Courier de l'Égypte - News from Cairo, the political, economic and cultural centre of Egypt and the whole world

Being in Mecca has been nothing short of blissful for Hassan Qadiri, where participating in the festivities of the hajj pilgrimage is a welcome relief after weeks of devastating war back home in Iran.

The Swiss will vote next month on an initiative to cap the population at 10 million -- an anti-immigration proposal that is fracturing public opinion in the wealthy Alpine nation.

India's ruling Hindu-nationalist party has ordered detention centres for undocumented Bangladeshis and Rohingyas in West Bengal state, sparking fear among minorities that it could lead to arbitrary expulsions.

Oil prices fell and Asian stocks climbed on Monday over hopes a deal between the United States and Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz could be brokered.

Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev was the only athlete to "beat" a world record Sunday at the Enhanced Games, winning the men's 50m freestyle at the divisive event where competitors were free to take performance-enhancing substances.

Veteran batting great Virat Kohli and 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will be in the spotlight as the T20 Indian Premier League spans the generations in the playoffs beginning on Tuesday.

Born to landless Indian farmers, Sunil Pooniya thought a job at sea would be his ticket out of poverty, instead his first voyage saw him diving into the ocean to escape a deadly attack driven by the Iran war.

As diplomacy intensifies on ending the Iran war, top US diplomat Marco Rubio was spending Monday not in negotiations but at India's world-famous monument to love, the Taj Mahal.

The goal scored by Teboho Mokoena for South African club Mamelodi Sundowns not only won the CAF Champions League final, it could ultimately be worth up to 20 million dollars.

Mohamed Salah struggled to hold back the tears during his final appearance for Liverpool on Sunday after a trophy-filled career with the Anfield outfit.

Andrew Abdo has quit as chief executive of the Australia's National Rugby League and was named Monday as the the new CEO of Tennis Australia.

Over 1.5 million Muslims began filling a vast tent city in the holy city of Mecca on Monday for an annual hajj pilgrimage carried out against the backdrop of hopes for an end to the war in the Middle East.

Chinese tech giant Huawei said on Monday it had developed a new way of making semiconductors that could get around its US-enforced lack of access to the most advanced chipmaking equipment.

A local election in an industrial city in northern Italy is exposing differences over immigration between governing coalition parties and showing how the country's rapidly changing social fabric is shaping politics.

Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev was the only athlete to "beat" a world record at the Enhanced Games in Las Vegas on Sunday, winning the men's 50m freestyle at the divisive event where competitors were allowed to take performance-enhancing substances that have sparked health concerns.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a deal to end the war with Iran could materialise on Monday, as President Donald Trump tempered expectations.

The death toll rose to four Monday in the collapse of a building under construction near the Philippine capital, with more than a dozen people still believed missing, authorities said.

Travis Head and his wife Jessica have been subjected to a barrage of online abuse after the Australian cricketer was embroiled in a spat with India great Virat Kohli during an IPL match.

Oil prices fell and Asian stocks climbed on Monday over hopes a deal between the United States and Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz could be brokered.

Victor Wembanyama scored 33 points and the San Antonio Spurs routed Oklahoma City 103-82 on Sunday to level the NBA Western Conference finals at two games each.

Former chairman of Seven & i Holdings Toshifumi Suzuki, credited for the global success of 7-Eleven convenience stores, has died at the age of 93, the company said Monday.

Activists displayed images of some of Mexico's "disappeared" people near its main football stadium on Sunday, hoping to raise awareness as the country prepares to co-host the World Cup next month.

A high-profile alleged sexual abuse case within a wealthy Thai beer brewing family has prompted a wave of painful accounts from survivors of unconnected abuse in the conservative country.

The death toll rose to three Monday in the collapse of a building under construction near the Philippine capital, with 17 people still believed missing, authorities said.

Lionel Messi was at the center of an injury scare just weeks before the start of the World Cup on Sunday after abruptly exiting Inter Miami's Major League Soccer clash against the Philadelphia Union.

Andrew Abdo has quit as chief executive of the National Rugby League and will take up a new role as head of Tennis Australia, according to media reports Monday.

Juiced-up athletes narrowly failed to "beat" world records in early contests at the first-ever Enhanced Games on Sunday in Las Vegas, despite using performance-enhancing drugs that have sparked health concerns.

Pope Leo XIV will release on Monday his long-awaited manifesto on artificial intelligence (AI), a bid to address ethical and social challenges as the technology rapidly develops worldwide.

Singapore's economy grew six percent year-on-year in the first quarter as demand skyrockets for artificial intelligence chips, balancing the fallout from the Middle East war, the government said Monday.

Lionel Messi exited Inter Miami's Major League Soccer match against Philadelphia Union with an apparent leg injury on Sunday just weeks before the start of the World Cup.

Mikel Arteta had barely wiped away the tears of joy that followed Arsenal's Premier League trophy presentation before he challenged his players to make more history by winning the Champions League.

Quiet and unassuming off the pitch, Jonathan David is already one of Canada's greatest footballers at just 26. Now, as the co‑hosts prepare for the World Cup, the forward hopes to make plenty of noise on the global stage.

To avoid the punishing sun, Inas Gamal abandoned her ambitious plan of spending the days ahead of the hajj praying in Mecca's Grand Mosque and retreated to the comfort of an air-conditioned hotel room to perform her daytime prayers.

While stars of the Spiderman franchise have trended younger over the years -- from Tobey Maguire to Andrew Garfield to Tom Holland -- the new series "Spider-Noir" starring Nicolas Cage explores a more mature version of the web-slinging superhero.

Heat, humidity and thunderstorms are synonymous with summer in many North American regions -- and in a few weeks they could also threaten the 2026 World Cup.

On the ocean floor near the Galapagos Islands, a submersible controlled by scientists came across a mysterious octopus as blue as the ocean and no bigger than a golf ball.

Juiced-up athletes kicked off the first-ever Enhanced Games on Sunday in Las Vegas, where early competitors failed to "beat" official world records despite using performance-enhancing drugs that have sparked health concerns.

Israeli strikes pounded south and east Lebanon Sunday despite a ceasefire as Hezbollah's chief expressed hope for an agreement between Iran and the United States to end the Middle East war that includes Lebanon.

Victor Wembanyama was named to his first All-NBA first team on Sunday but failed by one vote to join Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic as a unanimous selection to the elite squad.