Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan discussed the development of 12-year school education, the Ministry of Education reported. According to the ministry, the head of the ministry, Dogdurkul Kendirbaeva, met with Bayramgul Orazdurdieva, Deputy Chair of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan for Science, E»»»

FLORENCE, Italy - The new US National Security Strategy, the December 2025 version, is an intriguing, quirky, Bosch-style hybrid beast. It does not exactly look as it seems. A tsunami of headlines across the discombobulated West focused on an apparent drive towards normalization between Washington »»»

BELGRADE - The National Bank of Serbia (NBS) Executive Board decided on Thursday to keep the key policy rate at 5.75 pct, and also kept the deposit facility (4.5 pct) and lending facility (7.0 pct) rates unchanged, the central bank announced. "The Board made the decision primarily in view of actual»»»

The inaugural Sustainability Excellence Awards 2025, hosted by Gulf News and BeingShe, took place last night at the SEE Institute, The Sustainable City in Dubai, setting a new benchmark for the UAE’s growing sustainability movement. The event brought together leaders from across industries to recog»»»

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri met Thursday with U.S. Ambassador Michel Issa in Ain el-Tineh, for the second day in a row. On Wednesday, Berri met with Issa and a delegation of the American Task Force for Lebanon. After the meeting, Issa said that Israel differentiates between the Lebanese governme»»»

Colombo: The United Nations called on international donors on Thursday to help provide crucial assistance to Sri Lanka, grappling with the aftermath of deadly Cyclone Ditwah. The devastating storm, which hit the island nation late last month, killed at least 639 people and affected more than 2 mill»»»

Dubai: When Delhi restaurateurs Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra fled to Thailand just hours after a fire at their Goa nightclub killed 25 people, many wondered how the owners managed to slip out so easily. But the real turning point came later — when the Indian government deployed a powerful legal tool t»»»

PoliticsAfricaTrump's new security strategy: A chance for Africa?Martina SchwikowskiUS President Donald Trump's new foreign policy focuses less on aid and more on trade with African countries, specifically on raw materials. Could this be a wake-up call for Africa to become more economically indepen»»»

Amid the golden desert dunes of Al Dhafra, the Liwa International Festival 2026 returns with an expanded and more diverse edition, offering a dynamic blend of sand sports, artistic celebrations, adventure experiences, and family-friendly activities. The festival is one of the UAE’s most anticipated»»»

Lightning struck not once but twice for Indian expat Saritha Sekhar Battepati, who clinched back-to-back cash prizes in Big Ticket’s ‘Race and Luxury Yacht’ experience at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. The Dubai-based IT professional was one of 30 lucky participants selected during the Formula On»»»

Kottayam In a shocking incident, a woman teacher was allegedly attacked inside her school on Thursday by her husband, triggering panic among staff and students. The incident took place at Poovathumoodu School in Ettumanoor around 10.30 a.m., when the accused, identified as Kochumon, entered the cam»»»

New Delhi To curb misuse and improve fairness, Aadhaar-based OTP verification for online Tatkal ticket booking is now operational in 322 trains, and due to this, the confirmed Tatkal ticket availability time has increased by about 65 per cent in these trains, the Parliament was informed on Thursday»»»

The International Criminal Court’s (ICC) entrenched bias reflects a deep crisis in the entire international system, Ali Fadlallah, Beirut-based professor of political science and international law, told Sputnik. “Prosecutor Karim Khan has publicly said that certain Western leaders told him outright»»»

NIS - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday he was confident Serbia would "finish everything" about its Russian-majority owned oil company NIS appropriately and succeed in maintaining good relations with both Russia and the US, and that he expected even greater support from the EU. NI»»»

A US helicopter flies low over a hazy blue sea as it approaches a massive ship. It hovers as camouflaged soldiers holding rifles swing down ropes to the vessel's deck. The video, released by the US government, shows the latest in a series of escalations in Washington's pressure campaign on Nicolás »»»

Sharjah’s Roads and Transport Authority has announced the temporary closure of the Mohammed bin Musa Al Khwarizmi Street, near University Hospital, as part of planned road maintenance works designed to enhance efficiency and ease traffic flow in the area. The closure will begin on Friday, December »»»

New Delhi: The Cyber Cell of the Delhi Police Crime Branch has arrested three key members of a cyber fraud syndicate involved in a “Digital Arrest” and investment scam that duped a 71-year-old woman of Rs 49 lakh (Rs4.9 million) , officials said on Thursday. The breakthrough came after coordinated »»»

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was due to hold urgent talks Thursday with leaders and officials from about 30 countries that are supporting Kyiv’s effort to obtain fair terms for an end to the war with Russia. The leaders of Germany, Britain and France were among those expected to take par»»»

Kamarrr Group Technology, a UAE-based emerging AI ecosystem founded by Ioannis (Giovanni) Kamarikos, today announced the launch of a $50 million investment round to accelerate international expansion and deepen integration across its portfolio of more than 20 artificial intelligence platforms. The »»»

Torrential rain may have sent floodwaters surging through Nicosia’s Pedieos River and turned the sea red at Agia Triada beach with silt and mud in Paralimni as Storm Byron swept across Cyprus earlier this week, but the island’s dams remain critically depleted. According to a report by the Phileleft»»»

A sperm donor carrying an undetected cancer gene has fathered more children in Greece than initially thought, from among dozens across Europe. According to the state-run Athens Macedonia News Agency on Thursday, 11 women in Greece conceived through in vitro fertilization with sperm from the unnamed»»»

An appeals court on Thursday upheld the life sentence passed down at the first instance against a 35-year-old man convicted of the cold-blooded murder of his girlfriend more than four years ago. The court found that the defendant was of sound mind and acted in a calculated manner when he killed Gar»»»

DOHA: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defense Affairs HE Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan Al Thani launched the Defense Strategy 2025-2030 during a ceremony held at Qatar Amiri Signal Corps. The strategy focuses on strengthening defence capabilities and enhancing interoperabi»»»

The euro has been in use since 1999 as a non-cash accounting unit and since 2002 as physical currency. Today, it is the official currency in 20 countries. Despite its wide circulation, the euro still hides a number of intriguing details. Here are five curious facts about the euro you may not know —»»»

Global car buyers are putting the brakes on adoption of electric vehicles, with many shifting back to internal combustion engines (ICEs) and reassessing electric vehicle ownership, according to the new EY Mobility Consumer Index (MCI), a global survey examining sentiment and buying intent across ma»»»

Romanian investors are adjusting their portfolios to align with global trends, with a clear focus on emerging sectors and innovative companies. Based on a detailed analysis of the most traded stocks and ETFs on the Freedom24 platform in 2025, the broker has identified distinct preferences and strat»»»

Casablanca, Morocco: Al Tamimi & Company is pleased to announce that it has advised L’Assiette Nordique, a leading seafood processing and distribution company in Morocco, on the opening of its capital to Capmezzanine V, FPCC-RFA, the fifth fund managed by CDG Invest Growth. This transaction marks a»»»

Bulgaria's e-Government Minister Valentin Mundrov and Yun Hojung, Minister of the Interior and Safety of the Republic of Korea, opened a Bulgarian-Korean forum dedicated to improving digital transformation and public safety, which took place here on Thursday, Mundrov's Ministry reported. The event »»»

Damascus, Dec. 11 (SANA) Syria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani, expressed his welcome on Thursday for the U.S. House of Representatives’ vote to repeal the “Caesar Act,” describing the decision as a significant victory for justice and a testament to the endur»»»

As the world prepares to celebrate a new year, the Lebanese are living day by day amid fears and threats of a renewed war. The Lebanese army has been tasked by the government to disarm Hezbollah by the year end, under U.S. pressure and Israel's almost daily strikes. However, the army's resources ar»»»

Lisbon, Portugal: Widespread disruption hit Portuguese air travel and trains, hospitals and schools Thursday as the unions called the biggest nationwide strike action for more than a decade against government labour reforms. Lisbon's main train station was empty with most services cancelled and the»»»

Opposition leader María Corina Machado said Thursday that she doesn't believe the Venezuelan government knew where she was hiding for most of this year, as she met Norway's leader a day after her daughter received the Nobel Peace Prize on her behalf. Machado arrived in Oslo hours after Wednesday's »»»

Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado vowed at a press conference on Thursday that Venezuela "will be free". The Venezuelan opposition leader, honoured for her fight for democracy, said she would try to return to end the "tyranny" in her home country, despite warnings she could be arre»»»

Starting with January,2026, Ionuț Pătrăhău will join Raiffeisen Bank Romania as Vice President, responsible for the strategic and operational direction of the new SME division, at the national level, after obtaining BNR approval. Raiffeisen Bank announced this year the creation of an SME Division t»»»

Dubai: Insights Success Media Tech LLC announced today that TradeQuo will serve as its title sponsor for the Global Excellence & Leadership Awards 2026. The international ceremony takes place on January 24, 2026, at the DoubleTree by Hilton Dubai – M Square Hotel & Residences. The event will be gra»»»

MASSIVE PROTESTS In the aftermath of Wednesday night's mass rallies organized by the opposition Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) coalition in Sofia and other cities, the media are awash with analysis and commentaries ahead of Thursday's no-confidence vote in the Rosen Zhelyazkov Ca»»»

Bolivia's former president, Luis Arce, has been arrested in La Paz as part of an investigation into alleged graft, the government has said. The investigation relates to when Arce, 62, was economy minister under then-president Evo Morales, who was in office from 2006 to 2019. He is accused of author»»»

Damascus, Dec. 11 (SANA) Syria welcomed Thursday the U.S. House of Representatives’ vote in favor of repealing the “Caesar Act,” saying it is a direct result of constructive diplomatic efforts between Syria and the United States, led by President Ahmad al-Sharaa and the Syrian government over the p»»»

Pakistan's former spy chief has been sentenced to 14 years in prison by a military court, on charges including violation of state secrets and interfering in politics. Faiz Hameed led Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency from 2019 to 2021, during the tenure of now-jailed former prime »»»

Israel said on Thursday that Hamas "will be disarmed" as part of the U.S.-sponsored peace plan for Gaza, after a top leader from the Islamist movement suggested a weapons freeze. "There will be no future for Hamas under the 20-point plan. The terror group will be disarmed and Gaza will be demilitar»»»

Ghana has deported three Israeli nationals who arrived in the country on Wednesday in what appears to be a tit-for-tat move over the alleged mistreatment of Ghanaian nationals at Ben Gurion International Airport in Israel. Seven Ghanaians, including four members of an official delegation attending »»»

The National Assembly adopted Thursday at first reading the revised 2026 Public Social Insurance Budget Bill with 122 votes in favour, 89 against, and none abstaining. It was supported by GERB-UDF, MRF – New Beginning, BSP – United Left, There Is Such a People (TISP), and three MPs not affiliated w»»»

BRUSSELS - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday evening her meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Brussels had addressed Serbia's progress on the EU path and that Serbia could count on EU support on that path. In a post on X after the meeting with Vucic,»»»

Deadly clashes between Thailand and Cambodia intensified on Thursday along their disputed border, killing at least 19 and forcing more than half a million people to flee, as US President Donald Trump prepared to urge both sides to halt the fighting. Fighting raged Thursday along the border of Cambo»»»

The Trump administration is planning to appoint an American two-star general to command the International Stabilization Force in Gaza, Axios reported on Thursday, citing two US officials and two Israeli officials. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. A United Nations Security Council r»»»

The US House of Representatives has passed a defense spending bill that would provide $800 million in military aid to Ukraine through 2027. The 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was approved 312-122 on Wednesday and will now advance to the Senate, where it is expected to receive bipart»»»

A US federal appeals court has sided with the Pentagon in a landmark ruling that reinstates the Trump administration’s ban on transgender individuals serving in the military. In March, a judge appointed by former President Joe Biden blocked the ban, arguing that it likely violated constitutional pr»»»

US President Donald Trump has said Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky should be realistic about the course of the conflict with Russia and the need to hold elections. Zelensky, whose five-year presidential term expired in May 2024, has refused to call new elections, citing martial law. Russian Pres»»»

Bulgaria’s bagpipe tradition has received one of the highest international honors after being officially inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The decision was made during the 20th session of the Intergovernmental Committee, held in New Delhi, In»»»

The Tripoli based Libyan government held a meeting yesterday with a World Bank delegation from Washington, headed by the Regional Director for the Maghreb and Malta, Ahmedou Mustafa Ndiaye, and the World Bank Representative in Libya, Henriette Kaltenborn, along with several Bank experts. The Libyan»»»