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Social media activists have officially launched the “Kaaba Unites Us” online campaign to celebrate the Hajj Islamic pilgrimage. In a statement on Monday, a group of online activists said Hajj required special attention on the social media as it both united Muslims from all backgrounds and provided a unique way …

US President Donald Trump has designated Brazil a so-called major non-NATO ally of the United States, a move that could potentially facilitate the expansion of Washington’s dominance over the Latin American country. “I hereby designate the Federative Republic of Brazil as a Major Non-NATO Ally of the United States for …

President Michel Aoun warned Lebanese on Thursday of the risk of harsh financial measures from international institutions unless sacrifices are made to save the country from economic crisis. Aoun’s comments in a speech marking army day appeared to raise the possibility of Lebanon having to go to the International Monetary …

Rwanda has closed part of its border with DR Congo, where an Ebola outbreak has killed more than 1,800 people in the past year. At least two people have died from the virus in the past month in the crowded Congolese border city of Goma. It is the worst Ebola …

US officials claim Washington has intelligence that the son and possible successor of Osama bin Laden have been killed, NBC reports. As of yet, the officials have provided few additional details. Three US officials who requested anonymity told NBC that Hamza bin Laden – son of terror leader and founder …

With the Washington Post stuck in a mud-slinging meme war with Senate Republicans and President Donald Trump, the capital’s paper of record has found itself on the receiving end of internet trolls’ meme-cannons. Confused? The sordid saga began Friday when the Post published an op-ed titled “Mitch McConnell is a …

A powerful blast targeting a senior police officer in Pakistan’s Balochistan province has killed at least five people and injured a further 38, six of whom are in serious condition. Two security personnel died in the blast, which also left numerous women and children injured. It remains unclear whether it …

The Chinese government announced Wednesday that it will suspend a program allowing solo tourists from 47 cities to visit Taiwan, amid rising cross-strait tensions. In a statement, China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism said the travel ban would come into force on August 1, effectively banning all individual leisure travel …

Two hurricanes, one of them a Category 3, are moving toward the Hawaiian islands — one heading straight for the island chain and another track slightly south. Hurricane Erick, the larger of the storms, is not expected to make landfall but parts of Hawaii could see increased wind gusts and …

A blogger in Mauritania who drew international attention after he was sentenced to death over blasphemy has been released, his lawyer and campaign group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said. Cheikh Ould Mohamed Ould Mkhaitir, 36, was sentenced to death in 2014 over a Facebook post about Islam but was then …

Saudi Arabia approved a draft agreement on security cooperation with Iraq on Tuesday evening, the Saudi press agency said, in a bid to strengthen ties with the neighboring country. King Salman chaired a cabinet meeting in the city of Neom that tasked the Minister of Interior, Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud, …

Pro-government forces, including Nato allies, killed more civilians in Afghanistan in the first half of 2019 than insurgents did, UN figures show. The unprecedented figures for January to June come amid a ferocious US air campaign against the Taliban. Some 717 civilians were killed by Afghan and Nato-led forces, compared …

Britain Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised on Tuesday to lead Britain out of the European Union on Oct. 31 “no matter what” as sterling tumbled and Ireland warned that the bloc would not be renegotiating the thrice defeated divorce deal. The British pound fell on Tuesday as investors bet Johnson’s …

The Yemeni Parliament expressed its regret for the Arab and international silence towards the continuation of the alliance of Saudi aggression and American sponsorship of committing the terrible massacres against civilians in markets, houses and roads. The Council condemned the massacre carried out by the Saudi-led aggression coalition yesterday in …

A shooting at a Mississippi Walmart left two people dead, an officer wounded and a community in shock. The gunfire broke out Tuesday morning at a store in Southaven, the third-largest city in Mississippi. Both the suspect and an officer who responded to the scene were shot and being treated …

At least 18 people were killed and several injured when a small military plane crashed into a residential area near the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi. Five crew members and 13 civilians were among the dead, rescue services said. The aircraft was on a training flight when it crashed and set …

According to a recent UN report, the number of Yemenis who need humanitarian assistance reached 24.1 million, with the continuation of the Saudi and Emirati aggression, since March 2015. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a report that malnutrition continues to have a significant impact on …

Conditions at a prison in Brazil where 57 inmates were killed in fighting on Monday have been described as “terrible” in an official report. The National Justice Council said that Altamira jail in north-eastern Pará state contained more than double the number of inmates it was built for. It also …

The ruler of Dubai, one of the most high-profile leaders in the Middle East, and his estranged wife are beginning a court battle in London over the welfare of their children. Sheikh Mohammed Al Maktoum’s wife, Princess Haya Bint al-Hussein, is the third female member of his court to run …

Donald Trump signed the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund on Monday at the White House Rose Garden while reminding first responders that he was also in New York City at the time of the historic terror attacks. “I was down there also,” the president said to an audience of 60 …