparatively high salaries, but also by a sense of adventure and of helping a good cause. Our reporters Gulliver Cra»»»

Meta outlined plans to cut about 8,000 jobs on Thursday as it invests heavily in artificial intelligence. The move comes as part of a broader tech-sector shift towards cost control, with Microsoft also weighing voluntary buyouts ahead of next week’s earnings reports. Meta plans to cut a tenth of it»»»

JEDDAH: Riyad Mahrez says Al-Ahli have achieved something “incredible” in reaching back-to-back Asian Champions League finals, but warned his side not to underestimate their opponents — Japan’s FC Machida Zelvia — in the Jeddah showdown on Saturday. Mahrez, 35, told a press conference in Jeddah on »»»

The reconstruction of the Gaza Strip has returned to the agenda in recent days during Egyptian talks with international parties, amid a stalemate in implementing the ceasefire and earlier reports of funding problems facing the “Board of Peace” led by U.S. President Donald Trump. Those reports were »»»

When Alexei Maslov, one of Russia's best-known Sinologists, told Sputnik radio on April 24 that the true purpose of the US campaign against Iran had been to wound China rather than Tehran, the remark read at first like standard Moscow framing. Iran, he argued, had never truly threatened American in»»»

Lebanon has appealed to the United Nations to intervene over what it calls Israel's deliberate targeting of media workers, citing 28 journalist deaths since October 2023, as Israeli soldiers admit to large-scale looting of civilian property in the south of the country. »»»

Lebanon has appealed to the United Nations to intervene over what it calls Israel's deliberate targeting of media workers, citing 28 journalist deaths since October 2023, as Israeli soldiers admit to large-scale looting of civilian property in the south of the country. »»»

Lebanon has appealed to the United Nations to intervene over what it calls Israel's deliberate targeting of media workers, citing 28 journalist deaths since October 2023, as Israeli soldiers admit to large-scale looting of civilian property in the south of the country. »»»

When Alexei Maslov, one of Russia's best-known Sinologists, told Sputnik radio on April 24 that the true purpose of the US campaign against Iran had been to wound China rather than Tehran, the remark read at first like standard Moscow framing. Iran, he argued, had never truly threatened American in»»»

When Alexei Maslov, one of Russia's best-known Sinologists, told Sputnik radio on April 24 that the true purpose of the US campaign against Iran had been to wound China rather than Tehran, the remark read at first like standard Moscow framing. Iran, he argued, had never truly threatened American in»»»

When Alexei Maslov, one of Russia's best-known Sinologists, told Sputnik radio on April 24 that the true purpose of the US campaign against Iran had been to wound China rather than Tehran, the remark read at first like standard Moscow framing. Iran, he argued, had never truly threatened American in»»»

Slovenia has entered a period of political uncertainty following the inconclusive March 22 elections, but the absence of a new government has not prevented a fierce debate over a far-reaching draft development law that could reshape the country’s tax and social systems. »»»

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has warned that Russia could attack a NATO member within months and openly questioned whether the United States would honour its mutual defence commitment in the event of such an attack, Financial Times reported on April 24. »»»

Russia has stripped a 44-year-old woman born in Ukraine's Sumy region of her Russian citizenship over online anti-Russian posts and statements, state news agency RIA Novosti reported on April 24, citing a law enforcement source. »»»

The Bank of Russia cut its key interest rate by 50 basis points to 14.5% at the board of directors meeting on April 24, the eighth consecutive rate cut in the central bank's monetary easing cycle, Rosstat data shows. Domes»»»

Lebanon’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Ali Karanouh, said a phone call on Tuesday between Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, along with a statement by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, marked the culmination of Saudi efforts that drew on the kingd»»»

Russia's online giant Yandex (YNDX), often referred to as "the Russian Google," has moved to add mobile phone service provision to many of its other areas of operation. The launch is scheduled for this summer, the Russian business daily Kommersant reported, quoting a source in the local telecoms in»»»

Russia has stripped a 44-year-old woman born in Ukraine's Sumy region of her Russian citizenship over online anti-Russian posts and statements, state news agency RIA Novosti reported on April 24, citing a law enforcement source. »»»

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has warned that Russia could attack a NATO member within months and openly questioned whether the United States would honour its mutual defence commitment in the event of such an attack, Financial Times reported on April 24. »»»

Moscow's Simonovsky District Court has closed the second trial of former Russian deputy defence minister Timur Ivanov on bribery charges totalling RUB1.3bn ($15.69mn) to the public and media, Komsomolskaya Pravda reported on April 24, citing RIA Novosti. »»»

Vladimir Putin's approval rating has fallen for a seventh consecutive week to its lowest level since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, according to data from VTsIOM, the state-owned polling agency whose numbers the Kremlin monitors closely and whose methodology has every inc»»»

Damascus, April 24 (SANA) Syria’s Transport Ministry said reports circulating about the allocation of $200 million from the World Bank to finance railway development projects in Syria are inaccurate, stressing that the matter remains under discussion and no final agreement has been reached. In a st»»»

President Donald Trump is sending his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan, the White House said Friday, just hours after Iran’s top diplomat headed to the South Asian nation where officials have been trying to get the United States and Iran to convene for a second round of ceasefire »»»

For many residents of Damascus’ Tadamon district, Friday felt like a holiday. Celebratory chants rang through the streets and women handed out sweets after authorities officially announced the arrest of “Amjad Youssef,” 40, a criminal who was a former member of military intelligence under Bashar al»»»

NICOSIA: EU leaders vowed to boost security and economic ties with Middle East partners and push for a diplomatic end to the Iran war, after talks in Cyprus focusing on the fallout from the conflict.Leaders from Lebanon, Egypt, Syria and Jordan as well as the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperati»»»

GENEVA: Porto holding off Benfica in the Portuguese title race is a rivalry between André Villas-Boas and his one-time mentor José Mourinho. Porto have been revived in two years with Villas-Boas as president of his boyhood club that he coached to a league, cup and Europa League treble at age 33 in »»»

Tunis, April 24 (TAP) - The Tunis Court of First Instance has ordered the detention of journalist Zied El Heni, following his hearing on Friday, on charges of offending others on social media, a judicial source told TAP. The Public Prosecutor had...»»»

EU leaders vowed to boost security and economic ties with Middle East partners and push for a diplomatic end to the Iran war, after talks in Cyprus focusing on the fallout from the conflict. Leaders from Lebanon, Egypt, Syria and Jordan as well as the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Counc»»»

April 24 (UPI) -- A tornado touched down in Enid, Okla., injuring at least 10 people and causing extensive damage to homes in the area, local authorities said. About 40 homes were damaged in the Enid area Thursday evening. The city is in north-central Oklahoma. Local news said the tornado passed th»»»

1 of 3 | Chairman of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell speaks during a press conference at the Federal Reserve in Washington, D.C., on March 18. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said she would restart the criminal investigation into Powell if need be. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo April »»»

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz suggested on Friday that the European Union could ease sanctions on Tehran as part of a comprehensive deal that would end the Iran war, but other EU leaders struck a more cautious note. The 27-nation EU has imposed sanctions on Iran for years, including travel bans »»»

MOSCOW: Russia said on Friday that it stood in solidarity with Cuba and would continue to provide humanitarian aid to the Communist-run island republic, rejecting what it described as blackmail and threats from Washington. US President Donald Trump has said that he expects to have the honor of “tak»»»