he Norwegian Bliss ship arrives at the port of Acapulco, Mexico, in 2024. Some 6.5 million cruise passengers visited Mexico during the first half of 2026, File Photo by David Guzman/EPA July 31 (UPI) -- Some 6.5 million cruise passengers visited Mexico during the first half of 2026, a 17.1% increas»»»

KNJAZEVAC - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Friday Serbia had registered the highest economic growth rate in Europe in Q2 2026, with 3.6 pct real GDP growth y-o-y. "In Q2, Serbia saw the highest growth in Europe, but in the second half of this year, it is currently number one in Europe, »»»

Tunis, July 31 (TAP) - The weather will be clear to a bit cloudy nationwide on Friday night, with temperatures ranging between 25°C and 30°C, reaching 33°C in the south-west. The wind will blow north in the north, and east in the midland and south...»»»

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US President Donald Trump said on Friday that the migration crisis in Ceuta is the consequence of weak law and poor decisions implemented by the Spanish government. "What that is is weak law, bad management," Trump said during the cabinet meeting. Earlier in the day, mayor-pr»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Palestinian movement Hamas on Friday said that Israel must completely stop its strikes on the Gaza Strip in order to begin implementing the second phase of US President Donald Trump’s peace plan. "The [Israeli] occupation forces must stop the killings and attacks. This is the»»»

Hungary is entering what Prime Minister Péter Magyar has described as one of the country’s most serious energy crises in decades, with the most critical period expected to begin on Monday as the Paks Nuclear Power Plant moves closer to a possible full shutdown. Speaking at two emergency press brief»»»

The draft government decree establishing an interdepartmental coordination council on the National Children's Hospital has been published on the Health Ministry's website for a two-week public consultation. Speaking at a briefing at the Council of Ministers a few days ago, Health Minister Katya Ivk»»»

AL-BAHA: Visitors to Raghadan Forest Park during Al-Baha Summer Season can get up close to purebred Arabian horses and enjoy the chance to ride, photograph and learn more about these beautiful creatures. Set against the forest's mountainous terrain, dense vegetation and cool mist, the initiative hi»»»

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka: A Sri Lankan court on Friday sentenced former Police Chief Pujith Jayasundara to death after finding him guilty of criminal negligence that allowed Daesh-inspired bomb attacks on Easter Sunday in 2019, killing more than 260 people. A death penalty in Sri Lanka typically means li»»»

Singapore: Singapore's total employment grew by 10,700 in the second quarter, marking the 19th consecutive quarter of growth, according to advance data released by the Ministry of Manpower. The increase was driven mainly by non-resident employment, particularly in sectors such as construction and m»»»

U.S. Ambassador to Chile Brandon Judd raised diplomatic tensions with the Chilean government Thursday by saying that criticism from Cabinet ministers of the additional 12.5% tariff imposed by Washington on some Chilean exports complicates diplomatic negotiations aimed at reversing it. File Photo by»»»

Secretary's SpeechLebanon PalestineZionist EntityRegional and International International More Video Language Ar En Fr EsSubscribe for Weekly Updates Subscribe Hezbollah: The blatant attack on an Iraqi state institution, carried out with the participation of an Arab state, opens the door to extreme»»»

OHRID - Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic said on Friday there were indications the Serbian oil company NIS would receive a new operating licence from the US authorities and that this was expected to be formalised by an official letter from the US administration. Si»»»

Damascus, July 31 (SANA) The Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco in Damascus hosted an official reception on Thursday on the occasion of the 27th anniversary of King Mohammed VI’s accession to the throne. The Chargé d’Affaires of the Moroccan Embassy in Syria, Abdullah Babah, received the attendees, »»»

Two US military aircraft have landed at Bezmer Air Base in Southeastern Bulgaria, the Defence Ministry told BTA on Friday. On July 22, the National Assembly approved the deployment in Bulgaria of up to eight Boeing KC-135 aerial refuelling tankers, together with their crews, up to 250 US service pe»»»

BEIRUT: Former Lebanese central bank governor Riad Salameh was placed under police guard in hospital on Friday, a day after missing a hearing in an alleged embezzlement case, a judicial official told AFP. Salameh had been due to appear in court on Thursday in connection with a complaint filed by ne»»»

Brussels: The eurozone's annual inflation rate rose to 2.9% in July 2026, up from 2.8% in June, according to data released today by Eurostat. Eurostat said energy prices recorded the largest increase among the inflation components in July, rising 10.0% year-on-year compared with 8.5% in June. Servi»»»

OHRID - Serbian PM Djuro Macut met with North Macedonian counterpart Hristijan Mickoski in Ohrid on Friday afternoon to discuss advancement of cooperation and bilateral relations between the two countries. The two PMs exchanged views on bilateral cooperation in numerous areas, including infrastruct»»»

Kuwait: The Kuwait Petroleum Corporation announced that the price of a barrel of Kuwaiti oil rose by $1.69 in Thursday's trading, reaching $86.69 per barrel, down from $85 in previous trading. Globally, oil prices declined, with Brent crude falling by $1.71 to settle at $89.03 a barrel, and US West»»»

Bulgaria has incurred a deficit of EUR 2,416.2 million (1.9% of projected GDP) under its Consolidated Fiscal Programme (CFP) as of June 30, 2026, the Finance Ministry reported on its website on Friday. The Ministry's data on the implementation of the state budget in the first half of 2026 match pre»»»

Education and Science Minister Georgi Valchev responded to questions related to recent protests staged by students of the National Academy of Theatre and Film Arts (NATFA) during Question Time on Friday. Valchev responded to questions by Continue the Change MPs Velislav Velichkov and Nikolay Denkov»»»

At the initiative of Yes, Bulgaria co-chair Bozhidar Bozhanov, a working meeting has been held in Parliament to discuss possible solutions for the operations and future of Information Services AD, with representatives of Bulgaria's IT sector taking part. Although Innovation and Digital Transformati»»»

In tonight's edition: The new South African Netflix drama "The Polygamist" is winning over global audiences; we speak to its lead screenwriter. But first: Cameroon's President Paul Biya has not been seen in public for more than 50 days, his longest absence from public view. Also, the impa»»»

The lengthy absence of Cameroon's long-serving President Paul Biya, who has been in Switzerland since early June, has reignited debate about government inaction, in a country where many crave change. Biya has made frequent trips to Geneva over the years and has faced waves of speculation and rumour»»»

Riyadh: More than 6,500 BMW vehicles have been recalled by the Ministry of Commerce due to a defect in the driver's seat wiring harness that may cause an electrical short circuit, increasing the risk of smoke emission or a vehicle fire. The recall affects 6,574 BMW 5 Series and 7 Series vehicles fr»»»

Nicolas Cage stars in "Fortitude," an unreleased film. A master copy was stolen from the Netflix office, and the production company is suing Netflix for $105 million. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo July 31 (UPI) -- A production company is suing Netflix for $105 million for losing »»»

The war in Iran has been a boon for oil companies with ExxonMobil and Chevron reporting a combined $26.5 billion in second-quarter profits. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo July 31 (UPI) -- The war in Iran has been a boon for oil companies with ExxonMobil and Chevron reporting a combin»»»

Abu Dhabi: The United Arab Emirates has condemned in the strongest terms the renewed Iranian hostile attack targeting the brotherly State of Kuwait with drones. In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) affirmed that this hostile attack constitutes a flagrant violation of the sovereign»»»

TUNIS, July 31 (TAP) – The Tunis Stock Exchange ended trading lower on Friday, with the benchmark index slipping 0.16% to 20,038.09 points.Market turnover reached TND 65.9 million, driven primarily by a TND 59.3 million block transaction in Attijari...»»»

The success of the measures will depend on reliable energy, timely tax refunds, access to imported inputs, better logistics, and expansion into higher-value products and new markets," an expert notes. The Economic Coordination Committee has approved a $918 million stimulus package to finally break »»»

Spain said on Friday it had largely reversed a surge of migrants into its North African enclave of Ceuta, with 25,000 of the people who crossed from Morocco by land and sea already returning voluntarily. Spain said on Friday that it had reversed a huge rush of migrants into a Spanish enclave in Nor»»»

Bulgaria spent the past ten days absorbing a stream of Iranian warnings, opposition demands for emergency security councils, and a foreign minister fielding a hostile phone call, all before a single American aircraft had even landed. The first US KC-135 refueling tanker touched down at Bezmer air b»»»

The first of up to eight U.S. Air Force tanker aircraft expected to be temporarily deployed in Bulgaria has landed at Bezmer Air Base, the Ministry of Defense confirmed. The ministry said the arrival is part of the previously approved deployment and stressed that Bulgaria's security services contin»»»

Doha, Qatar: Nadhira Al Harthy, the first Omani woman to summit Mount Everest in 2019, was among two climbers who have been confirmed dead following an avalanche on Broad Peak in northern Pakistan on July 30, according to an Instagram post by the Alpine Club of Pakistan. Al Harthy's death was confi»»»

The Hungarian government has convened an emergency meeting of its defence task force to address growing concerns over the country’s water and energy systems as an intense heatwave continues to grip Hungary. Prime Minister Péter Magyar said key decisions would be taken on Friday evening following co»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Russian forces struck the Odessa Oil Refinery's production facilities with precision-guided weapons in the port of Odessa, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Friday. The ministry said that the Russian forces continued to strike ports and sea vessels intended for the interes»»»

US President Donald Trump announced a deal for Hamas to disarm and Israel to withdraw its forces from Gaza. Hamas has agreed to the deal. Here is the full text of the deal: A Roadmap for Completing the Implementation of President Trump’s Comprehensive Peace Plan in Gaza Principles: 1. All parties r»»»

Spain has deployed just 60 troops to its North African exclave of Ceuta after thousands of migrants overwhelmed security forces and stormed across the border from Morocco, with up to 30,000 more people reportedly swarming the frontier. The Spanish Interior Ministry said the military contingent cons»»»

RIYADH: Saudi authorities have foiled an attempt to smuggle nearly 37,000 amphetamine pills into the Kingdom after discovering them hidden inside a specially designed compartment beneath a passenger bus, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Thursday. Inspectors at the Al-Haditha border crossing uncov»»»

Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends the UFC Freedom 250 at the White House in Washington, D.C., on June 14. The State Department said of the map that it takes "full responsibility for the confusion and misrepresentation it caused for attendees, including our African partners." File Photo by Bonn»»»

A US military aircraft has landed at Bezmer Air Base in Southeastern Bulgaria, the Defence Ministry told BTA on Friday. On July 22, the National Assembly approved the deployment in Bulgaria of up to eight Boeing KC-135 aerial refuelling tankers, together with their crews, up to 250 US service perso»»»

Dubai: Dubai has been ranked the world's second most intelligent city in a new global study by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), placing ahead of New York City, Washington and Amsterdam in the consultancy's inaugural Intelligent Cities Index. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balanc»»»

Zurich: FIFA reiterated today its commitment to holding open and democratic consultations with all member associations on its proposal to establish an independent commercial entity to manage its commercial activities and organize its flagship tournaments, saying all member associations would have t»»»

Heightened maritime security, air travel disruptions and uncertainty over regional stability remain key concerns for Gulf countries as the military confrontation between the US and Iran continues. Although daily life in the UAE remains largely unaffected, the conflict is continuing to disrupt regio»»»

A funeral director was sentenced to 20 years in Hull, England, for not burying or cremating bodies. July 31 (UPI) -- A funeral director in Hull, England, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for failing to bury or cremate the bodies of his clients and stealing money raised for charities. Robert Bush»»»

GAZA CITY: Hamas said Friday it had agreed to a deal announced by US President Donald Trump to end the war with Israel, that includes it handing over its weapons to a Palestinian governing committee and the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. Israel did not immediately comment on the an»»»

BELGRADE - Serbian PM Djuro Macut said on Friday the situation in the national energy system was under control, but urged the citizens to consume electricity rationally in view of a prolonged heat wave in the country. "Macut stated that our country currently has enough electricity, and the competen»»»

Could this be the deal that finally disarms Hamas? US president Donald Trump is confident that it is, announcing the complete disarmament of all armed groups in the Gaza strip. Hamas officials meanwhile told the AFP that they'd reached an agreement on weapons, as well as on the withdrawal of Israel»»»

Hamas said on July 31 it agreed to a deal to end the war with Israel that included provisions addressing its weapons and the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip. US President Donald Trump announced the plan, calling it a critical step towards a new Palestinian government in Gaz»»»

RIYADH: The King Abdulaziz Public Library in Riyadh has unveiled a rare 1829 copy of the first printed English translation of Moroccan explorer Ibn Battuta’s travels. The 294-page work by British Orientalist Samuel Lee from an abridged manuscript at Cambridge University features extensive historica»»»