Beijing slammed on Wednesday countries including Japan and Australia for their "irresponsible" criticism of China's military drills in waters around Taiwan. China launched missiles and deployed dozens of fighter jets, navy ships and coastguard vessels around the island on Monday and Tuesday in live»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian forces have hit energy facilities used in the interests of the Ukrainian defense industry, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday. "Operational-tactical aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, missile forces and artillery of groups of the armed forces of Russia have d»»»

MINSK (Sputnik) - A strike by the Russian Oreshnik mobile ground-based missile system in 2024 destroyed the Ukrainian state-owned aerospace and defense plant, Yuzhmash, in a minute, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Wednesday. "A huge enterprise, it was the most unique in the Soviet»»»

Dubai: Eurostar trains between London and Paris have largely resumed, offering relief to travellers after major disruption in the Channel Tunnel earlier this week, according to a BBC report. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.The rail operator said it plans to run a full »»»

The author of Heated Rivalry has revealed the success of the TV adaptation has resulted in her receiving specialist help with her Parkinson's disease. Rachel Reid, 45, was diagnosed with the condition in the summer of 2023, around the same time she was approached about adapting her book series for »»»

Beijing slammed on Wednesday countries including Japan and Australia for their "irresponsible" criticism of China's military drills in waters around Taiwan. China launched missiles and deployed dozens of fighter jets, navy ships and coastguard vessels around the island on Monday and Tuesday in live»»»

In the weeks before the Gaza ceasefire on October 10, Israel widely deployed a new weapon: M113 Armored Personnel Carriers repurposed to carry between 1 and 3 tons of explosives, Reuters found. As Israeli troops pushed toward the center of Gaza City, these powerful bombs, along with airstrikes and »»»

Chinese President Xi Jinping said Wednesday that the country's economy is expected to have grown "around five percent" in 2025, despite "pressure" during a year he described as "very unusual", state media said. The announcement came in a New Year's Eve speech by Xi to a top political consultative b»»»

Iran on Wednesday appointed a new governor to the central bank after the former one resigned following a record currency fall against the US dollar that sparked large protests. The plummeting of the rial, Iran's currency, sparked the largest protests in the country in three years, with rallies that»»»

Hadhramaut Governor Salem Ahmed al-Khanbashi called on Wednesday inhabitants of the governorate who are involved with the Southern Transitional Council to "return home" and join their "brothers in the National Shield Forces". In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, he pledged that they will be welcomed in t»»»

Iran's prosecutor general said on Wednesday that economic protests that had gripped the country were legitimate, but any attempt to create insecurity would be met with a "decisive response". "Peaceful livelihood protests are part of social and understandable realities," Mohammad Movahedi-Azad told »»»

Secretary's SpeechLebanon PalestineZionist EntityRegional and International International More Video Language Ar En Fr EsSubscribe for Weekly Updates Subscribe Israeli settlers destroy crops in West Bank’s Jordan Valley 31-12-2025 10:13 AM Latest News Urgent News Israeli Occupation to Suspend Dozen»»»

Elsewedy Electric, Egypt’s leading energy and infrastructure conglomerate (SWDY), has announced plans to invest in at least two new renewable energy projects in Europe during 2026, as part of a broader strategy to expand its diversified clean-energy portfolio across the continent. The company revea»»»

Dubai: Emirates, Dubai’s flagship airline, wrapped up 2025 with milestones that reshaped global travel. The airline carried 55.6 million passengers in 2025, operating nearly 180,600 flights and circling the Earth more than 29,000 times. It took 29, 290 laps around the earth to be precise. The airli»»»

Syrian authorities have arrested 21 people in the coastal province of Latakia over alleged links to the ousted government of former president Bashar al-Assad, state media reported, after sectarian violence prompted an overnight curfew in the provincial capital. Authorities in Syria’s Latakia provin»»»

Mali and Burkina Faso say they will bar US citizens from entering their countries in response to a similar move by the Trump administration. The two West African states were recently placed under full entry restrictions under US President Donald Trump's expanded travel ban. In separate statements, »»»

Dubai: Pakistan’s federal government has amended the National Identity Card (NIC) Rules to formally recognise facial and iris scans as valid biometric identifiers, expanding the definition of biometrics beyond fingerprints, the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) said on Wednesday.»»»

Thailand released 18 Cambodian soldiers held prisoner since border clashes broke out between the two countries in July as part of a renewed ceasefire signed Saturday. Dozens of people have been killed and more than a million more driven from their homes after renewed fighting erupted in December. T»»»

Doha, Qatar: The committee responsible for the GCC Tourism Capital has officially announced Doha as the GCC Tourism Capital for 2026, within the framework of strengthening joint tourism cooperation among GCC member states. This decision has been approved by Their Excellencies the Ministers responsi»»»

2025 was an important year for Servier Romania, as the company continued to strengthen its leadership in cardiology and venous disease, expanded access to oncology treatments, and advanced major public health initiatives. Under the leadership of General Manager Dr. Jan-Frederic Kesselhut, Servier R»»»

Abu Dhabi: As the New Year approaches, six patients have been given a second chance at life, following a generous decision by the family of an Indian expat in the UAE to donate his organs after a tragic accident. M. Baburajan, a 50-year-old goldsmith from Kerala, died following a road accident in A»»»

Hundreds of thousands of people travelled from across Bangladesh to the capital Dhaka on Wednesday to pay their final respects to former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. Zia, who was the country's first female prime minister, died on Tuesday from a prolonged illness. She was 80. The mourners held out th»»»

Doha, Qatar: As Qatar Foundation marks its 30th anniversary, it has launched The QF Generation, an immersive storytelling initiative that brings together 30 individuals whose lives have been shaped by QF. Through personal reflections, they share their journeys and highlight how they are now contrib»»»

Doha, Qatar: Old Doha Port unveiled its key milestones in 2025, concluding an exceptional year across tourism performance and maritime operations, with record figures across key indicators. During the year, the Port expanded its international presence and implemented tourism initiatives that contri»»»

Dubai: Pakistan is set to enter 2026 as the world’s fifth-most populous country, with its population surpassing 225 million, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The milestone highlights the urgent need to address rapid population growth amid high fertility rates, persistent gen»»»

Kyrgyzstan is consistently implementing measures to substitute imports of vegetable oil, the press service of the Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture and Processing Industry reported. According to the ministry, five new oilseed processing enterprises were launched this year: one in Issyk-Kul r»»»

Berlin, Germany: Robbers used a large drill to break into a German savings bank's vault room and steal cash, gold and jewelry worth some 30 million euros ($35 million), police said Tuesday. The heist in the western city of Gelsenkirchen saw the thieves break into more than 3,000 safe deposit boxes,»»»

DUSHANBE (Sputnik) - Tajik President Emomali Rahmon has sharply condemned the recent drone attack on the residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin in Russia’s Novgorod Region, the Tajik president’s office said on Wednesday. "During a telephone conversation, the President of Tajikistan sharply c»»»

Israel's Mossad spy agency issued a direct call urging Iranians to press on with protests, saying it was supporting them "on the ground" as demonstrations spread in capital Tehran and other Iranian cities. "Go out into the streets together. The time has come. We are with you," Mossad wrote in a pos»»»

Dubai: Iran is once again facing a moment of deep uncertainty as economic collapse, public anger and regional tensions converge. In recent days, the country has seen its largest protests in three years, sparked by a sharp fall in the national currency and a steady erosion of living standards. While»»»

The outgoing United Nations refugee chief fears an increasingly fragmented world is fueling global conflicts and crises, and inflaming hostility towards people desperately fleeing for safety. Reflecting on his decade at the helm of the UNHCR, Filippo Grandi told AFP that one of the most worrying de»»»

Russia’s top general said its forces were pressing forward in northeastern Ukraine and President Vladimir ​Putin had ordered expansion of territory Moscow calls a buffer zone there in 2026, Russian news agencies said on Wednesday. Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov said Putin ordered expan»»»

New Year's Eve revelers celebrated the end of 2025 on Wednesday, waving goodbye to 12 months packed with Trump tariffs, a Gaza truce and vain hopes for peace in Ukraine. It was one of the warmest years on record, the stifling heat stoking wildfires in Europe, droughts in Africa and deadly rains acr»»»

On Dec. 31, 2020, the historic Brexit trade agreement with the European Union entered legal force in Britain just hours before the official end of the transition period. 1 of 5 | British Prime Minister Boris Johnson returns to No.10 Downing St after attending debate at the Houses of Parliament rega»»»

Secretary's SpeechLebanon PalestineZionist EntityRegional and International International More Video Language Ar En Fr EsSubscribe for Weekly Updates Subscribe Israeli glider dropped a bomb on an excavator in the town of Ayta Al-Shaab: Al-Manar correspondent in south Lebanon 31-12-2025 10:04 AM Lat»»»

Secretary's SpeechLebanon PalestineZionist EntityRegional and International International More Video Language Ar En Fr EsSubscribe for Weekly Updates Subscribe 4 Palestinians injured as Israeli occupation forces attack Jaba in West Bank’s Jenin: Palestinian Red Crescent 31-12-2025 09:27 AM Latest N»»»

Secretary's SpeechLebanon PalestineZionist EntityRegional and International International More Video Language Ar En Fr EsSubscribe for Weekly Updates Subscribe Somali President Warns Israeli Recognition of Somaliland Could Fuel Gaza Displacement Plan 31-12-2025 09:58 AM Somali President Hassan Shei»»»

Russia launched an overnight drone attack on ​Ukraine’s Odesa region, damaging residential buildings and infrastructure and injuring four people, including three children, regional authorities said on Wednesday. Odesa, a major Black Sea port, has been repeatedly targeted by Russian missiles and ‌dr»»»

Relations between India and the Maldives represent one of South Asia’s most stable and organically developed partnerships. Maldives Insight reports. Long before diplomatic ties were formalised in 1965, the two nations were linked through maritime trade, cultural exchange and people-to-people contac»»»

Thailand on Wednesday released 18 Cambodian prisoners of war held for five months, fulfilling the terms of a ceasefire agreement the two countries signed to end bitter fighting along their border. The release was stipulated in the ceasefire agreement signed Saturday by the defense ministers of the »»»

Zohran Mamdani, young upstart of the US left, was readying Wednesday to take over as New York mayor for a term sure to see him cross swords with President Donald Trump. After the clocks strike midnight, bringing in 2026, Mamdani will take his oath of office at an abandoned subway stop, taking the h»»»

Europe is no longer sleepwalking into disaster. It is marching toward it with wide-open eyes, clenched fists, and a disturbing sense of moral self-satisfaction. At the very moment when the United States, under Donald Trump’s leadership, is returning to diplomacy, restraint, and strategic realism, t»»»

Eurostar will resume full service Wednesday after a power glitch left crowds of travellers stranded on either end of the Channel Tunnel, the service said in a statement. Eurostar has held a monopoly on passenger services through the tunnel that connects France and the UK since it first launched in »»»

Meteorologists predict that no precipitation is expected in Bishkek during the second half of the day. January 1: Rain, turning into snow at night. Nighttime temperatures will drop to around +2°C, while daytime highs will reach +6°C. January 2: Partly cloudy. Night temperatures will fall to 0°C, wi»»»

Nearly 12 years after Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 vanished with 239 people on board, a renewed search has begun in the remote southern Indian Ocean, as investigators deploy advanced deep-sea technology in a fresh bid to solve one of aviation’s most enduring mysteries. Nearly 12 years after Malay»»»

The UAE has once again demonstrated its forward-looking approach to national development with the issuance of two landmark Federal Decree Laws. One governs the national educational curriculum and the other regulates higher education and scientific research. These laws, issued in December 2025, are »»»

In 2025, Sputnik got 10 billion internet hits and grew its audience to 23.5 million subscribers, adding 4 million in just one year. The agency expanded its radio broadcasting to 15 new countries, launched 24/7 broadcasting in Brazil and increased its global reach with new correspondent locations an»»»

Secretary's SpeechLebanon PalestineZionist EntityRegional and International International More Video Language Ar En Fr EsSubscribe for Weekly Updates Subscribe Israeli occupation force infiltrated into Lebanese territory, blew house in the tow of Houla: Al-Manar correspondent in south Lebanon 31-12»»»

As the UAE prepare to celebrate New Year’s Eve tonight, Brite Aravindhakshan will once again be on duty – ready to respond to emergencies while the nation welcomes 2026 with lights, fireworks and joy. The Indian expat, an ambulance driver with Aster Cedars Hospital in Jebel Ali, knows what it means»»»

The Dubai Court of Appeal has upheld a lower court ruling sentencing two Asian men to three months in prison and ordering them to jointly repay Dh1.098 million, after convicting them of defrauding a European investor in a sham cryptocurrency transaction. The court also ordered their deportation aft»»»