San Francisco, United States: Paramount Skydance agreed on Friday to delay its $110 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery while a US lawsuit seeking to block the deal moves forward. Paramount agreed to delay the deal through June 2027, the company said in a court filing on Friday. Rob Bonta, a»»»

Growing up with a chronically ill mother in a remote village in India, Rema Begum aspired to become a doctor until her dream was cut short by her own tragic death. After years of studying and costly coaching classes, the 20-year-old believed she had finally done enough to win a coveted seat at a go»»»

Washington, United States: The US Department of Agriculture said Friday it will begin reopening cattle ports along the Mexican border next month, more than a year after a dispute over combating a parasite. President Donald Trump's administration announced in May 2025 a halt on imports of live cattl»»»

Lège-Cap-Ferret, France: France and Spain evacuated more than 160,000 people as unprecedented forest fires ravaged areas on Saturday near Madrid and Bordeaux, a French city flanked by tourist havens and world-renowned vineyards. French President Emmanuel Macron asked the army on Friday to mobilise »»»

BEIRUT: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will visit Syria on Saturday in the ​first trip by a serving UN chief since the start of a nearly 14-year war that killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions in the country. The visit represents another milestone for Syria since reb»»»

The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) on Saturday said it wants a clear “yes or no” response from the Centre on whether it will seek the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET paper leak controversy. CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka said the group’s representatives are s»»»

SYDNEY: Queensland ‌became Australia’s fourth state to confirm a case of H5N1 bird flu after authorities ​said on Saturday that a migratory seabird tested positive for the highly pathogenic virus. Australia was the final continent to confirm a mainland case of H5N1 when the disease arrived in ‌June»»»

The Directorate of Saudi Civil Defence has announced that the danger in Yanbu Governorate has passed. In an update, the authority urged residents to continue following Civil Defence instructions, avoid gathering in affected areas and refrain from filming. It also reminded the public to call 911 in »»»

Spanish authorities declared a national emergency as three blazes burning near Madrid merged into one, forcing some 60,000 people from their homes. In France, 141,000 people were evacuated from the regions of Gironde and Landes. Photo by Damien Rembert/EPA July 24 (UPI) -- More than 200,000 people »»»

IRBIL, Iraq: The US military said Friday that it fired on another merchant vessel that was trying to breach its blockade of Iran’s ports, while the Islamic Republic targeted American strongholds around the Arabian Gulf.The US and Iran showed no sign of backing away from their conflict after a 13th »»»

Paramount Skydance on Friday told a court that it will pause its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery to allow a potential trial to happen after 12 state attorneys general sued to prevent the deal. File Photo by Allison Dinner/EPA July 24 (UPI) -- Paramount Skydance said that it has paused its merger»»»

Authorities in the Texas city of Laredo said at least six bodies were found in a Union Pacific boxcar. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI July 24 (UPI) -- A federal grand jury in Texas indicted Friday an 11-person smuggling ring in connection with the deaths of seven migrants, including a 14-year-old chi»»»

Dubai: Companies across the Middle East returned $29.2 billion to shareholders through dividends during the first quarter of 2026, with Saudi Arabia accounting for almost 84% of the regional total. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.Underlying dividend payments in the reg»»»

Share: The U.S. government has begun the process of allowing American airlines to resume direct flights to Lebanon for the first time in more than four decades. However, flights will not begin immediately, as security assessments, regulatory approvals and airline decisions are still required before»»»

Since the conflict between Iran and the United States began on February 28, more than 1,000 people have been arrested for attempting to document Iranian strikes in Jordan and Gulf countries allied with Washington. The governments of these countries have sought to deter the circulation of such image»»»

Tunis, July 24, 2026 (TAP) - On the instructions of President Kaïs Saïed, Secretary of State to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration and Tunisians Abroad summoned the Ambassador of France to Tunisia to convey a strongly worded protest...»»»

An agent watches the crowd from his car outside an ICE facility in Newark, N.J., where detainees started a hunger strike in May to protest what they call inhumane conditions inside the detention center. File Photo by Angelina Katsanis/UPI | License Photo July 24 (UPI) -- Congressional leaders on Fr»»»

Ferrari made an emphatic start to the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton topping the two Friday practice sessions at the Hungaroring. While the Italian team controlled the opening-day Hungaroring F1 highlights, championship leader Kimi Antonelli struggled for»»»

LONDON: Across Syria’s war-scarred landscape, reconstruction efforts have largely centered on shattered cities and critical infrastructure, even as other initiatives aim to extend recovery beyond urban areas. One such effort, led by Saudi aid agency KSrelief and the UN Development Programme, is shi»»»

PHILADELPHIA: LeBron James’ first “final” decision was that he would retire. Weeks of deep reflection led him to change his mind, however, with all the familiar options in front of him to extend his career; a third trip with Cleveland, a second stop in Miami, maybe even stay in California for a hig»»»

Soldiers stand watch at a Lebanese army checkpoint in Zawtar al-Gharbiya, southern Lebanon, on Friday. Zawtar al-Gharbiya is among the designated pilot zones under the ceasefire agreement between Lebanon and Israel, from which Israeli forces are scheduled to withdraw. Photo by EPA BEIRUT, Lebanon, »»»

President Donald Trump is pressuring Senate Republicans to plow ahead with a $95 billion budget framework before they leave for recess in August. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo July 24 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump on Friday pressured Senate Republicans to plow ahead with a $95 billion »»»

Beirut: The Lebanese Ministry of Public Health's Public Health Emergency Operations Center (PHEOC) announced on Friday that the death toll from the Israeli Aggression on Lebanon since March 2 has risen to 4,330, with 12,236 people injured. Lebanon and the Israeli entity signed a US-brokered framewo»»»

Written and illustrated by Hiromu Arakawa I have been looking forward to “Daemons of the Shadow Realm” ever since I heard Hiromu Arakawa was getting another anime adaptation. As someone who considers “Fullmetal Alchemist” one of the greatest anime ever made, my expectations were probably unfairly h»»»

MONTREAL: Wimbledon champion ‌Jannik Sinner and 24-times Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic have withdrawn from next month’s US Open tune-up event in Montreal, tournament organizers said on Friday. Sinner’s withdrawal is expected to make world number two Alexander Zverev and Canadian Felix Auger-Alia»»»

PATTAYA: Tyson Fury edged closer to a blockbuster heavyweight clash with Anthony Joshua after defeating Poland’s Mariusz Wach by technical knock-out on Friday, but said he was “not convinced” his fellow Briton would face him. Fury, 37, outclassed Wach in front of 1,500 spectators in the Thai resort»»»

A person walks along a street flooded after the Bellavista Canal overflowed in the Mirador de la Hacienda neighborhood of La Serena, Chile, on Monday. President Jose Antonio Kast declared a state of constitutional exception of catastrophe for the Coquimbo Region and Huasco province in response to t»»»

The worst wildfire in the Madrid region's history raged west of the Spanish capital on Friday, with around 40,000 people evacuated or ordered to remain indoors. Strong winds and scorching temperatures hampered efforts to contain the flames, which had destroyed dozens of homes and forced the closure»»»

Washington: Since 2026 began, the United States has already recorded its worst measles outbreak in 35 years, according to official figures released Friday, a serious uptick in cases as vaccine hesitancy grows. In just seven months, 2,318 confirmed cases of the highly contagious illness have been re»»»

A nurse administers a measles vaccine to a child at a public health center in Nejapa, El Salvador, in April. The United States just reached a record high of measles cases this year. File Photo by Javier Aparicio/EPA July 24 (UPI) -- Measles cases have hit a record high in the United States since th»»»

President Iliana Iotova said on Friday she will run for president in the upcoming election in November. Her candidacy will be put forward by a nomination committee. Iotova broke the news in an interview with Bulgarian National Television. Asked which political party she will seek support from, Ioto»»»

The Ministry of Social Relations and Culture has terminated the employment of the directors of the Natural History Museum, the National Széchényi Library and the Museum of Applied Arts, following a comprehensive institutional review of cultural background institutions, aimed at ensuring workplace s»»»

Washington: A US federal court in Virginia has ruled that restrictions imposed by President Donald Trump's administration on the abortion pill mifepristone are "unlawful" and must be reconsidered. The case was brought by the nonprofit Center for Reproductive Rights in May 2023 on behalf of abortion»»»

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has condemned Friday’s bombing of a security checkpoint in northwest Pakistan, in which at least 16 people were killed, most of them security personnel. The foreign ministry reaffirmed the country’s “firm rejection of violence, terrorism and extremism in all their forms” and ex»»»

The construction of a national children's hospital in Sofia remains a government priority despite the current legal deadlock, Health Minister Katya Ivkova told reporters on Friday. She said that the funding for the design of the future hospital, amounting to more than EUR 46 million, is included in»»»

KAMPALA: Ugandans will be required to spend three hours cleaning their communities on the last Saturday of every month or face legal action, authorities announced on Friday. The inaugural National Cleaning Day will take place this Saturday from 7:00 am to 10:00 am (0400-0700 GMT) with security offi»»»

Unknown individuals chose to travel on the side of a train in Érd, according to footage shared by the local police. Uknown men travelled on the side of a train According to a video uploaded to the official YouTube page of the Hungarian police, unidentified men travelled on the side of a passenger t»»»

The Israeli occupation forces continued on Friday its violations and attacks on the various towns and villages on South Lebanon. In this regard, the Zionist enemy incinerated houses in Al-Qantara town, carrying out bombings in Taybeh, Markaba, Kfartebnit, Al-Tiri, Haddatha and Beit Yahoun. The Isra»»»

GENEVA: IOC member and FIFA leader Gianni Infantino will not have to explain to the Olympic body how US President Donald Trump helped to stop a player’s ban at the World Cup. The IOC said on Friday it has no jurisdiction to investigate Infantino’s alleged lack of political neutrality. A London-base»»»

SAN ANTONIO: A US attorney announced a federal indictment on Friday against 11 people in the smuggling deaths of seven migrants who were hiding inside a sweltering rail cargo container in Texas in May. Six people were found dead inside the shipping container in a rail yard in Laredo, Texas, and ano»»»

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»»»

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»»»

PARIS: A volunteer was injected on Friday with the first dose of a rapidly developed vaccine targeting the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola driving a deadly outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Oxford University said. More than 1,270 people have been killed out of nearly 3,000 infections in the »»»

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»»»

Dubai: Aster Hospital Mankhool has become the first hospital in the Gulf to use a new heart imaging system that gives doctors highly detailed, real-time views from inside the arteries during complex heart procedures. The hospital, ranked fourth in the UAE in Newsweek's World's Best Hospitals 2026 l»»»

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 »»»