Breaking World News

US Treasury Chief Blames Commerce Dept for Failure in Nvidia Scandal

World  US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks during the National Committee on US-China Relations 60th Anniversary Gala Dinner in New York City, US, November 10, 2026. (Reuters)

US Treasury Chief Blames Commerce Dept for Failure in Nvidia Scandal

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday blamed the Commerce Department for failing to blacklist Megaspeed, the Singapore company at the center of a…

World UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks at a press conference on the fifth day of the COP31 annual UN climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye, 13 November 2026. (EPA)

UN Chief Urges Drastic Emissions Cuts as COP31 Wrestles with Fossil Fuels

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called for an "immediate and drastic reduction" in greenhouse gas emissions, as divisions over fossil fuels…

World 13 November 2026, Ireland, Dublin: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz speaks during a press conference on the sidelines of the EU summit at the Convention Centre in Dublin. (dpa)

Europe’s Security Cannot Be Part of Ukraine Peace Talks, EU Leaders Say

EU leaders said on Friday that Europe's security structure should not be a subject for Ukraine-Russia peace negotiations, but they did not answer the question…

World  09 November 2026, France, Paris: France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, speaks during a G7 foreign ministers' meeting in Paris. (dpa)

France Criticizes ‘Demagogic’ Move by Israel to Ban Hard-Left Leader Melenchon

France has ‌criticized as "demagogic" a decision by Israel to ban French hard-left presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchonand another leading figure in…

World Congolese workers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) walk outside the Ebola Treatment Center at the Bunia General Referral Hospital following a resurgence of Ebola involving the Bundibugyo strain, in Bunia, Ituri province, the Democratic Republic of Congo, November 2, 2026. (Reuters)

UN Hails Progress in Ebola Response, Cites Insecurity as Biggest Challenge

UN health officials on Friday hailed progress in the Ebola response six months after the outbreak first prompted global concerns, but cautioned that the…


World An arms shipment belonging to Iran seized by the US in May 2021. AP file photo

US Seizes Shipment Headed to Iran with Military-Related items

A US special operations team raided a dual-use items ship in the Indian Ocean last month and seized military-related articles headed to Iran, US officials told…

Asharq Al Awsat (London)
World Visitors participate in a game at the Christmas market and fairground in the Jardin des Tuileries gardens in central Paris, on December 13, 2025. (Photo by Anna KURTH / AFP)

Germany Says Foils Plot to Attack Christmas Market

German authorities said Saturday they had arrested five men on suspicion of involvement in a plot to plough a vehicle into people at a Christmas market. …

Asharq Al Awsat
World Police S.W.A.T. team members gather inside Brown University's Sciences Library after a shooting Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, in Providence, R.I. (Lily Speredelozzi/The Sun Chronicle via AP)

US Police Search Brown University after Shooter Kills 2

A shooter dressed in black killed at least two people and wounded nine others at Brown University on Saturday during final exams on the Ivy League campus,…

Asharq Al Awsat
World A handout photo provided by the Narges Mohammadi Foundation on October 2, 2023 shows an undated, unlocated photo of Iranian rights campaigner Narges Mohammadi. (Narges Mohammadi Foundation/AFP)

EU Urges Iran to Release Nobel-Prize Winner Mohammadi

The European Union called on Saturday for the release of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, who was detained by Iranian security forces along with at…

World Anti-drone nets hang taut along a road near the city of Izyum of Kharkiv region, northeastern Ukraine, 12 December 2025. (EPA)

US, Ukraine to Discuss Ceasefire in Berlin Ahead of European Summit

Germany will host US and Ukrainian delegations over the weekend for talks on a ceasefire in Ukraine, ahead of a summit with European leaders and President…

World A border guard officer stands guard at the Polish-Belarusian border, in Polowce, Poland. (AP file photo)

Germany to Send Soldiers to Fortify Poland Border

Germany has said it will send a group of soldiers to Poland to help with a project to fortify the country's eastern border as worries mount about the threat…

World Turkish President Recep Erdogan addresses the media after the conclusion on the G20 Summit held at the Nasrec Expo Center in Johannesburg, South Africa, 23 November 2025. EPA/HALDEN KROG

Erdogan Warns Black Sea Should Not Be 'Area of Confrontation' after Strikes

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday warned that the Black Sea should not turn into an "area of confrontation" between Russia and Ukraine, after…

Asharq Al Awsat
World The deadly torrential rains are one of the worst recent disasters to strike Sumatra. (AFP)

Indonesia Flood Death Toll Passes 1,000

Devastating floods and landslides have killed 1,003 people in Indonesia, rescuers said Saturday as the Southeast Asian nation grapples with relief efforts. …

World Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the Peace Summit in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, on Friday (Tasnim). 

Moscow, Tehran ‘Working Closely’ on Nuclear Program

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that relations between Moscow and Tehran are “developing very positively,” stressing that the two countries are…

Asharq Al Awsat (Tehran)
World FILE PHOTO: The sun sets over the Rio Grande River in Salineno, Texas, US, February 18, 2025. REUTERS/Cheney Orr/File Photo

US Says Mexico Agrees to Water Treaty Obligations

The United States and Mexico reached an agreement on water-sharing on Friday, after President Donald Trump threatened new sanctions. Trump said Mexico owed…

Asharq Al Awsat
World Former Bolivian President Luis Arce Catacora enters San Pedro prison after a judge ordered him held in pre-trial detention for five months as part of an investigation into alleged embezzlement, in La Paz, Bolivia, December 12, 2025. REUTERS/Claudia Morales

Bolivian Court Orders Ex-president Jailed for 5 Months on Corruption Charges

A Bolivian court on Friday ordered the country's former President Luis Arce to remain detained for five months while he awaits trial on corruption charges, the…

Asharq Al Awsat
World St Nikolas ship X1 oil tanker involved in US-Iran dispute in the Gulf of Oman which state media says was seized is seen in the Tokyo bay, Japan, October 4, 2020, in this handout picture. Daisuke Nimura/Handout via REUTERS

Iran Detains 18 Crew Members of Foreign Tanker Seized in Gulf of Oman

Iranian authorities detained 18 crew members of a foreign tanker seized in the Gulf of Oman on Friday that they said was carrying 6 million liters of smuggled…

Asharq Al Awsat
World A handout photo made available by the press service of the 65th Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces shows the recruits who take part in the short and intense march during their basic military training (BMT) in an undisclosed location in the Zaporizhzhia area, Ukraine, 12 December 2025, amid the ongoing Russian invasion. EPA/Press service of the 65th Mechanized Brigade HANDOUT

2 People Killed in Russia’s Saratov Region as Peace Talks Press On

At least two people were killed in a drone attack in Russia’s southwestern Saratov region and parts of Ukraine were without power, local authorities said…

Asharq Al Awsat
World North Korean leader Kim Jong Un embraces a soldier during a welcoming ceremony for members of the 528th Engineer Regiment after they returned from an overseas mission, at the April 25 Cultural and Tourism Center in Pyongyang, North Korea, December 12, 2025, in this picture released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency on December 13, 2025. (KCNA via Reuters)

North Korean Leader Kim Hails Troops Returning from Russia Mission, State Media Says

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended a welcoming ceremony for an army engineering unit that had returned home after carrying out duties in Russia, the…

World This handout photo taken and released by Agence Kampuchea Press (AKP) on December 13, 2025 shows smoke rising following a blast in Pursat province, amid clashes along the Cambodia-Thailand border. (Handout / Agence Kampuchea Press (AKP) / AFP)

Thailand Continues Cambodia Strikes Despite Trump Truce Calls

Thailand said Saturday it was continuing military strikes against Cambodia despite US President Donald Trump saying the countries had agreed to stop fighting…

World This handout photo from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) taken and received on December 13, 2025, shows coast guard personnel attending to injured fishermen after an incident with China Coast Guard near Sabina Shoal in the South China Sea. (Handout / Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) / AFP)

Philippines Says Fishermen Hurt, Boats Damaged by China in South China Sea

The Philippine coast guard said on Saturday that three Filipino fishermen had been wounded and two fishing vessels suffered "significant damage" when Chinese…

World This screen grab from a video posted by US Attorney General Pam Bondi on her X account on December 10, 2025 shows what Bondi says is the execution of "a seizure warrant for a crude oil tanker used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran" off the coast of Venezuela on December 10. (Photo by Handout / US Attorney General Pam Bondi's X account / AFP)

US Unseals Warrant for Tanker Seized off Venezuelan Coast

US authorities on Friday unsealed the warrant for an oil tanker seized off the coast of Venezuela decried as "international piracy" by Caracas. President…

Asharq Al Awsat
World The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. (Reuters)

Iran Executes Woman over Killing Four-year-old Stepdaughter

Iran on Saturday executed a woman in the country's northwest after convicting her of killing her four-year-old stepdaughter, the judiciary said. The child,…

Asharq Al Awsat
World A picture of the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi is projected on the facade of the Grand Hotel before the Nobel Banquet in Oslo, Norway, 10 December 2023. (EPA)

Iran Arrests Nobel-Prize Winning Activist Narges Mohammadi

Iranian security forces on Friday "violently" arrested the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi along with at least eight other activists at a…

World Iranians drive during a heavy rainfall in a street in Tehran, Iran, 11 December 2025. (EPA)

Iran Raising Fuel Prices for Heavy Users to Curb Consumption

Iran will raise the price of its heavily subsidized gasoline for heavy users on Saturday, state media reported, as the OPEC member seeks to control rising fuel…

World  Artillerymen of the 152nd Separate Jaeger Brigade fire a howitzer towards Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the frontline town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region, Ukraine December 11, 2025. (Reuters)

US Plan Sees Ukraine Joining EU in 2027, Official Says

Ukraine could join the European Union as early as January 2027 under the latest US plan to end the war with Russia, a senior source familiar with the matter…

World People stroll along Marunouchi Naka-dori Street illuminated with winter lights Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Strong Quake Causes Small Tsunami Waves Off Northeastern Japan

A 6.7 magnitude earthquake shook northeastern Japan and caused small tsunami waves but no apparent damage Friday, days after a stronger quake in the same…

Asharq Al Awsat
World (COMBO) This combination of pictures created on August 7, 2025 shows US President Donald Trump (L) in Washington, DC, on July 9, 2025, and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro (R) in Caracas on July 31, 2024.  (Photo by Jim WATSON and Federico PARRA / AFP)

US Slaps Sanctions on Maduro Relatives as Venezuela War Fears Build

The US Treasury imposed new sanctions Thursday against three of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro's relatives as well as six companies shipping the South…

Asharq Al Awsat
World (R-L) Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov attend a wreath-laying ceremony at the Turkmenistan Neutrality Monument in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, 12 December 2025. EPA/ALEXANDER SHCHERBAK / SPUTNIK / KREMLIN POOL MANDATORY CREDIT

Russia, Türkiye, Iran Presidents in Turkmenistan for Rare Summit

The leaders of Russia, Türkiye and Iran meet Friday in Turkmenistan, an isolated Central Asian state which is marking 30 years of official neutrality with a…

Asharq Al Awsat