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Cisco router break-ins bypass cyber defences

The Cisco Systems logo is seen as part of a display at the Microsoft Ignite technology conference in Chicago, Illinois, May 4, 2015. Reuters/Jim Young/Files FRANKFURT Security researchers say they have uncovered clandestine attacks across three continents on the routers that direct traffic around the Internet, potentially allowing suspected cyberspies to harvest vast amounts of data while going undetected. In the attacks, a highly sophisticated form of […]

Ola raises $222.5 million in fresh funding round

Bhavish Aggarwal, CEO and co-founder of Ola, an app-based cab service provider, poses in front of an Ola cab in Mumbai March 3, 2015. Reuters/Shailesh Andrade/Files MUMBAI Ola, India’s biggest taxi-hailing service, has raised 14.78 billion rupees ($222.5 million) in a fresh round of funding from investors led by New York-based Falcon Edge Capital, about six months after the company raised $400 million from investors led by […]

Lebanon outlook revised to negative on weakening economic prospects; 'B-/B' ratings affirmed

LEBANON. On Sept. 11, 2015, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services revised its outlook on the Republic of Lebanon to negative from stable. At the same time, we affirmed our ‘B-/B’ long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings. RATIONALE The outlook revision stems from our view that political uncertainty in Lebanon and regional tensions will continue to weigh on economic growth in the mediumterm. In […]

Islamic State Ordnance Shows Traces of Chemical Agents, U.S. Says

Middle East By C. J. CHIVERS and ERIC SCHMITT September 11, 2015 The United States has confirmed the presence of traces of sulfur mustard, a chemical warfare agent, on fragments of ordnance recently used by the Islamic State in attacks in Syria and Iraq, according to two American officials familiar with the results of laboratory analysis of the samples. The laboratory tests, which were also performed on scraps of clothing from victims, […]

GoDaddy prevails in lawsuit over Oscar trademarks

A NASCAR vehicle is seen parked out front during web hosting company GoDaddy’s initial public offering (IPO) at the New York Stock Exchange April 1, 2015. Reuters/Brendan McDermid/Files GoDaddy Inc (GDDY.N) prevailed in a cybersquatting lawsuit brought by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which accused the Internet domain registrar of illegally profiting off its trademarks, including for the Oscar telecasts. In a 129-page decision […]

Huawei launches centre for smarter energy solutions in Saudi

Huawei, a leading information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, has launched a new Joint Innovation Center (JIC) in Saudi Arabia together with Saudi Aramco and King Fahad University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM). Located in Dhahran Techno Valley Innovation Center, the centre will be dedicated to the oil and gas industry, jointly working with the leading oil and gas company and the university, said a statement. […]

UAE rallies to support families of fallen Emirati soldiers

ABU DHABI // As Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed continued to meet the families of the 45 servicemen who were killed in Yemen one week ago, charitable organisations and leaders have offered to provide support to their families. Sheikh Mohammed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, met bereaved families in Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah. And, in the capital, Sheikh Rashid […]

Paper Drawing App Now Available on the iPhone

New York-based developer FiftyThree today launched Paper version 3.0, calling the new version of the note-taking program the biggest update in the app’s history. The free app brings all of a user’s text notes, lists, photos, and sketches together, providing a space to collect ideas in any form the user prefers. The updated version of the three-year-old app comes with support for the Apple iPhone and several […]

Apple: New Upgrade Program Key To iPhone 6s, 6s Plus Release

Hillary Clinton Backs Iran Nuclear Deal, With Caveats

Video The Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton backed the Iran deal in a speech at the Brookings Institution in Washington on Wednesday. By DAVID E. SANGER and AMY CHOZICK September 9, 2015 WASHINGTON — Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday embraced the Iran nuclear deal that she paved the way for as secretary of state, but said it would work only “as part of a larger strategy toward Iran” that contained the […]

Republican Revolt Stalls House Debate on Iran Nuclear Deal

Middle East By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN September 9, 2015 WASHINGTON — House Republican leaders on Wednesday postponed debate on President Obama’s landmark nuclear accord with Iran amid a revolt by some Republicans who claimed the White House had not disclosed secret side agreements on the deal. The delay of the historic debate because of Republican infighting opened a new twist in the White House’s effort to move forward with the […]

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed visits injured soldiers

ABU DHABI // Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, led condolences for 45 soldiers killed on Friday in Yemen, with a visit to some of the servicemen injured in the attack. Sheikh Mohammed visited the men at Zayed Military Hospital. He praised the soldiers’ steadfastness, heroism and dedication while defending their rights and supporting their brothers […]

Fed, bank stocks and Wall Street bears

|By Matein Khalid| The Federal Reserve could well raise its overnight borrowing rate at the next FOMC monetary policy conclave on September 17. Though contagion from China’s 40% stock market meltdown has triggered bear markets from Hong Kong to Frankfurt and plunged Asian/emerging markets equities into ta ghastly replay of 1998’s epic meltdown (General Suharto’s overthrow, the Russian rouble default, Malaysia’s capital controls, the run on the […]

Dick Cheney Denounces Nuclear Deal With Iran as ‘Madness’

WASHINGTON — Former Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday rallied Republican opposition to President Obama’s agreement with Iran, denouncing it as a “shameful deal” that would risk a new Holocaust and possibly lead to the first nuclear attack since Nagasaki. In a full-throated speech to supporters at the American Enterprise Institute here, Mr. Cheney argued that Mr. Obama and his team had abandoned their own criteria for […]

A New Wave of Migrants Flees Iraq, Yearning for Europe

BAGHDAD — Having sold his car for $4,600, and then some of his wife’s jewelry, and having loaded his smartphone with photographs of his five children, all that was left for Haider Abdella to do was say goodbye. “From yesterday to today, we are crying,” he said. His mother sat next to him on the couch, sobbing. “He’s never left me before, from when he was a […]

Obama and Saudi King Sidestep Dispute Over Iran Nuclear Deal

Middle East Video The president and King Salman of Saudi Arabia met at the White House to discuss topics including the Iran nuclear deal and the conflict in Syria. By PETER BAKER September 4, 2015 WASHINGTON — President Obama and King Salman of Saudi Arabia met at the White House on Friday in hopes of moving past their differences four months after the king refused the president’s invitation to […]

Exodus of Syrians Highlights Political Failure of the West

Middle East Refugees from Syria walked down the railway in Horgos, Serbia, on Sunday before crossing into Hungary. By ANNE BARNARD September 4, 2015 BEIRUT, Lebanon — Arresting images of desperation on the West’s doorstep have brought Syria, for the moment, back to worldwide attention: refugees cramming into train stations and climbing border fences; drowned Syrian toddlers washing up on beaches, a girl in polka dots, a boy in […]

Automakers, Google take different roads to automated cars

DETROIT From his laboratory at Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Mellon University, automated vehicle pioneer Raj Rajkumar says self-driving cars will evolve step-by-step, with humans staying in charge for a long time to come.     More than 2,500 miles west in Mountain View, California, Chris Urmson, head of Google Inc’s self-driving car program since 2009, has a different view: A fully automated vehicle that requires no input or intervention from humans is […]

Obama Clinches Vote to Secure Iran Nuclear Deal

WASHINGTON — Senator Barbara Mikulski of Maryland on Wednesday came out in support of President Obama’s Iran nuclear accord, the 34th Democrat in favor. Her decision gave Mr. Obama the votes needed to assure the deal will survive a congressional challenge. “Some have suggested we reject this deal and impose unilateral sanctions to force Iran back to the table. But maintaining or stepping up sanctions will only […]

U.S. Remains the Great Satan, Hard-Liners in Iran Say

Middle East President Hassan Rouhani of Iran, arrives on Tuesday at a session of the Assembly of Experts,  the country’s top clerical body in charge of appointing, supervising and even dismissing the supreme leader. By THOMAS ERDBRINK September 1, 2015 TEHRAN — Flexing their muscles, some of the toughest anti-American voices in Iran said on Tuesday that the United States remains their country’s top enemy, guilty of “uncountable” crimes. […]

Memo From the West Bank: In West Bank, Speculation Abounds Over Mahmoud Abbas’s Plans

Middle East Memo From the West Bank In the 10th year of a four-year term in the absence of national elections, Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, has lost the public’s confidence. A poll published on Tuesday showed trust in him falling to 16 percent from 22 percent in March. By JODI RUDOREN September 1, 2015 RAMALLAH, West Bank — Mahmoud Abbas, the aging Palestinian president, may be paving the way […]

Grateful Yemenis return home

ABU DHABI // Yemenis who were injured in their country’s conflict have recovered after receiving treatment in the UAE. The 36 Yemenis have flown home. They were among a group of 100 injured who were brought to the UAE with the cooperation of the Emirates Red Crescent and the Armed Forces. The remaining patients are still undergoing treatment, including surgery in some cases. A team from the […]

Iran Sentences Two Charged With Spying to 10 Years in Prison

TEHRAN — Iran’s judiciary sentenced two people to 10 years in prison on Sunday for spying for the United States and Israel, but their names were not released, local media reported. It was not clear if the Iranian-American reporter Jason Rezaian, who faces similar charges, was one of them. It is not uncommon in Iran to hand down sentences without revealing names of the convicted, especially in […]

Europe fails on electronics recycling goals

Neon tubes are placed in a trash can in Vincennes near Paris May 22, 2009. Reuters/Charles Platiau/Files OSLO Only a third of Europe’s electronic waste is properly recycled, with vast numbers of cellphones, computers and televisions illegally traded or dumped, a study led by the United Nations and INTERPOL said on Sunday. Sweden and Norway were close to European targets of collecting and recycling 85 percent of […]