By Cheikh Sadibou Mane | BANJUL BANJUL Gambians voted on Thursday in the first serious electoral challenge to President Yahya Jammeh, who has said only Allah can remove him from office and once claimed he would rule the tiny riverside West African nation for “a billion years”. Jammeh, who seized power in a 1994 coup, has made headlines by claiming to have a herbal cure for AIDS […]
ZURICH Swiss efforts to curb immigration from the European Union without provoking a clash with Brussels cleared another hurdle on Thursday when parliament’s upper house backed giving locals first crack at open jobs rather than adopting outright quotas. The step is roughly in line with a bill the lower house adopted in September, skirting a direct confrontation with the EU which has insisted on upholding the free […]
For a celebrity chef, sticking your name on the side of a restaurant in a city outside your hometown can be fraught with danger. How can you really ensure that the staff left behind can do your reputation justice? What will customers think when they enter a said chef’s restaurant to find him not in the kitchen? And how often must you return to keep up appearances? […]
The Bank of England said its supplier of currency, Innovia, is working toward removing the use of animal fat in the production of its new plastic five pound note after objection raised by thousands of vegetarians. The bank said it did not know about traces of tallow, which contains animal fats, in the production of the currency when it signed the contract with Innovia. “We are aware […]
Ulster Bank Parent RBS Fails Bank of England Stress Test “Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS)(RBS.L) will cut costs and sell assets to boost capital levels, it said on Wednesday after failing this year’s Bank of England stress test, which warned of a “challenging” outlook for Britain’s financial system. The state-backed lender rushed out a statement following the announcement to say it would take a range of actions, including […]
By Noah Barkin | BERLIN BERLIN Fear of globalisation is the most important factor in pushing European citizens towards populist right-wing parties and those fears are most acute in Austria and France, a survey by Germany’s Bertelsmann Foundation showed on Wednesday. The study showed that 55 percent of Austrians and 54 percent of French view globalisation as a threat, the only countries surveyed in which a majority […]
LONDON Britain’s new plastic five-pound notes, bearing the portrait of wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill, have fallen foul of thousands of people who object to the use of animal fats in their manufacture. An online petition against the notes, started by campaigner Doug Maw, was signed by more than 13,000 supporters in less than 24 hours. “This is unacceptable to millions of vegans and vegetarians in the […]
FRANKFURT Europe’s space agency expects its member states to back major programmes such as the International Space Station and the ExoMars mission to the Red Planet this week, even if it does not receive the full 11 billion euros ($11.6 billion) of funding it is requesting, its director general said. “If we get only 90 percent of the funding then this is not a catastrophe,” Jan Woerner […]
4188 28 by Adam Segal November 16, 2016 A man stands in a phone box in front of graffiti art on a wall near the headquarters of Britain’s eavesdropping agency, Government Communications Headquarters, known as GCHQ, in Cheltenham, western England April 16, 2014. (Eddie Keogh/Reuters). The Council on Foreign Relations is holding a half-day, multi-session symposium to bring together leading policymakers and experts for candid analysis of […]
MINSK France is working with Britain to draft a United Nations resolution on chemical weapons as quickly as possible, the French foreign affairs minister said on Tuesday. “We have taken over the drafting (of the chemical weapons resolution) with Britain. We are not giving up,” Jean-Marc Ayrault told Reuters head of a meeting to discuss the Ukraine crisis in Minsk. He added they hoped to be able […]
QUITO Ecuador’s prosecutor said on Monday it does not see a quick way out for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who has been holed up in the country’s embassy in Britain for four years. Swedish prosecutors earlier this month questioned Assange at the London embassy in an investigation into allegations that he committed rape in Sweden in 2010. Ecuador must deliver a written version of the testimony to […]
Much of the markets’ mixed reaction reflects uncertainty about a new president who has never held public office, leaving political leaders, business executives and international institutions to make bets on how a Trump administration may rewrite rules that have governed global affairs under American presidents of both parties. Continue reading the main story “For allies and adversaries alike, the election of Donald Trump represents the likely abandonment […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for November 29, 2016, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. newslide Abu Dhabi Art exhibition Visit The Galleria on Al Maryah Island and see an exhibition by photographer Mark Luscombe-Whyte, who specialises in Arab architecture, including images of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Enjoy a […]
Trump team rejects effort to push vote recount | Reuters Top News | Mon Nov 28, 2016 | 10:35pm IST ‘+Reuters.inlinevideo.title+’ ‘+Reuters.inlinevideo.length+’ ‘); } WASHINGTON Donald Trump’s transition team on Monday pushed back against an emerging effort to recount votes from the Nov. 8 presidential election, calling it “nonsense,” but not offering any evidence to back the president-elect’s weekend tweet alleging millions of illegal votes. The Green […]
By Andrew Callus | PARIS PARIS France’s centre-right rallied behind free market reformist Francois Fillon as its candidate for president on Monday after a snap opinion poll showed him clear favourite to beat far-right leader Marine Le Pen in an election showdown next year. Fillon, a former prime minister who vowed to change France’s “software” with an assault on public sector spending, moved one step closer to […]
Theresa May will launch a charm offensive in a bid to win Polish support in the forthcoming Brexit negotiations, as pressure grew to guarantee the status of migrant workers. Mrs May will host Polish prime minister Beata Szydło and other senior Polish politicians at a meeting in Downing Street on Monday that will focus on Brexit and defence co-operation, and seek to ease diplomatic tensions caused during […]
Photo The Crewe Alexandra sports academy. Barry Bennell, a former youth soccer coach who has been accused of molesting young players, once worked for the Crewe club. Credit Phil Noble/Reuters England’s Football Association, which remained largely silent for almost two weeks as former players came forward with accusations of sexual abuse by coaches in the country’s soccer development system, announced Sunday that it was broadening an internal […]
Germany’s Nico Rosberg won his first Formula One world championship on Sunday after finishing second in a tense Abu Dhabi Grand Prix won by Mercedes team mate Lewis Hamilton After all the suspense and expectation, the race saw Hamilton chalking up his 10th win of the season, and fourth in a row, but powerless to do anything about the championship outcome despite making every effort. His attempt […]
ABU DHABI // Even though Sunday was a working day, there was a holiday atmosphere on Yas Island where thousands of fans flocked to the big race. Marie Jacob, 35, from South Africa, travelled from Dubai with her friends to watch the race, arriving about 3pm. “I am too excited and it’s one of the most thrilling races in the world,” she said. Ms Jacob has been […]
JERUSALEM Israel’s security cabinet on Sunday approved the purchase of an additional 17 Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jets, bringing its total number on order to 50. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement the decision to increase the order was unanimous. Lockheed is developing three versions of the F-35 Lightning II jets for the U.S. military and nine countries that have already placed orders – […]
The Irish prime minister has said it will be “impossible” to agree Brexit within two years, in the strongest rejection so far of the UK’s negotiating timetable by an EU leader. Enda Kenny, who is seen as one of Britain’s allies in the process, said “there’s a growing feeling in Europe that there should be a transition period, and that the transition period will be longer than […]
KABUL British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson dismissed suggestions on Saturday that Britain’s exit from the European Union and the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president would lead to Western powers withdrawing from engagement with the rest of the world. Speaking during an overnight visit to Kabul that included meetings with President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, Johnson said Britain remained committed to Afghanistan “for […]
BEIRUT Syrian government and allied forces seized large parts of an important district in rebel-held eastern Aleppo on Saturday but fierce fighting for control of the residential area continued, rebels, pro-government media and a monitor said. Government forces have advanced with a ground and air assault on the edge of the besieged eastern half of the city, a move the rebels say is designed to split their […]
LONDON A Heinz television advert showing people drumming a rhythm on its baked bean cans has been banned by British regulators on safety grounds. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled that Heinz’s “Can Song” advert should not be broadcast again in its current form after nine people complained that the ad encouraged unsafe practices or could be dangerous for children to copy. Over 1.6 million people viewed […]
