Saudi Arabia prepares for hajj as Gulf tensions simmer

MECCA, Saudi Arabia - More than 2.5 million Muslims on Friday will begin the hajj pilgrimage to the Islamic holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, against a backdrop of tensions in the Gulf.

No-deal exit creates 'immediate risk' in UK

Britain's head of counterterrorism said a no-deal Brexit would create an "immediate risk" to the security of the country because of British police losing access to European data on serious criminals.

Xi extends condolences over attack

President Xi Jinping strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Cairo in a condolence message sent to his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on Tuesday.

Nobel laureate Toni Morrison dead at 88

NEW YORK - Nobel laureate Toni Morrison, a pioneer and reigning giant of modern literature whose imaginative power in Beloved, Sula and other works transformed US letters by dramatizing the pursuit of freedom within the boundaries of race, has died at age 88.

FBI: 24-year-old gunman in Ohio rampage was obsessed with violence

NEW YORK - The gunman who killed his sister and eight other people in Dayton, Ohio, before he was slain by police had a history of violent obsessions and previously mused about committing mass murder, an FBI official said on Tuesday.

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Violence is not freedom of expression, rioting is not pursuit of democracy

Riding on the extradition legislation controversy, insurrectionists in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and their external allies are mounting an all-out campaign to advance their political objectives.

Currency manipulator claim another unwarranted attack on China

The decision by the United States Department of the Treasury to label China a currency manipulator is the latest sign that Washington will resort to any possible means, no matter how unreasonable, to force China into agreeing to its trade terms.

Improving city clusters' ability to function as regional boosters

THE POLITICAL BUREAU of the Communist Party of China Central Committee has set a new orientation for China's urbanization based on improving the function of city clusters. This is a significant change in China's urbanization policy. Beijing News comments:

Donate blood, but not to mosquitoes

INSTEAD OF KILLING MOSQUITOES, people should let them take "blood donations" because they need to fertilize eggs - That's what French animal-rights activist Aymeric Caron advises people to do. China Daily writer Zhang Zhouxiang comments:

US meddling in South China Sea to destabilize promising progress

Anyone seriously concerned about the contested South China Sea should note this: China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have finished the first reading of the Code of Conduct Single Draft Negotiating Text ahead of schedule.

US trashes global system for its own privilege

Editor's note: Only one day after the conclusion of the 12th round of trade talks between China and the United States, the US threatened on Thursday that it would levy 10 percent tariffs on the remaining $300 billion worth of Chinese goods starting from Sept 1, in total disregard of the "constructive tone" in bilateral negotiations in Shanghai. Zhong Sheng, a columnist for People's Daily, comments: