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Israel-Gaza war Weekend

Road to Net Zero

Music & On-stage

Fashion & Beauty

Road to Net Zero

Music & On-stage

Fashion & Beauty

Pope Francis

The official church memorial mass for Pope Francis was
held at St Francis Church at the Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

Crowds mourn Pope Francis at memorial mass at Abrahamic Family House

Priests take part in Mass for the late Pope Francis at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City April 23, 2025. REUTERS / Ammar Awad

Holy Land bids farewell to Pope Francis who cared for the region until death

The late Pope Francis speaks to journalists aboard the papal plane called 'Shepherd One' by the media. Photo by Handout (Vatican Media/ AFP

Blessed by the Pope: When The National travelled on ‘Shepherd One’

Monsignor Yoannis Lahzi Gaid flanked by Pope Francis and President Sheikh Mohamed, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, in Abu Dhabi in February 2019. Photo: Ministry of Presidential Affairs

Egyptian aide who served as Pope Francis's 'Arabic voice' pays homage

Louis Sako is the head of Iraq's Chaldean Catholic Church and an outspoken advocate for the country's Christians. AP

Iraq backs head of its Catholic church to succeed Pope Francis

Editor-in-Chief Mina Al-Oraibi meets Pope Francis in Abu Dhabi. Photo: @AlOraibi / X

The lasting legacy of Pope Francis in the Middle East

People gather for prayers in honour of Pope Francis after the announcement of his death, at the Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, on Tuesday. Getty images

World leaders confirm attendance at Pope's tradition-breaking funeral

A parishioner prays for Pope Francis outside St Mary's Church in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Thousands to pray for Pope Francis at special Mass in Dubai

Live updates

Attendees gather at St Peter's Square with St Peter's Basilica in the background ahead of late Pope Francis' funeral in the Vatican on April 26, 2025. Pope Francis, champion of the poor and the Church's first Latin American leader, will be honoured April 26 with a funeral attended by world leaders and tens of thousands of Catholic faithful. The Argentine pontiff, who died on April 21, 2025, aged 88, sought to create a more open-minded Church during his 12-year papacy, and many emotional tributes have been made -- with 250,000 people paying respects at his coffin in St Peter's Basilica. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP)

Thousands arrive at Vatican to pay respects ahead of Pope's funeral

Obituary: Modernising leader who sought to bring Catholic church closer to its followers
Iraq's Cardinal Louis Sako hopes interfaith dialogue will be priority for next pope
'He carried the Middle East in his heart': Arab mourners in the Vatican bid farewell to Pope Francis

ExclusiveIEA chief: Geopolitical pressures increasing 'by the day' on global energy

Trump open to meeting Khamenei: We're going to make a deal with Iran

India and Pakistan exchange gunfire for second night

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid visits UAE pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka

Weekend edition

A shop selling luxury handbags in Beijing. AFP

Have the top luxury brands lost their sparkle - or is it just handbags at dawn?

Quiz of the week

Find out how well you’ve kept up with the news of the past seven days

Getty

Weekend EssayThe Arctic and the Gulf have more in common than you think

Photo: UN

Trump, the UN and the art of the deal: Could the world body be Doge's next victim?

Filipino basketball culture in the UAE gif for shorthand

Special reportLove of basketball unites UAE’s Filipino community

Salt domes on Sir Baniyas Island. Research suggests these formations could be an asset to Abu Dhabi for the pursuit of net-zero targets. Andrew Henderson / The National

How Abu Dhabi's salt domes could help the UAE reach its net-zero targets

Shamy El Vaz and Karim Abdenour founded the Kabyle band Les Abranis in the late 1960s. Photo: MLP Music

From indigenous Algerian funk to 1990s sci-fi, physical media picks for May

Mohammed Riyadh on the Tigris in Baghdad

Iraqi rower charts course from Tigris to international competition

Video

A Gaza boy’s fight to see again

Having lost one eye in an Israeli ammunition explosion, seven-year-old Mohamed needs surgery abroad to have any chance of saving his sight in the other

More videos

Tributes pour in a day before Pope Francis's funeral

Tributes pour in a day before Pope Francis's funeral

IEA chief Fatih Birol warns deficit in copper threatens clean energy transition

IEA chief Fatih Birol warns deficit in copper threatens clean energy transition

India and Pakistan exchange fire across the Line of Control in Kashmir

India and Pakistan exchange fire across the Line of Control in Kashmir

Lebanon seeks $300m to sustain social support

Lebanon seeks $300m to sustain social support

Headlines

Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shaibani speaks at the UN Security Council on April 25. AP

Syria sanctions undermining national recovery, says Foreign Minister

Asaad Al Shaibani tells UN Security Council that punitive measures imposed on Assad regime are deterring investment in Syria’s reconstruction

Trump administration to restore foreign students' legal status

Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the killing of UnitedHealth Group chief executive Brian Thompson, stands in prison clothes with his lawyers during his appearance in New York Federal Court on April 25 in this courtroom sketch. Reuters

Not guilty plea to death penalty charge in killing of executive

Spring meetings are chance to bring Syria back into international fold, IMF's Jihad Azour says

Muslim pilgrims arrive to perform the symbolic 'stoning of the devil' ritual as part of the hajj pilgrimage. AFP

Saudi Arabia arrests fraudsters behind fake Hajj campaigns

Spain scraps order for millions of bullets from Israel

Lebanon summons Iran envoy over Hezbollah disarmament criticism

LatestIsrael threatens intensifying assault on Gaza if hostages are not returned

El Sisi hails success of peace deal with Israel as tension rises

In focus

Next week marks 100 days of the second Trump term, and an interesting new milestone could be coming into view: the high-water mark of the 78-year-old leader's power. EPA

CommentTrump's next 100 days could be a lot harder for him

Chris Eubank Jr, left, and Conor Benn face off ahead of the middleweight fight. Getty Images

Eubank talks of 'pain' of losing brother who died in Dubai ahead of Benn fight

Egyptian novelist Mohamed Samir Nada has won the 2025 International Prize for Arabic Fiction for The Prayer of Anxiety. Victor Besa / The National

How Arabic fiction prize winner captures region’s deepest fears

Sharks of every kind have a fearsome reputation in the public imagination. Jenny Stock / Underwater Photographer of the Year

Jaws legacy: When people, not sharks, are at fault for attacks

Dave Chappelle will return to the UAE capital after a record-breaking performance in 2024. Photo: Live Nation Middle East

UAE gigs and shows guide, from Dave Chappelle to Metallica

John Hamm's character Coop steals watches from his ultra-rich social circle in Your Friends & Neighbors. Photo: Apple

Could stolen Richard Mille really be sold in Your Friends & Neighbors?

Pyramids goalkeeper Ahmed El Shenawy remonstrates with teammates during the 0-0 draw with Orlando Pirates in their CAF Champions League semi-final first leg. Reuters

Serial winners Al Ahly and upstarts Pyramids look to make home advantage count

The closing ceremony of the 11th Saudi Film Festival took place at Ithra Theater, featuring the Golden Palm Awards in the official competitions. Photos: Ahmed Al-Thani

Saudi director on how the kingdom's dedication to the film industry is paying off

Uber's chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi praised the company's partnerships in the UAE revolving around self-driving cars. Bloomberg

Uber CEO talks up UAE driverless vehicle ambitions

What Brussels and Abu Dhabi hope to gain from closer trade ties

S&P sees contained impact of US tariffs on Middle East economies

Culture

Weekly UAE museum and gallery guide: Sama Alshaibi, Shilpa Gupta and more

Now You See Me 3 completes 13-day shoot in Abu Dhabi

Timothee Chalamet on the set of Marty Supreme, for which he collaborated with Khondji. Photo: GC Images

Timothee Chalamet has 'big surprise' in store for Marty Supreme

Beyond the Headlines

Beyond the Headlines

Delve deeper into the biggest stories from the Middle East and around the world

Culture Bites

Culture Bites

Your guide to the arts and culture scene in the UAE

Business Extra

Business Extra

The stories, companies, trends, tech, Innovation and leaders shaping your world

Trending Middle East

Trending Middle East

The top news stories, field reports and insights from the Middle East and beyond

Pictures of the Day

Rajasthan Royals' Yashasvi Jaiswal plays a shot during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, India. AP

Two nuns walk next to the colonnade near the Vatican in Rome. AFP

Monsignor Christophe Zakhia El Kassis presides at a memorial mass for Pope Francis at the Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

Egyptian writer Mohamed Samir Nada wins the International Prize Arabic Fiction 2025 in Abu Dhabi. Ruel Pableo for The National

Wheat grows in circular fields irrigated with groundwater near Iraq's central city of Karbala. AFP

The jacket of a Palestinian child among debris following an Israeli air strike in Gaza city. EPA

Petty Officer Andrew Hansch performs the Last Post during an Anzac Day ceremony prior to the round eight NRL match between the Sydney Roosters and St George Illawarra Dragons at Allianz Stadium in Sydney, Australia. Getty images

People visit the 21st Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition at the National Exhibition and Convention Centre in Shanghai. AFP

Rajasthan Royals' Yashasvi Jaiswal plays a shot during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, India. AP

Two nuns walk next to the colonnade near the Vatican in Rome. AFP

Monsignor Christophe Zakhia El Kassis presides at a memorial mass for Pope Francis at the Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

Egyptian writer Mohamed Samir Nada wins the International Prize Arabic Fiction 2025 in Abu Dhabi. Ruel Pableo for The National

Wheat grows in circular fields irrigated with groundwater near Iraq's central city of Karbala. AFP

The jacket of a Palestinian child among debris following an Israeli air strike in Gaza city. EPA

Petty Officer Andrew Hansch performs the Last Post during an Anzac Day ceremony prior to the round eight NRL match between the Sydney Roosters and St George Illawarra Dragons at Allianz Stadium in Sydney, Australia. Getty images

People visit the 21st Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition at the National Exhibition and Convention Centre in Shanghai. AFP

Rajasthan Royals' Yashasvi Jaiswal plays a shot during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, India. AP

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