The Entrepreneurship Development Fund has begun issuing loans to women entrepreneurs at an annual interest rate of 12 percent. According to the agency, financing is available to women working in the production and services sectors, as well as to legal entities in which at least 50 percent of the fo»»»

Hong Kong’s leader on Tuesday announced a judge-led independent committee to investigate last week’s apartment blaze that killed 151 people. Officials said the city’s worst fire in decades spread rapidly through exterior scaffolding netting that failed to meet fire-resistance standards and did not »»»

Republicans will keep control of a Tennessee congressional seat after a hotly-contested election, according to US media projections. Matt Van Epps won the race for the Tennessee 7th Congressional District on Tuesday, the Associated Press and other US media reported, defeating Democratic state lawma»»»

Tajikistan is seeking Russia’s help in containing raids by Islamic militants operating out of Afghanistan. Two attacks within the past week have left five Chinese nationals working on road construction and gold mining projects in Tajik border areas dead. Reuters reported on December 2 that Tajik of»»»

Dubai: Gold bounced across the UAE on Wednesday, reversing a softer Tuesday that had briefly offered retail buyers an improved entry point. Prices in Dubai climbed for a second session in step with global spot markets and renewed expectations of US monetary easing. Sign up for our daily business ne»»»

Indonesia and the Netherlands have signed a deal to return two elderly Dutch nationals jailed in Indonesia for drug offences - one on death row and the other serving a life sentence. The Dutch government had requested their repatriation "on humanitarian grounds", it said in a statement on Tuesday. »»»

A Ukrainian philosopher has spoken to FRANCE 24 about daily life in Ukraine, and how outside support helps to lift the mood of people living under Russian bombs and drones. He spoke as France is holding the event "Le voyage en Ukraine" – or journey to Ukraine, which aims to enable the French cultur»»»

US envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday, but no compromise was reached on the issue of Ukraine ceding territory. The Ukrainian army denied that the Russians had taken the city of Pokrovsk, claiming that it still controlled the northern part of the city.»»»

The European Union's former top diplomat, Federica Mogherini, was taken into custody on Tuesday as “part of a probe into suspected fraud related to EU-funded training for junior diplomats”, according to a statement by the bloc's independent public prosecutor's office.  The EU’s former foreign »»»

Russia and the United States held five hours of talks in the Kremlin aimed at advancing Donald Trump’s peace initiative for Ukraine, with both sides describing the discussions as constructive but acknowledging deep disagreements — especially over territory — that could stall any breakthrough. Talks»»»

On November 27th, Russia launched a Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station. Since then, news articles claim that Moscow has accidentally destroyed its only launch pad capable of sending humans into space. According to experts looking at the footage, this is true for the first time in decad»»»

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman declared a 'code red' to improve ChatGPT, planning to put all other projects on the backburner. The urgent call in an internal memo, first reported by The Information, highlights the ever-tightening race for AI supremacy with Google's recent launch of its new Gemini chatbot th»»»

Birimdik Kerbeni cultural project is being launched in Kyrgyzstan. Ahead of the 6th World Nomad Games, the country will begin a national water relay aimed at highlighting the importance of water and symbolizing national unity, the organizers reported. The project will cover all regions of the count»»»

According to preliminary data, pension funding in Kyrgyzstan totaled 96.1 billion soms from January to November of this year. This is 13.8 billion more than for the same period in 2024. The total amount of payments increased significantly, with 82.2 billion soms allocated for pensions. The largest »»»

The US has halted the processing of all immigration applications linked to 19 countries already subject to a travel ban, according to an internal official memo seen by BBC partner CBS News. Immigration agents have been told to "stop final adjudication on all cases", and pause naturalisation ceremon»»»

US President Donald Trump said that all the documents and orders signed by the autopen instead of former President Joe Biden are hereby null and void. "Any and all Documents, Proclamations, Executive Orders, Memorandums, or Contracts, signed by Order of the now infamous and unauthorized 'AUTOPEN,' »»»

The Central Election Commission (CEC) of Bosnia and Herzegovina issued an order at its session yesterday instructing the Main Counting Center to conduct a repeated control recount of ballots from regular polling stations and to determine the election results in the relevant basic electoral units, t»»»

Minister of Construction, Architecture, Housing and Communal Services of the Kyrgyz Republic Nurdan Oruntaev inspected the construction progress of an additional wing at the district hospital in Toktogul, Jalal-Abad region, the ministry’s press service reported. According to the ministry, construct»»»

The Bishkek City Hall held an expert discussion of the draft Master Plan for the city’s development through 2050 with participation of specialists as well as interested residents of the capital. One of the developers of the strategic document — Irina Grishechkina, deputy director of the St. Petersb»»»

Some leaders in the European Union are seeking to prolong the conflict in Ukraine in order to turn the EU into a military alliance and make the European Commission look like the government of a united European federal state, Luxembourg member of the European Parliament Fernand Kartheiser told RIA N»»»

1 of 3 | The American Economic Association said Tuesday it was banning Larry Summers over his ties to infamous sex offender Jeffery Epstein. File Photo UPI/Andrew Harrer | License Photo Dec. 2 (UPI) -- The American Economic Association announced Tuesday it had imposed a lifetime ban on former U.S. »»»

In an age of instant notifications, one-click delivery, and bottomless digital feeds, boredom has become an endangered experience. Yet psychologists and neuroscientists warn that eliminating boredom comes at a cost: it deprives our brains of essential downtime. Also In This Package Fear, boredom, a»»»

Early morning commutes across the UAE were disrupted today as dense fog blanketed several regions, prompting police to implement speed restrictions, according to official reports and real-time traffic data. The reduced visibility led Abu Dhabi Police to activate their speed reduction system, settin»»»

The coastal demonstrations that swept through Latakia, Tartus, Homs and Hama last week may have been small, but what they reveal is far more consequential than their modest turnout suggests. They were the clearest expression of communal frustration since the transitional authorities assumed power, »»»

The United States is the world leader in regime change, toppling 35 foreign heads over the past 120 years, by one reckoning. It’s a record built on a dangerous combination of unparalleled military might, a large group of perceived enemies—and a sunny self-confidence that has repeatedly proven mista»»»

Russian President Vladimir Putin and US special envoy Steve Witkoff have not discussed specific formulations, but the essence of the documents proposed by the United States on the Ukrainian peace settlement issue, Russian presidential aide Yury Ushaov said. "Of course, we discussed with the US coun»»»

YouTube says Australia's "rushed" new laws to block teens from its platform will mean children will be less safe as its "robust parental controls" will be stripped away. Parents will "lose their ability to supervise their teen or tween's account" such as content settings or blocking channels from 1»»»

The Chairman of the Central Election Commission of the Kyrgyz Republic (CEC), Tynchtyk Shainazarov, made statements regarding reports on social media about violations during the parliamentary elections. According to the CEC press service, the election was organized with maximum transparency and in »»»

Rosatom plans to begin construction of a 100-megawatt wind farm in Kyrgyzstan in 2026. Grigory Nazarov, Director General of Rosatom Renewable Energy (a subsidiary of Rosatom State Corporation), told TASS. «In November, we received the connection conditions for this plant, which allows us to begin d»»»

The Pennsylvania police officer who received a tip about Luigi Mangione being spotted at a local McDonald's has said he and his supervisor were so sceptical that it was the suspected shooter they exchanged jokes about it. Joseph Detwiler told a Manhattan courtroom on Tuesday that tip ultimately led»»»

With a little over two-thirds of the ballots in the Honduras election tallied, the lead has changed hands. The former vice-president, Salvador Nasralla, has a small but potentially significant lead over his rival, the conservative former mayor of Tegucigalpa, Nasry Asfura. Yet Asfura's National Par»»»

Abu Dhabi: The UAE is expecting a week of mild, partly cloudy weather with rising humidity and early-morning mist, according to the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM). The forecast, covering Wednesday to Sunday, shows largely stable conditions across the country with light to moderate winds and s»»»

Airbus has confirmed an unspecified number of its aircraft will undergo inspections after a "supplier quality issue" with metal panels used on some A320 planes was identified. The problem, which the firm said impacts a "limited number" of planes, comes days after thousands of the same model were gr»»»

A diamond-studded crystal Fabergé egg that once belonged to Russia's imperial family has sold for a record £22.9m ($30.2m) in London. The Winter Egg - considered one of the legendary jeweller's most beautiful creations - was bought by an anonymous bidder on Tuesday, Christie's auction house said. I»»»

The public inquiry into the Covid pandemic has cost the government more than £100m to respond to so far, the BBC has learnt. This is on top of the £192m spent by the inquiry itself - meaning the cost to the taxpayer is over 50% more than previously thought. The government spending covers legal advi»»»

The breakfast looked delicious in the picture but seemed barely touched as Siddharamiah, Congress Chief Minister of Karnataka, and his Deputy, D.K. Shivakumar, broke bread and attempted to make peace after the latest slugfest over power — a battle that has virtually left Karnataka ungoverned for th»»»

1 of 2 | KISS frontman Gene Simmons (pictured in 2017 in St. Louis) said Tuesday he will testify before Congress in support of the American Music Fairness Act. File Photo by BIll Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo Dec. 2 (UPI) -- KISS frontman Gene Simmons said Tuesday that he was headed to Capitol Hil»»»

Also In This Package Putin to visit India, great power of our time: Lavrov India eyes S-500 missile deal ahead of Putin visit The geopolitics of Putin’s visit to India Russia to sign deals worth $10b with India India tests advanced version of BrahMos missile Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin»»»

Systemic failures that led to the collapse of a China spy trial could be repeated without major reforms, a committee of MPs has warned. A report by the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy said "shambolic" mismanagement led to prosecutors dropping charges against Chris Cash and Chris B»»»

Manila: The on-going "in-city vertical housing" drive for thousands of low-income families has hit a fresh milestones, with potential to address the decades-old squatting problem in the Philippine capital, though state-backed urban renewal. At least four developments have turned blighted areas into»»»

A Mississippi man was sentenced Tuesday after being convicted of murdering a university student in 2022 to allegedly cover up a romantic relationship. File Photo by Activedia/Pixabay Dec. 2 (UPI) -- A Mississippi man was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years in prison after being convicted of murdering a u»»»

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla. (C, pictured in 2024), on Tuesday said it's time for Congress to end insider trading among its members and filed a discharge petition to force immediate consideration of the Restore Trust in Congress Act. File Photo by Louis Lanzano/UPI | License Photo Dec. 2 (UPI) --»»»

Critics call it "carspreading". In the UK and across Europe, cars are steadily becoming longer, wider and heavier. Consumers clearly like them – a lot. They're seen as practical, safe and stylish, and sales are growing steadily. So, why are some cities determined to clamp down on them - and are the»»»

The Saudi-Russian Investment and Business Forum 2025 concluded in Riyadh, closing a packed day of high level strategic dialogue aimed at anchoring a bilateral partnership that extends well beyond oil coordination. The forum was held on the sidelines of the 9th Russian-Saudi Joint Committee and unde»»»

Israeli drones swept back into Beirut’s skies shortly after Pope Leo XIV’s plane departed the city, ending a brief and carefully managed calm that had prevailed during his visit. The resumption of aerial activity underscored that the lull was dictated by diplomatic sensitivities rather than any rea»»»

A series of Israeli military statements reporting the killing or capture of members of Hamas’s Izz al Din al Qassam Brigades inside Rafah’s tunnel network has sharpened scrutiny of who these fighters were and how long they had remained hidden underground. The operations targeted men who had spent m»»»

Military takeovers are nothing new in Guinea-Bissau. The West African country has experienced at least nine attempted and successful coups since gaining independence from Portugal in 1974. But when military officers announced they had seized control of the country last Wednesday, some analysts and »»»