San Francisco, United States - Microsoft on Friday announced it was retiring Skype, the online voice and video call pioneer that the tech titan acquired in 2011. "Starting in May 2025, Skype will no longer be available," said a post from Skype support on X, directing users to sign into...

Observing fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam, requiring believers to abstain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours. Observant Muslims are also encouraged to donate to the poor.

Hong Kong, China -- Bitcoin sank below $80,000 on Friday for the first time in more than three months as a sell-off in the cryptocurrency sector gathered pace amid volatility in global markets. The digital unit fell to as low as $79,525.88 in early Asian trade -- its lowest level...

Mediator Egypt say Israeli, Qatari and US delegations were already in Cairo for "intensive" talks on the next stage of the ceasefire, after a first phase only reached following months of grueling negotiations.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Nearly 81.6 percent of Saudi individuals visited at least one cultural event or activity in 2024, according to the 2024 Household Culture and Entertainment Survey by the Kingdom's General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT). The survey said that 85.3 percent attended at least one entertainment event or activity. The...

Hackers from North Korea have become notorious for their sophisticated and relentless tradecraft, according to Chainalysis. Nearly 60 percent of all 2024 crypto thefts by value were linked to the hermit nation.

Israeli authorities received four hostage bodies from Hamas, while Palestinian prisoners were welcomed in Ramallah, as ceasefire negotiations involving Egypt, Qatar, and the U.S. move forward.

Washington, United States - The Washington Post will no longer run views opposed to "personal liberties and free markets" on its opinion pages, its owner Jeff Bezos announced on Wednesday, the latest intervention by the billionaire in the major US paper's editorial operations. "We are going to be writing every...

The video, which racked up more than 15 million views on Instagram and was shared thousands of times on Trump's Truth Social network by Wednesday morning, prompted some commenters to question whether the president's accounts had been hacked.

This is an increase of 85.7 percent over the previous year.

e&’s subscriber base rose 11.7% to 189.3m

Mediators have revived a deal for Israel to release Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the bodies of four Israeli hostages, marking a renewed effort to uphold the fragile Gaza ceasefire agreement

Asian markets were mixed Wednesday after President Donald Trump broadened his tariff threats, while traders were also assessing the geopolitical outlook after the first high-level official US-Russia talks since the invasion of Ukraine.

Washington noted European nations would have to have a seat at the negotiating table "at some point", following the first high-level official Washington-Moscow talks since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Tehran, Iran - Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday dismissed a proposal by the United States to displace Palestinians from the war-devastated Gaza Strip, saying it "will go nowhere".Khamenei made the remarks during a meeting in Tehran with Ziyad al-Nakhalah, leader of the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad."The idiotic...

Abu Dhabi, UAE -- Tawazun Council, UAE's authority responsible for managing acquisitions, procurement, and contracts on behalf of the Ministry of Defense and security agencies, said Tuesday that it had signed five deals worth a total of AED 5.8 billion with local and international companies on the second day of...

Israel's army has pulled out of southern Lebanese villages but remains in five positions as a deadline for the withdrawal expired

In a statement on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was "committed to US President Trump's plan for the creation of a different Gaza", also promising that after the war, "there will be neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority" ruling the territory.

Paris, France - Saudi Arabian sports investment fund SURJ, linked to the kingdom's sovereign wealth fund, has acquired a minority stake in sports streaming platform DAZN, the two parties announced on Monday.The statement said the deal would focus on the Middle East and North Africa."As part of this agreement, SURJ and...

Nicosia, Cyprus -- Cyprus and Egypt on Monday signed an agreement with an energy consortium to export gas from the Mediterranean island's offshore fields to Europe after being processed in the North African country.Egypt, alongside Italian energy giant Eni and France's TotalEnergies, have agreed to "collaborate to commercialise the natural gas...

Gaza City, Palestinian Territories -- For 500 days since an unprecedented Hamas attack on Israel triggered the Gaza Strip's deadliest war, Mohammed Abu Mursa has grappled with "humiliation, suffering and bloodshed" in his fight for survival.Abu Mursa and his family have been displaced more than a dozen times since the war...

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has achieved solid results in 2024 with Group net profit reaching AED 17.1 billion, up 4 percent year on year, driven by a 15 percent increase in revenue to AED 31.6 billion, FAB said in a statement. Profit before tax grew 13 percent year on...

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - President Donald Trump's decision to suspend US overseas funding could result in millions more deaths from AIDS, the head of the UN's programme for the illness warned Sunday.The United States is the world's largest provider of official development assistance, with most funds directed through the United States...

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have pledged to "open the gates of hell" on Hamas and "finish the job" against Iran

Cairo, Egypt -- Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi told the head of the World Jewish Congress Ronald Lauder on Sunday that the establishment of a Palestinian state is "the only guarantee" for lasting peace in the Middle East.During his meeting with Lauder in Cairo on Sunday, Sisi called for starting the...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Saudi Arabia's annual inflation rate in Jan 2025 reached 2 percent compared to January 2024, the kingdom's General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) said in its Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for January 2025. According to GASTAT, Saudi Arabia's inflation rate is considered the lowest among the...

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Leaders of the countries known as BRICS will hold a summit in Rio de Janeiro in July, the current chair Brazil announced Saturday.Other members of the trading bloc include Russia, India, China and South Africa and others.Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira said on the social media...

The call came ahead of an expected summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin amid mounting concern from Ukraine and its European allies that the pair will strike a deal without them.

San Francisco, United States -- OpenAI's board chairman on Friday said it has unanimously rejected an Elon Musk-led offer to buy the hot artificial intelligence company for $97.4 billion."OpenAI is not for sale, and the board has unanimously rejected Mr. Musk's latest attempt to disrupt his competition," chairman of the board...

The Group's revenue increased 48 percent year-on-year.

Jerusalem, Undefined - Israel said Friday it had received the names of three hostages to be freed by militants in exchange for Palestinian prisoners this weekend, after a crisis in the ceasefire threatened to plunge Gaza back into war.The hostages due for release Saturday are Israeli-American Sagui Dekel-Chen, Israeli-Russian Sasha Trupanov...

Trump sparked a global outcry with his proposal for the United States to "take over" the Gaza Strip and to move more than two million Palestinians out of the war-devastated territory, citing Egypt or Jordan as possible destinations.

Nissan and Honda shares surged in Tokyo Friday after the auto giants confirmed they scrapped merger talks and Nissan detailed restructuring plans

Beirut, Lebanon - Hezbollah supporters blocked the Beirut airport road and burned tyres on Thursday to protest a decision barring two Iranian planes from landing in the Lebanese capital, state media and an airport official said."Young men set tyres on fire in front of the airport entrance, raising banners supporting Hezbollah's...

US president's remarks on Russia and China mark a seismic shift after more than a decade of US policy which had increasingly cast Moscow into the cold and largely viewed both it and Beijing as adversaries.

London, United Kingdom -- Major stock markets mostly rallied and oil prices retreated Thursday on hopes for an end to the war in Ukraine and despite fresh tariff threats.London was a rare faller owing to sharp losses to share prices of big companies, including Unilever, Barclays and British American Tobacco, on...

The company's revenues increased 6.7 percent year-on-year.

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - Under a vast canopy of tents in the Saudi city of Jeddah, religious artefacts are on display alongside contemporary art pieces, part of the kingdom's bid to transform its image.The second edition of the Islamic Arts Biennale, titled "And All That Is In Between", features as its...

The company's revenue increased by 29 percent to $3.54 billion.

Equities rose in Asia on Wednesday as traders took in their stride a warning from Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell that the US central bank "did not need to be in a hurry" to cut interest rates again. The remarks came a day before the release of closely watched inflation...

United Nations, United States - More than $53 billion will be required to rebuild Gaza and end the "humanitarian catastrophe" that has gripped the war-ravaged territory, including $20 billion in the first three years alone, the United Nations said Tuesday.The global body said in a report that a "political and security...

The statement came a day after US President Donald Trump said he could "conceivably" halt aid to Egypt and Jordan if they refuse to cooperate with his plan to take over the Gaza Strip and displace its population to their countries.

The talks come a day after Trump said he could "conceivably" halt billions of dollars in US aid to both Jordan and Egypt if they refuse to take in Palestinians that he says should be moved out from their homeland. The meeting also comes as the Gaza ceasefire appears increasingly...

After receiving backing from his OpenAI board, Sam Altman informed an Elon Musk-led group of investors that sought to buy the artificial intelligence (AI) company's entire assets for about US$100bn that their offer would be rejected

BYD will install its "God's Eye" autonomous driving system in at least 21 models, including the Seagull budget hatchback priced from 69,800 yuan ($9,550). The system includes features such as remote parking and autonomous highway navigation previously found on more expensive vehicles. Tesla has similar features available in its EVs...

The January 19 truce halted 15 months of Gaza fighting, freeing Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, but tensions rose after Trump’s proposal to take over Gaza and displace its inhabitants.

Dubai, UAE -- The International Monterey Fund (IMF) has projected global growth to remain at 3.3 percent this year and the next, before slowing to just above 3 percent over the next five years, well below the historical average.IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said that growth in the Middle East...

Political and tech industry leaders were set to descend on Paris Monday for a two-day summit on artificial intelligence, hoping to find common ground on a technology with the potential to upset global business and society

Trump told Fox News Channel’s Bret Baier that "I would own it" and that there could be as many as six different sites for Palestinians to live outside Gaza -- under the plan which the Arab world has rejected.

Cairo, Egypt -- Egypt will host a summit of Arab nations on February 27 to discuss "the latest serious developments" concerning the Palestinian territories, its foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday.The "emergency Arab summit" comes as Egypt has been rallying regional support against US President Donald Trump's plan to...