The UN human rights office said on Friday it has documented patterns of attacks on civilians in populated areas and residential buildings in Lebanon and Israel that may amount to serious violations of international humanitarian law. The report covers the first three weeks of the latest escalation, »»»

Switzerland said Friday it had begun sending staff back to Tehran and would gradually reopen its embassy, enabling it to continue as a facilitator for diplomatic contacts between Washington and Tehran. For decades, neutral Switzerland has played a central role in maintaining basic diplomatic contac»»»

Dubai: A UAE court has convicted a husband and wife of mutual assault after finding that both parties physically harmed each other during a domestic dispute, imposing a fine of Dh3,000 on each while suspending the sentence for three years in a move aimed at preserving the marital relationship. Cour»»»

Houssam Naddaf said no words could capture the shock of seeing an Israeli soldier smash a crucifix in his family's private garden in the southern Lebanese village of Debel — an image he recognized instantly as it spread online. "I saw it on the internet like everyone else," he said. Naddaf had not »»»

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said during a press briefing Friday that the U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has gone global after seizing two vessels in the Indo-Pacific region this week. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo April 24 (UPI) -- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said during a p»»»

Grand Hotel Therme in the village of Banya attracts visitors with healing mineral water and fresh mountain air. The hotel complex features numerous pools and thermal facilities, and covers a total area of over 6,000 sq. m. Pulse Therme Banya is the largest spa centre in Bulgaria, hotel management t»»»

Addis Ababa: The National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) announced that more than 50.5 million voters have registered to take part in Ethiopia's upcoming general election, scheduled for June 1. Briefing media on Thursday, NEBE Chairperson Melatwork Hailu said that a total of 50,514,155 citizens »»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The conflict in the Middle East has deprived the world of approximately 120 billion cubic meters (bcm) of total liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies between 2026 and 2030, accounting for about 15% of expected global supplies during that period, according to a report by the Intern»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Northern Sea Route is becoming an increasingly appealing logistics route amid events in the Middle East, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko has said. "Amid international turbulence in various regions of the world, the Northern Sea Route is becoming an increasin»»»

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States would welcome a "serious" European effort regarding the Strait of Hormuz instead of "silly" conferences, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said on Friday. Last week, the United Kingdom and France held an international conference on Strait of Hormuz navigation»»»

This is the first instance of a Central Asian country shipping goods to Pakistan in its own truck. The QTTA route now serves as a stable alternative for any kind of cargo. Pakistan has achieved a major milestone in regional connectivity. The first truck from Kyrgyzstan has arrived in Pakistan throu»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Bilateral military cooperation between Russia and China is becoming increasingly important in the context of the constantly changing military and political situation, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov said on Friday. Earlier in the day, Belousov held talks with Chinese Def»»»

War-torn Gaza is heavily contaminated by unexploded ordnance, which frequently kill and maim people and could threaten recovery efforts far into the future, the UN said Friday. Unexploded ordnance, ranging from undetonated bombs or grenades to simple bullets, has become a common sight in the Gaza S»»»

Damascus, April 24 (SANA) Turkish Ambassador to Syria Nuh Yilmaz said the arrest of Amjad Youssef has revived memory of the Tadamon massacre, describing the 2013 killings as one of the most heinous crimes committed in Syria. In a post on X, Yilmaz congratulated Syrian Internal Security Forces after»»»

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The Pentagon is still struggling to secure funding to expedite the replenishment of critical munitions used up during the US-Israeli military operation against Iran, The New York Times reported, citing US officials. In January, US defense contractor Lockheed Martin signed a f»»»

Periods of geopolitical unrest can create uncertainty, and that uncertainty can create space for misinformation and disinformation to thrive. In recent years, we have seen how rapidly unverified claims, edited videos, and misleading commentary, whether accidentally (misinformation) or deliberately »»»

The Egypt amon coalition, a strategic partnership between Poland’s Hynfra and Egypt’s Coxswains, has announced a major green ammonia initiative in Egypt with an initial investment of 5 billion dollars, Bloomberg reported. The project aims to commence production by 2031, with total investments proje»»»

TEHRAN (Sputnik) - Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran will resume foreign flights on April 25, Iranian media reported on Friday. Flights to Istanbul and Muscat will be resumed, the Tasnim news agency reported. On April 20, the Iranian Civil Aviation Organization said that two airports in»»»

Major powers seize the resources of developing countries, using that leverage to force them into borrowing from international institutions — which then impose crippling economic policies, head of Egypt’s National Conciliation Party Mohamed Mahmoud Rifaat tells Sputnik. The scheme works like this:Ke»»»

Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency confirmed Friday that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was heading to Pakistan for talks and will also stop in Oman and Russia. The trip to Pakistan comes as officials there have been trying to get the United States and Iran to a second round of ceasefire ne»»»

LONDON: A group of prominent writers, artists, musicians and academics including Greta Thunberg, Sally Rooney and Brian Eno have written to the UK Court of Appeal in support of the protest group Palestine Action, ahead of a hearing next week on the legality of its ban and its designation as a terro»»»

Clutching a battered photo album, Mohamad Ali Hijazi searched a mountain of rubble in south Lebanon's Tyre for mementoes of his family, killed in an Israeli strike minutes before a ceasefire took hold. "I'm trying to find my mother's hairbrush... and a bottle of perfume that she loves," said Hijazi»»»

Dubai: International Airlines Group (IAG) announced Friday it will raise ticket prices to offset rising jet fuel costs linked to the ongoing US-Israel-Iran war, even as it says supply remains stable, according to a Reuters report. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.The ai»»»

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has played down a leaked Pentagon email suggesting his country could face being suspended from NATO for not supporting the United States in its conflict with Iran. File Photo by Chris Kleponis/UPI | License Photo April 24 (UPI) -- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sa»»»

The Trump administration announced Friday that it is extending its waiver of the Jones Act by 90 days to combat high oil prices. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo April 24 (UPI) -- The Trump administration announced Friday that it is extending its waiver of the Jones Act by 90 days to combat»»»

Madrid: FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said he was confident that his side can overcome the loss of Lamine Yamal for the rest of the season and win this season's La Liga title. Barcelona plays away to an in-form Getafe on Saturday after it was confirmed on Thursday that Yamal tore his left hamstrin»»»

President Joseph Aoun told a non-official EU summit in Cyprus on Friday that Lebanon has engaged in a diplomatic negotiation process under the auspices of the U.S. and with the support of the European Union and Arab states in order to "reach a sustainable solution that puts an end to Israeli aggres»»»

Rome: Italy's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani reaffirmed his country's firm rejection of any Israeli move to annex parts of the West Bank. Speaking during a Senate session, Tajani said Rome is considering restrictions on imports from Israeli settlements, aiming to curb fun»»»

Abu Dhabi: A new UAE-mediated exchange between Russia and Ukraine has led to the release of 386 prisoners, split equally between both sides. The UAE said the exchange involved 193 detainees from the Russian side and 193 from the Ukrainian side, bringing the total number of prisoners exchanged throu»»»

PARIS: Secretary ​of State Marco Rubio said on Friday the ‌US ‌expects ​its ‌operation ⁠in ​Iran to conclude ⁠in “weeks, not months” after ⁠he met ‌with ‌G7 ​foreign ministers ‌in ‌France.Rubio also said Iran may ‌decide to set up ⁠a ⁠tolling system for the Strait of Hormuz.- More to follow»»»

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE: Pope Leo XIV urged the United States and Iran to return to talks to end the war Thursday and condemned capital punishment, in a wide-ranging press conference en route home from his trip to Africa. Leo also asserted that countries have the right to control their borders but m»»»

BEIJING: China’s President Xi Jinping met Taiwan’s opposition party leader Cheng Li-wun in Beijing on Friday, telling the visiting delegation he had “full confidence” that Taiwanese and Chinese people would be united.Kuomintang (KMT) chairwoman Cheng is the party’s first leader to visit China in a »»»

Nike is cutting 1,400 jobs, it announced Thursday, as sales lag. Photo by Stephen Shaver/UPI | License Photo April 24 (UPI) -- Sportswear giant Nike announced Thursday it's cutting about 1,400 jobs in its operations division, mostly tech workers. COO Venkatesh Alagirisamy said in a note to employee»»»

Damascus: Syrian authorities said Friday they have arrested a former intelligence officer who appeared in a video leaked four years ago that purportedly showed him and his comrades fatally shooting dozens of people during the country's conflict. Amjad Yousef was arrested in the central province of »»»

BELGRADE: Serbia’s recent judicial reforms were rushed through without adequate public debate, a Council of Europe expert body warned on Friday, as it suggested revisions to some of the controversial aspects of the law. Serbia’s parliament adopted the package of changes in late January without cons»»»

WASHINGTON: US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday that a US blockade on Iran ​is going global, adding Tehran had a chance to make a “good deal” with Washington.“Our blockade is growing and going global,” Hegseth told reporters.“No one sails from the Strait of Hormuz to anywhere in the wo»»»

A 20-year-old man has appeared before a naval court in Piraeus after confessing to the fatal stabbing of a 27-year-old man whose body was discovered in a park in the Athens suburb of Agios Dimitrios earlier this week. The suspect, who is currently serving in the Greek Navy, was brought before Pirae»»»

Pune, India: Blink and you might miss Indian speed climber Deepu Mallesh scaling a wall five buses high in five seconds. India, a country obsessed with cricket, has seen a surge in popularity in climbing but those who want to compete internationally have had to crowdfund and there is little governm»»»

Dubai: A mother has lost custody of her two daughters after Dubai’s highest court ruled that the children’s welfare must take precedence over the interests of either parent, affirming a decision to transfer their care to their father. In a final judgment, the Dubai Court of Cassation rejected the m»»»

Beijing: Thousands squeezed into the world's biggest car show Friday, snapping selfies beside Chinese electric vehicles as automakers showcased AI, humanoid robots and flying-car ambitions in a cut-throat market. Rows of influencers posed in front of gleaming models at the capital's cavernous inter»»»

The senior officer, who has been accused by Ukrainian military intelligence of involvement in criminal activities on European territory, has been appointed head of the FSB Border Guard Directorate for Karelia. Vladimir Shchemelinin is the new head of the FSB directorate responsible for guarding the»»»

Tyre, Lebanon: Clutching a battered photo album, Mohamad Ali Hijazi searched a mountain of rubble in south Lebanon's Tyre for mementoes of his family, killed in an Israeli strike minutes before a ceasefire took hold. "I'm trying to find my mother's hairbrush... and a bottle of perfume that she love»»»

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday urged NATO allies to stick together, after a report that the United States was mulling action against Spain over its refusal to support operations against Iran. "NATO must remain united. I believe it is a source of strength," Meloni told reporters as »»»

DUBAI: Almost 50 years ago, the now-almost-100-year-old broadcaster and natural historian David Attenborough and his team shot one of the most famous sequences in documentary history: an encounter with a family of gorillas in Rwanda who allowed Attenborough to approach them, whereupon the smallest »»»

CHANTILLY, France: Rebuilding trust between Abu Dhabi and Tehran will take “ages and ages,” UAE presidential adviser Anwar Gargash said Friday, after Iran targeted the United Arab Emirates during the Middle East conflict. “You can’t be attacked with 2,800 missiles and drones and then talk to me abo»»»

Iran’s top diplomat is expected to travel to Pakistan by this weekend for talks, two Pakistani officials told The Associated Press on Friday, raising hopes for revived negotiations in the Iran-U.S. war. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was expected to be accompanied by a small government del»»»

RIYADH: Officials from the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority at Al-Haditha border crossing have foiled an attempt to smuggle a huge cache of captagon pills. The authority, which seized the contraband, said on Friday: “ZATCA, in coordination with the General Directorate of Narcotics Control, thwarted»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic said on Friday Serbia's talks with Hungary about an acquisition of a Russian majority stake in the Serbian oil company NIS by Hungary's MOL were making progress and that the details of an agreement among the shareholders »»»

Islamabad, Pakistan: Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi is expected to arrive in Islamabad on Friday night, an official source in Pakistan said, without providing details about who he was likely to meet. The Pakistan capital has been gearing up for an anticipated second round of talks between »»»

The Yes, Bulgaria party accused prosecutors on Friday of being used, "once again", to target officials working for institutional reform. Their statement followed claims by Interior Ministry acting Secretary General Georgi Kandev that he had come under pressure and was smeared through false testimon»»»