Without the hundreds of thousands of worshippers it welcomes every May 13, the vast esplanade of Portugal's Catholic Fatima shrine was nearly empty for its annual celebration for the first time in its century-long history. Closed to the public because of the new coronavirus pandemic, only about 30 employees attended the mass on Wednesday in the small town where three poor shepherd children reported visions of the Virgin Mary in 1917, according to AFP. Last year, 6.3 million people visited the shrine, the country's most renowned pilgrimage site.

In spite of their fears over the coronavirus, hundreds of pious Iranians took advantage of the temporary opening of mosques Wednesday to pray at one of the holiest times of year. The mask-clad faithful for the most part adhered to social distancing guidelines as they sat in designated areas of Reihanat al-Hussein mosque, in west Tehran. Clutching their own prayer mats and Korans, they showed up with their families, including a couple with a baby, and appeared to be in high spirits.

Anti-government protests have resumed in Hong Kong as restrictions in the city began to ease, following a period of enforced calm due to the coronavirus pandemic. Riot police chased protesters through Hong Kong's shopping malls and streets on Sunday as democracy activists launched Mother's Day flash mob rallies calling for independence and for the city's unpopular leader to resign. The semi-autonomous Chinese city was convulsed by seven straight months of often violent pro-democracy protests last year with millions hitting the streets Mass arrests and the coronavirus pandemic ushered in a ...

Finding your passion and call in life is not easy. But once found, it becomes your gate to excellence, uniqueness and being distinguished in a very competitive market. A lot of social media influencers started their journeys by blogging/vlogging about their passions in life. Armed with dedication, perseverance and ambition; successful influencers transformed their success on social media to flourishing businesses. Here are 6 phenomenal Arab influencers who paved their own path in the worlds of social media and entrepreneurship.

Iraq’s new government of Mustafa al-Kadhimi, sworn in on Thursday after months of political deadlock, which triggered young protesters' anger pushing them to return to the streets of Baghdad and other southern cities on Saturday night to oppose the cabinet. Demonstrators in Baghdad called for the downfall of the regime, which they accuse of being part of the same “corrupt” former government. Moreover, the new Iraqi PM Mustafa al-Kadhimi vowed justice and compensation to relatives of people killed in last year's mass protests.

Visitors wearing face masks streamed into Shanghai Disneyland as China's most prominent theme park reopened Monday. The park, which closed Jan. 25, will limit visitor numbers and is keeping some attractions closed in line with social distancing guidelines, company executives said. China, where the pandemic began in December, was the first economy to shut down and the first to reopen after the ruling party declared the disease under control in early March. The reopening adds to efforts by companies and the ruling Communist Party to revive the world's second-largest economy ...

Egyptian belly dancer Fifi Abdou hosted a new prank show in Ramadan 2020 called Khalli Balak Min Fifi (Be Careful of Fifi). The idea of the show is host a celebrity guest at Fifi's villa, then bring in a maid who she claims to be haunted. Check out some of Fifi's guests.

Thousands of troops paraded before crowds of spectators in Minsk Saturday to mark 75 years since the defeat of Nazi Germany as Belarus held a celebration of Victory Day despite the coronavirus pandemic. Neighbouring Russia cancelled its Victory Day parade over the pandemic and Belarus was the only ex-Soviet country with reported cases to hold the annual event. President Alexander Lukashenko, who has been dismissive of the pandemic and the "psychosis" around the virus, watched in military uniform with top brass as some 4,000 troops marched past and planes and ...

A Palestinian youth swings a homemade sparkler firework as people celebrate on a night of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Rafah refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip. Rafah Camp is one of eight Palestinian refugee camps in the Gaza Strip. The camp is the second-largest refugee camp in Palestine. Originally home to 41,000 refugees who had fled from the hostilities of the 1948 war, Rafah is now home to more than 125,304 refugees. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, observed by Muslims worldwide as ...

As dusk settles on the forest of gutted buildings around them, Tareq Abu Ziad and his family break the Ramadan fast on the remains of their home. The northern Syrian town of Ariha looks like the scene of a monster earthquake -- a silent, grey sea of loose cinder blocks and mangled iron rods. Abu Ziad had to make a little clearing in the rubble on his roof to lay three foam mattresses for his wife and children to sit on as they share their meal. "Now my family and ...

Save for an absence of gawping crowds, life for the penguins of Hong Kong's Ocean Park has been much the same during the coronavirus pandemic -- but their carers have worked long shifts to keep the monochrome troupe healthy. Piles of fresh snow have been laid out as some 100 penguins excitedly gather for the mid-morning feeding session. Usually, this daily ritual at the South Pole Spectacular would be a major draw. But the park is still shut because of the coronavirus outbreak.