Politics

JAKARTA/WAM His Eminence Prof. Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar and Chairman of the Muslim Council of Elders, emphasised that religions are a message of peace, and described Islam as a unifying force among civilisations, citing its historical role in fostering human brotherhood. The remarks were delivered at a reception hosted by the Indonesian Nahdlatul Ulama Association, the world’s ...

HOUSTON/WAM Tropical Storm Beryl brought howling winds and torrential rain to southeast Texas on Monday, killing at least three people, flooding highways, closing oil ports, cancelling more than 1,300 flights and knocking out power to more than 2.7 million homes and businesses, Reuters reported. Beryl, the season’s earliest Category 5 hurricane on record, weakened from a hurricane after pounding the ...

ABU DHABI/WAM The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced the success of mediation efforts by the UAE regarding the exchange of war captives between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Ukraine to release 180 captives. The Ministry emphasised that the success of the new mediation, which is the fifth since the beginning of this year, is the outcome of ...

GAZA / WAM The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said that over 76 percent of Gaza’s schools require major rehabilitation to be functional again. In a tweet on its official X account, UNRWA said, “In Gaza, over 76 percent of schools need reconstruction or require major rehabilitation to be functional again, ...

AL ARISH/WAM The staff of the UAE Floating Hospital in the Egyptian city of Al Arish, as part of Operation Chivalrous Knight 3, arranged a recreational day for the children of Gaza. The initiative aimed to alleviate the impacts of the war on them and served as a form of psychological and rehabilitative therapy. Mona Talib Ahmed, a nurse at ...

BLOOMBERG North Korean leader Kim Jong-un appears to have departed for Russia via his luxury armored train, South Korean media reported, ahead of expected talks with President Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok that the US said would touch on arms transfers to help the Kremlin’s war machine. Kim’s personal train was seen moving slowly towards the northeast border area, YTN cable ...

BLOOMBERG President Joe Biden said China’s recent downturn could diminish any inclination by Beijing to invade Taiwan, adding that the country’s economic troubles have left his Chinese counterpart with “his hands full.” The US president, who travelled to Vietnam following a gathering of the Group of 20 leaders summit in India, said he had met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang ...

BLOOMBERG British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told Chinese premier Li Qiang he had “significant concerns” about “interference” from Beijing, hours after it emerged that two men had been arrested in the UK for allegedly spying for China. Sunak said he’d confronted the Chinese official after news that a parliamentary researcher linked to a number of Tory MPs had been detained ...

BLOOMBERG French President Emmanuel Macron rejected a demand by Niger’s military rulers to withdraw troops from the West African nation after a coup strained relations between the two countries. “If we redeploy, I would do it only at the request of President Bazoum,” Macron said, referring to Niger’s ousted leader, as the G-20 summit wrapped up in New Delhi, India. ...

BLOOMBERG Australian voter dissatisfaction with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s performance is growing and support for his signature Indigenous Voice to Parliament proposal is declining amid increased frustration over rising living costs. The center-left government’s primary vote slid to 36% in the latest Resolve poll published, the lowest level since it won office in May 2022. Albanese’s net approval rating declined ...