But with few spies in the city, American officials say assessing the enemy is difficult. “We’ve spent a lot of time trying to understand the situation on the ground in Raqqa,” Lt. Gen. Jeffrey L. Harrigian, the air war commander, said in an interview from his headquarters in Qatar. “It’s improving. It’s still not at the level we’d like it to be.” Continue reading the main story […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for December 26, 2016, including Christmas attractions, food markets, art exhibitions, fitness events, performances, film screenings and family fun. newslide Abu Dhabi Film screening Catch a screening of The Patience Stone. The film is about a young woman in a country torn apart by war, who watches over her comatose husband and begins to tell him […]
If you have yet to make plans for New Year’s Eve, don’t worry, it is not too late. Most restaurants will be open and serving up special meals to ring in the new year. Here are some of the most notable spots to get a memorable meal and a view of the fireworks as you welcome in 2017. Abu Dhabi For a great view of the fireworks […]
Fare collection gates have more than doubled at the Business Bay Metro Station on Dubai’s Red Line in response to growing passenger number. The Road and Transport Authority’s Rail Agency said it has added six fare collection gates, raising the number of entry gates at the station to 10. It said the step has been taken in response to the growing footfall at the station, which is […]
ABU DHABI // The UAE proclaimed its message of tolerance, hope and peace last night to a world confronting the darkness of militant extremism. In Europe, many Christmas festivities were muted by a climate of fear after terrorist attacks last week in Germany and Switzerland. In Iraq, a once vibrant Christian community of 1.5 million has been shattered by ISIL, many families driven out of their homes […]
The Turkish Army and police won, but victory brought an Aleppo-like landscape. Two dozen acres of the old city have been cleared of the rubble so far, leaving a featureless circular gash on aerial maps. The damage is mostly invisible from street level though, because alleyways leading up to the most devastated areas have been walled up where they intersect with streets that have reopened for business. […]
ABU DHABI // Five times a day, Sayed Hameed announces prayers from his mosque in International City. After every call, the muezzin says a silent prayer for his son. His eldest son, 11-year-old Yousef, needs corrective surgery on his right leg, which has been deformed since birth. However, his 35-year-old Afghan father cannot afford to pay Dh60,000 for operation. “Yousef didn’t have any accidents and doesn’t suffer […]
Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat is trying to explain what he loves most about superhero movies. He talks excitedly about the cape and the mask. The importance of a hero’s “normal” life. “When Superman doesn’t work, it’s because there’s not enough Clark Kent,” he says. And then there’s the romance. “There’s always a good one at their heart – and Clark Kent/Lois Lane is certainly the only […]
So it would appear. Bit Player Turns Star Shawn Harrington was one of the bit players in “Hoop Dreams.” A sophomore point guard at Marshall who moved from the junior varsity to the varsity during that glorious 1991 tournament run, he had his own star turn a few years later. After bouncing around several colleges — during which time he both got a degree and became a […]
AJMAN//An arts and crafts market has proved a big hit with shoppers, with thousands of people picking up handicrafts and homemade food since it opened last month. The weekend Mosaic Market at Al Safia Park was set up to support small businesses and entrepreneurs with about 40 stalls selling everything from organic vegetables to clothes said Shaikha Al Nuaimi, corporate communication manager at the Abdulaziz bin Humaid […]
A recent want ad for a job at a professional services companies had this interesting description: Photo: Joe McKendrick “Robotic Process Automation Analyst: Key responsibilities include: work with business teams to simplify and improve operations by analyzing as-is processes and create end-to-end automation solution designs… Work with process owners/SMEs and technology teams to analyse and assess automation feasibility… Document business requirements, processes and work instructions…. Operate as […]
Ajman has announced plans to invest AED600 million ($163.3 million) to improve the emirate’s sewerage system. Ajman Sewerage chairman Sheikh Rashid Bin Humaid Al Nuaimi said that by 2020 the size of the sewerage network is expected to double as a result of the investment. More than 600km of pipelines and 30 pumping stations will be added, allowing 100,000 additional citizens to benefit from the modern sewerage […]
AJMAN // The sight of dozens of malnourished stray cats and kittens on the streets of Ajman was enough to convince Alia Alchamaa to make the 140-kilometre round trip from her home in Dubai each day to help them. The Syrian travels to the corniche and the Al Nuaimia 3, Al Bustan, Al Rashidiya and Mowaihat neighbourhoods feeding as many of the animals as she can, paying […]
The suspect in the Berlin Christmas market truck attack was killed in a pre-dawn shoot-out with police in a suburb of the northern Italian city of Milan on Friday, Italy’s interior minister said. “The man killed was without a shadow of doubt Anis Amri,” Marco Minniti said, referring to the 24-year-old Tunisian who is suspected of driving the truck that smashed through a Berlin market on Monday […]
Submitted by Federico Pieraccini via Strategic-Culture.org, Understanding the objectives and logic that accompany the expansion of nations or empires is always of paramount importance in helping one draw lessons for the future In this series of four articles I intend to lay a very detailed but easily understandable foundation for describing the mechanisms that drive great powers. To succeed, one must analyze the geopolitical theories that over […]
To most, it is sacrosanct; the idea of not playing on Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and various points in between is seen as somewhere between anathema and heresy. Photo Fabian Delph of Manchester City during his team’s Premier League match at home against Sunderland on Dec. 26, 2015. Credit Jan Kruger/Getty Images The week’s popularity bears that out: Even in the Premier League, where most seats […]
Aamir Khan’s new film Dangal is a weighty biopic in more ways than one. One of Bollywood’s most acclaimed actors, he put on a staggering 27 kilograms to play the role of former wrestler Mahavir Singh – then shed it all in just five months to shoot scenes of a younger, fitter version of the character during his wrestling heyday. Dangal, which is now showing at UAE […]
Filipino beauty pageant winners Parul Shah and Maggie Wilson have emerged victorious on the fifth season of reality-TV programme The Amazing Race Asia. They beat fellow beauty queens Yvonne Lee and Chloe Chen from Malaysia, as well as married couple Eric Tai and Rona Samson, who are also from the Philippines, in the grand finale this week. It was the culmination of 10 legs of competition that […]
Social enterprise Proximity Designs’s 3D printer is making high technology accessible to Myanmar’s impoverished farmers Whizzing across a blue-lit platform with a whirr and a squeak, liquid plastic emanating from its chrome tip, the 3D printer seems a far cry from the muddy, crop-filled fields that fringe Yangon. But in an industrial park south of Myanmar’s commercial hub, the advanced technology is now being used to design […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for December 23, 2016, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. newslide Abu Dhabi Festive fun Visit Al Maryah Island for the Winter Wonderland, featuring cosy winter cottages hosting activities including bauble-decorating, cracker-making and gingerbread-house-decorating. A skating rink and snow park offer a wintry feel, while […]
Although students at Abu Dhabi’s Future Rehabilitation Centre achieve varying degrees of independence after they graduate, the ideal is to land a job. One such graduate to have achieved this is Eid Al Shamsi, a 21-year-old Emirati who is now working at the Ministry of Interior’s human rights department. When he was a boy, Mr Al Shamsi had initially been enrolled in a private school, where he […]
(Image: file photo) Earlier this year, we were sent a series of large, encrypted files purportedly belonging to a US police department as a result of a leak at a law firm, which was insecurely synchronizing its backup systems across the internet without a password. Among the files was a series of phone dumps created by the police department with specialist equipment, which was created by Cellebrite, […]
DUBAI // Dubai has topped the rankings as the most expensive city to see in the new year for the second year in a row. According to the annual survey of seven of the most popular cities by the currency exchange firm Travelex, celebrating New Year’s Eve in the city costs Dh2,240 per person on average. New York ranked second at Dh1,850, followed by London at Dh1,435, […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for December 23, 2016, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. newslide Abu Dhabi Festive fun Visit Al Maryah Island for the Winter Wonderland, featuring cosy winter cottages hosting activities including bauble-decorating, cracker-making and gingerbread-house-decorating. A skating rink and snow park offer a wintry feel, while […]
