- NewsArab News
Pope Francis delivers impassioned plea for peace as historic Iraq visit gets underway
ROME/BAGHDAD: Pope Francis on Friday called for an end to extremism, violence and corruption as his historic visit to Iraq got underway. He began the first-ever papal trip to the country by meeting government officials in Baghdad, before traveling to a church where Christians were massacred by militants in 2010. He was greeted at Baghdad’s International Airport by Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi and treated to a display of traditional dancing.
- PoliticsAl Arabiya English
Iran's Revolutionary Guard says passenger plane hijacking disrupted
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard on Friday said authorities disrupted the attempted hijacking of a passenger plane in flight the night before, though it offered few details on what happened. The purported hijacking targeted an Iran Air Fokker 100 regional commercial jet heading from the southwestern city of Ahvaz to the northwestern city of Mashhad, the Guard said on its website. For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
- HealthAl Arabiya English
UAE prioritized early availability, local production in picking Sinopharm vaccine
The United Arab Emirates hinged its inoculation program on the vaccine developed by China’s Sinopharm Group, given early availability and the potential to produce the shots locally. The UAE, which has one of the fastest vaccine rollouts in the world, entered talks with 23 companies and engaged with them over three main factors, said Omar Najim, executive office director at Abu Dhabi’s Department of Health.
- EntertainmentAl Arabiya English
Love, adultery and betrayal: Biggest British royal TV interviews
QUEEN ELIZABETH The 94-year-old British monarch has never given a formal interview, although she has appeared in TV documentaries about her family and discussed issues relating to specific aspects of royal life. PRINCE CHARLES/PRINCESS DIANA - 1981 Shortly after announcing their engagement to the world, heir-to-the-throne Prince Charles, now 72, and future wife Diana Spencer - Harry's parents - gave an at times uncomfortable TV interview to discuss their relationship.
- PoliticsArab News
Official: Israel upgrading contingency plans for Iran attack
ANKARA: With Turkey hinting at a potential deal with Egypt on exclusive maritime zones in the gas-rich Eastern Mediterranean, the impact of such an agreement on energy transit routes and the political concessions that Turkey might be obliged to make have come under the spotlight. Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Wednesday said that the country wanted to sign a deal over maritime boundaries.
- NewsAl Arabiya English
Pope Francis arrives in Iraq's Najaf to meet top Shia cleric Sistani
Pope Francis began a historic meeting with Iraq’s top Shia cleric Ali al-Sistani on Saturday, in a powerful appeal for coexistence in a land torn by sectarianism and violence. Francis’s meeting in the holy southern city of Najaf, during a whirlwind and risky tour of Iraq, marked the first time a pope has met with such a senior Shia cleric. State-owned Ekhbariya television showed the pope’s large convoy moving through Najaf.
- ScienceAl Arabiya English
Powerful quake hits off New Zealand, prompting evacuations
A powerful magnitude 8.1 earthquake struck in the ocean off the coast of New Zealand on Friday, prompting some evacuations and tsunami warnings across the South Pacific. It was the second large quake to strike within hours. An offshore magnitude 7.3 quake had awoken many people during the night throughout New Zealand.
