Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is expected to start pushing Monday for a global consensus on peace talks with the Taliban, even as his spokesman slammed the militants for a spike in violence. Ghani is hosting three online conferences with representatives of some 20 countries this week, with...

As scandal-plagued Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands trial for corruption, his 28-year-old son has emerged as a driving force in a counterattack against critics and the state institutions prosecuting the longtime Israeli leader. A favorite of the prime minister’s nationalistic base...

Saudi Arabia announced health protocols to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus in the 2020 haj season, banning gatherings and meetings between pilgrims, the state news agency said Monday. Saudi Arabia decided in June to limit the number of domestic pilgrims attending the haj to around...

On an average day, President Donald Trump sends about 14 posts to the 28 million Facebook followers of his campaign account. His Democratic rival, Joe Biden, delivers about half that many posts to an audience of just 2 million. The numbers are similarly skewed in other spheres of the social...

Chinese authorities on Monday detained a law professor who published essays criticising President Xi Jinping over the coronavirus pandemic and his efforts to consolidate power, according to friends of the man. Xu Zhangrun, a rare outspoken critic of the government in China's heavily...

A leading opposition party representing Ethiopia's Oromo ethnic group said Monday that five senior members had been detained following violence last week that claimed at least 166 lives. The political crackdown deepens fears of a large-scale roundup of government critics as Prime Minister...

Alaa Arnous and his family found the photo of his father Mohammed online last week, the first proof of his fate since he was seized by Syrian government forces seven years ago. The image showed his corpse, his face battered and bruised, his mouth hanging open. The elder Arnous was among...

  (Zaman Al Wasl)- In the summer of 2018, Ahmad al-Hourani, 40, a former opposition fighter,  signed with his brother Salam (then 26), the so-called reconciliation agreement with the Syrian regime in southern Daraa province.  Ahmed, who used a pseudonym in fear of...

One Syrian displaced was killed by an improvised explosive device in the northern city of Afrin, topping the suspected Kurdish attacks on the Turkish-held region to four in a month, local activists said Monday. Another displaced person was wounded in the IED attack that hit their...

The Israeli military said aircraft struck targets in the northern Gaza Strip late Sunday following a barrage of rocket fire into southern Israel. No casualties were reported on either side. In a statement, the military said attack helicopters and fighter jets struck "underground...

The Louvre, the world's most visited museum, reopens after its coronavirus closure Monday, but with nearly a third of its galleries still shut. The vast former palace of France's kings has lost more than 40 million euros ($45 million) in ticket sales during the near-four-month lockdown, and...

Britain will spend nearly $2 billion to help theatres, art galleries and other cultural institutions survive the coronavirus crisis, the government has said. The British arts and culture sector has been hit hard by the pandemic, with live performances still off the cards for now and venues...

Hundreds of drones lit up the night sky in Seoul for a spectacular showcase of motivational and awareness messages as the world battles the coronavirus pandemic. Three hundred unmanned aerial vehicles were programmed to form images above the Han river -- which runs through the South Korean...

The hard-hit Australian state of Victoria has recorded a death and its highest-ever daily increase in coronavirus cases as authorities prepare to close its border with New South Wales. The death of a man in his 90s brings the national death toll from COVID-19 to 105. Victorian...

A philharmonic orchestra performed to spectator-free Roman ruins in east Lebanon Sunday, after a top summer festival downsized to a single concert in a year of economic meltdown and pandemic. The Baalbek International Festival was instead beamed live on television and social media, in what...

Lewis Hamilton insisted on Sunday his fight against racism is "about equality and not politics or promotion" after six drivers refused to join the Formula One world champion in taking a knee before the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. Hamilton, the only black driver in the sport, wore a...

Four Syrian refugees, including three children, have died after falling down in a 65 foot deep well in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, activists said Sunday. The tragic incident began when three Syrian children fell into an abandoned well in the Shalfa district near...

Turkey in August will open its very first indigenous integrated solar panel factory as part of its efforts to strengthen the nation’s power grid, the country's president said on Sunday. "We ensured over $100 billion has been invested in energy by the public and private sectors over the past...

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday extended a state of emergency for 30 days to stem the spread of coronavirus pandemic. The move comes as the Palestinian territories saw a surge in virus infections in recent days. “The concerned authorities shall continue to take all...

 A Sudanese government delegation arrived Sunday in Central Darfur province for talks with hundreds of protesters camped outside a government building demanding better security conditions, state media said. Comprised mostly of internally displaced persons and refugees, the week-long...