JEDDAH: When the FIFA World Cup kicked off in USA, Mexico and Canada, billions of fans were glued to their screens. There were goals, controversies and last-minute dramas but the real magic was not just happening on the grass. Behind the scenes, engineers and tech companies had turned the tournamen»»»

Residents of the village of Bezmer, the regional centre Yambol, and nearby villages rallied against the deployment of US refuelling tanker aircraft at Bezmer Air Base. The protesters assembled on the road connecting the village to the military airfield. Also present Bulgaria's Minister of Youth and»»»

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met on the sidelines of an ASEAN foreign ministers' gathering in Manila on July 23, in the highest-level US-Russia contact in months on ending the war in Ukraine — but both sides signalled no breakthrough and little optimi»»»

LONDON: The United States has urged its citizens in the Middle East to exercise heightened caution, warning that the regional security environment remains volatile and could deteriorate further amid ongoing tensions. In a security alert issued on Friday, the US Embassy in Jerusalem said Americans i»»»

Colt Gray faces up to life in prison with no chance of parole for allegedly killing four people at a high school in Georgia. File Photo courtesy Barrow County Sheriff's Office | License Photo July 24 (UPI) -- A Georgia teenager changed his plea to guilty Friday in the shooting deaths of four people»»»

Police officers guard the entrance to Heron House, which will house No. 10 North while another site is under construction, in Manchester, England. The bee is the symbol of Manchester. Photo by Adam Vaughan/EPA July 24 (UPI) -- New British Prime Minister Andy Burnham held his first meeting at No. 10»»»

Parliament's final approval of the 2026 State Budget Act on Friday prompted criticism across the opposition, with parties attacking the government's fiscal policy, spending priorities and lack of reforms. The budget projects a consolidated fiscal deficit of 5.7% of GDP and sets the ceiling for new »»»

KAMPALA: On a cold morning in Uganda’s largest national park, rangers chat and sing to lift their spirits ahead of the start of a daunting wildlife project considered critical to conservation: moving the Nubian giraffe to a new home. Rangers at Murchison Falls National Park on Tuesday began to tran»»»

Bulgaria's Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov and Youth and Sports Minister Encho Keryazov met on Friday with mayors from the southeastern Yambol Region to discuss the planned deployment of US Boeing KC-135 aerial refuelling aircraft and up to 250 US military personnel at Bezmer Air Base. The meetin»»»

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is exploring ​a path toward a resumption of stalled US-Iran talks over ending their nearly five-month-old war, three Pakistani sources said, following a push initiated by China. Exploratory discussions took place during a visit by Iran’s Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni to Isla»»»

GENEVA: Spain has nominated Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz to head the United Nations labor agency, potentially making her the first woman to lead the organization, as it faces a financial crisis over US non-payments. The Spanish government said Diaz’s candidacy for the top job at the International L»»»

BUDAPEST: Kimi Antonelli rubs his neck and admits he will be racing to save it from a parental throttling as much as to win a race when he lines up on the grid for Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix. The 19-year-old Italian, who leads the drivers’ world championship for Mercedes, laughed as he recalled »»»

BELGRADE - In a telephone call, Serbian Deputy PM and Interior Minister Ivica Dacic and Hungarian Interior Minister Gabor Posfai noted on Friday that their countries shared common security challenges on the Western Balkan migration route. In light of Posfai's recent successful visit to Belgrade, Da»»»

RIYADH: The Saudi Masam mine clearance project has destroyed nearly 6,000 items of unexploded ordnance collected from Yemen’s western coast as part of efforts to protect civilians from the dangers of war remnants, it announced on Thursday. Masam said that its teams safely disposed of 5,977 items in»»»

By UPI Staff From Ronald Reagan to Donald Trump, media figures have long crossed from television and film into politics. This photo collection highlights figures from news and entertainment who later pursued public office. Former television comedian and actor Volodymyr Zelensky, known for starring »»»

Middle East tensions are once again driving up global oil prices, with Brent crude climbing above $100 a barrel for the first time since May. While much of the focus has been on the strategic Strait of Hormuz, the alternative shipping route through the Red Sea is becoming increasingly dangerous aft»»»

US President Donald Trump has threatened to seize frozen Iranian assets to cover “any and all damages” to ships and cargo damaged due to the conflict in the Middle East. Iran has hit back, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warning that the move sets an “incendiary precedent” that could have glob»»»

India has extended a mobile internet shutdown in the capital, New Delhi, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi faces his biggest youth-led challenge since taking office in 2014. Leaders of the youth-led "Cockroach" movement are due to meet government officials later today in an effort to resolve a stando»»»

BELGRADE - On Monday, July 20, Air Serbia carried 22,098 passengers, achieving the best single-day result in its history and surpassing its previous record of more than 21,600 passengers, set on August 1, 2025, the Serbian national airline has announced. "We are currently at the peak of the summer »»»

Dubai: The conflict between the United States and Iran continues to escalate, with fresh military action, new travel warnings and growing concerns over shipping and aviation across the Middle East. While the UAE remains safe and airports are operating normally, the latest developments have prompted»»»

New Delhi: Talks between the Indian government and leaders of the youth-led "Cockroach" movement failed to make headway Friday, as protesters gathered in the nation's capital to push for an overhaul of the education system. Senior ministers JP Nadda and Jitendra Singh met with leaders of the social»»»

New Delhi: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have been handed a direct entry into the men's knockouts of the Asian Games cricket after the draw was announced. Defending champions India along with its seeded neighbours will start from the quarter-finals of the 10-team men's competition start»»»

MADRID: World Cup-winning Spain ‌coach Luis de la Fuente was appalled by the conduct of Argentina’s players after their 1-0 loss in Sunday’s final, which led to a brawl between the two teams and triggered an investigation by FIFA. At the final whistle, Argentina midfielder Leandro Paredes clashed w»»»

Comments Ukraine's new commander-in-chief, General Mykhailo Drapatyi, made in a 2023 interview about the population of Donbas have resurfaced this week and are being heavily amplified by Russian state media, days after President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed him to replace Oleksandr Syrskyi amid ma»»»

1 of 3 | Take two of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner is set to take place on Friday with fewer attendees and heightened security after April’s gala was cut short by a gunman. File Photo by Yuri Gripas/UPI | License Photo July 24 (UPI) -- Take two of the White House Correspondents' Dinner is »»»

LONDON: An “extremely significant” car bomb was intercepted earlier this week near the Northern Ireland border during an investigation of dissident republicans, Irish police said Friday. A woman driver in her 20s was arrested Wednesday near Carrickmacross, County Monaghan, and remained in custody F»»»

BISSAU: Guinea-Bissau opposition leader Domingos Simoes Pereira, who was being held in prison for alleged involvement in coup attempts, has been released for medical treatment in Portugal, judicial and security sources say. Pereira, leader of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cap»»»

In this edition of Europe Rendezvous, we travel to Italy, one of the European Union's founding members, to examine how the country's democratic institutions have come under increasing pressure. It may be the season of la dolce vita, but life ha»»»

Continue the Change (CC) has called on President Iliana Iotova to veto the 2026 State Budget Act and will launch a petition, party leader Assen Vassilev told reporters in Parliament on Friday. Earlier in the day, Parliament adopted the 2026 State Budget Act, which projects a 5.7% deficit. "We urge »»»

BELGRADE/ZURICH - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic says he has decided in favour of early elections for several reasons, including a need to have a legitimate government and people with legitimacy. In an interview for the Swiss Weltwoche weekly, Vucic said that, during last year's protests in the»»»

After two days of debate and voting, Parliament adopted the 2026 State Budget Act at second reading on Friday, approving a budget framework with a projected deficit of 5.7%. The bill was passed by a vote of 125 to 84, with no abstentions, following more than five hours of voting and over 12 hours o»»»

London: Enzo Maresca said Friday it is a "privilege" to follow Pep Guardiola as manager of Manchester City. Former Chelsea and Leicester boss Maresca was named as Guardiola's successor after the Catalan stepped down at the end of last season, having won 20 trophies during a superbly successful 10-y»»»

Germany is paying five times as much for imported gas as it did before abandoning its long-term Russian supply contracts as part of the EU sanctions, Berliner Zeitung has reported. Berlin now has to rely on the volatile international energy market, which is reeling from the de facto closure of the »»»

Law enforcement officials in Ireland stopped a vehicle containing a car bomb earlier this week during an intelligence sweep of republican dissidents. File Photo by Adam Vaughan/EPA July 24 (UPI) -- Law enforcement officials in Ireland stopped a vehicle containing a car bomb earlier this week during»»»

Dubai: Etihad Rail, UAE’s first national passenger rail service officially began operations on June 30, 2026, with the launch of the Abu Dhabi–Fujairah route, marking a major milestone in the country’s transport network. The inaugural service connects Mohammed Bin Zayed City in Abu Dhabi with Fujai»»»

The 2026 State Budget takes Bulgaria back to the GERB era, Vazrazhdane MP Tsoncho Ganev told reporters on Friday after Parliament gave the budget final approval. Ganev said the budget froze all social benefits and shifted the main burden of what he called financial stability onto pensioners, mother»»»

IRBIL, Iraq: Drones carrying explosives targeted a city in northern Iraq on Friday where US forces are stationed. The attack took place hours after the American military said it finished its 13th night of strikes against Iran. The conflict has flared again over the past week, as the US pounded Iran»»»

Bulgaria's National Assembly gave final approval to the 2026 state budget on Friday, ending a monthlong legislative process that opened with a record 5.7% deficit and closed with the ruling Progressive Bulgaria party abolishing the automatic wage and minimum-wage formulas that have driven public sp»»»

1 of 2 | The Gordie Howe International Bridge is scheduled to open on Monday. Canada is having a scaled-down opening ceremony on Friday. Photo by Gordie Howe International Bridge July 24 (UPI) -- The new Gordie Howe Bridge between Windsor, Ontario, Canada, and Detroit is set to open to traffic Mond»»»

The vote on Bulgaria's 2026 state budget, which was adopted by the National Assembly conclusively on Friday, showed that there is no pilot in the cockpit, Democratic Bulgaria (DB) MP Martin Dimitrov told reporters. "There is no pilot, no governing programme and no plan for reforms. This leaves Bulg»»»

Sweden said that it plans to ban so-called “forever chemicals”, technically known as PFAS, in consumer products such as clothing and kitchenware from 2028. “Sweden has no intention of standing by while ‘forever chemicals’ continue to spread in our homes, in nature and in our bodies,” environment an»»»

In Japan, many people see Marine Day as a chance to get away. Families go to the beach. Office workers take a real break. Trains are crowded with people hoping to escape the summer heat, even if just for a little while. But Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi used the day to catch up on something differe»»»

It has now been made official that the Groupama Arena will host a prestigious international pre-season fixture this summer, as Ferencváros welcome Real Madrid to Budapest on Saturday, 8 August. The encounter will form part of the Spanish giants’ Austrian training programme and is set to rank among »»»

Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday called for dialogue and de-escalation to end the renewed conflict between the United States and Iran, telling his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi that Washington and Tehran should build on the Islamabad Memorandum of Under»»»

Bulgaria is not a target and will not become one, Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said on Friday at a news briefing after meeting mayors from the southeastern region of Yambol to discuss the upcoming deployment of US aerial refuelling aircraft at Bezmer Air Base. Asked where the aircraft would be»»»

Parliament on Friday voted 144-8, with one abstention, to terminate Plamen Tonchev's mandate as chair of the Committee for Disclosing the Documents and Announcing Affiliation of Bulgarian Citizens to State Security and to the Intelligence Services of the Bulgarian National Army (informally known as»»»

The Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) proposed introducing optical ballot scanners, the party said on Friday. The proposal was submitted between the bill’s first and second readings. MRF said the scanners combined the advantages of paper and machine voting and had proved reliable, having been »»»

Dubai: Blackstone, the world's largest alternative asset manager, is planning to open an office in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), marking its return to Dubai six years after relocating its regional base to Abu Dhabi, according to Reuters, citing two people familiar with the matter»»»

LONDON: Politicians in Ireland have insisted that the government send observers to Germany ahead of the trial of an Irish citizen detained over an incident at an Israeli-owned arms factory. Daniel Tatlow-Devally is one of five pro-Palestine activists who entered the facility owned by Elbit Systems »»»

LONDON: Grammy-winning singer Chris Brown pleaded guilty Friday to affray over an altercation in a London nightclub in a fight that injured a music producer. Brown, 37, made the change of plea during a hearing at London’s Southwark Crown Court. He had previously denied more serious charges over wha»»»