Swedish Royals Announce Birth of Daughter

Sweden's Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia arrive for a gala dinner hosted by Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia at the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden, Monday, May 6, 2024. (Ida Marie Odgaard/Ritzau Scanpix via AP, File)

11:13-8 February 2025 AD ـ 09 Sha’ban 1446 AH

Swedish Royals Announce Birth of Daughter

It's a girl!

Sweden’s Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia announced the birth of their fourth child, a daughter.

The young princess, whose name and photograph have not been released, was born Friday in Stockholm. The royals said the baby weighs 3,645 grams (8 lbs) and is 49 centimeters (19 inches) long.

Her father, Prince Carl Philip, is the son of Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf and fourth in the line of succession. He married Sofia Hellqvist in June 2015. Their daughter joins her brothers, Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel and Prince Julian.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and the government congratulated the family in a statement.

"We wish the family all the best,” Kristersson said.

The king is Sweden’s head of state, but his duties are ceremonial and he holds no political power.

The royal family is hugely popular in Sweden and the monarchy enjoys widespread support despite the egalitarianism that otherwise characterizes society in the Nordic country.

British Royals Choose Historian to Write Queen Biography

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II arrives for a visit to the Royal Academy of Arts in Central London, Britain, 20 March 2018. (EPA)

07:38-19 April 2026 AD ـ 02 Thul-Qi’dah 1447 AH

British Royals Choose Historian to Write Queen Biography

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II arrives for a visit to the Royal Academy of Arts in Central London, Britain, 20 March 2018. (EPA)

Britain's royal family said Sunday that historian Anna Keay would write an official biography of queen Elizabeth II, who died in September 2022 after over 70 years on the throne.

King Charles III had wanted a woman to write the definitive account of his mother's life, according to British media.

Keay, best known for her work chronicling Britain's Republican period between 1649 and 1660, said receiving the job was a "profound honor".

She will have access to Elizabeth's personal and official papers held in the Royal Archives, Buckingham Palace said in a statement.

She will also be able to talk to members of the royal family and the queen's friends and household staff, the palace added.

Keay described Elizabeth as "an extraordinary woman, whose life spanned a century of great change".

"I am deeply grateful to His Majesty The King for entrusting me with this responsibility and for granting me access to her papers, and will do all I can to do justice to her life and work," she said.

Official royal biographies can sometimes reveal unexpected details about the subject's life.

William Shawcross's official biography of Elizabeth's mother, the wife of George VI, revealed how she suffered from bowel cancer in her 60s but was successfully treated.

Varieties

Mounted New York Police Officer and His Horse Corner Suspected Purse Snatcher in Manhattan

A view shows the downtown Manhattan skyline in New York City, US, July 22, 2025. (Reuters)

18:00-17 April 2026 AD ـ 29 Shawwal 1447 AH

Mounted New York Police Officer and His Horse Corner Suspected Purse Snatcher in Manhattan

A view shows the downtown Manhattan skyline in New York City, US, July 22, 2025. (Reuters)

A New York City police officer on horseback nabbed a suspected purse snatcher after chasing her through the streets of Manhattan at full gallop — a wild scene evoking the clip-clopping past of a city where lights, sirens and squad cars are the norm.

The late Wednesday morning pursuit began when the victim reported the theft. The officer — whose name has not been released — and his horse quickly took up the chase that was captured on his bodycam and also by a television news crew that happened to be in the area for an unrelated story.

The officer repeatedly screamed at the suspect to stop running, but she refused while denying she had taken the purse.

The brief hoof chase went along sidewalks, under scaffolding, between parked cars and across streets before the woman was stopped by a pedestrian and then detained by the officer.

The woman was charged with larceny and providing false information. Authorities said she had been convicted of murder in the April 2000 fatal shooting of a cab driver and had served time in prison before being released. She is currently on lifetime parole.

No injuries were reported in the chase.

Varieties

Back on Earth, Artemis II Crew Still Finding their Footing

HOUSTON, TEXAS - APRIL 16: Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen speak during a press conference at the NASA Johnson Space Center on April 16, 2026 in Houston, Texas. Danielle Villasana/Getty Images/AFP

Asharq Al Awsat

08:30-17 April 2026 AD ـ 29 Shawwal 1447 AH

Asharq Al Awsat

08:30-17 April 2026 AD ـ 29 Shawwal 1447 AH

Back on Earth, Artemis II Crew Still Finding their Footing

Nearly a week after their Pacific splashdown, the astronauts who crewed the Artemis II mission that flew around the Moon told reporters Thursday they have yet to fully grasp the magnitude of the moment.

"It's been a week of medical testing, physical testing, doctors, science objectives," mission commander Reid Wiseman said during a press conference at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

"We have not had that decompression," he added.

The 50-year-old led fellow Americans Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian crewmate Jeremy Hansen, on a mission that took them farther into space than anyone has ever gone before.

Adjusting to life on Earth is taking a beat, AFP reported.

"Tomorrow will be one week, and I just was trying to live in a little hole for one week, been off social media, not on the news. So, no, I don't know," Glover, who piloted the mission, told reporters.

Nonetheless, he said his children and neighbors have clued him in to the excitement.

Artemis II was the first crewed mission to venture to the Moon's orbit since 1972, and the only one in history to include a woman, or a Black astronaut, or a non-American. Their voyage was broadcast live by US space agency NASA, and the media coverage of the launch and return to Earth was watched by millions of people.

For Koch, waking up to the reality means remembering gravity has taken hold.

"In the first few days, I thought I was floating. I truly thought I was floating, and I had to convince myself I wasn't," Koch said.

Their mission lasted almost 10 days, but NASA has ambitions to return to the Moon for longer visits to establish a base in preparation for future missions to Mars.

The United States is targeting a lunar landing in 2028, before the end of President Donald Trump's term and a deadline set by rivals in China.

Swedish Royals Announce Birth of Daughter

Swedish Royals Announce Birth of Daughter

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British Royals Choose Historian to Write Queen Biography

British Royals Choose Historian to Write Queen Biography

Mounted New York Police Officer and His Horse Corner Suspected Purse Snatcher in Manhattan

Mounted New York Police Officer and His Horse Corner Suspected Purse Snatcher in Manhattan

Back on Earth, Artemis II Crew Still Finding their Footing

Back on Earth, Artemis II Crew Still Finding their Footing

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