Air Arabia increases Bangkok frequency with four daily flights from Sharjah to meet growing regional travel demand across commercial corridors. Travelers navigate modern airport terminal corridors carrying personal luggage and hand baggage. The expanded Bangkok operations complement the airline’s existing schedule to Thailand, which includes 21 weekly non-stop flights between Sharjah and Phuket. With the addition of the fourth daily Bangkok frequency, Air Arabia will operate a combined total of 49 weekly non-stop flights between its primary Sharjah hub and Thai destinations. The route expansion strengthens air connectivity between the Arabian Gulf and major Southeast Asian tourism and trade centers. According to official fleet disclosures, the route will be serviced by the airline’s fleet of Airbus A320 and Airbus A321 aircraft. The single-aisle aircraft are equipped with cabin seating configurations designed to optimize passenger comfort while maintaining low-cost operational efficiency. Onboard amenities for the non-stop route include the SkyTime complimentary in-flight streaming entertainment system and the SkyCafe catering service. Air Arabia increases Bangkok frequency with four daily flights from Sharjah as aviation operators across the Middle East expand international network capacities ahead of the peak winter travel season. Airbus A320 and A321 Aircraft Fleet Deployed Across Expanded Network In an official corporate statement, Air Arabia Group Chief Executive Officer Adel Al Ali emphasized the importance of the Thai market within the carrier’s international route portfolio. Al Ali noted that the operational expansion reflects sustained passenger demand for affordable air travel options between the UAE and Southeast Asia. He added that providing four daily services to
Petroleum prices increased by 14.2% from August 2025, adding further pressure on household transportation expenses. Diesel costs surged by 19.6%, while gasoline prices saw an 11.5% rise. These petroleum products contributed 0.54 percentage points to the overall inflation rate. Transportation prices as a whole increased by 7.2% year-over-year. The government indicated that nationwide fuel price caps reduced August’s inflation rate by approximately 0.3 percentage points, partly counteracting the effect of rising energy costs.
Business
South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves rose by a record monthly amount in August, reaching $442.28 billion at month-end. The Bank of Korea reported an increase of $14.33 billion from $427.95 billion at the end of July. The gain was the largest since official reserve records began in 1971. It also lifted the country’s holdings to their highest level since May 2022, marking a sharp acceleration from the smaller increases recorded during the previous two months.
Health
Health teams in Congo continue Ebola testing, contact tracing and treatment. In the region of Bundibugyo, the Ebola outbreak has become the largest and most lethal in Congo’s history, ranking as the second-largest Ebola epidemic globally after the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak. Ituri province continues to be the primary epicenter, accounting for approximately 85% of confirmed cases and 88% of reported deaths, thus representing the most severely affected area during this health crisis. According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, health teams have yet to trace every transmission pathway. Many recent fatalities involved individuals who did not appear on known contact lists. The persistence of community deaths and unsafe burials further hampers containment efforts. The Africa CDC reported that over 60% of deaths in the past week occurred in community settings rather than health facilities. Response efforts are being scaled up by health authorities Across affected zones, the World Health Organization has increased laboratory testing, treatment capacity, and operational deployment. Over 330 tonnes of emergency supplies have been delivered by WHO, along with more than 300 experts dispatched to support response initiatives. Currently, there are 24 laboratories closer to impacted communities—compared to only one national reference lab at the start of the response. Daily testing capacity has now reached roughly 3,000 tests, while treatment and isolation beds across 49 facilities total more than 1,300. The Bundibugyo virus currently has no approved vaccine
Health authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo began administering Ebola vaccinations in Kisangani on Thursday, launching a targeted campaign in the capital of Tshopo Province to protect frontline responders. The initiative prioritizes healthcare workers, emergency response teams, and individuals with direct contact with confirmed patients as the country confronts its deadliest recorded Ebola outbreak.
This initiative involves open-platform testing kits that laboratories can integrate with their current systems. The procurement process received support from the European Health and Digital Executive Agency. Shipments are scheduled to commence in August, as health teams respond to a significant outbreak centered in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and impacting neighboring regions. PCR testing support strengthens the international response to Ebola in DR Congo. By August, the World Health Organization will facilitate the distribution of these tests through its Hub for Global Health Emergencies Logistics located in Dubai. WHO will oversee the distribution to various sites involved in the Ebola response. PCR testing enables laboratories to verify infections and enhance surveillance efforts around known cases. Confirmed test results inform patient treatment, isolation procedures, and contact tracing efforts. This latest supply package expands laboratory capabilities at a critical time when authorities continue to track the virus’s transmission across multiple provinces and health zones in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
As the Ebola crisis expands, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has obtained an allocation of 70,000 Ebola vaccine doses. The country’s health authorities reported 5,208 confirmed cases and 2,476 deaths by Aug. 18. Currently, the epidemic affects 56 health zones across six provinces. Additionally, 1,115 recoveries have been documented, while 730 patients remain hospitalized or isolated as response teams continue their efforts in eastern and northeastern regions of DR Congo.
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Air Arabia increases Bangkok frequency with four daily flights from Sharjah to meet growing regional travel demand across commercial corridors. Travelers navigate modern airport terminal corridors carrying personal luggage and hand baggage. The expanded Bangkok operations complement the airline’s existing schedule to Thailand, which includes 21 weekly non-stop flights between Sharjah and Phuket. With the addition of the fourth daily Bangkok frequency, Air Arabia will operate a combined total of 49 weekly non-stop flights between its primary Sharjah hub and Thai destinations. The route expansion strengthens air connectivity between the Arabian Gulf and major Southeast Asian tourism and trade centers. According to official fleet disclosures, the route will be serviced by the airline’s fleet of Airbus A320 and Airbus A321 aircraft. The single-aisle aircraft are equipped with cabin seating configurations designed to optimize passenger comfort while maintaining low-cost operational efficiency. Onboard amenities for the non-stop route include the SkyTime complimentary in-flight streaming entertainment system and the SkyCafe catering service. Air Arabia increases Bangkok frequency with four daily flights from Sharjah as aviation operators across the Middle East expand international network capacities ahead of the peak winter travel season. Airbus A320 and A321 Aircraft Fleet Deployed Across Expanded Network In an official corporate statement, Air Arabia Group Chief Executive Officer Adel Al Ali emphasized the importance of the Thai market within the carrier’s international route portfolio. Al Ali noted that the operational expansion reflects sustained passenger demand for affordable air travel options between the UAE and Southeast Asia. He added that providing four daily services to
The United Nations General Assembly adopted a international resolution on Friday calling for more accurate and balanced representations of relative continental landmasses on global maps. In a recorded vote that secured support from 107 member states, the global assembly addressed cartographic distortions that disproportionately minimize the geographical scale of Africa and other equatorial regions across the Global South. UN adopts resolution to correct world map representation as diplomatic delegations take formal action to resolve historical biases embedded within traditional cartographic standards.
South Korea and African partner nations are set to inaugurate a significant economic cooperation initiative centered on artificial intelligence and technology-led progress during the 8th Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation Ministerial Conference in Seoul. This upcoming event commemorates the 20th anniversary of the bilateral partnership, bringing together cabinet ministers, development financiers, and tech industry leaders. Confirmed official statements reveal Korea and Africa are charting new directions in AI digital infrastructure deployment across emerging trade routes, reflecting on two decades of joint capital investments.
South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves rose by a record monthly amount in August, reaching $442.28 billion at month-end. The Bank of Korea reported an increase of $14.33 billion from $427.95 billion at the end of July. The gain was the largest since official reserve records began in 1971. It also lifted the country’s holdings to their highest level since May 2022, marking a sharp acceleration from the smaller increases recorded during the previous two months.
Health teams in Congo continue Ebola testing, contact tracing and treatment. In the region of Bundibugyo, the Ebola outbreak has become the largest and most lethal in Congo’s history, ranking as the second-largest Ebola epidemic globally after the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak. Ituri province continues to be the primary epicenter, accounting for approximately 85% of confirmed cases and 88% of reported deaths, thus representing the most severely affected area during this health crisis. According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, health teams have yet to trace every transmission pathway. Many recent fatalities involved individuals who did not appear on known contact lists. The persistence of community deaths and unsafe burials further hampers containment efforts. The Africa CDC reported that over 60% of deaths in the past week occurred in community settings rather than health facilities. Response efforts are being scaled up by health authorities Across affected zones, the World Health Organization has increased laboratory testing, treatment capacity, and operational deployment. Over 330 tonnes of emergency supplies have been delivered by WHO, along with more than 300 experts dispatched to support response initiatives. Currently, there are 24 laboratories closer to impacted communities—compared to only one national reference lab at the start of the response. Daily testing capacity has now reached roughly 3,000 tests, while treatment and isolation beds across 49 facilities total more than 1,300. The Bundibugyo virus currently has no approved vaccine