Author: Gulf News Week

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (news agencies) — Three brothers in the Gaza Strip woke up early to run to a local clinic to get “sweets,” their word for the emergency food supplements distributed by aid groups. By the time their father woke up, two of the brothers had been fatally wounded by an Israeli strike and the third had lost an eye.The strike outside the clinic on Thursday in the central city of Deir al-Balah killed 14 people, including 9 children, according to a local hospital, which had initially reported 10 children killed but later said one had died in…

Venus Williams accepted a wild-card invitation to play singles at this month’s DC Open, which would be the seven-time Grand Slam champion’s first tournament in more than a year.Williams, who turned 45 in June, is listed as “inactive” on the WTA Tour’s website.She hasn’t competed in an official match since the Miami Open in 2024.“There’s something truly special about D.C.: the energy, the fans, the history,” Williams said in a statement released Friday by organizers of the hard-court tournament, which begins with qualifying next weekend. “This city has always shown me so much love, and I can’t wait to compete…

Bitcoin has reached yet another all-time high, surpassing $118,000 for the first time on Friday — as a flood of money continues to move into spot bitcoin ETFs, all while U.S. President Donald Trump’s crypto-friendly influence makes its way through Washington.According to data from CoinMarketCap, the going price for bitcoin climbed as high as $118,856 early Friday. It’s since fallen closer to $117,300 around 12:30 p.m. ET — but that’s still over $7,400 higher than what the world’s most popular cryptocurrency was trading at a month ago, and more than double its price this time last year.Spot bitcoin ETFs opened…

Rory McIlroy already has everything he wanted from golf.His dream was to be the best player in the game, which he fulfilled long ago by reaching No. 1 in the world nine times. The tallest mountain took 11 years to climb, and this was truly rarefied air when McIlroy won the Masters in April to complete the career Grand Slam.So joyous was that moment for McIlroy that he figured anything else he achieved in his career would be gravy.“That very well could be the highlight of my career,” McIlroy said of his Masters green jacket and all that came with…

Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun says his country seeks peace with Israel, but is not ready to normalise ties.Lebanon’s president says his country wants peace but not normalisation with Israel, as health authorities said an Israeli air strike killed one person in the south of the country. As well as causing one death on Friday, the drone attack on a car in Nabatieh district wounded five other people, according to Lebanon’s Ministry of Health. It comes as Israel continues to launch regular strikes against sites in Lebanon, particularly in the south, despite a November 27 ceasefire agreement between it and the…

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (news agencies) — Iran’s security services have threatened the life of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi after her native country’s war with Israel, the Norwegian Nobel Committee and activists said Friday. Mohammadi said that the threats have come through both her lawyer and other indirect channels as she’s kept up public statements about the Islamic Republic’s theocracy, women’s rights and others issues, the committee said.“The clear message, in her own words, is that ‘I have been directly and indirectly threatened with ‘physical elimination’ by agents of the regime,’” the committee said in its announcement. The…

NEW ORLEANS (news agencies) — Democrats used a Louisiana town hall Thursday night to preview one of their main strategies for attempting to retake the U.S. House next year, ripping into the health care changes in the just-passed Republican tax and spending bill.The top House Democrat, Hakeem Jeffries, said the event in the home state of House Speaker Mike Johnson was the first stop on a nationwide tour to educate voters about the bill, which he called “an all-out assault against the American people.” He also noted that Republicans had promised not to touch Medicaid, the government health insurance program…

LAS VEGAS (news agencies) — Cooper Flagg may not have been happy with his professional debut on Thursday night in the NBA Summer League, but he still drew some rave reviews after the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Los Angeles Lakers, 87-85. “Super fun to play with, he’s a super unselfish guy,” teammate Ryan Nembhard said. “All he wants to do is win. Can guard five positions, can score the ball really well.”Flagg finished with 10 points on 5-for-21 shooting, including 0 for 5 from 3-point range. The rookie also had six rebounds, four assists, three steals and the biggest block…

KYIV, Ukraine (news agencies) — A Russian drone barrage targeted the center of Kharkiv on Friday, injuring nine people and damaging a maternity hospital in Ukraine’s second-largest city, officials said.Mothers with newborns were being evacuated to a different medical facility, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov wrote on Telegram. He didn’t say whether anyone at the hospital was among the injured.Russia’s recent escalation of long-range Shahed drone attacks on Ukrainian cities, which often also include ballistic and cruise missiles as well as powerful glide bombs, has brought renewed urgency to efforts to improve Ukraine’s air defenses after more than three years of…

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (news agencies) — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi agreed Friday to explore “areas of potential cooperation” between Washington and Beijing, and stressed the importance of managing differences, following their first in-person meeting as they wrapped up a two-day regional security forum in Malaysia.Rubio and Wang met Friday on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, regional forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as tensions between the two global powers continue to rise over trade, security, and China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine.“Look, we’re two big, powerful…