News in pictures: Saudi Arabia at EXPO 2020 Dubai, sea temperature rises, Raina hails Dhoni, Chinese vlogger burned, Modi opens tunnel, gang-raped woman commits suicide in India, witch hunt, Trump on COVID...

SAUDI ARABIA AT EXPO 2020 DUBAI TO RECRUIT VOLUNTEERS: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai announced the launch of its volunteering campaign, in partnership with the Emirates Foundation. The initiative aims to attract an estimated 1,000 Saudi nationals to take part in the pavilion activities for the duration of the World Expo from October 2021 to March 2022. Speaking on the initiative, Dr Fahad bin Abdullah Al-Yabis, Commissioner-General and Project Director for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, said: "The volunteers will serve as cultural ambassadors for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Through this unique initiative, we aim to showcase the country's talented Saudi citizens to the world. With its focus on the youth, who are the agents of change, the initiative will significantly advance our efforts to tell the story of a transformational Kingdom." https://gulfnews.com/business https://gulfnews.com/uae

RECORD RISE IN SEA TEMPERATURE: Researchers have found that global warming is driving an unprecedented rise in sea temperatures, including in the Mediterranean sea. Data from the European Union's Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service reveals the threat to the world's seas and oceans from climate change. The Ocean State Report revealed an overall trend globally of surface warming based on evidence from 1993 to 2018, with the largest rise in the Arctic Ocean. "Changes to the ocean have impacted on these (ocean) ecosystem services and stretched them to unsustainable limits," said study authors Karina von Schuckmann and Pierre-Yves Le Traon from European Academy of Science. https://gulfnews.com/world

QUEEN CANCELS ALL EVENTS AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE, WINDSOR CASTLE: The UK's Queen Elizabeth II has cancelled all events at Buckingham Palace and the Windsor Castle for the rest of the year amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has so far infected 469,764 people and killed 42,358 others in the country. In a statement published on its website, the Buckingham Palace said: "In line with current government guidelines, and as a sensible precaution in the current circumstances, there will be no large scale events held at Buckingham Palace or Windsor Castle for the rest of the year." https://gulfnews.com/world

WHY DID CRICKETER SURESH RAINA CONGRATULATED DHONI? Veteran Chennai Super Kings batsman Suresh Raina has congratulated MS Dhoni after the former Indian captain became the most capped played in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL). During Friday's game against SunRisers Hyderabad, Dhoni played his 194th IPL match, surpassing Raina's tally of 193. Raina took to Twitter to congratulate Dhoni and said: "Congratulations Mahi bhai at becoming the most capped IPL player. Happiest that my record is being broken by you." "All the best for the game today and am sure Chennai Super Kings will win this season's IPL," he added. https://gulfnews.com/sport

INDIA TO WAIVE CERTAIN INTEREST LEVIES ON LOANS: The Indian government has told the Supreme Court it will waive certain interest levies on loans up to 20 million rupees ($272,888) under a COVID-19 support plan, a legal filing showed, in a move that will bring relief to millions of borrowers. An Indian optician from the northern city of Agra had challenged the plan which allowed skipping repayments for six months but levied an additional "interest-on-interest" on delayed payments which borrowers called unfair. Other borrowers, such as real estate companies and power utilities, also challenged the plan. In a filing on Oct. 2 with the Supreme Court, seen by Reuters, the government said it had decided to waive the compounding interest component on small-business and some other loans related to education and housing, and credit card dues. https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india https://gulfnews.com/business

HALL OF FAMER GIBSON DIES AT 84: Two-time World Series MVP and nine-time all-star pitcher Bob Gibson died aged 84 after a lengthy battle with cancer, the US media reported. Gibson, who starred for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1959 to 1975 and led them to two World Series championships, is the second Cards' Hall of Famer to die in the past month. Former legendary base stealer Lou Brock died September 6 also after a long health struggle. Brock was 81. Gibson is arguably the greatest pitcher the Cardinals have had, and considered one of the best in American baseball history. https://gulfnews.com/sport

CHINESE VLOGGER DIES AFTER BEING SET ON FIRE BY EX-HUSBAND: The tragic case of a rural livestreamer who died after being set alight by her ex-husband has triggered outrage over domestic violence on Chinese social media. The 30-year-old woman, named Lamu, died after efforts to save her life failed, according to a statement from police in Jinchuan county, in the remote northwest of Sichuan province. She had more than 885,000 followers on Douyin - the Chinese version of TikTok - and regularly posted videos of her daily life foraging in the mountains, cooking and lipsyncing to songs dressed in traditional Tibetan clothing. The police statement on Thursday confirmed earlier local media reports that she was doused in petrol and set alight at home by her ex-husband, surnamed Tang, on September 14. Her ex-husband Tang reportedly attacked her while she was livestreaming and had a history of domestic violence, local media said. He was detained on suspicion of intentional homicide, police said. https://gulfnews.com/world/asia

TROPICAL STORM GAMMA FORMS OVER CARIBBEAN: Tropical Storm Gamma formed over the northwestern Caribbean Sea on Friday and was headed for Mexico's Yucatan, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. "The center of the tropical cyclone should be near the northeastern Yucatan Peninsula on Saturday," NHC added. The tropical storm was located about 135 miles (220 km) South-southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, packing maximum sustained winds of 40 miles per hour (65 kph), the Miami-based weather forecaster added. https://gulfnews.com/world

'I THINK I'M DOING VERY WELL,' SAYS TRUMP IN VIDEO MESSAGE: US President Donald Trump said he believes he is "doing very well," in his first public comments since announcing he had tested positive for COVID-19. "I want to thank everybody for the tremendous support," Trump said in a short video message posted on his Twitter account, just as he was arriving by helicopter at a military hospital near Washington for COVID-19 treatment. "I am going to Walter Reed hospital. I think I am doing very well. But we are going to make sure that things work out," Trump said. "The First Lady is doing very well," he added. https://gulfnews.com/world

JOHNSON 'OPTIMISTIC' OVER BREXIT DEAL: UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was "pretty optimistic" a Brexit deal could be reached as he prepared for talks on Saturday with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen to determine the next steps in the fraught negotiations. Johnson told The Daily Telegraph that the prospects of a year-end deal to avoid an abrupt Brexit separation "are very good if everybody just exercises some common sense and looks at the deal that is there to be done". The comments came ahead of a videoconference with von der Leyen to take stock of progress made in the latest round of talks. British and EU negotiators said Friday trade discussions remained deadlocked on key areas, with London urging Brussels to give ground to avoid a damaging "no-deal" at the end of the year. https://gulfnews.com/world

TRUMP CAMPAIGN MANAGER STEPIEN TESTS COVID POSITIVE: Donald Trump's campaign manager, Bill Stepien, tested positive for COVID-19, becoming the latest associate of the president to become infected with the disease, spokesman Tim Murtaugh said. Stepien was promoted to run the struggling campaign this summer to help revive Trump's re-election bid. The development, which was reported earlier by Politico, came hours after Trump was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for treatment for COVID-19. Stepien, 42, is experiencing mild symptoms and is expected to continue managing the campaign from home. Earlier Friday, Stepien announced that the Trump campaign was switching all in-person events to virtual events "temporarily" in the wake of the president's diagnosis. https://gulfnews.com/world

MODI INAUGURATES ATAL TUNNEL: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday morning arrived at the Chandigarh International Airport to inaugurate the Atal Tunnel at Rohtang in Himachal Pradesh. After inaugurating the tunnel, the Prime Minister will address a public gathering at Sissu, Lahaul Valley. The Atal Tunnel, at 9.02 km is the longest highway tunnel in the world, connects Manali to Lahaul-Spiti Valley and will ensure movement throughout the year. Earlier, the Valley was cut off for about six months each year owing to heavy snowfall. The tunnel reduces the road distance by 46 kilometres between Manali and Leh and the time by about four to five hours. https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india

TWO KILLED IN ASSAM OVER SUSPECTED WITCH-HUNT: Nine people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in a case where a mob killed two persons in Karbi Anglong district in the Indian satte of Assam after some locals suspected them of "practising witchcraft" and a kangaroo court decided to punish them. "They were assaulted before burning. We have arrested nine people so far. All of them accepted that they killed the two people. They were killed on the suspicion of practising witchcraft," Debojit Deori, Superintendent of Police (SP) Karbi Anglong told reporters here. The incident took place at remote Rohimapur village under Dokmoka police station limits in Karbi Anglong district on Wednesday night. A day later, the police got to know about the case and later recovered remains of the bodies. https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india

WOMAN GANG RAPED IN INDIA COMMITS SUICIDE: A woman, who was allegedly gang-raped by three men in Narsinghpur in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh was found hanging, days after her complaint was not registered by the police. "A woman died of suicide in Richhai village of Narisinghpur (on Friday). During the investigation, it was found that she came to file a report in Gotitoriya police station on September 28 to file a complaint but it was not registered," Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Rajesh Tiwari said. "On Friday morning, when she came out of her house, some women talked something bad about her character. Later, she killed herself. We have registered a case now and arrested two accused," he said. https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india