Author: Gulf News Week
The calm but ruthless Kazakh star defeats the world’s top two players in Melbourne, signaling her intent to dominate women’s tennis. SHARJAH — Elena Rybakina lived up to her “quiet assassin” moniker at the Australian Open, capturing her second Grand Slam title with a composed and powerful 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 victory over world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in Saturday’s final. The Moscow-born Kazakh, seeded fifth, demonstrated why she has been the tour’s in-form player since mid-2025, overcoming a 0-3 deficit in the deciding set to clinch the Melbourne crown. The win marks her 20th victory in her last 21 matches…
Zelensky announces trilateral negotiations on February 4-5, seeking a “dignified end” to the conflict as diplomatic efforts intensify. ABU DHABI – In a significant move to revive peace efforts, President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed on Sunday that Ukraine, the United States, and Russia will hold a new round of high-stakes talks in Abu Dhabi this week. The two-day negotiations, scheduled for February 4 and 5, will bring together envoys from the three nations in a bid to find a path toward ending the nearly two-year-long war. “The dates for the next trilateral meetings have been set,” Zelensky stated in a post…
The pilot comes before Gaza residents begin to pass through the crossing on Monday, Israeli authorities say.Israel says it has partially reopened the critical Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt in a limited capacity.Israel announced on Sunday that the crossing had reopened in a trial. Meanwhile, COGAT, the Israeli military agency that controls aid to Gaza, said in a statement that the crossing was actively being prepared for fuller operation, adding that residents of Gaza would begin to pass through it on Monday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Gaza is on its way to becoming a semi-protectorate,…
Email sent to US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2011 outlines what the sender described as financial and legal opportunities in Libya.A newly released document shows that an associate of late US financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein had outlined plans to pursue access to Libya’s frozen state assets, including seeking potential support from former British and Israeli intelligence officials.The tranche of documents released by the United States Department of Justice on Friday included an email sent to Epstein that outlines what the sender described as financial and legal opportunities linked to political and economic uncertainty in Libya at the…
Israeli forces issue a 48-hour expulsion order to Bedouin families near Ramallah, while a Palestinian in Jerusalem is forced to demolish his own home.Israeli occupation authorities have intensified their campaign of forced displacement across the occupied West Bank, issuing expulsion orders to an entire Bedouin community east of Ramallah and escalating demolition policies in occupied East Jerusalem.The measures come amid a surge in settler violence targeting educational institutions in the Jordan Valley and residential homes in Qalqilya, further shrinking the living space for Palestinians under military occupation. ‘Zone of expulsion’On Sunday morning, Israeli forces raided the Abu Najeh al-Kaabneh Bedouin…
Medical charity has been barred for not providing Israeli authorities with personal details of its staff in the enclave.Israel says it will terminate the humanitarian operations in Gaza of Doctors Without Borders, known by its French acronym MSF, after it failed to provide a list of its Palestinian staff, further depriving Palestinians in the besieged enclave of life-saving assistance.In December, Israel announced it would prevent 37 aid organisations, including MSF, from working in Gaza from March 1 for failing to submit detailed information about their Palestinian employees, drawing widespread condemnation from NGOs and the United Nations.Recommended Stories list of 3…
Celebrations as flight carries dozens of passengers from Port Sudan to Sudanese capital.The international airport in Khartoum has received its first scheduled commercial flight in more than two years as the Sudanese government continues to assert its control over Sudan’s capital city after years of fighting.The Sudan Airways flight travelled to Khartoum from the Red Sea city of Port Sudan on Sunday, carrying dozens of passengers.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3‘Like judgement day’: Sudanese doctor recounts escape from el-Fasherlist 2 of 3Sudan’s war displaced crisis peaks as millions eye return to ruined homeslist 3 of 3Dozens killed…
Iran’s supreme leader accuses the US of aiming to seize his country’s oil and natural gas resources.Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has warned the United States that any attack on his country would result in a “regional war” as US President Donald Trump amasses military assets in the Middle East.“They should know that if they start a war this time, it will be a regional war,” the 86-year-old supreme leader, who has held absolute power for about 37 years, said at an event in downtown Tehran on Sunday.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4US, Iran signal talks to…
Rights advocates say casting doubt over Gaza death toll dehumanised Palestinians as Israel now acknowledges 70,000 killed.In the first 18 days of Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military killed more than 7,000 Palestinians, including nearly 3,000 children, despite growing calls from around the world for a ceasefire.But in the United States, Israel’s top ally, then-President Joe Biden cast doubt over the suffering and death count of Palestinians, as provided by the Ministry of Health in Gaza, to push back against calls for ending the brutal Israeli assault.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Israel cleared…
Move comes after a European Union decision to label the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps a ‘terrorist organisation’.Iran has declared European armies “terrorist groups” after a European Union decision to apply the same designation to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) over a bloody crackdown on recent protests.Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Sunday the decision was made under “Article 7 of the Law on Countermeasures Against the Declaration of the IRGC as a Terrorist Organisation”.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Trump says Iran and US are talking to avert military escalationlist 2 of 3Deadly blast in Iran’s…