Three missing employees of Canadian miner found dead in Mexico


By AFP
February 9, 2026


Security in the northwestern Mexican state of Sinaloa has been reinforced after ten workers, three of whom have since been found dead, were abducted from a Canadian-owned silver mining project - Copyright AFP Jesus VERDUGO

Three of the 10 employees of a Canadian mining company who were kidnapped two weeks ago in Mexico’s violence-plagued Sinaloa state have been found dead, Mexico’s Mining Chamber said Monday.

The workers, all Mexicans according to local media, were kidnapped on January 23 from a silver mining project belonging to the Vancouver-based company Vizsla Silver in the south of Sinaloa.

The Mining Chamber, a trade group representing mining unions and companies, said that three of the men were “found dead and were identified” by authorities and fellow workers.

Vizsla Silver had earlier issued a statement saying that it “has been informed by a number of families that their relatives…have been found deceased.”

It added that it was awaiting confirmation from Mexican authorities.

Vizsla President Michael Konnert said the company was “devastated by this outcome and the tragic loss of life.”

“Our focus remains on the safe recovery of those who remain missing,” he added.

– Cartel violence –



Abductions by armed groups are all too common in Mexico, where more than 120,000 people have vanished since the 1950s, many of them abducted and killed by drug cartels.

It is rare, however, for international companies to be targeted.

According to the workers’ families, gunmen forcibly removed the men from a camp situated at the headquarters of Viszla’s project in the small town of Panuco in Concordia district.

Two of the men are engineers and one is a geologist, according to local media.

Concordia sits on silver, gold, lead and zinc deposits, making it a target for organized crime gangs, who cash in by carrying out kidnappings and extorting workers.

Last week, Mexican authorities stepped up their search for the men, deploying more than 1,000 officers, three helicopters and two planes.

On Friday, the authorities said they had discovered the body of a person who resembled one of the workers but had yet to confirm the person’s identity.

Four people have been arrested in connection with the case.

Sinaloa is reeling from a surge in violence caused by a power struggle within the powerful Sinaloa cartel.

The faction fighting has left more than 1,700 people dead and nearly 2,000 missing in just over a year.

burs-cb/sla

Emergency measures hobble Cuba as fuel supplies dwindle under US pressure


By AFP
February 9, 2026


Cuba has been cut off from critical oil supplies from Venezuela -- whose leader Nicolas Maduro was toppled in a deadly US military strike last month -- and from Mexico under the threat of US tariffs - Copyright AFP ADALBERTO ROQUE

Rigoberto DIAZ

Havana’s streets were eerily quiet Monday as emergency measures kicked in to conserve Cuba’s fast-dwindling fuel stocks under economic pressure from US President Donald Trump.

With oil supply in a US stranglehold, the communist government has shuttered universities, reduced school hours and the work week, and slashed public transport as it limited fuel sales.

The few Cubans who were out and about in the capital Monday said they were worried.

“One wonders how long a country can live under such conditions,” nurse Rosa Ramos, 37, told AFP, adding the fuel-saving measures were creating “a lot of uncertainty.”

With public transport cut back, Ramos had been waiting for over an hour for a taxi or bus to get to work.

Users of private taxis said fares had shot up overnight from about 200 pesos (40 US cents) to 350 pesos.

The island of 9.6 million inhabitants, under a US trade embargo since 1962, has for years been mired in a severe economic crisis marked by extended power cuts and shortages of fuel, medicine and food.

It has now also been cut off from critical oil supplies from Venezuela — whose leader Nicolas Maduro was toppled in a deadly US military strike last month — and from Mexico under the threat of US tariffs.

Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on any country that provides oil to the island nation he has said is “ready to fall.”

The resulting shortages have threatened to plunge Cuba into complete darkness, with power plants struggling to keep the lights on.

No foreign fuel or oil tanker has arrived in Cuba in weeks, experts in maritime transport tracking told AFP.

And on Sunday, it was announced that long-haul flights will not be able to refuel on the island for at least a month.



– ‘Cruel aggression’ –



Trump and his Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Miami-born son of Cuban immigrants, have made no secret of their desire to bring about regime change in Havana.

Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez on Monday denounced the “cruel aggression” of the United States, which he said was aimed at “breaking the political will of the Cuban people.”

“The situation is tough and will demand great sacrifice,” said Rodriguez, reiterating Cuba’s “willingness to engage in dialogue,” though on its own terms.

On Sunday, Deputy Prime Minster Oscar Perez-Oliva Fraga announced a set of emergency measures to ration whatever fuel is left to “protect essential services for the population and indispensable economic activities.”

He said these included food and electricity production and “fundamental activities that generate foreign currency.”

Interprovincial bus and train services were reduced, university classes moved from in-person to online, and several hotels closed.

Air Canada said Monday it was suspending flights to Cuba due to the fuel shortage. In the coming days, it will fly empty planes to pick up about 3,000 customers in Cuba and bring them home.

The president of Mexico, which used to be Cuba’s second-biggest oil provider after Venezuela, said Monday sanctions that harm the people of Cuba were “not right.”

“We will continue supporting them and taking all necessary diplomatic actions to restore oil shipments” to Cuba, Claudia Sheinbaum told reporters.

“You cannot strangle a people like this — it’s very unfair, very unfair.”

Sheinbaum had previously warned of a humanitarian crisis in Cuba, but is keen to avoid putting her own country at risk of tariffs from the United States, Mexico’s main trading partner.

Mexico is seeking an agreement with Washington that would allow it to resume oil exports to Havana. On Sunday, it sent two ships with over 800 tons humanitarian aid.

The Kremlin, too, accused Washington Monday of using “suffocating measures” against Cuba.

“We are discussing possible solutions with our Cuban friends, at least to provide whatever assistance we can,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

burs-mlr/dw

Australian PM ‘devastated’ by violence at rally against Israel president’s visit


By AFP
February 9, 2026


A protester is helped after police deployed pepper spray to disperse demonstrators taking part in a Pro-Palestinian rally against Israeli President Isaac Herzog's visit to Australia in Sydney on February 9, 2026 - Copyright AFP Saeed Khan

Australia’s Prime Minister said Tuesday he was “devastated” by scenes of clashes at a Sydney rally against a visit by Israeli President Isaac Herzog, but defended the police’s actions against protesters.

Herzog’s tightly secured, four-day trip aims to console Australia’s Jewish community after the December shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach that killed 15 people at a Hanukkah festival.

But chaos erupted on Monday evening in the heart of Australia’s largest city as police tried to prevent a rally from marching into an area designated off-limits.

Law enforcement hit protesters and members of the media, including AFP, with pepper spray in rarely-seen violent scuffles in Sydney’s central business district.

Asked about the scenes, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told local radio he was “devastated” to see the violence.

“These are really scenes that I think shouldn’t be taking place,” he said.

“People should be able to express their views peacefully, but the police were very clear about the routes that were required if people wanted to march,” he added.

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said the police had been placed in “incredibly difficult circumstances”.

Not far from the protests, he noted, Herzog had been taking part in an event for the victims of the December 14 killings alongside thousands of mourners.

Minns said it would have been a “disaster” if protesters had been allowed to march near that event.

New South Wales police have said they arrested 27 people at the rallies, including 10 for assaulting law enforcement, and have confirmed they deployed pepper spray against the crowd.

But they have sparked outrage with a video circulating on social media showing Muslim men praying near Sydney’s Town Hall being pushed and shoved by the police.

Local Greens lawmaker Abigail Boyd told local broadcaster ABC she had been hurt by police at the march and posted a selfie to social media wearing a neck brace.

“I didn’t know that this was what police could do in our state. I feel just absolutely shocked,” she said.

Herzog’s visit is expected to last until Thursday.

On Tuesday he is expected to meet with the families of victims of the Bondi attack — the deadliest against Jews since Hamas’s assault on Israel on October 7, 2023.

Many Jewish Australians have welcomed Herzog’s trip.

“His visit will lift the spirits of a pained community,” said Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, the community’s peak body.

But some in the community disagreed, with the progressive Jewish Council of Australia saying he was not welcome because of his alleged role in the “ongoing destruction of Gaza”.

The UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry found last year that Herzog was liable for prosecution for inciting genocide after he said all Palestinians — “an entire nation” — were responsible for the Hamas attack on Israel.

Israel has “categorically” rejected the inquiry’s report, describing it as “distorted and false” and calling for the body’s abolition.

New York seeks rights for beloved but illegal ‘bodega cats’


By AFP

February 9, 2026


Simba lives at a bodega in Manhattan and is popular with the shop's customers

 - Copyright AFP ANGELA WEISS

Raphaëlle PELTIER

Simba, a large cat with thick ginger and white fur, is one of thousands of felines that live in New York’s corner shops known as “bodegas” — even if their presence is illegal.

Praised for warding off pests, so-called bodega cats are also a cultural fixture for New Yorkers, some of whom are now pushing to enshrine legal rights for the little store helpers.

“Simba is very important to us because he keeps the shop clean of the mice,” Austin Moreno, a shopkeeper in Manhattan, told AFP from behind his till.

The fluffy inhabitant also helps to entice customers.

“People, very often, they come to visit to ask, what is his name? The other day, some girls saw him for the first time and now they come every day,” said Moreno.

Around a third of the city’s roughly 10,000 bodegas are thought to have a resident cat despite being liable to fines of $200-$350 for keeping animals in a store selling food, according to Dan Rimada, founder of Bodega Cats of New York.

Rimada photographs the felines for his social media followers and last year launched a petition to legalize bodega cats, which drew nearly 14,000 signatures.

“These cats are woven into the fabric of New York City, and that’s an important story to tell,” he said.



– Pressure point –



Inspired by Rimada’s petition, New York City council member Keith Powers has proposed a measure to shield the owners of bodega cats from penalties.

His legislation would also provide free vaccinations and spay or neuter services to the felines.

But animal shelters and rights groups say this wouldn’t go far enough.

While Simba can nap in the corner of his shop with kibble within paw’s reach, many of his fellow cats are locked in basements, deprived of food or proper care, and abandoned when they grow old or fall ill.

Becky Wisdom, who rescues cats in New York, warned that lifting the threat of fines could remove “leverage” to encourage bodega owners to better care for the animals.

She also opposes public funds being given to business owners rather than low-income families who want their cats spayed or neutered.

The latter is a big issue in New York, where the stray cat population is estimated at around half a million.



– Radical overhaul –



Regardless of what the city decides, it is the state of New York that has authority over business rules, said Allie Taylor, president of Voters for Animal Rights.

Taylor said she backs another initiative proposed by state assembly member Linda Rosenthal, a prominent animal welfare advocate, who proposes allowing cats in bodegas under certain conditions.

These would include vet visits, mandatory spaying or neutering, and ensuring the cats have sufficient food, water and a safe place to sleep.

Beyond the specific case of bodega cats, Taylor is pushing for a more radical overhaul of animal protection in New York.

“Instead of focusing on one subset of cats, we need the city to make serious investments, meaning tens of millions of dollars per year into free or low cost spay, neuter and veterinary care,” she said.

Unions rip American Airlines CEO on performance


By AFP
February 9, 2026


Robert Isom, CEO of American Airlines, faces rising pressure from the carrier's unions over its lagging financial performance - Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File WIN MCNAMEE

American Airlines CEO Robert Isom faced pressure Monday from labor unions frustrated with the carrier’s financial performance and handling of recent weather disruptions.

The airline’s union for flight attendants issued a “no confidence” vote in Isom, while the pilots’s union amplified a demand to meet with American’s board of directors after describing conversations alone with management as fruitless.

“We’re just not hearing what the long-term strategy is,” said Dennis Tajer, spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association, which headlined a recent message, “We Need Decisive Action.”

Isom, a board member, would be expected to join the meeting, said Tajer, adding that the union is not seeking Isom’s ouster.

“We don’t really care who’s running the airline,” Tajer told AFP. “We just want them to be wildly successful.”

American Airlines did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In 2025, American Airlines reported profits of just $111 million. United Airlines made $3.4 billion in profit last year, while Delta Air Lines reported profits of $5.0 billion.

The weak results translate into lower bonuses for employees under American’s profit-sharing plan.

Tajer said some of the gap is because a greater share of American’s business is domestic, which has underperformed compared with international travel.

But some of American’s problems have been self-inflicted. In 2024, American scrapped an attempted revamp of its corporate booking system, denting performance.

The unions are also frustrated with the carrier’s handling of the recent Winter Storm Fern, which battered the company’s hubs in Dallas and Charlotte.

The storm had led American to cancel more than 9,000 flights, making it the “largest weather-related operational disruption in our history,” Isom said on January 27 conference call.

But the unions say the carrier was poorly prepared for the bad weather, which left workers stranded away from homes, sleeping in airports and placed on hold for six hours or more.

“When the recent winter storm hamstrung our operations to the point where flight attendants were sleeping on airport floors, Robert Isom’s response was that it was just ‘part of our job,” said Julie Hedrick, president of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants.

“His tone-deaf leadership shows a complete disregard for the human element and is actively harming both American Airlines and the people who keep it running every day.”

Warming climate threatens Greenland’s ancestral way of life

By AFP
February 9, 2026


Musher Nukaaraq Lennert Olsen rides with his sled dogs near the 'dog town' of Sisimiut, Greenland - Copyright KCNA VIA KNS/AFP STR

Nioucha ZAKAVATI

Standing in his boat with binoculars in hand, hunter Malik Kleist scans the horizon for seals. But this February, the sea ice in southwestern Greenland has yet to freeze, threatening traditional livelihoods like his.

“Normally the seals are on the ice or in the more calm waters. But today we had to sail all the way into the fjords to find them,” the 37-year-old tells AFP.

The Arctic region is on the frontline of global warming, heating up four times faster than the rest of the planet since 1979, according to a 2022 study in scientific journal Nature, causing the sea ice to retreat.

Seals rely on pack ice to give birth, to rest and for protection.

Hunters increasingly have to sail farther along the jagged coast of Sisimiut, navigating into the fjords for several hours to find them.

Traditionally, hunters’ boats would head straight out to sea, slowly pushing through the ice and creating holes that attract seals coming up for air.

But without any ice, “it’s too windy and the waves are too big,” Kleist says.

Last year was exceptionally warm in the vast autonomous territory, with several temperature records beaten, according to the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI).

In December, the Summit Station, located at the height of Greenland’s ice sheet, recorded an average temperature of -30.9 degrees C (-23.6 Fahrenheit), 8.1C higher than the December average during the period 1991-2020.

“It affects everything we do. Because normally around November, December the ice comes. And this year there’s no ice, so it affects our living a lot,” Kleist says.

– Financial woes –

For the same reason, the government has also had to postpone the annual winter musk ox hunt that was due to start on January 31.

There wasn’t enough snow and ice to transport the massive animals that roam the Arctic tundra back from Kangerlussuaq where they are predominantly found, around 165 kilometres (103 miles) away. Greenland has no roads connecting its towns.

That has left some Sisimiut hunters with less income than usual.

“This time of year there is not much to hunt. So we rely on musk ox meat and skin,” Kleist says.

“Many of my fellow hunters are struggling with money right now.”

Every part of the animal, from the fur to the meat, is either used or sold.

The summer hunting season has therefore gained importance, enabling Greenlanders to fill their freezers to get them through the winter months, he tells AFP over a steaming bowl of fish stew.

The shorter winter season has also impacted another key activity in Greenland, one that has become increasingly important to the tourism sector: dogsled tours.

In the Sisimiut neighbourhood where the dogs are kept, their thunderous barking mounts as Nukaaraq Olsen, a 21-year-old musher, attaches them to the sled.

Raring to get going, his 18 dogs are hard to hold back. Twenty minutes later, the group bounds off.

But the road is bumpy, and several times Olsen has to get up to manually push the sled, stuck on the tundra’s rocks in patches where there is no ice.

“This year we had a lot of hot, warm days, even though it’s December or January,” he says.

Other parts of the route are no longer safe to use, due to repeated melting and freezing of snowfall which causes uneven layers, he explains.

– Dehydrated dogs –

The dogs’ health is also affected by the changing climate.

They are used to quenching their thirst with snow, but with little or no snowfall, they can easily get dehydrated. Mushers have to take that into account when caring for their animals.

Many have even had to get rid of their dogs, the business of maintaining them no longer profitable with the dogsled season shrinking to just two months, says Emilie Andersen-Ranberg, a researcher at the University of Copenhagen who runs a dog clinic in Sisimiut.

Others, such as 72-year-old Johanne Bech, are finding novel ways to adapt.

She plans to put wheels on her sled to continue running dogsled tours during the summer period.

That solution is growing in popularity, as “the window with snow is getting more and more narrow,” the veterinarian says.

Over the past 20 years, the number of sleddogs has been halved from 25,000 to 13,000, according to a 2024 article from the University of Greenland in 2024.

Yet Johanne Bech remains optimistic about the future.

“I hope this is just for a short time, so we can go back to a little more stable snow or more ice in the future.”

Solar, wind capacity growth slowed last year, analysis shows


By AFP
February 10, 2026


Just a small fraction of wind and solar growth came from rich G7 countries, the Global Energy Monitor found - Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File JUSTIN SULLIVAN

Planned or under-construction solar and wind projects slowed last year, analysis showed Tuesday, casting doubts on whether countries will hit a goal of tripling renewable capacity by decade-end.

Dozens of nations agreed in 2023 to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030 as part of efforts to limit global warming.

But announcements and construction starts of new wind and solar projects grew 11 percent in 2025 — down from 22 percent in the previous year, as wind development projects faced hurdles, Global Energy Monitor (GEM) said.

“Wind developers experienced political barriers and a streak of failed wind power auctions in wealthy nations,” GEM research analyst Diren Kocakusak said.

US President Donald Trump has blocked wind projects, and made no secret of his antipathy towards renewables, though the global slump was not attributable to any one country, Kocakusak said.

GEM’s research also found that just a small fraction of wind and solar growth came from rich G7 countries, with the “centre of gravity” now shifting “decisively toward emerging and developing economies.”

As has been the case for years, China is expanding renewable capacity on a scale unmatched elsewhere.

It accounted for around a third of global capacity growth in 2025 — 1.5 terawatts — more than growth in the next six countries combined.

But that was not enough to set the world on track to meet the 2030 goal.



– ‘Disappointing developments’ –



Even if all the projects currently announced and under-construction proceed, the world would still fall short.

GEM’s research has found almost 40 percent of planned projects begin operations after their announced start date, or are put on hold or scrapped.

However, Kocakusak said that did not mean the goal was out of reach.

“Momentum appears to be slowing, but that’s not due to a lack of potential,” he told AFP.

There is still “enough time” for countries to ramp up capacity, and solar projects that have not yet been announced could be completed before 2030, he said. Wind projects can take longer to get up and running.

More than 3.5 terawatts of wind and solar projects have also been announced without a confirmed start date, and could help meet the 2030 goal if they come online quickly enough.

Some wealthy countries are supporting renewable growth, with Japan seeking to revise wind auction guidelines and Britain boosting investment.

These policies sit alongside “disappointing developments”, though, like reports Germany may limit grid priority for renewables, Kocakusak said.

“Whether the 2030 tripling target is achieved will depend on the level of commitment and implementation from countries and developers,” he said.

Back to black: Philips posts first annual profit since 2021



By AFP
February 10, 2026


Philips gets into the green - Copyright AFP Patrick T. Fallon

Dutch electronics and medical device manufacturer Philips said Tuesday it had bounced back into the black in 2025, as it seeks to turn the page on a scandal over faulty sleep apnoea machines.

Philips posted a profit of 897 million euros last year, after three straight years of losses.

“We strengthened our company while navigating a dynamic macro environment. We ended the year with strong, robust margin expansion despite tariffs,” chief executive Roy Jakobs said in a statement.

The profit came in above the consensus forecast of analysts polled by the company of 775 million euros.

Once famous for making lightbulbs and televisions among other products, Amsterdam-based Philips in recent years has sold off subsidiaries to focus on medical care technology.

It posted overall sales of 17.8 billion euros in 2025, compared to the 18.0 billion euros it banked in 2024.

Analysts’ consensus forecast was for sales of 17.7 billion euros.

Looking ahead, the firm said it expected sales growth of between 3.0 and 4.5 percent for 2026.

This outlook includes the impact of “currently known tariffs” but excludes potential costs from the ongoing saga of its sleep apnoea machines, Philips said.

Since 2021, the company has been battling a series of crises over its DreamStation machines for sleep apnoea, a disorder in which breathing stops and starts during sleep.

Millions of devices were recalled over concerns that users were at risk of inhaling pieces of noise-cancelling foams and fears it could potentially cause cancer.

In April, it announced it had reached a $1.1 billion deal to settle US lawsuits from the faulty machines.

Turning to the fourth quarter, Philips posted a profit of 397 million euros, above the forecast of 276 million euros.

In the third quarter of last year, the firm banked profits of 187 million euros on sales of 4.3 billion euros.

The firm has continued to shed jobs. It employed 64,817 people at the end of 2025, compared to 67,823 at the end of 2024.

Philips also announced a proposal to reappoint Jakobs as CEO.

“(This) reflects the Supervisory Board’s recognition of the progress made since 2022 and its confidence in his leadership as Philips enters the next phase of driving profitable growth,” the firm said.

AI chatbots give bad health advice, research finds


By AFP
February 9, 2026


ChatGPT image: — © AFP/File SEBASTIEN BOZON

Next time you’re considering consulting Dr ChatGPT, perhaps think again.

Despite now being able to ace most medical licensing exams, artificial intelligence chatbots do not give humans better health advice than they can find using more traditional methods, according to a study published on Monday.

“Despite all the hype, AI just isn’t ready to take on the role of the physician,” study co-author Rebecca Payne from Oxford University said.

“Patients need to be aware that asking a large language model about their symptoms can be dangerous, giving wrong diagnoses and failing to recognise when urgent help is needed,” she added in a statement.

The British-led team of researchers wanted to find out how successful humans are when they use chatbots to identify their health problems and whether they require seeing a doctor or going to hospital.

The team presented nearly 1,300 UK-based participants with 10 different scenarios, such as a headache after a night out drinking, a new mother feeling exhausted or what having gallstones feels like.

Then the researchers randomly assigned the participants one of three chatbots: OpenAI’s GPT-4o, Meta’s Llama 3 or Command R+. There was also a control group that used internet search engines.

People using the AI chatbots were only able to identify their health problem around a third of the time, while only around 45 percent figured out the right course of action.

This was no better than the control group, according to the study, published in the Nature Medicine journal.

– Communication breakdown –

The researchers pointed out the disparity between these disappointing results and how AI chatbots score extremely highly on medical benchmarks and exams, blaming the gap on a communication breakdown.

Unlike the simulated patient interactions often used to test AI, the real humans often did not give the chatbots all the relevant information.

And sometimes the humans struggled to interpret the options offered by the chatbot, or misunderstood or simply ignored its advice.

One out of every six US adults ask AI chatbots about health information at least once a month, the researchers said, with that number expected to increase as more people adopt the new technology.

“This is a very important study as it highlights the real medical risks posed to the public by chatbots,” David Shaw, a bioethicist at Maastricht University in the Netherlands who was not involved in the research, told AFP.

He advised people to only trust medical information from reliable sources, such as the UK’s National Health Service.

Iraqi calligrapher's handwritten Quran ends 6 years of artistry and craft

ISTANBUL (AP) — The finished work consists of 302 double sided scrolls, each measuring 4 meters (13 feet) in length and 1.5 meters in width. The sheets, resembling heavy parchment, were custom made for Zaman with a blend of traditional materials including eggs, corn starch and alum.

Ayse Wieting
February 2, 2026

ISTANBUL (AP) — Iraqi calligrapher Ali Zaman gazes with pride at his masterpiece — a colossal, handwritten manuscript of the Quran that has taken six years of craft and devotion to complete.

The finished work consists of 302 double sided scrolls, each measuring 4 meters (13 feet) in length and 1.5 meters in width. The sheets, resembling heavy parchment, were custom made for Zaman with a blend of traditional materials including eggs, corn starch and alum.

“Anytime I think of this Quran … it gives me very nice feeling that the mighty God gave me the life to be able to finish this thing and complete it. I feel very proud,” the 54-year-old told The Associated Press at a mosque in Istanbul l where the manuscript is kept.

Islamic calligraphy is regarded as one of the most valued artistic traditions in the Muslim world. The art form served to preserve and embellish Islam ’s holy book and was later also used to adorn mosques, palaces and manuscripts.

In Turkey, it flourished during the Ottoman era when the art was supported by the state and calligraphers developed distinctive styles.

Today, Istanbul is considered an important center for the art, known as “hat” in Turkish.

Art expert Umit Coskunsu says that because of the Islamic tradition’s restrictions on depicting figures, calligraphy became a central form of artistic expression. He describes “hat” as a form of worship.

“The art of hat is not just calligraphy, it is seen as a means of worshipping God and coming closer to Him,” Coskunsu said.

Zaman was born in Ranya, a town in Sulaymaniyah governorate, in Iraq’s northern semi-autonomous Kurdish region.

He moved his family to Istanbul in 2017 to pursue his Quran project and to hone his craft because, he says, the art of calligraphy is more valued in Turkey than in his home country.

Zaman says he developed an interest in Islamic calligraphy around the age of 12 when he was first exposed to it in Iraq.

“The art of calligraphy was very attractive to me… I felt that I could find my soul in it,” he said.

Each sheet of the manuscript was entirely handwritten. Zaman says he labored from dawn to dusk over a period of six years in a small room reserved for him at the Mihrimah Sultan Mosque in Istanbul.

The manuscript is being touted as the world’s largest, though it has not received that recognition officially. According to Guinness World Records, the largest printed Quran was achieved by the Holy Quran Museum in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, in March 2025.

Zaman’s son remembers long absences while his father worked on the project.

“We only saw him when we would bring him food or when he came home at night to sleep,” said Rekar Zaman. “Thank God, we see more of him now.”

The manuscript is stored in stacked scrolls, and covered for protection from dust and moisture, at the mosque where he created it.

His ultimate wish is for it to go to a buyer who can put it on public display.

“I want for this Quran to be in a country — in a museum, or in a place that is special for calligraphy — where it can be appreciated and valued,” Zaman said.

__

Associated Press writer Suzan Fraser contributed from Ankara, Turkey.