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Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei Darussalam met with His Excellency Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi. During the meeting in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital and largest city of Brunei, HE the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs conveyed the greetings of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, to the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam, along with His Highness's wishes for the Sultan of Brunei's continued health and happiness, and for the government and people of Brunei Darussalam continued progress and prosperity.For his part, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah entrusted HE the Minister to convey his greetings to His Highness the Amir, wishing him continued health and happiness, and the State of Qatar continued progress, development, and prosperity. Discussion during the meeting focused on the two countries' bilateral relations and ways to strengthen and develop them, in addition to a host of topics of mutual interest.

The top military officers of South Korea and the United States on Monday assessed that "meaningful progress" has been made to meet the conditions for Seoul to retake wartime operational control (OPCON) from Washington, the South's military said.South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Gen. Jin Yong-sung and his US counterpart, Gen. Dan Caine, discussed such details during the 50th Military Committee Meeting held in Seoul, according to the South's JCS. It marked their first in-person talks in three months."They agreed to continue efforts to meet the conditions required for achieving the OPCON transition and strengthen the alliance's combined defense posture," the military said in a release, cited by Yonhap News Agency."Gen. Jin and Gen. Caine have the same understanding of the meaningful progress made across various fields, as confirmed through the annual evaluation conducted in accordance with the bilaterally agreed-upon standards of conditions-based operational control transition plan," it said.The talks came as South Korea has vowed to regain OPCON from Washington within President Lee Jae Myung's five-year term that ends in 2030.In the meeting, Jin and Caine also held discussions on alliance modernization and agreed to enhance the alliance's capabilities, interoperability and combined readiness posture to better respond to the changing security environment and "emerging" threats, the military said.They noted that the security environment in the Indo-Pacific has become "increasingly complex" due to North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile threats, as well as an intensifying global arms race.The two sides concurred on the importance of developing an "ever-stronger" combined defense posture under the allies' mutual defense treaty and pledged utmost efforts to ensure peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula but in the region.

US President Donald Trump said today that ongoing negotiations between the United States and the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) to end the war in the Gaza Strip and secure the release of prisoners are making rapid progress. In a statement posted on his social media platforms, Trump said the talks have been very successful and proceeding quickly, adding that technical teams are expected to meet again in Egypt later today to finalize the details of the agreement. He noted that the first phase of the agreement is scheduled to begin this week, urging all parties to move swiftly to end the suffering and achieve peace. The US President said the agreement his administration is seeking to conclude between Israel and Hamas represents a great deal for Israel, welcoming Hamas's response, which included its acceptance of several key provisions of the 20-point US proposal. The plan includes a cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, and the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Trump stressed that his plan aims to end the conflict and restore stability to the region. However, he warned that he would completely eliminate Hamas if it refuses to relinquish power and hand over control of the Gaza Strip, as stipulated in the agreement. This development comes amid intensified regional and international diplomatic efforts, led by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States, to reach a comprehensive agreement that would end the ongoing war in Gaza, pave the way for reconstruction, and establish lasting humanitarian and political stability in the Strip.

Katara Cultural Village has opened the “Progress and Procession Museum” exhibition to feature artworks and paintings and calligraphy.The exhibition by Qatari artist Khawla Mohamed Abdulaziz al-Mannai was opened by Katara general manager Prof Dr Khalid bin Ibrahim al-Sulaiti in the presence of representatives of diplomatic missions, artists and art enthusiasts.To run until September 13 at Hall 2 of Building 18 at Katara, the exhibition features nearly 80 diverse artworks combining textiles, realistic, abstract and impressionistic painting along with Arabic calligraphy.It documents al-Mannai's career from her debut in 1990 to 2025 while reflecting the stages of artistic life she has gone through from study and learning to creativity and participation in local and international exhibitions.The exhibition highlights the richness of her artistic experience and the diversity of her styles and techniques.Through her paintings, she presents multiple artistic schools that reveal the interweaving of memories and personal experiences.It also addresses cultural themes with a local flavour such as horses, women, the lighthouse and the sewing machine, opening windows onto the past.The exhibition draws inspiration from other elements influenced by her exposure to diverse global cultures while highlighting the importance of art in building bridges of communication between civilisations.The works on display reflect al-Mannai’s precision and patience as well as the depth of her philosophy, which combines creativity and skill.Thus, the exhibition provides an opportunity for visitors to gain a closer insight into the artist’s creative journey and discover her artistic vision.Al-Mannai studied art in Qatar, learning textile science at Helwan University in Egypt before developing her artistic style while studying abstract art at the University of the Arts in Britain.She believes that artistic style is born of the moment and the idea, and therefore expresses her art in a variety of ways.She has participated in numerous exhibitions both inside and outside Qatar representing the country at international art forums.Among her most notable works is the painting *A Woman from the Past, which was exhibited in Morocco, Britain and France in collaboration with the former ministry of information and the Amiri Diwan.Throughout her career, she received several painting awards from Qatar and the Gulf states and was honoured in Kuwait in 2019 for her research on *Sadu weaving.Al-Mannai was also honoured by the ruler of Sharjah in recognition of her efforts in collecting folk tales.A number of her works has been acquired by prestigious museums and institutions, while two of her textile paintings are on display in a Swiss museum.These works were created with love and dedication, especially those that depict the names of God and verses from the Holy Qur'an.