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Food Industry Pushes Back on WHO Guidance for Products with Added Color, Sweeteners

Varieties Around 11 million deaths a year are linked to unhealthy diets, according to the agency, based on data from a global study. (Getty Images)

Food Industry Pushes Back on WHO Guidance for Products with Added Color, Sweeteners

Governments should consider regulating foods that include added colors, flavors or sweeteners designed to make the product more appealing to consumers,…

Varieties Dozens of Pakistani farmers are suing German firms RWE and Heidelberg Materials in a rare bid to make big polluters pay damages for climate impacts. Aamir QURESHI / AFP

Pakistan Farmers in Long Fight to Make German Firms Pay for Flood Damage

In a Pakistani village nestled in rice fields, Abdul Hafeez Khoso remembers the vast industrial zones he saw in Germany when he visited to file a pioneering…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties A tourist holds an umbrella to shelter from the sun while walking on a hot day in Tokyo on July 15, 2026. (AFP)

This Year Set to Be One of Four Hottest on Record, UN Report Says

This year is ‌on track to be one of the four hottest on record, driven by a powerful El Niño and perpetuating a warming streak of more than a decade, a UN…

Varieties A white-tailed eagle over the Isle of Mull in Scotland. (Natural Resources Wales)

Reintroduction of White-Tailed Eagles Puts Seabird Colonies at Risk of Wipeout

White-tailed eagles reintroduced into England and Wales imperil endangered seabird populations and risk wiping out some colonies, The Guardian reported quoting…

Varieties Residents extend a supply hose to fill a barrel with clean water from a tanker truck in Kavling Bakau Serip, amid local water shortages linked to data center developments in Batam. ANDARU / AFP

Can't Cook or Shower: Indonesians Take Aim at Data Centers

Cooking and bathing became difficult when taps ran dry in Batam, an Indonesian island where residents are protesting as data centers spring up to power the…

Asharq Al Awsat

Varieties Indian space startup Skyroot Aerospace launched its Vikram-1 rocket, marking the first attempt by an Indian private company to place a satellite in orbit, from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, India, July 18, 2026. REUTERS/Priyanshu Singh

India Successfully Launches 1st Private Orbital Rocket

India's first privately built orbital rocket took its maiden flight on Saturday, its company said, marking a significant step for the South Asian giant as it…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties 'Penleigh Queen Bee' will raise awareness of declining bee populations (Brendon Murless/BBC)

UK Sculpture Designed to Attract Visiting Insects

A new sculpture, designed to raise awareness of the world's declining bee population, will help host visiting insects inside its structure, according to BBC. …

Asharq Al Awsat (London)
Varieties The crowd erupted in applause as Nehme walked onto the stage with her band, dressed in white. She opened with “Ahwe" (Asharq Al-Awsat)

‘Beirut Holidays’ Launches 11th Edition with Abeer Nehme

In an evening filled with the joy of reunion and the sense of a city finding its pulse again, the Beirut Holidays festival opened its 11th season under the…

Vivianne Haddad (Beirut)
Varieties Erling Haaland wears a viking helmet after beating the Ivory Coast at the World Cup. (Getty Images)

Baby Haaland in Peru: Newborns Take Names of World Cup Stars

In Peru, there is ‌a wave of new baby Haalands. In Argentina, Lionel has raced up the rankings, and in Mexico a girl was reportedly named after three…

Varieties Firefighters work at a site, following a wildfire in the municipality of Ores, northern Aragon region, Spain July 15, 2026, in this screengrab obtained from a video. (Spanish Military Emergency Unit/Handout via Reuters)

Northeast Spain Wildfire Destroys Over 12,000 Hectares

A major wildfire that has been raging for two days in northeast Spain has reduced more than 12,000 hectares of land to ash, regional authorities said Friday,…

Varieties Two 'Likweli' monkeys of a newly-identified species of Colobus monkey, discovered in Lomami National Park, sit on a tree branch, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in this undated handout image. Daniel Rosengren, Frankfurt Zoological Society/Handout via REUTERS

Scientists Find New Monkey Species in Congo's Rainforest

Scientists have identified a new species of monkey in Democratic Republic of Congo's rainforest, distinguished by patches of light-colored skin around its…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties FILE -Well-wishers wave Japanese flags as Emperor Naruhito with his imperial families makes a public appearance at the balcony of Imperial Palace, Jan. 2, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)

Japan Imperial Rules Tweaked, but Still No Woman Emperor

Japan's parliament tweaked the imperial succession law on Friday but maintained the bar on women emperors -- despite surveys suggesting wide public support for…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties India's Railway Protection Special Force (RPSF) personnel stand guard near the hydrogen-powered train at a depot ahead of its launch in Haryana's Jind on July 16, 2026. (AFP)

India Launches First Hydrogen-Powered Train in Clean Energy Push

India launched its first hydrogen-powered train Friday, joining a small group of nations testing the technology as part of efforts to decarbonize rail…

Varieties FILE: Beetles, which are sold as pets to several countries around the world and traded with the Kmushicoin cryptocurrency created by Tierra Viva, climb a trunk at the company's production plant, where bio-compost and bio-fertilizer are produced, in Tunja, Colombia, October 8, 2021. REUTERS

Devastating Asian Beetle Detected in EU for First Time

A tiny Asia-origin beetle that has devastated ash forests in North America has been detected in the European Union for the first time in Hungary and Slovakia,…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties The picture shows algae covering the surface of the Po River near Vittorio Emanuele I Bridge in Turin, northwestern Italy, on July 14, 2026. (Photo by Marco BERTORELLO / AFP)

Algae Fed by Farm Waste Carpet Italy's Warm River Po

Rowers on the River Po in Turin are battling vast blooms of algae, as high temperatures in northwest Italy and runoff from farms create ideal conditions for…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties Residents sleep on the platform of a railway station to escape the heat in Banda, northern Indian state of Utter Pradesh, Saturday, June 20 , 2026. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)

What Living in One of the World's Hottest Towns Feels Like

Heat at all hours, even in the middle of the night. Long stretches without electricity, meaning some homes can't even use basic fans. And a constant search for…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties The castle and buildings in the main tourist town on the island, which declared a drought emergency, in Chora, Astypalaia, Greece, July 13, 2026. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki

Greek Islands Face Drought as Tourist Season Hits

Seven Greek islands in the Aegean Sea have declared drought emergencies this year to preserve water as climate change makes summers hotter and rainfall more…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties Night sky over single tree (AFP) 

Natural Sugar Floating in Space Between Stars

Scientists have found natural sugars floating in interstellar space – and it could fundamentally change the search for alien life. Researchers spotted…

Asharq Al Awsat (London)
Varieties A vehicle from Oslo Airport’s fire rescue services sprays water onto the runway at the airport, to combat heat, in Oslo, Norway, July 15, 2026. REUTERS/Tom Little

Drones, AI and White Paint: Europe Races to Protect Infrastructure from Heat

As Europe's railways buckle under record heat, roads melt and power grids strain, countries are turning to an array of fixes for ageing infrastructure, from…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties Anastasia Kostromitina, model of MOTION agency, who has gone viral with striking likeness to Norway's Erling Haaland, poses in Moscow, Russia July 10, 2026. (Reuters)

Russian Haaland Lookalike Says Viral Video Felt ‘Like a Dream’

Friends and family have for a few years told Russian model Anastasia Kostromitina that she looked like Norwegian striker Erling Haaland, but it was not until…

Varieties  In this handout photo provided by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, game wardens walk through high waters from heavy rains in Uvalde County, Texas, on Tuesday, July 14, 2026. (Texas Parks and Wildlife Department via AP)

Texas Is Drenched by Heavy Rains as Forecasters Warn That More Storms Could Bring Dangerous Floods

Heavy downpours in South Texas washed out highways and stranded motorists Tuesday as forecasters warned that a threat of more severe weather could bring…

Varieties Sam Smith, an Operations Engineer, alongside Auto Sub Boaty McBoatface aboard the RRS Sir David Attenborough ahead of a mission to Greenland to study how warming affects the ice sheet and improve forecasts of its impact on the Atlantic, in Harwich, Britain, July 14, 2026. REUTERS/Chris Radburn

Scientists Sail for Greenland to Study Glacier Melt Risk

An international team of around 80 scientists and crew will set sail on polar research ship the RSS David Attenborough for Greenland this week to investigate…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties This frame grab from an AFP TV video shows a small female black bear tranquillized on the ground as wild bear experts Akiko Takii (R) and Shinshu University professor Shigeyuki Izumiyama collect blood and fur samples for academic research in Ina, Nagano Prefecture, on July 14, 2026, before the researchers weigh and measure the bear, believed to be about 18 months old, before releasing it back into the wild. (Photo by Harumi OZAWA / AFP)

Japan Family Finds Bear in Kitchen, Calls Police

A family in northern Japan called police after finding a bear in their kitchen, an official said Wednesday, as anxiety over the animals grows following a surge…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties This undated photo provided by Sotheby's on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, shows "Gus," one of the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus rex specimens ever discovered. (Matthew Sherman/Sotheby's via AP)

‘Gus’ the T. Rex Fetches Record $50.1 Mn at US Auction

A Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton nicknamed "Gus" sold Tuesday for $50.1 million at Sotheby's in New York, making it the most valuable dinosaur fossil bought at…

Varieties  These brain scan images provided by Biogen show how high levels of Alzheimer's-related tau protein, in red, dropped in a recipient of the company's experimental drug diranersen. (Biogen via AP)

An Experimental Alzheimer’s Drug Shows Promise Targeting a Different Brain Protein, New Study Shows

An experimental drug might help slow early Alzheimer’s disease in a markedly different way than today’s treatments — by lowering levels of a brain protein…

Varieties The Soyuz rocket is rolled out by train to the launch pad, Saturday, July 11, 2026, at Site 31 of the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. (Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP)

A US-Russian Space Crew Launches on a Mission to the International Space Station

A US-Russian space crew blasted off successfully Tuesday on a mission to the International Space Station. NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Russian crewmates…

Asharq Al Awsat
Varieties This photograph taken on July 7, 2026 shows kites resting inside a cage at the Margallah Wildlife Rescue Center in Islamabad. (AFP)

Wildlife Rescuers Help Birds Survive Pakistan’s Hotter Summers

Cradling an Asian koel in his hands, wildlife officer Zaheer Ahmed gently stretched its wings as part of a health checkup to rehabilitate birds hit with…

Varieties Djima Antaley organizes packages at Afrety headquarters in Dakar, Senegal, May 20, 2026. (Reuters)

A Hidden Pipeline Brings Amazon and Walmart to African Shoppers

No bank card? No address? No problem. Shoppers in Africa increasingly are buying online from big brands such as Amazon or Walmart even though they have no…

Varieties Students queue to receive lunch at a government-run primary school in Kolkata, India. Dibyangshu SARKAR / AFP

Egg-free School Meals Scramble Politics in India

Teacher Raja Dey fears attendance might drop now that government-run schools have stopped serving eggs for lunch in his eastern Indian state, a dietary change…

Asharq Al Awsat