This year Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana announced that the nine days of Vegetarian Festival events are expected to generate some B2 billion in tourism revenue for the island. Many devotees attending the Nine Emperor Gods Festival, which is celebrated for nine days on the first evening of the ninth Chinese Lunar month, slash themselves with swords and pierce their cheeks with sharp skewers for the festival. Moreover, participants commit other painful acts like walking over burning coals to prove their devotion, according to the daily mail.

Thousands of Kurds gathered in Syria’s northern Qamishli city, Wednesday to rally against "exclusion" from a United Nations-backed committee tasked with drafting a new constitution. On September 23, the UN unveiled new formation of the committee which is said to include 150 members, split evenly between Syria's government, the opposition and Syrian civil society. However, Protestors raised banners demanding the right for the Kurdish majority bodies to partake in reforming Syria’s constitution. Signs were reading “A constitution we don’t participate in drafting does not matter to us.” and "It's our ...

An indefinite curfew came into effect early Thursday in Iraq's capital after two days of chaotic protests across the country. Iraqi premier Adel Abdel Mahdi ordered the ban on movements across Baghdad to stem the popular demonstrations over widespread unemployment and state corruption. Since erupting in Baghdad on Tuesday, the protests have spread to other cities in the country's south. Riot police in the capital have used water cannons, tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds in an attempt to disperse protesters from the central Tahrir Square and other areas ...

Check out the following celebrities lookalikes as if they are twins, especially Shahrukh Khan's lookalike!

China celebrated its 70 years of Communist Party rule on Tuesday, October 1st, 2019 at Beijing's Tiananmen Square. During the ceremony President Xi Jinping said nothing could stymie China's progress. He called for unity while stating China is "committed to the strategy of peaceful reinforcement of one country, two systems," referring to Hong Kong unrest. On the other hand, Hong Kong protesters, activists planned for the biggest showdown yet in nearly four months of clashes between demonstrators and police. These took place on the same day of the celebrations.

World leaders have joined mourners in Paris to pay their final respects to the former French president Jacques Chirac. The Elysée declared Monday, September 30 a national day of mourning in France after the former president, prime minister, and mayor of Paris died on Thursday at the age of 86. Former US President Bill Clinton and Russia's Vladimir Putin are among dozens of past and present world leaders attending a memorial service for France's Jacques Chirac. The funeral service is taking place at the Church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris' 6th ...

Egyptian actress Sherine Abdel Wahab has been criticized for kissing her husband Hossam Habib's hand on stage during a concert in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, during the Saudi National Day celebrations. Some people explained Sherine's kiss is to portrait herself in the image of an obedient oriental woman to her husband, and not the controversial star known for her strong and daring personality. Abdel Wahab has been criticized for the hand kiss, especially that such stereotypes of women's submission to men are no longer existing in this era, while others considered ...

Dubai Garden Glow in Zabeel Park, which was launched in 2015, changes its main theme every year. The garden has revealed three new themes to the park last year: the Glowing Safari brings dozens of new animal sculptures, the Ice Park boasts creations made from more than 5,000 tons of ice as well as the Art Park. Also, the Dubai Garden Glow is reusing fabric to create awe-inspiring installations every year, to power the garden with LEDs that consume less power to preserve the environment.

People from across Senegal converged on the capital Dakar for the inauguration of a huge mosque, claimed to be the largest in West Africa. The mosque has been built by the Mouride Brotherhood - part of the Sufi strand of Islam that predominates in Senegal, a country with a long tradition of religious tolerance. Work on the mosque began a decade ago. The mosque's name of Massalikul Jinaan ("The Paths to Paradise") comes from the title of a poem by Sheikh Ahmadou Bamba Mbacke, the 19th-century founder of the Brotherhood ...

The 74th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 74) opened on 17 September 2019. During the week of the debate, several high-level events were highlighted. All 193 Member States of the UN are represented in the General Assembly which is one of the six main organs of the United Nations. This annual meeting discuss a wide array of international issues covered by the UN Charter such as development, peace and security, international law, etc. The General Assembly in New York is a unique forum held every September in New ...

Last Tuesday, Mohamad Sandakli was crowned Mr. Lebanon 2019 by Lebanese diva Haifa Wehbe. In this occasion, let us remember Lebanese beauty in Mr. Lebanon contest for the past 7 years.