Author: Gulf News Week

PARIS (news agencies) — French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday announced 6.5 billion euros in extra military spending in the next two years because of new and unprecedented threats, from Russia to terrorists to online attacks.The French leader laid out the spending plans in a sweeping speech calling for intensified efforts to protect Europe. He said France will aim to spend 64 billion euros in annual defense spending in 2027, the last year of his second term; that would be double the 32 billion in annual spending when he became president in 2017.″Since 1945, freedom has never been so threatened,…

Authorities send troops to de-escalate the situation after fighting breaks out between Bedouins and Druze.Fighting between Bedouin tribes and local fighters in the predominantly Druze city of Sweida in southern Syria has killed several people. Sunday’s clashes are the first outbreak of deadly violence in the area since fighting between members of the Druze community and security forces killed dozens of people in April and May. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least eight people were killed, six Druze and two Bedouin. Citing medical sources, local outlet Sweida 24 gave a preliminary toll of seven…

NEW YORK (news agencies) — In a bid to kickoff a new era for DC Studios, James Gunn’s “Superman” opened with $122 million in U.S. and Canada ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.DC and Warner Bros. had a lot riding on “Superman.” While the Walt Disney Co.’s Marvel Studios has had its own share of struggles, the superheroes of DC have recently found mostly kryptonite in theaters. Films like “Joker: Folie à Deux,” “The Flash” and “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” all flopped.But “Superman,” written and directed by Gunn, is intended as a new start. It’s…

‘Syria possesses valuable assets,’ says DP World’s CEO, highlighting the country’s economic potential.Syria has finalised an $800m agreement with Dubai-based DP World to redevelop its Tartous port in a bid to speed up post-war reconstruction. State news agency SANA said the deal was signed in Damascus on Sunday between DP World and the General Authority for Land and Sea Ports, in the presence of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Syrian officials described the deal as a key step towards modernising the country’s logistics infrastructure. “This strategic move will bolster our port operations and logistics services,” SANA quoted an unnamed official as…

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (news agencies) — Lionel Messi extended his historic streak to five straight multi-goal games, and Inter Miami snapped Nashville SC’s 15-match unbeaten streak with a 2-1 win on Saturday night.Miami (11-3-5) won its fifth straight match and moved to fifth in the Supporter’s Shield standings as it aims to win the title for the second-straight season. Messi entered Saturday’s match as the only player in Major League Soccer history with four straight multi-goal games after scoring two in Miami’s win over the New England Revolution on Wednesday.And he wasn’t done.Messi opened the scoring Saturday on a free…

President Donald Trump has pledged to deport “the worst of the worst.” He frequently speaks at public appearances about the countless “dangerous criminals” — among them murderers, rapists and child predators — from around the world he says entered the U.S. illegally under the Biden administration. He promises to expel millions of migrants in the largest deportation program in American history to protect law-abiding citizens from the violent threats he says they pose.But government data around ongoing detentions tells a different story.There has been an increase of arrests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement since Trump began his second term,…

EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France (news agencies) — Grace Kim delivered one stunning shot after another Sunday in the Evian Championship, starting with an eagle to force a playoff and another eagle to beat Jeeno Thitikul on the second extra hole to make her first LPGA win a major title.Kim, whose 2-foot eagle putt on the par-5 18th in regulation gave her a 4-under 67, looked to be just as surprised as everyone else when she rolled in a 12-foot eagle putt to win the playoff. The 24-year-old Australian calmly placed her hand over her mouth and stood still before doubling over and…

More details emerge on June assassination attempt on President Masoud Pezeshkian and other officials by Israel.Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian suffered minor injuries in an Israeli air strike on a meeting of the Supreme National Security Council in Tehran on June 15, a senior Iranian official said. The assassination attempt targeted the heads of the three branches of government in an effort to overthrow it, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. “This attempt will not pass without Israel paying a price,” he told media. The strike was carried out shortly before noon during a meeting attended by the heads…

BRIDGEWATER, NJ (news agencies) — NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is set to meet President Donald Trump this week on the heels of the U.S. leader announcing plans to sell NATO allies weaponry that it can then pass on to Ukraine.NATO in a statement said Rutte will be in Washington on Monday and Tuesday and would meet with Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as well as Congress. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the visit.The visit comes as Trump last week teased that he would make a…

NEW YORK (news agencies) — Nursing homes already struggling to recruit staff are now grappling with President Donald Trump’s attack on one of their few reliable sources of workers: immigration.Facilities for older adults and disabled people are reporting the sporadic loss of employees who have had their legal status revoked by Trump. But they fear even more dramatic impacts are ahead as pipelines of potential workers slow to a trickle with an overall downturn in legal immigration.“We feel completely beat up right now,” says Deke Cateau, CEO of A.G. Rhodes, which operates three nursing homes in the Atlanta area, with…