I am sick of being warned, or not warned, about interacting with certain people, as casually (Molly Ringwald’s words, not mine) as talking about the weather. “Bring an umbrella. There is a man spitting on you from a great height and it is easier to treat it as though it is raining.” “If you have lunch with him, know that he ...

Iran’s supreme leader has said his country will not take heed of “rants and whoppers of a foul-throated US president”, in a speech that also made clear that Tehran will not be the first to violate the nuclear deal. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in his first reaction since Donald Trump decertified the Iran deal, said on Wednesday that “we will not tear ...

Saudi authorities have taken an “unprecedented” step to tackle Islamic extremism by setting up a council of scholars to vet religious teachings around the world. A royal order issued this week by King Salman established a global body of elite scholars based in the holy city of Medina to root out and “eliminate fake and extremist texts”. The King Salman ...

Egypt says archaeologists have discovered the head of a wooden statue, likely belonging to a female regent who ruled the country more than 4,000 years ago. Wednesday’s statement by the Antiquities Ministry says the artifact was found in the district of Saqqara, near the ancient Pyramids of Giza. It says the part of the statue is in poor condition and will ...

Dry conditions and strong winds fueled a deadly outbreak of wildfires in California that quickly tore through thousands of acres of forest and residential neighborhoods, killing at least 13 people and injuring over 100 others. More than a dozen fires broke out across the state on Sunday and Monday and destroyed at least 1,500 structures and scorched nearly 100,000 acres ...

Canada has taken the first official step to purchasing used fighter jets from Australia as its dispute with Boeing continues unresolved. The Canadian government has now submitted a formal expression of interest to Australia to acquire the aircraft, Public Services and Procurement Canada confirmed. Canada began discussions in late August with the Australian government to assess the potential purchase of ...

Mohamed Salah scored with a last-gasp penalty to book Egypt a place in the World Cup finals for the first time in 28 years as they edged Congo 2-1 in their dramatic Group E qualifier on Sunday. The Liverpool striker’s two goals put Egypt four points clear with one match left in the preliminary campaign. Salah had given his side ...

Brighton will contest the FA’s charge of violent conduct against forward Tomer Hemed for an alleged stamp on Newcastle’s DeAndre Yedlin, Hemed fired the winner in Brighton’s 1-0 Premier League victory over Newcastle on Sunday but he was involved in an 88th-minute incident with Magpies defender Yedlin. An FA statement read: “Tomer Hemed has been charged for an alleged act ...

egypt has renewed calls for the government to lift its ban on British flights to the tourist resort of Sharm El Sheikh, claiming it is causing serious hardship for businesses and employees. Downing Street imposed a blanket ban on all British flights to Sharm after a Russian charter jet crashed in the Sinai Desert with the loss of 224 lives ...

Hundreds of Lebanese civil servants protested in front of the government’s capital building Tuesday, on the second day of strikes demanding pay in line with a stalled wage hike. Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s Cabinet, which approved the wage hike earlier this summer, put off any decrees until Thursday, when it will reconvene with President Michel Aoun to discuss the matter. ...