Iran president says ‘rioters’ must not disrupt society
Pezeshkian accused the United States and Israel of "trying to escalate this unrest with regard to the economic discussion and...
Geostrategy
Russia joins Chinese, Iran warships for military drills off South Africa
A Russian warship arrived off South Africa's main naval base Friday to join Chinese and Iranian vessels for military exercises that...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
Israel declares ceasefire, begins troops pullback and Gazans start returning home
After two years of brutal war, the families of Israel's remaining hostages in the territory were also hoping the truce...
- The US Pentagon confirmed Israel had completed the first phase of a pullback laid out in Trump's peace plan.
- The withdrawal set the clock running on a 72-hour deadline for Hamas to release the remaining hostages held in Gaza.
Geostrategy
Nobel Peace Prize winner Machado dedicates award to Trump
Caracas, Venezuela -- Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado dedicated her Nobel Peace Prize on Friday to the people of...
- Machado has been in hiding in Venezuela for the past year since elections that authoritarian leftist President Nicolas Maduro is accused of stealing.
- Machado, who was barred from contesting the election, campaigned instead for her stand-in, ex-diplomat Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia.
Business
Abu Dhabi awards contract for mega solar project
Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- Abu Dhabi, the capital of leading oil producer the United Arab Emirates, said Friday it...
- The 1.5-gigawatt Khazna Solar PV plant, expected to have nearly three million solar panels, will avert more than 2.4 million tons of carbon emissions per year,
- Engie and Emirati renewable-energy company Masdar won the contract to build the plant and sell EWEC the electricity.
Geostrategy
Top conservation group meets in UAE on growing threats to nature
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates -- The world's top conservation body kicked off its world congress Thursday in the Emirati...
- The congress, held every four years, sheds light on the dire state of the world's biodiversity.
- According to the United Nations's expert scientific panel on biodiversity (IPBES), biodiversity has declined every decade in the past 30 to 50 years.
Arts & Culture
Hungary’s ‘master of the apocalypse’ Krasznahorkai wins literature Nobel
Stockholm, Sweden -- The Nobel Prize for Literature was on Thursday awarded to Laszlo Krasznahorkai considered by many as Hungary's...
- The Swedish Academy honored him "for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art".
- The Academy highlighted Krasznahorkai's first novel published in 1985, "Satantango", which brought him to prominence in Hungary and remains his best-known work.
Business
Silver price hits decades high as gold rush eases
Stock markets, meanwhile, were mixed as traders weighed a slew of issues: massive AI investments, corporate results, US interest rates,...
- The price of silver topped $50 an ounce for the first time since 1993 in the wake of sister safe-haven gold soaring to record highs.
- The metal hit $50.1900, while gold retreated after hitting a record above $4,000 an ounce on Wednesday.
Economy
Gold tops $4,000 for first time on political, economic worries
New York, United States - Gold topped $4,000 an ounce for the first time Wednesday as investors flocked to the...
- US and European stock markets rose while Asian equities fell as investors also kept tabs on the AI investment boom and the prospect of further US interest rate cuts this year
- Gold, considered a safe investment in times of uncertainty, reached an all-time high of nearly $4,060 an ounce Wednesday with silver also rising close to a record high
Geostrategy
Nearly one in six children in Gaza acutely malnourished: study
The study, the most detailed look so far at child hunger in Gaza, analysed data on more than 200,000 children...
- The study, published in medical journal The Lancet, comes after the United Nations in August declared a famine in parts of the Gaza Strip -- a finding rejected by Israel
- The study, the most detailed look at child hunger in Gaza, analysed data on over 200,000 children under five examined between January 2024 and August 2025 at UNRWA facilities
Geostrategy
Israel, Hamas agree to first phase of peace plan: To include release of hostages, aid into Gaza
In a dramatic moment, AFP journalists saw US Secretary of State Marco Rubio interrupt an event at the White House...
- Palestinian militant group Hamas would release all hostages while Israel would pull its troops back to an agreed on line, Trump said after talks in Egypt on his 20-point Gaza plan
- Qatar said the deal was the "first phase of the Gaza truce pact, which will lead to ending the war, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian captives, and entry of aid
Geostrategy
US envoys arrive at Gaza truce talks as Egypt, Hamas voice ‘optimism’
Both sides have responded positively to Trump's plan, which calls for a ceasefire, the release of all the hostages held...
- Key to the negotiations will be the names of the Palestinian prisoners Hamas will push for.
- According to Egyptian state-linked media, high-profile inmate Marwan Barghouti -- from Hamas's rival, the Fatah movement -- is among those the group wants to see released.
Most Read
Revenue from Saudi cinema may exceed $1bn by 2030KSA, UAE play well as e-gaming trends across GCCExclusive: Middle East’s retail sector rides on AR and hybrid shopping to become $600bn digital economyTECOM Group profit soars 13%UAE startups eye Saudi Arabia for growth, expansionSaudi Arabia leads GCC AI healthcare raceDisparity remains as Saudis, Emiratis see wealth gains
Iran president says ‘rioters’ must not disrupt society
Pezeshkian accused the United States and Israel of "trying to escalate this unrest with regard to the economic discussion and...
Geostrategy
Company News
Latest News
Putin says Russia will ‘certainly’ achieve its goals in Ukraine including seizing the territories
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday Moscow would "certainly" achieve its goals in the offensive in Ukraine, including seizing...
Geostrategy
Trump imposes full travel bans on seven more countries, Palestinians
Other countries newly subjected to the full travel ban came from some of Africa's poorest countries -- Burkina Faso, Mali,...
Geostrategy
Global coal demand expected to hit record in 2025: IEA
In its annual report on the coal industry, the International Energy Agency said demand was on course to rise by...
Geostrategy
Most Read
Business
Famed Jerusalem stone still sells despite West Bank economic woes
Sair, Palestinian Territories - Despite the catastrophic state of the Palestinian economy, Faraj al-Atrash, operator of a quarry in the...
- The war in Gaza, triggered by Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, dealt a severe blow to a Palestinian economy that was already in poor shape
- Israel, which has occupied the West Bank since 1967, has recently set up hundreds of new checkpoints across the territory, paralysing commercial transport
Business
Netflix boss promises Warner Bros films would still be seen in cinemas
Netflix will continue to distribute Warner Bros. films in cinemas if its takeover bid for the storied studio is successful,...
- "We're going to continue to operate Warner Bros. studios independently and release the movies traditionally in cinema," chief executive Ted Sarandos said
- In early December, Netflix announced that it had reached an agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) to acquire most of the group for $83 billion
Economy
US unemployment rises further, hovering at highest since 2021
A deteriorating jobs market could nudge the central bank to lower rates further to boost the economy, despite some policymakers'...
- The report underscoring a labor market cooldown in the world's biggest economy said the economy lost 105,000 jobs in October.
- Hiring picked up again in November to 64,000, but this was still a slower pace than before.