By John Irish | PARIS PARIS Backers of the Syrian opposition appeared resigned to the fall of eastern Aleppo on Saturday, with the United States urging Russia to show “grace” when officials meet in Geneva to try to reach a deal for civilians and fighters to leave the city. Syrian government and allied forces have in the last two weeks driven rebels from most of their territory […]
DUBLIN A group of British and Irish lawyers are seeking to challenge Britain’s decision to leave the European Union in the Irish High Court to try to establish if Brexit can be reversed once divorce talks have been triggered. British Prime Minister Theresa May has said she wants to invoke Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty by the end of March, kicking off up to two […]
In this part of the world, the debate is not just theoretical. Terrorism is an everyday reality, and the role that Facebook and other social media sites may play in inspiring it generates deep emotion. Israel has pushed to combat online provocation that it links to bloodshed. Palestinians consider a crackdown on Facebook posts just another tool of repression by an occupying power. Continue reading the main […]
LONDON Rupert Murdoch’s new takeover approach for British pay-TV firm Sky should be investigated by the UK’s competition authorities, according to the former minister who referred the tycoon’s previous bid. Vince Cable, who was Britain’s business secretary at the time of Murdoch’s first bid in 2010-11 told BBC radio the media tycoon’s new takeover attempt would not be in the public interest. On Friday Murdoch’s Twenty-First Century […]
By Warren Strobel, Yara Bayoumy and John Irish | WASHINGTON/PARIS WASHINGTON/PARIS Key U.S. allies in Europe are quietly expressing concern over President-elect Donald Trump’s approach to Syria, warning that his pledge to work more closely with Russia, Damascus’ main backer, will do little to diminish the terrorist threat emanating from Syria. The diplomatic persuasion campaign has taken on new importance in recent days as the Syrian army, […]
Law Blog rounds up the morning’s legal news: Brexit challenge: The U.K. Supreme Court isn’t seeking to overturn Britain’s vote to leave the European Union, the court’s top judge said, as four days of hearing in a high-profile legal challenge to the government’s Brexit approach came to a close. [WSJ] Undocumented immigrant bail: The Missouri […] (via WSJ)
Relegated to the backbench of the UK parliament, George Osborne has a great deal more time on his hands after the very public failed Brexit ‘Remain’ campaign. The former British chancellor is using the downtime to investigate why a wave of populist nationalism is currently sweeping across the world – and how it managed to bruise his political career as well as that of former prime minister […]
Brexit may have come at the most fortunate time for the GCC. As the Gulf seeks greater support to fend off security risks in the region, including Iranian actions, and avenues to shore up bilateral trade in replacement of lost oil revenues, the UK is reaching out to old friends in a bid to strengthen non-mainland European relationships. “We will make it a priority, when the UK […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for December 9, 2016, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. newslide Abu Dhabi Tennis event Take part in the ZSC Academy Tennis Festival, a fun way to experience and learn more about the sport. There will be lessons for children ages 2 and older, tennis […]
By Laila Bassam and John Davison | ALEPPO, Syria/BEIRUT ALEPPO, Syria/BEIRUT The Syrian army’s advance in Aleppo slowed on Thursday but a victory was still firmly in sight after President Bashar al-Assad vowed that retaking the city would change the course of the six-year-old war. Russia’s RIA news agency quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying the Syrian army, which has captured territory including Aleppo’s historic […]
By Estelle Shirbon and Michael Holden | LONDON LONDON Britain’s Supreme Court will decide as quickly as possible whether Prime Minister Theresa May can trigger Britain’s exit from the European Union by the end of March without parliament’s assent, its president said on Thursday. Last month, the High Court decided that May could not invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the EU’s exit clause, using executive […]
He said that he was speaking from a makeshift medical clinic and that doctors were working in secret basement locations after being driven from hospitals. There were dozens of wounded and dead around him, including children, he added. Continue reading the main story “My neighbors have died; they were brought here,” he said. “I couldn’t ask them, ‘Where is my family?’ ” The latest round of fighting […]
European Parliament president Martin Schulz does not believe the Panama Papers scandal has cast doubt on Malta’s ability to push through the EU anti-money laundering laws. Mr Schulz was fielding questions at a joint conference with Prime Minister Joseph Muscat during his visit to the island before Malta assumes the EU presidency. The EU’s anti-money laundering directive was enacted in June 2015, and with a two-year window […]
A British regulator said on Wednesday that it fined pharmaceutical company Pfizer 84.2 million pounds, or about $107 million, for increasing the price of an epilepsy drug by as much as 2,600 percent. From $3.57 To $85.06 The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said that the New York-based drug company broke competition law for the excessive and unfair pricing of the phenytoin sodium capsules in the United […]
Britain plans to deepen security cooperation with Gulf Arab countries and work with them to counter Iranian actions in the region, Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday. Addressing a meeting on the sidelines of the Gulf Cooperation Summit in Bahrain, May said Britain would invest more than 3 billion pounds in defence spending in the region over the next decade. “Gulf security is our security,” May […]
The UK investigation into October’s “flash crash” in sterling has focused heavily on the Japanese trading operations of Citigroup, which fired off repeated sell orders that exacerbated the pound’s fall, according to bankers and officials involved in the inquiry. Citi’s traders are not believed to have started the slide in the currency in thin Asia trading but its Tokyo desk played a key role in sending the […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for December 8, 2016, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. newslide Abu Dhabi Yoga event Catch a screening of the film What is Real, which focuses on Jivamukti yoga and its history and evolution. It focuses on combining vigorous hatha yoga with music, meditation and […]
DUBAI: Britain will help Gulf states “push back” against aggressive regional actions by Iran, Prime Minister Theresa May told the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Bahrain on Wednesday in a televised address.“We must… continue to confront state actors whose influence fuels instability in the region,” May told Gulf leaders at their annual summit.“So I want to assure you that I am clear-eyed about the threat that Iran […]
LONDON Citi (C.N) said on Wednesday that its trading operations functioned appropriately in a thin and illiquid market during October’s “flash crash” in sterling, responding to a Financial Times report saying a trader at the U.S. bank exacerbated the pound’s fall. “Sterling fell sharply following a news event just after midnight UK time, when the GBP spot foreign exchange market was extremely illiquid,” Citi said. “Citi managed […]
Expansion will help ensure Abu Dhabi’s rising demand for gas is met sustainably and economically 07 December 2016 Abu Dhabi, UAE – Plans to expand the Al Hosn Shah Gas plant’s capacity by 50 per cent have come one step closer today, with the awarding of the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) Services contract, to Britain’s Amec Foster Wheeler. One of the key players in the GCC […]
Abu Dhabi // Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid led the UAE delegation to the two-day GCC Summit on Tuesday, which is also being attended by UK prime minister Theresa May as she looks to expand trade ties ahead of Britain’s exit from the European Union. The 37th annual talks among the six Gulf member states in Manama were expected to focus on security within the GCC, economic integration […]
By Crispian Balmer | ROME ROME When former Italian president Giorgio Napolitano tapped Matteo Renzi as prime minister in February 2014, he urged his younger colleague to change the constitution in order to make it easier to govern Italy. Early this year, Napolitano fretted that Renzi was taking the wrong approach in doing so. A referendum on the constitutional changes had been called. But instead of focusing […]
By Costas Pitas | LONDON LONDON When Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Britain last year and went for a drink with then Prime Minister David Cameron, he walked away with a smile on his face. Now China has walked away with the pub. “The Plough at Cadsden” in the heart of the English countryside will go down as one of the more unusual UK buys for Chinese […]
By Jonathan Cable | LONDON LONDON Britain will most likely leave the European Union having signed a bilateral trade agreement, according to a Reuters poll of economists on Tuesday that also suggested there remains little chance of the country slipping into recession. Since the June 23 decision to leave the EU, Britain’s economy has performed much better than had been previously feared. The Bank of England is […]
