BRATISLAVA: Slovakia’s opposition Thursday slammed a planned visit to Russia by the foreign minister, saying the government was exposing the country and EU to intelligence risks in a move akin to “treason.” Juraj Blanar will travel to Moscow in the coming weeks for a meeting of the Russian-Slovak I»»»

Despite growing opposition in France, Slovakia and Germany's Saxony-Anhalt to further financing Ukraine, “the central, crucial actors” such as Friedrich Merz and Emmanuel Macron are still backing the Ukrainian leadership, legal academic and former AfD MEP Gunnar Beck explains to Sputnik. There is, »»»

BEIRUT: Anxiety is rising in Lebanon after statements by Israeli officials and Hezbollah figures over the past 48 hours signaled the possibility of a new war between the two sides. President Joseph Aoun said on Thursday that regional and international developments, as well as Israel’s elections, ma»»»

MAKKAH: As shocked travelers fled in search of safety during the evacuation of King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh following the Houthi attack on Oct. 10, Saudi airport employee Abeer Al-Ajmi remained at her post, guiding travelers through the terminal and helping them to make their way out»»»

Nottingham, United Kingdom: Britain's Prince Harry and his wife on Thursday carried out their first joint engagement since their surprise move back to the UK in August, with Meghan telling wellwishers: "It's great to be back." King Charles III's 42-year-old younger son and Meghan, 45 -- who left Br»»»

Gaza: The death toll from the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, has risen to 74,396 martyrs, with 175,449 people wounded. In a statement issued today, health authorities in Gaza said hospitals across the Strip had received four martyrs and seven wounded people over the pas»»»

Houthi strikes on Riyadh airport, Saudi flight cancellations and Hormuz shipping attacks Dubai: The conflict between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthis dominated the region on Thursday, October 15, with new figures on the toll of attacks on Riyadh’s main airport, a cruise missile intercepted near Mad»»»

LONDON: Syria’s anti-drug authority said on Thursday it arrested a suspected drug dealer in Damascus and seized 87,000 Captagon pills in his possession. The suspect and the seized drugs were referred to judicial authorities for legal proceedings, the state-run agency SANA reported, citing the Drug »»»

Arab Finance: Orascom Real Estate has opened the 17-feddan first phase of O West Sports Club in 6th of October City, with work underway on a second phase covering another 9 feddans, as per an emailed press release. Minister of Youth and Sports Gohar Nabil attended the inauguration alongside governm»»»

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he had previously spoken with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa about violence towards the Druze community, in his first acknowledgement of direct contact. Netanyahu did not say when exactly the call took place, but implied it had been »»»

ADNOC's foresight in redundancy investments ensures energy supply stability Abu Dhabi- ADIPEC Chair Abdulmunim Al Kindy said that having large reserves of energy gives a country assured access to its markets and the reliability to move energy from wherever it is sourced and deliver it to the custom»»»

TEHRAN: Iran’s military on Thursday said an oil tanker had caught fire in the Gulf of Oman as it was attempting to pass through an area deemed prohibited, according to state television. “A few hours ago... surveillance teams of the army’s navy identified a non-compliant oil tanker that had caught f»»»

Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev called for lower fuel prices, a moratorium on attacks against civilian vessels in the Black Sea and continued dialogue with Russia as he arrived in Brussels for a two-day European Council summit, while defending the importance of the Lukoil refinery for Bulgaria»»»

Bozhidar Bozhanov, co-chair of the "Yes, Bulgaria" party, has called for a NATO-backed “Black Sea Shield” to protect commercial shipping, saying Russia wants to block the Black Sea as attacks on vessels in the region intensify. Speaking to Bulgarian National Radio (BNR), Bozhanov said Russia was st»»»

JEDDAH: The last thing Lamis Asiri’s father sent her before the Oct. 10 attack on King Khalid International Airport was a simple wish for a safe journey home. Hours later, the WhatsApp conversation that had connected them fell silent. Lamis, a final-year student at Prince Musaid bin Abdulrahman Uni»»»

Prime Minister Edi Rama has ruled out the possibility of resigning as escalating protests entered their third day, with violent clashes reported in the capital, Tirana. In a written response to international news agency Reuters, Rama said he would not allow violence to jeopardize Albania’s ambition»»»

Somalia announced on Thursday that its parliamentary and presidential elections are scheduled for 2027, despite an increasingly fractured political landscape and concerns over escalating instability. The Election Commission confirmed that the parliamentary polls would be held on April 15, 2027, fol»»»

DUBAI: The UAE is developing an artificial intelligence-enabled system that would flag when a product is likely to face barriers in a given market, its Foreign Trade Undersecretary Fahad Al-Gergawi has said. Speaking to Arab News, Al-Gergawi said the technology would within minutes suggest alternat»»»

iPhone Duo pre-orders in UAE: Dh3,000 more but fewer features than Pro Max Apple's first foldable opens for pre-order in the UAE on Friday 16 October, with sales from Friday 23 October. At Dh8,499 for 256GB, the iPhone Duo is the most expensive way into iOS, and in a surprising number of ways it is»»»

New York: The State of Qatar has reaffirmed its commitment to leveraging its resources and expertise to support countries and communities affected by disasters and crises. Through Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) and national humanitarian institutions, Qatar has established air bridges that includ»»»

Abu Dhabi Energy Centre to host ADIPEC 2026 leadership programme kickoff Abu Dhabi – The energy industry has moved beyond debating whether to digitise and is now focused on where to deploy artificial intelligence and how to scale it, according to a senior ADNOC executive ahead of the Abu Dhabi Inte»»»

BAKU (Sputnik) - Vladimir Zelensky has demonstrated through his position on the Russia-US diesel deal that he is not ready for constructive engagement, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday. The diesel fuel deal proposed by the United States, and Russia supported it, the minister »»»

The 9th Sharjah investment forum puts ports, rail and logistics at the heart of its pitch. Sharjah: The Emirates of Sharjah is putting ports and logistics at the front of its investment pitch as geopolitical tension reshapes global trade routes. H.E. Ahmed Obaid Al Qaseer, CEO of the Sharjah Invest»»»

More than four in ten Romanian employees aged 55 and over are willing to continue working beyond the statutory retirement age, compared with approximately one-third of their European counterparts, according to a study by HR solutions provider SD Worx. The findings also suggest that older Romanian w»»»

BRUSSELS: The EU on Thursday said it had postponed a summit with Gulf states that was due to be held in Saudi Arabia on October 24, as attacks by Houthis have increased security concerns in the country. The ‌EU did ‌not detail the reason ‌for the postponement, and only said a new date would be anno»»»

RIYADH: Gulf economies have remained resilient through one of the oil sector’s biggest crises in decades, with six key economic buffers helping to limit the impact on economic activity and prices, according to an International Monetary Fund official. In an interview with Asharq Bloomberg on the sid»»»

POLITICS/NATIONAL SECURITY Thursday's news coverage is dominated by the government's planned increase in the minimum monthly wage from EUR 620 in 2026 to EUR 660 in 2027, representing a 6.4% rise. Mediapool.bg reports that the proposed amount is below both the EUR 672 ceiling under the revised form»»»

BRUSSELS: The EU on Thursday said it had postponed a summit with Gulf states that was due to be held in Saudi Arabia on October 24, as attacks by Houthis have increased security concerns in the country. The ‌EU did ‌not detail the reason ‌for the postponement, and only said a new date would be anno»»»

In recent weeks, Russia has been losing territory it previously seized in Ukraine. Putin is escalating the war and has an apparent goal of closing the Black Sea to commercial shipping, MP Ivaylo Mirchev of Democratic Bulgaria told a briefing on the sidelines of the National Assembly. “Our goal shou»»»

Bangkok, Oct. 15 (SANA) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that a prolonged war and renewed disruptions to energy production, shipping routes and critical infrastructure pose the biggest risks to economies across the Middle East and Central Asia. Jihad Azour, the IMF’s director for th»»»

DFSA says DIFC-based firm provided company setup services to 71 clients without approval Dubai: The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has imposed a Dh1.67 million ($454,367) financial penalty on HAYMAN-WOODWARD GLOBAL MOBILITY SERVICES (DIFC) LTD. for providing company formation and related»»»

In recent weeks, Russia has been losing territory it previously seized in Ukraine. Putin is escalating the war and has an apparent goal of closing the Black Sea to commercial shipping, MP Ivaylo Mirchev of Democratic Bulgaria told a briefing on the sidelines of the National Assembly. “Our goal shou»»»

Household electricity consumption in Romania fell by 11.3% in the first eight months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, nearly three times the rate of decline recorded nationally, according to data published on Thursday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Overall electricit»»»

Bulgaria's Parliament Thursday conclusively adopted amendments to the Insurance Code allowing third-party liability insurance policies for certain vehicles, including motorhomes and motorcycles, to be issued for periods of at least 30 days. The revisions were introduced by Daniel Parushev and MPs f»»»

Security data released on Wednesday indicated that at least 10 vessels have been attacked in or near the Strait of Hormuz since last Sunday the highest toll recorded since the outbreak of the war involving Iran on February 28, 2026. According to data from the security firm Vanguard, the Internation»»»

BusinessChinaHow China came to dominate consumer technologyBenjamin BathkeFrom action cameras and smartphones to EVs and robot vacuums, Chinese brands are gaining ground worldwide despite privacy and security concerns. What's driving their rise, and can European rivals keep up? https://p.dw.com/p/5»»»

By Staff, Agencies Eight US states have filed lawsuits against OpenAI, accusing the company of putting children at risk through its ChatGPT chatbot and misleading parents about the platform’s safety. The lawsuits were announced or filed on Wednesday. Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and West Virginia announc»»»

The Hemus Motorway remains less than half complete 52 years after construction began, Vazrazhdane MP Kosta Stoyanov said in Parliament on Thursday. He read the declaration from the parliamentary rostrum on behalf of the party's parliamentary group, noting that the 52nd anniversary of the motorway's»»»

Earlier this month, the Yemen-based Houthi militia turned their Iranian-sponsored weapons on Saudi Arabia in the most horrific way, targeting not military or economic infrastructure, but civilians at an airport. The missiles hit King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh over several days, killing»»»

Trump considers using 'Mother of All Bombs' to target Iran's nuclear sites The United States is considering using its biggest non-nuclear bomb against Iran if President Donald Trump should decide to renew combat in the war that has hit a deadlock, CNN reported Thursday. The military is planning for»»»

Doha, Qatar: Qatar Fuel Company (WOQOD) announced that its Board of Directors chaired by Ahmed Saif Al-Sulaiti approved the financial results and key performance and operational indicators of WOQOD Group for the nine-months period ended on 30th September 2026, compared to the financial and operatio»»»

By Staff, Agencies CNN revealed that the US military has developed new strike plans that include potentially using the so-called “mother of all bombs” to target Iranian energy infrastructure and nuclear sites should President Donald Trump give the order to resume combat operations either before or »»»

Doha, Qatar: The 3-2-1 Qatar Olympic and Sports Museum is seeking to strengthen its role in promoting sports culture, preserving Qatar’s sporting heritage and inspiring greater participation in physical activity, its director, Abdulla Al Mulla, has said. Speaking to The Peninsula, Al Mulla said the»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - US President Donald Trump is open to economic cooperation between the US and Russia after the end of the Ukraine conflict, The Wall Street Journal newspaper reported, citing the Trump administration. Trump is working to de-escalate the conflict, after which he plans to present Ru»»»

Doha, Qatar: Qatar’s banking sector maintained stable asset and lending levels in August 2026, with total assets remaining unchanged month-on-month at QR2.194 trillion, while a decline in deposits pushed the sector’s loan-to-deposit ratio higher, according to the latest banking sector data. The tot»»»

Doha, Qatar: Almoez Ali scored twice as Al Duhail began their Gulf Club Champions League campaign with a convincing 3-0 victory over Oman’s Al Shabab SC in their opening Group A match at Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium yesterday. Having missed out on the AFC Champions League Elite this season, Al Duha»»»

Doha, Qatar: A suit worn by Hollywood legend Morgan Freeman during the opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 attracted attention at Hospitality Qatar 2026, offering visitors a glimpse into the craftsmanship and cultural inspiration behind one of the tournament’s memorable moments. Desig»»»

The government has proposed raising Bulgaria's minimum wage to EUR 660 under a draft Cabinet decree available for public consultation on Thursday. The proposed rate would apply from January 1, 2027. The draft decree is published on the Public Consultation Portal. If adopted, the proposal would rais»»»

By Staff, Agencies “Israeli” occupation airstrikes on southern Lebanon wounded two people, including a four-year-old child, as occupation forces continued their attacks on several areas across the south in violation of the ceasefire agreement. Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health, through its Public»»»

By Staff, Agencies The commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards [IRG] Quds Force, Brigadier General Esmail Qaani, has reaffirmed Iran’s unwavering support for the Palestinian cause, declaring that decades of sanctions, imposed wars, and mounting external pressure will not force the Islamic Republ»»»